Found: Medicinal Cannabis CPG Minutes_27th April 2022
The Bill failed to complete its passage through Parliament before the end of the session. This means the Bill will make no further progress. A Bill to allow the production, supply, possession and use of cannabis and cannabis resin for medicinal purposes; and for connected purposes.
Found: CPG on Medicinal Cannabis 15 september 22 minutes
Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people received custodial sentences for personal possession of cannabis excluding people imprisoned for intent to supply, production, or importation in each of the last ten years.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the number of offenders who received custodial sentences for possession of cannabis in the Outcomes by Offence tool: December 2023.
This can be accessed by navigating to the ‘Sentence Outcomes’ tab and using the ‘Sentence Outcome’ filter to select immediate custody and the ‘HO Offence Code’ filter to select the following HO offence codes:
09261 - Having possession of a controlled drug - class B (cannabis, including cannabis resin, cannabinol and cannabinol derivatives)
09266 - Having possession of a controlled drug - class C (cannabis, including cannabis resin, cannabinol and cannabinol derivatives) – historic
Offence groups and offence types are continually revised to reflect offences accurately. However, it is important to note that data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts. As a consequence, offences that have been repealed may still be used by court administration and appear in the data.
Review police response to illegal use of cannabis
- Final Signatures: 16
We are concerned that the police do not always take action in response to reports of the illegal smoking of cannabis. We want the Government to review how the police respond to illegal use of cannabis, and consider whether the current response is appropriate.
Found: The smell of cannabis can get into other people's homes and gardens.
Asked by: Iain Duncan Smith (Conservative - Chingford and Woodford Green)
Question to the Ministry of Justice:
To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many and what proportion of people who were convicted for simple cannabis possession were also convicted for another offence by the category of that other offence in each of the last five years.
Answered by Nicholas Dakin - Government Whip, Lord Commissioner of HM Treasury
The Ministry of Justice publishes data on the total number of convictions for possession of cannabis on all-offence basis in the All-offence prosecutions and convictions data tool.
A breakdown on how many offenders convicted for possession of cannabis were also convicted for another offence, and where an offender has been convicted of multiple counts of possession of cannabis at the same time, will count each individual conviction. Therefore, the information requested, on a defendant basis has been provided in Table 1 and Table 2.
Found: Medical Cannabis on or under Prescription
Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has undertaken recent research on the use of medical cannabis for the treatment of (a) Dravet and (b) Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published technology appraisals recommending Epidyolex, a licensed form of cannabidiol extracted from cannabis, for the treatment of seizures associated with two rare forms of epilepsies, specifically Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, and tuberous sclerosis complex.
Deciding whether to prescribe an unlicensed cannabis-based medicine, a medicine that has not been assessed or approved by the medicines regulator, is a clinical decision, and the funding of medicines within the National Health Service is governed by well-established processes and evidence-based guidelines produced by the NICE. The NICE found that there is insufficient evidence of safety and effectiveness to support a population-wide recommendation in relation to unlicensed cannabis-based medicines for severe treatment-resistant epilepsy. The NICE also calls for further research.
Following the publication of the NICE’s guidance, NHS England and The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has agreed funding for two trials relating to the use of cannabis-based medicines for the treatment of difficult-to-treat epilepsies. These will be world-first trials and will be crucial in informing future NHS funding decisions. Due to commercial confidentiality, further information on the trials cannot be released at this time.
Where a treatment is not currently routinely funded by the NHS in England, an NHS clinician can, on behalf of their patient, make an application for funding in exceptional clinical circumstances. This is known as an Individual Funding Request (IFR). In making an application for an IFR, clinicians must demonstrate that the patient in question is clinically exceptional compared to the wider group of patients with the same condition, and is likely to derive greater benefit from the treatment. Each case is assessed on an individual basis, and is not a process the Government can seek to influence.
Until the evidence base improves, prescribers will remain reticent in prescribing, and no decision can be made by the NHS on routine funding. That is why the Government is committed to research and catalysing the generation of evidence to support use of these products.
Like any other area of medicine, manufacturers of these products must invest in research and clinical trials to ensure that cannabis-based medicines are proven both safe and effective before they can be considered for routine funding by the NHS. The NIHR remains open to receiving good quality proposals for research in this area as a priority, and stands ready to support researchers and manufacturers to develop applications.
Asked by: Paul Foster (Labour - South Ribble)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has undertaken recent research on the use of medical cannabis for the treatment of epilepsy.
Answered by Andrew Gwynne - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has published technology appraisals recommending Epidyolex, a licensed form of cannabidiol extracted from cannabis, for the treatment of seizures associated with two rare forms of epilepsies, specifically Dravet syndrome and Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, and tuberous sclerosis complex.
Deciding whether to prescribe an unlicensed cannabis-based medicine, a medicine that has not been assessed or approved by the medicines regulator, is a clinical decision, and the funding of medicines within the National Health Service is governed by well-established processes and evidence-based guidelines produced by the NICE. The NICE found that there is insufficient evidence of safety and effectiveness to support a population-wide recommendation in relation to unlicensed cannabis-based medicines for severe treatment-resistant epilepsy. The NICE also calls for further research.
Following the publication of the NICE’s guidance, NHS England and The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has agreed funding for two trials relating to the use of cannabis-based medicines for the treatment of difficult-to-treat epilepsies. These will be world-first trials and will be crucial in informing future NHS funding decisions. Due to commercial confidentiality, further information on the trials cannot be released at this time.
Where a treatment is not currently routinely funded by the NHS in England, an NHS clinician can, on behalf of their patient, make an application for funding in exceptional clinical circumstances. This is known as an Individual Funding Request (IFR). In making an application for an IFR, clinicians must demonstrate that the patient in question is clinically exceptional compared to the wider group of patients with the same condition, and is likely to derive greater benefit from the treatment. Each case is assessed on an individual basis, and is not a process the Government can seek to influence.
Until the evidence base improves, prescribers will remain reticent in prescribing, and no decision can be made by the NHS on routine funding. That is why the Government is committed to research and catalysing the generation of evidence to support use of these products.
Like any other area of medicine, manufacturers of these products must invest in research and clinical trials to ensure that cannabis-based medicines are proven both safe and effective before they can be considered for routine funding by the NHS. The NIHR remains open to receiving good quality proposals for research in this area as a priority, and stands ready to support researchers and manufacturers to develop applications.
Asked by: Beccy Cooper (Labour - Worthing West)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to help ensure police officers are trained to deal appropriately with people who rely on prescribed medical cannabis.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Home Office)
The Home Office published Circular 018/2018 when Cannabis-Based Products for Medicinal Use (CBPMs) were introduced under Schedule 2 to the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001 on 1 November 2018. The circular summarised the effects of the legislation, and is primarily aimed at law enforcement, including the police. It remains available on gov.uk. This guidance applies to all CBPM prescriptions, whether prescribed on the NHS or privately. The Circular is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/circular-0182018-rescheduling-of-cannabis-based-products-for-medicinal-use-in-humans.
Additionally, the Home Office and the Department for Health and Social Care contributed to the NHS document ‘Medical cannabis (and cannabis oils)’, which includes a summary of how patients may demonstrate that they are in lawful possession. This guidance is available at the following link: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/medical-cannabis/.