Britain to legalize medicinal use of cannabis

 

FILE PHOTO: Charlotte Caldwell, and her son Billy, sit outside the Home Office during a break in a meeting with officials to discuss how Billy can have his severe epilepsy treated with cannabis oil, which is a banned substance in Britain, in London, June 11, 2018. REUTERS/Peter Nicholls/File Photo

 

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain is to allow doctors to prescribe medicinal cannabis, following a relaxation of the law governing drugs derived from the banned plant.

 

Interior minister Sajid Javid said on Thursday that specialist physicians would be able to prescribe cannabis-derived medicinal products from the autumn. Recreational use will remain prohibited.

 

The decision follows the high-profile case of a 12-year-old boy with severe epilepsy who was denied access tocannabis oil, which prompted a national debate and reviews by experts.

 

"Recent cases involving sick children made it clear to me that our position on cannabis-related medicinal products was not satisfactory," Javid said.

 

"Following advice from two sets of independent advisers, I have taken the decision to reschedule cannabis-derived medicinal products – meaning they will be available on prescription."

 

Scientists say evidence is growing that cannabis can ease epilepsy and other conditions - such as chronic pain, multiple sclerosis and chemotherapy-induced nausea - prompting renewed interest in the field.

 

Last month GW Pharmaceuticals, which has spent 20 years developing medicines from cannabis, won U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the first marijuana plant-derived drug.

 

Several countries, including Germany, Italy and Denmark, already allow the prescription of medicinal cannabis and last month Canada became the second country in the world to fully legalize marijuana, ending 90 years of prohibition.

 

(Reporting by Ben Hirschler; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-07-27

"...Recreational use will remain prohibited..."

 

That should likely read 'recreational use will remain prohibited for now'. Once the stigma begins to be lifted, full legalization is a matter of time.

 

Welcome to the future, UK!

 

1 hour ago, Samui Bodoh said:

"...Recreational use will remain prohibited..."

 

That should likely read 'recreational use will remain prohibited for now'. Once the stigma begins to be lifted, full legalization is a matter of time.

 

Welcome to the future, UK!

 

This is exactly right, the state I came from in the US did exactly the same thing, first it was legal for medical use then went to recreational use being legalized.....it's only a matter of time between the two.

Rules for recreational use have been relaxed for over a decade in the UK.

When I  last worked in a scene of crime office back in 2006 possession of an amount judged to be for only personal consumption warranted only a caution.

 

 

Good news for my dad who had the onset of dementia last year. He has been taking cannabis oil drops for a while and the anxiety and shaking he first suffered has eased remarkably.

better late than never

Makes perfect sense given the fact that a huge range of chemical compounds used in modern medicines are plant based or derivatives of plant compounds. 

 

I would also go one step further and say that all drugs - hard and soft should be legalized and produced / regulated by governments. I would rather those who choose to take drugs can be assured of the quality and also that the money that users pay for their drugs goes into the government coffers (via taxation) rather than into the hands of criminal organisations which reap vast profits and leave society to clean up the mess or funnel it into other criminal activities.

 

Drug use (and abuse)  is a social issue not a criminal one as such, it needs to be wrested from the clutches of criminals and controlled by society. 

24 minutes ago, edwinchester said:

Rules for recreational use have been relaxed for over a decade in the UK.

When I  last worked in a scene of crime office back in 2006 possession of an amount judged to be for only personal consumption warranted only a caution.

 

 

In use more than most people realise, I cycle and walk, quite frequently pick up a whiff of 'herbal' cigarettes.

it is becoming obvious that the establishment plans to legalise weed very soon for recreational use to allow the people of the disgruntled West to anesthetise themselves  to escape the destruction of their countries via  the loss of Christianity, authority, the family, patriarchy, hierarchy, morality, tradition, sexual restraint, loyalty, patriotism, nationalism, heredity, ethnocentrism, convention and conservatism.

20 minutes ago, johnnyonesock said:

it is becoming obvious that the establishment plans to legalise weed very soon for recreational use to allow the people of the disgruntled West to anesthetise themselves  to escape the destruction of their countries via  the loss of Christianity, authority, the family, patriarchy, hierarchy, morality, tradition, sexual restraint, loyalty, patriotism, nationalism, heredity, ethnocentrism, convention and conservatism.

I think weed wakes people up to the dangers of authority,  patriarchy, hierarchy, morality, tradition, sexual restraint, loyalty, patriotism, nationalism, heredity, ethnocentrism, convention and conservatism.  It is a funny old world and I'm not trying to pick a fight.  Just amusing that we have such opposite ideas.

Edited July 27, 20187 yr by ricklev

2 minutes ago, ricklev said:

I think weed wakes people up to the dangers of authority,  patriarchy, hierarchy, morality, tradition, sexual restraint, loyalty, patriotism, nationalism, heredity, ethnocentrism, convention and conservatism.  It is a funny old world and I'm not trying to pick a fight.  Just amusing that we have such opposite ideas.

 The West is now built upon multiple fantasies such as:

    Diversity is good for the country
    There are no differences between the races
    The border can remain wide open indefinitely and an unlimited number of invaders can move in with no ill effects
    Sexuality is voluntary, not built in at birth
    The family can be destroyed and replaced with recreational sex without damage to the culture

16 minutes ago, johnnyonesock said:

 The West is now built upon multiple fantasies such as:

    Diversity is good for the country
    There are no differences between the races
    The border can remain wide open indefinitely and an unlimited number of invaders can move in with no ill effects
    Sexuality is voluntary, not built in at birth
    The family can be destroyed and replaced with recreational sex without damage to the culture

Strange it's only a fantasy propagated in white-ruled countries.

It's almost as if someone is trying to remove the white race from the earth (white genocide).

 

But I'm not sure this has anything to do with the OP.

I like cannabis, and smoke a lot when living in the UK, does it really need to be legalized?

It seems to be openly available everywhere (usually the smoking hut behind the pub).

Edited July 27, 20187 yr by BritManToo