PROPERTY SEARCH
PROPERTY SEARCH
ARCHIVED - Last chance for Spain to legalise medicinal cannabis
Those in favour argue that patients in Spain should be in the hands of doctors rather than drug dealers
After a debate that has seemingly raged on for years, supporters are making a last-ditch attempt to the Health and Consumption Commission in Spain to legalise medicinal cannabis for therapeutic use. Experts are meeting to discuss the proposal this week but if the legislature expires before an agreement is reached, the entire process will have to begin again from scratch.
No fewer than 47 countries have already legalised the substance and since the WHO removed cannabis from the classification of the most dangerous narcotic drugs, 90% of Spaniards support the legalisation of marijuana for therapeutic purposes.
“Patients have to be in the hands of the State and the doctors, not the drug traffickers,” the president of the Spanish Observatory of Medicinal Cannabis (OECM), Carola Perez, announced, highlighting that more than 300,000 patients could benefit enormously from its use.
This will be “the last attempt” to change the law, she said, after which point “we will have to take care of ourselves.”
The issue has long divided politicians, with detractors fearing that legalising cannabis, even for limited use and in a controlled and regulated way, will lead to increased general drug use in Spain.
The Government delegate for the National Plan on Drugs, Joan Ramón Villalbí, pointed out that 10% of users are at risk of developing a drug addiction and that cannabis can affect memory, coordination and school performance in younger people, even leading to schizophrenia.
In the event that the legislation is finally passed, the Government lawyer has called for "ways to fit the prescription and dispensing to patients who can benefit from cannabis” and to protect other vulnerable groups.
In Spain, the consumption of marijuana, both recreational and therapeutic, has been prohibited since 1961, although people are allowed 100 grams for consumption in private spaces or in cannabis clubs. On the other hand, the cannabinoid component cannabidiol (CBD) is not controlled and demand for its derivative products, which are thought to have powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, have skyrocketed in recent years.
Image: Pixaby
Sign up for the Spanish News Today Editors Roundup Weekly Bulletin and get an email with all the week’s news straight to your inbox
Special offer: Subscribe now for 25% off (36.95 euros for 48 Bulletins)
OR
you can sign up to our FREE weekly roundup!
Read some of our recent bulletins:
25% Discount Special Offer subscription:
36.95€ for 48 Editor’s Weekly News Roundup bulletins!
Please CLICK THE BUTTON to subscribe.
(List price 3 months 12 Bulletins)
Read more stories from around Spain:
Contact Spanish News Today: Editorial 966 260 896 /
Office 968 018 268
