Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of the penalties incurred for (a) possession and (b) supply and production of synthetic cannabinoids.

Synthetic cannabinoids are controlled as Class B drugs under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. There is a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment, an unlimited fine, or both for possession of a Class B drug and 14 years’ imprisonment, an unlimited fine, or both, for the supply and production of a Class B drug.

There was a total of 281 convictions for the principal offence of possession of synthetic cannabinoids in 2018, up from 71 convictions in 2017 and no convictions in 2016. For the principal offences of either supply, possession with intent to supply or production of synthetic cannabinoids there were 18 convictions in 2018, up from 4 convictions in 2017 and 4 convictions in 2016.

The Government has commissioned the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) to provide an updated harms assessment on their previous reports on synthetic cannabinoids. The commission also seeks recommendations on whether the current classification under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 of synthetic cannabinoids is appropriate. The advice is due in summer 2020. The full commission has been published online on the gov.uk website.
The Government will await the ACMD’s further advice and recommendations