You Cannabis Serious?

A Lib Dem councillor has sparked controversy after suggesting that cannabis is so rife in Cambridge that the city should open a marijuana “ghetto”, effectively legalising the Class B drug.

Brown’s comments have caused quite a stir

The beautiful green spaces of Cambridge have taken on a whole new level of meaning, according to Cambridge City Councillor Sarah Brown. In the Petersfield area of the city and neighbouring Romsey, she claims that it is impossible to walk more than 100 metres without smelling marijuana.

Speaking at the east area committee on Tuesday, Cllr Brown said that the Cambridgeshire Constabulary should stop targeting use of the drug and suggested they focus their attention on more serious substances.

Brown expanded her views on Twitter on Thursday evening, saying: “The wards are more or less awash with it, I wonder if it’s a good use of resources to go after this. People do grow their own. It’s obvious a lot of the smell is plants, not smoke.”

Cannabis is, at present, a class B drug in Britain. Those caught in possession of it usually escape prison with a written warning, but anyone growing the plant can receive up to 8 years in prison.

Fellow councillors did not seem to agree with Cllr Brown, whilst some residents of her ward described her ideas as “ridiculous.”

Local hairdresser Piero D’Angelico said: “If someone is walking along smoking cannabis and you can smell it, you can’t blame the whole road.

“This is an outrageous thing for the councillor to say and is very unhelpful.”

Big issues: Brown believes the issue stretches beyond Cambridge

One Cambridge student, who has ‘dabbled’ in the past, agreed with Brown’s estimation of the drug’s “omnipresence”.

“If you are not hooked on caffeine, you’re on cannabis – and each habit is as easy to fuel as the other.”

Roll one up: a survey conducted by the Daily Mail last year revealed that one in seven Cambridge students has sold drugs during their time at university

In this vein, Cllr Brown stressed the irrationality behind the current dogmatic drugs policy and the waste of resources it encourages.

However, as Adam Chatham, a 33 year-old web designer, said: “If you don’t have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to drugs then everyone will start taking advantage of it.”

Either way, thanks to these latest comments, Cambridge students now know where the drugs hotspots lie. The Petersfield ward is just past Hughes Hall and also encroaches on ARU territory… not that we’re pointing any fingers. Let’s just say that the graduate college isn’t exactly renowned for its bohemian, Rastafarian lifestyle.

The scene of the crime…

If exam stress is getting to you next term, Cllr Brown recommends a trip to Petersfield. We at The Tab, of course, do not.