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Medicinal cannabis campaigners say the government's dogmatic approach is "ludicrous" and ignores that the current regime is not working.
In late 2018, MPs passed legislation creating a temporary criminal defence so people with life-limiting illnesses could use cannabis while the wider medical regime was being set up.
Ministry officials are required by law to deliver a report to Health Minister Andrew Little by mid-December on whether the amnesty is still needed or should be amended.
But an internal document, obtained by RNZ, shows officials have pre-emptively ruled out expanding the protection to cover people with less serious conditions.