CAQ wants to raise age to 21 by March

QUEBEC The new Coalition Avenir Québec government plans to tighten the rules on cannabis consumption, including increasing the legal age to consume to 21 from 18, within 100 days.

Confirming he will be the one handling the issue, junior health minister Lionel Carmant said the government considers the issue a question of public health and will act as soon as it can to change the rules created by the previous Liberal regime.

Carmant said he will “do everything in his power” to present legislation imposing the CAQ vision on the cannabis issue during the short pre-Christmas sitting of the legislature, which will start Nov. 27.

But with the normal holiday break and other legislative hurdles, that means the changes would not kick in immediately.

“We are aiming to do it within the first hundred days (in office),” Carmant told reporters arriving for a meeting of the CAQ caucus. “By the month of March seems reasonable.”

In this case, changing the legal age will take specific legislation.

There had been confusion over which of Premier François Legault’s 26 ministers would handle the issue. At last week’s swearing in of the new cabinet, Legault indicated Justice Minister Sonia LeBell would have the tricky file.

That changed Wednesday with Carmant being told he is in charge. The previous Liberal government

had a similar approach, with junior health minister Lucie Charlebois responsible.

“After discussions, we found it is an issue of public health, especially protecting the health of our children,” Carmant said. “So I am honoured to take on this issue.”

For more than a year the CAQ has been saying it wants to increase the legal age to consume pot to 21 from 18 and to ban consumption in public places.

It also wants a greater distance between outlets of the Société québécoise du cannabis stores selling the product and schools.

Carmant repeated scientific studies that show young people are particularly vulnerable to the negative effects of cannabis, since their brains are not fully developed before the age of 25.

He said he wants to act quickly before the consumption by young people becomes commonplace.