If recreational cannabis is illegal, why do so many people smoke it out in public?

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Potential_Wasabi_861@reddit

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Financial-Wish1047@reddit

F2F MSG ME

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ComplaintSeveral7429@reddit

Cannabis has been legal since 2018, I believe. It needs to be bought through licenced medical cannabis providers with a prescription. This is separate to the NHS and doesn't go on your NHS record. Also, police don't walk around streets or parks anymore so there's no enforcement of this at all. Police are also given guidelines on reports and how to react. They won't turn up if it's reported. It's not worth their time or taxpayers money. It would have to be an issue like the smell is literally seeping into a neighbour's house for something to happen I believe. Just coming from Netherlands actually and there's the odd smoker strolling about, but most are actually more thoughtful of others and find a quiet spot by the rivers/canals etc. Ive had my doubts about the legalisation mostly because I could imagine high streets becoming even tackier, but to be fair, the smell doesn't leave the coffeeshops, there's no loitering, everyone's chill about it all.. the shops mostly don't look like shitty vape shops or off licences, so I'm mostly in favour, my only worry is Brits be Brits...

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ComplaintSeveral7429@reddit

Cannabis has been legal since 2018, I believe. It needs to be bought through licenced medical cannabis providers with a prescription. This is separate to the NHS and doesn't go on your NHS record. Also, police don't walk around streets or parks anymore so there's no enforcement of this at all. Police are also given guidelines on reports and how to react. They won't turn up if it's reported. It's not worth their time or taxpayers money. It would have to be an issue like the smell is literally seeping into a neighbour's house for something to happen I believe. Just coming from Netherlands actually and there's the odd smoker strolling about, but most are actually more thoughtful of others and find a quiet spot by the rivers/canals etc. Ive had my doubts about the legalisation mostly because I could imagine high streets becoming even tackier, but to be fair, the smell doesn't leave the coffeeshops, there's no loitering, everyone's chill about it all.. the shops mostly don't look like shitty vape shops or off licences, so I'm mostly in favour, my only worry is Brits be Brits...

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

Even though nothing is done about it, it still surprises me that people walk around in public absolutely stinking of skunk without a care in the world. I'd be as self conscious of the stink as bothered about the illegality

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Bubbly_Coach_8000@reddit

Right! I like getting a vape on genie cannabis because of the smell. It's a more discrete way to enjoy it without letting everyone know.

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Cheap_Interview_3795@reddit

It’s people at work I can’t understand. I’ve been in shops, offices and in cars where the person working stinks of weed. As a business owner I’d sack them immediately. You can’t work drink, so why high?

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Tough-Reality-842@reddit

As a former bar manager, I'm here to say that you can definitely work drunk.

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Tuscan5@reddit

I’m a lawyer. Would you be happy if I went to court to represent you drunk or high?

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PartyArgument9542@reddit

Im a doctor I can’t do that , it doesn’t mean you have to , I would like the option to take a week out in a season to chill

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Tough-Reality-842@reddit

I wouldn't be happy for you to represent me at all.

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

This is very true. I don't think it's too much of a big deal on the whole but in a work setting it's absolutely not acceptable. I do think *some* people on benefits purposely go to interviews stinking of week to avoid actually getting the job though

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avidflatearther@reddit

bit of a random and weird thing to say.

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

Oh yesssss

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ToastedCrumpet@reddit

You’d be surprised how many people are going to work drunk or high (on illegal or legal substances)

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-MassiveDynamic-@reddit

How else are you meant to do it?

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ToastedCrumpet@reddit

In a fugue state I guess

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gfoot9000@reddit

The weed smell is ambiguous and is not proof. I find many things give off a similar aroma; neoprene, hops, huge thai sticks

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si-gnalfire@reddit

Also sausages

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LeadershipAble773@reddit

I imagine, if that were the case, some businesses would have no employees at all lol

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gpeccadillo@reddit

> I’ve been in shops, offices and in cars where the person working stinks of weed. It's entirely possible those people have weed on their person which smell, and aren't actually stoned at the time.

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TheHeroYouNeed247@reddit

Weed smokers don't find the smell off putting. It seems nice to me.

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

It's probably more that weed smokers don't know that they stink. Also if you have young kids it can be quite awkward having to explain to them that the reason the spaced out guy in the tracksuit stinks is because of his addiction

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Adept-Panic-7742@reddit

How do you explain the pub you walk past every 5 minutes in town? Or the people smoking fags? Or the multitide of other actual hard addicts and homeless that full the streets? "Spaced out guy In a tracksuit" right yeah, the archetypal weed smoker. Your words there say everything about your narrow perspective. You think the guy slumped in a corner spaced out in the street is just smoking weed? 😂 And no, I barely every smoke it.

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PartyArgument9542@reddit

Bruv , I’ve seen fat 60 years Sikh aunties smoke weed before, girls in all different sizes , I’ve even seen hijabis smoke and buy weed before 😂😂

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AppropriateIdeal4635@reddit

They know they stink, but they just don’t really care about you or your kid who asks awkward questions, which is fair enough

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

Yeah there's a lot of people in the world who just 'exist' high on drugs these days and don't really contribute much of note

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xVENUSx@reddit

And what are you contributing? You had a kid, you didn't win the Nobel Prize.

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louwyatt@reddit

Wdyn by not contributing much? As I always find it funny when people say this when they work a job, a monkey could do.

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

I mean the ones who spend all day smoking and can't be arsed to work. Same applies to drinkers though to be fair.

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shammmmmmmmm@reddit

If you’re addicted to weed to the point you’re having it everyday, it is FAR too expensive to spend all day smoking and not working lol.

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pringellover9553@reddit

I used to smoke all day before I had a kid, and I did my job and I did it well. I made a lot of money on commission from my sales, all whilst I’d smoke 3-4 joints a day. Where did you get this attitude about weed from? The 80s?

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DannyBrownsDoritos@reddit

biggest weed smoker I know is also the biggest grafter I know haha

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Barca-Dam@reddit

Smoking weed is an expensive habit. My guess is most of the regular smokers do work and are paying taxes. The £40 per week from the benefit system ain’t gonna give them enough weed to stink of it lol

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louwyatt@reddit

I feel like the issue there is the fact that they aren't working, not that they smoke weed.

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

It's a bit of a chicken and egg situation. Hard to say which causes the other. Some people can function quite well while stoned in my experience but it is known to cause extreme lethargy and fatigue. Cannabis does have some positives though, especially for medicinal purposes. I don't think it should be written off as an entirely bad thing in all cases.

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louwyatt@reddit

>It's a bit of a chicken and egg situation. Hard to say which causes the other. Some people can function quite well while stoned in my experience but it is known to cause extreme lethargy and fatigue. Not really. There are people in high paying jobs who smoke weed and have no problem. There are people in low paying jobs who smoke weed. Weed is a cheap and relatively unharmful way to pass the time (relatively at least). So lots of people on benefits do smoke it

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

‘Not really’ to what? I said *some* people can function quite well while stoned/regular smokers so I agreed with in some instances. I think it would be a bit of a stretch to suggest that they aren’t the minority though

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louwyatt@reddit

It's not really a chicken and an egg problem. Lazy people are more likely to smoke weed rather than weed causing people to be lazy.

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

That's an interesting thought

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Warburton379@reddit

What has smoking weed got to do with not being arsed to work?

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

It doesn't have anything to do with not being arsed to work unless they spend all day doing it, the same with people who drink all day.

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louwyatt@reddit

I find it much more awkward when parents bring their kids into a pub with people drinking around them. Or when you're waking down the road and there's someone stumbling or glasses smashed on the road. Not to mention all of the issue fueled by drinking: rape, assult, child abuse, etc. I find it a lot easier to explain to a kid why someone smoking the smelly stuff, that i do explaining why their friends dad beats his kids because it's an alcoholic. I always say I'd rather my kid smell some funny stuff rather than being raped or assaulted by some drunk person.

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

Yes alcohol is a terrible thing too, I agree.

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louwyatt@reddit

Do you agree there should be a complete ban on alcohol before we even think of restricting weed.

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notouttolunch@reddit

As I said on another of your comments, the country has been working towards the removal of alcohol and tobacco from society for a lot of years. These things are largely working and have worked. The next controversial step where smokers are prevented from ever legally starting is on the cards now, for example. Alcohol isn’t as far advanced but has been approached in the same way.

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louwyatt@reddit

Alcohol hasn't been approached in nearly the same way as other drugs. A 5 year old can drink in their own house, and you can bring a kid to a pub. We are one of the most Alcohol friendly places in the world

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DannyBrownsDoritos@reddit

> A 5 year old can drink in their own house, and you can bring a kid to a pub. We are one of the most Alcohol friendly places in the world Hell yeah dude

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notouttolunch@reddit

Please see the last paragraph. 🤦‍♀️

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louwyatt@reddit

It evidently hasn't been approached in the same way if we have some of the most relaxed alcohol laws in the world in many regards. If they wanted to remove alcohol they could begin by i don't know, stopping 5 years olds being able to legally drink at home. What you meant to say is that police are mainly going after tobacco and other drugs. While doing the bare minimum with alcohol.

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notouttolunch@reddit

You are even fulfilling that prophecy now!

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louwyatt@reddit

Its like arguing that police have the same approach towards mass litters and mass murders because they arrest both.

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notouttolunch@reddit

Not even slightly.

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louwyatt@reddit

You call be obtuse when thats your argument😂

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notouttolunch@reddit

There’s nothing to argue with. You might as well have tried to sell me ice cream. You’re a drug pusher. You have to work hard to get any respect from me.

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louwyatt@reddit

I think i can translate that: "I can't argue against what you've said, so I'm going to call you name and then claim i don't have to respond." All the kids at the nursery will be so proud of you

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notouttolunch@reddit

No. You’re a drug pusher. You’re just as bad as a drug dealer. A level below a drug user.

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louwyatt@reddit

No. You're a big silly. Your mum has a big nose. Uglier than Mrs Griffiths My dad could beat your dad in a fight

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louwyatt@reddit

Less than you evidently

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notouttolunch@reddit

I’d wager the opposite. You’ve written nothing but pro-drug propaganda all the way through this.

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

I don't think there should be a complete ban on smoking or alcohol but I definitely think more needs to be done about alcohol abuse

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louwyatt@reddit

It's not just alcohol abuse. Alcohol causes a significant amount of major crimes in the UK. It needs to be heavily restricted with other similar drugs like cocaine

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

Cannabis is known to cause/exacerbate psychological issues, which can lead to crimes too. I don't think many people who smoke it would be happy to accept that, but given the rise in mental health issues generally I think more needs to be done to reduce the reliance on things like alcohol and cannabis as well as other drugs

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louwyatt@reddit

Yeah, it's not even close when compared with alcohol. It generally also only exacerbates issues people already have, rather than creating negative behaviours you wouldn't normally see in someone like with alcohol. Studies done on places where it has been legalised have shown massive decades in antisocial behaviour. Directly because people move away from alcohol and towards weed. If you want to decrease the amount of violent crime in the country, the easiest way is to legalise weed and restrict alcohol more.

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

Or just leave weed as it is and criminalise alcohol. I don’t think either need to be legal. I’d ban smoking in general to be honest as it has a massive negative effect on society and on health. I’ve lost so many people to the cigarette.

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louwyatt@reddit

>Or just leave weed as it is and criminalise alcohol The issue with making anything illegal is all you do is increase its strength and fund crime. So if you want more people to die and more gangs on the streets, make it illegal. Just look at the state of america at this point because they tried applying your logic. Banning these things doesn't work, regulating them correctly does. >I’d ban smoking in general to be honest as it has a massive negative effect on society and on health. Smokers are actually profitable for the NHS because of how much they tax it. So by making smoking illegal, you'd have to cut back on the NHS, making people more unhealthy.

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

I’m not sure that it would have a negative effect though as long term smokers need very expensive and resource-heavy care when they inevitably become ill. That includes respiratory diseases, heart diseases and even things like PIP and other benefits that often ultimately need to be financed when people become the victim of their own vice. The heavy burden of smoking (and alcohol abuse) almost certainly negates any benefit from taxation.

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louwyatt@reddit

Nope its been proven that smokers are one of the only groups that pay for their healthcare and benefits through taxes. The government has actually admitted thats why they haven't done a complete ban, they can't afford it. Alcohol on the other hand, is a massive burden on the NHS and the government as a whole.

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TheHeroYouNeed247@reddit

Or, hes just enjoying his day off and prefers his choosen vice over the socially acceptable drug. Alcohol. I doubt he cares much about you passing on prejudice to your child.

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Teestow21@reddit

Now you know why they say weed smokers are paranoid. If it wasn't illegal, we'd be worry free!

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itsapotatosalad@reddit

Could be medical.

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miked999b@reddit

Yeah I don't like the smell of it even though I smoke it. It's really pungent and it hangs in the air for ages. I have a friend in California and she says you can't get away from the smell, it's everywhere you go, in every public space, all the time. I love the idea of it being legal, but it would be pretty shit for those who don't like it. And I wouldn't want my child anywhere near it.

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appletinicyclone@reddit

I hate the smell of it so much and it wafting around public transport is annoying for me I think medical marijuana fine, if you need CBD for anxiety I get it etc. But for regular weed if it's not for a specified medical reason I think it should be banned from public spaces and people below 22. And before the weed heads what about me on alcohol. My views on that are even more restrictive lol it's just not viable for them to be implemented

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zZCycoZz@reddit

>But for regular weed if it's not for a specified medical reason I think it should be banned from public spaces and people below 22. It should be banned in public spaces because you hate the smell? Thats not a particularly good reason for a law.

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appletinicyclone@reddit

Have you ever lived next to a sewage plant before

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pringellover9553@reddit

Not the same thing at all mate and you know it

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

I think a lot of smokers see cannabis as superior to alcohol, as if it has some sort of pathway to spirituality and natural affinity with the earth, because it’s been around for some many thousands of years, long before even modern religions. You could say the same about alcohol though. Drink is bad too though, and I don’t think existence of alcohol as a socially acceptable drug means that cannabis is therefore completely ok anymore than I think shoplifting is ok because corrupt politicians exist. Smoking and alcohol are both generally pretty shit but they help mask their cruel reality of existence so I can see why people like them. It’s asking for trouble saying anything negative about cannabis on Reddit. I should have known better.

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Wide-Sea-4897@reddit

What the fuck are you waffling about? My doctor who prescribes my cannabis definitely doesnt thi k cannabis is shit and I imagine they've probably looking into it a bit more than you.

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appletinicyclone@reddit

Lol I know what you're saying yeah Cannabis is praised by cannabis users a lot

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UsernameRemorse@reddit

I do feel like alcoholics (or people who drink a lot of alcohol) are far more likely to admit that it is bad for them than cannabis smokers, even if they also admit that they also enjoy it. They might underplay the severity but they will certainly rarely suggest that going out and drinking is good for them or that there’s a global conspiracy to demonise it

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inide@reddit

I don't tend to take it outside the house, but on the rare occasions i do it's inside a smell-proof bag inside an airtight pot inside a plastic lunchbox inside a backpack. I don't care if people know I smoke, I care as little about the legality of it as I did with limewire as a kid, but I feel guilty about the smell making people uncomfortable, especially if I'm going in a shop or on a bus where a kid might smell it.

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louwyatt@reddit

People walk around after going to the pub, thats a million times more embarrassing. Especially as you're a significant threat to those around you. Honestly, in a country where kids are allowed to sit in pubs and drink and home at 5, people are worried about the smell of weed.

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katiiieeeee@reddit

This is peak stoner, refuse to accept weed isn't flawless and amazing, change the subject to alcohol instead

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greenarsehole@reddit

This is peak St George flag loving pub lover

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louwyatt@reddit

Typically anti-weed comment. I never claimed weed was flawless. Please do tell me where I've stated it, and I'll show you where the pigs are flying. Yes, when talking about laws regarding a drug, i compared the difference in the law between different drugs(mind-blowing). What crazy thing will I do next? When talking about sugar in soft drinks, will I mention the sugar in chocolate. Please do tell me why you don't think it's fair to compare laws regarding two drugs?

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katiiieeeee@reddit

I never claimed you said was flawless. It's called hyperbole, op pointed out a flaw of weed, it stinks, you change the subject to Alcohol The conversation was never about the law, simply about the smell. I'm not anti weed, I smoke it occasionally and think it should be legal.

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louwyatt@reddit

>I never claimed you said weed was flawless. It's called hyperbole, op pointed out a flaw of weed, it stinks, you change the subject to Alcohol I didn't change the topic, I compared what they mentioned with weed to another legal drug. You know that's a natural thing that happens in normal debate. *You know I was talking to someone about how bad white people get it in America, then someone pointed out how bad black people get it, change the topic much* /s I can see they skipped this part in your English class, so I'll break it down for you. In a debate, someone will make a claim, and then someone will make a counter claim. These counterclaims often come in the form of comparison.

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sixtyhurtz@reddit

Nobody cares. They've never cared. 30yrs ago when I started working I turned up for a min wage temp job as a teenager, I got hired stinking of weed. One day one of the managers asked me if I smoked week on my lunch break. I lied and said no, I just wear the same clothes I smoked weed in from the night before. They laughed and let it go, because they didn't really care about it at all.

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pringellover9553@reddit

Consumption isn’t illegal, possession is.

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mokujin42@reddit

I enjoy the smell of most smoke even after quitting but everyday I'm assaulted by horrible aftershave, perfume, BO, people that smell like candy for some reason, blueberry vapes, alcohol etc The reality is we all stink of something

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PipBin@reddit

I teach primary school. We had a 5 year old kid come in whose coat stunk. It was so bad we had to remove it from the classroom. Told our safeguarding lead who contacted social services. Social services just shrugged.

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ProgrammerMiserable7@reddit

Because Police focus on crime and harder drugs

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OddSign2828@reddit

Because nobody enforces it

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StrangelyBrown@reddit

I don't think it's the usual police laziness like 'sorry, stolen bikes aren't important' though. In the case of weed it's unofficially tolerated. The difficulty of rounding them all up could be a factor, but with many similar things in the UK and abroad, there's a level of tolerance in the case where it's not clear if it should be illegal or not. I think one reason for that is that politicians sometimes want to be seen to do 'the right thing' in public, where 'the right thing' is about the views of some powerful people or lots of letter-writing constituents, but they and the police and others realise that it's a bit strange to ban weed when alcohol is legal so they don't care that it happens, as long as it's 'Officially Not Allowed'. They don't want to be seen to advocate for it.

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Atomicherrybomb@reddit

Surrey and Yorkshire police were part of a pilot based around more relaxed cannabis policing a few years ago, I’m not sure what the outcome was but it does feel like it’s basically been decriminalised. Even 15 years ago when we were smoking if the police caught us they’d just take it send us on our way, never anything more serious. I would imagine the only reason it isn’t legalised now is because of the massive weight that pensioners hold in voting. It makes so much sense in a country that’s crying for revenue to legalise and tax it.

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Malc669@reddit

25 years ago I got sent to prison for 3 months for having 10.2g of hash. In Norwich the police were known for having zero tolerance. When I was in prison there were a lot of inmates from London and Manchester who thought I was a grass because they couldn’t believe I got a prison sentence for such a small amount. One of my friends got caught with 10 XTC tablets on the way to an illegal rave and he got 10 years in prison.

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ProfessionalTip403@reddit

Youll find in big places theyre alot less tolerant

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Prudent-Armadillo807@reddit

I was in Suffolk then and I got a search and a hot knife’s worth of hash dropped out my jeans turnup. I was remanded as I was no fixed abode at the time and spent 5 months on remand before I got let out for time served. Not even 0.2g of hash.

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SnooDingos2613@reddit

Fuck man im sorry to hear that

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CatchaRainbow@reddit

Im so sorry. Life is so shit sometimes.

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ExiledFromMancSt@reddit

Hot knives - oh yes!

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colei_canis@reddit

> One of my friends got caught with 10 XTC tablets on the way to an illegal rave and he got 10 years in prison. Fuck me, how does this serve the interests of justice in even the most deranged Puritan mind?

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ChrisDavies76@reddit

It didn't happen, he was dealing.

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colei_canis@reddit

Not much of a drug pusher with ten pills, more like a drug poke.

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ChrisDavies76@reddit

That's what they found.

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0liam@reddit

on paper i guess you could say he probably wasn’t gonna take all 10, mdma is a class a drug and its assumed hes gonna be giving them out or selling. technically PWITS of a class a really. but thats why it varies so much between each and every bizzie bc they all have an individual tolerance or bias. i know people who just got a caution for a lot more than that…

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CatchaRainbow@reddit

Prisons are where they sent everyone when they shut all the mental health hospitals in the 1970s

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SpeedwellWeedwell@reddit

Fuck me, glad I didn’t live round your way, I got pulled in the Brunel rooms in Swindon in about 1992/3 with 21 pills, went to court and got off with £200 fine and 1 year suspended.

