Pubdate: Sun, 25 Jul 2004 Source: Mirror, The (UK) Copyright: 2004 The Mirror Contact: http://www.mirror.co.uk/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1161 Author: Paul Gilfeather Cited: Drugscope http://www.drugscope.org.uk/ Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?207 (Cannabis - United Kingdom) PLUNGE IN CANNABIS ARRESTS ARRESTS for cannabis possession have dropped by a third after the drug was reclassified from Class B to the less serious Class C last January, new figures will reveal this week. Home Office insiders said police can now spend 200,000 extra hours every year fighting hard drugs. A Whitehall source added: "Their time is much better spent tackling those peddling Class A drugs like heroin." The charity Drugscope welcomed the figures but a spokesman said: "People should not be misled into thinking that cannabis use has dropped by 33 per cent." A quarter of 16 to 24-year-olds use the drug - more than twice the world average. Reclassification means they are unlikely to be arrested if caught. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake