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Ireland’s Transport Minister: No Cannabis Legalization In 2021

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

In many ways 2020 was one of the worst years of all time, yet, from a purely cannabis reform and industry standpoint, 2020 was a solid year by many measures.

Last year had one very big disappointment in the form of an unsuccessful vote in New Zealand, where voters shot down a nationwide cannabis legalization measure.

However, putting New Zealand’s vote aside, 2020 was stellar for cannabis efforts in many parts of the world, with the legal cannabis industry putting up record figures.

Several states legalized cannabis for adult use in the United States, and several countries increased momentum for reform at the international level going into 2021.

One country that will not be legalizing cannabis for adult use in 2021 is Ireland according to Green Party leader Eamon Ryan. Per The Irish Sun:

IRELAND is not ready to legalise cannabis next year, Green Party leader Eamon Ryan has claimed.

It comes as People Before Profit plan to put forward a motion in the Dail next year to legalise the drug in Ireland.

Earlier this month, PBP TD Gino Kenny said his party will bring forward legislation to try end the prohibition of cannabis in Ireland.

As of right now, only Uruguay and Canada have legalized cannabis for adult use. Italy’s Supreme Court ruled cannabis prohibition to be unconstitutional, but lawmakers in Italy have not passed a legalization measure to fully implement the Court’s decision.

Only time will tell which country on the European continent becomes the first to legalize, however, it will likely not be Ireland if current trends persist.

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Cannabis Legalization Is A Political Issue Most Americans Agree On

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

To say that the United States is divided when it comes to politics is a massive understatement. One could easily argue that the political climate in the U.S is more polarized than it has been in well over 100 years.

However, at a time when most U.S. voters do not seem to agree on almost anything, there is one issue that has support from all over the political spectrum, and that support continues to increase with every passing year.

That political issue is cannabis legalization. Support for cannabis legalization is at an all-time high in the United States, no pun intended, and that is reflected in the results of a new poll. Below is a news release about it from our friends at NORML:

Majorities of Democratic, Republican, and Independent voters endorse legalizing the use of marijuana for adults and this support is growing, according to polling data compiled by the firms FM3 Research and Fabrizio, Lee & Associates and first reported by MarijuanaMoment.net.

Pollsters surveyed voters in Arizona, Montana, New Jersey, and South Dakota. A majority of voters in each of the four states decided in favor of adult-use legalization ballot measures on Election Day.

Sixty-eight percent of those surveyed – including 85 percent of Democrats, 66 percent of Independents, and 53 percent of Republicans – support legalizing marijuana. That finding is consistent with other nationwide polls.

More than one-quarter of respondents (27 percent) – including 33 percent of Democrats, 35 percent of Independents, and 23 percent of Republicans – said that their views have become more favorable toward legalization in recent years. Sixty-five percent of respondents agreed with the statement, “Legalizing adult use of marijuana is a non-partisan issue that both liberal and conservative voters can get behind.”

Eighty-one percent of respondents agreed that the federal government should not interfere with state laws legalizing marijuana use.

Pollsters concluded: “The results carry important insights, especially for Republican elected officials” who often “cast cannabis legalization as a partisan wedge issue.” This position, pollsters acknowledged, is growing “increasingly untenable” with Republican voters.

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Mexico Extends Cannabis Legalization Deadline, Again

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

In late 2018 Mexico made international headlines and turned heads in the global cannabis community when Mexico’s Supreme Court ruled that cannabis prohibition was unconstitutional.

When the Supreme Court rendered the decision, it mandated that lawmakers in Mexico pass a cannabis legalization measure to codify the decision and work to implement the new law.

Originally, the Court issued a one-year deadline. Unfortunately, as the one-year deadline approached, it was obvious that lawmakers in Mexico would not be able to comply with the mandate.

Lawmakers in Mexico were granted a new deadline, April 2020, and that extension was also not met due to COVID. Yet another deadline was granted, and yet another time the deadline could not be met, as reported by Reuters:

Mexico’s President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Tuesday blamed small draft errors for a delay in approving a new law that would legalize cannabis and effectively create one of the world’s largest weed markets.

