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The United Kingdom has a new leader. And one of the government\u2019s first acts under Prime Minister Liz Truss was to refuse to give formal permission to allow Bermuda to enact a law to legalize and regulate marijuana\u2014despite reports that Truss herself previously supported legalizing cannabis.<\/p>\n
This is a development that top Bermuda officials and UK reform advocates are not taking lightly, with some characterizing it as colonialist era overreach by the UK that may rise to the level of a constitutional crisis.<\/p>\n
Lawmakers in Bermuda, a British territory since the 17th century, approved the administration\u2019s \u201cflagship\u201d cannabis legalization proposal earlier this year, but it was withheld for months as the government awaited \u201croyal assent\u201d\u2014a formal, monarchical sign-off on legislation\u2014from the UK-appointed governor of the territory.<\/p>\n
Then, on the same day that Truss became prime minister of the UK, the government informed Bermuda that it had decided \u201cnot to assent to the bill as drafted,\u201d Bermuda Gov. Rena Lalgie announced. The UK said it couldn\u2019t give its authorization based on its interpretation of international treaties that bar member states from legalizing cannabis for reasons beyond medical or scientific use.<\/p>\n
\nStill, Bermuda\u2019s attorney general said<\/a> in a statement on Tuesday the government will press on to enact the reform<\/a> despite the denial of assent.<\/p>\n \u201cDisappointing but not surprising, given the confines of our constitutional relationship with the UK Government and their archaic interpretation of the Narcotic Conventions,\u201d Attorney General Kathy Lynn Simmons said. \u201cThe People of Bermuda have democratically expressed their desire for a regulated cannabis licensing regime following the strong endorsement at the ballot box and an extensive public consultation process.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe Government of Bermuda intends to continue to advance this initiative, within the full scope of its constitutional powers, in keeping with our 2020 General Election Platform commitment,\u201d Simmons said.<\/p>\n A terrible start to @TrussLiz<\/a>‘s govt as Britain, a backwards colonial power, stamps on Bermuda’s democratic decision on intelligent, evidence-based #drugspolicy<\/a>. UK has said no, we don’t care what your Parliament decided, you may not legalise #cannabis<\/a> https:\/\/t.co\/cxe3yEUlQI<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/MwHruCV7nE<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 CLEAR Cannabis Law Reform (@CLEARUK) September 7, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n Under the Bermuda proposal, a marijuana regulatory authority would be established to manage cannabis business licensing and make recommendations on future policies. Adults 21 and older could possess up to seven grams in a \u201cpublic place,\u201d or more if they have a valid license type. The \u201cintent\u201d of the bill is to prioritize licensing for people disproportionately impacted by the drug war.<\/p>\n Fees collected by licensees would cover the costs of administering the program, and that revenue could also be divided up to support drug treatment programs, cultivation training for licensees and scientific research into cannabis.<\/p>\n Governor Rena Lalgie, for her part, said<\/a> that she\u2019s \u201cinformed the premier and relayed the UK\u2019s continued desire to work with Bermuda on reforms within the scope of our existing international obligations.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThe Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs concluded that the Bill, as currently drafted, is not consistent with obligations held by the UK and Bermuda under the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs and the 1971 Convention on Psychotropic Substances,\u201d she said<\/a>.<\/p>\n Lalgie previously said<\/a> in May that the UK \u201csupported and is currently assisting some of the Crown Dependencies and other Overseas Territories to develop policy and legislation in a way which is compliant with the relevant Conventions.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI hope that Bermudian officials will work together with UK officials to find a way forward\u2014one that does not result in life changing criminal records for users of small amounts of cannabis and unlocks commercial opportunities, whilst maintaining Bermuda\u2019s excellent reputation for upholding the rule of law,\u201d she said at the time.<\/p>\n Bermuda Premier David Burt of the Progressive Labour Party didn\u2019t immediately react to the denial of assent\u2014but he warned<\/a> earlier this year that if UK stood in the way of this legislation, it would \u201cdestroy the relationship we had with the United Kingdom.\u201d<\/p>\n Steve Rolles, senior policy analyst for the Transform Drug Policy Foundation, told Marijuana Moment on Wednesday that \u201cBermuda wants to legalize, but while nominally independent, its legal status is quite confusing\u2014it requires UK crown authorization for something like this, which hasn\u2019t been granted. It\u2019s colonial era bullshit.\u201d<\/p>\n There are several folds to this development. It\u2019s unclear, for example, whether the denial of assent is a reflection of the new UK government leadership\u2019s position on legalization, or if the decision was carried over from the prior administration under Prime Minister Boris Johnson.<\/p>\n In any case, Truss, the new Conservative prime minister, was a key figure in the prior government.<\/p>\n Until Tuesday, she occupied the position of secretary of state for foreign, commonwealth and development affairs, which oversees the approval or denial of assent. Truss was previously a Liberal Democrat, and she reportedly<\/a> supported cannabis legalization. One former friend told<\/a> BBC Radio 4 that Truss tried plastering the walls of their university with posters reading \u201cFree the Weed.\u201d<\/p>\n Also notably, the UK did grant<\/a> royal assent to Canada after the country legalized cannabis in 2018. That was under the administration of Prime Minister Theresa May, also of the Conservative Party. Canada\u2019s move to legalize also flouted the same international treaties that the UK cited in denying assent to Bermuda.<\/p>\n\n However, Canada, along with Australia, is generally more independent from UK\u2019s government, operating under a different legal status that gives them more legislative liberties compared to overseas territories like Bermuda.<\/p>\n The British government under Johnson separately faced criticism from the British Virgin Islands (BVI), where lawmakers passed a medical cannabis legalization bill in 2020 that has yet to receive assent, according to a June 2022 report<\/a> from The BVI Beacon.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s basically uncharted waters,\u201d Rolles said of the latest development in Bermuda. \u201cI\u2019m not sure how long UK will hold out if pressure continues.\u201d<\/p>\n In Bermuda, medical cannabis was legalized following a Supreme Court ruling in 2016 that allows people to petition for a license to legally possess and use marijuana for therapeutic purposes. Possession of up to seven grams of cannabis is also decriminalized.<\/p>\n Back in the UK, MP Lloyd Russell-Moyle of the Co-operative Party sharply criticized the government\u2019s decision not to grant Bermuda assent for the cannabis reform.<\/p>\n The British Government today has intervened to stop Bermuda legalising cannabis but refused to intervene when they banned gay marriage saying it would be wrong to intervene. This is just wrong and will hasten calls for their independence.<\/p>\n \u2014 Lloyd Russell-Moyle MP \u201cThe British Government today has intervened to stop Bermuda legalising cannabis but refused to intervene when they banned gay marriage saying it would be wrong to intervene,\u201d he wrote. \u201cThis is just wrong and will hasten calls for their independence.\u201d<\/p>\n California Governor Signs Child Welfare Bill Treating Parental Marijuana Use Just Like Alcohol<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n The post UK Government Blocks Bermuda From Legalizing Marijuana On Same Day New Prime Minister Takes Office<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
The United Kingdom has a new leader. And one of the government\u2019s first acts under Prime Minister Liz Truss was to refuse to give formal permission to allow Bermuda to enact a law to legalize and regulate marijuana\u2014despite reports that Truss herself previously supported legalizing cannabis. This is a developmentContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":57025,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57024"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57024"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57024\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":57026,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57024\/revisions\/57026"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57025"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57024"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57024"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57024"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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(@lloyd_rm) September 7, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n
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\nRead More: UK Government Blocks Bermuda From Legalizing Marijuana On Same Day New Prime Minister Takes Office<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"