Cabinet ministers stood in the House of Assembly Wednesday afternoon, one after another giving notice of motion, announcing their plans to introduce and debate four separate pieces of legislation — three being amendments and one a new act — before wrapping up the current session.
The parliamentary calendar puts the expected end of the legislative session next Thursday, May 31. The House doesn’t sit on Friday and a private member’s motion is also expected to be debated on Wednesday.
Government House Leader Andrew Parsons says the Liberals are prepared to offer whatever time the opposition feels it needs to deal with the cannabis-related decisions still required.
Progressive Conservative MHA Paul Davis told reporters he expects the House to sit into June. At the same time, he said, the PCs will stay as long as needed to deal with whatever is brought forward.
“We haven’t seen it, we haven’t been briefed on it, we don’t know how extensive it is or what questions we may have,” Davis said about the collection of cannabis-related bills to come.
Parsons said a briefing was being arranged for PC and NDP members.
In question period earlier in the day, Davis spent time in his critic role asking about the expected locations for cannabis retail outlets. Acknowledging there is guiding legislation in place, and decisions are being made by the Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corp. (NLC) on retail proposals, Davis said he has been getting questions from people within his own district of Topsail-Paradise about locations and cannabis regulations, as have colleagues. He said he felt a requirement to ask some of those questions.
“It’s a learning process for everybody. There’s a lot of nervousness in the province. People are asking me questions on it virtually every day,” he said.
As for the provincial legislation still to be debated this spring, there are amendments being proposed for the Liquor Corporation Act, the Smoke-Free Environment Act and the Highway Traffic Act. There is also an entirely new piece of law — the Control and Sale of Cannabis Act.
The Liquor Corporation Act was already opened up to changes for cannabis legalization, in late 2017. That work included changes throughout the act, specifically providing the Newfoundland and Labrador Liquor Corp. the power to buy, import and sell cannabis once legalized, but also licence stores and generally control legal sale and delivery.
But the province did not, at that time, introduce anything related to growing cannabis plants at home.
The Smoke-Free Environment Act is the piece of legislation banning smoking in workplaces, health care facilities and post-secondary institutions, as examples. It’s unclear what will be proposed by the Liberals here, particularly regarding smoking in multi-unit residential buildings, but notice of the amendment in this case was given by Children, Seniors and Social Development Minister Lisa Dempster.
Smoking tobacco and e-cigarettes is currently permitted in designated rooms at long-term care centres and psychiatric facilities under the existing legislation, so the question is whether or not cannabis could receive the same treatment.
Beyond May, the next scheduled sitting days for the House of Assembly are in November.
