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Bill to legalize cannabis in Canada moves forward in Senate
Senate leveraged the expertise of five committees for indepth review of the bill.
Legislation that would legalize and regulate cannabis in Canada is in its final round of debate in the Senate following an exhaustive review that leveraged the expertise of five Senate committees.
Members of the Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology approved many key changes to the Cannabis Act on Monday. The committee report was tabled and adopted in the Senate on Wednesday.
Senate leaders previously agreed to a third reading vote on the bill by June 7.
As part of its study, the committee took into consideration reports from four other committees tasked with zeroing in on particular elements of the bill.
- Report of the Senate Committee on Aboriginal Peoples
- Report of the Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs
- Report of the Senate Committee on National Security and Defence
- Report of the Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade
Amendments to the bill at committee include allowing provinces to restrict or ban the growth of cannabis at home.
The Cannabis Act arrived in the Senate in November. Senator Tony Dean is sponsoring the legislation in the Upper Chamber.
Find out more about how the provinces and territories are preparing for the legalization in Canada here.