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The Moroccan government agrees to discuss draft laws on cannabis cultivation
The renewed interest on the issue comes at a time when financial and political circles are campaigning for the introduction of kif and especially its money into the legal circuit
Yabiladi (Morocco)
Friday, January 3, 2020
The Moroccan government is planning to discuss two draft laws submitted by the Party of Authenticity and Modernity (PAM) to «reduce the prosecution of farmers» and «legalize the production of cannabis». The first proposed law was submitted in 2014 by the party’s councilors, while the second one was proposed by PAM representatives in 2015. The Justice Minister Mohamed Ben Abdelkader and senior members from the party will hold talks on January 8 regarding the two draft laws, PAM’s MP Larbi El Mharchi said on social media. (See also: Modiane : «Le gouvernement n’est pas encore prêt» à légaliser la culture du cannabis | Légalisation du cannabis : le PAM déterre deux propositions de loi à la deuxième chambre | La culture du cannabis soulève une tempête au sein du gouvernement) -
New marijuana legislation affects illegal trade
The new amendments to the Dangerous Drugs Act in Trinidad & Tobago allow citizens to possess up to 30 grammes of marijuana
Newsday (Trinidad)
Thursday, January 2, 2020
It was sold on the streets and at parties. It was sold to people from all walks of life, from university students to businessmen to middle-class workers. It was sold not only in its leafy form but also in edibles like cakes, brownies, cheesecakes and the like. There have even been some stories of some marijuana dealers making home deliveries. But how has this changed since marijuana was decriminalised? Are more people buying weed? Are people buying more weed? Have the prices changed since decriminalisation? Or is it business as usual? Business Day approached – let’s call them “small businessmen” on Trinidad – who specialised in the distribution of the plant, and the word on the street is, so far, nothing has changed. But according to consultants on the law, changes will come and soon. -
What will 2020 mean for cannabis?
It appears unlikely that pot will be legalized at the federal level, which means continued challenges for the industry and consumers
East Bay Express (US)
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
As 2019 slouched toward its end, many predictions of what might happen with cannabis in 2020 had been tinged with optimism. Chronic Town was no different: in this space last week I sounded a hopeful note that, if pot isn't legalized at the federal level this year, at least the Senate might finally pass the SAFE Banking Act, shielding financial institutions from liability for serving the cannabis industry with a basic business function available to every other form of legal commerce. But hopes were dashed this past week. The law, especially federal law, is still the legal industry's biggest impediment by far. Cannabis won't become a fully legitimate, thriving industry until Congress unshackles it. -
'There's just no money coming in': Cannabis sector bracing for wave of insolvencies in 2020
Oversupply, declining prices, and a slow rollout of stores in Ontario has led to consecutive quarters of weak revenue for many licensed producers
Financial Post (Canada)
Tuesday, December 31, 2019
Cannabis industry insiders are bracing for a slew of bankruptcies in the coming year as small and medium-sized companies low on cash struggle to raise funds in the downtrodden sector. “We have had a busy few years, but next year we’re going to be busy for a different reason — we expect a few million dollars in legal fees from insolvencies and consolidation,” said Ranjeev Dhillon, a partner at McCarthy Tetrault LLP and the firm’s cannabis group lead. Dhillon says that his team is already seeing companies that are heading down that path. “Companies that cannot distinguish their brands and don’t have the money to keep up operations on existing facilities will not be able to carry forward.” (See also: Aurora Cannabis lists greenhouse for sale in move that 'implies massive writedowns': analyst) -
Illinois governor pardons 11,000 for low-level marijuana convictions
Democrat JB Pritzker says pardons represent first wave of thousands expected under state’s new marijuana legalization law
The Guardian (UK)
Tuesday, December 31, 2019
Illinois governor JB Pritzker granted more than 11,000 pardons for low-level marijuana convictions, describing the step as a first wave of thousands of such expungements anticipated under the state’s new marijuana legalization law. The expungement process is a key part of the law, which takes effect on January 1, 2020, and makes Illinois the 11th state to legalize marijuana for people 21 or older. Lawmakers want to repair some of the damage caused by efforts to combat sale and use of the drug, particularly in minority communities. Officials estimate 116,000 convictions for possession of 30g or less of marijuana are eligible for pardons. (See also: 'The beginning of a new age, the end of an antiquated viewpoint’: Long lines, celebrations mark first hours of recreational marijuana sales in Illinois) -
DPM on marijuana: We have to weigh the benefits
“What we would not want to do is cost more harm. We have to consider both sides"
Eyewitness News (Bahamas)
Monday, December 30, 2019The Bahamas
must carefully weigh the benefits and the liabilities that come with a legalized medical marijuana industry, according to Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance K Peter Turnquest. Turnquest was asked about the recently released leaked preliminary report by the Bahamas National Commission on marijuana, which green-lighted both recreational and medicinal marijuana. The preliminary report features recommendations from various subcommittees on the medical, economic, religious and recreational use of cannabis in The Bahamas – and called for Bahamians to own 51 percent of the industry in a legalized framework. The BNC also recommended the government set cannabis tax not exceeding ten percent. (See also The Nassau Guardian editorial: The marijuana debate) -
Is smoking and growing cannabis at home now legal in Italy?
