Possession of cannabis soared throughout the lockdowns but has now fallen below pre-pandemic levels - as Home Secretary Suella Braverman considers making “weed” a Class A drug. Ms Braverman reportedly told allies she is on the “same side” as a group of Conservative police and crime commissioners (PCCs) who have called for the drug to be put on par with cocaine.
Upgrading cannabis from Class B would see the maximum penalties for possession increase from five years to seven years, while the maximum penalty for supply would rise from 14 years to a life sentence. The government is already consulting on tougher penalties that could see recreational drug users lose their passports and driving licences.
It comes as the latest Home Office figures show that crimes of possession of cannabis have fallen by 21% in England and Wales, to 106,814 crimes recorded in the year ending March 2022. Before the pandemic, in the year ending March 2020, police recorded 113,689 crimes of possession of cannabis in England and Wales.
