moved:
That, in the opinion of this House, the government should undertake all necessary steps to legalize the use of marijuana for health and medical purposes.
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to be the first elected member of the House of Commons to speak, not just today in this debate, but in the history of the House of Commons, on this vital matter of the legalization of marijuana for health and medical purposes.
Marijuana has been used medicinally throughout the world for thousands of years. Today many patients, particularly those suffering from cancer, AIDS, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy and other diseases, testify to the marked relief they obtain from inhaling marijuana.
The therapeutic use of marijuana is, however, still banned by the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, and users are liable to a six-month prison sentence and a $1000 fine.
With a view to changing this unacceptable situation, I introduced a motion one year ago in favour of the legalization of marijuana for health and medical purposes. For me, this is a matter of compassion toward sick people suffering from nausea, loss of appetite, vomiting, and other major discomforts which accompany a number of chronic diseases.
My motion is simple and unequivocal. It reads as follows:
That, in the opinion of this House, the government should undertake all necessary steps to legalize the use of marijuana for health and medical purposes.
In my opinion, it is unacceptable for a person with a chronic condition, or a terminally ill AIDS patient, to be liable for six months in prison and a $10,000 fine for using a medical treatment recommended by his or her physician.
In this connection, the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act is totally devoid of understanding and compassion toward the chronically ill, who want nothing more than to live in dignity. This act must be changed as soon as possible, in order to allow the medical use of marijuana by those who need it.
The Ontario court has already found part of the Narcotic Control Act to be unconstitutional. Clearly, the ball is now in our court here in the House of Commons.
We have been elected to fulfil a role as legislators. We have no right to let the courts decided in our stead. We must now assume our responsibility as elected representatives by inviting the federal government to pass concrete measures without delay that will allow the therapeutic use of marijuana.
At the present time, the only parliamentary approach that can achieve this is to give solid support to Motion M-381, which we are debating here today for the first time, and which calls upon the government to “undertake all necessary steps to legalize the use of marijuana for health and medical purposes”. The situation is urgent. For those who suffer, every day counts.
My position in favour of the legalization of marijuana for therapeutic purposes was not formed yesterday. I was first made aware of this injustice by my constituents, who urged me to take a public position in favour of legalizing marijuana for health and medical purposes.
Last March 6, I publicly supported a proposal along these lines by young delegates to the Bloc Quebecois youth forum. I am happy that this proposal was passed unanimously at the time by forum delegates. The proposal called on the Bloc Quebecois to take a stand in favour of the therapeutic use of marijuana and urged its parliamentary wing to follow up.
Delegates were very happy to hear our leader, the member for Laurier—Sainte-Marie, support their proposal in his closing address to the conference. Two weeks later, I followed up with the motion we are debating for the first time today.
This is not a new debate. The media and the courts have been looking at this issue for some time now. Doctors are discussing it with each other, and criminologists and patient advocacy groups are giving it thought. It is a topic that has been of interest to many people except, until today, members of the House of Commons. Now, since this debate will be followed by a vote, each of us here in the House will have an opportunity to take a clear stand on the issue. This is, in our view, a simple issue of transparency.
Until now, every time the issue of legalizing the therapeutic use of marijuana came up, the Minister of Health or the Minister of Justice tried to duck it. Their answer was always that they were open to the issue, their officials were studying it, and they hoped to be able to announce a plan or something more specific in a few months' time, all the while hoping that the issue would go away.
They say the same thing the next time the question comes up. This was what they did last year when an Ontario court judge ruled that a section of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act was unconstitutional.
It was what they said when an AIDS sufferer from the Outaouais and his physician asked the government to take action on this issue. It is also what the Minister of Health and the Minister of Justice told me when I put the question to them here in the House one year ago on March 10 and 23, 1998.
Yesterday, it was the usual scenario. On the eve of the first day of debate on the motion that marijuana be legalized for medical purposes, the Minister of Health suddenly feels a need to demonstrate compassion towards the chronically ill.
What does he do to help? He announces that he will ask his officials to prepare a plan to draw up guidelines for eventual legalization of marijuana for medical use. I repeat: he announces that he will once again ask his officials to prepare a plan to draw up guidelines for eventual legalization of marijuana for medical use.
What have the officials the minister asked to look into this issue last year been doing? What do they have to show for their research? Only the minister knows.
Yesterday, the Minister of Health took a step in the right direction, and I said so yesterday. He deserves credit. He has announced that he will be asking these same departmental employees to draw up an action plan with a view to legalizing the therapeutic use of marijuana. Hence we now know the mandate he claims to have given to his staff.
How can we have any faith in his words when, in the past, the minister's actions did not fall in line with his commitments? Why did the minister announce a policy of openness but still no precise timeframe or concrete measures to achieve the legal use of marijuana for health and therapeutic purposes? Once again, his actions denote a lack of transparency. What is more, this new policy smacks of last-minute improvization by the minister. He rushed to give his people a mandate just as the issue was about to be debated.