Is Spain On The Verge Of Regulating Cannabis Clubs?
As a monumental challenge to the current law loses in Strasbourg, organizers including political parties are challenging the government to regulate the sector (as well as fully legalize it).
Things are continuing to bubble in Spain over the regulation (and by definition legalization) of the entire Spanish cannabis club conversation.
As Albert Tió now spends his nights in jail for the foreseeable future after losing his case in Strasbourg, a call has gone out for a new federal discussion about the role and formal acceptance of cannabis as well as the infrastructure and industry that has grown up here in between the weeds. Namely, a senator, Geroa Bai, has now introduced the idea of the regulation of the industry, as well as the legalization of limited home grow.
The introduction of the same is far from its passage. The battle here has been particularly nasty for several years and on the legal, federal level. With a losing case at Strasbourg, it is also clear that the entire access conversation will have to go through the legislature rather than the courts – which is perhaps the biggest takeaway of the Tió case.
With the activist now serving active jail time (even in a Pandemic) the entire conversation has taken another turn. The industry does not need any more martyrs (and is hardly short of them at this point to begin with). Free Albert Tió, however, is a bit more visceral a slogan than a faraway club closing or tangling with the fuzz over supply.
Post-Pandemic Economic Activity
Given the prevailing winds in Europe, including successful court challenges from the commercial and patient side as well as a map for recreational reform in three countries (Holland, Switzerland, and Luxembourg), there is zero-way Spain can sit this out much longer. The reality is that legalizing the entire infrastructure would also create a legitimate source of taxable income that every government coffer is absolutely starved for.
Just like in other places, the economic benefit argument (don’t forget the employment question beyond this) is increasingly stronger every day the pandemic stretches on. And in the interim, important legal cases are starting to show up on the map (including in Germany).
In the meantime, expect national legalization and regulation bills to start showing up all over the map. And even if, as in Spain, they might fail for the next few years, the inevitable dawn is beginning to break in a systematic way over the cold, bleak landscape of prohibition in Europe.
Be sure to book your tickets to the next International Cannabis Business Conference events – including the investor’s conference in Austin, TX and of course the return of the ICBC to Berlin in July!
