Back cannabis… save the economy?

A study published by media group Prohibition Partners details how the UK’s cannabis industry could be worth £1bn by 2026.

If the UK government moves fast to legalise cannabis, then the sector could be worth more than £1bn within four years, according to analysts.

A new study published by Prohibition Partners says that if recreational sales were allowed from 2024, the sector could be worth over £627m by 2026.

When the sales of CBD and cannabis-infused products are factored in, this would bring the UK’s overall cannabis market size to the billion-pound mark.

Prohibition Partners said the industry could help boost the UK’s economy through ‘significant levels of foreign direct investment into the UK’.

It also said the potential for job creation opportunities within the cannabis industry would also support the government’s ‘Levelling Up’ ambitions.

Stephen Murphy, CEO and co-founder of Prohibition Partners said:

“The sector has shown it can deliver huge levels of investment, economic growth and jobs for economies that embrace it.

“At a time when the UK sorely needs similar economic boosts, going green and backing cannabis will deliver for the UK economy.

“The UK now has to ensure it isn’t left behind as investors turn toward Europe as the next frontier of the cannabis industry.”

European powerhouses like Germany and Denmark have already cashed in on this increasing industry but the UK has still not seen the true potential of proper medical cannabis in the UK.

In 2018, the UK government announced that it would grant medical cannabis prescriptions to rare-illness patients under a specialised doctor’s authority…but only three were ever issued.

Despite the UK being one of the world’s largest cultivators of medical cannabis, it currently imports all domestic use cannabis medicine and the majority 
of CBD products too.

Prof. Mike Barnes, co-founder of Maple Tree, a global medical cannabis consultancy said: 

“If we were able to develop and export more cannabis-based medicines, we could continue to be a global heavyweight and increase our market share even further.”

“At a time when the UK sorely needs similar economic boosts, going green and backing cannabis will deliver for the UK economy.”