MARIJUANA TAX PITCHED BY MAYOR OF VANCOUVER

VANCOUVER -- Vancouver Mayor Larry Campbell says marijuana sales should be
taxed and the revenue used to fund treatment for the effects of more serious
drugs. Campbell made the suggestion Saturday in a speech to the annual
meeting of the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association.

"Taxes levied on marijuana sales could add to the resources for treatment.
Remember, the B.C. marijuana trade is estimated at $6 billion annually --
larger than construction or forestry," Campbell said.

The former Mountie and coroner also noted that enforcement money freed up
from legalizing pot could support treatment and better policing of other
crimes.

Campbell said he was calling for the regulated sale of marijuana along the
lines of the way that sales are managed for tobacco, alcohol and other
drugs.

He cited the case of Amsterdam, noting that the status quo there is
legal-but-regulated cultivation and sales. He said studies show fewer
residents of the Netherlands than, for example, Americans, have actually
tried marijuana, and cannabis use among Dutch schoolchildren has fallen.

"The conclusion is pretty clear: legal, regulated sale of marijuana may
actually produce less consumption," he said.

Campbell said he is opposed to decriminalization because it does not deal
with "real criminals" such as the dealers and the crimes they create.