Senators want science panel to handle cannabis bill

Chairman Senate Standing Committee on Science and Technology, Senator Kamil Ali Agha on Friday recommended that the Cannabis Control and Regulatory Authority Bill 2024 be referred to the Science and Technology Committee, instead of the Finance Committee.

The recommendation came after a debate in the upper house over which standing committee should handle the recently passed bill.

Following disagreement in the house, the Senate Finance Committee recommended the transfer of the bill to the Science and Technology Committee.

The Senate Finance Committee, chaired by Senator Saleem Mandviwalla, met on Friday to discuss the matter. The agenda included deliberations on the Cannabis Control and Regulatory Authority Bill 2024, which had sparked controversy over its referral to the finance committee.

During the meeting, officials from the Ministry of Science and Technology briefed the committee on the bill.

However, members questioned why the finance committee had been assigned the bill in the first place.