An e-petition that requests the government immediately repeal cannabis prohibition has reached 20,356 online signatures.
The petition, e-18, launched in February and calls for the end of punishment for cannabis possession and cultivation, revisions to the Criminal Code, pardons for past offences and other changes to allow for legalization.
Hosted on the government’s new e-petition site, the petition quickly surpassed the needed 500 signatures to be certified and will now be presented in the House of Commons by sponsor Elizabeth May of the Green Party.
Organizer Sam Vekemans said he’s not sure when May will make the presentation, but after she does, the government has 45 days to provide an official response.
Vekemans pointed to two other active cannabis related petitions still looking for signatures — e-190 calling for the elimination of taxes on medical cannabis and e-115, which seeks the government to include the personal production of cannabis to be included in legalization.
Vekemans is now preparing another e-petition that requests the government remove cannabis from the drug schedule and said he’s also planning to submit subsequent petitions.
“For the next big petition, it’s best to wait until after Aug. 25 as per the Allard case where the government will be changing the law about access to medical cannabis,” Vekemans wrote in an email to supporters.