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Official guidance warning police not to stop and search people simply because they smell of cannabis has been rejected by many senior officers.

The advice, first given to police last year but reiterated in an Inspectorate of Constabulary report this week, warns officers should look at other factors, such as behaviour, before searching people.

But some senior police officers have taken to Twitter to speak out against the guidance, insisting they will continue to advise staff to stop people if they smell the class B drug – including Staffordshire’s Chief Constable Gareth Morgan.

Currently police officers can use their stop-and-search powers if they have ‘reasonable grounds’ to suspect someone is carrying prohibited items such as drugs, weapons or stolen property.

Andy Cooke, chief constable of Merseyside police, was the first senior officer to break ranks. He tweeted: “The guidance in my view is wrong and the law does not preclude it.

“The smell of cannabis is sufficient to stop search and I will continue to encourage my officers to use it, particularly on those criminals who are engaged in serious and organised crime.”

Mr Morgan re-Tweeted Mr Cooke’s post, adding: “I agree.”

When challenged on social media, Mr Morgan responded that he wasn’t encouraging officers to stop and search based on a smell of cannabis, but that: “I’m making it clear that it remains a legal use of a power provided by Parliament.”

He later added: “I’m clear current law provides for power to search through ‘smell of cannabis’ – guidance doesn’t and shouldn’t alter law.”

Retired Staffordshire Police inspector Nigel Gunn was surprised by the official advice.

He said: “Those of us who have plodded the beat all know that there is a great link between drugs and other crime. If you have grounds to search someone who smells of cannabis, they could be dealing drugs, they could be committing burglary or robbery.

“Stop and search is just the start of the process of protecting law and order and keeping the public safe. It seems bizarre to me that the College of Policing and the Inspectorate of Constabulary are giving guidance that you shouldn't stop and search people who smell of cannabis.”

Tom Simpson, secretary of Sandyford and Goldenhill Residents’ Association, has seen how drugs and associated crime can blight a neighbourhood.

The 61-year-old, of Ridge Road, Goldenhill, said: “If an officer can smell something like cannabis, I would think they would find other criminal activities associated with it as well. I’m not saying it does in every case, but I would think it was a pretty good indicator.”

The Inspectorate of Constabulary report states: “The authorised professional practice sets out that the smell of cannabis on its own, with no other contributory factors, will not normally justify a search.

“More recent research has shown that the inclusion of the smell of cannabis in officers’ grounds for search did not increase the likelihood that a search for cannabis resulted in a criminal justice outcome.

“It concluded that a suspect’s behaviour should be more important than the smell of cannabis when deciding to conduct a search, because behaviour linked directly or indirectly to drugs increased the likelihood of a positive outcome.”

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The College of Policing is a professional body which aims to provide police officers with the skills and knowledge to prevent crime.

A spokesman said: “The College of Policing will be reviewing the current stop and search Authorised Professional Practice (APP) regarding the strength of evidence on the smell of cannabis, on its own, as a ground to carry out a drugs search.

“The review will be taking place to ensure that the national guidance fully reflects the latest research and findings and provides clear information and advice for officers and staff.”

In a statement, Mr Morgan said: “Staffordshire Police look forward to working with the College of Policing as this guidance is revisited.”