Any government looking to regulate medical cannabis has to chart a careful course between implementing a system that it is too permissive, to the extent that it is simply a facade for non-medical use, and one that is too restrictive, resulting in a system that fails to provide for patients. In a policy shift that will legalise the sale of medical as of November, the UK government has chosen to steer far closer to the second option.
Cannabis not produced for medical use in humans remains a class B, schedule 1 substance, prohibited under the 1971 Misuse of Drugs Act. Cannabis-based medicinal products, however, will become schedule 2 medicines, with one major exception: In a bid to prevent confusion for police going about their everyday business, smoking cannabis will remain illegal, regardless of its origin. Those prescribed cannabis will not be permitted to medicate themselves with the aid of a flame.
This legal wizardry has created a new alchemical transmutation: medicine will mystically change into an illegal narcotic at the point that it is combusted and inhaled. Getting the medication in the first place won鈥檛 be easy. Only specialists can prescribe the medication, following a referral from a GP. For the UK鈥檚 regulations to lead to even modest levels of patient access, a huge programme of education among healthcare professionals will be required.
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Blowing smoke
Groundbreaking in UK drugs policy as this change is, the new amendment seeks only to regulate the medical use of a product that has both an established medical need and a substantial non-medical demand. This is not a recipe for success. Many medical patients who are unable to access cannabis legally due to the overly restrictive regulations will continue to source their medication of choice either through the illegal market or by cultivating it themselves.
Lessons should be learned from other legalisation efforts, notably in Germany and Canada. Currently on its third attempt to regulate medical cannabis, Germany is struggling with tight restrictions, supply and issues of poor doctor education. Canada, meanwhile, implemented a fully legal cannabis market for adult use this week, having come to the conclusion that the only way to maintain an effective medical market is to also regulate non-medical sales, thus negating the drive for diversion from the medical market.
The upside
While the UK government鈥檚 explicit reason for rescheduling medical cannabis has been to provide patient access to these medications, the change also profoundly affects researchers who work focuses on cannabis. The onerous licensing process required before you can 聽conduct research on schedule 1 controlled substances has previously discouraged many from investigating cannabis and its derivatives, stifling everything from fundamental research to clinical application and industrial innovation.
The financial and administrative burden of obtaining and keeping a schedule 1 controlled substances licence will now be alleviated for those researching cannabis and its derivatives. Regulations that require safe custody and strict record keeping will still apply, but this change marks a stark reduction in the barriers to research. For the UK鈥檚 strong biotech and life sciences sectors, the impact of this change cannot be underestimated: many who had previously written off cannabis as forbidden territory for research can now add this plant to their target lists.
Henry Fisher is the chief scientific officer of Hanway Associates, London鈥檚 global cannabis consultancy, and the Research and Development Project Manager of Grow Biotech.
