Pubdate: Sat, 31 Oct 2015
Source: Vancouver Sun (CN BC)
Copyright: 2015 Postmedia Network Inc.
Contact:  http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/477
Author: Ian Mulgrew
Page: A7

B.C. NEEDS ITS OWN POT PLAN

Start Now: Legalization Has Broad Support, and Many Issues Need to Be Addressed

In the wake of the Liberal tsunami, Premier Christy Clark sounded far 
from enthusiastic about prime minister-to-be Justin Trudeau's plan to 
legalize pot.

"It's a federal issue and we will work with the government in 
whatever moves they make on this front," she said with nary a grin.

"It's a criminal code provision, the criminal code is a federal 
responsibility, so if and when they make changes, we will work with 
them to make sure that changes can be effective in B.C."

No Big Lebowski jokes, no giggle about being a Bob Marley fan; 
instead, in the spirit of the outgoing prime minister, Clark sounded 
like a pinched school mistress.

Amending the criminal code, as she well knows, is only one facet of 
legalization - how cannabis should be regulated and sold, in what 
forms and by whom, along with related issues such as advertising 
rules, would still have to be determined.

And the provinces and territories, especially B.C., need to start 
looking for answers.

American states that have legalized marijuana and its derivatives 
each have their own schemes and each has experienced growing pains 
and a learning curve.

Still, each also had a robust public debate to determine taxes, rules 
about marketing, limiting purchases, impaired driving law changes ....

South of the border, as well, there are continuing talks between the 
states and Washington about overarching national concerns such as 
interstate transport, banking laws and investment controls.

That's similar to the way Prohibition ended in the last century, with 
each of the states slowly embracing change and determining how to 
handle a return to legal alcohol.

In Canada, if weed were legalized in a way similar to alcohol, the 
provinces and territories would take the lead - constitutionally they 
have sole responsibility for regulating the sale and distribution of booze.

That route makes sense given the nature of cannabis products.

If Ottawa wants a say in future non-criminal marijuana regulation, 
Parliament has authority under the auspices of its health-and-food 
responsibilities to get involved.

But the provinces and territories again would play a big role in how 
recreational cannabis was rolled out in their bailiwicks.

It's hard to conceive of Ottawa taking that route - national 
regulation would be risky, in my view, when Trudeau can hand the bag 
to the provinces and territories, along with the headaches of 
implementation, and ask them to send him a cheque.

Still, no matter the challenges or its final form, cannabis 
legalization augurs new jobs and investment in the public and private sectors.

Instead of her I-don't-have-to-deal-with-the-issue-yet stance, Clark 
should lead and instigate a broad discussion on how the imminent 
change should occur in B.C.

Send some bureaucrats to Washington and Colorado to bring back a 
report on what they have learned from legalized dope: How much tax 
can you collect? What was the impact on impaired driving?

Clark should recognize the potential new source of revenue, the broad 
public support behind Trudeau's promise and the need to address 
community issues such as the illegal dispensaries that have joined 
grow-ops as a serious concern for municipalities.

Much education and a proper conversation are needed about how pot 
should be regulated, manufactured, taxed and sold after the lifting 
of the criminal sanction.

Trudeau recognized this in saying that while he plans to act "right 
away," he couldn't provide a timeline.

"We don't yet know exactly what rate we're going to be taxing it, how 
we're going to control it, or whether it will happen in the first 
months, within the first year, or whether it's going to take a year 
or two to kick in," he said.

Former attorneys general, medical officers of health, civic leaders, 
academics - there is a long list of people who for a long time have 
been advocating for an end to the prohibition and the violence it engenders.

Clark should finally get on the bandwagon.

What we don't need at this point is a Cheech-and-Chong skit featuring 
a premier who doesn't realize change has come - or worse, who wants 
to drag her heels.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom