View From the Legislature

Since the federal Liberal government announced that it intended to legalize marijuana (cannabis) in Canada, all provinces have been dealing with the many challenges of implementing the federal legislation in a way that is safe. That has meant establishing an age of legal consumption and the places in which the drug can be consumed and sold.

From the beginning, the position of the Manitoba government has been to put safety at the forefront of every decision around cannabis legalization. When the federal government moved toward legalizing marijuana, it understood that there where still harmful effects to its usage, particularly among young people. Medical experts in Canada have long indicated that the use of cannabis, in particular for those under the age of 25, could have negative and long lasting effects.

In addition, law enforcement expressed concern about drug induced driving. Those who decided to drive after having used marijuana posed a danger to themselves and to others who were on the road. With those things in mind, the Manitoba government put in place a number of measures in the interest of public safety. These included a higher legal age of consumption for marijuana, 19, than for the consumption of alcohol. As well, public awareness campaigns were launched on the dangers of drug induced driving and the consumption of non-medical marijuana was banned in public places.

Now, a new challenge is about to present itself. Soon, the federal government is expected to legalize for sale and consumption in Canada cannabis edibles. Instead of the smoking of cannabis, this refers to the consumption of it as a food or a beverage.

One of the challenge with edible cannabis is that products that look essentially identical can have very different amounts of THC (the ingredient that produces the high in marijuana). As well, drug counsellors caution that the reaction time when consuming marijuana is different depending on whether it is smoked or eaten or drank.

As a result of these and other concerns, our government has indicated that it will move to introduce legislation that bans the public consumption of non-medical cannabis in all its forms, whether smoking, edible or other means. In addition, the province’s Liquor, Gaming and Cannabis Authority (LGCA) has announced a new awareness program to remind people to both know their limits when it comes to consuming cannabis but also to ensure that it is not left in places that can cause harm to others, like children or pets.

The legalization of cannabis by the federal Liberal government left many provinces in a difficult position to ensure that the right rules and regulations were in place around its use. Manitoba continues to be a leader in working to ensure that the safety of residents and young people is the top priority when making these important decisions.