government

For the past 25 years I have worked to change Canada's archaic legal approach to marijuana use. Having little faith in the political process and its partisan posturing, I turned to the courts and the Charter of Rights to challenge the constitutional validity of many laws that criminalize morally...

Ottawa, Canada - Illegal pot sales are turning into a high earner for governments. Don Briere’s national chain of renegade retail shops remitted $688,449 in GST/HST collected from December to May on exploding sales of unlicensed marijuana, hashish and cannabis-laced edibles to relieve aches and...

Expecting the government to stay out of the business of United States citizens is like expecting a fish to survive on dry land. You may really, really, really want it to happen, but there's virtually zero chance that it actually will. Look no further than Colorado for recent proof of this, as...

Toronto - Minimum ages for marijuana consumption may vary across Canada when it becomes legal, but authorities will be firmly against drug tourism and cross-border movement of the substance, the Liberal government's point man on the issue said on Wednesday. The government also wants consistent...

Vancouver — Marijuana advocates say the government is not listening to the people who made legalization a reality. More details were released this week about the marijuana task force. Jodie Emery says the Liberal government has started to use the same prohibition rhetoric as the Harper...

Canada is lurching toward marijuana legalization, but the Liberals aren't being blunt about what the new law will mean for the average pot-friendly Canadian. Justice Minister Wilson-Raybould announced on Thursday the launch of a task force to advise the Canadian government on how best to map...

The federal government is launching a task force to study the legalization and regulation marijuana use. Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould says a task force has been struck. It's comprised of experts in public health, substance abuse, law enforcement and justice. "It is important...

A majority of Danes support legalizing cannabis at the same time the government is preparing new hardline initatives. Christiania raid spurs new debate on legal cannabis (21 Jun 16) Copenhagen police tear down Christiania cannabis market (18 Jun 16) Amidst a new debate on cannabis...

The Senate Appropriations Committee voted on Thursday to allow banks to provide financial services to legal recreational and medical marijuana dispensaries, according to The Denver Post. Marijuana is still listed as a Schedule 1 substance by the federal government, so marijuana businesses in...

Immediately decriminalizing marijuana possession before the government can implement its comprehensive legal regime would increase the profits of organized crime and possibly make it easier for young Canadians to access the drug, Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould argued Monday. In a...

The federal New Democrats are putting forward a motion in Parliament today to pressure the Liberal government to decriminalize pot before it is legalized. NDP Justice Critic Murray Rankin says it is not fair to arrest people and give them criminal records for possessing marijuana if the...

The New South Wales Government has applied for a licence to grow cannabis for medical research trials. Minister for Primary Industries Niall Blair said the state's cultivation licence application was lodged with the Federal Government last week. Earlier this year, the Federal Parliament...

The federal government's promise to begin the process of legalizing cannabis in 2017 is amplifying calls from lawyers and advocates for an end to arrests and prosecutions for some weed-related crimes that have "clogged up the system" and left tens of thousands of Canadians with a criminal...

In the heady days following his election victory, Justin Trudeau actively encouraged his caucus members to rock the boat. "Regardless of party demands, and the partisanship that will continue to exist in this House ... your one job, that you cannot ever forget, is to be a strong voice in...

For a Latin American narcotics kingpin, Guillermo Delmonte cuts a low key figure. The 29-year-old Uruguayan has never smoked cannabis in his life. He's never smoked a cigarette either, and he barely drinks. When asked if he has any vices, he has to pause to think. "I'm addicted to orange juice...

Pressure is mounting on the Tasmanian Government to legalise the medicinal use of cannabis in the wake of Victoria's historic decision to become the first state in Australia to do so. The Victorian Government passed the Access to Medicinal Cannabis Bill 2015 yesterday, giving patients legal...

A Chilliwack medical marijuana dispensary will continue to be given daily fines as long as they are operating, said Mayor Sharon Gaetz. WeeMedical Marijuana Dispensary Society has received notice of a daily fine of $1000 for operating without a business license. The business's two landlords are...

Australia's "most progressive" medicinal marijuana legislation, which would give more sick Queenslanders access to the presently illegal drug, has been released for public comment. If passed, the Public Health (Medicinal Cannabis) Bill 2016 would create a formal process for Queensland doctors...

The federal government should use a court decision ordering it to rewrite the rules on medical marijuana as an opportunity to legalize the storefront sale of such medicine, experts and commercial growers say. A Federal Court judge in British Columbia ruled earlier this week that patients have...

Jack Richards used to count backwards and wait for unconsciousness. Undergoing an extreme form of chemotherapy for a rare tissue cancer, he'd request powerful antihistamine injections to buy some peace in a week of "not being able to look at food, vomiting consistently [and being fed] through...