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Gone to pot: New Zealand cools on legalising cannabis
Source: The Guardian
Gone to pot: New Zealand cools on legalising cannabis
With a crowded election cycle, non-committal politicians and a pandemic to worry about, public support for a yes vote in the referendum is eroding
Charlotte Graham-McLay in Wellington
Thu 1 Oct 2020 01.21 BST
It is believed to be the first country in the world to put the legalisation of recreational cannabis to a national public vote. But amid a pandemic, an election concentrated almost entirely on the Covid-19 crisis, and a simultaneous vote on euthanasia, New Zealand’s upcoming marijuana referendum has not captivated the mainstream public attention that it might have in an ordinary year.
New Zealand would join Canada and Uruguay on the list of countries legalising the sale and use of cannabis for adults if more than half of voters approved it – but public backing for the measure has eroded in polling during 2020, reversing growing support in recent years. In a debate plagued by claims of misinformation from both sides – and taking place during an overcrowded election cycle – some politicians have shied away from the matter altogether, fearing they will end up on the wrong side of a divisive topic.
The proposed law would legalise cannabis for people older than 20 – regulating how it is grown, used and sold – and the referendum question is non-binding; a “yes” vote means the next Parliament would have a mandate to pass it. This month, 35% of 1,000 people surveyed said they would support the proposed law according to a 1 News Colmar Brunton poll, down from 40% in June this year and 43% in November 2019.
Those opposing the measure rose to 53% in September. Another survey of 1,300 people, conducted by Horizon Research and commissioned by a medicinal cannabis firm, showed 49.5% of those polled supported the law and 49.5% opposed it.
People would be allowed to buy 14g a day of cannabis under the proposed law, and grow two plants. The bill includes advertising restrictions and a cap on how much of the market one company could dominate.
-snip-
With a crowded election cycle, non-committal politicians and a pandemic to worry about, public support for a yes vote in the referendum is eroding
Charlotte Graham-McLay in Wellington
Thu 1 Oct 2020 01.21 BST
It is believed to be the first country in the world to put the legalisation of recreational cannabis to a national public vote. But amid a pandemic, an election concentrated almost entirely on the Covid-19 crisis, and a simultaneous vote on euthanasia, New Zealand’s upcoming marijuana referendum has not captivated the mainstream public attention that it might have in an ordinary year.
New Zealand would join Canada and Uruguay on the list of countries legalising the sale and use of cannabis for adults if more than half of voters approved it – but public backing for the measure has eroded in polling during 2020, reversing growing support in recent years. In a debate plagued by claims of misinformation from both sides – and taking place during an overcrowded election cycle – some politicians have shied away from the matter altogether, fearing they will end up on the wrong side of a divisive topic.
The proposed law would legalise cannabis for people older than 20 – regulating how it is grown, used and sold – and the referendum question is non-binding; a “yes” vote means the next Parliament would have a mandate to pass it. This month, 35% of 1,000 people surveyed said they would support the proposed law according to a 1 News Colmar Brunton poll, down from 40% in June this year and 43% in November 2019.
Those opposing the measure rose to 53% in September. Another survey of 1,300 people, conducted by Horizon Research and commissioned by a medicinal cannabis firm, showed 49.5% of those polled supported the law and 49.5% opposed it.
People would be allowed to buy 14g a day of cannabis under the proposed law, and grow two plants. The bill includes advertising restrictions and a cap on how much of the market one company could dominate.
-snip-
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/oct/01/gone-to-pot-new-zealand-cools-on-legalising-cannabis