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Major_Bag_8720@reddit

25 years ago, people were openly selling weed outside Brixton tube station in broad daylight.

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Scarboroughwarning@reddit

And Clarkey Caps

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Waste-Obligation-821@reddit

Custard gannets

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iflipyofareal@reddit

Got any bozz bozz?

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NaughtyBudgie@reddit

sounds like a bad fortnight

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EldestPort@reddit

Yeah I've definitely got the old 'need anything?' coming out of Camden on the mid 2000s

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juancaramelo@reddit

I don’t believe the 10 years for 10 pills. That’s one year per pill ! When was this ?

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Leaky_Taps@reddit

Had you been a grass your likelihood of a sentence would be even less, I guess prisoners aren't all that bright on the whole.

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sayleanenlarge@reddit

Wtf? 10 years for 10 pills? Did he accidentally admit to giving them to friends or something? That's insane. What a stuoid waste of resources.

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CatchaRainbow@reddit

And life

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YourMaWarnedUAboutMe@reddit

E has a different classification, ever since Leah Betts

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thetobesgeorge@reddit

Hope they didn’t rough you up or treat you differently due to thinking you were a grass

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Malc669@reddit

No thankfully, quite the opposite. Once they realised I was telling the truth they took me under their protection as they could tell that I wasn’t a hardened career criminal and shouldn’t have been in prison.

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Atomicherrybomb@reddit

Holy shit dude that’s crazy! We had one copper who would take your joint off you and gently toss it to one side still smouldering, search us, give us the yellow slip and walk straight past it. Been times he’d even let us know if other stuff was kicking off or more police were in the area. Guy was a legend.

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Malc669@reddit

I was lucky that my parents supported me after I got out of prison as I got exposed to much harder drugs while I was inside. But thanks to my parents allowing me to come home I didn’t have to go to a half way house and probably would have ended up getting involved with more shady work. As a result I ended up getting a proper job at a large financial services company working in the mail room and worked my way up to senior management in IT. Could easily have been a very different outcome all over a little bit of hash. I know quite a few people who work in the police force and they all say that they would rather deal with a group of stoners instead people who have been drinking.

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thetobesgeorge@reddit

I feel that’s the best was to handle it, so long as the person is not causing any other issues and it’s literally just the (small amount of) weed then that act gives enough of a warning to stop the behaviour in the immediate situation without blowing it out of proportion and taking up already limited police resources I do not smoke weed or even drink personally, and I detest the smell, but it’s one of those things that in the grand scheme of things is harmless enough that so long as it’s not causing issues, then it isn’t a problem (I do very much appreciate those who go out of their way to avoid it affecting others with the smell etc)

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lickyagyalcuz@reddit

There was no tolerance in Hertfordshire either 15 years ago

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fitlikeabody@reddit

It's easy to say it's the old people that are out of touch but if you think about it it's the first generation of weed smokers in the pensioner class now. I don't know anyone of any age group with serious opposition to it. I'm guessing lobby groups are more responsible than the population.

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louwyatt@reddit

Everyone keeps saying this, but statistics don't lie. The older you are the more likley you are to dislike weed, all the way up to pensioners who are the most anti weed. People can be incredibly hypocritical. They'll do one thing themselves, then ban it for other people

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Extension-Aside-555@reddit

Come to Canada. Pensioners may not smoke (except for your old school stoner types!) but there are so many who take CBG CBN and or CBD gummies or beverages for pain and sleep; some of these have no THC but generally it's around 50:50. Personally I do vape carts but much prefer edibles. Gummies are a bit pricier than just buying capsules but they are more fun as most of them taste freaking awesome. 10mg gummy from 3CAD and up. Smoke anywhere except inside!!

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Easy-Reserve7401@reddit

Exactly. It's idiotic to say the generation grew up in the 60s and 70s as pot-smoking hippies and acid-dropping psycadelic prog rockers, have now turned into the pearl-clutching pensioner generation that their parents may have been. As a direct descendent of one of each, I can, with conviction, say that they're not anti drug. More that they tried them and it didn't do anything for them.

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Sweatyugrini@reddit

The older people i know who used to smoke weed all day "it's a different drug now". We are further away from decriminalisation now than we were 20 years ago.

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Long_Repair_8779@reddit

I think there’s an overestimation of youth culture back in the 60s and 70s. We now see it as this wild and rebellious time, and yes that stuff was happening, but I was speaking to someone from that generation, and they were saying the whole thing is looked on with rose tinted glasses, and that those involved were a relatively small group of pioneers in counter culture. Most people were regular law abiding hard working people who really weren’t involved in that kind of thing at all

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DPropish@reddit

‘Most people’ at the time, 1975-85, where i was living & working (Leeds) were regular users. Tyre fitters, plumbers, brickies, etc., it wasn’t some random middle-class hippie thing.

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InsaneInTheRAMdrain@reddit

You understand the vast majoirty of people were not pot smoking hippies in the 60s and 70s right?

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louwyatt@reddit

Statistics paint a completely different picture. They are the most likely to be anti weed and the reason its still banned

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CriticalBath2367@reddit

Gwaan then, throw us these statistics of which you speak. Let's have a gander.

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louwyatt@reddit

"On our three-way question, 25-49 year olds come down most on the side of full legalisation (41%), whereas 18-24 year olds are more evenly divided between legalisation (31%) and decriminalisation (29%). The over-50 age groups prefer for cannabis to remain criminally prohibited at rates of 38-44%, the most common stance for these older Britons." Source: https://yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/51415-how-do-mps-views-on-drugs-policy-compare-to-the-british-publics

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CriticalBath2367@reddit

Yea looked at the stats, the aggregate totals show an overall majority want either decrim or legalization. Even a majority of over 50's back either decrim or legalization by the looks of it. I myself don't have a problem with it but who cares what i think.

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Atomicherrybomb@reddit

I’d imagine it’s a bit of both, speaking to every pensioner I’m close to (bar one guy at work) all are anti drugs. I’m sure if someone took the risk to legalise it, it wouldn’t be unpopular, however I don’t think that they would be willing to take the risk. Lobbying will be a massive factor, although if the land of capitalism can push past that you would like to think that we would be able to aswell?

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inide@reddit

I'd guess it depends heavily on the area. Near me the 60-70 year olds are the ones most likely to be seen smoking a joint outside the shops!

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-Rhymenocerous-@reddit

Not when the drug policy makers wife has a monopoly on the legal cammabis farms in the UK for medicinal use. People have been lobbying in the UK for years. No serious lobby atm. Lib Dems have said they want to decriminilize and regulate though

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SaluteMaestro@reddit

I they can do something about the smell I wouldn't care, why you would smoke something that makes you smell like you have a bad BO problem I don't know.

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Some-Ad-3938@reddit

Aitken owns the biggest UK producer. Legalisation would break the monopoly of legal production. Aitken is a Tory. Make of that what you will.

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M4V3r1CK1980@reddit

It's actually because Britain is the biggest grower and exporters in the whole of Europe. Theresa mays husband is heavily involved.

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callthesomnambulance@reddit

Tbf we're one of the biggest producers of low grade hemp which is exported to be used to make a THC containing MS drug called sativex. its not even street level quality let alone medical, and as far as I'm aware the only medical cannabis grown here is by a company called glass pharms, hence the need to import almost all the stuff that gets distributed by the medical cannabis industry.

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colei_canis@reddit

And yet if you're a patient in the UK the majority of medical cannabis prescriptions are imported from abroad. Make it make sense.

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Upbeat_Beginning670@reddit

The medical weed in the uk is absolute trash…it is and will always be best to go see your local dealer, I trust the guy who I buy from….i wouldn’t trust the government tbh

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Atomicherrybomb@reddit

I remember hearing this but wasn’t sure if it was still true, surely it doesn’t matter now that they aren’t in power though? I haven’t even heard it mentioned other than Kahn saying it should be decriminalised but then I guess there been a lot of more important stuff going on in the world.

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AdPale1469@reddit

Surrey and Yorkshire, what a county to live in.

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Atomicherrybomb@reddit

I guess they wanted to test it at opposite ends of the country?

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thewaryteabag@reddit

Haha! Funnily enough, I'm from Surrey! When I was around 17 me and a mate of mine were on something... bit less forgiving than weed, sat on a log in the woods and I see a bunch of torches heading towards us so once I alerted him, he tossed it and they searched us separately. The fucking found a grinder with a bit of weed still in it and just didn't give a shit and let us off because I'm guessing we didn't have what they were looking for... We walked away and watched them search the leaf pile where he chucked the gear, so they must have seen him do it. I promise you, we went back to that spot a good hour later and scrounged around for it ourselves like the good little fiends we were - and we found it!

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llynglas@reddit

I would think seniors would be ok with legalization because of cannabis's ability to help with pain and at times nausea. I live in the States and maybe 40% of my 60+ friends take it either to smoke or as gummies.

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SnooRegrets8068@reddit

Yeh what vould the UK do with? A fuck load of growth. What do we export a fuck load of and can obviously grow? Cannabis. For some reason we ignore the internal market entirely. That's huge amounts of jobs, tax revenues and something that's a whole new industry. Plus stop waiting money having to appear to pay attention to it by the police, no idea smelled weed stops. No prison money for those inside for it and also stops a large flow of money to criminal gangs all at the same time.

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TRFKTA@reddit

I wouldn’t say nobody enforces it. If a police officer were to spot somebody smoking weed out in public they’d likely have their weed confiscated and be issued a fine.

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thedudeabides-12@reddit

We used to smoke in London in public a lot around Shoreditch / Brixton etc like in 2010's police didn't bat and eyelid..I think they weren't worried about us as stoners were less likely to kick off or start some shit....

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CatchaRainbow@reddit

You never see a stoner in a fight, but alcohol however ......

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AlternativeSea8247@reddit

4 drunks will start a fight, while 4 stoners will start a band!

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cultureu@reddit

This guy @plugcode001 on tele deliver to door step

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CatchaRainbow@reddit

Oh, that is very good, I'm going to steal that if you don't mind.

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neferioussmok3r@reddit

I’ve been caught both with weed and smoking it literally 20+ times. Never had any action taken. One time I was literally getting arrested and they were searching my house but they just left an ounce of weed in a see through, unsealed plastic cup on the side lmao… tbh don’t see how he could’ve missed it. Actually that’s happened twice but the other time it was probably around a half ounce, both certainly actionable amounts. One time I was stop and searched by a single officer who after finding an absolute carrot of a spliff in my pocket held it up to his nose and said ‘ woah smells nice that’, put it in his shirt pocket and let me go on my way hahahahah

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ExcellentPumpkin978@reddit

Unless the person has their prescription in them. In which case there’s nothing they can do as that’s perfectly legal.

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CauseLeast@reddit

I live in Bristol. Trust me, they don’t.

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lukeybuzz@reddit

The guys in castle park are one converted food truck away from owning a legitimate small business. I can't bash them though, I get a 10 bag from them when in a pinch.. 😂

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Downtown-Jump4408@reddit

I was gonna say this, I’ve walked past countless police and even been stopped a few times and never even had my name taken.

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Ze_Gremlin@reddit

Agreed, also in bristol, saw a woman rolling up and sparking up on Cheltenham Road some time last year, two officers walked past her, chatting away to eachother. I was across the road and caught the scent of it, so they definitely knew. Not that she tried to hide it. I think they see it as: if she's not harassing anyone and being a pain, it's not really worth it.

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pm_me_tittiesaurus@reddit

Yes, I know multiple people who casually smoke, aren't full time stoners or anything, and they have been issued fines/community resolutions.

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Flimsy-Restaurant902@reddit

They really dont though

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Familiar-Repeat-1565@reddit

Also it's just a case of time honestly the amount of time to do all the paperwork and just police it in general isn't worth it.

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Prudent-Armadillo807@reddit

Depends on which area you live and what laws are being enforced. On 4:20 there is an amnesty that pigs won’t stop people entering or leaving the events and they have been successful. Field has eyes event. Halloween ones also. No one is causing trouble or doing harm and if it did kick off a lot of police would be needed. It’s tolerated and many people have medical marijuana prescriptions now.

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OddSign2828@reddit

Quoting a niche scenario for an overall trend doesn’t really help

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pinkylovesme@reddit

I mean how else is the law enforced? It’s pretty unlikely someone will report someone smoking weed, even if they do by the time the police arrive the joint is likely finished and the smoker moved on. How else would someone smoking weed be caught than by a police officer?

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MassiveClusterFuck@reddit

And not a lot to be enforced for those who have it legally for medical conditions.

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OddSign2828@reddit

Sure but that’s not the point of this post

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MassiveClusterFuck@reddit

I mean it is, who's to say those people OP has seen in public aren't medical users? Can't assume everyone is doing it illegally.

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OddSign2828@reddit

This feels like being picky for the sake of disagreeing

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MassiveClusterFuck@reddit

As does your point above

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Scrumpyguzzler@reddit

Exactly. The time has gone when the majority of people could be trusted to do the right thing. No enforcement = no law.

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96JY@reddit

Smoking weed isn't wrong just because it says so in a book of laws. It is the law that is wrong.

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winobeaver@reddit

it's our moral duty to resist unjust laws

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Even_Pressure91@reddit

Moral responsibility from the man who cheated on his wife with over 40 women lol including 2 the night before his murder

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96JY@reddit

Even a broken clock is right twice a day!

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leachianusgeck@reddit

comparing mlk jr to a broken clock is crazy even if he was a serial cheater hahaha

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96JY@reddit

Could you explain what you mean, please? What I meant is that he can be morally wrong/broken one way but still be right in another.

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pinkylovesme@reddit

That expression is usually used to imply a person whose ideas and opinions are incorrect most of the time sometimes being correct. Your response implies MLK jr is a fool who got one thing right, most people would disagree.

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96JY@reddit

My comment was in response to the comment: "Moral responsibility from the man who cheated on his wife with over 40 women lol including 2 the night before his murder" Which was a reply to: "One has not only a legal but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws." What I meant by "Even a broken clock is right twice a day!" is that even though he was so morally wrong to be that adulterous, at least he was morally right with that quote. If taking it out of that context and what I meant by my commrnt and looking at Martin Luther King Jr. and all he did for civil rights etc. as a whole, then, of course, he has said more morally right things than that quote, but that is not what I meant by my comment.

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winobeaver@reddit

damn man, it's Martin Luther King! Whose mind goes there after seeing an MLK quote? Who are you, his wife?

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Even_Pressure91@reddit

I'm not disregarding what you posted, just pointing out the irony Doesnt matter who the individual is, the hypocrisy is kinder funny in a dark humour kind of way

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StrangelyBrown@reddit

It's an unjust law.

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winobeaver@reddit

ergo getting stoned is the act of a brave and righteous man

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Thatchers-Gold@reddit

No one’s saying that, they just don’t believe that it’s the act of a criminal

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winobeaver@reddit

I'm saying that!

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louwyatt@reddit

There was a time when governments did things for logical reasons. Rather than keeping a dangerous drug like alcohol legal but a safe drug like weed illegal. Let's not forget that it's only half a decade ago you could be arrested for giving someone who medically needs it this drug. I will say this isn't the governments fault. it's the older generation who still believe the misinformation. It truly is terrifying that the only thing that will cause this myth to die is that generation dying out. All that pain, economic damage and death caused by arrogant old people

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collapsedcuttlefish@reddit

It's definitely more the government's fault than it is older people. Older people really don't care. The government is under the thumb of old old old money and most legislations that make it through Congress have bribed their way in. That includes shareholders with huge shares in commerce like alcohol which is massively threatened by cannabis legalisation. Alcohol consumption in the US has dropped in massive percentiles since the legalisation of cannabis and they lobbyed as long as possible to keep it illegal.

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louwyatt@reddit

Yeah, statistics just disagree with you. Old people are anti weed, and they also have a lot of political power. That's why weed is still illegal Source: https://yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/51415-how-do-mps-views-on-drugs-policy-compare-to-the-british-publics

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DPropish@reddit

The ‘older generation’ mostly grew up in the 60s & 70s, which were notably freewheeling, drug-taking times. Find someone else to blame!

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louwyatt@reddit

Statistics show that it's the older generation that is anti-weed. Source: https://yougov.co.uk/politics/articles/51415-how-do-mps-views-on-drugs-policy-compare-to-the-british-publics

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UnacceptableUse@reddit

Every generation has said that the previous generation are the ones that messed it up and they're the ones that are gonna solve it

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notouttolunch@reddit

😂 so true

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TheHeroYouNeed247@reddit

That time never existed.

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crimge_@reddit

guys can yall hook me up w a dealer? really need to blow off some steam

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WestEntertainer3966@reddit

I am sorry but are you dumb or something ? Because no body gives a shit about that stupid law !

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CynicismNostalgia@reddit

If you ever see someone out in public and theyre VAPING, instead of smoking it, they are very likely a legal medicinal user, like myself. Its been medicinally legal to vape since 2018.

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Opening_Community988@reddit

F2F LDN MSG ME

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IndividualAfter144@reddit

F2F LONDON HIT ME

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sosaluva@reddit

becayse no one gives a shit and its not gonna hurt anyone

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4sthenia_@reddit

are they the same with tourists?

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Either_Ad_5053@reddit

There's actually a petition to legalise cannabis for over 18 year olds [https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/735447](https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/735447)

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Constant_packs@reddit

Delivery available all across London, never pay upfront always cash on collection pm me

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ratscabs@reddit

As you said, they aren’t scared of getting caught, because the police don’t actually care. Dealing might be a different matter, but individual users? Meh.

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_marimays@reddit

Even dealing isn't THAT much of an issue. A friend of mine has been dealing for 20+ years. He buys and sells literal bin bags full of weed. He's been raided countless times but only been to prison once.. and that time he went to prison, it was only because he was caught in a stolen car, not because of the weed. It needs to be legalised and the police really need to stop wasting their time.

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Acceptable_Cod_1103@reddit

When our local force announce that they’ve found/dismantled a significant grow, they often get flak about why they’re focusing on cannabis rather than serious crime, and their answer is that it has links to organised crime, modern slavery, and that the grows are often unsafe, steal electricity and cause fires etc. Well you know what would solve all of those issues… a regulated legal industry perhaps?

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mt_2@reddit

The unspoken logic behind this is that keeping weed illegal does make it easier to get leads on serious organised crime, legalising it whilst solving lots of these problems does remove a link to organised crime that is quite valuable to law enforcement. (I fully support legalisation and regulation)

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No_String8875@reddit

Oh no what a shame they'll actually have to put effort into uncovering crime rather than banging people up for smoking a spliff

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DaHappyCyclops@reddit

We literally have a regulated legal industry in place, its just very difficult to get included into it without a genuine medical issue. Ive recently discovered some UK medibud and that stuff is crazy. 0% CBD. Its insane. You stay high for like 15 hours haha 😄 After I smoked that stuff I was looking for a microwave to stick my balls in like Randy Marsh!

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Prior_Suit_1848@reddit

I hold a UK medical cannabis prescription, wheres this 15hr high stuff, id like to get my hands on some

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DaHappyCyclops@reddit

How did you get your prescription?

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Prior_Suit_1848@reddit

Applied to a prescribing clinic, as long as you have a qualifying condition and have tried at least 2 forms of treatment, (can be as little as paracetamol and ibuprofen) for it then you would most likely be accepted

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DaHappyCyclops@reddit

If you dont mind me asking, what was your condition?

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Elegant_Law_6463@reddit

I'm with Alternaleaf and suffer with chronic back pain

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DaHappyCyclops@reddit

So i remember when it was not fully decriminalised in the states, they apparently had "doctors" in Cali you could go see to get a prescription, and they would advise you on how to get the prescription. Example, you walk into the doctors and say "id like a cannacard, I want to treat my relentless headaches..." And the doctor would say "hmm? Dont you mean *chronic* *back* *pain* from your "injury" you suffered several years ago that you've tried different medications to heal?" And you'd say "yes, that!" And the doctor would say "well yes for sure, someone in your condition could massively benefit from using medical cannabis, here is your recommendation!" Any thing like that going on in the UK or is it still like you've pulled a gun out when suggesting something like this to a GP?

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Prior_Suit_1848@reddit

Prescribed for cancer related pain but theres plenty of people on MC with a lot less

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DaHappyCyclops@reddit

Im sorry to hear that mate, cancer is a cunt. While your kicking its ass, give it an extra kick from me would ya?

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colei_canis@reddit

> its just very difficult to get included into it without a genuine medical issue To be fair though the actual bar is a lot lower than people think. The NHS make it out like you need to have two feet in the grave already before they'll even consider it but that's the NHS, privately you have to have a condition where two conventional treatments have failed which covers quite a lot of people. Don't get me wrong I'd love to see it legalised in general, not least because it'd bring the cost down medically. I just think people assume they're not eligible when they actually might be.

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Lost_Dragonfruit_847@reddit

What clinic are you with?

