Police not about to go potty for cannabis just yet

North Yorkshire Police say they won’t be taking it easy on cannabis users any time soon.
North Yorkshire Police are not going to turn a  blind eye to cannabis use like one force plans on doing.North Yorkshire Police are not going to turn a  blind eye to cannabis use like one force plans on doing.
North Yorkshire Police are not going to turn a blind eye to cannabis use like one force plans on doing.

The force say that “nothing has changed” in regards to its no-nonsense stance on the Class B drug.

The Scarborough News asked the force to clarify its position after police up North said they would no longer pursue pot smokers and small-time dealers.

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Durham Constabulary say its limited resources are better spent tackling serious crime.

Cannabis plants found in a police raid on a Halifax houseCannabis plants found in a police raid on a Halifax house
Cannabis plants found in a police raid on a Halifax house

The decision was made by Durham’s Police and Crime Commissioner Ron Hogg, who said the move would cut costs and stop people picking up potentially devastating criminal records for smoking a spliff.

But his North Yorkshire equivalent Julia Mulligan doesn’t share his stance.

Residents of North Yorkshire would expect their police service to uphold the law, and that includes on drugs,” said the Conservative commissioner.

“I expect no different.

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“Drugs can blight communities and we have seen in Scarborough the proactive work on drug enforcement which has been welcomed by residents and visitors.”

Commissioner Hogg’s controversial proposals effectively allow cannabis smokers to grow their own drugs - although his force will still target large-scale dealers.

He has asked for a meeting with Home Secretary Theresa May to discuss his radical proposals, which have been interpreted as the next step in what some say as the inevitable discrimination of the drug.

However, the Government’s police minister Mike Penning has already spoken out to remind the public using the drug is a crime.

And a police spokesperson added; “We will continue to uphold the law as it stands.

“Nothing has changed.”