QUESTION PERIOD — Ministry of Public Safety
Cannabis Regulations
May 31, 2023
Minister, in 2018, you legalized the use of cannabis. Then just about everything you were told would happen did happen. The black market still exists, it is competing with the legal distribution network and consumption among youth has increased.
Studies show that one third of Canadians surveyed who have used cannabis in the past year reported having driven while under the influence of the drug. There were 541 children hospitalized across the country for cannabis poisoning between January and September 2021. You were warned about all these types of incidents.
The Competition Bureau of Canada now wants to stimulate consumption, foster innovation and ask for higher THC limits.
Madam Speaker, I share the honourable senator’s concerns about the challenges that individuals face when dealing with mental health and substance use issues, including drugs.
In the context of the federal government’s approach, the work being done by Carolyn Bennett, Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, focuses on public health and mental health services to help those who need it.