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DaHappyCyclops@reddit

Streets 😮‍💨

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

A regulated legal industry has not closed down the black market in Canada or California.

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LostJD-@reddit

But vastly reduced it and the profits organised criminals make selling cannabis.

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

Has it. In a larger market ? Many parts of north America are flooded with illegal product. Legalisation if it is to happen should surely be about the public good and public health, not unsuccesful efforts to manage criminal profits?

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LostJD-@reddit

Yes it has . Legalisation wont automatically after close to 100 years stop all criminal activity, but it is proven to vastly reduce profits obtained by criminal gangs. Basic economics . Prohibition/cannabis drug classification is nothing to do with public health and public good (it should be )and it definitely should also be about managing organised criminal profits . After all prohibition in the Uk has been a total failure and has nothing to do with 'helping the public or its consumers' its just political posturing by the Naive supported by a electorate that does not care for the time being. Cannabis has been legal or medical purposes since 2018 , its a start but in time we will all see , the use of the same freely as a lie cannot be sustained forever. Look at the Dutch example not perfect but far better than the Uk attempt to 'help the public'

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

The Netherlands is a narcostate. Better than UK? Depends on your viewpoint. Rampant gansterism and drug related murder? That desireable? "Prohibition" of some drugs has been reasonably successful in England and Wales. The most commonly used illegal drug is cannabis. Less than half the useage of tobacco in adults. The proven valuable meducal uses of cannabis and cannabis based meds, are quite limited. Millions spent on research but teratogenic and epigenetic effects limit usefulness.

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LostJD-@reddit

A country cannabjs policy of prohibition that is not based on scientific facts is naive and those that support prohibition based on this naivety are fools. Proven medical uses going back thousands of years. Dont worry you sound like someone that doesnt understand the nuances , or care . You dont have to explain further

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

Proven? It is modern science that is demonstrating the teratogenic and carcinogenic properties of cannabis. Teratogenic effects does not exclude careful and appropriate medical use. After all, Thalodomide remains in the pharmacopeia. Cannabis is not suitable or safe enough for mass self medication.

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LostJD-@reddit

Because someone like you doesn't think so , sorry to break it to you , millions consume for medical purposes. So you're making the tenuous link to Thalidomide in a discussion concerning plant based medical cannabis. At that point its the end of the discussion. So you say its not safe , sorry i dont agree with you Mr Reddit on that point , I prefer to seek my medical advice from professionals that know.

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AxelVance@reddit

The same way there is a black market for tobacco and alcohol. But look at the alcohol black market during and after prohibition. Drugs are only one piece of the puzzle. When Portugal decriminalised it didn't completely solve all the issues it was tackling but it damn sure solved some of them and mitigated others in a very visible way and the evidence supports it.

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

Portugal has pretty bad drug problems. The rather token personal use decriminalisation still involves the law enforcement system and "dissuasion commissions". The Portuguese did put more money into treatment but their overall policy is subject to serious internal criticism.

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AxelVance@reddit

Almost every country has bad drug problems. Especially the ones that boast they don't. Decriminalisation in Portugal focused on addiction and the criminalisation of addicts. It was overwhelmingly a public health policy. What it never was, pretended to be or was sold to be is a solution to the "pretty bad drug problems", as I said before. And it was far more complex and far reaching than you are letting on. Support networks, clinics, addiction specialised centres, campaigns, needle exchange hubs, outreach community care, local and national initiatives around adult education and jobs were set up and proved to be a good investment. The evidence is there. The effectiveness has obviously waxed and waned according to each government's commitment and investment. There have been critics since day and thank god there were. The evidence based critics' helped shape, update and change the policy making it more effective and mitigating the mistakes made along the way. The less constructive detractors come from the same groups that advocate the highly effective "war on drugs". Different concepts. Legalisation won't solve anything either but still potentially better than what we've spent the last 100 years doing. It all depends on how much we are willing to invest in it.

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

A lot of words. Meaningless. Portugal has worse drug problems than England & Wales. It has been oversold by drug legalisation lobbyists. The original overselling based on one flaky report by the Cato institute. The internal opposition now is strong. Some by those who originally supported it.

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AxelVance@reddit

Bud. Give me the metrics you are basing your argument on or it was great chatting, have a great life because you are sounding like a "war on drugs" populist. Here's one to kick it off: Portugal ranks 19th in drug related deaths per million in the EU27 + Turkey + UK and 20th in total drug related deaths. The highest remains the UK, specifically Scotland, followed by countries like Germany, Estonia, Ireland, Norway, Denmark, Netherlands amongst others, A great slice of varying law & order and public health policies towards drugs, btw. You can confirm the date on EUDA and UK's ONS and stop spreading lies. Here's another: Portugal ranks 23rd on prevalance of cocaine and cannabis use in the EU27+ Turkey + UK. There are more key metrics, these are but two. We can talk about how Portugal's geography makes it a challenging nut to crack in terms of port of call for drug smuggling. We can talk about how certain estates have kind of been "allowed" to remain islands of drug trafficking (which is a law & order issue). We can talk about how a country of contrasts like Portugal is more exposed to economic crisis and social upheaval that reflects on drug use and petty crime. We can talk about the limitations of decriminalisation which are many but from a public health point of view, you have no leg to stand on.

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PipBin@reddit

That’s exactly my view. My biggest problem with it is the larger criminal gangs that are involved along with the people smuggling, modern slavery and trashing someone’s house. By buying weed you are supporting that. Legalise it, regulate the industry and you’ve cut off some of that criminal activity and money.

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LostJD-@reddit

It's prohibitionists that support the organised criminal trade in cannabis and our useless government, not just those that purchase it illegally.

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louwyatt@reddit

Cracking down on it increases all of the things they mentioned, thats been proven a million times. There should be bodies forcing the police to be honest in their reasoning. It's exactly this kind of thing that makes people not have confidence in the police.

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winobeaver@reddit

it's called the 'iron law of prohibition' spice is also directly the fault of prohibition

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FiveTideHumidYear@reddit

What, does Paul Atreides go rampaging around Peterborough town centre Friday nights on a slice bender?

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ESLavall@reddit

Literally the same image was in my head

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notouttolunch@reddit

😂😂😂

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quellflynn@reddit

it's not the police's fault, going out there and policing. if you don't like the law, then you'd have to organise a change.

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louwyatt@reddit

Police have an incredible amount of leeway in regard to how they apply certain laws. There's nothing forcing the police to put the amount of resources they currently do into it. As anyone who's tried to report a crime recently will know they don't have time to apply other laws. So why do they have the time to apply this law The police do hold a lot of responsibility here that I will be holding them responsible for.

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quellflynn@reddit

I bet your talking unprovable thefts Vs static grow houses and reliable information. some grunt steals a bike, and legs it, on CCTV, showing his face... cool, where do the police go from there? they can ask around, see if anyone knows the guy, but if he's unknown then even if they have CCTV how do they find him, and it happens so often, then it's right, collect the CCTV, have a look, nope, ok next case but it's not easy to move a grow house, and it has a location.

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louwyatt@reddit

Police shouldn't be going after what's easy but what causes harm. There's two incidents I'm referring to. One bike thefts, one of which i got told they "didn't have time to look through 2 days of CCTV". Another one was a robbery at a friend's house where the police didn't even come out. BTW, those are just incidents that refer to what's being discussed. I've got many more of police not doing their job correctly. Including one, they released a phone owned by my friend to her abusive ex. The most hilarious thing about them claiming they didn't have time to look at the CCTV. I got stopped the next day by 10 cops all waiting around, trying to catch a dealer. Hence, what I'm saying isn't theory. Police are actively choosing to put resources into catching dealers rather than stopping other crimes. The police in this country are a joke. They want credit when their actions do good but don't want to take responsibility when their actions cause harm

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flowering_sun_star@reddit

The police *do* bear some of the blame. Whenever reclassifying cannabis comes up, the news will get some senior police officer on who will say something to the effect of 'cannabis is bad because it is illegal, which is why it should stay illegal'.

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uponloss@reddit

Make it so cheap it's no profitable for the gangs and you've fixed alot of the problems, obviously there's still demand for non government weed like you see in the USA

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OverPaper3573@reddit

The irony being the UK has a huge legalised industry growing 'medicinal cannabis' and selling it. https://www.forbes.com/sites/sarahsinclair/2025/03/21/high-yields-and-higher-returns-inside-the-uk-cannabis-industry/

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CarrotRunning@reddit

It also doesn't help when that response is literally diminishing other crimes which are also linked to organised crime. The bike theft example I've seen mentioned here a few times already, is met with a response of "local scamps, sorry nothing we can do, too busy" when it's not 1 kid nicking 1 bike 1 time, it's highly organised gangs with tools and equipment etc doing it over and over again multiple bikes, multiple times a day, every day, without so much as a raised eyebrow.

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_marimays@reddit

It is laughable, especially when they take photos of their haul. Like.. I could smoke that haul in two days 🙃

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

It wont be legalised because that might encourage consumption and the health consequences. We will stay in this twilight world.

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louwyatt@reddit

Legalisation actually has a lot of health benefits as it pulls people away from more unhealthy drugs like alcohol. Also, by keeping it illegal, it forces people to smoke and to only do the strong stuff. It won't be legalised for a long time because certain demographics still believe the misinformation spread decades ago.

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

Legalisation has little to reccommend it. More use means more harm. No different to tobacco or alcohol

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louwyatt@reddit

Again, by legalising weed, it pulls people away from more harmful drugs like alcohol. Also making alcohol illegal causes harm to increase significantly. Have you never learned about American prohibition?

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

Does it. The evidence is thin. Cannabis is considerably more harmful than most people think. Apart from mental health issues, it is carcinogenic and genotoxic. Testicular cancer is a big issue.Were use as widespread as alcohol, the health consequences and birth defect problems would be worse for cannabis. In the US, Emergency Room admissions for Cannabis Hyperemesis (uncontrollable vomiting) are rising across the nation.

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louwyatt@reddit

>Cannabis is considerably more harmful than most people think. Apart from mental health issues, it is carcinogenic and genotoxic. Testicular cancer is a big issue.Were use as widespread as alcohol, the health consequences and birth defect problems would be worse for cannabis. Alcohol causes by far more health problems, its not even close. Source: https://www.healthline.com/health/weed-vs-alcohol Weed being legalised causes a decrease in alcohol usage Source: https://jcannabisresearch.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s42238-021-00085-x Put the two together, and that means legalising weed makes people healthier as they drink less. >In the US, Emergency Room admissions for Cannabis Hyperemesis (uncontrollable vomiting) are rising across the nation. You are really talking about Cannabis Hyperemesis, something which isn't fatal on its own. While thousands die from alcohol poisoning every year. It would be funny if you didn't state it seriously

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

Have you looked at ER admissions for Hyperemesis? I suggest you do. Then impose that on the NHS. I notice you ignored carcinogenesis and teratogenesis. Well of course you did. Consider them if Canbabis were as widely used as alcohol. The comparison with alcohol is a nonsense proposition too.

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louwyatt@reddit

>Have you looked at ER admissions for Hyperemesis? I suggest you do. Then impose that on the NHS. Please do show me a link that says lots of people die from hyperemesis caused by weed. Then compare that with all the things that alcohol causes. Then tell me which was is magnitudes worse than the ither >I notice you ignored carcinogenesis and teratogenesis. Well of course you did. Consider them if Canbabis were as widely used as alcohol. If you eat weed rather than smoking it the it doesn't have those effects. Guess what happens when you legalise it? People eat more than they smoke. So once again thanks for adding another point towards legalisation. Once again, as I've always shown evidence for. Alcohol is by far worse for your health, its not even close >The comparison with alcohol is a nonsense proposition too. Why?

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

Cannabis carcinogenesis and teratogenesis are independent of method of ingestion. You would know this if you looked at the science. Some oral cavity cancers may depend on smoking of course.

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louwyatt@reddit

You do realise that almost everything is carcinogenic. Do you eat red meat? Thats incredible carcinogenic. teratogenesis refers to a problem occurring because kids are doing a drug. Obviously, kids shouldn't be doing any drugs. So do you have any other point other than carcinogenic thats in everything and teratogenesis which is true of any drug. Big surprise kids shouldn't be doing drugs.

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4642772/ There are other links on cannabis and testicular cancer

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louwyatt@reddit

Again, that's it being carcinogenic. I've already explained that almost everything is carcinogenic to a degree, including alcohol.

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

You are scratching about and desperate. Why. Why are you so desperate to give weed a clean bill of health. This behaviour is reminiscent of the desperate tobacco addict with the begginnings of emphysema and a smokers morning cough, claiming a fag is their only pleasure. It is ridiculous.

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louwyatt@reddit

I've never claimed weed is completely healthy. Its you that keeps trying to put words in my mouth, which is something desperate people do. Since that hasn't worked, you've tried to insinuate something about me, again an act of desperation. In all the backs and forth we've had, you've provided evidence for one thing, weed can be carcinogenic. Something which i had agreed with a comment before... but made a point that is also true of many things. You keep jumping from different comments to try to find a point you can finally win on, so you can claim "victory." You understand your position is desperate, so you feel insecure. Hence, your need to try to claim that i am desperate.

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

Amusing.

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

Oh dear. Its not about death its about harm and the strain on the NHS. The comparisons with alcohol or tobacco and cannabis, in pursuit of a legal cannabis regime is illogical. We have two hugely harmful substances in common legal use. How does that justify legalising another with as great or greater, harm potential? Its a silly argument.

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louwyatt@reddit

You can't argue that mentioning alcohol doesn't make sense when I've already demonstrated why it makes sense. I've already proven to you that legalising weed puts less strain on the NHS as it pulls people away from alcohol. Do you actually wish to respond to my referenced point with referencing proving your point. Or do you wish to still make claims I disproved multiple comments ago?

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

How many other similarly harmful but currently illegal drugs do you want legalised?

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louwyatt@reddit

Which drugs are as unharmful as weed but not legal?

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

Cannabis is not "unharmful". There are several other Class B and Class C drugs. Are you not paying attention? Some onlu comparatively recently made illegal. You really ought not to be debating so vigorously if you do not understand the basics of the system and it is so outside ypur experience. Goodbye

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louwyatt@reddit

I never claimed alcohol was unharmful, you just choose not to quote the full "as unharmful". Why don't we look at a report made by the government on how harmful drugs are. Big surprise weed is at the bottom, and alcohol is in the top 5 The same report proves that the class system we use in the UK does reflect how harmful something is. Source: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/uk-11660210.amp

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notouttolunch@reddit

And here. The last sentence!

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louwyatt@reddit

Did someone forget to get you a juice box at lunch, bud

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notouttolunch@reddit

Why would a guitar pedal help?

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notouttolunch@reddit

Eg here.

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louwyatt@reddit

Honestly, this is coming across as quite flirtatious. Love you too bud

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notouttolunch@reddit

We’re in England. Alcohol use is in significant decline, along with smoking tobacco after years of active campaigning and education. The law has been closing in methodically on both of these for years and it’s killing a legal industry quite effectively. Haven’t you ever heard about your own country? Cannabis is incredibly harmful. Anyone who says otherwise is just ignorant.

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louwyatt@reddit

You'd be surprised how hard they've come down in particularly rural places. The dealers that tend to last are small timer who only deal to friends. They are trying hard to cut back on supply into the country, which has caused a noticeable drop in quality over the past couple of years.

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CorrodedLollypop@reddit

>supply into the country The vast majority of weed consumed in the UK is grown in the UK.

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louwyatt@reddit

That's becoming increasingly less true. The police have gotten better and better at catching people who grow in the UK. They caught all the people growing in a town over from me with heat cameras on a helicopter

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CorrodedLollypop@reddit

I beg to differ, it's become increasingly common to use LED's for lighting, and it's far easier to grow it domestically than it is to try and import it. Remember, we live on an island, it's surrounded by the sea which makes smuggling weed a very high risk low reward strategy compared to renting a property or breaking into an abandoned/unoccupied building, running a massive grow of a couple of hundred plants, then harvesting and doing a runner.

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louwyatt@reddit

>I beg to differ, it's become increasingly common to use LED's for lighting, and it's far easier to grow it domestically than it is to try and import it. You still, in general, have to keep the weed in a hot environment. Which would trigger the heat cameras they use. There really isn't any way of getting away with it unless you are growing in the basement, which are rare in the UK >Remember, we live on an island, it's surrounded by the sea which makes smuggling weed a very high risk low reward strategy compared to renting a property or breaking into an abandoned/unoccupied building, running a massive grow of a couple of hundred plants, then harvesting and doing a runner It's incredible easy to smuggle in through the Sea and the channel tunnel. They only check a small fraction of everything going through. That's why anyone who knows anything about sea trade will tell you that there is a lot of smuggling.

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FloatyMacGlideFace@reddit

Marijuana doesn’t need to be in hot environment. You really shouldn’t comment if you don’t know what you’re talking about.

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louwyatt@reddit

I agree you shouldn't be commenting if you don't know what you're talking about. You commented anyway though "Regardless of what cannabis strain you are cultivating, it will grow best from the day it sprouts until day 1 of the bloom phase if you can keep temps dialled in. Between 20-28°C during lights on and between 15-20°C during lights off. These are the sweet spots for the light and dark cycles." Source: https://www.zamnesia.co.uk/grow-weed/397-temperature-in-the-cannabis-grow-room#:~:text=Regardless%20of%20what%20cannabis%20strain,the%20light%20and%20dark%20cycles.

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FloatyMacGlideFace@reddit

Exactly it’ll grow well just over 20, which isn’t hot!

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louwyatt@reddit

It's hotter than the average house, especially in winter in an attic. Honestly do people think before they comment

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FloatyMacGlideFace@reddit

Wow you really do know everything. You should become an advisor for the government.

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CorrodedLollypop@reddit

In an earlier life I was heavily involved in the supply of weed, I still know people in the "business" and they all deal with UK growers.

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louwyatt@reddit

I also know a lot of people in the businesses, they're all moving to importing. Go back half a decade ago you'd be correct. Hense why I say it's becoming increasingly common

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CorrodedLollypop@reddit

It probably also depends on where you are, in Scotland for example it's rare to find anything from outside the UK except for very certain niche methods of preparation

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Valuable-Incident151@reddit

That's been the standard method for 20+ years, they used to demonstrate it a lot on Police Camera Action and the like when I was a kid.

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louwyatt@reddit

It has been used for a long time but they've increased the use significantly. Along with other methods, just the first one to pop to head

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LemmysCodPiece@reddit

It doesn't need to be legalised at all. The "turn a blind eye" approach is much more progressive IMHO. The moment they legalise it, is the moment they tax it.

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UrbanAlly@reddit

Only been to prison once? Result !!! Bet he's laughing all the way to the dole office.

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VolcanicBear@reddit

Yep, same as one of my old dealers. I was picking up from him one day and he told me just to keep an eye out on my way out as the day before he'd had all his growing gear confiscated. I now buy it completely over the counter, illegally of course, from a shop where other related but legal products are sold.

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TheTerribleKai@reddit

Dude that sounds so cool, just walking in and discreetly being served flower by the shopkeeper haha 😄 time to rip another bowl and cry at £200 an oz

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fr7-crows@reddit

£180 oz here we're creeping up to that mark unfortunately : (

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Far-Radio856@reddit

You think it would be cheaper if it were legal?

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Parker4815@reddit

If it was legalised, your buddy would be out of a job.

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5ubredhit@reddit

Can you give him my number, please, for scientific research or something like that?

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AnonymousTimewaster@reddit

Also, even if you do get caught, the penalty is usually just taking the weed away and a caution (assuming you're not carrying a lot).

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Standard-Play-7672@reddit

its illegal but when your smoking there is like basically no chance your going to see police and even if you do the chance of them actually having the time or caring enough to come up to you and take your weed do all the paperwork and file all of it is not worth it smoking harms literally no one and if the police see you smoking they really do not want the hassle of dealing with it just for you to go buy some more 10 minutes later its really just pointless and should be legal

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KKChronics@reddit

Yo so where are the plugs out here?

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Pico-Tofu@reddit

I am prescribed it legally in the UK and can take it wherever I need to.

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cultureu@reddit

This guy @plugcode001 on tele deliver to door step

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1Wallet0Pence@reddit

Because no one is going to stop me

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cultureu@reddit

This guy @plugcode001 on tele deliver to door step

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nomodsman@reddit

Fuck everybody else right?

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avidflatearther@reddit

What harm is being caused to you by someone having a joint?

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nomodsman@reddit

What harm is caused to anyone by waiting a fucking minute before doing next to other people?

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avidflatearther@reddit

You would have a point if the people in question were lighting up in private areas but in public people are allowed to smoke. Albeit not cannabis but the principle is the same. I assume you also have issue with public smoking of cigarettes and puffing of vapes?

