Page 3654 - Week 10 - Thursday, 19 September 2019
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I would like to once again thank Professor Falconer and all members of the coordination group for their time and commitment. The dedication of the group and the professionalism they have demonstrated in achieving great management outcomes are a vital asset for the territory and the surrounding region. I commend the report to the Assembly.
Question resolved in the affirmative.
Health, Ageing and Community Services—Standing Committee
MR BARR (Kurrajong—Chief Minister, Treasurer, Minister for Social Inclusion and Equality, Minister for Tertiary Education, Minister for Tourism and Special Events and Minister for Trade, Industry and Investment) (2.54), by leave: Pursuant to standing order 211, I move:
That the Assembly take note of the following paper:
Health, Ageing and Community Services—Standing Committee—Report 7—Inquiry into Drugs of Dependence (Personal Cannabis Use) Amendment Bill 2018—Government response.
I am pleased to present the government’s response to the standing committee’s inquiry into the Drugs of Dependence (Personal Cannabis Use) Amendment Bill 2018, a private member’s bill. The government thanks the committee members and the secretariat for the work that has gone into the preparation of the committee’s report. We would also like to thank those who took the time to make submissions and to appear at the committee. As this standing committee report has implications for more than one portfolio, I am tabling the response on behalf of the government.
The standing committee made 16 recommendations. Of those, the government has agreed to four, noted eight and not agreed to four. The government is committed to evidence-based and practice-informed responses to drug use that minimise the harm caused by drugs in our community, in line with the ACT drug strategy action plan for 2019-21. It is in this context and through this lens that the government has examined the bill and the committee’s report.
The recommendations agreed to by the government include: supporting the private member’s bill, which we will do subject to a number of amendments the government will move and has previously outlined; monitoring demand for health services following passage of the bill; and delivering public information campaigns with information about the health implications of using cannabis and what will change when the bill is passed.
Recommendations which the government has noted include those relating to definitions for cannabis in different states; those relating to offences for smoking in public places or near children; the recommendation to develop a new drug driving test; a recommendation to include an express authorisation for the use of cannabis; a recommendation to intervene in prosecutions; and a recommendation to overturn previous convictions for possession or use of cannabis. These recommendations are
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