Jacqui Smith admits smoking cannabis

By Tim Castle

LONDON (Reuters) - Home Secretary Jacqui Smith admitted on Thursday she smoked cannabis while at university, a day after it was announced that penalties for its use could be increased.

"I smoked cannabis a few times, I think it was wrong," she told Sky News. Smith, 45, attended Hertford College, Oxford and was a teacher before entering parliament in 1997.

She said she had not taken any other drugs and did not think her actions back in the 1980s compromised her position.

"I think as Home Secretary what people would be bothered about is whether or not there are more people able to get (drug) treatment, whether or not the sort of crime linked to drugs is coming down," she added.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown had not questioned her about drug-taking when he appointed her last month, she said.

Smith made the admission in reply to a question in a GMTV interview earlier on Thursday.

"The Prime Minister did not ask me but I was asked this morning and I answered the question," she said.

Brown's spokesman said it was a personal issue and that the prime minister had no complaints about how Smith had responded.