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nomodsman@reddit

I have an issue in crowded places. Indoor venues. Next to open doors/windows (think pub entrances). I use to smoke for many years. I eventually became cognizant of people around me and how much it stinks. And even when I did smoke, I wasn’t a jackhole and toss my butts everywhere/anywhere. But you know, I’m the ass here I guess.

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Vasquerade@reddit

Mind your own business

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nomodsman@reddit

The irony of that statement.

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Vasquerade@reddit

Nope, it was entirely sincere

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nomodsman@reddit

Are you on…other drugs?

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Vasquerade@reddit

Listen, you're insane if you think I'm gonna argue with someone on reddit while I'm being chased by a marzipan dragon

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nomodsman@reddit

https://preview.redd.it/fai12djt1sjf1.png?width=602&format=png&auto=webp&s=570eaa2fad66e71de69d412316b2a43408c24226

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Vasquerade@reddit

she just like me fr

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malin7@reddit

Reddit loses its mind when someone complains about the putrid stench smoking weed leaves

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Bolticus13@reddit (OP)

Fair enough. Like I said, no judgement infact i am under the belief that recreational cannabis use should be allowed. But are you scared that a police officer may ticket you if they are having a bad day. Or is it genuinely a situation where despite being illegal, police genuinely just dont give a fuck.

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Bayff@reddit

It’s legal medically though and so is CBD (which smells pretty much the same) so it’s not even as though just smelling weed means they are doing something illegal.

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VolcanicBear@reddit

Medicinal cannabis must be vaped or imbibed though. Not allowed/supposed to smoke prescription green, and not in public. CBD though? Yeah, fair game but expect to be swabbed if you were driving.

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

There aren’t actually any laws that criminalise using prescribed meds against the doctor’s recommendations, it’s only guidance, not a criminal offence.

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Polldit220@reddit

Not true. Smoking cannabis in public, or on private property, regardless of whether it has been prescribed to you or not, is always a crime in the UK. If a medical cannabis patient is found to be smoking cannabis by the police, they would be treated in the same manner as any other person found smoking cannabis, and could face: An on the spot fine of up to £90, or an unlimited fine if the individual is repeatedly found to have unlawful possession of cannabis. A formal warning or caution. Being discharged from their medical cannabis clinic due to unlawful administration of medicine.

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

Releaf are misleading, conflating regulatory prescription standards with criminal law. They’re incentivised to stop patients smoking because that breaches prescribing regs and could risk their licence, but a patient with a valid prescription cannot be prosecuted for possession simply for smoking it. Medicine already dispensed remains lawful, only the doctor can stop future prescriptions, and the regulations restrict how doctors prescribe, not how patients use their medicine, they don’t criminalise patients.

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Polldit220@reddit

That is simply one source from many. The legal exemption only applies to vaping and the College Of Policing advises forces accordingly.

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

Yes, I don’t doubt there are plenty of sources giving out misleading information on this, and it’s hardly surprising the police don’t always get it right, but that doesn’t change the facts. A valid prescription makes possession lawful, and a prescription cannot simply be invalidated and here is no offence in law that specifically criminalises a patient smoking their prescribed cannabis.

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Polldit220@reddit

Source?

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

It’s not about thinking everyone else is wrong, it’s that no law actually says smoking your prescribed cannabis makes it illegal or invalidates the prescription. Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001 (as amended 2018) allow possession of cannabis-based products for medicinal use if you have a valid prescription. Human Medicines Regulations 2012 set out what makes a prescription valid (authorised prescriber, correct details, dosage, signature, etc.). Patient behaviour, such as smoking instead of vaporising, does not create a criminal offence or retroactively invalidate a prescription. Any court could only consider existing offences, like possession without a valid prescription. Since a valid prescription makes possession lawful, there’s no criminal offence for smoking it, and no case law could override that. The sources are the regulations themselves: [https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2001/3998/contents/made]() and [https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2012/1916/contents/made]()

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Polldit220@reddit

Attaching the entire Misuse Of Drugs Act does not help your convoluted thinking. What it does show is that smoking cannabis is illegal. You cannot use a prescription as a defence if you choose to smoke it. Show me anywhere it says you can.

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

A prescription isn’t a “defence.” Possession under a valid prescription is lawful from the start, so the patient isn’t asserting a defence after committing an offence. There is no provision that removes that legal protection simply because a patient chooses to smoke it.

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Polldit220@reddit

Source? I’m sorry but I’ve provided sources to show that smoking prescription cannabis is illegal and you refute them, including the College Of Policing. Now respectfully cut the bar stool barrister waffle and show me a source that says it is legal. Thank you.

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

The primary legal sources are the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001, and the Human Medicines Regulations 2012. These Acts make possession of prescribed cannabis lawful and do not create a separate criminal offence for a patient consuming their prescription. I understand you want a secondary source to explain this, but there likely isn’t a commentary explicitly stating that “smoking prescribed cannabis is legal.” The legislation itself is authoritative, and it is inherently difficult to cite a provision that does not exist, there is no new criminal offence and no mechanism to invalidate a valid prescription.

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Polldit220@reddit

So just your opinion then. Cheers!🍻

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

You can easily disprove my point by showing a provision that allows a prescription to be invalidated due to patient behaviour, or a law that creates a new offence of smoking medical cannabis. Of course, you won’t be able to, because no such provision exists.

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Polldit220@reddit

Hint: When the whole weight of the internet disagrees with you and you can’t find a single corroborating source, guess what?- you are probably wrong.

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SignificanceOld1751@reddit

Being a patient, who does vape their meds - it still smells of weed

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Prior_Suit_1848@reddit

I concur 💯💯

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Bayff@reddit

Oh I’m not naive enough to think that most of the time it’s people smoking actual joints. It’s just pointless enforcing something when there are two perfectly legal things that can look/ smell the same. Imagine it would waste so much time.

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AubergineParm@reddit

Yes and no. You can be prescribed cannabis for medical use, legally, but its possession and import is still illegal. Lots of parents get into trouble at customs trying to bring in cannabis for their epileptic or motor neurone disease afflicted child because while they have a valid prescription for it, the law hasn’t quite caught up with the GMC yet, so it is still illegal to bring in. Of course, the UK is also the biggest exporter of commercial government-licensed cannabis anywhere in Europe. Basically, there is a big disconnect between reality and our legal system, because our legislature works in such a way as to add layer upon layer to existing acts, rather than repealing them. It’s become so convoluted and cross-matrixed that it’s become just too complex to properly address.

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Bayff@reddit

Unfortunately, the public opinion also hasn’t caught up unfortunately, especially with older generations. Plenty of valid reasons for the odour to be present. Especially with the popularity of CBD

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Vasquerade@reddit

So the police absolutely can arrest you for smoking weed in public, they just don't as a general rule. It depends on the branch and the individual cop. Some of them are jobsworth cunts about it, most just don't care

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The_Blip@reddit

It's less that police don't give a fuck, and more the policing strategy these days isn't to patrol around looking for wronguns. The police who are patrolling are more looking to serve the community and prevent theft and disorderly conduct. Going around arresting people smoking a single spliff wouldn't be a very effective use of police time, and would be generally unpopular with the public. Instead, police prefer to use specialised units to target organised criminals, as this will have a larger impact and is generally supported by the public.

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Nissa-Nissa@reddit

The chances of anything bad or permanent happening from a police officer seeing me smoke a small amount of cannabis, when I have a totally clean criminal record, is really low. I’m aware I might get whatever I have on me confiscated, but I would be absolutely floored to be arrested unless I’m doing it in a very inappropriate place.

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1Wallet0Pence@reddit

Can’t speak for everywhere but police in most cities really don’t care unless you’re being very obnoxious or driving under the influence.

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Fluid-Dish2271@reddit

Cause they pick their smokes up off me, snap, tele and ig PwitsLDN, can do delivery all over, and minimum spend on postcodes we dont cover, pop us a message for Menu- PWITSLDN

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lupus-ad-vos-fame@reddit

I have cannabis seeds for sale. Legal to buy them, not legal to grow them

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NoYouCantHavePudding@reddit

I think they love the smell of burning cats pee so much, that they just have to share it with everyone.

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Signal_Profession_83@reddit

The police lost funding to pursue it so they decided it’s not that naughty after all, fancy that. If they were paid per plant burner you can guarantee they’d be all over it. Add on to that fact, that certain demographics were basically allowed for “cultural reasons” and the whole thing started to seem a little unfair. The only reason it’s still illegal is to encourage people down the “private medical route” where you can imagine whose pockets you’ll find at the end of that rabbit hole.

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Glittering-Water495@reddit

Police don't care about shoplifters or phone thieves, someone smoking a plant is even lower down on their priorities

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xxnyami@reddit

they are too busy hiding in the bushes with a camera by the dual carriageway trying to catch the real criminals

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Cakeo@reddit

Someone is salty they were caught speeding or talking about the cat calling shit?

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Specialist-Thing8630@reddit

Yea if your white in color they won’t give a fuck otherwise yea your gonna be harassed

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1SaucyBean@reddit

That depends on who you are.

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NightCityMantis@reddit

And where you live.

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Inner-Status-7997@reddit

And on the individual officer that you're dealing with. One officer might let you go with a warning for speeding at 95mph whereas another might give you 3 points for speeding at 85.

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Wind_U_Up@reddit

If you take speed at 95mph you deserve ticket..

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Aletheia-Nyx@reddit

Even at 85, since the highest speed limit is generally 70. 15 above on a completely empty motorway is already questionable because there's always a chance you can't slow fast enough if you suddenly encounter a car accident. 25 above is actively dangerous to yourself and others.

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greenarsehole@reddit

Very random speeds

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MrReadilyUnready@reddit

Police officers can't issue points on the spot. They can take your details to issue a posts FPN or court summons, but they can't individually decide the punishment.

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Inner-Status-7997@reddit

Well you know what I meant, they'll take your name and address and look to pursue it further.

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NightCityMantis@reddit

Where I live it’s a relatively low crime area so the police like to concentrate on weed as it’s an easy arrest and makes their figures look good.

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completefuckweasel@reddit

If you were smoking it while wearing the T-shirt of a certain proscribed organisation I’m guessing that the rozzers would throw you into a van rather quickly 😵‍💫

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Wheeliemad4it@reddit

I get it on prescription so they cant do anything 👍🏻👌🏻

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Mobudz@reddit

No i don't really care but it's the smallest of crimes,you don't think the police go around all day arresting everyone what's smoking a joint.But yes some places have a much lighter outlook and it's a harm reduction measurement .The police don't actually arrest people for smoking in some cities ! Its not law but might as well be . Hope this explains a little.

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Aggravating-Factors@reddit

>If recreational cannabis is illegal, why do so many people smoke it out in public? Because it's not particularly serious if the Police were to catch you at it. >I was/am under the impression that public consumption is illegal here in the UK If you are using it recreationally it's illegal whether in public or private. If you are prescribed it medically (like me) you can consume your cannabis out in public provided you are doing so per the instructions of your prescribing clinician.

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ok2888@reddit

As someone who frequently walks around in the street smoking a spliff in London, the police really don't care probably as they have a lot of other horrendous shit to deal with and also even if they did care, worst case they are just going to search me and find nothing other than the spliff. The reason I walk around and smoke is so that I don't piss off the neighbours as they would definitely be smelling it every day if I did it on my property.

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richinthailand@reddit

Because people think it is legal as the law is ambiguous, my understanding I that it was only meant to be legal for medical reasons and that also the active agent was meant to be very low.

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Inner_Level_24@reddit

No. Everyone is aware that weed is illegal unless you you go through the official channels to become a mc patiant but with that why are police gonna spend wasting their time on speaking to countless individuals who could be mc patiants, police simple don't have time. Hell even if you get burgured the odds of police coming on the same day for you to get a witness statement is very low now

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richinthailand@reddit

Really, that's no the case at all, how long you been living in Thailand?

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Inner_Level_24@reddit

This is a AskUk subreddit...... Not a ask Thailand subreddit....

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richinthailand@reddit

Yes, sorry, I was thinking Thailand!

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Character_Start9227@reddit

It's the bad drugs which are bad. Not a cheeky spliff.

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Positive_Caramel2525@reddit

Cannabis is a gateway drug. The Government should just legalise it and then it can be taxed, which will go some way to pay for those people who end up with psychosis and schizophrenia which can arise from its habitual use.

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avidflatearther@reddit

Cannabis is a gateway drug how? I smoke it semi regularly and don't feel inclined to snort a key of ketamine or pump myself full of heroin.

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EitherChannel4874@reddit

I've met literally thousands of cannabis users. No exaggeration. Not once have I met anyone that has had psychosis or even anyone that knows someone that had cannabis psychosis. I'd argue that the very rare cases it did happen, that psychosis could just as easily have been triggered by alcohol or the wrong prescription drug. Cannabis has been legal in the uk for medical use for about 7 years. Do you think they'd dish it out if it really had a high chance of causing psychosis?

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notouttolunch@reddit

I’ve met very many too. They are 100% total deadbeats.

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EitherChannel4874@reddit

100% huh? Cool story.

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notouttolunch@reddit

Yep. Just like your useless statistic.

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WorhummerWoy@reddit

I've been smoking and drinking for years and I only ever say "yes" to harder drugs when I'm drunk. If I'm stoned, I usually just want to go to bed.

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glasgowgeg@reddit

>I've been smoking and drinking for years and I only ever say "yes" to harder drugs when I'm drunk. You're not buying those harder drugs from Tesco though, are you? You're likely getting them from the drug dealer you buy your weed from. So the "gateway" is that weed being illegal has provided you a gateway into harder things via your association with drug dealers.

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No-Cauliflower6572@reddit

That argument maybe had some tenuous legitimacy in a time before social media (as others have said, so tenuous it was never confirmed in any scientific study on addiction, like, not a single one). It's absolute bollocks in a time where you can get drugs off a Telegram channel with no hassle whatsoever. You don't need connections, or a dealer, you just need to have the slightest clue how social media works.

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notouttolunch@reddit

Not really. The fact that everyone posting on here things that an illegal drug is now harmless and has no real impact on a persons life is the real meaning of “gateway drug”. 30 years ago that would not have been the case. Cannabis has literally defined itself as the gateway drug to itself!

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No-Cauliflower6572@reddit

That's not what gateway drug means. And compared to alcohol cannabis is harmless. It's still bad for your health, of course, especially when smoked, but what it can do in terms of side effects is completely trivial compared to alcohol, nicotine, and quite a lot of prescription drugs. That's backed up by a ton of scientific evidence.

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StopTheTrickle@reddit

Cannabis being a gateway drug has never been scientifically proven, modern research suggests sugar is the true gateway drug

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S002839082030040X Not quite true

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StopTheTrickle@reddit

Did you even read it? Its saying if you're genetically predisposed to addiction cannabis use can increase the addictive properties of heroin. It doesn't say that cannabis use leads to heroin use. The whole article clearly points to a genetic predisposition to addiction in rats being the cause of drug addiction

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glasgowgeg@reddit

I always interpreted cannabis being a gateway drug in that it requires meeting a drug dealer to get, and that contact is the gateway to harder drugs they may also sell.

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MerlinOfRed@reddit

If it was completely normalised (and legal) then it would be as much of a gateway drug as alcohol. The forbidden nature of it, and the underhand methods to get hold of it, make it more of a gateway to other things as you say.

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jake_burger@reddit

Paracetamol is a gateway drug. I bet all crack addicts had Calpol when they were kids. You can’t argue with the logic.

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Confuseduseroo@reddit

I actually don't believe the argument that cannabis is a gateway drug. Those who try it may well go on to try other things, if that's the sort of person they are. But equally a lot of people try cannabis and think "OK, I tried it; we're done". Nobody tries cannabis and wakes up with a hunger for heroin. I also however do not buy the argument that cannabis is harmless. OK, no, you're not going to OD. But in my experience those who habitually use it tend to join the 'B' stream.

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Bolticus13@reddit (OP)

From what I gather, cannabis use doesn't cause schizophrenia and/or other psychotic disorders, like you are implying. If you happen to have it and already have a psychotic disorder like schizophrenia, Bipolar or schizoaffective disorder, it can lead to triggering an episode or making symptoms worse. (Which is why i personally dont smoke weed), however, if you dont already have said disorders (diagnosed or not), then weed won't cause them. Also, are we still going with the whole "weed is a gateway drug" argument. I thought that was disproven long ago.

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BeeOnYouAt@reddit

The only reason it can be considered a gateway is due to the legislation. If it wasn’t sold to anyone of any age by the same people selling harder stuff, in the same way the sale of alcohol is controlled, it wouldn’t be lumped in with more destructive stuff nearly as much

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Character_Start9227@reddit

I'd say alcohol is the real gateway drug, but that's an unpopular opinion....it's legal so it must be safe right?

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winobeaver@reddit

I could only successfully quit nicotine when I realised that I could also quit alcohol, at least temporarily. Before that, it was like alcohol was some really challenging hurdle for my nicotine-cessation to overcome.

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Terrible-Amount-6550@reddit

Dad?

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avidflatearther@reddit

Nobody really cares because it's not a big issue. Police might confiscate a bag of weed if they find it on you but it's rare you get arrested for possession.

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Signal_Quantity_7029@reddit

Because we wanna smoke, fuck the police

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jakeyb21@reddit

I work for DPD , I must be one of the biggest drug dealers around haha, my van is always full of cannabis on prescription. I must deliver about 30 a day to various households.

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BumblebeeChewna@reddit

This. If you satisfy the criteria - it's actually incredibly simple to get medicinal cannabis on prescription now. And it's legal to carry and take your medication wherever you see fit.

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notouttolunch@reddit

There still aren’t that many people prescribed it. About 80,000 people. And of them they’re not prescribed it to smoke and aren’t the ones you’re passing on the street in a 1980s Jimmy Saville tracksuit monged out of their brains who are the ones causing the same problems as drunks.

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thejazzassassin@reddit

I'm out the game now, but I hear it's pretty expensive and not that great a product. If you're a serious recreational stoner on a script, rather than a patient (if I can make such a distinction) you can probably get better stuff yourself from the black market and so the cycle continues.

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notouttolunch@reddit

I wouldn’t know. My opportunity for life was never so bad that I had to resort to breaking laws to make it interesting. But it barely matters since so few are using it and it’s *never* prescribed to smoke. It’s really easy to see where the wasters are.

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thejazzassassin@reddit

I don't condone smoking but it's important to realise that people from all walks of life smoke - doctors, accountants, judges, police, everyone - people who are successful, normal or otherwise. It's lazy and inaccurate to refer to all stoners as wasters. Can it be problematic? Of course, like any substance abuse. But plenty of people smoke and prosper.

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notouttolunch@reddit

Even a doctor who uses it is a waster. That’s why they’re a waster.

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thejazzassassin@reddit

If that doctor enjoys a pint or a glass of wine, would that make them a waster? If they had a couple of bottles a night, or ten pints, I'd agree with you. What do you think?

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formallyhuman@reddit

That 80k figure is only up to 2022, I believe. Anecdotal as fuck, but I think there's been something of a boom in recent years. I can't remember exactly where I saw it, but I saw some figures putting that figure closer to 150k across all the private clinics. You're right that they can't smoke it but even vaping it still causes a smell (although less of one, and it doesn't linger as much).

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notouttolunch@reddit

Of course it increased in popularity. 80,000 is the last confirmed figures I saw. I think that was 2024 as it was 50,000 in 2023. But my other point stands that people who are prescribed it aren’t sitting in a stupor on the street corner monged out. And to be fair, the ones who now get it prescribed never really were in my experience. They very much tried to keep off the radar because it was so beneficial to them.

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Cooryd@reddit

I think about this every time the delivery guy turns up with my prescription and asks for the pin. "Does he realise he's exchanging drugs right now or is this just an iphone box as far as they know?"

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jakeyb21@reddit

I know what it is most of the time , alot of it comes from a place called Sapphire Medical, and is in smell proof bags. The bags actually work because I can't smell anything and it's a very strong smell.

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Cooryd@reddit

Yeah mine usually have the dispensary somewhere on the box so I gathered it’s maybe obvious. My stuff usually comes inside of an air tight aluminium jar that’s also got a foil top on. This is inside a cardboard box which is then inside a sealed plastic bag so I’m not surprised there’s no smell from them bags

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jakeyb21@reddit

I mean we don't know the contents inside , I'm just assuming it's normally weed, could be any number of prescription drugs. I just deliver a lot of it , especially over the last 6 months.

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Cooryd@reddit

Thanks for the info, they do put that’s it’s all done discreetly on the website FAQs but still had me wondering this whole time.

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Bloody_sock_puppet@reddit

I do all the time. I like it, and out in the fresh air it's not hard to make sure it doesn't bother anyone else. As to why i'm not worried, it's because I've been doing so for twenty years without much more than "Do you mind not smoking there", and even then it's usually because I've misunderstood where I'll be in the way. Technically taking donations in return for votes is an illegal punishable offence too. Much like smoking weed, everyone turns a blind eye because it's so prevalent. So there's also a small element of simply not respecting the law or the people who make it. It's not worth mildly inconveniencing myself to avoid doing it simply because the law says so. I never carry too much with me and if you're polite to the police and aren't causing any actual disturbance then they don't care either as long a you put it out when they ask. Then you just go find a different corner to sit down and chill in.

