New Zealand: medical cannabis operational within a year

New Zealand has wanted to legalize medical cannabis for some time now, but it's not enough. the political tensions surrounding the have complicated parliamentary dialogue.

A bill had initially been tabled by the Greens, but failed. The government then proposed its own version which was challenged by the opposition, which in turn proposed its own bill. In the end, it was the government's bill that won out, and it has just been passed into law. approved by Parliament on third reading with the support of the three parties in coalition, the Labour Party, New Zealand First and the Greens. All that's missing is royal assent from New Zealand's Governor General, which is more of a formality than anything else. New Zealand will soon have an operational cannabis industry.

The creation of the future medical cannabis program

The text provides for the creation of a national medical cannabis industry within a year. During this time, the competent representatives will have to finalize, with the help of experts, the regulations that will apply to this new industry: quality standards, production norms, etc. The process is intended to be participatory: «It is important that those who are in the industry, those who are users, those who are consumers of the products and those who are interested in them are able to submit their opinions as the regulations are established,» declared Health Minister David Clark.

In accordance with the law, medical cannabis will be available on prescription and the cannabidiol (CBD) will be removed from the list of controlled substances. The bill also includes a compassionate measure that allows terminally ill or dying patients to consume illegal cannabis without the risk of prosecution. «We know that some people can't wait for cannabis-based medicines to become legally available and will turn to illicit cannabis to relieve their pain. People at the end of life shouldn't have to worry about being arrested or jailed for trying to manage their pain. As a compassionate measure, we are creating a legal defence for people eligible for palliative care to use cannabis without fear of prosecution,» said the Health Minister.

The Greens were delighted with the news, and in particular Chloë Swarbrick, the MP behind the first bill to regulate medical cannabis. It was also the Greens who instigated the referendum on the legalization of recreational cannabis as a quid pro quo for their support of the coalition government (Labour and New Zealand First), which is in a minority in Parliament without the support of the Greens.

Today Aotearoa New Zealand finally passed legislation to create a legal, local #medicinalcannabis scheme. #nzpol pic.twitter.com/Pwfesu4ncS

- Chlöe Swarbrick (@_chloeswarbrick) December 11, 2018

Dissatisfied opposition

The bill is not to the taste of the opposition National Party. Simon Bridges, the party's leader, has called the bill «stealth decriminalization», arguing that it is not well thought out and allows people to «smoke their medicine».

«Shame on the government for approving this terrible, unhealthy and dangerous bill,» he said. The opposition is not opposed to the legalization of medical cannabis, and has in fact tabled its own bill to rival that of the government. They are, however, opposed to allowing cannabis in its smokable form.

Shane Reti, the National Party's spokesperson on health issues, also called the project «lazy and dangerous»: «the government is simply ticking off the 100-day box to which it was forced by the Greens and it allows medicine to be smoked in our community. That's why we worked and proposed our own compassionate medical cannabis program that would have expanded access to medical cannabis and provided a legal framework to allow domestic production of quality cannabis under feasible and sensible regulations. We offered to share this program with the government, but egos got in the way and we were rebuffed.».

On the industrial side, on the other hand, this news comes just at the right time. The New Zealand company Zeacann, which is currently raising $20 million in funding was enthusiastic. Its CEO announced that it would begin cannabis production in the first half of 2019 after receiving a government license. Her goal is to have products ready for sale when medical cannabis is officially legal and available by prescription.