HALF OF CANADIANS WANT RELAXED POT LAW

Support For Decriminalization No Longer Confined To The Young

OTTAWA -- 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 Chretien, 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," said Toronto pollster
Michael Sullivan. "It certainly says that we are a relatively liberal
society on this issue."

The U.S. 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 The Vancouver Sun 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 40 support looser laws,
while 48 per cent of people aged 40 and older want to see marijuana
decriminalized.

Sullivan said there was less of an age gap than there is on other social
issues, such as 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 '60s," 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 to 48
per cent of women.

The findings are different than they are 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 that men tend to be a little less risk adverse
than women, so is that part of it?"

Support for looser laws also increased with income. Of those earning more
than $100,000, 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 support is driven by education and affordability,
so people who were exposed to pot in university are the 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
that this is something that should be vigorously debated and as you get
more information, let's see where people stand on it," said Sullivan.

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," said Sullivan.

David Plaxton, another Strategic Council 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/Manitoba, 5.1 percentage points in Ontario, 5.8
percentage points in Quebec and 6.7 percentage points in Atlantic Canada.

The Strategic Council 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," he said.

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.