Australia: Plan to Increase Cannabis Penalties to Match Harder Drugs Under Attack
Proposal for one-schedule drug regime in Queensland described by experts as ‘scientifically questionable’
Plans by the Queensland government to increase penalties for cannabis possession and trafficking to match those for “harder” drugs has been described by drug policy experts as a “retrograde” and “uninformed” step.
The Queensland attorney general, Yvette D’Ath, is expected to introduce the proposed reform to the state’s anti-drug laws by the middle of the year, as part of reforms recommended in a report on the Organised Crime Commission of Inquiry.
If passed, the reforms will be introduced as Queensland prepares to hold clinical trials on the use of medical marijuana, after announcing it would join New South Wales and Victoria in potentially allowing the legal use of the drug.
The Commission of Inquiry report, released last month, recommended that the Drugs Misuse Act 1986 and supporting Drugs Misuse Regulations 1987 be amended to remove...
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