The bill was due to be approved by Dec. 15, but it has been delayed to next year, with the Supreme Court setting a new deadline of April 30 for the law to be passed, according to local media.

Lopez Obrador said legislators requested a delay as time had run out before the current session in Congress ended this month, meaning there was not enough time to review the bill.

The legalization saga in Mexico continues. Will the latest deadline be met, or will another extension be requested? Only time will tell.

Lawmakers in Mexico have expressed optimism on several occasions just for that optimism to deflate. Eventually, Mexico will push the effort over the top, but it is anyone’s guess when that will be. Hopefully, it is sooner rather than later.

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Does The WHO Vote On Cannabinoids Change Anything?

Written by Marguerite Arnold on . Posted in Politics.

Despite removing cannabis from Schedule IV of international drug scheduling, the change in policy does very little to move the issue of full reform forward.

Despite a great deal of fanfare in the mainstream press and even the canna specialty trades, the WHO vote on cannabis last week does not mean much. The body voted to only remove cannabinoids from Schedule IV. Schedule IV of the international drug scheduling regime is used to classify drugs with high addictiveness (like Valium or Xanax). 

However, from both a clinical and more tangible logistical perspective, the drug remains under Schedule I. This means, no matter that it shows up in other schedules too still, Cannabis Sativa L, the plant, and all its derivatives, are first and foremost still illegal and of no medical efficacy in the eyes of global regulators and controllers (like law enforcement). Further, the distinctions, from a prescribing end, between Schedule II and IV are almost nonexistent.

This decision, in other words, means that all issues related to access if not the industry beyond that (like banking) remain in a grey zone internationally.

It is incremental politics at its worst and on a global level.

But it is not the only semi meaningless gesture of reform these days. The world is full of them of the cannabis kind. 

In the United States, a lame-duck session of the House of Representatives may have passed the MORE Act, however, it is unlikely that its companion will get past the Senate, much less become law before the end of this Congressional term.

Bottom line? By the end of 2020, cannabis is no longer considered as dangerous a drug like Valium. But the plant is still an international “outlaw.”

What Next?

Given all the setbacks in almost every region, on the medical front, advocates are again calling for full and final recreational reform – even if that too is not quite baked (see New Zealand). It is very clear, however, that as a result, recreational experiments in countries like Mexico and Luxembourg next year will be avidly watched, followed, and reported on. 

The medical discussion is fully underway, but it is still hard in almost every country to gain access via the traditional route – namely covered under health insurance after being prescribed by a doctor. Indeed, many doctors are still reluctant to engage in the cannabis discussion with their patients at all – even after the removal of the drug from Schedule IV.

In Europe there are absolutely bright spots (see the decision last week of the European Commission on hemp), but the march for full and final reform is far from over.

Be sure to attend the International Cannabis Business Conference when it returns to Europe in 2021.

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The European Commission Revises Its Stance On CBD As A Narcotic

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

While the WHO essentially punted on cannabis reform last week, there was a bit of bright news on the horizon in Europe – namely that the European Commission revised its stance on the idea that CBD should be treated as a narcotic.

This is a huge development, although not unsurprising given the recent ruling in Strasbourg on the right to import “legally” produced CBD between European countries based on the trial of a French company engaged in the same.

However, this development is still tempered with the fact that the WHO has kept the plant itself (the genus Cannabis Sativa L) as a Schedule I plant. That includes hemp.

Ultimately, however, beyond this distinction, the jury is still out on whether and when European authorities will also decide that the plant and its extracts, by traditional means, are further not “novel,” but rather governed under other regulations (such as EU-BIO). Stay tuned.

Extraction, Processing And Labelling Are All In The Mix

With hemp products of all kinds hitting mainstream grocery stores in Germany, this development will clearly provide at least some forward motion for an industry that has repeatedly hit regulatory jags across the region since 2016. But the fight is far from over.