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Kitchen-Iron-3689@reddit

Police are not allowed to search based off the smell of cannabis alone anymore .. I read an article about it.

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Kitchen-Iron-3689@reddit

Because it has been legalized for medical purposes, you need a prescription to obtain some of the medical stuff. But a lot of people believe in the plant and its benefits. The expense of the medical not everybody can afford so they will just stick to street dealers.

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MaizeGlittering6163@reddit

The police don’t care about mere possession and use of cannabis. Dealing, smoking it around children, driving cars while stoned, that kind of thing will get attention. If you do get nicked for the lowest level cannabis use it’s because you were acting obnoxiously at the same time and that in itself isn’t usually an offence.

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WheresMyAbs98@reddit

I got cuffed, cautioned and fined for smoking it by myself in a remote section of East London with no one else around me tbf I was by the old docks, only one other soul in sight, they came up to me and asked if they could see my spliff. They then proceeded to bring their cuffs out and radio their colleagues after revealing they were a plain clothes police officer. Following this, more came over and they proceeded to inform me they were teaming an officer and this would be good training for them. They spoke about how it was at their discretion to give a warning or an ASB caution and fine (the more severe punishment) and then chose to give me the ASB caution and fine as it would be better training for their new recruit I was genuinely by myself and well out of the way of anyone (as I always am when I smoke). I was the total opposite of obnoxious and I believe I was primarily reprimanded for training purposes

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ResponsibilityNo3245@reddit

I know a copper. He once told me that someone would need to walk up to him, blow it in his face, and say "what you going to do about it?" to get lifted.

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Coraldiamond192@reddit

Yup, if you're going to smoke it, please be aware of who is around you and who could be around you even long after you've smoked it. If you're sensible, you won't give them any reason to ever talk to you, let alone arrest you. One of the most common ways they catch dealers out is because they drive with no MOT.

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angrynessi@reddit

From the point of a smoker 30yo male. Ive been smoking this on and off since i was 14/15. And im originally from a tiny town middle of no where. Where growing up i would walk around and smoke with friends. As tbere was never really anyone around. Now that im an adult. And live in London, work etc have all the shit that goes on of an adult. I still walk around and smoke. Yeah its illegal. But the police have never stopped me to take it off me. I generally smoke in public away from Kids, old people i.e homing etc or heavily populated areas. Ive passed people who have gave me a look or told me off in the few years. But the vast majority of people dont care. Im trying to do my thing and theyre trying to do them. Its London. I think its to busy for the most people to care about others. Saying that i did used to have a really cool old 80yo indian auntie i would sometimes meet on my walks in the park. She didnt mind and we just used to sit and chat about life or walk slowly around while i bunned. She was cool.

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mcshaggin@reddit

I smell cannabis almost daily in my area. Even in the middle of the town centre. I really don't think the police care. They've got better things to do than arrest people for smoking a drug that's now legal in a lot of other countries.

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noseysheep@reddit

If speeding is illegal why do so many people drive over the speed limit? Why is shoplifting becoming more common? So much crime is going unchallenged so it's on the rise. Plus the argument for cannabis is growing weaker and weaker with it becoming legal in more countries

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EitherChannel4874@reddit

It's legal here for medicinal use now. Has been for a while.

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DiscoveryJamie@reddit

Only legal to vape it

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dannydrama@reddit

And it's shit and expensive compared to the incredibly consistent black market weed I've had for nearly 17 years. Halfway round the world, dried to a crisp and put through (obviously non-hazardous) radiation to kill any nasty stuff that shouldn't be there in the first place.

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LostJD-@reddit

Not my experience as a medical patient , not shit not expensive and for many of the reasons stated on this sub legal cannabis is so much more than consumption alone and some UK MC is also non irradiated ( i.e no radiation ) btw you are likely to consume irradiated food from the supermarket you just dont know it , or ignore it.

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dannydrama@reddit

It is more than consumption alone, it helped me take my medical cannabis with me on a couple of holidays, kept my landlord off my back, gave me legitimacy towards what I've been telling doctors for years, helped me explain it and help other people to understand it better. The bud was just shit and expensive when I was with Jorja and Specials, I genuinely hope the situation has improved with it all because it was admittedly a while ago now.

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Lottiepop420@reddit

Deffo better now, some strains are gorgeous. Irradiation doesn't affect the medicinal properties or the high according to the studies I looked into, and it makes it safer for patients with compromised immune systems as well as keeping mould and fungus off it. It doesn't bother me in the slightest, but I do sometimes end up with non irradiated. I prefer irradiated for safety, this is medication not a dick-swing of having super sticky icky bud!

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LostJD-@reddit

Not in my experience is the bud shit , but im not comparing to BM . But equally I could say BM is shit , full of nasty surprises some obvious some less so , unless its from Dave down the road , its perfect in all ways and so cheap Dave gives it away to his friends for zero out of the love of his heart. I get non irradiated Uk MC and for me its helps me with my condition . Granted it should be better and cheaper , Rome wasnt built in a day , if compared to the American market that has taken 30 years to get where it is today ... As said Uk MC is much much more than consumption alone , its a procedure and process in a framework that should eventually pave the way to a Uk society that doesn't think prohibition is the answer.

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FeelingDegree8@reddit

Should be fully legal and taxed. So stupid that government after government is screaming out for some revenue and won't do it.

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mo_tag@reddit

The UK is the largest producer and exporter of medicinal cannabis globally so it wouldn't be that hard.. a lot more weed smokers are buying weed shipped in from the US or CA over the home grown stuff nowadays, the whole thing is a bit silly really

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inide@reddit

Theres a lot of stuff thats available on prescription in the UK that is grown in the UK and exported to Holland or Portugal for packaging before being shipped back for patients.

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Lottiepop420@reddit

It seems everything I get is Canadian, bonkers it has to travel so far when we grow so much, so bad for the environment!

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caulkhead808@reddit

This is no longer true and hasn't been for a long time.

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Aletheia-Nyx@reddit

Exactly. I love that it's legal for medical use, but you still have to jump through hoops to get it legally prescribed and they'll only do it for a handful of chronic conditions. I smoke for my anxiety, PTSD, and ADHD (on top of some chronic pain issues that aren't the right type for a chronic pain dx). You won't get it prescribed for any of those things. I'm not out here getting high as a kite and starting issues, I'm chilling in my house, playing a video game because I'm pain-free enough to sit up at my desk for longer than twenty minutes. If the police or govt think that's worth the time and resources to come after me for it, they can bloody well do so.

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plastictomato@reddit

It also costs a fortune for the consultations. I looked into it because I have a few chronic pain conditions, and it was like 50 quid per mandatory monthly appointment, even if the appointment was a 5-minute “yeah everything’s the same, I’m happy to carry on as I am” conversation. Add the cost of the medcan on top, where some clinics kick you off if you don’t order every single month (even if you have some left over from previous months and don’t need a top up) and you’re looking at about 100 a month in a lot of cases. No wonder people stay on the black market stuff!

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Elegant_Law_6463@reddit

Alternaleaf only charges £10 a month for their Quarterly appointments.

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Aletheia-Nyx@reddit

That's nuts! I figured it would be free, assumed it'd be an NHS thing. I pay like £20 a month for my stuff, that's insane price gouging.

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plastictomato@reddit

It’s not really on the NHS unfortunately, all private clinics. A couple of people have managed to get it on the NHS for really grim health conditions, but it really is a one in a million thing.

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marbmusiclove@reddit

Yes but not to smoke it, it has to be vaped

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EitherChannel4874@reddit

Vaped or oils for oral use.

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marbmusiclove@reddit

Yes but we’re specifically talking about people smelling it from people smoking

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smb3something@reddit

It's basically legal if you have enough money to go to one of the private clinics. It's a legally protected monopoly at this point.

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Lottiepop420@reddit

It isn't illegal on prescription, which is very easy to get

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OverPaper3573@reddit

In London around the mid 90s after possession of cannabis was reduced to a class C drug offence the police just quietly stopped nicking people. It got upgraded back to B but still the tendency is to ignore it as it's deemed not worth the paperwork to arrest a recreational smoker.

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

It was not Class C until 2002.

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OverPaper3573@reddit

Right my mistake, I was getting mixed up with the 97 change of government and change in attitudes around then.

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ChapterCritical5231@reddit

On a light note and tongue in cheek as it could have ended differently I once had my pockets emptied in Stalybridge Police station and they found some smoke laid it on the desk in front of me and gave me ‘the look’. Nothing was said it just disappeared when I was released, I necked an E they missed and rolled out the squidgy black they missed with my initials and left it on the toilet cistern. Not clever I know but if you were in the same life situation as I was back then and the next in nick overnight you would have appreciated it. They didn’t care about drugs unless you were selling

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No-Willingness-4097@reddit

I had the police round one night due to a guest getting drunk and a bit rowdy, the police saw a huge bong and a big pile of weed, only cared if the guy who was rowdy had smoked any in case it was a reaction to it. They took him with them to cool off in a cell and left us to continue getting high in peace. So I don't think they really give a fook about weed at all.

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omegaap@reddit

Police care just busy with higher profile crimes like catching motorists above 0.00000001 mph above the speed limit chap

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Hot_Understanding_18@reddit

Better to smoke and move then stay in one place . I do smoke myself but even I think people should be abit more respectful with where they choose to smoke it.

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rachett86@reddit

I’m prescribed it. I’m allowed to do so.

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weecocksparra@reddit

Because people need exposure to it so they'll shut up with their hyperbole about the smell.

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bluncho@reddit

Plain and simply because we don’t care

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BabaGanoushHabibi@reddit

There was a time not so long back when they did have something on a crackdown on it - it went to class B if I recall which is frankly absurd, and I don't even take weeds.

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

Cannabis has always been Class B apart from a short period 2002 to 2004(ish)

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BabaGanoushHabibi@reddit

2004 to 2009 it seems - man I thought it had been downgraded for ages

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Exact-Put-6961@reddit

That sounds right. Blunkett as Home Secretary mentioned down classifying it in 2002. Blair government. It was Brown govt put it up again Influenced by headlines about "Blairs feral youth".

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gadgetman29@reddit

Resources are limited, prosecuting individual users takes time and effort for little reward. It's much more productive targeting dealers/growers and cutting off the supply than going after individuals. That said they will target drug drivers pretty proactively (as it's one of the fatal 4) and they are upping their focus on residential grows as there has been a spate of high profile fires/explosions & innocent deaths caused by drug cultivation.

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sorasploot@reddit

As someone who does this, I will actively go out of my way to avoid police and if I see an officer walking near me I will chuck it or hide it. I’m less of the type to just walk around smoking it like a cigarette amongst others, I’ll usually find somewhere nice and quiet to sit :)

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Blackthorne1998@reddit

Round where I live it's a usual thing to see potheads about smoking. Police only tend to try it on ppl they know for being dealers. I always assumed, if they can't get u for intent to supply/distribute, then its not worth the paperwork on their end.

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sp00kycunt@reddit

Weed only smells bad if you have hate in your heart

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Same_Water7713@reddit

Cops are more interested in arresting the people that have it legally. 😂

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WanderingArtist2@reddit

I am judging. It fucking stinks, and if you turn up to a supermarket checkout reeking of it at 11AM on a Tuesday, you need to ask yourself some very searching questions.

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Inner_Level_24@reddit

As someone who works in a shop and is a mc patiant who as a hidden disability how dare you judge me for smoking something that keeps the pain away. I cannot control when my pain is going to start

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WanderingArtist2@reddit

In this case, I meant the customers. There are times when they leave the smell trailing behind them in their wake like they're Pepe Le Pew.

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Inner_Level_24@reddit

My point is that weed smokers comes in all forms. You don't know why people are smoking it, for example you can get it on the NHS for a very few conditions which include cancer. How do you know the person who stinks of it isn't using it as cancer treatment?

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Inner_Level_24@reddit

Yeah.... I'm also that customer that comes to the till even at 8am high because I cannot control when the pain is gonna hit....

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4kFootyAddict@reddit

I’m so glad I live somewhere with legal weed. its such a shame the uk is still so regressive on this

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Inner_Level_24@reddit

I mean medical Cannabis is a thing and getting more popular day by day, adverts during the day time from companys that have the license to sell it, woukd I make it legal? Absolutely but unfortunately I cannot see this happening under Labour

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master12211@reddit

It's a sign of the times. The UK is slowly but surely going downhill.

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Inner_Level_24@reddit

There now are many of use who use it as medicine. Not everyone who smokes weed is doing it to get high. Some of us have no choice even if we didn't want to smoke it

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TheAireon@reddit

Some can correct me if I'm wrong but consumption isn't illegal, it's the possession that gets you. Most first cases of a small possession of cannabis end with just a warning so there's no real worry about getting caught. The very limited police also doesn't care too much when there's bigger things happening, they'll call you naughty and tell you not to do it again.

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insomnimax_99@reddit

Yep - as soon as the drug is in your bloodstream you’re legally in the clear, because it’s not consumption that’s illegal, it’s possession, and having the drugs in your system doesn’t count as possession.

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gamecatuk@reddit

Unless you drive.

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DazzleBMoney@reddit

That’s still not possession

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CabinetOk4838@reddit

No, but **driving** on weed is dangerous. And illegal, as it should be.

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inide@reddit

It's legal if you have a prescription.

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CreativeSituation778@reddit

You can’t smoke it though.

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inide@reddit

Sure you can. You're supposed to vape it, 0.25g at a time. Just because vaping is less harmful than smoking. But if you smoked it instead, noone would know the difference unless they witnessed it.

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CreativeSituation778@reddit

Exactly, and if they witness it, you’re not following your prescription as advised. No prescription will advise smoking, only vaping.

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inide@reddit

But you would not be over the prescribed limit.

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CreativeSituation778@reddit

No, but the police could the prosecute you for not taking your prescription as advised. Because different methods of ingestion change levels of impairment. Any medical user will be above the threshold for blood results anyway so that’s then when it falls back to how impaired you are - if you’re too impaired, you’ll still get written up for “unfit through drugs” even if you are prescribed it and over the “legal threshold”.

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inide@reddit

The police couldn't prosecute you for using a different delivery method for your prescription any more than they could arrest you for taking a second dose of paracetamol after 3 hours instead of 4.

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CreativeSituation778@reddit

Yes but my point is, the method of delivery does play a part in it, because your impairment levels can alter drastically. It’s very well discussed on the medical cannabis uk subreddit.

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Remarkable-Shoe-4835@reddit

Depends

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CreativeSituation778@reddit

What bit are you replying to? The illegal bit or the dangerous bit?

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Remarkable-Shoe-4835@reddit

Both, medical cannabis users are told not to drive until you know how this medicine affects you. If it doesn’t impair your driving there isn’t a problem.

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DazzleBMoney@reddit

I didn’t say it wasn’t, I’m just saying driving under influence is the name of the crime, not possession

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leachianusgeck@reddit

def not but still good to highlight to folk who may be unaware that it stays in your system long after you've consumed it! so this is me hijacking to warn folks to avoid driving if you have weed i can be as sober as day but id fail the roadside wipe. obviously i never drive the same day i smoke/vape (i dont drive ever now because of this actually, learning to drive cost so much that im not having that wasted by being DQed lol) so i wouldnt actually be intoxicated, but the wipes dont discern this (besides the point but they really need a new way of testing for being stoned while driving) ymmv depending on how much, how regularly, and for how long you've had it ofc. if you're regular and a long time user you gotta wait yonks to have it fully out your system prescriptions for medicinal weed exist and provide cover as long as you arent intoxicated (? i forget the official legal term - incapable?) but even people with legit prescriptions have been arrested for drug driving

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DPaignall@reddit

'Unfit' is the word - section 4 Road Traffic Act. 'Over the prescribed limit' - section 5a RTA - medical users have a statutory defence under Section 5a (3) aka the medical defence. They should not be arrested if they can show a prescription is used in accordance with medical advice / manufacturers guidance and they are not unfit.

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leachianusgeck@reddit

thank you!! that was what I was after sadly a lot of police aren't up to date with the latest regs for medicinal cannabis so while they shouldn't it still happens

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Soggy_Tangerine9340@reddit

From what I’ve read that’s the issue. You can be unaffected days later from canabis or cocaine but any small amount detected puts you over the legal limit. Coke clears quicker than weed but the point stands.

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gamecatuk@reddit

True.

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inide@reddit

If you have a valid prescription you can actually legally drive while under the influence.

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gamecatuk@reddit

A weed prescription? Lol

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inide@reddit

Yes. Medical cannabis exists in the UK.

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gamecatuk@reddit

Yeah but it's not an intoxicant.

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inide@reddit

What? Do you think they strip it of the THC? There are some strains available on medical that're above 30% THC. Your can get distillate, you can get THC capsules, you can get edibles (fruit pastilles with THC), you can get pre-filled vapes or you can get buds. If you're curious, [medibud.wiki](http://medibud.wiki) gives all the information about it.

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gamecatuk@reddit

I believe there is a legal limit.

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BppnfvbanyOnxre@reddit

I have friends who smoke a lot and think I am a bit odd now because I avoid it. The amount they regularly smoke of an evening they must 100% exceed the driving limit most of the time the next day. Which is why I steer clear the limit for losing your licence is tiny.

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Senior-Gap-9026@reddit

There is actually some leeway in case of second hand smoking but yeah I still wouldn’t risk it

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gamecatuk@reddit

Problem is if you have a crash your screwed if the police test you.

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I_ALWAYS_UPVOTE_CATS@reddit

So the trick is if you see a police officer approaching you have to huff the entire thing before they get to you.

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LongjumpingCurve1869@reddit

Well said, someone who actually knows the law... very rare on this platform

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notouttolunch@reddit

I’m not sure it’s rare. It’s just hard to deal with the generally pro drug people on Reddit who think that cannabis is a consequence free drug that should be promoted whereas alcohol is the devil’s armpit. It’s hard to enunciate the finer points of the law when the retorts are so blunt and uneducated.

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relaxing_sausage@reddit

Yep, possessing enough to share, or buying and selling drugs are when police will be interested. Consuming illegal substances is not likely to amount to any illegal activity unless you're also doing something you shouldn't do whilst under the influence, like driving.

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gixigxjgxjg@reddit

There's also legal medical cannabis, loads of private clinics will prescribe you flower, you're only meant to vape rather than smoke, but it complicated things.

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No-Structure-8125@reddit

Exactly that. Me and my friends were sitting around an estate smoking a joint about 10 years ago. Police officer walks past us, his exact words were "I know what you're doing but I have more important things to deal with", and walked off. After looking on social media later it turned out they were out looking for a missing child.

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rezonansmagnetyczny@reddit

Where i live, the missing child would probably be sitting around an estate smoking a joint

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Inner_Level_24@reddit

With the prevalence of medical Cannabis now (I'm a user myself) it's basically pointless. Cannabis is now seen in a different light than what it was even just 5 years ago. Medical Cannabis have adverts plasterd all over the TV with a dozen or so known companies that have acsess for the license to sell it to individuals. Be such a waste of time now, on a personal note if it wasn't for weed I acually would be a burden and living off the tax payer I tried 3 diffrent AD'S and eventually the one that worked stopped working after 6 years. The previous 2 had also been proven during that 6 year period to not work for chronic pain so weed actually saved my life

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bbyn0money@reddit

My local tescos is robbed by the same 10 people everyday and the security guard cant stop them

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dannydrama@reddit

I have a baseless theory that there will be *many* less security guards if that ever changes. They can't touch anyone and wouldn't want to risk getting stabbed over a crate of Stella anyway. Soon as that changes and it's part of the job to do that then it isn't worth it.

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ChrisRR@reddit

It's probably just because their insurance requires them to have security

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ChrisRR@reddit

Tesco just writes it up as a loss. They don't care

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jake_burger@reddit

The security guard *can* stop them, they or their manager just choose not to.

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Lumpy_Ad104@reddit

Probably have a job stopping them, but could just refuse service.

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constructuscorp@reddit

I watched a guy walk into our local Tesco *with a lit spliff in his hand* the other day. The security guy just said "can't have that in here mate" and he apologised and said he'd forgotten and put it out. That was the end of that.

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heyitsed2@reddit

There's a limit to how much you can get busted for, the police are more interested in stopping the supply rather than individuals with small amounts for personal consumption. Same as the police aren't interested in Doris nicking hobnobs but are interested in criminal gangs systematically ransacking supermarkets for high ticket items.

