Latest news on drug policy issues in the international media
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In blow for cannabis advocates, Italy's high court blocks referendum
Currently, the cultivation of cannabis plants incurs a sentence ranging from two to six years in prison
Euronews (Europe)
Wednesday, February 16, 2022
A referendum on making growing cannabis legal in Italy has been blocked by the country's constitutional court. In a ruling judges said the law would have forced Italy to violate its international obligations to prevent drug trafficking. But critics said that the court had stifled the democratic process after a petition gained 630,000 signatures, well above the threshhold to trigger a referendum on the issue. Supporters of the referendum believed that the legalisation of cannabis, which they say is no more harmful than legal substances such as alcohol and tobacco, would have made it possible to remedy overcrowding in prisons while focusing police action on violent criminal organisations. (See also: Top Italian court blocks marijuana and psilocybin referendum from going before vote) -
Schumer asks for input as Democrats finalize cannabis bill
The letter comes after Schumer indicated during a press conference last week that he was aiming to introduce the legislation as soon as April that would lift the federal prohibition on cannabis
The Hill (US)
Thursday, February 10, 2022
Top Senate Democrats are asking their colleagues for input as they work to finalize cannabis reform legislation, with the aim of introducing a bill this spring. Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.), Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) sent a letter to their colleagues to invite them "into the drafting process as we work to finalize this legislation." "In order to appropriately address such a nuanced issue, we respectfully request the input, advice and guidance of Chairs and Ranking Members of relevant committees as well as senators who have dealt with the challenges and realities of legalization in their own states," they wrote. (See also: Schumer asks senators to help shape marijuana legalization bill he plans to file soon) -
Europe should follow Malta's example on cannabis reform, says minister
Malta’s law allows users to carry seven grams of the drug and store up to 50 grams at home, making it the first EU state to legalise cannabis
Euronews (Europe)
Wednesday, February 9, 2022
Malta’s new cannabis rules should serve as a model for other European states of how to end the unnecessary prosecution of low-level drug users and strike a blow against organised crime, according to the minister responsible for the law, Owen Bonnici. The new law, passed by the Maltese parliament in December 2021, prevented recreational users from being dragged through the courts or tribunal process for possession of small amounts of cannabis. But it also allows for users and, eventually, non-profit organisations to grow cannabis plants and distribute it to other smokers via cannabis associations, meaning they no longer have to source the drug via the black market and put money into the pockets of international criminal gangs. -
Scotland's drug deaths: Consumption room pilot on track despite warning over legal barriers
Work is going on with reference to a pilot for a safer drug consumption facility in Glasgow
The Herald (UK)
Wednesday, February 2, 2022
The new chair of the SNP’s drug deaths taskforce is confident legal barriers to setting up drug consumption rooms can be overcome as he insisted the facilities would not be a “free-for-all" or be a magnet for drug dealers after fears raised by a UK minister. David Strang was speaking in response to UK Government Home Office and Justice Minister, Kit Malthouse, who told MSPs to stop focusing on drug consumption rooms being set up, appealing for a focus on better treatment options instead of “wrestling with these legal and practical difficulties”. The Scottish Government is determined to allow safe consumption facilities to operate, despite the UK Government holding the legal powers to allow the policy to be implemented. -
A cannabis monopoly asteroid is coming
Op-Ed by Shaleen Title
Marijuana Moment (US)
Tuesday, February 1, 2022
If you think two or three powerful companies owning and controlling the sales of all regulated marijuana sounds like a good thing, you can click away from this article. But if the thought of a market controlled by Marijuamazon, Canna-uber, or Weedbook (excuse me, Weedaverse) is unsettling to you, I want to introduce you to a valuable concept: antitrust laws. As the power grab for control of the multibillion-dollar industry heats up, consumers and patients need antitrust protection. By applying the concepts of antitrust law to all federal cannabis reform now, we can avoid the creation of national monopolies before it’s too late and create a diverse and fair marijuana market instead. (See also: Schumer gives update on federal marijuana legalization and banking in meeting with equity advocates) -
Can delta-8 THC provide some of the benefits of pot – with less paranoia and anxiety?
