Europe's legalization

[blackstone]

It looks like there was some progess with it last week.
That maybe the Czech government approved it and it is expected to be in place by October 2025.
That sounds great.
Although if it's anything like where I live you could probably add about 8-12 years to that estimate!
Hopefully the Czech people are much more efficient, forward thinking and progressive than my lot!
This does appear to already be the case from these positive stories.

Czechs move to relax cannabis laws

The Justice Ministry said the change will relieve overburdened prisons.

tvpworld.com

 

[budweis]

It looks like there was some progess with it last week.
That maybe the Czech government approved it and it is expected to be in place by October 2025.
That sounds great.
Although if it's anything like where I live you could probably add about 8-12 years to that estimate!
Hopefully the Czech people are much more efficient, forward thinking and progressive than my lot!
This does appear to already be the case from these positive stories.

Czechs move to relax cannabis laws

The Justice Ministry said the change will relieve overburdened prisons.

tvpworld.com

Still needs to be approved by chamber of deputies, senate and president but I’m quite certain it will go through.

It will certainly make the life easier but there is still one major issue. Once you harvest your three legal plants you can’t have more than 50 g in your hands. Actually, once it’s more than 100 g you are a criminal again. But hey, it’s at least something and there still might be some alteration of details in the futute months.

 

[blackstone]

Still needs to be approved by chamber of deputies, senate and president but I’m quite certain it will go through.

It will certainly make the life easier but there is still one major issue. Once you harvest your three legal plants you can’t have more than 50 g in your hands. Actually, once it’s more than 100 g you are a criminal again. But hey, it’s at least something and there still might be some alteration of details in the futute months.

Sounds good.
It's great they will virtually leave you alone.
I think you are lucky you're not in a part of EU where the only new progress is one party saying, if voted in, they will now get the police to rifle through your house/car/belongings and then force/send you to doctors and government staff for your abnormal problem cannabis addiction instead of the old fashioned courts and jail approach, but ONLY if it is your first offence!!

This, it is assumed, will fully address the issue of illegal drugs and put an end to any problems relating to these drugs.

Although it has been met with huge backlash, warnings and caution!

Fianna Fáil vows to decriminalise possession of cannabis for personal use

Party's manifesto also includes promises to keep 9% Vat on energy, and to raise core welfare rates to €144

www.irishexaminer.com

 

[Alligator427]

In my fucking country, France, even the experiment of medical cannabis will be stoped. Country of old stupid people, so far from the spirit of the 1789 revolution and may 1968.
Sorry, in french (google translate is your friend ...) :

Cannabis médical : l’expérimentation prolongée in extremis pour six mois, mais menacée à terme

Après une ultime réunion ce jeudi 19 décembre, le ministère de la Santé va autoriser l’Agence nationale du médicament à délivrer jusqu’à juillet des médicaments à base de cannabis, a appris «Libération».

www.liberation.fr

 

[Suki]

In my fucking country, France, even the experiment of medical cannabis will be stoped. Country of old stupid people, so far from the spirit of the 1789 revolution and may 1968.
Sorry, in french (google translate is your friend ...) :

Cannabis médical : l’expérimentation prolongée in extremis pour six mois, mais menacée à terme

Après une ultime réunion ce jeudi 19 décembre, le ministère de la Santé va autoriser l’Agence nationale du médicament à délivrer jusqu’à juillet des médicaments à base de cannabis, a appris «Libération».

www.liberation.fr

the experiment is broken on purpose, you have to give up the right to drive and you can only apply if you are already dying basically and all other forms of treatment have failed

the message is clear, they don't want to admit the medical benefits of cannabis and they were never serious about having a real medical program in the first place

fuck these clowns, bring back the guillotine

 

[Flotsam]

I haven't read entire thread but curious about Poland? Any updates

 

[DjyOhm]

In my fucking country, France, even the experiment of medical cannabis will be stoped. Country of old stupid people, so far from the spirit of the 1789 revolution and may 1968.
Sorry, in french (google translate is your friend ...) :

Cannabis médical : l’expérimentation prolongée in extremis pour six mois, mais menacée à terme

