Weekly Press Release Source: NORML Company Accelerates Plans For US Approval Of Medi-Pot Spray March 3, 2005 - Salisbury, United Kingdom Salisbury, United Kingdom: British biotechnology firm GW Pharmaceuticals announced this week that it is accelerating plans to seek US regulatory approval for its oral spray Sativex, a whole plant medicinal cannabis extract containing precise doses of the cannabinoids THC and cannabidiol (CBD). According to published reports by Reuters News Wire, the company has retained the services of the Apjohn Group, a 10-member organization consisting of former US pharmaceutical company executives specializing in US clinical drug development, regulatory affairs, and public policy. The company is also considering applying for an Investigational New Drug (IND) application from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In clinical trials, Sativex has been shown to reduce cancer pain and MS-associated spasticity, among other symptoms, in patients unresponsive to standard therapies. Last December, Health Canada issued a "Qualifying Notice" for the approval of Sativex for the treatment of neuropathic pain associated with Multiple Sclerosis. However, British regulatory approval for the drug has been delayed after an advisory body of the British Medicines and Health products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) announced late last year that it required further clinical evidence of Sativex's ability to alleviate MS-associated spasticity in a "clinically relevant" manner. For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre or Paul Armentano of NORML at (202) 483-5500 or visit: http://www.gwpharm.com DL: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=6467 Canada Offers Tax Break To Medical Cannabis Patients March 3, 2005 - Ottawa, Canada Ottawa, Ontario: Canadians who buy cannabis for medicinal purposes will receive tax relief under the nation's 2005 proposed budget, introduced yesterday. According to a review of the budget published by the Toronto Star, patients who purchase medical cannabis from Health Canada or a designated grower will now be eligible for Canada's 16 percent medical expense tax credit. Canada is believed to be the first nation to offer tax relief for medicinal cannabis users. Under current law, qualified Canadian patients may legally possess and grow medicinal cannabis and/or purchase it from the government. Last year, Health Canada announced that it was also considering a pilot program to make government grown cannabis available in pharmacies. A similar federally run program has been in existence in the Netherlands since 2003. For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre or Paul Armentano of NORML at (202) 483-5500. DL: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=6468 Australia: ACT Limits Cannabis Cultivation March 3, 2005 - Canberra, Australia Canberra, Australian Capital Territory: The number of marijuana plants that citizens may legally cultivate in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) will be reduced from five to two, under statewide legislative changes taking effect this weekend. The changes amend the ACT's Simple Cannabis Notice Scheme, which decriminalizes the use and possession of minor amounts of cannabis. Other changes to the ACT's law include an increase in criminal penalties for the sale of commercial quantities of cannabis, as well as a ban on the cultivation of "hydroponically grown" marijuana. Possession of up to 25 grams of cannabis and/or the cultivation of up to two marijuana plants will remain a non-criminal offense. In 2004, the ACT Legislative Assembly enacted new legislation allowing for farmers to commercially grow hemp for industrial purposes. In recent years, several Australian territories - including Western Australia, the Northern Territory, South Australia, and Victoria - have adopted similar marijuana depenalization policies. For more information, please contact either Allen St. Pierre or Paul Armentano at (202) 483-5500. DL: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=6469 US Appetite For Illicit Drugs Is World's Largest, UN Report Says -- NORML Director Calls For A "Regime Change" In US Drug Policy March 3, 2005 - Vienna, Austria Vienna, Austria: The United States is the "world's single largest market" for illicit drugs, according to findings published this week in the United Nations 2004 Report of the International Narcotics Control Board (INCB). The report further states that "the rate of drug abuse in the US remains disturbingly high" despite federal and state governments spending approximately $40 billion annually on illicit drug prevention efforts. NORML Executive Director Allen St. Pierre called the UN's findings an "indictment" of US criminal drug policy. "The United States spends more money than any other nation to enforce its criminal drug policies, and incarcerates a greater number of its citizens than any other nation for anti-drug offenses, yet it remains the world leader in illicit drug use and drug production," he said. "These disastrous results speak to the need for an immediate 'regime change' in US drug policy." Regarding US cannabis production, the INCB report states that US law enforcement eradicated approximately 3.3 million cannabis plants in 2002 (excluding ditchweed), and that an estimated 2,500 tons of marijuana is grown in the United States annually. "A more rational US drug policy would cease arresting and prosecuting the estimated 25 million Americans who use cannabis responsibly, and instead call for taxing and regulating the use of marijuana by adults in a manner similar to alcohol," St. Pierre said. For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre, NORML Executive Director, at (202) 483-5500. Full text of the 2004 INCB report is available online at: http://www.incb.org/e/ar/2004/menu.htm DL: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=6466 Source: NORML Foundation (DC) Published: March 03, 2005 Copyright: 2005 NORML Contact: norml@norml.org Website: http://www.norml.org/ Link to article: http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread20312.shtml