By LETRE SWEETING

Tribune Staff Reporter

lsweeting@tribunemedia.net

A TOP health official has reiterated recreational marijuana use is not covered under current cannabis legislation.

Colin Higgs, the Ministry of Health and Wellness’ permanent secretary, said on Friday: “The current cannabis legislation is not for recreational use. I mean, that may be considered somewhere down the line. But the current legislation refers to medical marijuana, medical cannabis, requiring a prescription and religious purposes,” Colin Higgs, the Ministry of Health and Wellness’ permanent secretary, said on Friday.

Draft legislation was released in August.

Several licences could be obtained under the proposed legislation: a cultivation licence to permit the growing, harvesting and packaging of cannabis; a retail licence to sell cannabis and cannabis accessories for medical, scientific research and religious purposes; an analytical testing licence; a manufacturing licence for the manufacturing and packaging of cannabis and cannabis accessories; a research licence; a transport licence to deliver cannabis within the country and a religious use licence.

According to the legislation, Rastafarian organisations could get a religious use licence to distribute cannabis to members as a sacrament, but the substance could only be used on the premises for which the licence or exempt event permit is issued.

Last month, Attorney General Ryan Pinder expressed hopes of the marijuana legislation being tabled in the House of Assembly in January. He had previously said the legislation would be debated in Parliament before the end of the year.

However, he also said officials want to hold another public consultation.