We reported the introduction of a bill for the creation of a federal cannabis agency in Belgium - the creation of this agency would make medical cannabis available to Belgian patients. Parliamentarians wasted no time, as barely two weeks after its introduction, the bill has already been accepted by the Health Committee of the House of Representatives.
In strict compliance with international conventions, the Federal Cannabis Agency would supervise the production and trade of medical cannabis in the following countries a virtual monopoly. Once established, it will involve production licenses with pre-established contracts specifying production location and quantity, as will be the case in Germany.
The cannabis agency would be integrated into the Federal Agency for Medicines and Health Products (FAMHP), and therefore under the direction of the Ministry of Health. Once production is complete, the agency will buy up the harvest for distribution to pharmacies and hospitals. In this way, it retains a monopoly not only on distribution, but also on international trade.
«The FAMHP can therefore organize cannabis cultivation in Belgium without liberalizing the market,» explains Anton Buntinx of Corbus Advocaten, a law firm specializing in medical cannabis. In effect, by retaining control of production and a monopoly on trade, the government is not opening up its market, and is choosing which private entrepreneurs to work with.
The bill was approved almost unanimously. Only members of the New Flemish Alliance party abstained. The bill will now be debated in plenary session and in the Senate. «The approval of this bill is an important step in the right direction», explains Anton Buntinx. «With the establishment of this cannabis agency, Belgium joins the fast-growing market for the legal cultivation of cannabis for medical use.
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