Latest news with #MichaelRawlins
The Guardian
2 days ago
- Health
- The Guardian
It's high time Britain had another conversation about cannabis
The findings of the London Drugs Commission are welcome after a decade or more of static drug policy in the UK (Worried about weed: should London follow New York and decriminalise cannabis?, 31 May). While the report focuses on London, the suggestions resonate across the UK and beyond. Cannabis was reclassified from class B to class C in 2004, reducing the penalties for possession, after the home secretary (David Blunkett) took the advice of the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs. Unfortunately, the Labour government asked the council to reconsider its advice based on protests about the risks of cannabis to health. The council, headed by Sir Michael Rawlins, confirmed its advice that the drug should stay in class C. The government disagreed this time and returned it to class B. Police Scotland some years ago announced that it would concentrate on more serious issues and reduce attention on simple possession-of-cannabis offences. Returning the drug to a class with a lower sentencing tariff clearly makes sense. The requirements for a functioning education and health service regarding drug use and addiction are clearly the next target and at present it is hard to identify anything but inadequate provision in primary or specialist services. Scotland is innovating in the establishment of a safer injecting room and a heroin assisted-treatment programme in Glasgow, but across the addiction field progress is slow. The commission didn't recommend legislation but without a national approach progress in addiction policy is fragmented and RobertsonProfessor of addiction medicine, University of Edinburgh Your article about decriminalising cannabis in London doesn't take into account the impact on people who don't want the smell of weed all around them. I've recently been on a short break to New York, which was marred by the inescapable smell of weed everywhere. It was in the streets, the shop doorways and even permeated the shops and restaurants as people smoked their joints outside. It's bad enough that we have to breathe in the sickly smell of vapes on the street without having to endure the pungent odour of pot everywhere. This is more than an issue about not prosecuting people for drug use, it's a quality-of-life issue for everyone. If it's decriminalised in London, the rest of the country is sure to follow Ludlow MooneyBacup, Lancashire Have an opinion on anything you've read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Spring storm causes power outages, tree damage over weekend
CHICOPEE, Mass. (WWLP) – This past weekend's storm left hundreds in the Pioneer Valley without power. Strong winds also brought down trees and power lines in the eastern part of the Pioneer Valley. As rain continues to fall, which could lead to some flooding, cleanup efforts continue. It's not uncommon during stronger storms to see wind gusts reach 30 miles per hour. The danger comes when microbursts and straight-line winds enter heavily wooded areas. The first big spring thunderstorm brought heavy rain and strong winds to most of southern New England. This is the same storm system that wreaked havoc in the Midwest with tornadoes and massive floods. While we were saved from tornadoes, Michael Rawlins with the Climate System Research Center told 22News that more intense rain could become more common, 'There have been some indicators that suggest that maybe weather is becoming more variable, more volatile if you will more rapid swings between wet and dry, hot and cold.' Straight line winds, or any strong winds not associated with tornadoic rotation, are a product of this more volatile weather. The town of Ware experienced one form of straight-line winds, known as microbursts. Reports of a microburst this weekend happened right around this area, and the short but strong winds easily have enough power to take down trees and power lines. Microbursts generally last between five to ten minutes, but the strong sustained winds can feel like a weak hurricane. Researchers point to the climate rebounding from recent dry spells as the reason for these stronger events. 'As it gets wetter overall, in general throughout the year, that shift in the climate is bringing more of those extreme events more in the tails of the distribution if you think about a bell curve,' Rawlins adds. In the south, two people died last week during major floods from this same storm deaths have been reported in western Massachusetts. WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
