Ministers handed marching orders to repeal key laws, legalize pot and help mentally ill offenders

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has ordered a major overhaul of Canada's criminal justice system that will put a new focus on restorative justice and hatch a priority plan to regulate and legalize pot.

Trudeau delivered mandate letters to each of his cabinet ministers Friday, and among the long list of priorities is a sweeping review of the last decade of laws and sentencing reforms brought in by the Conservatives.

After Justin Trudeau’s emphatic election win and the Liberal’s clear campaign position on marijuana, many are convinced legalization is coming soon. However,  the way in which this plant –both a medicine and a social drug – will be grown and sold is not clear. As a scientist who has studied cannabis since 1999, and as the founder of Anandia Labs (a Vancouver-based start-up focused on cannabis genetics), I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about the plant and it uses. Here I offer my thoughts on the path to cannabis legalization in Canada.

A Big Tent Policy

Canada is officially on the road to legalization. In a letter outlining her responsibilities, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has instructed Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould to begin the process of legalizing and regulating cannabis in Canada.

The letter to Wilson-Raybould (pictured above with Trudeau) reads, "I will expect you to work with your colleagues and through established legislative, regulatory, and Cabinet processes to deliver on your top priorities."

Canada's new justice minister has questions about the recent Nanaimo RCMP crackdown on pot shops, after 10 shops received letters from police, asking them to cease sales within seven days or risk criminal charges.

Jody Wilson-Raybould was asked if the RCMP's move to stop marijuana dispensaries ran counter with the government's direction on pot. One of Justin Trudeau's campaign promises was to legalize pot.

"We were very clear in our platform and certainly we will be moving forward with this. I will be having discussion with my colleague [Public Safety] Minister Goodale on this matter," Wilson-Raybould told CBC's Early Edition this morning.

TORONTO, Nov. 12, 2015 /CNW/ - Patients in Canada prescribed medical marijuana may soon have a new, safe, effective and smokeless option for how they administer their needed medication — and it's as easy as brewing a coffee, tea or hot chocolate.

CannTrust™, the only pharmacist-controlled and operated producer of medical cannabis in Canada, is unveiling its innovative CANNCUPTM medical cannabis beverage pods at the Family Medicine Forum, November 11 – 14, 2015 in Toronto. The first-of-their-kind in Canada, the new CANNCUPTM pods use a patent-pending method to produce single serve coffee, tea and hot chocolate containing high quality cannabis. The pods will be certified 100 percent compostable and compatible with leading single serve coffee makers.

Discussions of marijuana legalization are taking place among lawmakers and policymakers across the globe.

Although possession of marijuana is still illegal in most countries, many have decriminalized it – and a number of others could be next to legalize marijuana.

The day after the Liberals won the federal election, cannabis consultant Eric Nash’s inbox was hit with 20 e-mails from people across Canada asking for guidance on how to open marijuana dispensaries.

Until now, the growth of dispensaries – which remain illegal under federal drug laws – has generally been concentrated in Vancouver and Victoria, where local governments and police have largely allowed them to flourish.

But a handful of stores began operating in other provinces over the past several weeks and experts predict dozens more could open across the country in the wake of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s pledge to legalize and regulate recreational sales – something that could take at least two years to become a reality.

With plans for a major expansion looming, Delta 9 -- a local Health Canada medical cannabis producer -- has joined the Canadian Medical Cannabis Council (CMCC), the association announced Tuesday.

"We wanted to further the interests of our patients, address insurance coverage and make sure our patients were getting a good enough supply of medicinal marijuana," Delta 9 vice-president John Arbuthnot said.

"Delta 9 is very excited to join CMCC in creating and implementing the highest standards of safety, quality, and patient access within Canada's medical cannabis industry."

“Thank you for your service.” It’s a common expression of gratitude that our country offers veterans. But is a quick “thank you” all we owe returning soldiers? In a society with an professional military, where fewer families have a connection to service, is there a growing disconnect between those who serve in the military and everyone else? 

Almost two out of every 10 Canadians reported having consumed marijuana in the past year, but more than 30 per cent of poll respondents said they would do so in the next year if it were legal.

That was one of the main takeaways of a recent poll on the issue conducted by Forum Research. Forum did a telephone poll with a random sampling of 1,256 Canadians between Nov. 4-7. The poll is considered to have a margin or error of plus or minus three per cent, 19 times out of 20.

Members of the new Liberal government, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, have spoken about their desire to modernize the laws surrounding pot by decriminalizing its use, or even going as far as legalizing it.