❓ Opposition questions the Premier regarding cannabis policy changes, specifically the discrepancy between allowed cultivation and possession limits. The Premier defends the government's approach, accusing the opposition of misinformation and political opportunism.
AnsweredQoN 628Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
CANNABIS, 100-GRAM LIMIT
I refer the Premier to his new soft stand on cannabis allowing the cultivation of up two plants by so-called small-time users, which number of plants, I advise the Premier, can produce up to 2 000 grams of cannabis. (1) Is the Premier aware that these so-called small-time users will be allowed to cultivate 20 times the amount of cannabis a person may currently possess before being deemed to be a seller or supplier of cannabis under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1981? (2) Does the Government intend to amend the Misuse of Drugs Act so that the amount that may be held in possession is increased to above the 100-gram limit before it is deemed to be trading in cannabis? Dr GALLOP
I refer the Premier to his new soft stand on cannabis allowing the cultivation of up two plants by so-called small-time users, which number of plants, I advise the Premier, can produce up to 2 000 grams of cannabis. (1) Is the Premier aware that these so-called small-time users will be allowed to cultivate 20 times the amount of cannabis a person may currently possess before being deemed to be a seller or supplier of cannabis under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1981? (2) Does the Government intend to amend the Misuse of Drugs Act so that the amount that may be held in possession is increased to above the 100-gram limit before it is deemed to be trading in cannabis? Dr GALLOP
AnswerView source ↗
(1)-(2) The Opposition will obviously continue to campaign on what it sees as issues that will divide our community between those who support a conservative position and those who want to bring about changes in our society in order to make it better. I repeat: firstly, cannabis will remain illegal and small-time users will be punished according to civil penalties; and, secondly, those who engage in drug trafficking will have the full force of the law brought down against them. I have explained this to the Leader of the Opposition on many occasions. The precise details of the Government’s carrying through on the Community Drug Summit recommendations will be determined by a ministerial committee. The amendments to the legislation will come to the Parliament, and will have to pass through this and the other House of Parliament to become law. Those details will be outlined following that report. To have the Leader of the Opposition running around in the community implying and spreading misinformation that somehow the Government is about to legalise cannabis indicates the depths to which he and his party will go in order to try to win a few votes. We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
(1) Is the Premier aware that these so-called small-time users will be allowed to cultivate 20 times the amount of cannabis a person may currently possess before being deemed to be a seller or supplier of cannabis under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1981? (2) Does the Government intend to amend the Misuse of Drugs Act so that the amount that may be held in possession is increased to above the 100-gram limit before it is deemed to be trading in cannabis? Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The Opposition will obviously continue to campaign on what it sees as issues that will divide our community between those who support a conservative position and those who want to bring about changes in our society in order to make it better. I repeat: firstly, cannabis will remain illegal and small-time users will be punished according to civil penalties; and, secondly, those who engage in drug trafficking will have the full force of the law brought down against them. I have explained this to the Leader of the Opposition on many occasions. The precise details of the Government’s carrying through on the Community Drug Summit recommendations will be determined by a ministerial committee. The amendments to the legislation will come to the Parliament, and will have to pass through this and the other House of Parliament to become law. Those details will be outlined following that report. To have the Leader of the Opposition running around in the community implying and spreading misinformation that somehow the Government is about to legalise cannabis indicates the depths to which he and his party will go in order to try to win a few votes. We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
(2) Does the Government intend to amend the Misuse of Drugs Act so that the amount that may be held in possession is increased to above the 100-gram limit before it is deemed to be trading in cannabis? Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The Opposition will obviously continue to campaign on what it sees as issues that will divide our community between those who support a conservative position and those who want to bring about changes in our society in order to make it better. I repeat: firstly, cannabis will remain illegal and small-time users will be punished according to civil penalties; and, secondly, those who engage in drug trafficking will have the full force of the law brought down against them. I have explained this to the Leader of the Opposition on many occasions. The precise details of the Government’s carrying through on the Community Drug Summit recommendations will be determined by a ministerial committee. The amendments to the legislation will come to the Parliament, and will have to pass through this and the other House of Parliament to become law. Those details will be outlined following that report. To have the Leader of the Opposition running around in the community implying and spreading misinformation that somehow the Government is about to legalise cannabis indicates the depths to which he and his party will go in order to try to win a few votes. We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The Opposition will obviously continue to campaign on what it sees as issues that will divide our community between those who support a conservative position and those who want to bring about changes in our society in order to make it better. I repeat: firstly, cannabis will remain illegal and small-time users will be punished according to civil penalties; and, secondly, those who engage in drug trafficking will have the full force of the law brought down against them. I have explained this to the Leader of the Opposition on many occasions. The precise details of the Government’s carrying through on the Community Drug Summit recommendations will be determined by a ministerial committee. The amendments to the legislation will come to the Parliament, and will have to pass through this and the other House of Parliament to become law. Those details will be outlined following that report. To have the Leader of the Opposition running around in the community implying and spreading misinformation that somehow the Government is about to legalise cannabis indicates the depths to which he and his party will go in order to try to win a few votes. We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
