Pubdate: Fri, 28 Sep 2012
Source: Parksville Qualicum Beach News (CN BC)
Copyright: 2012 Black Press
Contact: http://mapinc.org/url/5n7vJzqp
Website: http://drugsense.org/url/zLXtMKI5
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1361
Author: Auren Ruvinsky

PARKSVILLE MAYOR SUPPORTED MOTION

B.C. municipal leaders, including Parksville Mayor Chris Burger,
joined the call to decriminalization marijuana at this week's Union of
B.C. Municipalities convention.

"There was 30 or 40 minutes of debate and roughly two thirds, a
healthy majority, voted in favour," reported Parksville mayor Chris
Burger Wednesday from Victoria.

"Right now Victoria is on political overdrive," he said of the 1,500
municipal delegates who hope to power through more than 200
resolutions while a couple big ones get all the attention.

All of Parksville's city councillors made it to this year's conference
- - they don't have any of their own resolutions on the agenda, but many
they say pique their interest.

The decriminalization motion, put forward by Metchosin, said
prohibition is a "failed policy which has cost millions of dollars in
police, court, jail and social costs," and calls for the "appropriate
government to decriminalize marijuana and research the regulation and
taxation of marijuana."

"The debate was oriented toward the eventual legalization," Burger
said, pointing out that it is a federal issue.

He previously said "The war on drugs isn't effective," and that
municipalities are particularly interested in the taxation
possibilities.

Burger said other issues of interest include a unanimous resolution
asking for provincial and federal governments to provide more stable,
predictable, long-term funding for infrastructure and sustainability
objectives, to move away from the "one-off cheque presentations."

Similarly, a resolution against cuts to coast guard stations passed
easily.
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MAP posted-by: Matt