Legalising Cannabis

[Dale42]

I see that a few MP's are pushing for the legal selling of cannabis, suggesting the sale will help raise much needed tax for the country, and helping to reduce the drug problem.

There are, of course well documented health benefits to cannabis, but are the benefits for the few outweighed by the drug abuse, long term mental health issues associated with cannabis use, and the potential for requirement to seek stronger drugs worth the risks of legalising it?

[Daisy82]

It seems there is strong support for the medical use of cannabis, just not for recreational use.

I think if there is strong evidence for its use in medicine then it should be available.

[sophie]

So what are the benefits for medical use? Surely, if there are recommendations for medical use it will be already be available, wouldn't it?

[Teri23]

I see there is some evidence to suggest that cannabis can slow down cancer tumours, if this is the case it should be readily available. Why has it not been treated like any other drug? Just because it is abused shouldn't mean it should not be available for the greater good.

[Yogi001]

Cannabis has been shown to be beneficial for lung cancer.

[CharlieH]

I have to admit, I never realised there are health benefits. I just thought that what people said while trying to justify their habit! ;)

[Yogi001]

There are loads of benefits, including treating depression and to help with coming off addictions, which seems ironic.

[John B]

I thought cannabis causes hallucinations, anxiety, addiction, paranoia amongst many other things. So how do you weigh the pro's and cons?

[love2shop]

I'm sure there are health benefits, but I think legalising cannabis is a slippery slope to more, stronger drugs.

[Gwen Jones]

Have you seen the latest Lib dems campaign? They are going to legalise cannabis to raise taxes to help pay for front line services! REALLY!

Is that what we have come to now? What makes him/them think that sudden the black market will dry up? Surely people will continue to get their drugs from their supplier than from the local shop where VAT has been added to the price!!! Unbelievable!

[Dale42]

Have you seen the latest Lib dems campaign? They are going to legalise cannabis to raise taxes

I'm genuinely saddened to see this headline. There has been a debate running for many years regarding the safety of legalising cannabis, and rightly so. All avenues of pro's and con's shoud be considered. But, to just legalise it purely raise benefits if unforgivable. Surely we should look at where all the money raised is going and whether it would be better spent elsewhere.

[CharlieH]

Do the Lib Dems have any credibility as a party? It seems their policies are just about sound bites.

[Esme]

Have you seen that video on web showing 'Larry' who suffers from Parkinson's? He has terrible shakes, tries cannabis and his spasms improve dramatically.

Watching that video it is hard to dispute the medicinal importance of this drug, there are cases where this drug offers great health benefits.

[Louise]

Have you seen that video on web showing 'Larry' who suffers from Parkinson's? He has terrible shakes, tries cannabis and his spasms improve dramatically.

Watching that video it is hard to dispute the medicinal importance of this drug, there are cases where this drug offers great health benefits.

HI Esme,

I think this is the video you are referring to. Larry has great relief from his symptoms from the us of medicinal cannabis.

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/zNT8Zo_sfwo" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Tanya]

Great result for Larry, but what was that he used? Is the same cannabis off the street? Or is it a controlled version used specifically for medicine?

[Megan]

Cannabis is not recognised as having therapeutic value according to the law in England and Wales, however under certain conditions you can get a drug called Sativex (http://www.release.org.uk/law/uks-law-medical-cannabis), which is a cannabis based product and can help those people with spasms.

[Rainbow]

It will be interesting to see if the document-series changes the laws in the U.K.

Ignorance and fear has kept cannabis from being legalised, this fear is spread by those in the industry that have a lot to lose with cannabis being legalised.