(1)-(2) The Opposition will obviously continue to campaign on what it sees as issues that will divide our community between those who support a conservative position and those who want to bring about changes in our society in order to make it better. I repeat: firstly, cannabis will remain illegal and small-time users will be punished according to civil penalties; and, secondly, those who engage in drug trafficking will have the full force of the law brought down against them. I have explained this to the Leader of the Opposition on many occasions. The precise details of the Government’s carrying through on the Community Drug Summit recommendations will be determined by a ministerial committee. The amendments to the legislation will come to the Parliament, and will have to pass through this and the other House of Parliament to become law. Those details will be outlined following that report. To have the Leader of the Opposition running around in the community implying and spreading misinformation that somehow the Government is about to legalise cannabis indicates the depths to which he and his party will go in order to try to win a few votes. We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
To have the Leader of the Opposition running around in the community implying and spreading misinformation that somehow the Government is about to legalise cannabis indicates the depths to which he and his party will go in order to try to win a few votes. We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
(1) Is the Premier aware that these so-called small-time users will be allowed to cultivate 20 times the amount of cannabis a person may currently possess before being deemed to be a seller or supplier of cannabis under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1981? (2) Does the Government intend to amend the Misuse of Drugs Act so that the amount that may be held in possession is increased to above the 100-gram limit before it is deemed to be trading in cannabis? Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The Opposition will obviously continue to campaign on what it sees as issues that will divide our community between those who support a conservative position and those who want to bring about changes in our society in order to make it better. I repeat: firstly, cannabis will remain illegal and small-time users will be punished according to civil penalties; and, secondly, those who engage in drug trafficking will have the full force of the law brought down against them. I have explained this to the Leader of the Opposition on many occasions. The precise details of the Government’s carrying through on the Community Drug Summit recommendations will be determined by a ministerial committee. The amendments to the legislation will come to the Parliament, and will have to pass through this and the other House of Parliament to become law. Those details will be outlined following that report. To have the Leader of the Opposition running around in the community implying and spreading misinformation that somehow the Government is about to legalise cannabis indicates the depths to which he and his party will go in order to try to win a few votes. We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
(2) Does the Government intend to amend the Misuse of Drugs Act so that the amount that may be held in possession is increased to above the 100-gram limit before it is deemed to be trading in cannabis? Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The Opposition will obviously continue to campaign on what it sees as issues that will divide our community between those who support a conservative position and those who want to bring about changes in our society in order to make it better. I repeat: firstly, cannabis will remain illegal and small-time users will be punished according to civil penalties; and, secondly, those who engage in drug trafficking will have the full force of the law brought down against them. I have explained this to the Leader of the Opposition on many occasions. The precise details of the Government’s carrying through on the Community Drug Summit recommendations will be determined by a ministerial committee. The amendments to the legislation will come to the Parliament, and will have to pass through this and the other House of Parliament to become law. Those details will be outlined following that report. To have the Leader of the Opposition running around in the community implying and spreading misinformation that somehow the Government is about to legalise cannabis indicates the depths to which he and his party will go in order to try to win a few votes. We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
Dr GALLOP replied: (1)-(2) The Opposition will obviously continue to campaign on what it sees as issues that will divide our community between those who support a conservative position and those who want to bring about changes in our society in order to make it better. I repeat: firstly, cannabis will remain illegal and small-time users will be punished according to civil penalties; and, secondly, those who engage in drug trafficking will have the full force of the law brought down against them. I have explained this to the Leader of the Opposition on many occasions. The precise details of the Government’s carrying through on the Community Drug Summit recommendations will be determined by a ministerial committee. The amendments to the legislation will come to the Parliament, and will have to pass through this and the other House of Parliament to become law. Those details will be outlined following that report. To have the Leader of the Opposition running around in the community implying and spreading misinformation that somehow the Government is about to legalise cannabis indicates the depths to which he and his party will go in order to try to win a few votes. We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
(1)-(2) The Opposition will obviously continue to campaign on what it sees as issues that will divide our community between those who support a conservative position and those who want to bring about changes in our society in order to make it better. I repeat: firstly, cannabis will remain illegal and small-time users will be punished according to civil penalties; and, secondly, those who engage in drug trafficking will have the full force of the law brought down against them. I have explained this to the Leader of the Opposition on many occasions. The precise details of the Government’s carrying through on the Community Drug Summit recommendations will be determined by a ministerial committee. The amendments to the legislation will come to the Parliament, and will have to pass through this and the other House of Parliament to become law. Those details will be outlined following that report. To have the Leader of the Opposition running around in the community implying and spreading misinformation that somehow the Government is about to legalise cannabis indicates the depths to which he and his party will go in order to try to win a few votes. We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
To have the Leader of the Opposition running around in the community implying and spreading misinformation that somehow the Government is about to legalise cannabis indicates the depths to which he and his party will go in order to try to win a few votes. We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
We want a new approach in Western Australia. The basis of that new approach is to create a better framework within which to deal with drug abuse. That is why the Community Drug Summit recommended those changes. When the Leader of the Opposition took up his position he said he would lead a new, progressive and liberal Liberal Party. However, he cannot sustain that in his Cabinet. He has a choice to make: he must either stand up for principles that will take Western Australia into the twenty-first century or compromise with the reactionaries around him in the Liberal Party. The Leader of the Opposition has chosen to do the latter, so it remains to the Labor side of politics, hopefully with the support of others in this Parliament, to come to grips with reality in order to create a Western Australia in which there is a better community for all who live within it.
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