WHAT ARE THE LIBERAL'S SMOKING?

I, as your Member of Parliament for Wild Rose, express my disappointment at
the Liberal Government's recent introduction of Bill C-38, which would
decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana. The ticket
threshold would be 15 grams and police officers would have the option of
pursuing a summary conviction or a criminal charge between 15 and 30 grams.

The Canadian Alliance has serious reservations about the bill, as does many
police officers. The Liberals have set the effective decriminalization
threshold at 30 grams, throwing the door open to greater marijuana use in
Canada with little thought to the message being sent continued the Canadian
Alliance MP.

Stiffer fines and jail terms for the massive problem of marijuana growing
operations are needed. With no set mandatory minimum sentences, penalties
will still be given at the discretion of judges. In some cases maximum
penalties for growing marijuana have actually been reduced.

The Canadian Alliance has also called for mechanisms to ensure that the
streets are safe from people driving under the influence of drugs.

Without effective roadside assessment capabilities, there would be more
drug-impaired drivers getting behind the wheel with no concrete way to
detect them. Many police forces share the same concern, they worry there is
no machine to detect driver drug use. This legislation is great news for
organized crime, since, as our Health Minister predicted, demand is likely
to go up while the only sources for marijuana remain illegal.

Myron Thompson is the Member of Parliment for Wild Rose.