Canopy Growth Corp. (WEED.TO) has joined forces with a U.K. researcher of cannabis-based therapies after the British government moved to liberalize the use of medical marijuana.

The new company, formed with Beckley Canopy Therapeutics Ltd., aims to make products available in Britain from early this year. The government made it legal for specialist doctors to prescribe medical marijuana for patients with severe clinical need in November.

The decision came after studies showed that it could benefit children with conditions such as severe epilepsy, although the government said it was not a step toward legalizing cannabis for recreational use.

“We are witnessing the birth of the U.K. medical cannabis industry, an industry borne out of the unmet clinical needs of patients across the country,” said Marc Wayne, co-managing director of the venture, called Spectrum Biomedical U.K. The partnership “is testament to the importance of the opportunity to help patients access the medicine here in the U.K.,” he added in a statement.

The venture was created after Canopy, a Canadian giant of the cannabis industry, announced planned clinical trials of marijuana-based drugs in the U.K. last year. The company and its investors said they put 7.4 million pounds (US$9.5 million) into testing products for treatment of pain and opioid dependence.

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