France has no plans to legalize cannabis for recreational use: minister

[June 20, 2019]  PARIS (Reuters) - France will not legalize the recreational use of cannabis but could consider authorizing its medical use, Transport Minister Elisabeth Borne said on Thursday.

"The position of the French state is clear. We are against legalizing cannabis for recreational use. There is an ongoing discussion about a medical use," Borne told LCI television.

Borne's comments follow publication of a report on Thursday by French think-tank the Conseil d'Analyse Economique recommending legalizing cannabis for recreational use in France.

Several countries, including Germany, Italy and Denmark, already allow the prescription of medical cannabis and last year Canada became the second country in the world to fully legalize marijuana.

In France, GreenLeaf, a French hemp-based and cannabis healthcare company, recently said it had agreed to be bought by rival EMMAC Life Sciences Ltd, as the legal use of cannabis for medicinal purposes grows further.

(Reporting by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Jane Merriman)

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