In a recent podcast interview, Conservative MP Arnold Vielsen told host and Liberal MP Nate Erskine-Smith that if he had the chance, he would vote in favor of a bill to make cannabis illegal again.
The comments came during a relatively friendly exchange between the two MPs posted on Erskine Smith's Uncommons podcast on May 31st. Erskine-Smith has hosted the show since 2020 and speaks with policymakers, politicians and other experts on a variety of Canadian political issues.
The interview with Fiersen centered around Bill C-270, known as the Suppression of Internet Sexual Exploitation Act (SISE), a private member's bill that Fiersen introduced in 2022. Broader issues of doctrine were also explored.
In that vein, Arkshin-Smith describes a conservative ideology that wants the government to leave people alone, and a socially conservative ideology that centers around policing people's personal actions, such as abortion, same-sex marriage, or marijuana. I pressed Fiersen about what he framed as a contradiction between the two and his ideology.
Mr Erskine-Smith revealed that he uses cannabis to manage symptoms of Crohn's disease, saying: “If you vote to recriminalize cannabis, you're going to make me a criminal again.'' When asked, Mr. Wiersen replied: Yeah. “To this remark, Erskine Smith responded with an exasperated laugh: “No.''
Mr. Wiersen also told Mr. Erskine-Smith that he saw no contradiction in social conservatives like himself insisting that the government should leave people alone while criminalizing and cracking down on the actions of some people. Ta.
Mr Erskine-Smith also suggested that cannabis could help Mr Vierson's poem, which he shared in the House of Commons. “…if you want your rhymes to flow better, cannabis definitely helps.”
This sentiment among conservatives regarding marijuana is not unusual. Marilyn Gladu, the Conservative MP for Sarnia-Lambton, Ont., has made history in the House of Commons as one of the people who led the movement against legalization in the first place. has long said it would push back legalization. .
In 2019, she told the Globe and Mail last year that the party had no intention of repealing cannabis legalization, but that it would continue to improve the legalization of cannabis, including raising the access age, banning home cultivation (including for medical purposes), and supporting big business. He said he wants to make major changes to legalization. On the other hand, we also want to ease packaging restrictions for food and drinks.
Recently, another Conservative MP from Ontario called on the federal health minister to consider the issue of home-grown medical cannabis. Conservatives also continue to call for an end to medical marijuana “loopholes.”
On April 20 this year, Erskine-Smith spoke with Gladu on a wide range of topics, including cannabis legalization. She refutes Erskine Smith's claim that the sky did not fall after Canada legalized cannabis, saying there was poor enforcement of regulations, infiltration of organized crime and a 32% increase in drug-impaired driving. claimed to have done so.
She also complained about the number of cannabis stores in Ontario and criticized legalization, which allows the province to control distribution and sales. Of course, the province has jurisdiction over distribution and sales, and any attempt to usurp that power is unconstitutional, and the number of cannabis stores in Ontario is directly controlled by Doug Ford's Progressive Conservative government's control of the file. It is caused by
Gladu and all remaining Conservative MPs voted against marijuana legalization, except for one Conservative MP, Scott Reid of Ontario, whose party punished him for breaking the bill's rankings. claims to have done so.
Erskine Smith, Scott Reid and NDP MP Don Davis are co-chairs of the federal cannabis caucus.
Featured image by Arnold Viersen via YouTube.
