Little announces cannabis referendum 2020

The Government will hold a referendum on personal cannabis use at the 2020 general election – and it will be binding.

Justice Minister Andrew Little announced Cabinet had made the decision on Monday on his way into caucus yesterday morning. ‘‘It will be held at the 2020 general election. The agreement is that it will be binding.

‘‘There is a bit of detail to still to work through,’’ Little said yesterday.

National leader Simon Bridges suggested that the Government was attempting to distract from the general election itself, but said he didn’t have a problem with the referendum being binding. ‘‘I’m pretty cynical that you’ve got a Government here that wants to distract from the core issues of a general election.’’

He suspected two other referendums would be included on euthanasia and electoral reform.

Bridges would be voting against cannabis legalisation and said he hadn’t smoked marijuana at any point in his life.

Little said he would not be using a mooted ‘‘citizens assembly’’ for policy development, something the Green Party had pushed for. The Green Party negotiated the referendum during Confidence and Supply Talks to form the Government. That agreement stipulated the referendum would have to happen at or before the general election.

Recent polling on the issue suggests the referendum will see the decriminalisation of marijuana.