PARTY LEADERS COME CLEAN ON POT

Who Inhaled? Harris Only One To Say: `Not Me'

Ontario Premier Mike Harris says he has never smoked marijuana, and
he's not about to support plans to decriminalize the possession of
small amounts of pot.

Liberal leader Dalton McGuinty and NDP leader Howard Hampton both
admit they inhaled in their younger days, and both say they're all for
lowering the penalty for possession to a ticket and a fine.

The subject came up after Harris told reporters Ontario will fight any
federal government move to decriminalize possession of small amounts
of marijuana - a recommendation that came from the Canadian
Association of Chiefs of Police.

But had he ever inhaled, he was asked.

``No, I haven't, but I grew up in an age when we tried all these
things,'' Harris responded.

``I found booze a little more attractive.''

The straight-laced McGuinty surprised many observers in his own party
when he conceded he'd tried marijuana as a teenager.

``I was in my late teens, I did it twice,'' he said.

The Liberal leader added that he encourages his own four children not
to take drugs or smoke cigarettes.

McGuinty said he would support the call by the chiefs of police to
penalize simple possession of marijuana with a fine.

``What we should be doing is devoting more resources to cracking down
on those who prey on Ontario children - traffickers,'' he said.

The NDP's Hampton said he smoked marijuana in university. His party
has long supported decriminalizing possession of pot.

Hampton said the best defence against drug use is effective education
programs.

Harris accused the opposition of being soft on crime and called for a
``tough love'' approach to young people who smoke pot.

``Normally I agree with the chiefs of police, but on this one I feel
they are throwing in the towel,'' Harris said while visiting a
downtown Toronto convenience store to trumpet his party's
crime-fighting record just days before an election call is expected.

The premier said the police chiefs - considered an influential voice
on the issue - are acting out of frustration with the light sentences
that result from a conviction for possession.

``But I believe we shouldn't be making it easier for our children to
get drugs, that we should be in fact making it harder.''

Harris said handing out a ticket for possession sends a message that
drugs are acceptable.

``I think that's the wrong way to go, I think the right way is to be
tough, tough love if you like, zero tolerance right at the start.''

The association of Canadian police chiefs told the federal government
last week that the current law does not act as a deterrent to
marijuana and bogs down police officers.

The police association believes the government should change the law
so that possession of 1 gram of cannabis resin or 30 grams of
marijuana would be subject to a regulatory ticket and fine.

The association says a fine more properly reflects the offence and
does not leave the stigma of a criminal record. Federal Justice
Minister Anne McClelland said she would seriously consider their
recommendation.

Under the 1997 Controlled Drugs and Substances Acts, simple drug
possession is a summary conviction offence, subject to a maximum fine
of $1,000 and/or six months jail - a sentence rarely imposed.

Carolyn Nutter, of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health in
Toronto, said several U.S. states that have decriminalized the
possession of pot have not seen a noticeable rise in marijuana use or
related drug crime.

Nutter said that in terms of causing damage to society, other, legal
vices are the worst offenders.

``It's quite clear that from a cost to society perspective, research
clearly indicates that tobacco and alcohol are the main concerns.''