Cannabis crop could contribute $490m a year to government coffers
Legalisation of cannabis will be put to the vote in a non-binding referendum in September
RNZ (New Zealand)
Tuesday, May 26, 2020
Tuesday, May 26, 2020
The Government's coffers could be winners if cannabis is legalised. Work by the NZ Institute of Economic Research (NZIER) shows a legal cannabis industry could raise about $490 million a year in tax, including GST. Legalisation of the drug will be put to the vote in a non-binding referendum in September. A tax on a legal cannabis industry has been calculated at 25 per cent. NZIER principal economist Peter Wilson said the projected tax-take on cannabis was only an estimate. There was not a lot of information in New Zealand about cannabis use. If regulatory costs and taxes were too high an illegal market would likely re-emerge and gain market share.
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