Former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak described his country's growing cannabis industry at the CannX International Medical Conference this week. Pointedly, he remarked that current Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has a "rich track record that he doesn't fulfill his promises" and specifically cited the slow development of cannabis regulations in Israel.
The country will hold a national election Sept. 17. News coverage hints at a tight race.
With that in mind, Barak wryly suggested that Netanyahu won't have any employment trouble if indeed he's ousted from office. "After we relieve Netanyahu in about a week from his post as Prime Minister, he has a lot of vacancies just waiting for him in the cannabis industry," Barak said at the conference. (Barak is on the board of InterCure. The company recently abandoned plans for an IPO.)
"Israel probably lost between one-third and one-quarter of the global cannabis industry's economic potential, following the regulatory delay in exporting cannabis," he said. "However, Israel has not yet lost in the global race and I definitely believe it will become a significant player in the global industry."
