By Benjie Cooper
IG: @nuglifenews
YouTube: Lucid’s Vlog
The impact that 13-year-old Billy Caldwell’s story has made on the United Kingdom is undeniable, and the tireless efforts of his mother Charlotte on his behalf have recently compelled the Home Office to reschedule medicinal cannabis.
But the Caldwells live in Castlederg county in Northern Ireland, where a series of licenses are required to obtain medicinal cannabis for individuals with a severe need of it. Charlotte is currently campaigning for the passage of Billy’s Law, a measure that would render national policy identical to that of the United Kingdom.
Under the law, specialist doctors would be able to prescribe medicinal cannabis for individuals who require it to effectively treat their condition, as the policy will be in Great Britain this Fall.
On Friday, August 10, Charlotte met with a group of politicians from the Sinn Fein, Democratic Unionist Party, Social Democratic Labour Party, Ulster Unionist Party, Alliance Green Party, and People Before Profit party in Stormont to ask for their support in her campaign.
“A fantastic meeting, we were fully supported by all the parties,” said Charlotte after the meeting had concluded. “I feel very proud and blessed today, this support shows that the will is here for this to move forward and Billy’s Law to be implemented in Northern Ireland.”
But Northern Ireland hasn’t had a devolved government since 2017, and the Assembly is currently in suspension and cannot do anything with the measure at the moment.
“This is something we are all united on so I don’t want to bring division into it by having a political point scoring exercise,” said Ulster Unionist leader Robin Swan. “I think it is important we concentrate on taking the steps that all the parties have agreed on today.”
Charlotte Caldwell says that the cross-party delegation will be writing to Home Secretary Sajid Javid that when the law changes in Great Britain, it should change in Northern Ireland as well.
