| WA's
current marijuana laws are about to go up in smoke - thanks to WA
Premier Colin Barnett. October
11, 2009 10:00am
Mr Barnett says the Government will introduce some of the toughest
legislation in the nation this week to repeal WA's Cannabis Control
Act of 2003. He will also seek to make changes to the 1981 Misuse
of Drugs Act and the Young Offenders Act of 1994, saying it will
send a clear message that the Government does not endorse illicit
drug use.
Police will be given unprecedented powers to frisk people for drugs
and weapons
.
The new search law, to be introduced before Christmas, would mean
police would no longer be required to prove grounds of suspicion
in court.
The laws would apply to designated areas in known trouble spots
like Northbridge and at concerts and festivals.
Mr Barnett said the cannabis-related legislation was the first
in a series of steps the Government would take to send a clear anti-drugs
message to the community and toughen penalties for people who broke
the law through drug-related offences.
“The Liberal-National Government is committed to tackling
both the demand and supply sides of the illicit drug problem through
strong law enforcement policies, education and rehabilitation,”
the Premier said.
“Cannabis is not a harmless or soft drug. Research continues
to show that cannabis can lead to a host of health and mental health
problems including schizophrenia, and can be a gateway to harder
drugs.
“The Government believes a tougher approach against drugs
is necessary to send a clear message not to use drugs, but we also
recognise the existence of a criminal record has a serious impact
on a person’s future employment prospects. At present, once
a conviction is recorded, it remains on a person’s criminal
record for at least 10 years.
“Under the Government’s proposed laws, a person convicted
of minor cannabis possession offences will be able to apply to have
a conviction spent after three years, provided they are not convicted
of further offences during that period.
“This approach ensures minor drug offenders who demonstrate
they are prepared to take responsibility and rehabilitate themselves
are given an opportunity to turn their lives around.”
The new cannabis-related laws will:
• Prosecute those in possession of more than 10g of cannabis.
This is a reduction from the previous Labor government’s stance,
which saw those in possession of more than 30g prosecuted.
• See subsequent offences for possession being prosecuted
as criminal offences.
• Prosecute people for cultivating cannabis plants. Under
the previous Labor government’s regime, people could grow
two cannabis plants per person, per household without facing criminal
charges.
• make it illegal for cannabis smoking implements to be sold
to anyone, including adults. Currently it is only an offence to
sell these implements to children
• Increase fines for the sale of smoking implements. The
new laws will allow for fines of up to $5000 for sale to an adult
and up to $10,000 for sale to a minor. Bodies corporate will be
fined equivalent to five times these amounts.
The Government will also replace the Cannabis Infringement Notice
scheme (CIN) with the Cannabis Intervention Requirement Scheme (CIRS).
“The CIRS has a primary focus on education and takes a firm,
yet compassionate, approach to people found to be in possession
of less than 10 grams of cannabis,” Mr Barnett said.
“Under the new scheme, anyone caught will have no option
but to attend a Cannabis Intervention education session within 28
days of the offence or face prosecution through the courts.
“Unlike the soft system we have inherited where people can
be issued with infringement notices ad nauseam, juveniles will only
be eligible for two notices and adults for one.
“After that they will be prosecuted for further offences.”
A person will not be eligible for a CIRS if they are caught cultivating
or in possession of plants.
The new CIRS sessions will differ significantly from the current
CIN scheme because:
• offenders will not have the option of just paying the fine
and avoiding the education session
• if a person fails to attend the session they will be prosecuted.
This year, under the soft system the Liberal-National Government
inherited from Labor, only five per cent of offenders actually participated
in an education session.
The Premier said further anti-drug legislation would be introduced
in coming months.
“The next steps will be to amend legislation to enable courts
to impose a harsher sentence on dealers who sell or supply illicit
drugs to children, irrespective of the location of the sale or supply,”
he said.
“Further amendments to the Misuse of Drugs Act 1981 will
provide offences for exposing children to harm or to the danger
of serious harm from the manufacture of illegal drugs, such as amphetamines,
or the unlawful cultivation of illegal hydroponically-grown plants.
“The Government will also move to ban the sale of drug paraphernalia,
including cocaine kits.”
The repeal of the Cannabis Control Act will reinstate the primary
responsibility for cannabis cautioning under the Misuse of Drugs
Act 1981.
With the repeal of the Act, all registered Cannabis Infringement
notices will be deemed ‘paid’ after they have been registered
with the Fines Enforcement Registry for 12 months. This will allow
police to destroy their cannabis stockpile which is retained for
evidentiary purposes.
Media Release
Date: Monday, 3 December 2007
Cannabis use down, two-thirds support civil penalties scheme
Cannabis use in Western Australia has dropped, and support for the
WA Cannabis Infringement Notice (CIN) Scheme remains high, according
to a National Drug Research Institute (NDRI) study released today
(MONDAY).
The study compares public knowledge, attitudes and drug use this year
with the results of the same survey conducted in 2002, before WA's
cannabis laws were changed.
Possession, use and cultivation of any amount of cannabis remains
illegal under WA's cannabis laws, which were introduced in 2004. But
adults in possession of not more than 30 grams of cannabis, up to
2 non-hydroponic cannabis plants or a used smoking implement can avoid
a criminal conviction if they pay a fine or attend an approved education
session.
A review of the cannabis laws was released last week.
