We also note that cannabis is a less harmful
drug than most other illicit drugs, and making
it more easily accessible could well reduce
use of other more damaging drugs."
There's also the question of where you can
grow it. Could you, for example, grow
cannabis in a community garden or on your
verge?
"There are exist guidelines about what can
and cannot be done on nature strips with an
application process for more extensive work.
It is worth noting that there is a 50cm height
limit on verges for plants that would make
planting a cannabis plant on the verge
counterproductive.
It is also worth pointing out that it requires
preparation for the plant to become a
consumable drug," Mr Pettersson said.
Mr Rattenbury noted as the nature strip
guidelines have not yet been released, this
was somewhat of a "no-man’s land question".
"I suspect that the legal answer may be that it
would be permissible to grow your four plants
in a community garden, but there may be
issues around theft," Mr Rattenbury said.
The bill is expected to pass when it returns to
the ACT Assembly early next year, with Mr
Pettersson's Labor colleagues backing the
legislation.
Mr Rattenbury said the Greens intended to
support Mr Pettersson's bill but would look
carefully through the detail to ensure it works
properly.
"I would highlight that at this stage Mr
Petterson’s bill does not address supply
issues, unlike the federal Greens proposal.
At a national level, the Greens are seeking to
not only legalise cannabis, but also establish a
new agency to regulate cannabis production
and sale," Mr Rattenbury said.
New Labor bill would make using and growing cannabis legal in Canberra
It's the illicit drug one in three have used in
their lifetime, but could lighting up a joint
soon be legal in Canberra?
Labor backbencher Michael Pettersson will
introduce a bill that would effectively legalise
cannabis for personal use, when the ACT's
parliament resumes sitting this week.
It's a private members bill, meaning it has not
been signed off on by cabinet nor is it official
ACT Labor policy.
The ACT decriminalised cannabis possession
for amounts under 25g in 1992 through a
scheme called the Simple Cannabis Offence
Notice.
The scheme aimed to curb unnecessary
involvement with the criminal justice system
and reduce the cost of policing cannabis use.
The limit was later raised to 50g after it
became apparent people were still being
arrested, as cannabis was sold by the ounce
which equates to about 28g.
However the number of plants an individual
could have was reduced from five to two to
compensate for the higher threshold.
Mr Pettersson said he believed the territory's
current drug laws were not working.
“About 60 per cent of drug arrests in the ACT
are for cannabis consumers.
That’s not suppliers, that’s consumers.
I think police can spend their time doing better
things than going after people using small
amounts of cannabis," Mr Pettersson said.
His bill would remove cannabis possession of
less than 50g by an adult as an offence and
therefore legalise it, according to its
explanatory statement.
It would also allow people to legally have four
cannabis plants.
Mr Pettersson said allowing people to grow
their own supply would prevent them from
interacting with drug dealers, who could
potentially sell them harder drugs.