Ontario should open up on pot planning

With pot legalization about a year away, we can conclude that the Ontario government is working on a plan. Or at least a plan for a plan.

And yes, the “Legalization of Cannabis Secretariat” exists and, apparently, is busily holding meetings. With whom, it won’t say. But not the public. Not yet, anyhow.

This doesn’t inspire much confidence. Other provinces are puffing along nicely: New Brunswick is holding public hearings this summer; Quebec’s convening a meeting of experts this month, with draft legislation in hand by the fall. Alberta’s got an entire website chock-full of information. In other words, many jurisdictions are talking openly to their citizens about pot.

Meanwhile, “Ontario is engaging with health, public safety, municipal and indigenous stakeholders and will continue to do so over the summer months as we develop our regulatory framework,” says a vague statement from the Ministry of the Attorney General sent to the Ottawa Citizen.

So far, the ministry has refused to expand on the details, and, when the Citizen followed up, merely re-sent the initial statement. Attorney General Yasir Naqvi also declined to talk to the Citizen; his people cited scheduling conflicts.

Why so mysterious? This is both disconcerting and disrespectful of the public.

Governments are under a great deal of pressure to get the new legalized marijuana regime right. If they don’t, the black market will continue. There are questions to be answered, from where pot will be sold to how impaired driving will be policed, and the answers to many of these questions are the responsibility of the provinces. They should be talking publicly.

In Ontario, a provincial election is scheduled a few weeks before the federal legislation making pot legal is supposed to be in place. There ought to be a robust, open discussion here about what legalization is going to look like, because many voters will cast their ballot at least in part based on what they think of the province’s pot plans.

Discussions are certainly happening in private homes. Families may be arguing over whether 18 is a good minimum age for legal purchase, or whether you’ll get the keys to mom’s car if you use it at all. Yet the Ontario government can’t yet see its way to public dialogue. Maybe an opposition party will have to start public hearings.

We know the shape of the federal legislation, and we know where provinces will have to make concrete decisions. So how about a little transparency, from the premier or from Naqvi? Stop blowing smoke in our eyes.