Key findings of the NDRI report, The Effects of the Western Australian
Cannabis Infringement Notice Scheme on Public Attitudes, Knowledge
and Use, include:
■The proportion of people using cannabis in the past 12 months
has decreased from 19% in 2002 to 12% in the 2007 survey;
■Two-thirds (66%) of the general community who responded to
the 2007 survey consider the scheme 'a good idea';
■A quarter (25%) of recent cannabis users grew at least some
of the cannabis which they had smoked over the past year, up from
11% in 2002;
■34% of recent users believed users with a problem are more
likely to seek help since the law changes;
■25% of recent users believed that the amount of contact users
have with criminals when obtaining cannabis has decreased since the
law changes; and
■Almost half (45%) of respondents still believe it is legal
for adults to possess a small amount of cannabis for their personal
use.
NDRI Associate Professor Simon Lenton said the study also found there
has been an increase in negative attitudes towards cannabis, with
three-quarters of those surveyed considering it as a dangerous drug.
"The pre-post comparisons suggest that the WA public see cannabis
use as more harmful to health in 2007 than they did in 2002, before
the scheme was introduced," Professor Lenton said.
"The next step for government is a comprehensive public education
campaign to capitalise on the growing negative attitudes towards cannabis,
focusing on the laws, health effects of cannabis use and how to get
help.
"One of the goals of the CIN scheme was to move cannabis supply away
from large scale commercial suppliers to that which has been grown
by the user, which is why the scheme also applied to two cannabis
plants. These data give early indications that this goal may be being
achieved."
The 2007 survey was largely funded by the Drug and Alcohol Office
with contributions from NDRI itself. The 2002 survey was funded by
the National Drug Law Enforcement Research Fund.
Further Information:
Associate Professor Simon Lenton
Deputy Director, National Drug Research Institute
Curtin University of Technology
Phone: 61 (0)8 9266 1603
Mobile: 0417 957 910
Vic Rechichi
Communications Officer, National Drug Research Institute
Curtin University of Technology
Phone: 61 (0)8 9266 1627
Mobile: 0414 682 055
Background:
Study background The Effects
of the Western Australian Cannabis Infringement Notice Scheme
on Public Attitudes, Knowledge and Use study is part
of a large ongoing pre-post evaluation of the WA Cannabis Infringement
Notice (CIN) Scheme. It compared the results of a telephone
survey of 809 members of the WA public aged 14 to 70 in 2002,
with a similar survey of 814 respondents conducted earlier this
year (2007).
WA Cannabis laws
The WA Cannabis Infringement Notice (CIN) Scheme came into
effect in March 2004. Under the scheme the possession, use and
cultivation of even small amounts of cannabis remains illegal.
However, adults in possession of not more than 30 grams of cannabis,
up to 2 non-hydroponic cannabis plants or a used smoking implement
can avoid a criminal conviction if they pay a fine or attend
a specified education session within a 28-day period. Those
that fail to do so face increased financial penalties and loss
of their drivers licence.
Drop in rates of use
The change in rate of cannabis use observed from the pre to
the post phase samples appears consistent with both state and
national trends. As such, it is unlikely to be due to the CIN
scheme itself as the declines appear to have occurred nationally
and began before the introduction of the scheme. Previous research
suggested that as long as cannabis use remains illegal, neither
the criminal law nor civil penalties has much impact on rates
of cannabis use in the community. Data in this study demonstrate
that the predictions of some public commentators - that the
introduction of the scheme would increase cannabis use - were
without foundation.
Public education
Almost every respondent in the 2007 survey supported the proposal
that the state government educate the community and young people
about the harms associated with cannabis and the laws that apply
to it, as recommended by the designers of the CIN scheme in
2002.
Community attitudes
The 2007 survey has shown:
- Growing negative attitudes towards cannabis (see Figure
1);
- That two-thirds of respondents still believe the CIN scheme
is a good idea, compared to 79% in 2002 (Figure 2); and
- There is majority support for the scheme on both sides of
the political divide (Figure 3).
Figure 1
| Attitudes to Cannabis |
% Agreeing |
| |
2002 |
2007 |
| People under 18 should not use cannabis |
84 |
93 |
| There is a clear link between cannabis and mental health
problems |
69 |
79 |
| Cannabis use may result in dependence |
77 |
85 |
| People usually have a good time when they use cannabis |
57 |
39 |
| Cannabis is a dangerous drug |
63 |
76 |
| I would be concerned if my family or friends were using
cannabis |
67 |
79 |
Ref + figures 1,2 & 3 here: http://db.ndri.curtin.edu.au/media.asp?mediarelid=87
EFFECTS OF THE WESTERN AUSTRALIAN CANNABIS INFRINGEMENT NOTICE
SCHEME ON PUBLIC ATTITUDES, KNOWLEDGE AND USE
COMPARISON OF PRE- AND POST CHANGE DATA
James Fetherston & Simon Lenton
National Drug Research Institute
Curtin University of Technology
Declaration
of interest
In 2001 the National Drug Research Institute made a submission to
the WA Community Drug Summit which, on the basis of the available
research evidence, recommended the introduction of a civil penalties
scheme for minor cannabis offenders. In 2002 Simon Lenton was appointed
to the Ministerial Working Party on Drug Law Reform which
drafted the CIN scheme that was put before Government and informed
the development of the Cannabis Control Act 2003. At the time of writing
Simon Lenton was a member of the Expert Consultative Group set up
to as part of the statutory review of the Cannabis Control Act 2003.
Report here (146 page pdf): http://ndri.curtin.edu.au/local/docs/pdf/publications/T177.pdf
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