On the 3rd February 2021, the Narcotic Drugs Amendment (Medicinal Cannabis) Bill 2021 was introduced to Parliament.

The Bill will amend the Narcotic Drugs Act 1967 to support the implementation of a number of the recommendations of the Final Report of the Review of the Narcotic Drugs Act 1967 carried out by Professor John McMillan AO.

The Bill supports an innovative Australian medicinal cannabis industry for the benefit of Australian patients by:

• reducing the burden of the licence assessment process, by providing for a single medicinal cannabis licence to replace the current suite of licences required for cultivation, production, manufacture and research activities;
• providing greater certainty to businesses and reducing duplicating processes by providing for the majority of licences to be permanent; and
• reaffirming the Australian government's commitment to patient availability of safe, legal and sustainable supply of cannabis derived medicines.

We will keep stakeholders updated on the passage of the Bill through Parliament in due course.