June 28, 2007

Abstract: (Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many adults in Canada believe the consumption of cannabis should be permitted by law, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies. 55 per cent of respondents think marijuana should be legalized in the country, but less than 10 per cent agree with authorizing the consumption of five other illegal drugs.

(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many adults in Canada believe the consumption of cannabis should be permitted by law, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies. 55 per cent of respondents think marijuana should be legalized in the country, but less than 10 per cent agree with authorizing the consumption of five other illegal drugs.

In July 2002, Canada became the first nation in the world to regulate the consumption of cannabis for medical reasons. In the 2006 federal election, the Marijuana party—which seeks the outright legalization of the substance—received 0.1 per cent of the popular vote.

In November 2004, the Canadian federal government—headed at the time by Liberal prime minister Paul Martin—re-introduced a controversial bill that sought "alternate penalty frameworks" for the possession of small amounts of marijuana. The bill, which would have allowed any person caught with 15 grams of the drug or less to face fines instead of criminal charges, was never put to a vote in the House of Commons.

On Mar. 19, finance minister Jim Flaherty delivered Canada's federal budget and discussed specific measures to deal with drug abuse, saying, "Many serious crimes link back to the drug trade. Grow-op or meth labs are being found in residential neighbourhoods. Gangs distribute those drugs. Then innocent people get hurt as a result of gang warfare. That's unacceptable." 43 per cent of respondents think Canada has a serious drug abuse problem which affects the whole country, 39 per cent believe Canada's drug abuse problem is confined to specific areas and people, and 11 per cent say Canada does not have a serious drug abuse problem.

As far as specific proposals to deal with drug abuse, 86 per cent of respondents support introducing a National Anti-Drug Strategy, including a nationwide awareness campaign to discourage young Canadians from using drugs, and 71 per cent are in favour of ensuring mandatory minimum prison sentences and large fines for marijuana grow operators and drug dealers.

Still, a majority of Canadians would salvage some of the ideas abandoned by the Conservative government. 55 per cent of respondents oppose eliminating "harm reduction" programs, such as supervised injection sites and needle-exchange programs, and 52 per cent disagree with scrapping the previous government's marijuana decriminalization legislation.

Polling Data

Do you support or oppose the legalization of each of the following drugs?

	Support	Oppose
Marijuana	55%	41%
Heroin	9%	89%
Powder cocaine	8%	91%
Ecstasy	8%	91%
Crack cocaine	7%	91%
Methamphetamine or "crystal meth"	7%	91%

Which one of the following statements comes closest to your view?

Canada has a serious drug abuse problem and it affects the whole country	43%
Canada's drug abuse problem is confined to specific areas and people	39%
Canada does not have a serious drug abuse problem	11%
Not sure	6%

Do you support or oppose each of these measures proposed by the federal government to deal with drug abuse?

	Support	Oppose
Introducing a National Anti-Drug Strategy, including a nationwide awareness campaign to discourage young Canadians from using drugs	86%	10%
Ensuring mandatory minimum prison sentences and large fines for marijuana grow operators and drug dealers	71%	24%
Scrapping the previous government's marijuana decriminalization legislation	38%	52%
Eliminating "harm reduction" programs, such as supervised injection sites and needle-exchange programs	37%	55%

Source: Angus Reid Strategies
Methodology: Online interviews with 1,028 Canadian adults, conducted from Jun. 15 to Jun. 18, 2007. Margin of error is 3.0 per cent.

Complete Poll (PDF)

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