The Greek Parliament on Friday voted in favor of a bill to legalize the cultivation and sale of medical marijuana in Greece. The government, led by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, has announced that Cannabis is legal for medicinal use.
The bill, proposed by the main opposition party Syriza, got 158 votes for and 33 against.
Greece’s Development & Investment Ministry originally submitted the bill. It is labeled “Production, extraction and distribution of final products of pharmaceutical cannabis of the species Cannabis Sativa L, containing over 0.2% of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).”
Quick Results In Greece?
The Deputy Minister of Development and Investment, Nikos Papasthanasis, defended the bill against critics. However, most objections came from those who felt the bill didn’t go far enough to help patients in Greece. Members of the main opposition party, Syriza, had called it “cowardly and timid.”
Papasthanasis retorted that the bill was nothing of the sort, unlike the 2017 medical cannabis bill Syriza had passed. He added that bill was indeed truly “cowardly and timid.”
Greece will see quick results from the bill, according to Papasthanasis. The bill, in fact, helps expedite the process of getting licenses for Cannabis production. However, Papasthanasis was quick to point out that there are two separate licenses one must obtain for cultivation.
New Democracy spokesperson Christos Kellas said the bill will help patients. He called the bill “an integrated framework for the development of the cannabis industry in our country. According to Kellas, “we expect that there will be benefits for our economy through investments and the creation of new jobs.”
