Report: Britain won't reclassify cannabis

LONDON, Jan. 18 (UPI) -- British Home Secretary Charles Clarke is expected to rule out reclassifying cannabis, despite new concern about its side effects, it was reported.

Clarke's predecessor, David Blunkett downgraded cannabis from Class B status to the less serious Class C. In the interim, however, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs has concluded in an unpublished report that the mental health impact of smoking super-strong varieties of marijuana is more serious than previously thought.

Clarke is expected launch a major public information campaign, the Evening Standard reported, rather than add to public confusion by changing the classification.

The council reportedly stopped short of recommending reclassification, the newspaper said, and many drugs experts believe reclassifying cannabis back to Class B status would be counterproductive.

The council reportedly concluded that the risk of someone developing a schizophreniform illness -- characterized by a variety of symptoms including delusions, hallucinations and disorganized speech or behavior -- as a result of using cannabis is very small.

"The harmfulness of cannabis to the individual remains substantially less than the harmfulness caused by substances currently controlled under the act as Class B," the report found.