curious old fart
Well-Known Member
it seems the po-po is getting nosy
Half a million cannabis growers in UK homes: Criminals are switching over from harder drugs because of more lenient jail sentences
Hundreds of thousands of suburban homes have been converted into marijuana factories by gangs switching from hard drugs
They are taking advantage of more lenient penalties which say they won't be jailed if they are caught growing fewer than ten plants in a single house
Even growing nine plants is enough to make around £40,000 a year
By Jack Doyle
PUBLISHED: 19:18 EST, 14 October 2013 | UPDATED: 01:56 EST, 15 October 2013
A staggering half a million people in the UK are running secret cannabis farms in their homes.
An explosion in production of the drug means hundreds of thousands of suburban houses have been converted into hidden marijuana factories.
The booming industry is fuelled by gangs switching from hard drugs such as cocaine and heroin because of the more lenient penalties for cannabis, police say.
An investigation found dealers know they will escape jail if they grow fewer than ten plants in a single property even if they are growing the dangerously potent skunk form.
Even nine plants is enough to net around £40,000 a year.
The allegations sparked fury among anti-cannabis campaigners who said police were letting dealers get away with it.
Mary Brett, of Cannabis Skunk Sense, said: Nobody is going to smoke this much in a year on their own. These people should be hauled before the courts for this.
This amounts to decriminalisation of the supply of a Class B drug. Nobody in their right mind thinks that anybody would grow nine plants and not supply.
The extraordinary scale of the problem was revealed in an ITV documentary. It found 80 per cent of the drug that is smoked in the UK is produced here compared with 65 per cent a few years ago.
Police figures show the average number of cannabis farms discovered every month in 2008 was 252.
Drug mansion: All kinds of properties have been found to be used by unscrupulous drug dealers
But by last year that had nearly trebled to 656 and the number is still rising. Merseyside police alone said they find two houses a day filled with the plants.
Filmmaker Conor Woodman said cannabis growers can make £40,000 a year adding: One single mum told me her bedroom tax pales into insignificance compared to what she makes from the cannabis in her spare room.
The figures were drawn from a recent report by the Independent Drug Monitoring Unit which estimated that the number of growers could be as high as 504,000 one producer for every 44 households.
The documentary found shops selling all the equipment to grow cannabis for as little as £400. The hydroponics kit included tents, lights and ventilation systems, which increase the yield and strength of the drug.
Police say gangs are switching from large production warehouses to dozens of smaller growing centres. These can be set up in hours in converted lofts or garages. Often rented properties are used for a short time then abandoned, leaving huge power bills.
Superintendent Mark Harrison of Merseyside Police said ten houses with 30 plants each would give the same yield and the same profitability as large commercial sites.
Neighbours can be alerted by blacked-out windows, hot walls, condensation, a pungent smell and visitors at unusual times. Police use thermal imaging cameras to see the heat given off from the powerful lamps that help the plant to grow indoors.
Forces in the North West of England have reported growing tension between cannabis gangs, resulting in a surge in reported shootings.
In London, police seized cannabis worth £2.6million in a single month of raids in August and made more than 350 related arrests.
Scotland Yard said it shut down 37 marijuana factories and recovered more than 2,700 plants, alongside vast amounts of cash and weapons.
The revelations will raise concerns about the amount of super-strong skunk cannabis on Britains streets.
Anti-drugs campaigners say a growing number of users are being hospitalised with mental disorders. In just three years, the number admitted for treatment has increased by 50 per cent. It is particularly harmful when smoked by young teenagers whose brains are still developing.
Police have faced scrutiny for adopting a softer attitude to drug-taking. It means a less robust enforcement approach on drugs such as cannabis, with more offenders receiving on-the-spot fines.
Exposure: Britains Booming Cannabis Business, ITV1, 11.05pm, tomorrow
.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2460163/Half-million-cannabis-growers-UK-homes-Criminals-switching-harder-drugs-lenient-jail-sentences.html#ixzz2hnXzNrjS
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
did you notice?
the dangerously potent skunk form.
hello dippy elsie
cof
Half a million cannabis growers in UK homes: Criminals are switching over from harder drugs because of more lenient jail sentences
Hundreds of thousands of suburban homes have been converted into marijuana factories by gangs switching from hard drugs
They are taking advantage of more lenient penalties which say they won't be jailed if they are caught growing fewer than ten plants in a single house
Even growing nine plants is enough to make around £40,000 a year
By Jack Doyle
PUBLISHED: 19:18 EST, 14 October 2013 | UPDATED: 01:56 EST, 15 October 2013
A staggering half a million people in the UK are running secret cannabis farms in their homes.
