Exemption even surprised the premier's office. 'Can anyone explain?' aide asked.

Ontario's Liberal government defended allowing medical marijuana users to vaporize anywhere by saying they had consulted "very broadly" – but emails show those consultations involved the input of just two people, The Canadian Press has learned.

Ultimately, the associate health minister had to defend the policy for just one day after the government backtracked on the policy within 24 hours. The emails, obtained through freedom-of-information legislation, show the premier's top staff members were both unaware of the new rule and confused by it.

New regulations concerning cannabis edibles in Colorado could set a new standard throughout the industry.

For investors, there aren't many industries that can pack as much growth potential as marijuana.

According to cannabis research firm ArcView, legal marijuana sales hit $5.4 billion in 2015, and they're on track to grow by an estimated 30% per year through 2020, thanks to organic growth in states that have already legalized it, as well as the expected legalization of marijuana in a number of new states. For added context, residents in nine states will be voting on a marijuana initiative or amendment in their state in the upcoming election next month.

The majority of the voters in New Mexico would like to see marijuana legalized for recreational purposes, according to a new poll conducted by the Albuquerque Journal.

The survey, which was published this past Sunday, finds that 61 percent of the voting public would support a measure aimed at establishing a taxed and regulated cannabis trade – similar to what is currently underway in Colorado. Only 34 percent of the respondents said they would oppose such a proposal. Others were undecided when asked their position.

In May of 2016 Nicola Sturgeon backed calls for relaxing the laws on Cannabis use for “specific cases” of people with conditions such as Multiple Sclerosis. She made clear at the time she is not in favour of decriminalising for recreational use as it causes harm. She said “Cannabis is not a harmless substance. I am not in favour of general decriminalisation but I do think there is a specific case for medicinal use.”  Now it’s been announced that the SNP will be holding a vote at its Autumn conference, which takes place between the 13th and 15th October 2016. The vote will decide if the NHS should offer Medical Marijuana on prescription.

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In Canada, licensed dispensers dispatch neat little packets of cannabis to medicinal users all over the country for as little as $5 a gram. The packets wouldn’t look out of place in a supermarket.

In Australia, the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has a very different plan for patients accessing cannabis. The TGA is the Department of Health agency charged with regulation of therapeutic goods, from medicines to sunscreens. Until recently, the Australian government has taken a restrictive approach to creating legal access to medicinal cannabis.

A California lawmaker is pushing to get rid of the Drug Enforcement Administration's pot eradication program, arguing it's fiscally irresponsible to spend millions burning up marijuana plants at a time when several states are legalizing the drug. 

Rep. Ted Lieu, a Democrat, proposed an amendment to a fiscal 2016 spending bill that would cut the DEA's $18 million budget for the program in half. It would redirect $9 million to fund programs that help children who are victims of domestic and sexual abuse.

“Next year, I will bring another amendment to eliminate the program completely,” Lieu said in a written statement. 

As many as five states could approve its recreational use this November, potentially signaling a point of no return for legalized pot.

Recreational marijuana users can now legally light up a joint in states representing about 5 percent of the U.S. population. By the time Americans wake up on November 9, that percentage could be swelling to more than one-quarter.

Cannabis and music have always gone hand in hand, but even since Colorado legalized recreational pot use in 2012 with Amendment 64, it is still illegal to consume cannabis in public and in private businesses that are accessed by the public – including concert venues. 

This November, voters in Denver will have the opportunity to address the issue with Ballot Question 300, which, if passed, will create a pilot program that allows limited social cannabis consumption in permitted private establishments.

Two government departments seem to disagree about whether cannabis products have a medicinal value.

Vendors of a product called cannabidiol, or CBD, an oil derived from cannabis plants, have received letters from the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), a Department of Health-sponsored agency, saying that they have to stop selling it in the next 28 days, because it has been designated as a medicine.

That means that they will probably have to undergo clinical trials, and demonstrate that they are safe and effective treatments for specific conditions, before they can be sold.

Voters in five states – Arizona, California, Maine, Massachusetts, and Nevada – will decide this November on ballot initiatives seeking to legalize and regulate the adult use, production, and retail sale of marijuana. Polling data shows these measures to be leading among likely voters.