Pubdate: Sat, 09 Jan 2016
Source: London Free Press (CN ON)
Copyright: 2016 The London Free Press
Contact: http://www.lfpress.com/letters
Website: http://www.lfpress.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/243
Author: Kristy Kirkup
Page: B3

Marijuana Legalization

POT ACTIVIST QUESTIONS EX-POLICE CHIEF'S APPOINTMENT

OTTAWA - Some members of the marijuana movement are concerned about 
the government's decision to make Toronto's former police chief a 
point man on legalizing pot, activist Jodie Emery said Friday.

Liberal MP Bill Blair, parliamentary secretary to Justice Minister 
Jody-Wilson Raybould, has been tapped to take a leading role on the 
file, working closely with the departments of Justice, Public Safety 
and Health.

"The minister of justice and her colleagues are confident that 
parliamentary secretary Blair's experience and background in public 
safety will be a great asset to the government's work to ensure a 
careful and thoughtful approach to the legalization and regulation of 
marijuana," said Justice spokesman Andrew Gowing.

Emery, whose husband Marc is Canada's self-styled "prince of pot," 
said she has her doubts, considering police have traditionally been 
champions of cracking down on marijuana.

"One of my concerns and one of the biggest concerns of the marijuana 
movement, the community who have been fighting for this for decades . 
is that police have always been the biggest cheerleaders for 
prohibition and they've been our adversaries in this whole historical 
movement," she said.

Emery, who tried to run for a Liberal nomination last year but was 
not recommended by the party, said she understands why the government 
is turning to Blair for public relations reasons.

"The Liberals suffered a lot of attacks from the Conservatives over 
legalization," she said.

"With the whole world watching Canada right now, the Liberal 
government doesn't want to be seen as pro-pot."

The choice of Blair suggests the government understands the various 
challenges and public safety concerns that come with legal marijuana, 
Canadian Police Association president Tom Stamatakis said in a statement.

"We look forward to working constructively with him on this file." 
Adam Goldenberg, a lawyer with expertise in marijuana regulation, 
said he wasn't surprised to see Blair chosen to fill the role.

"If your message is crime control and public safety, you can't ask 
for a better spokesperson than a former police chief," said Goldenberg.

"It's going to be very difficult to point at an MP whom most of us 
are used to seeing in a highly decorated police uniform and accuse 
him of being soft on crime."

Blair also represents a riding in Scarborough, one of several in the 
Toronto area that are likely to be Liberal-Tory battlegrounds in the 
next election, he added.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom