Pot legalization will cost taxpayers

The federal Trudeau Liberal government is hell bent on its support for a marijuana programme which will make it available to the retail trade, wholesale growers and practically every individual in Canada who wants to grow the “weed.”

This is against the advice of doctors, police and common-sense people. Trudeau will not listen.

The operation will cost taxpayers, not government, billions of dollars. Millions have already been spent on surveys, roundtable discussions and planning. Soon, police agencies will be saddled with the bill to police infractions and the courts will be flooded with charges to be heard. The result will add to the costs of incarceration because there will be some “doing time.”

Health-care agencies will be saddled with a deluge of people with needs. In some American jurisdictions, armoured military type vehicles to transport the product from grower/wholesaler to retail operations has been included. In Canada, it is predicted individual operations will be targeted by organized crime. Again, these costs will be borne by the taxpayer.

Proponents of the programme will argue that it will dry up purchases from the “black market.” This is nothing but smoke and mirrors thinking and demonstrates lack of knowledge of how the market operates. Cigarettes are a prime example. Illicit sales have increased substantially.

The federal government will announce another tax on the purchase of the product, thus another fundraiser for the pot.

The provincial Liberal government says there will be a programme but doesn’t know when it will be announced or what its components will be.

Like most Canadians I have not been given the reason(s) why the recreational use and sale of marijuana is necessary in the long term for the growth of a healthy society.

Garth E. Staples, Charlottetown