Pubdate: Fri, 10 Oct 2014 Source: Nanaimo Daily News (CN BC) Copyright: 2014 Nanaimo Daily News Contact: http://www.canada.com/nanaimodailynews/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1608 Author: Joan Bryden Page: A7 Cited: CAMH Cannabis Policy Framework: http://mapinc.org/url/sCod1dXx CONSERVATIVES HOLD HARD LINE ON MARIJUANA LAWS OTTAWA - The federal government's resolve to enforce the law against marijuana use is unshaken by a call to legalize pot from the country's largest mental health and addiction treatment centre. Justice Minister Peter MacKay said Thursday the government has no intention of heeding the call of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. The government remains committed to going in the opposition direction, said MacKay: finding ways to actually increase enforcement of marijuana laws, including potentially making it a ticketing offence to possess small quantities of dope. But Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau, who has been championing legalization for more than a year, said CAMH's endorsement of the idea shows he's on the right track while the Tories are ideologically bound to a war on drugs that has proven a total failure. NDP health critic Libby Davies, whose party supports decriminalization of marijuana, said the Conservatives are becoming increasingly isolated on the issue as more and more public health groups refuse to back their tough-on-pot message. In a policy statement released Thursday, CAMH said cannabis should be legalized and strictly regulated, sold through a government-controlled monopoly with limited availability and an age limit. The centre concluded that the current legal prohibition on pot has failed to prevent use or reduce the harm it can cause. - --- MAP posted-by: Matt