Anutin says PM agrees on legislating hemp use, poitentially backing down on re-criminalisation
Thailand will work towards governing marijuana for medical usage, Deputy Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Tuesday, signalling a U-turn on strategies to re-criminalise , hemp and yet another change in the administration’s shifting place.
Thailand decriminalized marijuana in 2022, making it one of the first Asian nations to do so without a law enforcing it or creating any strict laws to halt its outdoor use.
The move, championed at the time by Mr Anutin’s Bhumjaithai Party, prompted an blast of outdoor use, cannabis shops and stores, and people worry about its misuse.
Before the election was called next year, Bhunjaithai later wrote a bill to govern marijuana use, but it did not pass the first reading.
Mr. Anutin, who is also the interior minister, claimed that Srettha Thavisin, the prime minister, had now decided that legislation was the best course of action in place of putting the plant up on the federal drug list.
He thanked the prime minister for taking this subject into consideration and choosing to pass an act.
Following a conference with Somsak Thepsutin, the minister of health, and Mr. Srettha, the secretary made the remarks.
Under new laws being developed by the Ministry of Public Health, the Pheu Thai Party-led state has maintained that the recreational use of cannabis is not permitted.
Mr. Srettha previously stated that the flower would become re-listed as a drug with exceptions for research and clinical use. He gave officers until the close of the year to create the necessary regulations.
Tens of thousands of shops and businesses have opened in the past two years in a sector that is thought to be worth up to$ 1.2 billion by 2025, in response to the nation’s rapid growth of a domestic marijuana retail sector.
Bhumjaithai, the second-biggest group in the current alliance, has often insisted that it favours pot for health and economic reasons, but not for outdoor use, and has argued against re-criminalising it.  ,
Mr. Anutin stated that the government would be examining plans for a draft expenses to manage the cannabis economy, and that political parties may also consider presenting them to parliament.
The Narcotics Control Board has previously approved proposed laws to recriminalise hemp, but they have not yet passed them. As a committee member, Mr. Anutin had pledged to cast a ballot against the proposal.
The Office of the Narcotics Control Board had suggested implementing the changes as effective as of January 1, 2025, giving operators who were unsure of their lawful standing a few months to adjust and qualify for new licenses.
The new regulations, according to the article, would outlaw the hands, trade, and sale of cannabis plants and resin without obtaining permission from the Ministry of Public Health.
Cannabis seeds as well as parts with low tetrahydrocannabinol ( THC ) content such as leaves, roots, fibre and stems would not be re-criminalised, it said.