HOME Secretary David Blunkett was last night caught up in a furious row with the Government's former "drugs tsar", Keith Hellawell, over the decision to downgrade cannabis.

Mr Blunkett confirmed yesterday that possessing the drug would no longer be an arrestable offence, although it will remain illegal.

Currently a class B drug, it will become a class C narcotic next year, putting it in the same legal category as steroids and anti-depressants.

The announcement divided opinion among law enforcers and drug workers, with accusations that Mr Blunkett was sending out the wrong signals.

Mr Hellawell, a former Cleveland Police chief constable, led the backlash against the move yesterday. He announced his resignation as a Government advisor on drugs, citing the cannabis policy change and "the issue of spin".

Mr Hellawell was sidelined last year, losing his "drugs tsar" position for a part-time role as an advisor on international drugs issues.

He said of the Government's new policy: "This would virtually be decriminalisation of cannabis and this is, quite frankly, giving out the wrong message."

Mr Hellawell claimed drug dealers would be "euphoric" about the move.

"The perception now is that the Government doesn't care about personal possession of cannabis, which gives a totally misleading message to parents, children and the public as a whole," he said.

But a spokesman for the Home Secretary hit back, claiming Mr Hellawell had privately backed the move last year.

"Keith Hellawell said to the Home Secretary in a meeting last autumn that he was fully supportive of the Home Secretary's proposal to reclassify cannabis," said the spokesman.

The move announced yesterday means that by next July, in most cases of cannabis possession, police officers will simply issue a warning and seize the drugs.

The Home Office stressed that cannabis cafes remain illegal and police would be expected to shut them down.

In a bid to counter allegations that he was going "soft on drugs", Mr Blunkett said the maximum sentence for dealing in Class C substances would be increased from five years to 14, even though cannabis is being downgraded.

There would also be a "reserve power of arrest" for police officers to deal with cannabis users who are a "danger to public order" or to protect children.

But last night, Lord MacKenzie of Framwellgate, former president of the Police Superintendents' Association and former head of Durham Police drugs squad, criticised the plans.

He said: "Cannabis, in my view, is a dangerous drug and we are sending out totally the wrong signal."

Judith Atkinson, of the North East Council on Addictions, echoed his fears. She said: "We would have liked to have seen more research on the overall implications of this."

But multiple sclerosis sufferer Pauline Taylor, 50, of Newton Hall, Durham, who has admitted smoking cannabis to ease her pain, said she believed the Government should go further and legalise the drug.

She said: "Hopefully, this will make things easier for people who need it medically, but we are going to have turmoil until people learn how to use it safely."

Durham Police's Assistant Chief Constable, Ron Hogg, voiced scepticism that the reclassification of cannabis would save police time, and Trudi Ranson, Durham and Darlington manager for Victim Support, said it might have the opposite effect. "If it does increase the number of crimes and the number of victims, I think it should be carefully reviewed," she said.