https://krautinvest.de/cannabisproduktegesetz-in-der-schweiz-breite-zustimmung-zur-regulierung-kritik-am-entwurf/A guest article by Daniel Haymann (MME Legal) and Lukas Brunner (IG Hanf Schweiz)
Switzerland wants to legally regulate cannabis for recreational use. A public consultation process took place last year. Recently, over 150 submissions from politics, administration and civil society have been published. In this article, the authors analyze these opinions and show what is needed for a successful conclusion of the legislation.
The current draft of the Federal Cannabis Products Act (CanPG) is met with considerable approval and criticism in public consultation. It is true that many parties, cantons and organizations recognize the need for new regulation. At the same time, the preliminary draft is criticized by numerous actors as being too complex, too bureaucratic and sometimes premature. This means that it is now up to the Federal Council and the Health Commission to optimize the draft before the law is referred to Parliament.
Cantons skeptical: Enforcement and bureaucracy in focus
Many cantons are particularly reserved in their response. A narrow majority, including Zurich, Bern, Aargau, and Thurgau, reject the draft. They criticize what they see as excessive regulation and the high administrative burden. They also call for the results of the ongoing pilot tests to be awaited first.
Other cantons such as Geneva, Vaud or Basel-Stadt generally support the thrust direction. They see controlled legalization as an opportunity to push back the black market and improve health protection through quality controls.
Parties divided, criticism from right to center
The polarization is also evident at the party political level. The SP, Greens and GLP support the project as a necessary system change in health policy. The FDP, on the other hand, is calling for a more marketable design. The SVP, EPP, and Die Mitte reject the draft in principle. They warn of false signals to young people and fear rising healthcare costs.
Financing and the protection of minors as points of contention
A key criticism concerns financing. The Conference of Cantonal Social Directors (SODK) and the Conference of Health Directors (GDK) reject the proposed incentive tax model. Instead, they call for a specific consumption tax to ensure prevention and enforcement.
Online commerce is also controversial. Many cantons see this as a risk for the protection of minors. The FDP and GLP, on the other hand, see online distribution as an effective means of combating the black market. It is also widely criticized that the draft hardly regulates how authorities should deal with consuming minors and that concrete preventive measures are lacking.
Experts support the system change
The Health Commission’s direction receives support from experts. Both the Federal Commission on Addiction and Prevention of Noncommunicable Diseases (EKSN) and Addiction Switzerland emphasize that prohibition has failed and causes more harm than good in the long term.
Improvements to the draft are mandatory
The comments made during the consultation are a clear signal that the draft in its current form is too cumbersome and not practical enough. If the CanPG is to gain political majority support, the Federal Council must address key points of criticism and identify solutions that gain majority support.
Precisely because current evaluations of the pilot tests provide clear evidence that a regulated levy strengthens health protection and pushes back the black market, the CanPG must not fail due to a lack of feasibility. Experience from the pilot trials also shows that the administrative burden for government control of regulated cannabis is manageable.
“A law that lacks political majority support or is barely enforceable administratively would set the reform process back years.” – Lukas Brunner, Secretary General of IG Hanf Switzerland
Only a regulated market effectively protects…
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Cannabisproduktegesetz in der Schweiz: Breite Zustimmung zur Regulierung, Kritik am Entwurf