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thecuda75@reddit

Because the police are hopeless

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Ok_Elderberry_5690@reddit

Every corner shop sells king sized Rizla and have done even before medicinal cannabis was legalised 🙄

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Stegalosauradon@reddit

There are around 60,000 legal medical cannabis users in the UK with that number estimated to rise to 80,000 by the end of the year. That's a lot of people vaping weed legally. (If anyone reading this finds smoking weed helps them I highly recommend getting a medical vape, going legal and trying different strains. The terpenes given off at lower temps work wonders for so many problems and the "high" doesn't kick in until much higher temps so you can still drive, work, live etc...) Then there's the fact that, while a class B, cannabis falls under the discretionary warning scheme. This means that, most of the time, if you've only got a small amount for personal use and you're not causing a disturbance or committing any other crime, you'll most likely get off with a warning and having your stash confiscated. Not that big of a risk in the grand scheme of things. The police just don't seem to care. Cannabis users don't really pose a threat to public order, we're not that high of a priority: The supply chain isn't littered with ethical problems like cocaine; we're more likely to get a take-away and talk philosophy than start a fight; apart from the obvious risks associated with smoking (although there are many other ways to take cannabis) and a minor risk of triggering genetically pre-disposed psychosis in people under the age of 25, it doesn't really cause health problems (quite the opposite in fact) and clog up the health and social systems like other popular street drugs. Theres also a cultural aspect. Cannabis use has been a part of art/music/counterculture and community/cultural identity for decades.Its also been legalised in parts of the US with big social media influence. It's just not viewed in the same way as other drugs by a lot of people. It's been normalised.

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antman1983@reddit

I'm not advocating this, just putting it out there to stimulate the conversation. How about if a lax attitude to the police using corporal punishment were brought back? Rather than tying down an officer for 2hr for pointless paperwork that will go nowhere, what if an officer could physically punish a perp? Smoking a spliff down the street? You may get a clip round the head. Cutting the lock off a bike, how about a nightstick to the legs? Mugging? An uncomfortable 2min in the back of a police van. My thinking is around countries which still employ such "old school policing". Does it work there? Would it work here?

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danmatthewzz@reddit

It’s an utter joke imo. Got pulled over in 2022, because I was driving a ‘car that criminals use’ 25 hours after smoking a joint. Guy said it was ‘drug and drink awareness week’, whipped out a drug wipe and breathalyser. Got nicked. Licence lost, criminal record. Like someone else said, I’ve had friends do drug swabs at the roadside, and been let off because they know they aren’t criminals and it’ll ruin their lives. All on who pulls/stops you. Just my cup of tea though. If you really think cannabis is having ANY effect on you after more than a day you need to re jiggle your brain.

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bumblebeebadman@reddit

I got stopped up my local skatepark Christmas Eve Me and a buddy having a last smoke and skate for Xmas and a pcso was sent because a dog walker rang the police about us smoking a jay no kids around as was fairly late he lingered around for over 40 mins radioing back and forth to try and get a unit down to search us eventually a cop car turned up and then the pcso gave us a thumbs up jumped in their car and drove off, for that 40 mins the pcso was walking around he was constantly questioning us and making us feel like we were real criminals, we both felt it was a massive waste of police time when we all know that police’s presence could have been spent better in our city centre due to the festive season happening

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FarmerJohnOSRS@reddit

It's not illegal to consume. It is illegal to be in possession of.

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GraphicDesignMonkey@reddit

Back when I used to smoke it, my mate and I were walking down the street once passing a joint, and a copper spotted us "Hi folks, is that a joint?" "Um, yes. Sorry! We'll put it out " "No it's fine, you just need to be more discreet from now on, there's families with young kids and tourists around here. Don't want to make a bad impression now do we? Go and finish it round the corner lads." And off he went. I was mates with a retired policeman who said the reason they don't crack down on folks smoking weed is because they're usually too chilled to cause actual trouble. As long as smokers keep it discreet they'll turn a blind eye. It's the folks drinking alcohol who are the ones they crack down on.

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Green-Temporary9686@reddit

Smoking is bad in general, I vape it legally as prescribed. In public.

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ExcellentPumpkin978@reddit

How do you know it’s recreational? Medicinal cannabis is perfectly legal to consume publicly and you wouldn’t know if someone is prescribed it or not unless you ask them.

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PLTuck@reddit

Police don't have the resources to deal with it. There is also a big rise in private prescription legal weed. Massive waste of police time going after it really. If they get whiff of a mid level local dealer making thousands they will spend the resources to get them, going after end users of weed is counter productive really because the war on drugs is an objective failure.

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Scarpaskine@reddit

Do you or a relative have a daily medication schedule? If so then you may need to take your meds in public when out and about. Medical cannabis users will also have a schedule dependent on the condition being treated. My partner is prescribed for neuropathic pain due to a significant disability. So when we're out for the day they have to vape in public according to their pain/schedule. You shouldn't presume it's being used recreationally when you come across someone using it. Many recognised disabilities are "hidden".

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formallyhuman@reddit

Keep in mind that there are now many legal medical cannabis users who are perfectly within their rights to (vape) their medication in public.

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Practical-March-6989@reddit

They should just legalise it already, raise some much needed revenue and make it safer.

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RichGuest567@reddit

It's basically decriminalised for users, the police won't do anything other than maybe take it, police cars drive past me often while I'm walking around the block smoking a joint and I've never been stopped, infact I've smoked weed since I was 14 so 8 years (on and off, more in the past couple of years) and I've never had a run in with the police. I think if your not hurting anyone, and you don't have a large amount (pwits) then your fine

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Ok-Emu-5234@reddit

The only time you ever hear about the police is when they're going after people with cannabis prescriptions

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FOARP@reddit

Because the cops don’t really care, and a significant portion of the population also doesn’t care. Personally, I don’t like the smell and object strongly to it being smoked near playgrounds, but I don’t care about the legality of it either. It’s harmless, mostly, and should be legalised.

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LongCharacter9532@reddit

Because I work hard at the council all day to improve your life, if I want to smoke a spliff on my way home I will. It’s less harmful than alcohol and frankly if anyone other than my manager pulls me up on it (including police or probation) I could not care less. Legalize the herb.

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sarah_impalin76@reddit

because I can and I like smoking dope. The police are too busy ignoring crime as they have lots of pensioners holding bits of cardboard to arrest for being terrorists.

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Strange_Version4373@reddit

it’s been decriminalised a lot

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CheetahNervous7704@reddit

All they can really do is search you to see if you have more on you. There’s not really anything they can convict you on if all you have is half a little tiny piece of already smoked joint, there’s not really much evidence it’s not just a cigarette unless they take it off you, rip it open and see what’s inside. It’s not really the same as public drinking where it’s a metal can with alcohol written on it. There’s no real way to enforce it and even less point doing so. What harm is in some guy floating about stoned? The smell? Car exhausts, city bins, cigarettes and sweaty people also smell in public

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fluxpeach@reddit

drug use is ubiquitous in the UK. I have some police friends. They’re some of the biggest hard drug user I know. They don’t care about someone smoking some smelly plant

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CreativeSituation778@reddit

OP the weirdest thing to me here is that you signed off your post like an 80 year old grandad sending a WhatsApp message… We know who it’s from, you don’t need to say it lol

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Serious_Question_158@reddit

Who's going to stop them? Are you really bothered enough? Does getting a little whiff when you walk past ruin your day? Legal or not, who gives a shit?

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ENDIFdotORG@reddit

Normalizing is how it gained legality in the US.

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McCrippin@reddit

Because why should a plant be illegal?

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QuinlanResistance@reddit

Doesn’t heroin come from poppies?

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pringellover9553@reddit

If you eat a shit load of poppy seeds you aren’t getting addicted to heroine, it’s not the same. Coke comes from a coco plant, but it’s not consumed in its raw form. Cannabis comes of the plant in its raw form ready to smoke. You could grow it wildly with no human intervention and be able to do the same.

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5ubredhit@reddit

No. Opium comes from poppies. Heroin comes from morphine, which is obviously a strong painkiller also used for a number of medicinal purposes.

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winobeaver@reddit

and morphine comes from poppies heroin is 3x morphine, if you're getting pure diamorphine, which you aren't

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winobeaver@reddit

is the only thing between you and full-scale heroin addiction the fact that it's illegal and this creates an easily-surmountable hurdle between you and a bag of heroin?

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Ok_Slice_9799@reddit

Suboxone and Methadone work very well. I know from my experience that you have to be in a system for a few weeks to a month before they consider you for opiate replacement therapy. Don't know if it's the same now this was yay 10 years ago.

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messymedia@reddit

You can't just pick a poppy, cure it, and crumble it into a joint. I mean, you can, but it's not heroin.

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rumham_milksteak@reddit

Would you like to try some hemlock?

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Odd-Gear2891@reddit

Im American, over 50, I live in the UK and smoke weed like I did in Cali for 25 years. I don’t go out with it in public much, and usually enjoy within the confines of my own home.

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Itz_420_Somewhere@reddit

There's not enough police to deal with the violent crimes, as if they're gonna give a shit unless they're forced too. Then again they probably will go after the stoners and leave the rapists alone.

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grafeisen203@reddit

Because they can get away with it. The Police in this country are both overburdened and directing the bulk of their energies towards crimes which require minimal investigation and offer them a financial or reputational incentive to prosecute. What is left is directed to only the most severe crimes and smoking a joint on the bus just does not rank highly enough. People know they can get away with many minor crimes and even some major ones so those so inclined do so without guile.

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Ravvick@reddit

Speeding is illegal. People do that and think it’s the right thing to do.

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Highdef420@reddit

Cannabis has been legal for medical use since 2018, and private prescriptions have surged. Patients can medicate anywhere with a medical vaporiser, as there aren’t clear rules on when or where. The law is so poorly defined that many feel confident using it openly- the only real difference between medical and black market is whether you pay a politician’s mate for a script or Dave down the road.

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littlemissdizaster80@reddit

That is a very good point! Never looked at it that way before. At the end of the day it’s all funding criminals 🤣🤣

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Past-Anything9789@reddit

I think its one of those thongs that they turn a blind eye to if there's no other issues. For example if you get pulled for a stop and search, get your car pulled, get in a fight etc and when you are searched you have it on you, they will use the possession charge to arrest you. If you are just smoking a little and minding your own buisness, as long as your not dealing or being blatent about it then its really to small an issue for them to deal with. I still can't believe they haven't legalised it yet. If it was taxed then it would definitely help the massive budget deficit. Plus reduce pressures on front line policing and remove an income stream from the organised crime importers & suppliers. Then you would get rid of the whole 'gateway' drug issue too.

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AubergineParm@reddit

What many people don’t realise is the UK already collects HUGE amounts of taxes from the cannabis industry - the UK doesn’t have many tangible exports since slow death of industry through the 80s, but what we do make a lot of money on is medicinal cannabis and armaments. Airbus defence, Lockheed, BAE obviously and Raytheon all have UK production plants. GSK is one of the largest producers and exporters of medicinal cannabis products in the world. Sure, decriminalisation and domestic taxation may help supplement that national income, but it’s good to bear in mind that it’s not necessarily going to be the answer to the universe that some people think.

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New_Enthusiasm9053@reddit

Not everything needs to be the answer to the universe. Would it raise some tax, yes. Is it less dangerous than alcohol for others and also the health of the user also yes. There's no sane reason for alcohol to be legal but weed to be illegal. I don't even smoke or like weed and I find it absurd. The law should be consistent. Just like country roads should either be 50mph or motorways 80mph because motorways are far, far safer than country roads. We should set some expected mortality rate for roads and then change the speed limits based on that. Higher or lower I don't care it should just be consistent.

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AubergineParm@reddit

Ahhhh you’ve make the classic blunder of wishing that the UK government and legislature would be “consistent” 😂😂

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Past-Anything9789@reddit

My late father used to work in pharma as a project director - one of the last places he worked (before his death) was on the massive medical cannabis farm in Kent.

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littlemissdizaster80@reddit

They need to declassify it because if it was legal, it would be less of an issue. A good lot of people have legal prescriptions now but you are supposed to vape it, not smoke it. It seems to be okay for heroin addicts and coke addicts to do as they wish in public, but if someone sparks a doobie, people seem to mount their high horse about it.

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ZonaSchengen@reddit

For those of you who would like to see it officially decriminalised, you can always sign this petition https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/733235 Its unofficially decriminalised now, in that in most cases nothing will happen.

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Feisty-Damage3186@reddit

Some laws are stupid. They don’t deserve to be adhered to by the letter. Rebelling is part of human nature. I don’t condone smoking weed in public. It’s rather immature.

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Temporary_Lecture410@reddit

I believe it should be legal. I don’t smoke, but like the occasional edible.

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Previous-Anteater888@reddit

I don’t understand why we don’t have dispensaries with gummies etc, like they do in California. It regulates the supply chain, and means people don’t have to smoke or vape it for a hit. I would welcome this as if you don’t smoke weed the smell is so pervasive (btw I used to in the past so that’s not a judgy comment). It makes it more accessible for people using it for pain relief too.

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WVA1999@reddit

Stress, life on da road, etc. - Callum, aged 17.

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Crucial934@reddit

"I didn't choose the trenches, the trenches chose me" \- Callum, two loving parents and a fully funded education in a gated house

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Dasy2k1@reddit

Depends on where you are but here the police literally don't care provided you aren't selling it, don't try and drive while under the influence, and aren't so stoned in public you become a nuisance to others

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davidwhitney@reddit

Drugs won the war on drugs.

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Comet_Me_Sis@reddit

Medical cannabis is prescribed and legal and, legally, people are allowed to take their medication wherever they need to. Should add if using medical, it should be vaped to stay above board.

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UnicornsnRainbowz@reddit

So many people do it so they couldn’t keep up with arresting everyone who does it. I live in a small village and I still smell it daily.

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Prize-Ad7242@reddit

I’ve been smoking for about 15 years now, in all of that time I had 2 interactions with police simply due to being in the wrong place at the wrong time. I got caught growing a few plants and they just took the plants and left, said something about having to go to a local drug and alcohol service but they never chased it up. They literally said we aren’t keeping tabs on you and we don’t care. Let me keep all of my growing equipment and one of them was even nice enough to apologise for knocking my bong over and handed it to me. I don’t care if I get caught consuming or growing or even dealing cannabis because it is an inherently unjust law and I have no moral or ethical quandaries regarding my actions. It isn’t something I would be ashamed of having on my record. I mainly smoke at home but when I do go out for a smoke I still try and go to a secluded area or wide open space. Whilst I love the smell many others don’t and it can give off a bit of a seedy vibe, I also don’t like smoking around kids. I view it as no different to public alcohol consumption really, there are ways of doing it that don’t impact on everyone else going about their daily lives. Personally I think we should operate a model that combines Netherlands style coffee shops with the highly regulated and federally legal system they have in Canada. That way people have public spaces to consume cannabis rather than being relegated to the street and being fully legal rather than simply decriminalised would hamper domination of the market by OCG’s.

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Turbulent-T@reddit

It depends on the place really. In some places like Brighton and Bristol the police will not bother you for smoking. Yesterday when entering a fairly large venue for a daytime event in Bristol, the security searched my bag and found my weed and magic mushrooms. He told me because it was a personal amount, he'd allow it, and even let me take it out of my bag and into the event while I left my bag in the cloakroom. There are other towns where you'd definitely get stopped by a policeman if he suspected you had weed.

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OsotoViking@reddit

A law is only as good as its enforfement.

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No_Dot_7136@reddit

It's also illegal to drop litter. Do you see anyone giving a shit about that either?

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Dirtbikedad321@reddit

If you can’t overthrow your government, outgrow and outblow them

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_FreddieLovesDelilah@reddit

They’re most concerned about bar fights and alcohol poisonings.

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GaymerThrowaway1255@reddit

hey u/bolticus13 cannabis is actually legal, it’s not illegal for public consumption however the terms are you’re supposed to vape it. however some do still smoke it including myself - it’s fairly unenforcable, I’ve had officers walk past me and not bat an eyelid, but I am doing it discreetly aside in a green space in central london. it really helps tbh. nothing else has.

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Royal_IDunno@reddit

Because the police wont do nothing about it.

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Wide-Sea-4897@reddit

You know all about doing nothing, don't you, little buddy?

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Royal_IDunno@reddit

Oh quit following me about you’re like an obsessed stalker 😂.

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TheNathanNS@reddit

Because there's no punishments. No punishment = no deterrents for them. Same reason people have gotten brazen with shoplifting. Because the risk of punishment is severely low.

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naturepeaked@reddit

In London it’s all but decriminalized .

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Snap_Ride_Strum@reddit

Not enough police, a massive backlog in the courts and (probably not relevant to possessing a small amount of marijuana) prisons are full to bursting. The population has grown by nearly 10m people in 20 years. The country's infrastructure and services are far behind where they need to be in order to cope.

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Demonkid37@reddit

It was moved down to a class C back 15-20 years ago, didn’t last long mind. They dont need to be filling up jails with pot dealers so maybe its a bit of that and the sheer numbers of people who smoke it

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BadAssOnFireBoss@reddit

There are two ways you may be smelling cannabis but it's perfectly legal. 1. They are medical cannabis patients, there are roughly 80,000 patients in the UK being treated for things like pain, sleep or anxiety. 2. They could be smoking CBD weed which has the same look and smell of cannabis but it's legal to buy and consume and doesn't have the same effect. So don't automatically assume someone is committing a crime just because you smell weed.

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Any_Weird_8686@reddit

Because the police don't actually care any more than the rest of us.

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Afellowstanduser@reddit

Many people many things that are illegal Illegal isn’t always immoral

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breakfastduck@reddit

If all you’ve got if a spliff or two in you at worst the police will take if off you, but that’s only if you’re extraordinarily unlucky where you bump into them.

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drugdealersdream@reddit

Because no one cares. My family home was searched by police because of my idiotic brother and they found a several baggies of his weed and didn’t even confiscate it lol. And they were searching the house because he’d been arrested for supplying Class As.

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Dense_Ad7115@reddit

I've been smoking it for the better part of 20 years and have only interacted with police over it once. I think potheads are just not a priority and don't really cause much nuisance (especially if they're in their own home).

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mondeomantotherescue@reddit

We have a lot of laws in the UK but no enforcement. Other countries pull over hundreds of thousands to drink and drug test. You can drive a day here and not see a copper. People park up for mosques and leave cars running in the road or dumped on a park - no one stops folk. Shoplifters are brazen and don't care if they are on video. The UK really ought to up it's game, but we lack the police, and we lack the judicial capacity.

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maRRtin79@reddit

I smoke sometimes but damn i hate the smell. last time i visited LA holly blv it smelled like shit,piss and cannabis

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Facts_Over_Fiction_@reddit

I'm actually sick of smelling it whenever I walk to or from work in my city. It's everywhere. It smells disgusting ans clings to everything.

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FilmFanatic1066@reddit

It honestly may as well not be, I can walk through my local park on a Sunday afternoon and at least one person will be smoking it brazenly

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carolomnipresence@reddit

It's practice overwhelms the desire and/or resources to enforce the law, so it is largely tolerated, but the user remains vulnerable to the Law Enforcement zealot, and real harm is done to smokers who get criminal records as a result. The law should be changed, but Parliament is full of career cowards who are terrified of the Daily Mail.

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Hummusforever@reddit

Consumption isn’t illegal but purchasing/ selling is. Plus, medical cannabis is available on prescription so it would be really hard to enforce. It is essentially decriminalised though, they should make it legal so they can tax it.

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becpuss@reddit

Medical cannabis is also a thing now that you can smoke if you’ve been prescribed it anywhere

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AstroBlush8715@reddit

Because there aren't enough police to deal with the issue and not enough people grass on them.

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MDFHASDIED@reddit

The G's in London that go around smoking it don't really give a fuck because they know the police will look at a group of lads faces covered smoking weed... more hassle than it's worth.

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613663141@reddit

Finding a quiet spot out in public is a lot less anti-social than stinking up my neighbours' gardens.

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fishnetbitchnets@reddit

just because it’s technically illegal - it’s actually mostly decriminalised in small amounts and you can actually legally own some plants in your home . police officers are told personal amounts are to be ignored and you’re likely to just be told to put it out if caught smoking. even have mates caught with quantities over the ‘personal amount’ and the officer has just taken it off of them and sent them in their way.

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dvi84@reddit

The same reason they don’t go after you for using a fire stick: it’s more efficient to go after the distributors than the users. And the police absolutely will go after people smoking weed if it’s causing a nuisance and people report it. Generally it’s ignored unless somebody has made a complaint.

