Our collective at Te Hiku Cannabis consists of leaders in their fields, including political and influential Maori figures, rongoa practitioners and academics who specialise in cannabis, drug delivery pharmaceuticals, quality control of rongoā plant medicines and conservation biology of natural taonga biota.

We have experts in cultivation, breeding, genetics, and scientific research who bring vast knowledge to our diverse group. We meet regularly to discuss the global and local cannabis industry, the NZ regulations, and the cultural impact of government legislation. We understand the issues and collaborate to find solutions.

We believe that in Te Tai Tokerau we have an opportunity to lead the way towards legislative change. The majority of people in Northland support the use of cannabis as a rongoa and many want to see it decriminalised or legalised for recreational use. Our goal is to make this a reality.

A high priority for us is to decrease the rates of criminal punishment and redirect the huge spending on cannabis raids and prosecution towards harm reduction, health, education, treatment of addiction. New research around the globe is indicating that cannabis can be potentially used to treat or manage withdrawal symptoms associated with addiction to substances of abuse such as methamphetamine, cocaine, opioids and alcohol.

This NCBI study explains the therapeutic effects of cannabidiol (CBD) on methamphetamine abuse. We want to help people get access to medication that might make a difference to them and their whanau.

However, the NZ Police have recently announced their plans to continue spendings millions on arial cannabis searches this summer. In a recent Newshub article it was revealed that ‘internal police communications from 2021 obtained by Newshub show several districts not on board with the blitzes.’ It goes on to say ‘Northland Police District said: "Not many in favour of the cost for large-scale operation.’

We also aim to create a more equitable industry that provides skilled Kiwis the chance to succeed in the cannabis industry, not just those with big teams and millions of dollars. This can be achieved in a number of ways such as non-profit organisations that can provide economic and social benefits.

An early milestone in the process towards change would be to move CBD-only cultivation and product manufacturing out of the Misuse of Drug (Medicinal Cannabis) Regulations 2019.

Adults should be able to purchase CBD-only products without a prescription in pharmacies at the very least. In many countries it can be bought in supermarkets and gas stations. CBD is a harmless cannabinoid with no psychoactive effects and is regarded as very helpful by millions of people using it for a range of conditions from inflammation to anxiety and insomnia.

Cannabidiol (CBD) was descheduled from the Misuse of Drugs Act in 2019 but remains a prescription medicine and therefore still complies with the pharmaceutical regulations.

At the 69th meeting of the Medicines Classification Committee in October 2022, there were submissions made by Rua, Zeacann and others to recommend removing the need for a prescription. See pages 92-104 of the submissions from Rua Bio, Zeacann and others.

We propose allowing hemp growers to be able to extract CBD from their flowers under an Industrial Hemp Licence and for manufacturers to produce CBD-only products under the regulations for Dietary Supplements and later the Therapeutics Bill that has been introduced to the Parliament.

Unfortunately in December 2022, Medsafe recommended that CBD remains as a prescription only medication announcing that “the committee noted that CBD medicines did not have an established long-term safety profile, when used as medicines, which would usually be expected to support down-scheduling of a substance.”

The Medicinal Cannabis Agency have also confirmed that they “will accept the Medsafe MCC decision regarding CBD as a prescription”. This seems to be a very backward decision by both groups who should know that decades of research and use globally shows that CBD certainly does have a long-term safety profile and is a safe and effective treatment for many ailments.

Another high priority is to decriminalise possession for a determined amount of cannabis for personal use. There is overwhelming support for decriminalisation across Aotearoa and it should have been included as a question in the 2020 cannabis referendum. The fact that votes for full legalisation reached almost 50% with a higher percentage of ‘yes votes’ in Northland indicates that people are ready for law change.

We can look to Malta for a progressive reform plan that would also work well in NZ. They have essentially decriminalised cannabis for personal use but taken it one step further towards legalisation by creating cannabis social clubs where permission is given to create non-profit organizations to distribute cannabis products among members. The adoption of the cannabis social club’s formula has prevailed over the full commercialization of cannabis and could be a good model to introduce here as an interim step towards legalisation..

We have decades of research on the benefits of cannabis and have the opportunity to craft new legislation on the learnings from countries who have led the way. As a group we wish to be a voice for many in our communities and we feel supported by progressive politicians who are also encouraging debate and change.

The Drug Foundation’s State of the Nation 2022 report estimates that ‘94% of those using cannabis for medicinal purposes, 266,700 people, are still accessing the drug through the black market’. They also confirm again that ‘Māori continue to be hugely over-represented in drug possession statistics’ across the board. We can improve these statistics with these proposed policy changes.

Very recently the MCA emailed a number of questions on the current regulations asking for responses by late January, they show that the MoH know the industry and regs are not working for most and it’s promising that they are contemplating changes in the right direction.

We understand that the pathway to legalisation will take time and as such, we are suggesting a phased approach with achievable milestones that will introduce incremental and positive change along the way.

We kicked off 2023 with a nationwide online poll to validate the support for legalisation or decriminalisation and we will present the results at Waitangi on February 6th 2023. Currently, the 2000 votes overwhelmingly support that regulations should be relaxed with 64% believing cannabis should be legalised and 35% wanting to see it decriminalised. The poll is still open so please take a minute to have your say.

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