Decriminalizing Cannabis could save Aussie tax payers billions every year
Decriminalising cannabis could save Aussie tax payers $850 million a year, according to the Penington Institute’s Cannabis in Australia 2022 report.
Apparently, it costs us about $1.7 billion a year in law enforcement costs related to weed offences (from 2015 data) with around $1.1 billion on imprisonment, $475 million on police, $62 million on courts, $52 million on legal aid and prosecution, and $25 million on community corrections.
“Cannabis can have negative consequences including a risk of dependence for some people, however the demonstrated harms and enormous financial burden associated with Australia’s simplistic prohibition approach is much more harmful than the substance itself,” CEO John Ryan says.
But beyond the massive savings from decriminalisation, we’re missing out on a humongous market opportunity.
“The quality of Australian-grown cannabis is world-standard, but our farmers are forced to stand by and watch as producers in North America and elsewhere seize the markets that could be theirs, including our domestic market,” Ryan added.
“Onerous regulations and a lack of government investment are holding the Australian industry back from this significant opportunity.”
Even though it’s not over-the-counter legal just yet, our medicinal cannabis market is expanding in leaps and bounds, with revenue in 2021 estimated at a solid $230 million and there’s some 40 cannabis companies listed on the ASX.
