Bahamas Government Reviewing "Outdated" Marijuana Laws

The government of Bahamas is now reviewing its cannabis laws which Prime Minister Hubert Minnis said are "outdated" and need to be changed.

Minnis's administration is considering the legalization of cannabis for medicinal, religious, and recreational use along with regulatory regimes to oversee the production, manufacturing and sale of cannabis, following the recommendation which was made by the country's Economic Recovery Committee (ERC).

"Our cannabis laws are outdated and must change,” Dr Minnis said in the House of Assembly. “The global legal cannabis market is already in the billions of dollars with significant projected growth in the years to come.”

The ERC recommended that up to two ounces of marijuana be made legal for personal use in The Bahamas.

The Minnis administration has not revealed what will constitute having a “small amount” of the drug, but the ERC has recommended that “unapproved possession of any amount greater” than two ounces be punishable with a fine only. The Bahamas National Commission on Marijuana recommended earlier this year that possession of up to one ounce of the substance be decriminalised for people over 21.

He also announced that beginning next year, the government will be expunging criminal records of those convicted for possession of small amounts of marijuana.

If legalized, The Bahamas would join Jamaica, Antigua and Barbuda, St Kitts and Nevis and Trinidad and Tobago where small amounts of marijuana is decriminalized.