Could France be Next to Legalise?
Like everywhere else, France is home to adult-use cannabis consumers and medical cannabis patients. Whether the government regulates cannabis or not, people will still consume it. Something that has not gone unnoticed by a group of French Senators who recently published an op-ed in Le Monde calling for legalisation.
According to the article's subheadline, the op-ed's text was provided by a collective of 31 senators from the Socialist, Ecologist and Republican groups, led by Gilbert-Luc Devinaz's text. The point of the op-ed, as described in the same subheadline, is 'to launch a consultation process to push for a bill to legalise cannabis.'
The op-ed began by quoting statistics from a National Recreational Cannabis Progress Report. The report calculates that out of a population of around 67 million, almost 18 million French citizens have tried cannabis at least once and that approximately 1.5 million use it 'regularly.' For reference
"In this context, we must get out of the lax trial regularly made to the proponents of an evolution of the legal framework. We, socialist senators, face reality: the situation is untenable. The French are ready to debate the consumption of so-called recreational cannabis." -quote from the op-ed.
The op-ed describes cannabis prohibition as "ineffective, inefficient and unjust." The primary core of their proposal relies on regulating cannabis and its products to shrink the unregulated market, the issues it brings and the drug consumption of the native youth. Decriminalisation is briefly discussed but is declared insufficient in comparison to total legalisation.
Discussion surrounding cannabis reform in France has never got very far. However, now that numerous countries sharing a border with France are busily seeking significant cannabis law reform, including Germany, French lawmakers are facing an inevitable future. Follow in the footsteps of their European neighbours or watch as cannabis consumers take their business and money to Germany to make all the legal cannabis purchases they want.
France would benefit from getting things moving swiftly, as the country is already well behind Germany and other nations in crafting cannabis policies and industry regulations.
Just as the op-ed makes clear, people will consume cannabis in France regardless of the laws. The only real question is whether their consumer and patient dollars will go into a regulated system or not. The only way consumers will make legal purchases in France is if lawmakers step up. If they keep dragging their feet, France will likely miss out on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
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Liz Filmer