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kenny767@reddit

If you called the police to report someone was smoking it they wouldn’t even bother coming

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FickleEmergency9040@reddit

The police and most people have come to terms with how many people actually smoke the stuff. When I was about 18 and on an afternoon puff and walk when I was stopped on my own by a single officer on foot and he honestly wasn’t bothered one bit, I offered for him to search me as I had nothing to hide. I wasn’t a dickhead to him and he was fine with me. Got to finish my joint and didn’t end up with any issues. Keep it out peoples way and the police will (mostly) turn a blind eye if you aren’t doing anything genuinely sinister. After all, it’s only a bit of weed🤪🤪🤪

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Prudent-Armadillo807@reddit

Many people have medical marijuana licences, many areas don’t enforce possession due to the cost of courts, lawyers etc. they’re not even after the grows unless it’s an informants tip and even then they decided they get enough once it’s grown, chipped and boxed up. Not every area is the same but less than 14g is non chargeable. Being a medical Marijuanna patient I can carry a lot more and I can also drive legally. It’s a medication just like many people take legally and drive as it’s prescribed. 8 years it’s been legal people, time to get on board the bus if you’re not already on.

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evilcnut@reddit

Because no one cares? Saw a kid must have been 12.. 14 at best! Smoking a massive cone shaped joint while walking his staffy the other day.. No fucks given!

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wilddogecoding@reddit

It stinks from the people I know that do it, it's so the house don't smell of it.

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No_TsandCs@reddit

Because there’s no crime in smoking it

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BobDude65@reddit

Basically coz no one really gives a fuck (including the police) most people accept that it’s essentially harmless. Personally, I’ll still put my joint out if I’m walking through the forest or something and I walk past someone, then relight it further down the road, just because it’s really no effort to do and I don’t know what those people are like, maybe they’re nasty and they’ll say something, or maybe they’re lovely but they are made really uncomfortable by weed. I do think it’s a bit chavvy when people are just standing out on the street in broad daylight smoking a zoot but each to their own, I can’t imagine being around a weed smoker is really any worse than being around a cigarette smoker.

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Miasmata@reddit

It's effectively decriminalised these days. Many police forces have straight up said that they don't care about people smoking it and they don't have time to police it anyway

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CraigL8@reddit

Because it isn’t enforced / when do you see police on the beat? I hate the smell so not looking forward to the day it is legal. I couldn’t care if people smoked it in their homes (windows closed)

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Clothes_Chair_Ghost@reddit

I did it myself when I smoked. The smokers don’t care. The people on the streets don’t care, or if they do they never say anything, the cops don’t care. Most I have had was whatever I had on me confiscated. It’s hardly a crime. The cops don’t care about Joe Public having a puff it’s the big dealers so they can have their big busts in the papers or on the news. They won’t be on the front page with “police take record breaking lowest amount of drugs off the streets! One joint was confiscated last night in a daring raid of some guy smoking a doobie round the back of a pub”

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Ceiling_Knot@reddit

Walking into a music festival about 25 years ago, the cops there said to us "Scuse me lads, your joint's on fire". We thanked them, docked it out, and lit it up once we were down the road.

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Katskan11@reddit

This thread is weird. Whoever is mentioning alcohol. Alcohol isn't a drug!!!! It's a drink!!

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dsg767@reddit

As long as you’re not criticising Islam or talking about illegal migrants whilst smoking cannabis you’re ok and the police won’t bother you. Hope that explains things.

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Open-Difference5534@reddit

Smoking (anything) is not permitted in a lot of 'public' spaces.

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Groxy_@reddit

I've had my joint out with police driving past me, no one cares. Possession is defacto decriminalised since police have other shit to worry about.

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Terrible-Amount-6550@reddit

So is hogging the middle lane, so is driving when on your phone, so is not having a TV license…

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notouttolunch@reddit

No such thing as a TV license.

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Terrible-Amount-6550@reddit

lol

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Bolticus13@reddit (OP)

Careful mate, you may summon the TV license enforcement officer just by saying their name, if you're not careful.

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Terrible-Amount-6550@reddit

I actually have one, mainly because the missus insists on it 😂

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UnexpectedRanting@reddit

Medical user here (but lets be real I still smoke the good stuff), I asked a policeman about it the only time I was stopped in 10 years and he said it’s not worth their time to stop and search a user versus a supplier:dealer. I got stopped because someone said I was dealing but I had my script note in my wallet so they didnt need to do anything.

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silosybin@reddit

I’ve noticed loads of people smoking at bus stops, train stations walking down the street etc.too. It’s rife now a days. I nused to smoke cannabis when younger and moved onto smoking crack and heroin(quickly dropped out chasing to start injecting). When used to smoke weed x hash outdoors always did it on the sly not wanting to broadcast it or waft it more like right in front of other people going about their day without broadcasting. All the other people I knew who smoked outdoors or on the move likewise did it as out the way of others. When used to score ts or half ts of crack in other parts would start in the pipe as soon as possible. Smoking it on the way back to wherever was going often arriving wherever that was with only a pipe or sometimes smoked the whole lot but again would hit the pipe discreetly definitely not blatant in the open. Same with having a hit, never ever rubbed it in peoples faces. Even the most dont give 2 fucks people in the 00s and 10sbnever jacked up in view. Nowadays I often see people in doorways or in parks/public areas with their pants around their ankles going for their groins. Or smoking pipes making eye contact with Joe Public. Lads smoking ridiculous skunk and strains that stink to high heaven in front of Mums and pushcairs. It’s messed up. I’m clean (very small ish) now and am all for drug decriminalisation and no stigmas applied to addicts having been one for 20 years. But it’s not cool, it’s really a waste of life if we are honest. And it definitely definitely shouldn’t be aired in front of those who really don’t want or need to see that shit. And skunk will always stink and smoking under the nose of everyone makes people look like dicks.

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VonsXeptin5000@reddit

Another reason to why it should be legalised and taxed, why raise our taxes? Just legalise it and tax that. Everyone does it, its very common may as well get a profit.

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phillmybuttons@reddit

Smoke or vape as smoking isn't legal with medical cannabis, and you won't have a leg to stand on if you're pulled up

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

Nah, that’s bollocks. There are absolutely no laws criminalising using meds against a doctor’s recommendations. You can snort or smoke your prescribed meds all you like.

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phillmybuttons@reddit

Well no, if your smoking medical cannabis then it comes under the misuse of drugs act where it’s illegal to smoke MC but taking it orally as edibles or vaping is ok. Also smoking means your prescription is no longer valid as it clearly states for use with a medical vaping device only. Your welcome to carry on doing what you want but the whole reason many of us gets a prescription is so that it’s legal to use within the confines of the law which means no combusting.

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

Actually thats completely wrong, the Misuse of Drugs Act only covers possession, supply, and production and only a doctor can change or revoke your prescription, and as long as it’s prescribed to you, you’re legally allowed to use it however you like smoking, vaping, or orally regardless of any guidance.

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phillmybuttons@reddit

Well know you’re still wrong, your talking about medical cannabis, not paracetamol. It’s illegal to smoke mc by combustion, that’s the law. Prescribed medical cannabis flower is to be vaped only. Otherwise you are not protected by the law. I can’t be assed to go into which regulations apply but you’re confidently wrong, illegal to smoke medical cannabis, fine to vape.

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

No, you’re just repeating a myth. Nowhere in any statute is smoking cannabis criminalised. Regulations prevent doctors from prescribing it to be smoked, but they don’t create any offence for smoking it yourself. You have been missinformed.

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phillmybuttons@reddit

lol for gods sake dude, Point 1 1. “The Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 classifies cannabis as a controlled, Class B drug. Without a valid prescription—or outside specified legal methods of use—possession or consumption remains illegal” Agreed? Does that make sense to you yeah? 2. Even with a legal prescription, if a patient chooses to smoke their cannabis, they violate the 2018 regulations. The 2018 regulations are shown here if you cared to look https://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2018/1055/made?utm_source=chatgpt.com More specifically section 4, point 3 And I quote “ 3) A person shall not self-administer a cannabis-based product for medicinal use in humans by the smoking of the product (other than for research purposes in accordance with regulation 13)” Oh and what if I didn’t follow the 2018 regulations and I smoked my medical cannabis “bEcAuSe I kNoW tHe LaW” Prescriptions are issued in accordance with the above mentioned regulations for you to legally possess the marijuana, if you breach those regulations - the prescription is no longer legal and you having medical cannabis becomes illegal. If you smoke it, you are no longer using the medication in accordance with the regulations. So whilst I said “smoking medical weed = illegal” Technically it’s more of “Smoking medical weed (+ breaching the regulations which explicitly say do not combust which will then make your prescription breach regulations as you aren’t following the regulations you agreed to which means now you just possess weed) = illegal In such the same way it’s illegal to drive without a seat belt, which should technically be Driving without a seatbelt (+ breaching the regulations which are set out for it) = illegal It’s not the act, it’s the breaching of regulations which makes it illegal due to other laws in place. Your prescription is your legal loophole, if you smoke it. Your loop hole is gone which then makes it illegal :) Thanks for coming to my ted talk

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

Yes, the 2018 regulations say patients shouldn’t smoke cannabis, but that’s a regulatory guideline, not a criminal law. There’s no statute or Misuse of Drugs Act provision that makes it illegal for a patient to smoke their own prescribed cannabis. Regulations guide doctors, they don’t criminalise patients.

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VonsXeptin5000@reddit

It is legal to vape. Not to smoke traditionally. Infact its a legal requirement to have a dry vaporiser to even be prescribed medical. However it is illegal if i make a joint out of it. That was straight from my doctor

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

No you are confusing medical guidance with criminal law. There are no laws criminalising the smoking of joints from proscribed cannabis.

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VonsXeptin5000@reddit

Nope. You are legally not allowed to smoke medical without a vaporiser. You cannot legally smoke medical the traditional way.

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Salty-Common-6542@reddit

For something to be a criminal offence, it has to be written in statute. Can you show me where smoking prescribed cannabis is made illegal?

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phillmybuttons@reddit

yup - that's the law, illegal to combust MC, you mentioned smoking, which would be combustion, ie illegal. Vape as much as you want, as you're covered, as long as your MC is in the original packaging showing the prescription but having pods in a canister is a grey area, personally, I don't vape in public unless I'm fishing and theres no one around to disturb me

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totallynormalguy14@reddit

Because they’re inconsiderate arseholes

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mo_tag@reddit

I've been smoking outside on a near daily basis for almost 20 years. In that time, I was spotted by police twice. The first time they just told me to put it out so I did and that was the end of it.. the second time I was put in a police van for half an hour and one of the 3 coppers was grilling me and trying to "set me on the straight and narrow" by being a prick and threatening to tell my employer so that I'd lose my job.. this was in London too so the whole time I was thinking there has got to be something more useful they could be doing instead.. then him and the other officers joked about how he was gonna smoke the rest of my joint after their shift.. I'm not 100% convinced they were joking.. anyway I got a caution which shouldn't really affect me much but could be more serious if I'm caught enough times. I really try to avoid people as much as possible when I smoke but it's close to impossible. I even bought a house with a decent sized garden to smoke in but it seems that even from 30 yards away my neighbours started complaining about how they can smell it from the living room. So now I only smoke in parks at night when they're empty and noone bothers me anymore and I'm not bothering them. But yeah my biggest concern when I smoke is bothering others with the smell rather than the police.

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bigbadbob85@reddit

There are no police officers to enforce it, I can't remember the last time I saw a police officer walking around in public (without there being a major incident to which they were called) in my area.

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Borgmeister@reddit

Because the police are too busy arresting people who have signs that say "I don't like Genocide".

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Silly_Ad_201@reddit

Dope is a terrible drug

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-GuantanamoBae-@reddit

Ummm because it’s fucking awesome?

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Quercus_rover@reddit

Police are too busy arresting people opposing genocide

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funkmastersuga@reddit

Because it shouldn’t be

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ImpracticalJerker@reddit

TBF people can legally vape it if they have a prescription, not everyone with a prescription sticks to the rules and vape it though so I believe this muddies the water considerably. Many politicians have shares in pharma weed companies too so it's a bit like pot calling kettle black.

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beidousbathwater@reddit

Nobody cares unless you’re dealing

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Havana-plant@reddit

I smoked a fat spliff walking my doggo through the park and two police walked past, they looked busy and just walked past and even smiled at my dog

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notouttolunch@reddit

Oh my gosh. How obtuse are you!

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BlueMilkshake33@reddit

i've talked to a police officer (about a stabbing that had happened in my street) while smoking a joint.

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homegrown_dogs@reddit

It’s a grey area. It IS illegal, but with the sheer amount of people that consume it, legally and illegally, it would cost far too much to actually enforce the law. At this point, it’s tolerated and only enforced when large amounts of cannabis are found (like a supplier or dealer). The users aren’t criminals, that’s the issue that’s arising. You can’t stick a bunch of weed smokers in jail, and it would be pointless trying to fine everyone.

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DonnatellaVesacHE@reddit

Because nobody cares

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pikapikawoofwoof@reddit

It does zero harm to anyone

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notouttolunch@reddit

It means what people take it to mean. And what it means now is not always what it meant at a different time. And that’s exactly what it meant at both times.

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knightsbridge-@reddit

Because it's not a good use of the police's time to arrest people for smoking. I used to live in a popular beach/resort town in the UK, and the smell of people openly smoking in the gardens is rife in the summer. The police just walk on past.

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mapsandwrestling@reddit

It's de jure illegal, de facto legal.

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Imwaymoreflythanyou@reddit

The same reason burglary is illegal yet the police do not give a flying fuck if it happens to you.

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FancyVideo609@reddit

Bit of a difference, everyone thinks burglary should be illegal but most people don't think cannabis should be

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FancyVideo609@reddit

Because it shouldn't be illegal and everyone knows it. Morality isn't the same as Law

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Nima-night@reddit

"A plant that grows in the ground it's not bound by man made laws Nature can never be illegal Just the policing of people who wish to use a plant for their own needs.

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999hologram@reddit

A lot of people in London live with roommates, landlords or family. So smokers can take it out of the house. I always tried to go somewhere quiet and away from people as much as possible. But at end of day I'd rather inconvenience it in public for a few minutes and then smell goes away rather than stink up my house and my neighbours.

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gfoot9000@reddit

Not everyone can smoke it in their home, so smoking outside is an alternative. The smell carries but you rarely see the smokers, they try and be lowkey.

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Zero_Cola@reddit

I've been stopped by the police multiple times since mid teens (almost 30 years ago) but the police has always been relaxed about it. I remember as a teen getting stopped by the police several times smoking with friends in a park after school or in evenings and all they did was confiscate it, empty it out in front of us, stepped on it, and told us to jog on. I remember one time one of the officer told us they had a complaint from one of the neighbours and told us to be more subtle about it as he stepped on our weed. There was another time we got caught with 2oz and the officer asked us how much it cost us as he emptied out the bag into the Thames and said "it's been an expensive night for you boys" and let us go. I'd been searched as an adult several times when the sniffer dog sniffed me out as I exited the ticket barriers at a tube stations but again, all they did was confiscate it but this time around they gave me a receipt of what they found when they searched me. I have a job that require Enhanced DBS check but it never came up in my background checks. What my experience has told me is that they are really lenient with it. So many people has been smoking weed for decades that it has unofficially been decriminalised, especially for small amounts. I think drugs in general are ingrained in British nightlife culture that they seem to turn blind eye to it as long as you are not being a dick about it or you aren't dealing. It was the same for small amounts of coke and pills as well.

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Twidogs@reddit

It’s a cost issue tbh. To arrest and prosecute costs a lot due to the time it takes to process and the fact you would take police off the streets to deal with the paperwork booking in etc

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LongjumpingCurve1869@reddit

Smoking isn't illegal but possession is... lol throw the joint and make sure your pockets are clean before you get to custody

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Glittering-Sink9930@reddit

/r/ShittyLegalAdvice

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Evening_Bumblebee_19@reddit

It's illegal to possess, supply, produce, import, or export controlled substances, but it's not illegal to consume. The law is made like this regarding controlled substances, since they don't want to stop users from seeking medical help and mental health support and such, because of fear of being prosecuted.

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Glittering-Sink9930@reddit

How would someone consume it without possessing it?

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SignificanceOld1751@reddit

They possess it first, and then they put it in their body. They are now high, enjoying the effects of the drug having consumed it, but no longer in possession, and are doing nothing wrong

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Glittering-Sink9930@reddit

>Also, your mate takes a pill, pops it on your tongue, and you swallow. In the eyes of the law, you've done absolutely nothing wrong. Yeah, good luck with that.

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SignificanceOld1751@reddit

Cool, what crime will the consumer have committed again?

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Glittering-Sink9930@reddit

Possession of drugs.

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SignificanceOld1751@reddit

And at which stage did they possess it if it was dropped into their mouth by someone else and they immediately swallow?

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Glittering-Sink9930@reddit

The part where it was in their mouth.

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SignificanceOld1751@reddit

Right, you really are taking this route are you? Goodness me. I took a hit from a joint at a festival Saturday, was I in possesion of the cannabis when the smoke was in my mouth but I hadn't inhaled? 😂 Possession is illegal, consumption is not, and I'm sorry that there's nothing you can do about that.

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FreezerCop@reddit

Right. I'm genuinely confused by the auto-moderation of this sub. I tried to post the question below and it got rejected 3 times even with rewrites, as being a "frequently asked question". So how has this almost identical thread made it past? Not saying anything negative about OP's question, fair play, but the consistency of the moderation is all over the place. My rejected thread - What do you think the acceptable limits are on public cannabis use? Is weed basically decriminalised in the UK now? I was at a family focussed outdoor event on Sunday, tens of thousands of people in a crowded public area with a lot of police presence, vehicles, foot patrols, some armed etc. As per in the UK these days there was a constant smell of weed, but it was really noticeable how little effort people were putting into hiding it, to the point I saw police looking directly at people as they were walking around, who were passing obvious joints between them and skinning up next to families with young kids and babies in prams. The smokers didn't care, and neither did the police. This isn't any judgement on people who do smoke it, I'm not bothered, but do you feel there's been an 'unofficial' decriminalisation of it in the UK? What would it take to actually get a hand on your shoulder, some time in the back of a van and a record for possession these days? What's the difference Mods?

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AskUK-ModTeam@reddit

You should use modmail for complaints

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Scared-Staff6251@reddit

Where are people finding their dealers nowadays? It used to be much more difficult!

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FeelingDegree8@reddit

The police don't even bother attending house burglaries anymore. I don't think they're able to police it.

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Numerous-Teaching978@reddit

police sometimes triage crimes depending on how serious they feel the crime to be (not alwaysthough, there are still jobsworths out there). I mean, even more serious crimes go unchecked - let alone someone just smoking a bit of weed. Weed is just one of those things where of course it's still a classed drug, but there are a lot of people (police or not) that have a MEH WHATEVER attitude towards it. Some don't like it, or having the smell everywhere, but generally there are worse things going on out there. Like with many other countries, it's a substance that has gradually been casualized whether legal or not.

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UrNarrator123@reddit

No one actually gives a fuck about the law given how stupid it is

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Bantabury97@reddit

Copper I once spoke to said there's no point going after someone smoking a joint or carrying a little baggy as it's a waste of time and paperwork, they'd much rather find the bigger fish like the one's growing the stuff in large quantities.

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AlteranCheesecake420@reddit

Police would rather go after dealers then users

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revpidgeon@reddit

Just think how much money the government could be making off this no brainer. Instead they are still peddling the idea that one puff and your injecting smack in your toes by sundown.

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notouttolunch@reddit

Because they’re trying to cut down the other similar things too and have been for decades.

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Due-Tell1522@reddit

They too busy arresting FB posters

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Puzzleheaded_Field37@reddit

Because nobody gives a crap, I live maybe 5 mins away from the police station, You cannot move outside without smelling weed, There are also multiple people who work for one guy who you can message or ring and have a delivery at your door within 5 mins. Personally I would take everyone smoking weed over drinking, drinking is gross, makes people nasty and literally ruins lives.

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notouttolunch@reddit

I’d rather we controlled both.

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QuietGoliath@reddit

From the LEO's point of view, it's useful as a way in when dealing with someone (i.e. justification for searches of person, of bags, of vehicles) but as a stand alone charge for personal consumption? It's really not worth the paperwork.

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notouttolunch@reddit

What does a defunct supermarket chain have to do with this?

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PralineMinimum8111@reddit

From a former stoner, it’s because the police mostly don’t care. We had a neighbour that would call the police all the time (ironically she was raging alcoholic who was always starting fights etc) because we were smoking. 75% of the time they would turn up and say they had the wrong house or something along those lines. only a few times did they ever ask to come in due to the smell of weed, and nothing ever came of it. The same neighbour decided to then tell the police we were dealing smack and that however ramped things up a gear. Ever been pulled over every time you leave the house? lol

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notouttolunch@reddit

Well done on getting your life sorted.

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nabsickle@reddit

I've been on medical cannabis for 2 years

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notouttolunch@reddit

Cool story.

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spaceshipcommander@reddit

Speeding is illegal. When was the last time you saw someone get pulled up for speeding?

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notouttolunch@reddit

Last week. It was an impressive sight.

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mumwifealcoholic@reddit

Cannabis is basically decriminalised.

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HerrSpudz@reddit

I wish we’d hurry and catch up with a lot of other countries and just legalise it.

