ZAGREB, June 30, 2020 – The Social Democratic Party (SDP) on Tuesday unveiled its ‘Lex cannabis’ bill, which would ensure the full potential of cannabis use, saying that if the Restart coalition formed the next government it would pass the bill already in September.
The party’s adviser on green development, Mirela Holy, said that retailers and large producers of cannabis already existed and produced cannabis with a low share of THC of up to 0.2% and that it was necessary to remove that limit.
Lex cannabis would exploit the full potential of cannabis, she added.
Currently, it is used for nutritional purposes for humans and animals. It can be produced with a 0.2% share of THC for medicinal purposes but only by legal entities that have approval from the HALMED medicines agency, she explained.
With such a low THC level, cannabis produced today cannot be used for the production of textiles, cosmetics, paints, cement, bio-compost used in automobiles, and space technology, she added.
To be able to exploit the full potential of cannabis it is necessary to remove that “senseless restriction,” which would enable the Faculty of Agronomy and science institutes to launch research and create various types of cannabis for various purposes.
She added that cannabis is an energy plant that can be used to produce energy sources and it can also be used in tourism by branding destinations as cannabis destinations.
Cannabis is also essential in treating and relieving the negative consequences of a wide range of diseases like multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, AIDS, and various malignant diseases.
Party colleague Vesna Nadj said that SDP considers it to be key to regulate the production of cannabis that would allow legal entities, small businesses, and family-run farms to produce cannabis under conditions regulated by the ministries of agriculture and health.
The law should allow producing up to nine plants for personal use and for a maximum penalty for those breaching the law, Nadj said.
