Most in province OK with weed-smoking neighbours, but prefer if they leave car in driveway: poll

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This article was published 29/08/2017 (3320 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Manitobans are largely unfazed at the thought of a pot-smoking neighbour, but are less comfortable with the prospect of drivers under the influence of cannabis and the idea of selling edible marijuana products in bars, according to a Probe Research poll commissioned by CTV Winnipeg.

Sixty-seven per cent of respondents said they wouldn’t be bothered to learn that their neighbour “was a regular marijuana user as opposed to a regular alcohol drinker,” an attitude that was consistent across all age groups.

Age did have an impact on how respondents viewed driving under the influence of cannabis, as opposed to alcohol. Asked to react to the statement “Driving while under the influence of alcohol is worse than driving while under the influence of marijuana,” 50 per cent of all respondents disagreed, with 31 per cent indicating they disagreed strongly. Among respondents aged 18 to 34, however, just 35 per cent disagreed with the statement, with 46 per cent agreeing that driving under the influence of alcohol is worse.

Younger Manitobans also felt more at ease with the idea of bars selling cannabis-infused edible goods alongside alcohol. Fifty-nine per cent of respondents aged 18 to 34 agreed they would be “comfortable” with that possibility, compared to 41 per cent of those aged 35 to 54 and 29 per cent of respondents aged 55 and up.

The federal government plans to legalize cannabis by July 2018, but Canadians won’t find mass-manufactured pot brownies next to the beer taps at their local tavern quite so quickly. Ottawa has already said it will need extra time beyond the date of legalization to develop appropriate regulations for edible cannabis products, such as child-resistant packaging and standard doses. (Individual Canadians will be allowed to make their own marijuana-infused foods for personal use as soon as legalization comes into force.)

Along with Bill C-45, which would legalize marijuana, the federal government’s Bill C-46 is meant to address drug-impaired driving. The legislation would allow the government to establish a legal limit for a driver’s blood concentration of THC, the primary psychoactive chemical in cannabis. Police would be able to demand saliva samples from suspected drugged drivers in order to determine the presence of drugs and establish reasonable grounds for an offence, then demand the driver undergo a blood test or drug evaluation by a trained expert.

The Probe Research/CTV Winnipeg poll captured the opinions of 1,032 Manitoba adults between Aug. 8 and Aug. 20. Because the poll was conducted online, it does not represent a random sample of Manitobans and its margin of error cannot be determined.

solomon.israel@freepress.mb.ca

@sol_israel