Canada’s Health Minister Announces Timeline for Legalizing Pot

By
Kristen Gwynne

At the United Nations General Assembly Special Assembly on drugs in New York on Wednesday, Canadian Minister of Health Jane Philpott reiterated the government’s pledge to legalize marijuana, and offered a timeline for the plan as she addressed world delegates.

“We will introduce legislation in spring 2017 that ensures we keep marijuana out of the hands of children and profits out of the hands of criminals,” Philpott said in a speech hailed by drug policy reformers for her advocacy of marijuana legalization and harm reduction.

“We will work with law enforcement partners to encourage appropriate and proportionate criminal justice measures,” Philpott continued. “We know it is impossible to arrest our way out of this problem.”

Her remarks are the latest confirmation of Canada’s plan to legalize marijuana—a promise Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made in his campaign, and appears to be delivering.

(Photo Courtesy of CannabisReports.com)

Kristen Gwynne

View Comments

  • I have a rental property and I worry about having a tenant set up a grow op on the property.

    If this legislation is passed, will it remove the economic incentive for non-commercial grow ops or will there still be a market for marijuana produced outside the new regulated commercial system by unregulated grow ops?

By
Kristen Gwynne

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