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TheHeroYouNeed247@reddit

Not with tories making bank on medical cannibis. It'll never happen.

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notouttolunch@reddit

I think banks are starting up with private funding. Nothing to do with a political party.

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TheHeroYouNeed247@reddit

Making bank as in, making cash. Tories set up the land around it and their partners own major shares.

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mumwifealcoholic@reddit

Oh absolutely. Tax it, use some of the money for educational services. When there is choice, most folks won't pick the stinkiest strongest strains ( which is basically all that is available now). The high THC low CBD strains are the ones most risky, legalisation means people have choice.

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TheHeroYouNeed247@reddit

Not with tories making bank on medical cannibis. It'll never happen.

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unvac@reddit

police dont have time to enforce it or dont care enough

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StonedOnYou@reddit

When I used to smoke it, I was on the metrolink with a preroll and an 8th in my bag and 6 police officers got on the tram... obviously I stunk of weed and when I come to get off the tram they all followed me and then stopped me, searched me and took my weed and gave me a caution lol But other times ive openly walked past police in the street smoking it and they didnt bat an eyelid 😂 i get they have other shit to deal with so they probably wasn't interested in one person smoking a joint but its funny to think about especially when I got swarmed by 6 of em for an 8th haha

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HintOfMalice@reddit

1. Because even though it's illegal its remarkably socially acceptable in certain areas and among certain demographic 2. It's hard to enforce. If you're in a crowd of people, the police are not going to hold everyone up and make them all do drug tests to find some kids doing weed. 3. Some police just do not care. I know it shouldn't be up to the police to decide which laws they do and do not enforce but it's hard to force some officers to go and arrest some people for achieving a personal high that harms no one.

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TrickyPG@reddit

To get high.

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JossWJ@reddit

I just want to try gummies but I can't find anyone trustworthy, I think cannabis should be legal but it shouldn't be legal to smoke in public as the general public cant consent to 2nd hand smoke (that goes for cigarettes too)

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uponloss@reddit

I've smoked weed for about 10 years, I'm as discreet about it as possible, but I've never once came close to having any trouble for possessing it. I smoke in public but I go to a field or the woods after about 9pm

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ForestofGreen26@reddit

Medical cannabis is legal, to vape or consume only though. Smoking is still illegal.

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AdonisCarbonado@reddit

If they had on the spot fines for public use then I am sure it would be further up the list but even then . Also leftfield but - whilst once upon a time the smell was an almost guarantee that it would be combined with the illegality aspect (thc/thca) nowadays one can not be so sure. Terpenes and their deployment has increased to the point where even regular weed smokers are smoking sub 1-2% thc weed & not knowing the difference. throw in flavoured vapes, infused mullien and cbd flower.. perhaps their behind doors testing supports this to an extent & therefore the data says not worth it - even on medical (mental) protection grounds.

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snakeoildriller@reddit

They're up there with the shoplifters - all the same reasons.

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Electronic-Cut4630@reddit

As someone who smokes everyday and never shoplifts we are not the same

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Electronic-Cut4630@reddit

As long as you ain’t smoking it around police then it’s fine. But I’ve grown up in London smoking outdoors all my life so it’s normal to me and people I know, I guess it must seem strange to people not familiar.

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_rushlink_@reddit

Ironically you're less likely to get caught if you're in a public place. At home or the same place regularly neighbors will eventually get fed up and start documenting it themselves. Then the police can take action in their free time. I smell cannabis far more often in the UK than I ever did when living places where it was legal. My last year in Colorado I think I smelled it once outside; here in Reading I smell it several times a month. There's a ton of reasons for that, but that's kinda getting into the legal/illegal debate.

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JungleVetrin@reddit

What you should bear in mind is that it’s not smoking cannabis that is illegal. It is possession that is illegal. Granted the 2 have to be directly related because you wouldn’t be smoking it without also being in possession. But catching someone smoking a joint down the street isn’t exactly straightforward because they can easily chuck it away and may not be carrying anything more. Besides of this the western world has become more liberal towards weed and the police can’t be bothered to do the paperwork involved in arresting someone.

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The-JSP@reddit

I think it's a mixture of some Police Forces unofficially not enforcing it, they've ultimately got bigger things to care about, and also a general laxxing of people caring. I smoke every day, but I'm not a pisshead or a 'druggy', no criminal record etc so I like to think I just like a different kind of poison to other folks. I smoke it in my summerhouse late in the evening with incense on so as to not overtly take the piss. I remember being caught with my mates a few years ago at a bird watching blind in Southampton. Female Police Officer walked down and found us smoking. She was incredibly chill and basically told us to clean up and clear off when we were finished, which we did and would have done anyways. Had it been two geezers, it's likely we would've had names taken, searched etc.

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MachinePlanetZero@reddit

a sufficient proportion of the general public are either apathetic (about complaining about it) or don't agree with the law anyway. We will reach the point where the law around canabis is completely unfunctional (maybe it is already) long before the law catches up with public opinion.

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olivinebean@reddit

Legalisation would be a win-win at this point. The money it would move is significant and it would cut into profits of dealers fast. Less motivation for them to continue. We like convenience, popping to the shop and buying a product suited to my specific tastes and it's probably in cute packaging? Easily better than having to get cash out, contact someone and meet them some street in the cold.

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New_Enthusiasm9053@reddit

The fact that this discussion happened demonstrates it's already non-functional. I know a lot of people who've smoked weed and I know none that have ever been stopped by the police for it, let alone arrested.

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SweetAlbatross_@reddit

Some say potato, others po-tay-to. The war against drugs doesn’t seem to have been worth the billions spent on it.

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shredditorburnit@reddit

Because the law is wrong? Please explain to me why anyone has the right to tell anyone else what they can and cannot consume? What would they like to pick for me next? Maybe we should have other people pick our partner to procreate with? Decide what job I'm going to take for me, perhaps pick out my clothing, god knows I'd make dangerous choices there, shorts and t-shirt....lock me up. It's a combination of nanny state bullshit and vested interest bullshit and frankly both can suck my balls.

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Grand-Caregiver9997@reddit

It's like drinking on the underground at 11pm on a Friday, It's "illegal" and police will most likely just take it off you if they do anything. Someone I know got found with a gram of cocaine on them and they perceived it to just take it off them and give them a caution.

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Ok-Custard-214@reddit

You can easily get it prescribed legally nowadays, so the police probably care even less about pulling people up on it. How many police do you see walking the streets anyway? I very very rarely see police on foot near me.

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No_Seaworthiness4196@reddit

Because there's so little police presence on the streets these days, they can't enforce it if they are never around, unless you happen to be around a mcdonalds

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Anathemare@reddit

I have legally prescribed medical cannabis so I can vape it wherever I want completely legally.

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Jaraathe@reddit

This is the one. This may also be a reason for police to step back a bit. There have been a few embarrassing cases where they’ve confiscated and / or arrested people with prescriptions. More hassle than it’s worth.

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Lowmen_yellow_coats@reddit

Police turn a blind eye because enforcing causes more issues than turning a blind eye.

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Herb1973@reddit

There's no dibble around and if they are they have more important things to worry about, UK dibble are seriously under staffed

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Barca-Dam@reddit

Because on the totem pole of things that are bad, smoking cannabis is very low down.

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TimeForGrass@reddit

So a lot of repliers are wrong or it's different in their area of the country. Smoking in public is still acted on. There might not be plod walking the beat, but if a camera sees you skinning up or smoking in a group in public and passing it about, you can be sure police will arrive for the easy confiscations, increased statistics and hand out street cannabis warnings, which remain on your record for a few years. Most people get told 'smoke it at home' or whatever after getting caught. The police don't really care about it in the sense that's it's day to day bread and butter for them, they don't act stern or anything it's just following the process in a kinda bored / matter of fact fashion. But yeah, if police see you smoking in public they will pull you up for it, confiscate and get you to attend the station sometime for the street cannabis warning documentation process.

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SignificanceOld1751@reddit

Because the police don't care. Certainly in London anyway.

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MendaciousBog@reddit

I think what annoys me the most about this is that if I smoked cannabis in public, or shop lifted, or fare dodged, I'd get fined/arrested.

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Intelligent_Put_3606@reddit

Because they don't care that it's illegal

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Karla_Darktiger@reddit

To be honest, I'm yet to meet anyone who is bothered by it other than the smell (except for my dad, who had a brother addicted to other things). Also, if anyone reported it I doubt the police would actually do anything. I think it's just that nobody cares anymore.

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Scoobilatchi@reddit

Depends where you are in the UK, in a city the cops don’t give a shit, walk around in a small rural town or village and they have nothing better to do so even being caught with an unlit bifta will get you a criminal record.

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Low_Spread9760@reddit

Police in the UK tend to focus on policing the supply side, rather than the demand side of the illicit cannabis market. It’s more cost effective, and a better use of taxpayer money.

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Wigspraynaynay@reddit

Apparently, they're not afraid of getting caught. From what I've gleaned - the police will only do something if they come across it and it's blatant. I'd rather they didn't act on it at all. But this seems a sensible policy considering it *is* illegal. The police should only be around for violent crimes (including theft, burglary etc), I'd argue.

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walruswax123@reddit

The police dont help with real crime on my street we’ve had a car or van broken into on average one everyone couple of weeks they don’t do anything and are no in the least bit interested so someone smoking a joint in the street isn’t going to be much different

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JosKarith@reddit

Because most coppers would rather deal with a stoner than a drunk hopped up on a slab of wife beater...

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DisMyLik18thAccount@reddit

I Think you're really overestimating the police's willingness to enforce laws

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crochetprozac@reddit

In stark contrast to this, the police actually visited my sisters home whilst I was there to... information her there is a smell of weed coming from her house. That's it. That's what they said the issue was. I was annoyed because 1) the area is notorious locally for housing a lot of criminals - so yeah, you can probably smell it all over! And 2) - what did they expect to accomplish by doing that? Did they expect her to say "Oh yes I was smoking it very sorry"? Then what exactly?! Is this worthy of their time?? Thanks for letting us know the house smells of weed, I guess?? I'm getting annoyed just typing it! I just cannot fathom what they hoped to accomplish by doing that?

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-the-monkey-man-@reddit

Police don’t care. Broken windows…

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GuybrushFunkwood@reddit

The same reason folk just walk into Greggs and shoplift their lunch. Police don’t give a shit so why would anyone else?

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oXSMOKAHONTASXo@reddit

They only care if you are driving or selling.

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Mindless_Ad_6045@reddit

As long as you're not acting like a twat and blowing smoke into people's faces, they don't really care. Also no one in their right mind is going to smoke a joint right Infront of an officer

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No-Local577@reddit

Because it's weed and it shouldn't be illegal lol

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Independent_Olive373@reddit

As an advocate of legalising weed I would say that the current position of tolerance is actually damaging. Because we don't have proper regulation all you can buy in the UK is mad skunk, the types of which you'd have to travel to Amsterdam to get 10+ years ago. That shit is bad for the mental health and it really stinks. If we had a properly regulated industry people could understand and choose what they buy and not get completely fcked every time they smoke. The 90s range of gold seal, Lebanese blond etc were golden days. Chilled out hash instead of chemically enhanced skunk. One day a sensible party will get into power and understand this, but I may be long gone by then.

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SeaGiraffe915@reddit

Same reason people drink alcohol in areas where’s it not meant to be consumed. There’s loads of other examples of law breaking out there, not specific to cannabis

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Land_Pirate_420@reddit

It is rude to smoke indoors 420!

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EdmundTheInsulter@reddit

Lack of enforcement

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Fearlessone11@reddit

I have been "caught" by polis many a time smoking weed out and about, they smell it, and just smile, they don't give a flying fuck.

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Stinkinhippy@reddit

Police are massively underfunded. Used to get moved on/occasionally searched by the police 20-25 years ago.. now you can walk past a copper absolutely stinking of weed and they generally speaking just don’t have the time to deal with it.

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lubbockin@reddit

gone are the days of hiding away for a smoke, nobody gas now.

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roddz@reddit

because the police don't care

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TheBikerMidwife@reddit

They want to show off how “cool” and edgy they are. No one cares poppet, please go do it over there so I don’t reek of it when going back to work after a pub lunch please.

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alancake@reddit

The amount of crimes police actually have the resources to deal with seems to be ever shrinking. If they can't/don't deal with shoplifting, criminal damage and anti social behaviour they aren't going to bother with weed.

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untakenu@reddit

Useless police. That is always the end point.

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MorbidxCobra@reddit

I only ever carry what I plan to smoke, and pre-roll it. There's far less repercussions if its clear you're only carrying personal amounts. That said, i have never been stopped, and have smoked with police very nearby. I am very close to London though, I wonder if cops in different areas care more

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Mobile_Turnover6773@reddit

OP is super curious.

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UglyFilthyDog@reddit

Nobody gives a shit about any kind of giving a shit.

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EatingCoooolo@reddit

If they could legalise and tax it that would be great.

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Mr_Reaper__@reddit

Police have realised its a stupid law so they don't waste time enforcing it unless there's other crimes being committed at the same time.

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Hyperion1144@reddit

Ask a police officer.

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TieDyePandas@reddit

I learnt as a teen that the more you sneak around and try and hide it the more dodgy it looks, Now I just spark up in public and swerve if I see a copper coming.

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small_horse@reddit

I thought (might be wrong here, my brain isnt working good today) that if it was easily deemed the cannabis was for personal use, then they can't arrest you for having it on your person - only if there is enough reason to believe you have it on you with the intent to distribute (which I believe is worked out by the amount, and if you're say carrying a scale, baggies etc. with you). What you might get however is a warning/arrest for anti-social behaviour, yet one could argue that smoking tobacco and then blowing that around or ripping phat whiffs of your electronic vape device is also pretty antisocial.

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QuestNetworkFish@reddit

Cannabis is a Class B drug, so they can absolutely arrest you for personal possession, the only defence in law would be having a valid prescription. That said, most police might not consider it a good use of time and resources to arrest and caution/charge people for possession, and various forces might have official or unofficial policies about how officers should deal with the offences

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Milky_Finger@reddit

People have realised that a law is only a law if breaking it has consequences. Otherwise it literally is just words in a specific order written down.

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Obvious-Water569@reddit

Simply because there are rarely any consequences. The legal system doesn't have the means or the time to enforce the recreational use of cannabis so most of the time they don't. Short of you sparking up while standing next to a cop, you're essentially free to smoke all you want.

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PartyPoison98@reddit

Even then, depending on time/location you can absolutely spark up near a copper.

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Better_Concert1106@reddit

Because the police don’t have the resources to deal with ‘proper’ crimes let alone someone smoking a joint. With no real enforcement, people aren’t worried about smoking it out and about. Imo it should be legalised (or decriminalised at the very least). Absolute waste of police time dealing with it.

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bahumat42@reddit

Because of a sometimes unacknowledged truth that anything is only really illegal if enforced. This is true across the spectrum, and some are willing to take advantage of this enforcement gap.

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pikantnasuka@reddit

Are the police bothered?

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Important_Ruin@reddit

What happens with cutting 10,000 officers in name of 'saving money' you loose ability to actually police and some crimes become basically legal, as nobody is around to enforce the law.

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Superb-Ad-8823@reddit

I regularly smell it when going for a walk.

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confuzzledfather@reddit

Complicating matters is the fact that medical use is totally legal if prescribed, so police risk criminalising sick and disabled people if they start trying to enforce against recreational use.

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Any-Seaworthiness531@reddit

Cos no one cares, including police. There’s far bigger things to worry about and of all the little things they can deal with, there’s no profit in policing someone smoking cannabis.

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Remarkable-Volume615@reddit

Because f**k the police

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hiperdino-@reddit

You can say fuck

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ThatNiceDrShipman@reddit

Fuck the p\*lice

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Bolticus13@reddit (OP)

My god, next time you say the "T" word, can you please censor it. I got really triggered from reading your comment. It's not hard to be a respectful human. Next time, please just go: Fuck T*e Police It will save so many innocent people from getting triggered. /J

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Bayff@reddit

Unfortunately, the public opinion also hasn’t caught up unfortunately, especially with older generations. Plenty of valid reasons for the odour to be present. Especially with the popularity of CBD.

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DarthFlowers@reddit

I wouldn’t quite say it’s de facto legal but it’s not terribly far away and it’s well known that a stoned individual is profoundly unlikely to be a nuisance.

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glytxh@reddit

I’ve walked down my cities canal smoking a joint, saw two police officers walking the opposite direction towards me, made eye contact, didn’t give a shit. I wasn’t subtle. Low level crime is basically unenforced these days.

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ServerLost@reddit

There's like 3 police per 100k people now, outside of high profile locations you'd have to blow it in the chief constables face to get pulled.

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Doobalicious69@reddit

Police won't enforce it unless you're really unlucky when you're caught. You're likely to get a warning but that's about it these days. That being said, as an avid pot smoker it does annoy me when people smoke it in the middle of a busy public place. The smell can be horrendous to some people and stoners should be more considerate. The government really needs to just legalise it. It would bring in so much for the economy, and there would be less stigma around helping people who want to come off weed but can't break the habit. Plus it wouldn't be dodgy weed. We're a massive exporter of medical marijuana, it's baffling that we're not selling it on our own shores.

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fastestman4704@reddit

I've never met a busy who'd want to do the paperwork required for a single joint.

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BeeOnYouAt@reddit

Because it feels nice and has very little negative effects even if used regularly compared to drinking.

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longboytheeternal@reddit

The police don’t care but I would like to add some people have access to medical cannabis in the U.K. I feel like this is something that’s not really known.

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mumwifealcoholic@reddit

And it's super easy to get it this way too, for a price.

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winobeaver@reddit

this country really needs to sort itself out on this subject and start doing what most other comparable countries have been doing for at least a decade now

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atom_stacker@reddit

Speeding is illegal, yet many, many drivers do it every day.

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thesonglessbird@reddit

The police are too busy arresting ~~pensioners~~ violent Palestine Action terrorists

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twxst616@reddit

Police barely try to solve crimes that actually matter, should just decriminalise it at this point and take the power away from the modern slavery grow gangs.

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PaulaDeen21@reddit

I suspect it’s because they want to. Speeding is also illegal, but incredibly common. The list goes on…

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JustAThrowaway818@reddit

In essence, nobody really gets told off for it. There was a recent survey indicating that 2/3rds of police officers think that smoking cannabis is de facto legal.

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PinkNailsandLips@reddit

let me put it into legal perspective smoking pot in the eyes of the law is less of a crime than going 35 miles per hour in a 30 zone , Not that much is said about this this but u get caught speeding you get 3 points and a fine you get caught smoking pot you get your name taken down and the pot taken away . what i have noticed tho is some people see weed like it is crack and think people that smoke are going to jail for a joint . I would fill alot safer in the town centers at night on the weekends if every was was high not drunk tbh as well .

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WilkosJumper2@reddit

It's not worth the police's time to police it, so in practice unless you are doing something else naughty it won't be policed. However throughout most of the country it still is not normal at all.

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cooky561@reddit

Same reason people speed, no-one is enforcing it (unless you are near a camera) and the bulk of people don't care what you smoke. Given that someone keyed my car last year, and the police did nothing other than provide a claim reference for my insurance, it seems a lot of things aren't illegal anymore that should be.

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Happy_Little_Fish@reddit

posession is illegal, so if you're smoking it then the issue takes care of itself.

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FletchLives99@reddit

Because the law is rarely enforced. Which I'm fine with. There are quite a few laws which are rarely enforced in the UK for various reasons.

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ManicPixiRiotGrrrl@reddit

I love questions like this because like, why do you think?

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Fun_Cry5492@reddit

Became the elephant in the room, and the government are always so behind the times with it all.

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GunstarGreen@reddit

Police won't care. Even if they caught them it would be a slap on the wrist. Its almost like going 3mph above the speed limit, people just kinda accept it.

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Puzzled_Ad_9912@reddit

Police don’t care, and rightfully so. It’s a big issue, but there are much bigger things going on at the moment that demand more attention. Seldom will people get high and harm anyone, so the people who actually consume the cannabis are a low priority.

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limpingdba@reddit

The UK has continued to criminalise more and more things that would take time and money to enforce, whilst simultaneously cutting funding on the side of enforcement. Which means they have to pick and choose what to enforce, and currently weed use isn't on that list of priorities, so is largely overlooked.

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Banes_Addiction@reddit

Police don't have the resources to investigate crimes people care about. Someone walking around with a joint will only matter if the cops already want to arrest them and are looking for a reason.

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Plot-3A@reddit

The police have gone from a preventative organisation to a reactive organisation - crimes will be reacted to when reported. There's no local plod wandering the streets anymore so nobody to hide it from.

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Fine_Jury_5821@reddit

The police normally just tell the person to move on if they see them, I know this from an officer because I asked. There’s more important things to do apparently.

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anotherlousy@reddit

Not enforced. Coppers would spend the entire day dealing with weed-related infractions if it were to be.

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