how and why is a company allowed to grow on such a massive scale when it is still supposed to be illegal to do so?
Over the past few months there have been a number of events which have triggered seismic rumblings across the UK. News reports have begun to highlight the case for medicinal cannabis in relation to a few high-profile cases which have captured the hearts and minds of the population, bringing attention to the multitude of potential benefits, while activists have taken to the streets in protest at the government’s lack of inaction and argued that it is entirely hypocritical that high-profile members of the political world (including the Prime Minister, Theresa May, through her husband’s investments in GW Pharmaceuticals) are making a profit from selling cannabis-based medicine to the rest of the world whilst continuing to proclaim that the plant itself possesses no redeeming factors and should retain its label as a ‘dangerous drug’. Amongst this strange circus of events, we have to ask the question of what the future is likely to hold and determine whether or not this sudden flash of attention is going to help or hinder the common goal.
As it stands, cannabis is still a schedule-1 substance in the UK which carries with it criminal charges for possession, cultivation and distribution. Despite the continued reports from around the world from clinical trials, medicinal prescriptions and moves towards legalization and decriminalization we are constantly reminded by the media and the government officials that there is ‘no medicinal value’ to cannabis and that there is ‘no evidence to suggest otherwise.’ In the age of communication, when anyone in possession of even minor technological skills can go online and find endless streams of information to the contrary, it’s baffling to see such inane and vacuous lies being peddled out by identical android MPs who seem intent to maintain the standard mantra for this type of rhetoric.
As if this type of nonsense isn’t frustrating enough, the UK Drugs Minister, Victoria Atkins MP, has argued for prohibition to remain by suggesting that it would play into the hands of ‘gun-toting criminals’ whilst robustly upholding the line that cannabis has ‘no therapeutic value.’ You may think that this is exactly the kind of thing a Drugs Minister would argue, however, Ms Atkins seems to have neglected one key fact when it comes to this kind of information: her husband (yes, I know I said Ms Atkins) is none other than the managing director of British Sugar (an apparently legal cannabis cultivation firm in the UK which grows for GW Pharmaceuticals), Paul Kenward. The whole time she demonizes a plant, she is living off the profits of its cultivation for the sole purpose of making medicine that can be sold to the rest of the world at a huge profit, yet she would happily see someone locked up for trying to grow cannabis to make their own medicine. How can we respect this kind of hypocritical madness?
In all honesty, the real issue here lies beneath the usual political spin: how and why is a company allowed to grow on such a massive scale when it is still supposed to be illegal to do so? It is my understanding (and I know that I am not always right) that GW Pharmaceutical received a license to grow non-psychoactive strains for the purposes of research in the late 90s, but nothing official has ever been released about how they are now able to grow (and license others to grow) for the purpose of making a product for retail (albeit medicinal). In recent news, there have been a number of reports linking applications for patents for cannabis medicines to the UK’s answer to Big Pharma (which is basically run by the US version) which would suggest that the multinational pharmaceutical companies are hoping to further assert their dominance by either capitalizing on a mass-profit medicinal market (whilst continuing to restrict our freedom to cultivate) or laying down the foundations for a retail product which will likely be factory-produced and will therefore maintain the status quo for us normal folk. While this may just be hypothetical at this stage, the chances of a fair and reasonable market in the UK look increasingly unlikely.
On the other side of the coin, the endless fight for change continues to gather strength. A number of separate cases concerning cannabis and children have helped to motivate more of the general population into accepting that there is more to the plant than drug dealers and vacant stoners and this type of story is crucial in widening the debate. In the first case, Callie Blackwell gained notoriety when she admitted to giving cannabis to her dying son, Deryn, as a form of pain relief (although the tabloids jumped on this to proclaim that she inferred that it ‘cured his cancer’) and it potentially helped his body return to a level of homeostasis which, in turn, kick-started his weakened immune system. Soon after this, stories surfaced in relation to Charlotte Caldwell who used cannabis to help control the intense seizures which were ravaging her son, Billy. Most recently, the parents of Alfie Dingley were successful in their application for prescribed cannabis after the new Home Secretary, Sajid Javid, unexpectedly announced that he wanted to provide them with access to the medicine they require and also explained that he recognized that there was a need to review the law on medicinal cannabis in the UK. All of these parents fought for their families, as any parent would, but their bravery has inspired others to reconsider what lengths they would go to if it was their child who was in need.
The methods behind these cases has been varied which has caused some people to question if one course of action is better than another. Callie Blackwell has been very vocal on social media and has also been heavily involved in protesting the government’s stance on cannabis, leading up to the arrest of her, her husband and Jeff Ditchfield of Bud Buddies outside of parliament. Some parties have voiced their opinion that this kind of effort is detrimental to the collective efforts of campaigners, but this type of grass-roots, in-your-face activism is what the fight for cannabis has been built upon. If people are prepared to take risks and go against the grain they can often inspire others to follow suit and getting arrested for trying to help people see the truth should be seen as an honourable act.
Conversely, Charlotte Caldwell has approached the issue through open discussion and has built up a rapport with politicians, doctors and the police in Ireland as she has fought for her son’s treatment. Many have praised her softly-softly approach to the issue, however she unexpectedly made the headlines recently when she was found to be ‘smuggling’ medicine into the country from Canada after the Home Office contacted her to say that she could no longer access her son’s life-saving medicine legally via a prescription. Ms Caldwell was entirely open about the process and informed customs officials of her intentions, and the hope is that this case moves the debate forward and inspires change.
What has surprised me most about these events is that people are increasingly concerned with online in-fighting and name-calling than looking at the bigger picture and all-too-often we see the debate deteriorating into playground tactics that detract from the issue at hand. In the past few weeks, during one of the hottest summers on record in the UK, we have seen physical and verbal attacks on people involved in the quest for legalization, decriminalization and medicinal access to cannabis. In my opinion, each approach has its place in the grand scheme of things but negative press is always going to cause people to question the legitimacy of our collective cause.
With the current political landscape it is uncertain exactly how things will play out over the coming years, but we need to remain vigilant and ensure that we don’t allow the issue to become diluted by the desires of profiteering. My greatest fear is that we turn against each other and lose sight of the real enemy. Every voice that speaks out is a power for the greater good and we will always recognize those who fight for change, but can’t we all just get along?
Originally published in Weed World Magazine Issue 136
Image – energepic.com