Italy’s Supreme Court has recently ruled that growing small quantities of weed at home for private use is legal, but official legislation still remains unclear
The Local (Italy)
Monday, December 30, 2019
In a landmark verdict Italy’s Supreme Court ruled that “growing small amounts of cannabis domestically for the exclusive use of the grower” is no longer a criminal offense. The ruling followed an appeal by a man who was facing criminal charges for having two marijuana plants he’d grown at home. Cultivation and sales of marijuana has been illegal under legislation dating back to the 90s but inconsistent court decisions since then have caused confusion around the law. The latest of these came only a few weeks ago when Italy's parliament voted to legalize the production and sale at tobacconists and other specialist stores of a weaker form of cannabis dubbed “cannabis light”, only for the Italian Senate to block the legislation a few days later. -
Why Canada's cannabis bubble burst
More than a year ago, Canada made recreational cannabis legal. So why are people still buying it on the black market?
BBC News (UK)
Sunday, December 29, 2019
When Canada legalised marijuana just over a year ago, it seemed like anyone who was anyone wanted to break into the market. The media nicknamed the frenzy Canada's "green rush", as investors like Snoop Dogg and the former head of Toronto's police force clamoured to get a slice of the multi-billion-dollar-pie. But like the gold rush of the 1850s, the lustre would soon fade, leaving prospectors in the dust. "It didn't take a rocket scientist to recognise that these stocks were trading on fantasy and not on fundamentals," says Jonathan Rubin, CEO of New Leaf Data Services. In Canada, he says, the rollout has been disappointing. "They haven't had the growth in sales and earnings that they've envisioned," he said. "I don't want to say it's a failure, but there's definitely frustrations." -
Opioids, pot and criminal justice reform helped undermine this decade's War on Drugs
With an extraordinary number of Americans suffering, the door has opened to understanding and treating the pain of drug use rather than apply brute force
NBC News Think (US)
Sunday, December 29, 2019
This much we know: Americans like to do drugs. That might explain why a prescient headline in the satirical publication The Onion stands as one of the most enduring comments on American drug enforcement — “Drugs Win Drug War.” While that article was published in 1998, it was only during the past decade that its parody devolved into grim reality. In many ways, this reality has been an aching nadir, with more lives lost annually to overdoses than AIDS, gun violence and car crashes. But this past decade also brought its highs (pun intended): Recreational marijuana prohibitions started to fall in a domestic domino effect as one state after another accepted that it was pointless to criminalize the use of such a widely consumed drug. -
Growing a little marijuana at home is not a crime, Italy’s top court says
The ruling adds Italy to the small number of countries where small-scale cultivation for personal use is allowed
The New York Times (US)
Friday, December 27, 2019
Growing small amounts of marijuana at home for private use is not a crime, Italy’s top court has ruled, putting an end to a yearslong legal dispute and adding Italy to the short list of countries to allow cultivation of recreational cannabis. A 1990s law prohibits the cultivation and sale of marijuana in Italy, but conflicting court decisions, and a 2016 amendment that opened a loophole in the law, created confusion over how it should be interpreted. The court appears to have stopped short of outright legalizing marijuana, but has decriminalized small-scale, private cultivation. (See also: Italy court rules home-growing cannabis is legal, reigniting dispute) (In Italian: Coltivazione cannabis: non è penale se per uso personale | Cannabis coltivata in casa, i paletti posti dalla Cassazione)
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