Après une ultime réunion ce jeudi 19 décembre, le ministère de la Santé va autoriser l’Agence nationale du médicament à délivrer jusqu’à juillet des médicaments à base de cannabis, a appris «Libération».

www.liberation.fr

It’s a shame ! I’m a dad of two (11 and 13) and it really pisses me off that they have to grow up to teenage in an environment where prevention / information is crap and it’s either early experimenting with booze or going to criminal gangs for weed (and à serious risk of ending up with cocaine).
Bloody politicians !
Btw I’m also in France

 

[macbill]

Switzerland mulls legalizing recreational cannabis

Switzerland will consider legalizing recreational cannabis use, after a parliamentary commission on Friday proposed a law that would allow regulated sale and access.The draft proposal adopted by the lower house of parliament's health commission, with 14 votes in favour, nine against and two...

www.rawstory.com

 

[macbill]

 

[Charasi™]

Sadly decriminalized only but not legal.
Each and every aspect of the law is far from reality. It's as unrealistic as it is impossible to control. Each side hates it. Doesn't come as a surprise as the politician in charge does believe that dealer mix dope with heroin to increase income....
The only good thing about it is the allowance to grow up to 3 plants/person at your OWN home (max. 50g legal though - what to do with the rest of the harvest?!) but there is still no legal way to aquire weed and once they developed test devices e.g. medical patients/daily users will lose the driving license in the long run.

 

[blackstone]

(max. 50g legal though - what to do with the rest of the harvest?!) but there is still no legal way to aquire weed

I saw that they will also introduce cannabis social clubs there on this July 1st, maybe that will help some bit and balance the situation out a little.

 

[dude_de]

will also introduce cannabis social clubs there on this July 1st

Actually, there have been a few cannabis clubs approved and licensed and started. Very few have already distributed their first harvest. The "social" has been removed from the name because no consumption is allowed on premises. It's basically just a grow area and possibly a small "shop" area.

It has, however, become super easy to get a medical prescription and medical grade weed. It's basically an online shop offering over 600 strains. The prescription is just a ridiculously short questionnaire and 10€-20€ away and you can get up to 100g across 3 different strains (they have to be from the same pharmacy, though).

 

[blackstone]

That's good news, too many patients get caught up in the criminal justice system in some countries.
I was even going to start a thread here just featuring some of the punishments handed to people claiming to use it for the terrible illnesses they have.

I'm interested in Switzerlands new move because, although not an EEA member, they are in the UN, and people often cite this as a reason for not progressing new legislation.

The UN drug control conventions are binding agreements that require countries to ban the supply of controlled drugs for non-medical or scientific use. This is a primary barrier to drug policy reform at the national level. However, an increasing number of countries (e.g. Canada) are deviating from these restrictions by legalising cannabis.

So as far as I can think, the growing list of countries now (or soon) ignoring these restrictions include:
Canada,
Uruguay,
Portugal,
Germany,
Czech Republic,
Switzerland,
And hopefully USA in its entirety could be one of the next ones?

One reason I'm hearing for legalisation lately is simply to reduce state spending on trying to combat it and bringing people to justice for it.
(Where I am they recently announced they have been spending record amounts on this, with no sign of stopping).
That and the fact that citizens aquire it on the black market, and put themselves in harms way, is now being considered an unsatisfactory situation.

 

[olysh pops]

Wednesday, march 19, a step forward for access to medical cannabis in France

"Medical cannabis: government moves towards widespread use in France

By the end of 2023, French parliamentarians had passed measures that would enable the marketing of cannabis-based treatments. However, these provisions never came into force, as they require the Ministry of Health to officially notify the European Commission - which was done on Wednesday.

The authorization of cannabis-based treatments in France, which has been for over a year, has taken a major step forward with the government's announcement, on Wednesday March 19, of a crucial administrative formality.

The texts defining the framework for the production and authorization of cannabis for medical use have been notified to the European Commission, reported the Ministry of Health in a press release. It also clarified the situation of patients treated under the current experimental which will be extended “exceptionally” until March 31, 2026. In theory, this postponement will make it possible to project the experiment into the future. “This is a new stage in the development of supervised, secure access to medical cannabis in France”, stressed the Ministry. The experiment for patients undergoing treatment was initially due to end in 2024. They had already been granted until summer 2025.

