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Former Conservative chief Lord Hague has known as for a "decisive change" within the regulation on hashishsuggesting that the Tories ought to take into account legalising leisure use of the drug.
Writing within the Daily Telegraph, he stated "any war" has been "irreversibly lost".
Lord Hague goes additional than senior Tories who've steered a regulation change after a boy with epilepsy was given a particular licence to make use of hashish oil.
The authorities is creating an professional panel to look into particular person circumstances.
Last week officers at Heathrow Airport confiscated Billy Caldwell's hashish oil, which the 12-year-old's mom Charlotte had been making an attempt to carry into the UK from Canada.
The Home Office returned among the drugs after protests from Ms Caldwell, and assurances from the medical group treating Billy that the therapy was needed.
Billy was discharged from hospital on Monday, however is not going to cease to be handled with the oil.
Lord Hague stated the episode "provides one of those illuminating moments when a longstanding policy is revealed to be inappropriate, ineffective and utterly out of date".
By returning the drugs, the Home Office had "implicitly conceded that the law has become indefensible", he stated.
Lord Hague stated licensing hashish for medical use can be a "step forward", but additionally stated the Conservatives needs to be as "bold" as Canada the place state-regulated leisure consumption is being thought of.
'Multi-billion pound black market'
Currently, hashish is a Class B drug, with penalties for possession of as much as 5 years in jail.
Lord Hague's remarks mark a vital change of coronary heartas Tory chief between 1997 and 2001, he known as for a robust strategy to drug regulation enforcement.
But in a message to his party colleagues, he stated: "We are pragmatists, who change with society and revise our opinions when the facts change. On this issue, the facts have changed very seriously and clearly."
"As far as marijuana, or cannabis, is concerned, any war has been comprehensively and irreversibly lost," he stated.
It was "nothing short of deluded" to suppose the drug could possibly be pushed off the streets, and he in contrast ordering the police to crack down on its use to "asking the army to recover the Empire. This battle is effectively over".
He stated the truth that hashish was each unlawful and broadly accessible successfully permitted "the worst of all worlds" to come up: encouraging stronger and harmful variants of the drug, with customers reluctant to hunt assist.
"The total result's the rise of a multi-billion pound black marketplace for an unregulated and more and more potent product, creating extra habit and psychological well being issues however with none enforceable coverage to do one thing about it.
"The only beneficiaries are organised crime gangs. It is absolutely unacceptable to allow this situation to continue."
In his article, Lord Hague stated beneath successive governments it has been assumed that there was little different to making an attempt to win a war on medicine, hashish included.
He stated: "Taking an different view has been thought to be indicating a tendency to bizarre, irresponsible or crazily liberal opinions.
"It's time to acknowledge facts, and to embrace a decisive change that would be economically and socially beneficial, as well as rather liberating for Conservatives in showing sensible new opinions are welcome."
'Useful medical properties'
Many different nations, together with a lot of the United States, Germany, Italy and the Netherlands, have legalised the usage of medicinal hashish.
On Monday, requested in regards to the Billy Caldwell case, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt stated it was apparent the federal government was not "getting the law on this kind of thing right" and steered a evaluation would happen "as quickly as possible".
The authorities is creating an professional panel to look into particular person circumstances the place the usage of medicinal hashish has been really helpful.
Asked later in regards to the authorities's place, Prime Minister Theresa May stated there was a "very good reason" for the present guidelines on hashish"because of the impact that they have on people's lives".
She stated a system was already in place for medicinal use, and that authorities coverage can be pushed by "what clinicians are saying".
Cannabis oil row: Mother requires drug to be legalised
In suggesting the leisure use of hashish needs to be made authorized, Lord Hague has gone additional than his fellow senior Conservatives who're solely calling for a change within the regulation on the usage of medicinal hashish.
On Sunday, Sir Mike Penning, who chairs an all-party parliamentary group medical hashish, stated the Caldwell case proved the present legal guidelines had been "bizarre and cruel", and also stated that "fundamental reform of the system" was wanted.
Fellow Conservative Crispin Blunt MP, co-chair of the all-party parliamentary group on drug coverage reform, stated the present regulation was "frankly absurd".
Ex-Tory well being minister Dan Poulter stated the present scenario was "ridiculous" and pledged to push for a regulation change.
Raising an pressing query on the difficulty within the Commons on Monday, Gower MP Tonia Antoniazzi stated there have been two youngstersaged six and onein her constituency who've a critical life-limiting situation and will "benefit hugely" from medicinal hashish.
Other MPs additionally raised circumstances, whereas the shadow house secretary Diane Abbott stated the present systemeven with the brand new professional panel introducedis "simply not fit for purpose" and known as for the legalisation of hashish oil for medical use.
Cannabis and the regulation
Cannabis is a Class B drugit is unlawful to own, give away or promote, together with for ache reduction.
The penalty for possession is as much as 5 years in jail.
Supplying attracts a sentence of as much as 14 years imprisonment and an limitless superb.
As acknowledged by Home Office statistics, hashish was probably the most generally used drug within the UK in 2016-17, with 6.6% of adults aged 16 to 59 having used it. That's about 2.2 million folks.