Conservative MP Dan Albas had a few questions for the federal government regarding the bills put forth to legalize marijuana.
Albas said the Liberals have a mandate to bring the bill in as it was one of their campaign promises for the 2015 election.
He also related the bill to one he put forth to remove a federal barrier that prevented the inter-provincial movement of wine.
“In this case, the federal government is removing federal barriers but at the same time, allowing provinces to set provincial policy and regulations with respect to place and terms of sale for marijuana.”
Albas questioned whether marijuana would be taxed with GST and how the Liberals would deal with illegal black market sales. He is also concerned with border issues.
“How do you separate the legal pot from the illegal that will attempt to undercut the legal? What happens when you arrive at the US border and admit you may have smoked marijuana – will you be denied entry?”
According to Albas a lot of questions remain.
He agrees there should be age restrictions. The current proposed bill reads the legal age should be 18, but the provinces can set their own regulations,
“As for the age of 18, increasingly research is showing smoking marijuana by adolescents may harm brain development so certainly it is reasonable to have age restrictions.”
