Patrick Costello (Dublin South Central, Green Party)
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611. To ask the Minister for Health if he will amend the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977 to allow for 0.3% THC specifically for the cultivation of industrial hemp in Ireland in line with other states such as the United States of America and Canada; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23076/21]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Cannabis and its derivatives are controlled by virtue of the Misuse of Drugs framework. Under the Misuse of Drugs Acts, cannabis means any part of the plant of the genus cannabis but excludes the mature stalk and fibre produced from it and the seeds after separation from the rest of the plant. Any other part of the plant not explicitly excluded under the Act is cannabis for the purposes of the Act and should be destroyed by the licensee.

Under current legislation the Minister for Health can issue a licence for the growing of hemp from seed varieties specified by the Commission of the European Communities, as being eligible for the purposes of Article 1 of Regulation (EU) No. 1307/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 December 2013 (OJ No. L 347, 20.12.2013, p. 608.). The cultivation of certain varieties of hemp for industrial purposes is permitted in Ireland provided the entity cultivating the hemp is in possession of a licence issued under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1977, as amended.

In October 2020 amendments adopted by the European Parliament on 23 October 2020 on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing rules on support for strategic plans to be drawn up by Member States under the Common agricultural policy (CAP Strategic Plans) and financed by the European Agricultural Guarantee Fund (EAGF) and by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development (EAFRD) and repealing Regulation (EU) No 1305/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council and Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council. Amendment 8 states “As regards the areas used for the production of hemp, in order to preserve public health and to ensure the coherence with other bodies of legislation, the use of hemp seeds varieties with tetrahydrocannabinol content below 0,3 % should be part of the definition of eligible hectare”. This is a proposed amendment, Regulation (EU) No 1307/2013 has not been repealed.

The HPRA (Health Products Regulatory Authority) administers the hemp licencing process on behalf of the Department of Health. Further information regarding the hemp licencing process for the above purposes is available from the HPRA at controlleddrugs@hpra.ie.