MP backs MS sufferer’s use of cannabis to to ease pain

AHUSBAND who attempted to relieve his wife’s suffering by giving her cannabis says he has been told to stop by the police.

Andy Clarke, from Burntwood, provided wife Vicky with cannabis after she was diagnosed with primary progressive multiple sclerosis which caused stabbing pains in her left shoulder.

Mr Clarke said: “She has tried every drug there is – acupuncture, electro acupuncture, nerve injections, chilli patches and so on, and so on – literally everything the NHS and private clinics have to offer.

“But the only thing that’s worked so far is cannabis.”

Cannabis is a class B Drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, and now Mrs Clarke is again crying in pain because police have ordered that it is no longer used, Mr Clarke said.

His case has been taken up by Michael Fabricant (pictured) , Conservative MP for Lichfield, who is trying to change the law to make cannabis legal for medical purposes.

He has sponsored a Bill that would allow doctors to prescribe the drug when they believed it was the right treatment.

“In this respect the law is a complete ass and needs to be changed,” he said.

Mr Clarke explained: “My wife, Vicky, was a very respected primary teacher teaching in a challenging school in Walsall when she was diagnosed with Primary Progres- actually sive MS in her mid-30s, a years ago.

“Within three to four years of diagnosis, Vicky was forced to give up the career she loved despite every effort made by all parties. Since the early days of diagnosis Vicky has suffered daily with severe stabbing nerve pain in her left shoulder.”

Cannabis relieves the pain, but Mr Clarke’s attempts to grow cannabis at home came to the attention of the police. little over 10

The only thing that’s actually worked so far is cannabis Husband Andy Clarke

“The resulting action was a visit from the local police and a stern warning with the instruction not to do it again,” he said. “The WPC was quite understanding and could see what it was being used for, but said the police had to act. “That was our first brush with being labelled a criminal and our chances of experimenting with cannabis as a pain reliever gone for a while.” Mr Clarke later found a supplier of cannabis and turned it into a smoothie which his wife drank every day – but it resulted in another warning. “If I get caught again I run the risk of further action being taken by the police,” he said. Mr Fabricant described the couple’s case as “barbaric”, adding that the law “puts the police and social services in an impossible position”.