{"id":22517,"date":"2018-12-12T00:50:17","date_gmt":"2018-12-12T04:50:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?p=22517"},"modified":"2018-12-12T00:50:21","modified_gmt":"2018-12-12T04:50:21","slug":"landmark-cannabis-bill-passes-lower-house","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/landmark-cannabis-bill-passes-lower-house\/","title":{"rendered":"Landmark Cannabis Bill passes Lower House"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The Cannabis Bill 2018 was passed in the Lower House yesterday. The Bill will regulate the production, prescribing, and supply of medical cannabis for patients.<\/p>

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Minister of state in the Finance MP Ministry Lennox Weston emphasized that the Cannabis Bill is not for those who merely want to get high.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs it stands right now, there are many youths on the fringe who think this is a total freeing up and that they can then walk down rude boy style and blow a smoke in your face,\u201d said Weston.<\/p>

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\u201cWe want to tell them that, that is not the case\u2026 It\u2019s no free smoke for rude boys who just want to get high.\u201d<\/p>

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The bill will permit Rastafarians and other religious groups to possess, cultivate, and supply cannabis for religious purposes.\u00a0Weston added that the Cannabis Bill is not only about religious freedom, but also an opportunity for further development. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Social Transformation Minister Samantha Marshall called for the establishment of a dedicated rehabilitation facility.<\/p>

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\u201cNo young person under the age of 18 is supposed to be smoking,\u201d said Marshall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marshall said that despite the law being the law, she knows that young people “will try things” and that provision must be made for them once they do.<\/p>

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\u201cRight now as it is, anyone under the age of 18 cannot be treated for the abuse of marijuana. So right now, we need a proper rehabilitation facility not only for those under the age, but to extend the services for those who abuse the use of it.\u201d<\/p>

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Meanwhile, Opposition Leader Jamal Pringle welcomed the passing of the Cannabis Bill. He said, however, that greater effort is needed to inform the public, that cannabis should not be used for recreational purposes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou drive on the road, you see people working\u2026 you see that they have their spliff in their mouths,\u201d said Pringle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have to continue to educate the public that it is not legal for recreational use. So I think that between the first bill and this one, that there is some misconceptions where that is concerned.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Cannabis Bill 2018 was passed in the Lower House yesterday. The Bill will regulate the production, prescribing, and supply of medical cannabis for patients. Minister of state in the Finance MP Ministry Lennox Weston emphasized that the Cannabis Bill is not for those who merely want to get high. \u201cAs it stands right now, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":22524,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[62,60,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-22517","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-agriculture","category-health","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nLandmark Cannabis Bill passes Lower House - Antigua News Room<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/landmark-cannabis-bill-passes-lower-house\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Landmark Cannabis Bill passes Lower House\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Cannabis Bill 2018 was passed in the Lower House yesterday. The Bill will regulate the production, prescribing, and supply of medical cannabis for patients. 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