New Zealand Will Loosen Cannabis Laws

[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]N[/dropcap]ew Zealand lawmakers have loosened medical cannabis laws while also promising a vote on full cannabis legalization in two years.

The Misuse of Drugs (Medical Cannabis) Amendment Bill, which passed Tuesday, amended the country’s laws so that cannabidiol (CBD) and CBD products are no longer considered a controlled substance. The bill also makes an exception and statutory defense for terminally ill people to possess and consume cannabis. It also allows for the government to create regulation to set the standards for a cannabis production market.

It was announced that New Zealand residents will be able to vote on cannabis legalization in 2020. “Cannabis is New Zealand’s most common illegal drug, 50 percent of the country have tried it,” said New Zealand Drug Foundation chief Ross Bell. “We’re still trying to address the problem through a law enforcement approach. We’re still criminalizing people and not providing help to people who have a cannabis dependency.”

The loosened stance on medical cannabis means that 25,000 patients can use cannabis to care for chronic pain due to terminal illness.

A New Zealand study had reported this summer that two-thirds of residents said that they supported cannabis—with a third supporting decriminalization and another third supporting full legalization. Only 10 percent of those polled said they were against legalization for terminal pain relief.

“People nearing the end of their lives should not have to worry about being arrested or imprisoned for trying to manage their pain,” said Health Minister David Clarke. “This is compassionate and caring legislation that will make a real difference to people . . . they can use illicit cannabis without fear of prosecution.”

The pending legalization and regulation of a legal cannabis market could benefit the indigenous Maori, who have grown cannabis illegally for years, and are disproportionately arrested for cannabis-related crimes, being 15 percent of the population yet 40 percent of those incarcerated for drug offenses.

The Nationalist party opposed the legislation, considering the decriminalization move as “lazy and dangerous.” “We support medicinal cannabis but strongly oppose the smoking of loose-leaf cannabis in public. Smoked loose-leaf is not a medicine,” said the Nationals’ spokesperson on health, Shane Reti.