Delta-8 THC products have become one of the fastest-growing sectors of the hemp industry
The Conversation (Australia)
Monday, January 31, 2022
Over the past year, you may have seen something called delta-8 THC or “delta 8” appear in convenience stores and pharmacies alongside CBD gummies, oils and lotions. Delta-8 THC is a hemp-derived compound that’s closely related to delta-9 THC – what’s commonly called THC and is the psychoactive component of cannabis that’s responsible for the high that users feel. Like garden variety marijuana, delta-8 THC can be vaped or eaten. However, it’s rarely smoked. Anecdotally, its fans swear by its benefits – that it helps with relaxation and pain relief without intense highs that can veer into anxiety or paranoia.
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Cannabis: French high court ruling puts CBD products back on sale
In its ruling, the court noted that the flowers and leaves of certain varieties of cannabis were “devoid of narcotic properties” and could therefore be marketed in France
The Local (France)
Wednesday, January 26, 2022
France’s highest administrative court, the Conseil d’Etat, has temporarily overturned a ban on the sale of cannabidiol (CBD) flowers and leaves in France, less than a month after it was introduced by the government. This is just the latest stage in France’s convoluted history with cannabis. A ministerial order had banned the sale of hemp flower and leaf loaded with CBD, from December 31st 2021 – but the Conseil d’Etat has provisionally overruled that decision, pending further examination of the order. Following the Conseil’s decision, the only requirement is that the finished CBD product must have a THC content of 0. As with leaves and flowers, the sale of these products is prohibited to minors. -
Narcotics Control Board approves delisting of cannabis
Under the new rule, people can grow cannabis plants at home after notifying their local government
The Bangkok Post (Thailand)
Tuesday, January 25, 2022
The Narcotics Control Board meeting has endorsed the Public Health Ministry's latest draft list of narcotic substances, in which all components of cannabis no longer appear as a Category 5 narcotic substance. After the meeting, Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said this decision is in line with the government policy to promote the use of cannabis for medical, research and educational purposes. It also complies with Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha's order to have people benefit from cannabis. However, cannabis extracts must have less than 0.2% of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) by weight. With cannabis legalisation being a flagship policy of Mr Anutin's Bhumjaithai Party, he said the party will propose a draft bill on the issue to the House of Representatives. -
Republican Congresswoman Nancy Mace is on a mission to legalize cannabis
And Amazon just got behind her
Forbes (US)
Tuesday, January 25, 2022The r
epresentative from South Carolina introduced a bill to end federal pot prohibition and says legalization is an issue that unites America—“just like apple pie.” In November, the 44-year-old freshman Congresswoman, who represents South Carolina’s coastal swing district spanning Charleston to Hilton Head, introduced the States Reform Act, a bill that would end the federal government’s 85-year prohibition on marijuana. Mace is certainly not the first politician to introduce a cannabis legalization bill, although it’s been impossible to get one passed by both chambers of Congress. But Mace already has one of the most powerful conservative groups in the world in her corner: Charles Koch’s Americans for Prosperity. And now she has one of the world’s largest companies supporting her bill: Amazon. -
'Malta will not become another Amsterdam': cannabis authority chair
"We will make sure to provide people with all the relevant research so they are able to take responsible, evidence-based decisions"
Times of Malta (Malta)
Wednesday, January 19, 2022
Psychotherapist Mariella Dimech has been appointed the first executive chair of the Authority on the Responsible Use of Cannabis. She tells how she plans to stifle the black market and raise awareness on cannabis use in Malta. "Back when I worked at Caritas I was concerned that legalisation would create a ‘free for all attitude’. I had just come back from rehabilitation training in the US, where we were taught a zero-tolerance, punitive approach towards drug rehabilitation. And I was very adamant about it during my time as programme coordinator at Caritas. But I learned from experience that it’s not the only way to go about it. And I now believe that a harm-reduction approach is also necessary." (See also: Cannabis may be legal. But it’s not a ‘free-for-all’: Mariella Dimech)
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