Statement - Federal Legislation to Legalize and Regulate Cannabis
04/13/17 - 04/13/18
The Government of Canada is introducing legislation to ‘legalize, strictly regulate and restrict access’ to cannabis in Canada - a position taken by the Liberal Party during their 2015 election campaign. Leading up to this introduction, the government held a series of consultations and mandated a Federal Task Force to provide a report helping to shape this legislation. The CACP participated in this process.
Our role from the beginning has been to share our expertise with the government to help mitigate the impact of such legislation on public safety. Extensive discussions within the CACP membership and various Committees formed the basis of our advice.
Earlier this year, the CACP issued a Discussion Paper entitled “Recommendations For the Task Force on Cannabis Legalization and Regulation.” ( https://cacp.ca/index.html?asst_id=1332 ) This paper will continue to form the basis of our evaluation of the new legislation. In terms of the April 13 announcement, the CACP will not be providing further commentary until we have had the time to properly assess the legislation and ensuing regulations.
Timothy M. Smith
Government Relations and Strategic Communications
Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police
