Seldom a day goes by when financial pages don't highlight new developments in the marijuana industry. So, this is who we are today. Former B.C. Health Minister Terry Lake is now on the corporate board of a major marijuana company. Former Toronto police chief and current MP Bill Blair is a point man on marijuana legalization. Former B.C. Solicitor General and West Vancouver Police Chief Kash Heed is a consultant for marijuana companies. The list of government and policing honchos who have jumped on the bandwagon is substantial. [continues 757 words]
When Justin Trudeau promised to legalize the use of recreational marijuana, he no doubt felt it would be one of his easiest and most rewarding tasks as Canada's new and uber-cool prime minister. He vowed to make it a priority and change the laws within two years. Fast-forward to last month, almost 2 1/2 years later, and Bill C-45, to legalize cannabis, faced an unexpected pushback from a Senate that threatened to send it packing. Trudeau took this chance to warn his supposedly independent senators that their job description didn't call for them to defeat bills proposed by the very government that had bestowed upon them their most honourable appointments. [continues 574 words]
This April, the federal Liberals will consider a policy resolution that could result in the decriminalization of low-level drug possession across Canada - something that people who use drugs, medical professionals, and increasingly, members of government have been pushing for. For Conservatives and other prohibitionists, decriminalization has been fiercely contested on the presumption that it makes a radical 'Wild West' of the drug market. They argue that a tough-on-crime agenda is the only answer to an opioid crisis that has killed thousands - but fail to acknowledge that under absolute prohibition we relinquish control over every echelon of the drug chain to a black market that no amount of law enforcement will get under control. [continues 555 words]
News release that called for study to make personal use legal called 'a surprise' Things started off on a pretty collegial tone Tuesday morning in Vancouver city council. Much of the morning session was concerned with development plans for an 8.4-hectare site in south Vancouver. Councillors echoed their support for the project, and one commented on proceedings going "so smoothly." The mayor agreed, saying it was nice to conduct the meeting "without the kind of friction that can sometimes occur." [continues 768 words]
How do we get out of this box? It may be time to follow Portugal in legalizing drugs British Columbia has a $250,000-a-day drug habit that is spiralling out of control - and it's not supported by the Downtown Eastside street bazaar. Rather, it's the opioid substitution program. The province now spends more than $90 million a year on "treatment" and health services for participants of the drug-maintenance program - that's more than it provides for legal aid. [continues 666 words]
Re: This is your brain on pot, Douglas Todd column, Feb. 17. Again, kudos to The Vancouver Sun for Douglas Todd's column on the potential health risks of marijuana. Educators have been warning about this for a long time, but the negative effects on adolescents has been blanked out by politicians looking for easy tax dollars. Just wait for the weeping and wailing that will follow the legalization of marijuana as youth damage their brains while participating in what they see as a rite of passage to adulthood. Ted Cooper, Powell River [end]
Psychologists point to 'compelling evidence' of cannabis' potential health impairments Apart from the #Metoo maelstrom and the housing crises in Toronto and Vancouver, few things stir up Canadians more than marijuana, which its promoters claim is the cure for everything from glaucoma to brain disease =2E Should private outlets sell recreational marijuana? Is it more enjoyable to smoke or swallow cannabis? Will I get rich on pot stocks? Is it possible to remove the criminal underground from Canada's $6 billion-a-year cannabis industry? [continues 975 words]
Are public health officials facing up to the fact that the overdose epidemic in Canada and the U.S. is mostly devastating boys and men? There are small signs some health officials are slowly, awkwardly, hesitatingly beginning to acknowledge the obvious: The overdose crisis is predominantly an issue of men's health. Public officials have much denial to make up for. It was just a year ago that former B.C. Liberal health minister Terry Lake pulled out the public relations stops to open a 38-bed Vancouver facility for women to overcome substance abuse. Months before an election, Lake also announced an overdose prevention site exclusively for females. [continues 730 words]
Overwhelming 'delayed symptoms' once again a worry as 4/20 event nears Calls to the B.C. Drug and Poison Information Centre have surged on the annual 4/20 cannabis event in Vancouver in recent years, according to a report by provincial health officials. "The 4/20 cannabis calls represent a real spike, way over what we see on ordinary days," said Dr. Tom Kosatsky, medical director of environmental health services for the B.C. Centre for Disease Control. He acknowledged that the total number of calls remains small, but is nevertheless growing. His report is published in the current B.C. Medical Journal. [continues 614 words]
A Green Gold Rush gets a wet blanket from a Father Knows Best government It should embrace the employment opportunities, the tourism potential, the joie de vivre with which California has legalized. The provincial government's initial plan for marijuana legalization must have been put together by spoilsports and dour Mrs. Grundies. It's tone-deaf. B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth "sounded like the Grinch Who Stole Christmas unveiling details of the province's blueprint for cannabis," Ian Mulgrew writes. [continues 797 words]
