So, what's the point of having scientific advisors if you plain ignore what they tell you? A group of scientists have written to The Guardian urging the House of Lords to look at scientific evidence and hold off from reclassifying cannabis from C to B. (Ben Goldacre's Bad Science blog has featured media misrepresentation of cannabis)
The Register reports that the Home Secretary ignored her advisors, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD), and proposes re-classifying the drug.
Smith's scientific advisers - the ACMD - investigated alleged links between cannabis and mental illness and found there weren't any. Despite this and evidence that cannabis use has fallen since it was downgraded by David Blunkett in 2004, Smith said she wanted to upgrade the drug and ban the sale of paraphernalia like pipes and bongs.
Apparently it's the first time in 30 years that ACMD advice has been ignored. Mind you, given the Home Secretary's recent actions, this doesn't seem out of character.
The bottom line is that policy should follow evidence.