The Task Force expects the majority of Canadians will most likely purchase marijuana products supplied by commercial growers and dispensaries, all of which require approved licenses and will be heavily monitored by the federal government. The penalty depends on whether someone was hurt or killed during the offence.
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Provinces and territories are expected to heavily scrutinize the legislation over the coming months to sort out details around distribution and law enforcement, the Canadian press reported.
The new bill would also enact stiffer penalties where a driver is impaired by both marijuana and alcohol.
The bills also contain strict regulations around advertising, marketing, and branding legal marijuana, so as not to appeal to youth.
The existing access to medical marijuana will remain unchanged, the bill outlined.
That is still the case. “If the illicit market was going to disappear and the [licensed producers] move in like an unwanted relative the stocks would be rallying”.
Canada began allowing marijuana for medical purposes in 2001, according to USA Today.
The new law would set the national minimum age to legally buy cannabis at 18 years old, but it will be up to the provinces as to whether they restrict it further.
With distribution up to provinces, Ivancicevic said he’s hoping the Ontario doesn’t adopt an LCBO-type model for marijuana.
The federal Liberal government has finally launched its long-awaited effort to legalize recreational marijuana, setting in motion a host of sweeping policy changes for public safety and health across Canada.
The government has set a ambitious goal of implementing the new laws by July 2018 especially given that exact regulations, Senate approval and provincial regulations still need to be worked out.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said that any revenues from the taxation of marijuana should be directed to addiction treatment, mental health services and public health education – initiatives Goodale said would be a key priority. It’s also a departure from the norm in the US, where states that have legalized recreational marijuana use have set a minimum age of 21.
Personal possession, however, would be limited to 30 grams (one ounce). It is not yet known whether those future regulations will allow the sale of sweets.
Shares in Canadian marijuana companies tumbled after Thursday’s announcement.
“Given the uncertainty in Washington, this is not the time to be… trying to carve off new turf and expand markets and make dramatic statements about marijuana”, Hickenlooper told The Denver Post last month.
It didn’t project how much revenue governments could haul in once they begin collecting taxes on legal pot sales.
Canadian officials were in close touch with their American counterparts as they drafted the proposed law, Ralph Goodale, Canada’s public safety minister, said on Thursday.
Ivancicevic pointed out the government has committed to increasing funding for Health Canada which he feels is important as there is a large backlog of applications to produce marijuana. While eight states plus the District of Columbia have already legalized recreational marijuana here, it remains illegal at the federal level. These represent more than 20 per cent of the total USA population, approximately 75 million people.
He has also said that his late brother Michel was facing marijuana possession charges for a “tiny amount” of pot before his death in an avalanche in 1998, and that this influenced his decision to propose legalizing cannabis.
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Individuals would be allowed to possess up to 30 grams of marijuana for personal use, similar to the one-ounce standard in USA states where marijuana use is legal.
