Pubdate: Thu, 20 Apr 2017
Source: National Post (Canada)
Copyright: 2017 Canwest Publishing Inc.
Contact: http://drugsense.org/url/wEtbT4yU
Website: http://www.nationalpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/286
Author: Sunny Freeman
Page: FP3

PRIVATIZE MARIJUANA SALES, THINK TANK RECOMMENDS

Marijuana should be sold through independent retailers rather than
provincially owned outlets to eliminate conflicts of interest between
public health and profit imperatives, the C.D. Howe Institute urges in
a new letter to be released Thursday.

Research fellow Anindya Sen's letter to the Liberals' marijuana point
man Bill Blair argues against provincially owned marijuana outlets, a
model not used in any other recreational market.

Some provincial governments, including British Columbia, Ontario and
Manitoba, have expressed support for selling marijuana through
provincially owned liquor outlets. That could raise questions about
whether they'd have incentive to encourage marijuana use to bolster
provincial revenues, the way some advertise for their provincially
owned alcohol outlets, Sen, who is also an economics professor at the
University of Waterloo, wrote in the letter to Blair.

"My concern is that if we are introducing marijuana under the
framework of public health, there might be some conflicts in following
that type of doctrine and having incentive to try to market or
increase sales of marijuana - that would be the case of any huge
monopoly in the market," he said in an interview.

Sen points out that selling marijuana at existing liquor stores would
require expensive Fifty-one per cent of Canadians trust drug and
pharmacy chains to sell marijuana over other distribution models, the
Environics Communications CanTrust Index found. Act, the federal
government will license and regulate marijuana producers but leave
sales and distribution questions entirely up to the provinces and
territories. Some have signalled they will not be ready for the lofty
July 2018 legalization timeline the federal Liberals set.

The federal government said that it will also allow for licensed
marijuana producers to sell product directly to contained no such
stipulation. While provinces should be able to choose the most
efficient and effective sales method, further guidelines from the
federal government on sales and public consumption would be helpful,
Sen added.

The legislation mandates that marijuana is not sold at a store where
it can be seen by young people, virtually eliminating the prospect of
it being sold openly at convenience stores or grocery stores as booze
is in some provinces.

The union representing Ontario's LCBO employees are lobbying for
marijuana sales in the outlets. Meanwhile, Canada's biggest pharmacy
chain, Shoppers Drug Mart, has said it wants to sell medical marijuana.

More Canadians (51 per cent) trust drug and pharmacy chains to sell
marijuana than other distribution models, closely followed by
government-run clinics or dispensaries, at 48 per cent, according to
the 2017 Environics Communications CanTrust Index released Wednesday.
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MAP posted-by: Matt