British Prime Minister Gordon Brown said in a press conference Tuesday he favors the reclassification of cannabis to a class B drug instead of its present class C status. The move would reverse cannabis' downgrade by former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, which was seen as having encouraged its heavier use by young Britons.

Brown's policy comes ahead of a report slated to come out this month following a formal review of cannabis' classification ordered by the prime minister on June as soon as he took office.

His pronouncement jumps the gun on the final report, indicating the tough stance Brown intends to adopt. Brown said, "I believe that if we are sending out a signal particularly to teenagers, that we in any way find cannabis acceptable, given all that we now know about the changes in the way cannabis is being sold in this country, that is not the right thing to do."

Brown stressed marijuana is not only illegal, but also unacceptable.

Possession of class B drugs, which includes amphetamines, carried with it a penalty of 5 years in prison and unlimited fine. In contrast, possession of class C drugs which counts steroids and some prescription anti-depressants, has a 2-year prison term penalty, but in practice charges are not filed if only small quantities of banned class C drugs are found.