Advocates of being able to easily obtain legalized marijuana are not going to be happy when they read the new discussion paper published by the federal government. If anyone thought the great support for recreational marijuana given by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on the campaign trail would help any nearby dispensaries, they are in for a big surprise. The plan seems to be focused much more on regulation and control rather than giving people easy access.
The name of the paper is ‘Towards the Legalization, Regulation and Restriction of Access to Marijuana.’ The name itself gives an idea of how the government is thinking as it is pushing the legislation to legalize the drug. This is said to be done by next spring. One of the major concerns of one of the authors is to avoid “normalization.” Basically, this author believes that if Ottawa actually approves of cannabis use, more Canadians will be inclined to buy and try the drug. The paper does state that regulated use of marijuana has medical benefits, but it also states that recreational use is purely negative and should not be encouraged, although it is rarely tolerated.
The harsh reality is that this paper might be more in line with public opinion than cannabis advocates are going to admit. While most Canadians state that they are for legalization, they are also in favor of harsh regulation of the drug. The paper says that just eight percent of adult users use cannabis while twenty-five percent of drug users are between the ages of 15 and 24. Preventing sue by the younger group is a big goal under the government.
“Marijuana is not a benign substance, and the scientific evidence clearly demonstrates that young people are at a higher level of risk,” it adds.
