The federal Liberals recreational marijuana legislation was under the microscope Tuesday, as senators of the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Peoples are examining Bill C-45 and how its impacts would affect First Nations communities.
The government is looking to legalize marijuana this summer.
The senators focused their questions on the education campaign, health impacts and consultation. Health Minister Ginette Petitpas Taylor told committee members that the education campaign is in progress, saying the department is targeting where youth are — online. She says early results from using Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube were very positive.
“These campaigns are very present in paid social media, in Facebook and Twitter and web banners,” said Petitpas Taylor. “If I look at the target reach so far, Facebook and Twitter have received 7.9 million views. The website views were over 47 million times.”
Petitpas Taylor stressed that the education awareness campaigns are not targeted to older adults, leaving many to question why they have not seen it.
“We have to get where the kids are at,” she said. “Surveys show that Indigenous communities report higher rates of cannabis use in the past year, than the general Canadian population. Cannabis use is particularly high in First Nations youth aged 12-17 on reserve and northern First Nations communities. The current system of prohibition has not been effective at deterring or preventing young people from using cannabis.”
Conservative Senator Norman Doyle was concerned about how young children would perceive watching their parents smoke and grow cannabis in front of them, and the potential long-term effects. Petitpas Taylor says the provinces and territories are free to create regulations to mitigate potential effects, pointing to New Brunswick, where growing marijuana must occur behind a closed and locked area of the home. But she says it’s like tobacco and alcohol, and the government must trust the judgement of the parents.
“I really have to trust that parents and Canadians take the appropriate measures to ensure their children are going to be protected from any harmful substance,” Petitpas Taylor stated.
Both Petitpas Taylor and Bill Blair, the parliamentary secretary to justice, defended the government’s record on consultation, saying they have discussed the legislation with Indigenous organizations, leaders and in communities from coast to coast.
The health minister says while there are concerns about marijuana, some First Nations want to capitalize on the economic potential, pointing to a First Nation in the Maritimes partnering with a nationally accredited producer to supply it with product.
Ultimately, Petitpas Taylor says the intent of the legislation is to make marijuana more difficult for young people to access.
(PHOTO: Health Minister Ginette Petitpas Taylor. Photo courtesy of Twitter, @GPTaylorMRD.)
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