BRITISH troops are being prescribed with a controversial drug which has been blamed for making US pilots "trigger-happy" and causing friendly fire deaths. The Ministry of Defence has admitted that it prescribes the amphetamine dexedrine, which is capable of keeping users awake for as long as 60 hours. While the MoD has refused to say what it uses the Class B drug for, leading narcotics experts say that the main purpose is to keep soldiers awake during special operations. However, they have warned that the substance can be highly addictive. [continues 541 words]
CANNABIS is set to be used in the battle against deadly brain cancers that affect around 4,000 people in the UK each year, it has emerged. Scientists have shown that cannabinoids - the active ingredients responsible for the drug's 'high' - hold back the growth of blood vessels which feed tumours. Tumours of the brain and the central nervous system kill about 340 Scots each year, and many more undergo extensive surgery in a bid to save their lives. The cannabis findings hold out hope for brain tumour sufferers that they could live longer and be treated using less invasive techniques. [continues 699 words]
FEMALE drug addicts will be given long-term contraceptives under plans being considered by ministers. The Scottish Executive has said it is examining plans which were drawn up last year which would see drug users given long-lasting contraceptives, such as injections and coils in order to prevent them having unwanted pregnancies. The admission, comes in the wake of dramatic proposals by a leading academic which would see women on drugs paid to go on contraceptives. But a spokesman for the Executive said ministers did not envisage paying addicts not to have children, and no-one would be forced to have contraception. He explained that the Hidden Harm report, which was published last June, suggested long-term contraception for drug addicts as one of a number of recommendations. [continues 183 words]
MULTIPLE sclerosis sufferers are set to get painkillers made with cannabis on the NHS by the end of the year, Scotland on Sunday can reveal. Tests on an oral spray called Sativex have been completed and are being reviewed by regulators. If, as expected, they rule the painkiller should be approved, the law will be changed to allow the cannabis-based drug - the first of its kind - to be prescribed by doctors. The developers of the drug, GW Pharmaceuticals, claim trials have shown that the spray eases pain, gives MS sufferers control over their muscles and allows them to sleep. Its effects on other people who suffer severe, chronic pain are also being examined. [continues 739 words]
A FORMER High Court judge called last night for cannabis to be legalised and the drug supplied in the same way as alcohol and tobacco. Speaking days after the case against a multiple sclerosis sufferer accused of supplying cannabis was abandoned, Lord Prosser said the current laws on the Class B drug were unenforceable and should be scrapped. Lord Prosser, who retired from the Bench in October, is the most senior Scottish legal figure to call for the legalisation of cannabis. Government policy is to effectively decriminalise the drug by reclassifying it from B to C. [continues 604 words]
A WHEELCHAIR-using multiple sclerosis sufferer is facing a year in prison following allegations she baked cannabis-laced chocolates and sent them to fellow MS patients. Biz Ivol, 54, whose condition has left her house-bound in her Orkney home, has been charged with supplying cannabis. If found guilty, she could face up to 12 months in jail. Ivol's friends say she is extremely distressed by the police move, which has been condemned by politicians and cannabis campaigners. Ivol's friend, Andrew Caldwell, said: "She's very perplexed, very upset, and very bemused at the thought of being prosecuted. She is very stressed. When I saw her she put on a very brave face but she is in turmoil at the prospect of appearing in court. That stress is itself not doing her any good, it is known that stress exacerbates the symptoms of MS. [continues 485 words]
She put an ounce and a half in every bar. But now Biz Ivol - the Orkney woman who popularised cannabis chocolate - is giving up her career as a confectioner of Class-Bs. Ivol's deteriorating health means it is no longer possible for her to post free cannabis-laced chocolates to fellow sufferers of multiple sclerosis. But the 53-year-old, whose home was raided by police in August this year, has passed on her recipe to friends in England, and has vowed to defy the authorities by continuing to grow the drug. [continues 464 words]
Police have effectively abandoned the targeting of cannabis dealers to concentrate on heroin and cocaine, the Scottish Executive confirmed last night. Official figures obtained by Scotland on Sunday reveal that while police forces are confiscating ever-increasing amounts of `Class A' drugs, including heroin, seizures of "soft" drugs have fallen by up to 90%. Although ministers have refused to tone down their official line on cannabis, behind the scenes they have encouraged chief constables to throw their full resources into the battle against hard drugs. [continues 588 words]
