Cannabis Collective says Community Safety Unit not policing unlicensed retailers, and neither is RCMP

The Okanagan Cannabis Collective charges that B.C.'s Community Safety Unit is "unable or unwilling to enforce" the Cannabis Control and Licensing Act – and the RCMP doesn't see it as its responsibility.

The collective of licensed cannabis retailers has been fighting for a "level playing field" with unregulated outlets on First Nation land and says the market is oversaturated as private retailers must also compete with an ever-growing number of government-run BC Cannabis stores.

Collective spokesperson Sarah Ballantyne of SpiritLeaf in Vernon shared a letter from RCMP Southeast District Chief Supt. Brad Haugli dated Nov. 17, 2020, which states "the Community Safety Unit is the lead" in compliance and enforcement against unlicensed cannabis retailers and other illegal sellers.

Haugli wrote: "Even though the RCMP has the power to enforce the Cannabis Act, provincially, the CSU, under the policing and security branch of the Ministry of Public Safety and Solictor General is responsible for the compliance and enforcement under the Cannabis Control and Licensing Act."

He said the CSU is working with Indigenous communities, but that "an appropriate solution will not appear overnight."

The collective responds: "It has become abundantly clear that the CSU are either unable or unwilling to enforce the CCLA. The RCMP have the authority to step in and enforce the law, but do not view this as their responsibility."

It says lack of enforcement is "clearly violating the key objectives of the Cannabis Act" – keep cannabis out of the hands of youth; keep profits out of the pockets of criminals; protect public health and safety by allowing adults access to legal cannabis.

It says legal businesses are being harmed by illegal outlets operating in plain sight

"Why does the RCMP refuse to intervene?" the collective asks.

The group recently raised concern about contamination of unlicensed product from the illicit market.

Ballantyne said there is no regulation of pesticide levels in unlicensed cannabis and that a recent National Research Council of Canada study found high levels of several pesticides in seized Ontario pot, including myclobutanil, metalaxyl, chlorpyrifos, and pyridaben – sometimes at levels several thousand times higher than Health Canada regulations.

Dozens of unregulated pot shops are believed to be operating in the Shuswap and Okanagan.

Ballantyne says her group represents more than 20 legal cannabis stores.

"We haven't seen any kind of enforcement (on unlicensed shops) or changes, and it's been three years," since the legalization of recreational cannabis, Ballantyne said earlier this fall.

"We're oversaturated with BC Cannabis (government) stores, and they are doing nothing to eliminate the illicit market. All it's doing is undercutting legal retailers – It's unfair competition," Ballantyne charged.

The provincial government website states the CSU, "under the Policing and Security Branch of the Ministry of Public Safety and Solicitor General, is responsible for compliance and enforcement under the Cannabis Control and Licensing Act, with a focus on the illegal sale of cannabis."

The CSU has the authority to enter premises where cannabis is being sold without a provincial retail store licence and take enforcement action, including making seizures of cannabis. A person may be charged for a provincial or criminal offence and be subject to an administrative monetary penalty under the CCLA for the same contravention.

Conviction can result in fines up to $100,000, imprisonment for up to 12 months, or both, the site adds.