Skip to content
Sentencing
  • Offences
  • Sentencing and the Council
    • About the Sentencing Council
      • How the Council works
      • Sentencing Council members
      • Our criteria for developing or revising guidelines
      • Council meetings
      • Corporate reports
      • Strategic objectives 2021-2026
        • Achieving our strategic objectives
      • History
      • Activity to date
      • Criminal justice – where does the Council fit?
      • Office of the Sentencing Council
    • About sentencing guidelines
      • About published guidelines
        • Allocation and offences taken into consideration
        • Animal cruelty
        • Arson and criminal damage
        • Assault
        • Bladed articles and offensive weapons
        • Breach offences
        • Burglary offences
        • Child cruelty
        • Children and young people
        • Dangerous dog offences
        • Domestic abuse
        • Drug offences
        • Environmental offences
        • Firearms offences
        • Fraud, bribery and money laundering offences
        • General guideline and expanded explanations in sentencing guidelines
        • Guilty pleas
        • Health and safety offences, corporate manslaughter and food safety and hygiene offences
        • Imposition of community and custodial sentences
        • Intimidatory offences
        • Magistrates’ Court Sentencing Guidelines
        • Manslaughter
        • Miscellaneous amendments to sentencing guidelines
        • Modern slavery
        • Motoring offences
        • Offenders with mental disorders, developmental disorders or neurological impairments
        • Perverting the course of justice
        • Public order offences
        • Robbery
        • Sale of knives etc to persons under 18
        • Sexual offences
        • Terrorism offences
        • Theft offences
        • Totality
        • Unauthorised use of a trade mark
        • Witness intimidation
    • How sentencing works
      • Sentencing children and young people
    • Types of sentence
      • Discharges
      • Fines
      • Community sentences
      • Custodial sentences
      • Suspended sentences
      • Determinate prison sentences
      • Extended sentences
      • Life sentences
      • Disposals for offenders with mental disorders, developmental disorders or neurological impairments
      • Ancillary orders
      • Other orders made on sentencing
        • Criminal Courts Charge
        • What is the surcharge?
      • Types of sentences for children and young people
    • Who does what in sentencing?
    • Sentencing Code
    • Sentencing myths
    • Consultations
    • SentencingACE
    • Contact us
  • Going to court
    • Which court will a case be heard in?
    • What can happen at trial
    • Sentencing hearings
    • Information for victims and witnesses
    • Information for defendants
  • News and articles
  • Research and resources
    • Sentencing Council research and analysis
      • Statistical summaries
      • Resource assessments
      • Research reports
      • Guideline monitoring and evaluations
    • Data collections
      • Crown Court Sentencing Survey
      • Offence specific data collections
        • Bladed articles and offensive weapons
        • Theft from a shop or stall
        • Drug offences
        • Robbery
    • Criminal justice statistics
    • Code of Practice for Statistics
    • Sentencing seminars
      • Academic seminar 2018
      • Academic seminar 2023
      • Sentencing seminar 2025
    • Public sector equality duty
    • Publications
    • Definitive guidelines archive of print editions
    • You be the Judge
    • Resources for teachers
    • Information for victims’ families
    • Glossary
    • Useful links
Sentencing Guidelines:
  • Magistrates
  • Crown Court

Do not retain this copy. Only the online version of a guideline is guaranteed to be up to date.

  1. Home
  2. Drug offences: Consultation

Publication types:
Consultations

Publication topics:
Drug offences

Published on:

15 January 2020

Drug offences: Consultation

A consultation paper on the sentencing of drug offences. Closed 7 May 2020.

Sentencing of drug offences: Consultation

Which offences are covered?

Misuse of Drugs Act 1971:

  • section 3 (and Customs and Excise Management Act 1979 (section 170(2)) – fraudulent evasion of a prohibition by bringing into or taking out of the UK a controlled drug
  • section 4(3) – supplying or offering to supply a controlled drug
  • section 5(3) – possession of a controlled drug with intent to supply it to another
  • section 4(2)(a) or (b) – production of a controlled drug
  • section 6(2) – cultivation of a cannabis plant
  • section 8 – permitting premises to be used for drug-related activity
  • section 5(2) – possession of a controlled drug

Psychoactive Substances Act 2016:

  • section 4 – producing a psychoactive substance
  • section 5 – supplying, or offering to supply, a psychoactive substance
  • section 7 – possession of a psychoactive substance with intent to supply
  • section 8 – importing or exporting a psychoactive substance
  • section 9 – possession of a psychoactive substance in a custodial institution

© Sentencing Council: 2025

Sign up for email updates

Keep up to date on sentencing guidelines, consultations, our research and news about the Council and our work.

SIGN UP
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • T&Cs and Copyright
  • Cookies
  • FOI
  • About us
  • Contact
  • GOV.UK
© Sentencing Council: 2025