Best practices and pitfalls, how lessons learned stateside can inform Canadian cannabis legalization
Colorado and Washington are often referenced for pioneering the legalization of adult-use cannabis in 2012. Today, eight U.S. states and the District of Columbia have adopted laws legalizing cannabis for adult-use, with a total of 44 U.S. states providing legal medical or adult-use access or both. As recently as Jan. 1, sales of adult-use cannabis […]
Sen. Unger’s got it wrong on marijuana legalization
Re: “Marijuana legislation will not achieve its objectives and should be defeated,” (The Hill Times, Dec. 20, online). Senator Betty Unger’s op-ed against Bill C-45 is false and deceptive. Unger claims that Colorado now leads the United States in cannabis use amongst 12- to 17-year-olds. In February 2017, the Journal of the American Medical Association […]
Trudeau government should create process to pardon, expunge criminal records of Canadians with cannabis offences
When the Liberals promised Canadians cannabis legalization in the last election, Canadians understood legalization to mean the end of criminalization, the end of stigmatization, and the end of the prohibitionist approach to cannabis. It is why the NDP, along with millions of other Canadians, were somewhat surprised to read the fine print of Bill C-45 […]
MJ-101: time for ‘higher’ knowledge about cannabis
KINGSTON, ONT.—While many psychoactive substances like caffeine, cocaine, tobacco and heroin have plant origins, none has proven a contemporary social phenomenon as marijuana—a plant with both medicinal and recreational potential. Very few companies or indeed countries can boast the iconic brand recognition of the cannabis leaf; certainly, none of the aforementioned plants. Science, industry, agriculture, […]
A look ahead at cannabis legalization in 2018
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau set off the countdown clock when he announced last month that cannabis would be legal in Canada by the summer of 2018, however there are still plenty of issues to sort out before Canadians can legally light up, and some that will linger even after that. Legislation introduced by the Liberal government […]
Cannabis legalization in Canada: the case for pardons and preferential licensing
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s proposed date for legalizing the recreational use of cannabis is fast approaching and the Senate is debating Bill C-45, the Cannabis Act. Given the social harms associated with drug prohibition, legalization cannot come soon enough. We also need to go further and right past wrongs by pardoning those convicted of minor […]
Municipalities key to safe, effective cannabis legalization
WINNIPEG—With cannabis set to become legal for recreational use by next summer, Canadians are asking tough questions: Will marijuana be sold next to my child’s school? How will we keep drug-impaired drivers off the road? How will we dissuade my teenager from smoking pot? These are the kinds of questions that thousands of municipal leaders […]
How our plan to legalize cannabis will strengthen health, justice, and public safety
The current approach of cannabis prohibition has failed to protect our communities and our youth. Canadian youth use cannabis at rates that are amongst the highest in the world. Our latest survey indicates that 21 per cent of teens aged 15-19 and 30 per cent of young adults aged 20-24 reported using cannabis in the […]
Health Canada adding staff, launches new branch, in preparation for legal pot
Health Canada is taking the lead on the marijuana file in Ottawa in advance of the summer deadline for legalization, overseeing product licensing and regulations, quality monitoring, health research, and public education. In preparation, the department is transforming significantly, according to experts and a former Liberal health minister, adding new inspectors and staff to deal with backlogged licensing […]
Government falling behind on cannabis public education, say critics
Health Canada says it will launch a national public education advertising campaign on cannabis in the spring, though critics say it should have already been in place in order to educate the public ahead of the July 1 legalization deadline. The impaired driving campaign run by Public Safety,“Don’t Drive High”, has been popping up in […]
