Legalise Recreational Adult use of Cannabis in NSW (COVID-19 Recovery)
Petitioner:
Mr Emily Forester
| Member:
Leong, Jenny
| No. of Signatories:
2,330
| Date closed:
02/11/2021
To the Speaker and Members of the Legislative Assembly,
The use, possession and supply of cannabis is illegal in NSW. Section 10 of the Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 (NSW) prescribes a penalty of up to 2-years gaol and/or $2,200 fine for possessing a prohibited drug.
Despite this, cannabis remains the most widely used illicit substance in Australia, with the latest National Drug Strategy Household survey finding that 36% of adults have used cannabis in their lifetime with 11.6% having used cannabis recently. Also according to the 2019 Drug Strategy Household survey, for the first time, more people said they supported the legalisation of cannabis than opposed it (41% compared with 37%). It was also the first time the proportion of Australians who supported cannabis being used regularly by adults was greater than the proportion that supported regular tobacco smoking (19.6% compared with 15.4%).
Countries around the world are moving towards a legal regulatory framework for recreational cannabis. Including the USA, Netherlands, Uruguay, Canada, Spain, Mexico and Israel. It’s time to acknowledge that the ‘war on drugs’ has been a colossal failure and that the social and economic costs of cannabis prohibition far outweigh the potential effects of legalisation.
A regulated cannabis market in NSW could play an invaluable role in the economic recovery from COVID-19. The federal parliamentary budget office found that legalising cannabis could provide $2 billion to the Australian economy annually, potentially adding $660 million per year to NSW.
Please give the NSW residents this right.
