In Depth: with billions to be collected in taxes, the US state is embracing the ‘green rush’.
California yesterday became the eighth US state to permit the recreational use of cannabis, a change that is expected to generate up to $ 1bn (£740m) a year in new tax revenue.
So could Europe be next?
Personal use
Although there are varying levels of toleration of personal use of the drug, no EU country has legalised cannabis so far, says the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA). However, there are signs that some European countries are moving in that direction.
In December, Norway’s parliament started the process to decriminalise illicit drugs and to shift the focus to treatment options, rather than criminal prosecution, for users found with small quantities, the HuffPost reports.
In ten other nations – Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain – the law does not allow imprisonment for possession of small quantities of cannabis for personal use only, although the drug remains illegal.
Holland’s famous “cannabis cafes” are not strictly legal – authorities simply tolerate unlawful acts taking place inside.
Portugal is arguably the EU country that has come closest to legalising cannabis. In 2000, all illicit drugs were decriminalised in an attempt to get to grips with a national heroin crisis. People found using or possessing small quantities of such drugs are sent by police to a “dissuasion commission”, which can fine them.
California legalised marijuana for medical use two decades ago, but no EU nation has followed suit as yet. However, while smoking cannabis remains illegal, Sativex, a cannabis extract also known as nabiximols, is an authorised medicine in 18 EU countries, including the UK.
Looking to join that club is Greece, which sees the potential financial benefits of legalising marijuana as a partial solution to its economic crisis. Last summer Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said he was bringing forward legislation allowing its use for medical purposes. According to The Independent, Tsipras said: “From now on, the country is turning its page, as Greece is now included in countries where the delivery of medical cannabis to patients in need is legal.”
Bloomberg reported in November that the Greek government hoped to put the legislation before parliament by the end of 2017, although it has yet to materialise.
The agriculture minister, Evangelos Apostolou, said growers had already expressed an interest in investing €1.5bn (£1.3bn) into projects to build greenhouse parks for cannabis production in Greece.
However, while many commentators had speculated that smoking weed would be legalised for medical purposes, Apostolou seemed to imply the new laws relate only to Sativex. He said: “Thousands of Greek households with family members suffering from serious illnesses like cancer and Parkinson’s disease will be able to get drugs produced right here, under World Health Organization guidelines.”
