Federal government retreats this summer will include a number of lobbyists pushing for their interests, including cannabis legalization.
Summa Strategies Canada LobbyistĀ Louis-Alexandre Lanthier, who also served as a staff person to Justin Trudeau as an MP, said cannabis is becoming a more central focus for lobbyists after the Liberals recent announcement ofĀ the task force overseeing the file.
āAny people who are working on that issue will start paying attention to that and will try to be in touch with that [task force] to prepare documentation or to appear in public,ā said LanthierĀ said. āThat is going to be an issue that is going to come forward, I think, a bit more.ā
Temple Scott Associates lobbyistĀ Scott Thurlow agreed that many lobbyists will be pushing their agenda on cannabis this summer and into the fall.
āThereās still quite a few issues related to legalization that will probably drive a lot of the agenda, because thereās certainly a lot of money involved,ā Thurlow said.
It has been estimated that the cannabis industry is worth $7 billion annually and carries a $2.3 billion price tag for the government to enforce.
Thurlow said the mandate letters Trudeau sent to cabinet ministers after taking office will be used as checklists for lobbyists who will beĀ āworking on the items that are in there and havenāt been dealt with yet.ā