“I want to reduce the exposure individuals
have to drug dealers and organised criminal
cartels. I think by allowing people to grow
their own supply does that," he said.
Minors would still be fined $160 or have to
enter the diversionary program if caught with
the drug, and the cultivation, trafficking and
sale of cannabis would continue to be against
the law.
But Mr Pettersson said adults should not be
forced to face the criminal justice system for
the possession of small amounts of cannabis
for personal use.
“Thirty-five per cent of Australians have tried
cannabis and 10 per cent of Australians have
tried it in the past 12 months.
This is not a rare substance, this is incredibly
commonplace across Australia and I think it’s
time we change our drug laws," Mr Pettersson
said.
The bill will be tabled in the Legislative
Assembly on Wednesday.
It comes as a Senate inquiry recommends
scrapping a private member's bill from
Liberal
Democrats
Senator
David
Leyonhjelm. The bill would have removed
Commonwealth
restrictions
recreational use of cannabis.
on
the
Legalising cannabis would save about $100
million in Commonwealth policing costs and
increase GST revenue by about $300 million,
Senator Leyonhjelm said.
However the Department of Health told the
inquiry while many Australians saw cannabis
as harmless, almost a quarter of Australia's
drug and alcohol treatment services were
being provided to people identifying cannabis
as their principal drug of concern - about the
same as amphetamine use.
The Australian Medical Association said the
costings that underpinned the Leyonhjelm bill
were of "low reliability" and did not take into
account the extra investment in treatment
services that would be needed if the drug was
used more widely.
National Drug Research Institute director
Professor Simon Lenton said while he did not
support the Leyonhjelm bill in its current
form, he was keen for a broader discussion
about a non-prohibition model for cannabis in
Australia and in the states and territories.