Written question asked by John Robertson (Labour) on Friday, 6 October 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 9 October 2006. It was answered by Gerry Sutcliffe (Labour) on Tuesday, 31 October 2006 on behalf of the Home Office.

Cannabis

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) adults and (b) young offenders were (i) reprimanded for, (ii) received a final warning for and (iii) charged with possession of cannabis in each year between 2002 and 2005.

Answer

Available information relates to the number of persons aged 18 and over in England and Wales cautioned, receiving formal warnings (since April 2004) or found guilty under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 of unlawfully possessing cannabis between 2002 and 2004. The number of reprimands and warnings, which replaced cautions for persons aged under 18 in selected areas of England and Wales on 30 September 1998, are also given for 2003 and 2004.

Number of persons (a) aged 18 and over (b) aged under 18 cautioned or found guilty of unlawfully possessing cannabis, England and Wales, 2002 to 2004
	2002	2003	2004
(a) Persons aged 18 and over
Cautions	28,941	29,209	15,214
Formal warnings	¹—	¹—	27,520
Found guilty	31,234	33,995	18,850

(b) Persons aged under 18
Reprimands	²8,869	6,220	4,769
Warnings	²—	2,705	2,544
Found guilty	4,997	5,367	4,111
¹ Formal warnings data for cannabis possession have been available since April 2004. Those aged 18 and over who are caught in simple possession of cannabis can be eligible for a police formal warning which would not involve an arrest. Police issued 27,520 formal warnings between April and December 2004. ² Separate figures for reprimands and warnings not available for 2002.

Secondary information

Type: Written question
Reference: 91670; 451 c383W
Session: 2005-06
Subjects: Cannabis Misuse
Link: View this Written question on www.publications.parliament.uk

Cannabis

Secondary information

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