ROCK MAINTAINS SMOKE SCREEN ON MARIJUANA USE

OTTAWA (CP) - Health Minister Allan Rock drew from a potent stash of legal
expertise Thursday to protect the smokescreen on his past. Rock, who says he
wants a homegrown stock of marijuana for use in his department's clinical
trials, was asked whether he's ever smoked pot.

"As former attorney general of Canada, I am keenly aware of the right
against self-incrimination in this country," he replied with a broad smile.
"I fully intend to invoke that right.

"But one thing I can be very clear about: I never smoked marijuana for
medicinal purposes."

There has been considerable speculation about Rock's personal views on
marijuana, given his acquaintance with and admiration for the late rock star
John Lennon.

Lennon's use of recreational drugs was legendary, although he firmly
renounced them in the final years of his life.

It has become almost standard procedure to ask prominent politicians whether
they have smoked pot. The most famous response, from U.S. President Bill
Clinton, is that he tried it but didn't inhale.

Canadian Industry Minister John Manley's less-known response is that he
never exhaled.

Earlier Thursday, Rock said he has asked his officials to look into the
possibility of ensuring a "Canadian stock" of pot to use in trials on people
with severe illnesses.

Asked later if he wants marijuana to be cultivated in Canada, he answered:
"I think we're up to it, don't you?"

British Columbia's homegrown, long revered in Canada, is becoming the drug
of choice along the U.S. west coast.

The government has so far received 26 requests from people who wish to use
marijuana for medical purposes and Rock said he'll decide on those requests
within a few weeks.

Appearing before the Commons health committee, Rock seemed perplexed by a
question from Bloc MP Bernard Bigras about whether Ottawa was planning to
obtain its supply from Mississippi.

A recent report in the French-language press said Health Department
officials visited the University of Mississippi to see a marijuana
cultivation program there. Health Department officials denied the story.

"Maybe the deputy minister has been to Mississippi; he has not discussed it
with me," joked Rock, nudging David Dodge.

Victims of AIDS and cancer have been lobbying for years for the right to use
marijuana as a pain killer and appetite stimulant. Rock announced in March
he would ask his department to conduct clinical trials to determine the
drug's effectiveness for those purposes.