Q: I heard the Senate approved legalizing cannabis. So … what now?
A: Bill C-45 passed through the Senate this week with a 56 to 30 vote in favour, with one abstention. There were over 40 amendments made, covering things like the feds offering the ability for provinces to say “no” to home-grown marijuana (this province has already opted to allow it) and rules around promoting cannabis brands. What was passed now goes back to the House of Commons. The House could accept it as is, or look to make changes to the changes, sending it all back to the Senate. But once the House accepts the bill and it reaches Royal assent, there will still be an estimated two to three months needed for governments to get legal, recreational cannabis retail up and running. Generally, the commentary right now is putting the start of legal sales into the late summer to early fall.
Production, retail, even basic definitions … do you have any questions related to the legalization of recreational marijuana? Don’t hesitate to ask Bud (a.k.a. The Telegram editorial staff). We’ll seek out the answers to your questions, offering a new Q&A each week.
Email your questions with the subject line “Hey Bud” to: telegram@thetelegram.com.
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