Canada to introduce legislation to make sale of marijuana legal

The Canadian government will soon introduce legislation next year that would make the sale of marijuana legal. If enacted, Canada would become one of the largest Western countries to allow widespread use of the drug which is considered illegal in many parts of the world. Medical use of marijuana is already legal and some have insisted that legal marijuana would reduce stress on Canada’s criminal justice system.

Canadian Health Minister Jane Philpott pledged to keep marijuana out of the hands of children and profits out of the hands of criminals. According to her, the Government will work with law enforcement partners to encourage appropriate and proportionate criminal justice measures.

Bill Blair, a former Toronto police chief has been named by Prime Minister – Justin Trudeau as the government’s point person on legalisation. According to Blair, the Government would control who it’s sold to, when it’s sold and also how it’s used in order to prevent organised crime from having the opportunity to profit from it.