QUEBEC — The province now has legislation governing the use of recreational cannabis even if Ottawa’s plan has yet to be made law.
Seven months in the works, MNAs on Tuesday gave final approval to Bill 157, a law making cannabis a government-owned and operated business with strict controls over who can buy it and where it can be consumed.
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Despite Quebec’s image as a very open society, the law is among the most conservative in the country and does not allow for home-grown product. The bill sailed through in the morning. The vote was 61 for and 46 against.
As announced, the Coalition Avenir Québec (CAQ) opposed the law—mainly because it believes the legal age to possess and consume should be 21 and not 18 as the law states.
The CAQ has pledged to reopen the bill to increase the consumption age should it form a government Oct. 1.
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