Cannabis seizures have more than doubled in a year amid claims that the drug is flooding into UK because it has effectively been decriminalised, official figures revealed today.

Seizures of herbal cannabis rose by 142 percent to 28.6 tonnes last year, cannabis resin seizures were up by 33 percent to almost eight tonnes and plant seizures rose by 10 percent to 352,000.

The home office figures come amid calls by some police leaders and politicians including William Hague for the drug to be decriminalised because they say the war on cannabis has been lost.

Between 2010 and 2017, the number of cannabis possession offences fell by 48 percent from 160,733 to 83,591 as campaigner say officers turn a blind eye to focus on other priorities. A study last year revealed young people found it easier to buy cannabis than alcohol.

Demands for decriminalisation have intensified after ministers lifted restrictions on the use of medical cannabis following this summer’s controversy over the confiscation of cannabis oil that was being used to treat the epilepsy of Billy Caldwell, 12.

Although the amount of cannabis seized increased, the number of seizures fell by 2 percent to 98,000, suggesting border force and police are targeting large-scale importers and cultivators. This is the lowest number of cannabis seizures since 2004.