Novel Food regulation looms as a bane not only of the hemp industry but also of the entire recreational discussion. The reason? The source of the seed plus the method of extraction, as well as its final addition to the end product are all in the mix. 

This is still, in other words, dangerous territory for just about everyone. Understanding the regulations, and how to apply them, are still the most important aspect of all in the mix.

How Does The EC Decision Interact With The WHO Vote?

The first place this will impact is cultivation. Farmers will have to register and certify their crops – starting with all the regulatory steps around organic production (if bound for anything but industrial purposes) and cultivation in the first place.

Beyond that, within Europe, producers will have to be willing to certify their supply chains – although this again may not mandate that the distinction is one that is “novel.” 

Indeed Europe has become a place, much like the United States, where hemp products are almost, but not entirely regulated.

Regardless of the still remaining bumps along the way, however, it is clear that 2021 is going to be a good year for the industry across the EU.

Be sure to attend the next International Cannabis Business Conferences when they return to Europe.

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United States House Of Representatives To Vote On Cannabis Legalization This Week

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

Federal cannabis prohibition was first implemented in the United States in 1937. The initial legislation that was passed by Congress came after a methodical reefer madness propaganda campaign was waged from coast to coast by Harry Anslinger.

Eventually, the legislation was replaced with the Controlled Substances Act in 1970 which placed cannabis in the Schedule I category, where it remains to this day.

Schedule I substances are defined as having ‘no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.’ Obviously, it doesn’t take a doctor or scientist to know that cannabis is medicine.

A quick search for ‘marijuana’ on PubMed.gov, which is the national database for peer-reviewed studies, returns nearly 35,000 results. Cannabis is absolutely medicine.

Nearly every state in the U.S. has some form of medical cannabis, from CBD-only all the way up to home cultivation and regulated dispensaries. Fifteen states and Washington D.C. have now passed adult-use cannabis legalization measures.

With all of that in mind, federal cannabis prohibition still being in place in the U.S. is unconscionable. In 2021 a number of states are expected to legalize cannabis for adult use through the legislative process, making enforcement of federal cannabis prohibition that much more untenable.

The MORE Act, which would effectively end federal cannabis prohibition in the U.S. and make it a true state rights issue, will receive a vote in the United States House of Representatives this week, where it is expected to pass.

The real hiccup is expected to occur in the United States Senate, which has been less-favorable to cannabis policy compared to the House.

Two seats in the Senate are still to be decided, both in Georgia, so it’s hard to speculate right now what the chances are of the MORE Act passing in the Senate.

But before that speculation even needs to occur, all eyes will be on the U.S. House this week to see if the bill passes in that particular chamber.

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United Nations To Vote On Cannabis Rescheduling

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

This could prove to be a very big week for cannabis at the international level with the United Nations’ Commission on Narcotic Drugs voting on a series of cannabis policy recommendations from the World Health Organization.

The Commission has met on several occasions to discuss the recommendations from the World Health Organization, including a recommendation to reschedule cannabis, however, there has yet to be a vote.

Voting was expected to occur earlier in 2020, but due to various delays, it never happened. That will change tomorrow when the Commission finally votes on the recommendations. Below is what is being considered, as reported by Marijuana Moment:

1. Remove marijuana from Schedule IV of the 1961 Single Convention.

2. Add THC and dronabinol (synthetic THC medication) to Schedule I of the 1961 Convention and, if approved, delete them from Schedule II of the 1971 Convention.

3. If the second recommendation is adopted, add tetrahydrocannabinol to Schedule I of the 1961 Convention and, if approved, delete it from Schedule I of the 1971 Convention.

4. Delete “extracts and tinctures of cannabis” from Schedule I of the 1961 Convention.

5. Add footnote to clarify that CBD products containing no more than 0.2 percent THC are not subject to international control.

6. Add “preparations containing dronabinol” to Schedule III of the 1961 Convention.

Only time will tell what gets approved and what does not. International cannabis policy is extremely outdated, and binding international treaties are often cited by countries as to why lawmakers will not end cannabis prohibition in those countries.

