So called soft-drug cannabis is now being spiked with cocaine and ecstasy as dealers seek to get clients hooked on harder drugs said addictions counsellor Sandy Butterfield.

She said testing of known weed users was now showing up other substances which she believes are added by drug dealers to boost the potency of their product.

The head of FOCUS Counselling Services told The Royal Gazette: "It's not just marijuana anymore when we are doing tests of people who only use marijuana they are showing up with ecstasy and cocaine."

And she believes depressants are being added to fool cannabis users into thinking they are getting a really powerful drug.

"These are people we know to be marijuana smokers only, it is not people who could be dabbling in other stuff.

"We are telling them you need to stop buying marijuana from where you are buying it from."

The trend had been first noticed in the past few weeks said Mrs. Butterfield.

"It's just a lure to get people to want something else. It makes it the gateway drug, people want more of a buzz. Young people try and explore everything."

She said typically when addicts were surveyed on how they got involved they said they started on weed when they were 11 or 12.

"Now they are using cocaine and heroin it was a progression. They will say 'If I hadn't started on marijuana I would not have been hanging around the people who were doing all the other stuff'."

Mrs. Butterfield said it was one reason why decriminalising marijuana would not be helpful to Bermuda.

She said one teen weed smoker she knew blamed his use on boredom.

"He told me if my parents had money they could send me away to school and do things but they don't, but there's nothing to do here. If you go to football games there's drugs.

"And not everyone wants to play football or cricket. They gravitate to this gangster stuff because it is the only exciting stuff going on."

She said it was time Bermuda stopped playing at the interdictions business and nailed the influx of drugs which could only come in via water or air.

"Let's start working on those areas and cut it out and let's have something for the youth so they are not drawn to drugs."

* Tomorrow: Bermuda is losing its war on drugs because Police were told to back off, argues former Narcotics head Larry Smith.

But Dr. Froncioni backs relaxing drug laws

Alcohol, cannabis and hard drugs will always be an intrinsic part of our society.

Alcohol prohibition did not work in the 1920s and it is not working now for recreational drugs. Furthermore, there is no evidence that the 'war on drugs' is being won.

At present, the purity, availability and price of drugs is under the exclusive control of the worst elements of our society, i.e. criminals.

These individuals/organisations are ruthless in their efforts to maximize profits and have not an ounce of social responsibility.

The purity and availability of drugs is inconsistent and the price is astronomical.

As a result, society bears the very heavy burden of being subjected to and having to manage the consequences of this arrangement.

Users are forced to rob and steal in order to pay for their overpriced drugs, they overdose because of inconsistent quality of drugs, they spread HIV through needle sharing and we are subjected to armed conflict by gangs in turf wars over the drug business.

In my opinion, cannabis is neither safer nor more dangerous a drug than alcohol.

The danger to the individual user and to society come primarily from the criminality that necessarily surrounds its illicit traffic.

Cannabis should be legalised and should be sold and taxed by a government controlled outlet with the same safeguards as we apply to the sale of alcohol.

Hard drugs pose a more serious problem as they tend to be much more addictive.

However, there is no doubt in my mind that Government and not the criminal element should have control of them.

Addiction should be seen as the disease entity it is and addicts should not have to resort to crime or use dirty needles to deal with their problem.

Hard drug addiction is a sorry state for the individual.

However, if control of these substances is left in the hands of criminals, it is society that suffers the consequences resulting from addicts' desperation to fund their addiction.