The Authority for the Responsible Use of Cannabis is expected to issue the applications for issuing the licenses of non-profit organizations on 28 February 2023 to supply a product made from cannabis.
This was announced by the Parliamentary Secretary for Reforms and Equality Rebecca Buttigieg during a news conference. She explained how the guidelines of these licenses and the regulatory framework will be explained in detail to interested persons during a convention in the coming weeks.
The Authority for the Responsible Use of Cannabis will be organizing a convention with the theme “Setting the Standards” on January 27, 2023, for non-profit organizations that wish to be suppliers of cannabis for personal use. for their members.
The parliamentary secretary said that the government wanted this very delicate process to proceed carefully so that this reform reaches its full goal. Parliamentary Secretary Rebecca Buttigieg added that with the entry into force of the legislative framework, the government emphasized its willingness to take bold decisions by implementing wise and unprecedented reforms in order to bring more social justice. The parliamentary secretary explained that with the law passed by the government, people who consume cannabis for personal purposes, and it is found on them up to seven grams, will not be prosecuted against them and will not be considered as criminals. She mentioned how another reform carried out by the government is recognizing the realities and giving a chance to people whose conduct was tainted due to a case with a small possession of cannabis, to continue with their lives without hindrance. This while stressing that the law also ensures that those who buy cannabis resort to legal markets and continued to intensify the fight against drug trafficking.
“The work done by the authority during these months was done carefully so that today we were able to design and announce a plan that will lead to the issuance of the necessary licenses by non-profit organizations that will have responsibility to cultivate, process and sell cannabis to their members”, claimed the parliamentary secretary.
Leonid McKay, the Executive Chairman of the authority for Responsible Use of Cannabis, explained in detail the immediate priorities of the authority. He said that first and foremost the priority is to put in place a robust regulatory framework for licensing non-profit organizations immediately.
McKay gave details about the Convention that will be held at the MFCC with the aim of having an open dialogue with prospective organizations on the standards that will be launched that very day. While he also mentioned that another priority is that the structure of the authority reflects the functions it must perform, McKay concluded by mentioning the importance of this reform continuing to be one that aspires to achieve social justice. away from any form of commercialization of the sector.
Organizations or persons interested in registering for a Convention can go to the authority’s new website, www.aruc.mt while for more information one can contact the authority at info.aruc@gov.mt.
