§ Mr. Gordon PrenticeTo ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what is the(a) longest and (b) shortest jail sentence handed down to a person convicted of growing cannabis other than for his or her own use since 1980. [42138]
§ Mr. George HowarthInformation is not available as to whether people convicted or cautioned for growing cannabis were cultivating it for their own use.
Information on the length of jail sentences imposed for offences of the cultivation/production of cannabis is not available before 1986. Information for the period 1986–92 could be provided only at disproportionate cost. Available data for 1993–95 are given in the table; similar data for 1996 are not yet available.
Number of persons sentenced to immediate custody for production of cannabis England and Wales, 1993–95 Length of sentence 1993 1994 1995 Up to and including 1 month 20 38 40 Over 1 month and up to 3 months 16 28 43 Over 3 months and up to 6 months 8 19 33 Over 6 months and up to 1 year 5 22 32 Over 1 year and up to 2 years 3 11 25 Over 2 years and up to 5 years 1 9 15 Over 5 years and up to 7 years 0 0 3 Over 7 years 1 0 0 Total 54 127 191 Average (months) 6.7 8.1 10.2