Cannabis regulators in New York approved a package of regulations that laid the groundwork for an expansion of the state’s emerging cannabis industry. The rules, approved by the Cannabis Control Board, outline licensing and operation procedures for different types of businesses in the industry, including dispensaries and delivery services. The state legalized marijuana for adults age 21 and up in March 2021. No state besides California draws as much business and consumer interest in cannabis as New York, experts say. And regulators expect applications for thousands of new businesses. The new rules establish requirements for the licensing of eight types of businesses: plant nurseries, cultivators, processors, cooperatives, distributors, dispensaries, delivery services and microbusinesses.

Ganja growers and producers say regulations to the updated Dangerous Drugs Act (2015) are too stringent and pose a major impediment to those who represent the backbone of the industry, and, by extension, its development. Vice-president of the Ganja Growers and Producers Association of Jamaica (GGPAJ) Maurice Ellis, who is also an executive member of the Jamaica Licensed Cannabis Association (JLCA), argues that the GGPAJ has been pushing for changes to some of the barriers to entering the industry. The small farmers are at a vast disadvantage as a result of the extensive nature of the rules laid down in law. “When it comes on to the small farmer he's not being left behind; he's actually being left out." (See also: Cannabis Authority taking steps to meet growing demand, says Green)

Um dem zunehmenden Cannabis-Handel im Flora- und Schanzenpark Herr zu werden, fordern Anwohner des Schanzeviertels nun die Freigabe der Droge für ihr Viertel. Zwar sehe der Koalitionsvertrag eine Prüfung solcher Modellversuche vor, das letzte Wort habe aber der Bund. "Die Stadt Hamburg muss im Bundesrat wirbel machen, damit Bewegung in die Sache kommt", so Vorstandsmitglied Brauer. Das Bezirksamt hatte einem runden Tisch organisiert. (Mehr dazu: Kommt 2017 die schwarz-grüne Kiffer-Koalition? | Durchaus gesellschaftsfähig)

Investigadores de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid han clamado por regular el uso medicinal del cannabis para aquellas patologías sobre las que hay evidencias científicas de sus efectos terapéuticos porque, aunque no es "esencial para la vida, sí lo es para que vivamos bien". Así lo han expuesto los catedráticos de Bioquímica y Biología Molecular de la Universidad Complutense de Madrid José Antonio Ramos y Manuel Guzmán y la profesora titular de Derecho Penal Araceli Manjón-Cabeza en la presentación de la obra "Usos medicinales del cannabis. ¿Qué sabemos de sus propiedades curativas?", en la Facultad de Medicina de la UCM.

While granting bail to a man arrested on June 1 for possessing 29 kg of bhang and 400 g of ganja, Karnataka High Court recently observed that nowhere in the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act is bhang referred to as a prohibited drink or prohibited drug in India. Since the ganja recovered was below commercial quantity, the accused was given bail on a personal bond of Rs 2 lakh. The single judge Bench relied on two earlier judgments, Madhukar vs the State of Maharashtra, 2002 and Arjun Singh vs State of Haryana, 2004, where the courts had ruled that bhang is not ganja, and is therefore not covered under the NDPS Act. (See also: Cannabis in India: A rather long story, with its highs and lows)

The stakes for legalising cannabis in Morocco are rising. On 11 March, the Moroccan government approved Cannabis Legalization Framework, Bill 13-21, to regulate medical cannabis and industrial hemp. However, the bill still must be ratified by Parliament, and political debate on cannabis is intensifying amid the leadup to the September 2021 general elections. This is not the first attempt to legalise cannabis in Morocco. But unlike other efforts, this proposal has come directly from the sitting coalition government. "Although legalising the cultivation of medical cannabis and industrial is a first positive step, the proposal is limited because it doesn't include any regulatory framework on recreational cannabis," said Tom Blickman from the Transnational Institute.

