Pubdate: Sun, 27 Jan 2013
Source: National Post (Canada)
Copyright: 2013 Canwest Publishing Inc.
Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/wEtbT4yU
Website: http://www.nationalpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/286
Author: Peter O'Neil, Postmedia News

LEGALIZE POT AND REAP THE BENEFIT FROM INFLUX OF TOKING TOURISTS:
LIBERALS

Canada's economy could benefit from an influx of toking tourists if
weed is legalized, the Liberal Party of Canada says in a new analysis
that backs the party's 2012 policy convention resolution.

And Canada's health-care system and law-enforcement agencies would
gain from billions in new tax revenues - money now going to organized
crime - as a result of domestic sales of high-quality, low-priced and
government-regulated Canadian weed, according to the 38-page paper.

It was prepared by a party committee in response to the overwhelming
vote a year ago in Ottawa by party members in favour of legalizing,
regulating and taxing marijuana sales.

One of the paper's co-authors, citing evidence from countries with
liberal pot laws, said tokers from the United States and elsewhere
will be drawn to Canada if they can enjoy a hassle-free high.

And B.C.'s reputation will make it a particularly attractive
destination, said Sangeeta Lalli. "We're known around the world for
having good cannabis."

The paper, while citing various concerns ranging from health issues to
expected opposition from the U.S. government, presents an
overwhelmingly positive scenario.

"Thousands of Canadians will ... find direct and indirect employment,"
the paper says, citing work in agriculture, an estimated 2,700
specialty retail stores, manufacturing and distribution outlets,
inspection and quality control, health research, legal and accounting
services, marketing and tourism

Pot tourism is viewed as an important, though controversial, economic
engine in some jurisdictions with liberal legal regimes. It has been
estimated that up to a third of Amsterdam's seven million annual
tourists enjoy lighting up at one of the city's ubiquitous cannabis
cafes.

The Dutch government, concerned about criminals and other unsavory
characters from countries such as Belgium and Germany showing up in
border cities, announced earlier this year a "weed pass" that would
allow only Dutch nationals, but not visitors, to smoke up in a cafe.

But resistance from Amsterdam merchants concerned about a tourism
drop-off resulted in the government backing down last month on strict
enforcement of the law.

The authors object to the option of decriminalization of possession,
something advocated by presumed leadership front-runner Justin
Trudeau, since that would still leave production and distribution in
the hands of organized-crime gangs.

Recommendations for legalizing weed

The study proposes legalizing weed for what it estimates to be roughly
three million users in Canada. Among the recommendations:

The regulatory regime should be established by the federal government,
in close cooperation with the provinces. A federal-provincial
revenue-sharing agreement will be based on models established for
alcohol and tobacco.

The legal age would be the same as it is for alcohol in each province,
and people would be allowed to grow their own pot as long as it was in
small quantities for personal use.

In order to combat black-market sales, people will be limited to
buying or possessing no more than four ounces, or a little over 0.1
kilogram.

Citing statistics from a number of studies, including RAND Corporation
and the Fraser Institute, it says Canada's market is about $3-$4
billion annually to a market of roughly three million consumers.

The private sector would take the lead in producing and marketing pot,
and would have to find a way to produce top-quality pot but sell it at
a price well below the current black market rate, despite a
recommended 35% tax rate.

Penalties and law enforcement measures should be toughened up to
prevent exports and sales to minors.
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D