This coalition Government has, by including a referendum about cannabis in the upcoming 2020 election, just about guaranteed itself a return to the Treasury benches.
The National party strategists must be grinding their teeth with frustration at this move.
Any chance for cannabis to become legal will appeal tosome Māori, the young, old hippy boomers who have lived in a haze all their adult lives and the occasional smoker, whoever he or she may be.
Many in these groups do not normally bother voting and are even less likely of voting for a right of centre government if they do vote.
This may result in an increased voter turnout on the left, making National's chances of forming a government difficult to say the least due to a severe lack of friends at present.
The reasons provided by the Green Party for making it legal are aspirational but somewhat flawed.
Yes, addiction and drug use should definitely be treated as a health issue rather than an enforcement issue, the same as addiction to alcohol.
I have it on good authority that dope is an addictive substance for some.
Legal dope being only available to people 20 and over means nothing. It seems young adults in this age group nowadays tend not to use dope as much as their parents.
But if under-20s want dope they will get it, the same as young teens get alcohol now, usually through stupid parents or older friends.
Rob Rattenbury.
The idea that licensing dealers and providing retail outlets will stop the local tinny house from selling is really naïve.
Do not worry too much about gangs; they are making more money selling P without all the hard work of growing the stuff, cultivating it and drying it.
There will still be unlicensed growers who will still grow good dope and as they do not pay taxes and operate on the quiet, will simply under-cut the licensed dealers and probably also sell a better product.
Also I thought we were going to be smoke-free as a country by 2025. How does that fit in with this referendum?
Smoking among Māori is a national health concern and cannabis use among Māori is apparently proportionately higher than the general population. Are we concerned about this as a country?
In terms of enforcement, as a cop I spent a good proportion of my younger years chasing and locking up cannabis users and dealers.
New Zealand grows good weed and it is not going away any time soon. It is almost part of our flora now in some parts of New Zealand.
The effort to locate and confiscate dope costs thousands of dollars in helicopter time and man hours.
It is very dangerous work with the knowledge that the top is only being scraped off the problem.
Police have been killed and severely injured on drug recovery operations.
On that ground alone I would vote for legalising cannabis. Some of these guys were my friends.
I have family, friends and acquaintances who have smoked or regularly smoke dope.
They are all nice, good, decent people, they are not criminals, just normal Kiwis. They manage their use responsibly and harm no one.
The Police, over the years have sensibly, I believe, introduced discretion into the question for users.
Not so much for dealers.
The Police do have better things to do than chasing middle-aged and elderly hippies having a quiet toke or the boys at the local footie club smoking a joint behind the club house.
A worry I do have is that hand in hand with dope can be involvement in serious criminal activity.
New Zealand's recent history is rife with murders committed among the "underworld" relating to cannabis growing operations and marketing.
A certain proportion of growers and dealers are not nice people and would certainly not be interested in becoming licensed, not their style.
There is an underworld in New Zealand that still includes dope as one of its products. Where you get desperate criminals, money and dope together you will always get serious crime.
Does the Green Party really think that these individuals are going to reform?
In my humble but informed experience this is a lifestyle and occupation criminals enjoy and it is a very lucrative business just growing and selling weed.
If dope is legalised there must also be some urgent work around who can still not use dope because of occupational issues, length of time from smoking to attending work, health and safety issues in industry, the list goes on.
Me, no, I have never smoked dope, preferring a cold savvy or craft beer now and again together with a juicy steak.