Right now two countries, Uruguay and Canada, have legalized cannabis for adult-use. Dozens of countries have legalized cannabis for medical use. Cannabis is being imported and exported between a growing list of nations.

It is beyond time that international cannabis policy was updated to reflect what is actually happening in the real world.

Cannabis prohibition has failed, and it’s time for a more sensible approach at the global level so that at the national level countries can proceed with getting on the right side of history.

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Presidential Decree Permits Cultivation Of Medical Cannabis In Argentina

Written by Johnny Green on . Posted in Politics.

The cannabis plant possesses tremendous medical value according to tens of thousands of peer-reviewed studies, as well as countless personal experiences among patients.

Cannabis is medicine, despite what cannabis opponents say. The science speaks for itself and outweighs the harmful political views of cannabis opponents.

A number of conditions can be successfully treated with medical cannabis, and fortunately for suffering patients in Argentina they will be able to cultivate their own medical cannabis in some circumstances, as described in a news release from our friends at NORML:

Patients and their caregivers will be able to apply for federal licensure to grow marijuana for medicinal purposes in their homes, according to a Presidential decree issued late last week.

The policy change expands upon a 2017 law that provided a legal exemption under the law for qualifying patients with epilepsy to possess cannabis extracts. However, that law provided to legal source to provide patients with access to plant-derived extracts.

Under the new law, pharmacies will also for the first time be able to provide specific cannabis products to qualifying patients. “We are replacing a black market that already exists with quality control that is key in all medical products, particularly those that are given to children,” said Argentina’s health minister, Ginés González García.

Argentina is one of a number of South American countries, including Chile, Colombia, and Peru, that has moved in recent years to liberalize medical cannabis access. In July of 2017, pharmacies in Uruguay began selling cannabis products over-the-counter to adults participating in the nation’s marijuana registry.

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North Macedonia Is Making Waves On The Edge of Europe Over Recreational Cannabis Reform

Written by Marguerite Arnold on . Posted in Politics.

The former Yugoslavian country just north of Greece is clearly making a major play for its domestic cannabis industry

North Macedonia is eyeing Amsterdam right now – and in a big way. Namely, using the Dutch city as one of their templates for implementing recreational cannabis reform nationally.

The current legislative proposal, endorsed by Prime Minister Zoran Zaev last week, is designed to give a boost both to the growing certified domestic cannabis market and tourism.

Canna cafes in the Balkans anyone?

The idea is not a slam dunk. Zaev is willing to retreat if the populace is opposed to the idea. But, like Croatia, the country is willing to engage in a public debate and further one which integrates the cannabis industry into the mainstream in ways still unseen widely across Europe.

North Macedonia has a domestic medical market and has since 2016. However, multiple problems have plagued the vertical ever since. As of now, the country cannot export flower (only extract) for the medical market.

Cannabis As Economic Green New Economy Development

Increasingly countries in this part of the world (see Greece) are considering cannabis as the economic development tool they are lacking. The highly specialized pharmaceutical knowledge that has led to market development in many countries at this point, is also now seen as possibly too restrictive for the full-blown industry to develop fully – starting with integrating the drug into health care paradigms that are still, far from commercial if not profit-generating.

In every market, including Israel, the less than accepting attitude of doctors, as well as the lack of coverage from insurers, means that patients are not getting nearly enough access through this channel – also affecting the development of the specific medical industry so far.

The development of a highly encouraged, government-supported recreational industry will do much to solve the problem – even if “all” it does is legalize the ability of patients to obtain product in other ways. Not to mention keeps recreational users out of jail.

As the world begins to face a world where the threat of Covid has receded, but the economic damage caused by the same is ever-present, cannabis as an economic development tool is likely to get more advocates – globally.

North Macedonia’s new direction, indeed, maybe the shape of things to come – and in many markets, including the European Union as a region – which Macedonia is also still angling to join.

The International Cannabis Business Conference returns to Europe in 2021. Stay tuned.