Towards a legalization of recreational cannabis in Switzerland

This article was automatically translated from HIBAPRESS, the Arabic version:

Hibapress

Switzerland has taken a stage towards the legalization of cannabis for recreational purposes after the adoption in parliamentary committee of a preliminary project for a new special law in this sense.

The National Council of the National Council (lower chamber of the Federal Parliament) adopted, Friday, by 14 votes against 9, the preliminary draft of a new special law aimed at legalizing the consumption of cannabis for non-medical purposes for adults.

Currently, culture, manufacturing, trade and cannabis consumption for non -medical purposes are prohibited. Consumption is liable to a fine.

But since 2023, people who are already consuming cannabis can acquire it in a controlled manner in the context of limited-time tests in time. However, the vast majority of consumers get their supplies on the illegal market.

A situation qualified as “unsatisfactory” by the Commission which judges, in a press release, that this “prohibitive approach is wrong”. According to a majority, strictly regulated access to cannabis and a controlled market make it possible to better protect public health, strengthen youth protection and improve safety. The population would be better protected against the harmful effects of cannabis, and young people would be dissuaded from consuming it.

The Commission proposes to regulate cannabis consumption in a new special law. Cannabis must continue to be considered an amazing, because its consumption affects health.

Without encouraging consumption, the law must regulate the culture, manufacturing and trade of cannabis. Cannabic products must be subject to an incentive tax in order to limit consumption and orient it towards less risky forms. This tax depends on the THC content and the type of consumption.