In recent years several African governments have changed their stance and implemented policies that legalise cannabis cultivation, manufacturing and processing, mostly for the export market. In southern Africa, Lesotho led from the front with South Africa, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Zambia and Eswatini also coming to the party in an effort to capitalise on what has been positioned as a future answer to dwindling foreign currency earnings for crops such as tobacco. What is enticing for these states is the existing size and purported potential of the industry over the next few years. (See also: A Sustainable Future for Cannabis Farmers)

When the Cannabis Control Bill is passed in Trinidad & Tobago in January, a market for the licensing for marijuana merchants will be opening. Many activists and critics of the bill have raised concerns that the market will be saturated by local business giants and international merchants. Assuring that there will be a 30% local content stipulation as part of the Cannabis Control Bill, Attorney General, Faris Al Rawi says there’s no way to treat with that fear. “There is a very unfortunate drive in this country to label everything ‘1%’. How do you treat with that?” he questioned. (See also: Herbalist wants clarity, open market for local cannabis merchants |Cannabis Control JSC to look at licences)

Small-scale cannabis farmers in the rural parts of the Eastern Cape are feeling the pinch of obtaining farming licences. This is particularly difficult for a 27-year-old farmer who has been involved in the cannabis industry for the past four years. Originally from Mcobothini, in Lusikisiki, the farmer has managed to find a secluded area where he plants approximately 500 trees of cannabis annually with plans to expand his production. “Obtaining cannabis farming licences has proven to be more difficult than I thought, but they have promised to come up with a way forward,” he said. He said another problem is that licences are only issued to cooperatives — and not to individuals.

Chief Minister Andrew Barr says the federal government should stick to trying to beat dangerous drug gangs instead of becoming "obsessed" with the ACT's new cannabis legalisation laws, as he flagged the possibility of decriminalising MDMA sometime in the future. Mr Barr said any federal intervention to overturn the lawswould be "a massive overreaction". Asked whether there were plans to decriminalise other drugs like MDMA, he said said further harm minimisation laws could be on the agenda at "some time in the future". But he said it wouldn't be happening in the next four to five years. (See also: Now that the ACT has given marijuana the green light, could (and should) MDMA be next?)

The legalization of cannabis in Canada was supposed to be a catalyst — the most powerful one yet, investors and analysts alike thought — that would launch companies in the young but potent industry to new heights. Instead, nearly one year later, it has been a nightmare. Since recreational cannabis became legal on Oct. 17, 2018, the shares of what were then the 10 largest Canadian cannabis producers by market capitalization have been bludgeoned, yielding an average negative return of more than 57 per cent for investors. (See also: Short sellers cash in on cannabis as investors get fed-up with money-losing companies)

New York’s plan to legalize marijuana this year collapsed, dashing hopes for a potential billion-dollar industry that supporters said would create jobs in minority communities and end decades of racially disproportionate policing. Democratic lawmakers had been in a headlong race to finalize an agreement before the end of the legislative session this week. But persistent disagreement about how to regulate the industry, as well as hesitation from moderate lawmakers, proved insurmountable. A recent poll showed that 55 percent of voters supported legalization. But the external pressure could not resolve an intraparty battle between state officials over who should control the estimated $1.7 billion in sales the recreational market could generate each year.

A 30 años de la sanción de la Ley de Estupefacientes (23.737) en Argentina, asociaciones cannábicas y organizaciones de derechos humanos, ciencias sociales, seguridad, educación y salud mental firmaron un acuerdo de cinco puntos para comenzar a diseñar una regulación legal del cannabis para uso adulto que esté basada en criterios de salud pública. El documento fija posiciones sobre la regulación , el consumo responsable, el mercado existente en torno al uso adulto o “recreativo”, la importancia del autocultivo y de los clubes sociales de cannabis y la no criminalización del uso de sustancias psicoactivas. (Véase también: "Una regulación integral para el cannabis de uso adulto")

