West Axes Liberal Cannabis Laws

[Oz]

THE axe is about to fall on West Australian laws that allow people to grow two cannabis plants.

 

It comes seven years after the former Labor government passed the controversial legislation.

 

Premier Colin Barnett's new drug laws making any cultivation a crime slipped quietly through the upper house of parliament on Thursday night with support from Labor, which all but conceded that its experiment had failed.

 

The major parties ignored concerns by the Greens that drug dealers would get more customers and their profits would soar if people could not grow their own.

 

The change leaves South Australia as the only state that allows cannabis plant possession, at one per person. The West Australian drug crackdown was an election commitment of Mr Barnett, who ridiculed Labor's "soft" laws in the lead-up to the 2008 poll and promised to throw them out.

 

Attorney-General Christian Porter told The Weekend Australian yesterday that $2.4 million would be spent over the next four years bedding down the changes, which still need a final tick when parliament resumes next month but are certain to succeed after passing the lower house last month.

 

The legislation also slashes the amount of cannabis a person can have on them from 30g to 10g. Anyone with less than 10g would have to attend drug education for a first offence and face prosecution if caught again.

 

Opposition health spokesman Roger Cook conceded there had been problems with the current laws.

Author: Amanda O'Brien and Verity Edwards

Date: 25/09/10

Source: The Australian

Copyright: Copyright 2010 News Limited.

[everest]

wankas

[The Hash Nibbler]

Barnett is such a tool. I love WA but this guy is a looney. he has his head up his arse if he thinks it will stop anyone. It will just clog the legal systems already sparse time up and put pot repeat offenders, whose only crime is growing/ smoking a bit of weed in the jails to clog those up as well and cost more tax dollars building prisons. C'mon Barnett this is WA not America, prohibition/zero tolerance does not work, just makes the big boys richer and the guy who wants to grow a few to supply himself/mates is now a cultivator with intent to supply. Nice work dickhead

FREE MY WEED !!!!!!!!!!! Gh72

[jimbojones5678]

Well that's another stupid law to add to the rest of them....idiots!

 

Jimbo

[darryl d]

This story started me thinking of the control freak style - lack lustre Premiers Australia has had to endure over the years.

In the ever increasing list of bufoons it's hard to pick a winner.

Joh Bjielke-Petersen sent Queensland's civil rights/drug laws backwards in the 70's and 80's, and we were the butt of all 'police state' jokes for many years.

Morris Eimma picked up the batton though where Sir Joh dropped it with a quinella of sniffer dog's in your crotch at your favourite pub and club as well as axing the 'Medical Cannabis Trials' which effectively axed many of the sensible social outcomes being achieved by Bob Carr.

The Rand government in South Australia sent tremors of Big Brother style governance through that state and around the country with it's heavy handed introduction of anti hydro - anti 'bikie' laws.

Now Colin Barnett has taken up the Premier dictatorship role. Not content to use his police force to shake down the public at will, sexual/racial/gender harrassment anyone? or steal more land from Aboriginal people to further his greedy tunnel visioned mining serfdom, he has to completely piss his authority on the state by axing a law allowing the cultivation of 2 plants. Thats right folks 2

The wisdom behind what good this will do for the 'peasants' living peacefully growing their own relief, branding them as criminals for doing so, whilst empowering organised crime is beyond me.

At this rate the countries biggest mining state will soon be known as the piss test capital of the 'free' world.

 

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/state-politics/public-learns-to-take-its-medicine/story-e6frgczx-1225804537205

http://www.perthnow.com.au/news/western-australia/wa-a-police-state-ex-chief-justice/story-e6frg143-1225867390321

http://www.perthnow.com.au/business/news/colin-barnett-putting-woodsides-browse-gas-project-at-risk/story-e6frg2qu-1225913430159

Edited September 25, 2010 by darryl d

[Frazz]

yea pretty disappointing for sure, but Barnett made no secret of his desire to enlarge the 'war on drugs' it was a cornerstone of his election policy and the public voted him into power on these reforms

so it seems like the majority of voters were quite ok with these new laws

 

it should be remembered that these policies are endemic to the Right-winged Liberal Fascist, and to a lesser degree Labor parties of Australia

 

[Kain]

No, no, no!

Why are you doing this? Are you completely deaf, blind, ignorant and everything else?

Do you not understand that there is absolutely NOTHING detrimental about cannabis...?

It breaks my heart to see laws like this passed down.. More money to the dealers.

 

I love WA, too. But a move for me has been on the cards for a while. Here I come, Adelaide.

[gottagrow]

Amen kain

[headstone]

what a shame my father liked growing pot and I enjoyed it when I visited WA, but with the change in the laws I doubt I will have anything to smoke next time I visit my parents...

 

If anyone dies during my next family gathering I fully intend to blame that douche who changed the laws

[Sylar420]

next it will be cameras in our houses with tv you cant turn off promoting government propaganda, such a shame we are becoming more and more like the book 1984

Legalese it, license it and tax it! dont out right ban it when alcohol and prescription drugs are far worse and kill so many ppl every year. Its a shame that just cos some wanker wants his voice heard that he aims his sights on the lesser of the evils...dope yet dose nothing about cracking down harder on Meth, xtc and heroin, shame on you, i hope the day comes when you need medical marijuana and cant get it cos of the laws you passed!