SOFTEN CANNABIS LAWS, SAY MOST KIWIS

A majority of New Zealanders want the Government to soften cannabis laws,
with 60 per cent now in favour of decriminalising or legalising the drug, a
new poll has found.

Despite mounting resistance to a law change from school principals and some
senior politicians, the poll shows that taking a hard line on cannabis law
reform is not a vote winner.

The UMR Insight poll, conducted for The Dominion, found that 41 per cent of
New Zealanders believe cannabis use by people over 20 should be punished by
instant fines rather than criminal conviction.

A further 19 per cent want personal use of the drug legalised for people
over 20, yielding a net 60 per cent in favour of softer cannabis laws.

Only 37 per cent of people would prefer that cannabis use remain a criminal
offence.

More people in Wellington (51 per cent) want instant fines for personal
cannabis use than in Auckland (39 per cent) and Christchurch (35 per cent).

Opposition leader Jenny Shipley and Deputy Prime Minister Jim Anderton are
opposed to a softening of cannabis laws, and school principals are
concerned about the effects of the drug on teenagers' learning ability.

A report issued last week shows one in five 16-year-olds regularly uses
cannabis and almost half have at least tried it.

But the campaign to relax cannabis laws has gathered pace under the
Labour-Alliance Government, with politicians such as Rastafarian Green MP
Nandor Tanczos driving the debate.

Prime Minister Helen Clark has come out in favour of instant fines for
personal cannabis use, and the Government has said it intends to review the
legal status of the drug in its first term of office.

The poll reveals that a majority of voters across the political spectrum
want cannabis laws relaxed. Not surprisingly, the strongest support comes
from Green Party voters, with a total of 79 per cent in favour of a law change.

Of Labour voters, 67 per cent favour softer laws, as do 65 per cent of
Alliance voters and 56 per cent of ACT NZ voters.

Just over half of National Party voters (54 per cent) would prefer that
cannabis use was not punishable by a criminal conviction.

NZ First supporters are the only voting group where a narrow majority (53
per cent) prefers the status quo.

Support for a law change is strongest among high income earners, with 67
per cent of those on $50,000 to $70,000 a year in favour of softer laws.

UMR Insight said 36 per cent of people surveyed declared they had tried
cannabis - a rate slightly below those recorded in earlier surveys. But it
said care was needed when interpreting findings for "an obviously sensitive
question of this kind".

Declared use was much higher among younger New Zealanders, with 70 per cent
of under 30-year-olds saying they had tried cannabis.

Fifty-six per cent of Maori respondents said they had tried the drug.

Males (43 per cent) were more likely to declare personal use than females
(30 per cent).

The poll of 750 people aged 18 and over was conducted from August 10 to 13.
It has a margin of error of 3.6 per cent.