British authorities have once again confiscated cannabis oil from an Aylesham woman who traveled outside the U.K. to obtain the medicine for her young daughter who suffers from a rare chromosomal disorder known as Isodicentric 15 as well as Lennox-Gastaut syndrome which can cause her to have up to 300 seizures a day.
In April, officials at the London Southend Airport seized a three-month supply of cannabis oil that Emma Appleby was bringing back from Holland for her nine-year-old daughter Teagan.
After Mrs. Appleby managed to obtain a private prescription a few days later, Teagan’s medicine was returned.
But as the supply of cannabis oil began to run low, Mrs. Appleby prepared for another trip to Holland to purchase enough medicine to last another month.
On Thursday Labour Party MP Tonia Antoniazzi accompanied Mrs. Appleby on the flight to the Netherlands and to the pharmacy where it only took them about five minutes to obtain bottles of Bedrolite CBD and THC oils for Teagan.
Mrs. Appleby says that Teagan needs three bottles of CBD oil each week and one bottle of THC oil every month, which come at a significantly lower cost in Holland.
After Mrs. Appleby and MP Antoniazzi returned to Gatwick Airport on Thursday, they waited while customs officials determined what to do with the cannabis oil.
“So we’ve been stopped at customs,” Mrs. Appleby wrote on Facebook. “They weren’t expecting me to be carrying a private uk prescription so are now making calls to see what happens next.”
Border Force officials ended up confiscating Teagan’s cannabis oil, despite her having a private prescription.
According to a Home Office spokesperson, Mrs. Appleby needs an importation license to bring medicinal cannabis products into the country and that doing so without one is illegal.
Mrs. Appleby says that she cannot afford such a license as she is just a mother looking to provide medicine for her child and not a commercial business.
MP Antoniazzi has called on Health Secretary Matt Hancock to sort the situation out.