An explosion in production of the drug means hundreds of thousands of suburban houses have been converted into hidden marijuana factories.
The booming industry is fuelled by gangs switching from hard drugs such as cocaine and heroin because of the more lenient penalties for cannabis, police say.
An investigation found dealers know they will escape jail if they grow fewer than ten plants in a single property even if they are growing the dangerously potent skunk form.
Even nine plants is enough to net around £40,000 a year.
The allegations sparked fury among anti-cannabis campaigners who said police were letting dealers get away with it.
Mary Brett, of Cannabis Skunk Sense, said: Nobody is going to smoke this much in a year on their own. These people should be hauled before the courts for this.
This amounts to decriminalisation of the supply of a Class B drug. Nobody in their right mind thinks that anybody would grow nine plants and not supply.
The extraordinary scale of the problem was revealed in an ITV documentary. It found 80 per cent of the drug that is smoked in the UK is produced here compared with 65 per cent a few years ago.
Police figures show the average number of cannabis farms discovered every month in 2008 was 252.
Drug mansion: All kinds of properties have been found to be used by unscrupulous drug dealers
But by last year that had nearly trebled to 656 and the number is still rising. Merseyside police alone said they find two houses a day filled with the plants.
Filmmaker Conor Woodman said cannabis growers can make £40,000 a year adding: One single mum told me her bedroom tax pales into insignificance compared to what she makes from the cannabis in her spare room.
The figures were drawn from a recent report by the Independent Drug Monitoring Unit which estimated that the number of growers could be as high as 504,000 one producer for every 44 households.
The documentary found shops selling all the equipment to grow cannabis for as little as £400. The hydroponics kit included tents, lights and ventilation systems, which increase the yield and strength of the drug.
Police say gangs are switching from large production warehouses to dozens of smaller growing centres. These can be set up in hours in converted lofts or garages. Often rented properties are used for a short time then abandoned, leaving huge power bills.
Superintendent Mark Harrison of Merseyside Police said ten houses with 30 plants each would give the same yield and the same profitability as large commercial sites.
Neighbours can be alerted by blacked-out windows, hot walls, condensation, a pungent smell and visitors at unusual times. Police use thermal imaging cameras to see the heat given off from the powerful lamps that help the plant to grow indoors.
Forces in the North West of England have reported growing tension between cannabis gangs, resulting in a surge in reported shootings.
In London, police seized cannabis worth £2.6million in a single month of raids in August and made more than 350 related arrests.
Scotland Yard said it shut down 37 marijuana factories and recovered more than 2,700 plants, alongside vast amounts of cash and weapons.
The revelations will raise concerns about the amount of super-strong skunk cannabis on Britains streets.
Anti-drugs campaigners say a growing number of users are being hospitalised with mental disorders. In just three years, the number admitted for treatment has increased by 50 per cent. It is particularly harmful when smoked by young teenagers whose brains are still developing.
Police have faced scrutiny for adopting a softer attitude to drug-taking. It means a less robust enforcement approach on drugs such as cannabis, with more offenders receiving on-the-spot fines.
Exposure: Britains Booming Cannabis Business, ITV1, 11.05pm, tomorrow
.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2460163/Half-million-cannabis-growers-UK-homes-Criminals-switching-harder-drugs-lenient-jail-sentences.html#ixzz2hnXzNrjS
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook
did you notice?
the dangerously potent skunk form.
hello dippy elsie
cof
been toking her all week.
am well excited though we'll not be able to try it til the summer but thems the breaks. bottling my latest brew next week. brewing a belgian trappist tripel next week. i expect to be nothing short of pissed right through december and january. got to do something to pass the time til the crops done.
the cider? enlighten me!
i'm still tight from last night. eyeing up a leftover GnT thinking about a bacon sandwich. early KO today. 12:45 i'm off to grab a batch of garry ablett's afore the game. 
