The call was made with support of people who have Multiple Sclerosis.

Plaid Cymru’s leader has called for the use of cannabis as a medicine to be decriminalised.

Leanne Wood called on the Welsh Government to make the Class B drug available for people who have Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and other conditions.

She made the call during a session at the Senedd.

Members of a group of people with MS and who have set up a group calling for the decriminalisation of cannabis were present for the debate.

She said Wales should follow Ireland as well as Canada, Germany and the Netherlands, in recommending that cannabis should be legalised for medicinal use.

There is also support for decriminalisation in Scotland.

Ms Wood said Wales was the first country in the UK to approve cannabis-based drug Sativex in 2014.

The Rhondda AM said that he lack of availability of that drug had led people to look for alternatives.

Ms Wood said she had met a 64-year-old woman from Cwmbran who has Primary Progressive MS.

“She experiences pain and spasms on a daily basis and her daily drug regime includes morphine, codeine, paracetamol, pregabalin and diazepam.

 

Leanne Wood pictured with Sue Cox and Glyn Jones who both have MS and are campaigning for the decriminalisation of cannabis for medicinal use

“Because Sativex isn’t available in her area, she uses cannabis as a replacement obviously causing problems there with the law. How is it okay to take morphine, but by buying cannabis she risks prosecution?”

She said: “The evidence from patients being prescribed Sativex is consistent and clear. It is effective, it reduces pain and spasms but access to the drug is patchy.

“It isn’t widely available. A survey for the MS Society found that only 1% of people who said they were eligible for Sativex had access to it.

“And the survey also suggests that the number of people living with MS who take disease-modifying therapies appears to be lower than in Scotland or England.

“There is a real concern that other new drugs and treatments coming through the system will also be equally as difficult to access.

“If you accept that the availability of these drugs is a major obstacle to the qualify of life to citizens of Wales, what resources will the Welsh Government allocate to the infrastructure around MS nursing and neurology, in order to help patients get the support they need?”

Leader of the house Jane Hutt AM, was deputising for the First Minister Carwyn Jones who is travelling to America.

Ms Hutt responded saying that she wanted to see drugs such as Sativex available for patients.

“What I would like to do is to ensure that we can make these medicines and drugs such as Sativex available, which has proven benefits.

“I would want to ensure that we look very clearly at access and availability of those proven and clinically beneficial medications for people with MS in Wales”.