Cannabis Legalization Would Bring France Nearly €3.4Bn In Taxes And Savings
According to the European Union Drugs Agency, France has the highest rate of cannabis consumption on the European continent. Whereas adult-use cannabis policy modernization efforts have spread to Malta, Luxembourg, and Germany, and to a lesser extent the Netherlands and Switzerland, recreational cannabis remains illegal in France.
An escalation of violence linked to organized crime in France has led to recent calls by a parliamentary group for the European nation to legalize cannabis for adult use. La France Insoumise (LFI) has criticized the government’s current approach to cannabis policy.
“According to the unveiled “fight plan,” the government’s repressive response is not only insufficient, but it fuels insecurity, pushing citizens and officials into a cycle of violence.” stated Newsweed in its local reporting. “LFI advocates for a comprehensive, community-based approach to combating organized crime in France, including the legalization of cannabis.”
A previous study by an economic advisory board within the nation’s prime minister’s office determined that the French government spends roughly €570m annually on cannabis prohibition enforcement. The study recommended that France adopt adult-use cannabis legalization and launch a regulated recreational industry.
Emmanuelle Auriol, a professor at the Toulouse School of Economics who authored the study’s report and findings, estimated that such a policy change could create as many as 80,000 new jobs, and generate €2.8bn in taxes annually.
France does have a limited operational medical cannabis experimental program. In March 2021, France launched a limited medical cannabis experiment involving between 2,000 and 3,000 suffering patients to gain insight into crafting national medical cannabis policies and regulations.
The French medical cannabis experiment received initial approval from the federal Senate back in 2019, however, the launch of the trial was delayed until the spring of 2021 due to various reasons.
Initially slated for two years, France’s medical cannabis experiment was eventually granted a one-year extension and was set to end in 2024. The program is now expected to end in 2025.
According to a recent newsletter sent out by international cannabis economist Beau Whitney of Whitney Economics, France is home to the largest total addressable cannabis market in the European Union with a value of $11.3 billion (midpoint).