A Dutch political movement is calling for the legalization of the psychoactive drug ecstasy – and has opened a shop to promote its cause. The youth wing of the Dutch Liberal Democrats says decriminalizing MDMA would make drug-taking safer. The Young Democrats opened the shop in downtown Amsterdam – but just for one day. The group said it aimed to show “why regulation is better than leaving the distribution to illegal street dealers.”Sadly for the party people, the shop still has to respect the law, so it’ll be handing out placebos, not real MDMA pills. The group says the law should be changed to prevent partygoers dying from tainted ecstasy pills, citing in particular one case of seven deaths in 2014. (See also: ‘Moralising about drug use doesn’t help, but neither does trivialising the problems’)

The New Zealand Drug Foundation's "Our Own Terms" campaign features Tim McKinnel, alongside former Prime Minister Helen Clark, psychiatrist Hinemoa Elder and educator Richie Hardcore, among others, encouraging the country to vote Yes in the upcoming cannabis referendum. "The system as it is now is a free-for-all, it's unregulated and uncontrolled and forces people to dip their toes into the black market," said McKinnel, who spent several years on the police drug squad. "Police spend a great deal of time and money fighting cannabis, with helicopter recovery operations, or with uncovering underground growing operations. It's a drain not only on policy but on our courts and prisons."

France should legalise cannabis so as to regain control of sales and better protect minors, a group of cross-party MPs said in a report, a finding at odds with the government's tough anti-drugs stance. Despite an expensive clampdown approach that excessively mobilises the police, "the state is helplessly witnessing the normalisation of cannabis for young people and the deterioration of security", MPs said in the report. The budget allocated to police and border controls for anti-drugs policies almost doubled between 2012 and 2018, reaching 1.08 billion euros (around $1.30 billion) a year. Yet France has the highest cannabis consumption in the European Union, with 5 million users a year and 900,000 daily users. 

Germany is looking into legalising the sale of cannabis for recreational purposes from next year, according to a draft plan Health Minister Karl Lauterbach presented to the European Commission. “France will closely monitor the evolution of the German legislative framework, especially with regard to its potential impact on cross-border regions,” the office of French Health Minister François Braun. France is currently opposed to the legalisation of cannabis and has one of Europe’s most restrictive legislations. It also has Europe’s second-highest consumption levels with around 900,000 daily cannabis users, according to figures from the Interior Ministry.

Legalizar el cannabis para "recuperar el control" sobre los narcotraficantes y proteger mejor a los menores, recomendaron diputados franceses en un informe, a contracorriente de la política antidroga del gobierno. "La prohibición adopta desde hace cincuenta años un objetivo inalcanzable (...). Una legalización regulada es la mejor manera de recuperar el control y proteger a los franceses", resume Caroline Janvier, la diputada del partido LREM (centrista, gobernante), que coordinó el informe. Encabezada por algunos miembros de la mayoría presidencial, este grupo de parlamentarios rechaza las acusaciones de "laxismo" y constata el "fracaso" de las políticas públicas en cuanto a las drogas.

It is ironic, but if Malta does end up legalising recreational cannabis, one quiet man from Wales may be the one to thank for it. Prior to 2011, there were passionate activists fighting for better cannabis laws on the island – but I, like many others of my generation, only got involved in organising and lobbying for legalisation after the brutal imprisonment of Daniel Holmes in Malta. After his story sent shockwaves throughout the cannabis community, making many of us believe the island was moving towards an ultra-conservative USA-style police state where people could face serious jail time for growing plants at home, a number of people began organising.

The 40-year history of the open cannabis trade on “Pusher Street” in the heart of the Christiania neighbourhood of Copenhagen could be over as the city’s mayor said she was willing to shut it down over the commune’s fears about rising gang violence. Ever-worsening violence in the “green light” district, as organised criminal gangs have moved in and vied for dominance, has prompted growing concerns over residents’ safety. The mayor of Copenhagen, Sophie Hæstorp Andersen, has now warned in an interview with the Ekstra Bladetnewspaper that the violence has to end and offered to close Pusher Street’s drug trade down if the 1,000 people living in the Christiania commune agree.