50% WANT POT LAW EASED: POLL

Decriminalization On Minister's Agenda. Age Gap Among Supporters Is
Shrinking, Survey Firm Says, But Opposition Still Solid

Half of Canadians want the federal government to decriminalize possession
of marijuana, and support for relaxed laws is not confined to the young.

The new survey comes at a time when Justice Minister Martin Cauchon says he
is going to remove simple pot possession from the Criminal Code, but his
boss, Prime Minister Jean Chr?tien, isn't sure.

"This is something that is against the law right now and you've got half
the population saying, 'Let's decriminalize that,' " Toronto pollster
Michael Sullivan said.

"It certainly says that we are a relatively liberal society on this issue."

The United States has also warned against decriminalization, saying Canada
should get over its "reefer madness" if it doesn't want to face the wrath
of its largest trading partner.

The survey of 1,400 adult Canadians revealed 50 per cent either strongly or
somewhat support decriminalization, while 47 per cent are somewhat or
strongly opposed.

The poll was conducted in the first half of November for Maclean's
magazine, Global TV and Southam News by the Strategic Counsel, a
Toronto-based polling firm. The results are considered accurate to within
3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

The survey showed 53 per cent of Canadians under age 40 support looser pot
laws, while 48 per cent of people age 40 or older want to see marijuana
decriminalized.

Sullivan said there was less of an age gap than on other social issues,
like gay marriage and gay adoption.

"I guess we should think that marijuana smoking in general started in the
1960s, so a lot of people now who are 40-plus are people who may have tried
marijuana in the 1960s," he said.

The survey also revealed men are more likely than women to favour relaxed
laws and support is strongest among people with money. Fifty-three per cent
of men said the government should act, compared with 48 per cent of women.

The findings are different than for most social issues, in which women tend
to be more liberal than men, Sullivan said.

"Is it that men are smoking more, that this is more of a risky activity?"
Sullivan asked."We know men tend to be a little less risk-averse than
women, so is that part of it?"

Support for looser laws also increased with income. Of those earning more
than $100,000 a year, 59 per cent want marijuana decriminalized.

The next strongest block of support came from people in the $80,000 to
$100,000 wage bracket.

The pollsters speculated that support is driven by education and
affordability, so people who were exposed to pot in university are most
likely to want new laws.

But the polling firm warned the government should proceed with caution
because the results show almost half of adult Canadians oppose any law changes.

"This isn't 70 or 80 per cent saying, 'Let's do it,' but it certainly
suggests this is something that should be vigorously debated and, as you
get more information, let's see where people stand on it," Sullivan said.

The poll results show British Columbia leads the pack of supporters, with
56 per cent in favour. Support in Ontario registered at 51 per cent, while
48 per cent of Albertans and Quebecers reported favouring looser laws.
Support was lowest in Saskatchewan and Atlantic Canada, with 46 per cent in
favour.

"When you're looking for lifestyle liberalism, Quebec is usually the
trendsetter, but not so in this case," Sullivan said.

David Plaxton, another Strategic Counsel pollster, suspects British
Columbians are most likely to favour revamped marijuana laws because of the
"hippie culture" on the West Coast.

The regional margins of error, at a 95-per-cent confidence level, were
within 5.8 percentage points in both B.C. and Alberta, 7.5 percentage
points in Saskatchewan and Manitoba, 5.1 percentage points in Ontario, 5.8
percentage points in Quebec and 6.7 percentage points in Atlantic Canada.

The Strategic Counsel did not ask Canadians whether they support
legalization of marijuana. Rather, the survey dealt with decriminalization,
which would still make possession illegal, but people caught would be given
a fine akin to a parking ticket rather than saddled with a criminal record.

But Sullivan suspects many of those surveyed did not distinguish between
decriminalization and legalization. "They may not have got the nuance."

Cauchon has rejected the prospect of legalization, which was recommended by
a Senate committee last summer, saying society still wants some sort of
punishment for pot smokers.