Plausibly deniable - Domestic cannabis cultivation and the private rented sector in the UK

TL;DR

This paper examines how the UK's private rented housing sector supports illegal cannabis cultivation due to its anonymity and ease of use.

Contribution

The study highlights the role of plausible deniability and residential property in enabling cannabis cultivation in the private rented sector.

Findings

The private rented sector provides layers of plausible deniability for landlords, agents, and tenants involved in cannabis cultivation.

Residential property is used as a disposable commodity to facilitate and conceal illegal cannabis cultivation.

Interviews with practitioners reveal how these factors make the sector attractive for criminal activity.

Abstract

Domestic cannabis cultivation has grown exponentially for the past several decades and is said to outstrip importation from abroad in many jurisdictions, the UK included. While research has been attentive to this shift, scant attention has been paid to the space in which much domestic cannabis cultivation takes place: privately rented residential property. This article explores how and why the private rented sector in the UK facilitates and incubates cannabis cultivation and makes this an attractive space for criminal actors to partake in this illegal activity. Drawing on 43 qualitative interviews with police and local authority practitioners in the UK with experience of intervening in domestic cannabis cultivation, the article details the many affordances of the private rented sector for those involved in cannabis cultivation. Key among these affordances are the layers of plausible deniability available to several of the actors involved– landlords, letting agents, tenants/growers– which serve to frustrate and obfuscate police investigations. The article also examines the instrumental role of residential property itself as a critical but easily disposable commodity which facilitates cannabis cultivation.