Ludovic Rachou, President of the Union des industriels pour la valorisation des extraits de chanvre (Union of industrialists for the valorization of hemp extracts), hailed “a relief for patients who no longer have to think about withdrawal” and “a reason for hope for future patients”. “We would warmly thank the Minister for his support, and remain mobilized to ensure the creation of a pharmaceutical industry, with all the players involved from the outset”, he added in a press release.

France lags behind

The medical use of cannabis to treat pain and anxiety has been the subject of experimentation in France for several years. Many countries already offer such treatments. Judging that this experiment had been successful at the end of 2023, members of parliament voted for measures to enable the marketing of cannabis-based treatments. Initially, these would be subject to a five-year transitional. However, these provisions never came into force, as they required the Ministry of Health to officially notify the European Commission.

This has not yet been done, and some experts involved in the experiment, explained this blockage by the governmental instability observed over the period or a lack of political will. Wednesday's announcement by the Ministry unblocks the situation. Depending on discussions with the EU, experts estimate that it will take at least six months after this notification to consider the concrete arrival of treatments.

In addition, as the Ministry reminded us on Wednesday, any reimbursement of these treatments will depend on an assessment by the French health authority. However, there is no consensus on the benefits of medical cannabis. The main benchmark study, published in 2021 in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) and based on numerous other studies, concluded that medical cannabis offers “limited” or “very limited” improvement in patient outcomes."


Source : Cannabis médical, le gouvernement avance vers une généralisation en France, AFP Le Monde, 03/20/2025

 

[Alligator427]

Wednesday, march 19, a step forward for access to medical cannabis in France

"Medical cannabis: government moves towards widespread use in France

By the end of 2023, French parliamentarians had passed measures that would enable the marketing of cannabis-based treatments. However, these provisions never came into force, as they require the Ministry of Health to officially notify the European Commission - which was done on Wednesday.

The authorization of cannabis-based treatments in France, which has been for over a year, has taken a major step forward with the government's announcement, on Wednesday March 19, of a crucial administrative formality.

The texts defining the framework for the production and authorization of cannabis for medical use have been notified to the European Commission, reported the Ministry of Health in a press release. It also clarified the situation of patients treated under the current experimental which will be extended “exceptionally” until March 31, 2026. In theory, this postponement will make it possible to project the experiment into the future. “This is a new stage in the development of supervised, secure access to medical cannabis in France”, stressed the Ministry. The experiment for patients undergoing treatment was initially due to end in 2024. They had already been granted until summer 2025.

Ludovic Rachou, President of the Union des industriels pour la valorisation des extraits de chanvre (Union of industrialists for the valorization of hemp extracts), hailed “a relief for patients who no longer have to think about withdrawal” and “a reason for hope for future patients”. “We would warmly thank the Minister for his support, and remain mobilized to ensure the creation of a pharmaceutical industry, with all the players involved from the outset”, he added in a press release.

France lags behind

The medical use of cannabis to treat pain and anxiety has been the subject of experimentation in France for several years. Many countries already offer such treatments. Judging that this experiment had been successful at the end of 2023, members of parliament voted for measures to enable the marketing of cannabis-based treatments. Initially, these would be subject to a five-year transitional. However, these provisions never came into force, as they required the Ministry of Health to officially notify the European Commission.

This has not yet been done, and some experts involved in the experiment, explained this blockage by the governmental instability observed over the period or a lack of political will. Wednesday's announcement by the Ministry unblocks the situation. Depending on discussions with the EU, experts estimate that it will take at least six months after this notification to consider the concrete arrival of treatments.

In addition, as the Ministry reminded us on Wednesday, any reimbursement of these treatments will depend on an assessment by the French health authority. However, there is no consensus on the benefits of medical cannabis. The main benchmark study, published in 2021 in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) and based on numerous other studies, concluded that medical cannabis offers “limited” or “very limited” improvement in patient outcomes."


Source : Cannabis médical, le gouvernement avance vers une généralisation en France, AFP Le Monde, 03/20/2025

Good change !
Maybe in 50 years we will have the right to use cannabis for recreativ purpose