Penington Institute CEO talks to The Australian about the push to reform outdated driving laws for medicinal cannabis patients.
Policy experts are calling for Australian premiers to reform roadside drug testing laws to protect medicinal cannabis patients whose driving is not impaired.
Since medicinal cannabis was legalised in 2016, prescriptions have surged – yet only Victoria and Tasmania have updated their drug-driving laws to keep pace.
In this story in The Australian, Penington Institute CEO John Ryan says:
“The law is lagging behind the science – the tests are so sensitive they are picking up cannabis from weeks ago.
“We have a roadside testing regime introduced before we had medicinal cannabis. It’s a bit of a mess."
Penington Institute has written to all state and territory premiers and chief ministers urging reform.
“Ultimately, we’ve got to get to a situation where people on prescribed medications, who are following doctors’ orders and are not impaired, are allowed to drive.
“That would make it consistent with other psychoactive pharmaceuticals like pain relief opioids and anti-anxiety drugs.”
Read the full article, ”Reform dopey drug driving laws’, say medicinal cannabis industry and policy experts’, published in The Australian on 13 May 2025.