Thousands have joined previous cannabis marches

Thousands of people are expected to march in various cities across the UK on Saturday to mark World Cannabis Action Day.
The Million Marijuana March is a worldwide event involving people taking to the streets in nearly 200 cities across the globe.

Participants say it will be a day of discussion, protest and celebration.



The recent progress towards de facto decriminalisation in Britain is to be welcomed but is clearly not the full solution

Cannabis Coalition UK

"It's going to be a huge event," said Shane Collins, from Brixton, south London. "The march is to protest for legalisation, and the festival is a celebration of cannabis."

According to the organisers' website, marches are due to take place in London, Manchester and Birmingham on Saturday, and Hull and Edinburgh on Sunday and Monday respectively.

'Good natured'

In London the march will go from Kennington Park to Brockwell Park, in south London, where a festival is being held featuring live music, a speakers' tent and food stalls.

Scotland Yard said this was the fourth time the march had taken place in London, and that last year 15,000 had attended.

A spokesman said: "Police have been in close consultation with the organisers and they have ensured police that participants will remain within the law during the march.

"If participants are found smoking cannabis they will be asked to stop.

"In previous years the event has been peaceful and good natured."

Marches are expected to take place in more than 30 other countries including the US, New Zealand, Canada, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and France.

Lambeth experiment

The London march will be in the borough of Lambeth, where police have been pioneering a "softly, softly" approach to cannabis.

Those found with small amounts of cannabis may be warned and have their drug confiscated, but they will not face arrest.

The government has recently said it was "minded" to downgrade cannabis from a Class B to a Class C drug.

If it did so, users could be free to smoke it in public without fear of arrest.

But the Million Marijuana March organisers say this would not be enough.

Its website says: "The recent progress towards de facto decriminalisation in Britain is to be welcomed but is clearly not the full solution.

"Only a complete, total lifting of prohibition will do. Anything less is simply a half-way house which fails to protect the public."