A new poll of Canadian voters finds that nearly half of those surveyed would like, once marijuana is legalized there, for the government to run the dispensary system itself, Marijuana.com reports.
The Forum poll, published December 9th, found that 40% of respondents would be in favor of having commercial cannabis be grown by a select group of large-scale companies and distributed through government-operated dispensaries.
“The largest groups of Canadians in total believe marijuana should be grown by large companies and sold through government agencies where it can be restricted, regulated and taxed (40%).”
The poll also asked respondents where they think any future tax revenue from marijuana sales should be spent. 21 percent thought that the money should first be earmarked to deal with the country’s national debt — currently around $812 million — while 17 percent thought that drug rehabilitation programs should see benefits.
Only 19 percent of those polled said they had actually used marijuana in the past year:
“Among 1369 Canadian adults 18 years of age and older, one fifth have used marijuana or cannabis in the past year (19%) and one quarter will use it in the future once it is legal (24%). Anticipated usage is highest among the youngest (41%), mid income groups ($40K to $60K – 29%), in BC (29%), among Green voters (42%). Groups especially likely to not use it include the oldest (8%) and Francophones (16%), as well as Conservative voters (11%).”
Photo Credit: Coleen Elliott