PRINCE OF POT SMITTEN WITH NDP

National Marijuana Activist Says His Support Is More Than A Token Offer

OTTAWA -- The head of the B.C. Marijuana Party is urging members to join
the New Democratic Party after NDP Leader Jack Layton endorsed pot as a
"wonderful substance" that should be legalized.

Marc Emery, a national marijuana activist who has been dubbed Canada's
Prince of Pot, also said he would seek a nomination in the riding of
Vancouver Centre as an NDP candidate in the next federal election.

"We're dead serious about throwing our support behind them in the next
election," Mr. Emery said in an interview yesterday.

He is airing recently videotaped segments of Mr. Layton on Pot-TV, a
Vancouver-based Internet site, in which the NDP Leader endorses marijuana
as "a wonderful substance."

Mr. Layton appealed on Pot-TV directly to pot smokers, urging them to join
the NDP and help "create a legal environment in which people can enjoy
their marijuana in the peace and quiet of their own home or in a cafe."

Mr. Emery, a millionaire marijuana-seed grower who started Pot-TV and
unsuccessfully ran for Vancouver mayor, said he wants to encourage federal
Marijuana Party members not to run candidates in the next election and to
vote for the NDP instead.

"If someone's advocating what I'm saying, that pot should be legal . . .
then there's no purpose for me to duplicate that effort."

Mr. Emery, who has 22 marijuana-related convictions, also said he's
prepared to make financial contributions to the NDP instead of to the
Marijuana Party.

However, he added, "To get full support from me, it would have to be a
top-five item in the next election and it would have to be on the party's
Web site."

"These are my personal views," Mr. Layton said in an interview yesterday.

"Our party is going to develop a complete proposal for the next election.
It will probably involve a lot of consultation with Canadians.

"I don't think we need to have a national election based solely on that issue.

"It'll be a part of our platform that we have reasonable laws to regulate
in a non-punitive way the consumption of marijuana, absolutely."

Mr. Layton said he was describing marijuana as a "wonderful substance" for
people who mioght require the drug for medical reasons.

"I have some friends who have been very outspoken on this issue of
marijuana for medical purposes. There's no question . . . it's absolutely a
wonderful substance like any medication that helps out," he said.

"We do favour a decriminalized context -- in fact, a regulated non-punitive
environment for people to be able to have marijuana," he added.

Mr. Emery, who conducted the recent Pot-TV interview with Mr. Layton, said
the New Democrat is the only federal leader who has publicly supported
legalizing marijuana.

The federal government has introduced legislation to decriminalize
possession for small amounts of marijuana (up to 15 grams), issuing tickets
instead of criminal records.

Mr. Layton said the legislation "really guarantees organized crime is the
primary source of marijuana."