Aberdeen Drugs Professor Roger Pertwee Calls For Legalised Cannabis

[MedicalNeed]

LEGALISE cannabis! So says Professor Roger Pertwee. He says that the current laws aren't working. The approach is doing no good.

Says Pertwee, Professor of Neuropharmacology and Director of Pharmacology, GW Pharmaceuticals at Aberdeen University, whose research focuses on the pharmacology of cannabinoids and its therapeutic potential:

"I'm talking about harm minimisation. At the moment there is an awful lot of harm caused by what we have at the moment, with children going to a drug dealer or they try and grow it themselves and then they get into trouble with the law."

Indeed. And not only children. Before we go on, it canto have passed you by that GW Pharmaceuticals is a AIM-listed company that:

...is to be the global leader in prescription cannabinoid medicines, through the rapid cost-effective development of pharmaceutical products which address clear unmet patient needs.

And the Prof is "a member of GW's senior management team as Director of Pharmacology".

This is not to say Pertwee does not believe in his research. He adds:

"And by dealing with criminals they may well go on to other drugs as well".

Again, he makes sense. You take the risk of selling one illegal drug so why not sell others, too? The remedy is the legalised sale of recreational cannabis:

"You would have to think about licensing a suitable supplier and have retail outlets and the next step would be to have marketable, branded products that someone wants to use. At the same time it's got to be as safe as possible."

And the manufacturers could develop weed that minimises damage to lungs and other organs. Competition among producers will raise standards.
And cannabis should be inhaled as vapour. No burning means less carcinogens. It's all sensible stuff. Professor Pertwee is a realist with ideas on how to improve the situation. He adds:

"Ideally, recreational cannabis would be banned but that's not going to happen so we're now in a situation where there is quite a lot of harm done by recreational cannabis and what we've got to do is think about a way of reducing that harm".

Yes. And then there is thorny issue of medical cannabis, to alleviate depression, pain and the symptoms of illnesses like MS.

All good stuff. It's time to try something else. So. What says you Home Office spokesman?

"There is clear evidence that cannabis is a harmful drug which can cause damage to mental health in the immediate and longer-term. Even the occasional use of cannabis can be dangerous for people with diseases of the circulatory system."

Yes. Yes. We know all this. But the law's not working. The argument needs to move on...

"The Government does not believe that decriminalisation of cannabis is the right approach. Our priorities are clear: we want to reduce drug use, crack down on drug related crime and disorder and help addicts come off drugs for good."

Crack down on drug related crime?! Any idea how they can achieve that lofty goal? Anyone? Anyone..?


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