There is much to praise in the B.C. government's new retail regulatory regime for recreational cannabis. But there are also a few oddities that suggest Victoria hasn't moved beyond reefer madness as far as we thought. Handing responsibility for licensing and oversight of private pot shops to the Liquor Control and Licensing Branch seems a prudent move to ensure an orderly transition of store fronts operating outside the law to legal status. Allowing the B.C. Liquor Distribution Branch to operate a stand-alone network of its own outlets mirrors the successful approach of selling wine in B.C. through private and public retail outlets. [continues 298 words]
The provincial government on Monday unveiled a set of retail rules for recreational cannabis that paves the way for a new network of stand-alone stores operated by the B.C. Liquor Distribution Branch but leaves an opening for existing medical-pot dispensaries to legitimize. However, municipalities will be left with the authority to block any storefront sales of marijuana if they oppose it, Solicitor General Mike Farnworth said in unveiling the regulatory framework. The retail framework, to be in place for legalization of recreational cannabis by July 1, will allow for online and storefront sales but restrict bricks-and-mortar commerce to stand-alone stores that don't sell liquor, tobacco, food or other products. [continues 631 words]
Some fear increased police presence will drive drug users to avoid health services While Vancouver police proclaim victory in a recent crackdown on crime in the Downtown Eastside, some locals fear the boost in beat cops is pushing people who use drugs into harm's way. Last week, Vancouver police increased foot patrols to address "street disorder" and prevent violence. Police said the sweeps came in response to a surge in complaints from residents, business owners and visitors. As well, people with mobility issues and the elderly have complained about blocked sidewalks and doorways. [continues 621 words]
Existing dispensaries could transition to legal market with supply deals intact If it wasn't for the scent, customers who wandered into Eden Medicinal Society would be forgiven for thinking they had entered a boutique health store rather than a marijuana dispensary. The distinctive fragrance greets shoppers at the door. It wafts from jars filled with bright green B.C. bud lining spotless glass shelves. Flatscreen monitors on gleaming white walls display prices of golden hemp flower paste and mocha THC syrup. [continues 861 words]
A new study suggests Vancouver pot smokers could generate up to $29 million annually for the province in additional tax revenue if marijuana was taxed at the same rate as cigarettes. The 2018 Cannabis Price Index, compiled by pot-tech startup Seedo, looked at the cost of cannabis around the world. The study then calculated how much additional tax revenue each city's population of pot smokers might generate based on each city's consumption and average marijuana and cigarette tax rates in the U.S. [continues 393 words]
Until the federal government passes a law that legalizes the recreational use of marijuana, widely expected to happen sometime this summer, selling cannabis is illegal. Not only was the Robson Street open-air pot market dealing in an illegal product, it was operating in a public space without permission. If that wasn't enough, the vendors were conducting business without licences, paid no business taxes, and failed to collect GST or provincial sales tax, as every business selling a product or service is required to do. [continues 90 words]
Provincial health officer Dr. Perry Kendall will call it a career next week, confident that the tools are finally in place to tackle the opioid overdose crisis that has ravaged this province for more than three years. Kendall has been among the chief architects of B.C.'s response to the deadly wave of powerful synthetic opioids that have largely replaced heroin in the illicit drug supply. Deputy provincial health officer Dr. Bonnie Henry will replace Kendall when he officially retires on Jan. 31. Henry will become the first woman to serve as B.C.'s provincial health officer. [continues 801 words]
Vancouver police are recommending 11 criminal charges be laid against five people in connection with Sunday's bust of an open-air marijuana market in Vancouver's Robson Square. VPD Deputy Chief Howard Chow says four people were arrested - and another is pending - after police descended on Robson in the block between Hornby and Howe late Sunday evening. But just hours after the police released details of the bust Tuesday, pot was once again being sold on the block. Robert Moore, president of World Cannabis, an anti-prohibition advocacy group, was at the "cannabis farmer's market" Tuesday afternoon but not selling cannabis. [continues 688 words]
Punitive approach behind OD crisis, Susan Boyd says. Canada has been inching toward legal regulation of cannabis for many years. But the fears that paralyzed our country for more than a century are still very much in evidence, despite decades of proof that none of the punitive policies we cling to help reduce drug-related harm. Increasingly, drug prohibition is understood as an issue of social justice and human rights by those who have fought for a better way. The history of Canadian drug prohibition is marked by many pivotal moments and challenges to the status quo, brought forward with passion and insight by community activists, people who use drugs, organizations, constitutional lawyers, researchers, and health and service providers. [continues 633 words]
Food vendors had filed complaints about cannabis sales near art gallery An open-air weed market operating in downtown Vancouver's Robson Square has been shut down by police. Complaints were filed in recent weeks with the Vancouver police over vendors who had set up tents and carts in the pedestrian-only area, selling cannabis and related products. Nearby food cart vendors voiced concerns about marijuana booths selling to minors, and there were questions about whether they had business licences, such as what is required of the food cart vendors. [continues 262 words]
