Recent News

NZ Herald 21 February 2020
Family First Comment: McCoskrie attributed the decline of the ‘yes’ vote to the strength of the ‘no’ campaign so far, including a 24-page pamphlet that had been delivered nationwide.  He added that people had mistakenly thought the referendum was about medicinal cannabis, and had changed their minds from ‘Yes’ to ‘No’ when they realised it was about personal use.

Recent polls on legalising recreational cannabis show support falling for the ‘yes’ vote, but also a significant number of undecideds who could ultimately swing the September 19 vote.

The ‘yes’ and ‘no’ campaigns are pulling together funding and strategies to reach voters – including the roughly 10 per cent of undecided voters – in what is expected to be an intense and potentially ugly campaign.

Both sides are already accusing the other of misinformation and of being in the financial shadow of the other.

The referendum is being held as part of the Labour-Greens confidence and supply agreement, and the Government has released a draft bill detailing what legalisation would look like.

This week two polls – Newshub Reid Research and 1 NEWS Colmar Brunton – both showed 39 per cent support to legalise recreational cannabis use; the ‘no’ vote had 48 per cent support in the former and 51 per cent support in the latter.

1 News Colmar Brunton has shown 47 per cent support for legalisation in 2017, 46 per cent in 2018, and 43 and 39 per cent in two polls last year, while a Newshub Reid Research poll last year had 42 per cent supporting legalisation.

Polls by Horizon have also seen a decline in support for legalisation, dropping from 60 per cent a year ago to 48 per cent in November.
READ MORE: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12310176

New Zealanders back legal weed once they know the facts – poll
NewsHub 21 February 2020
Kiwis will vote to legalise cannabis if they actually know what they’re voting on, pro-legalisation campaigners have claimed.

A referendum later this year will ask whether recreational use of the popular drug should be made legal. Recent polls have found support for legalisation slipping.

But a new poll has found when voters are told what’s in the proposed legislation, support for legalisation comfortably outweighs opposition.

“It’s going to be really important that people understand what is proposed, and they have good access to accurate, evidence-based information about the issue and the likely impacts of the law change so they can make an informed decision,” said Holly Walker, deputy director of the Helen Clark Foundation, which paid for the polling, conducted by UMR.

When first asked, respondents were almost evenly split on legalisation – 46 percent for, 44 against and 10 undecided. But once the details of the Government’s draft Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill were explained, support grew to 50 percent, opposition fell to 42 percent and undecided dropped to 8 percent.
READ MORE: https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/02/new-zealanders-back-legal-weed-once-they-know-the-facts-poll.html

Jake went to university to study to become a doctor. He became the front-person for NORML (National Organisation for the Reform of Marijuana Laws – very pro-legalisation) on campus. Every Friday at 4:20pm, he would host up to 60 people smoking cannabis. But then his use became problematic and he started having severe symptoms, including hearing voices, paranoia, & other physical effects, and had to eventually drop out of his degree and go on medication.

He went to university to study neuroscience and psychology, and ended up getting cannabis-induced psychosis and dropping out.

Hear Jake’s story, and his warning about the significant harm of weed, and its role as a gateway drug. #saynopetodope #VoteNO

WHERE TO GET HELP
Helpline – 1737 (NZ’s mental health and addiction helpline number)
Lifeline (open 24/7) – 0800 543 354
Depression Helpline (open 24/7) – 0800 111 757
Healthline (open 24/7) – 0800 611 116
Samaritans (open 24/7) – 0800 726 666
Suicide Crisis Helpline (open 24/7) – 0508 828 865 (0508 TAUTOKO). This is a service for people who may be thinking about suicide, or those who are concerned about family or friends.
Youthline (open 24/7) – 0800 376 633. You can also text 234 for free between 8am and midnight, or email [email protected]

NewsHub 18 February 2020
Family First Comment: 😊

Support for both recreational cannabis and euthanasia has dropped in the latest Newshub-Reid Research poll.

And even if the public votes ‘yes’ on legalising cannabis – MPs may have the final say in a conscience vote.

More than 4000 New Zealanders were charged with cannabis offences in 2018/19, but it’s a struggle for drug reform campaigners to get the public on their side.

The latest Newshub Reid-Research poll asked the referendum question the public will be asked in the referendum this election: do you support the proposed Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill?

• 39.4 percent said ‘yes’
• 47.7 percent said ‘no ‘
• 11.6 percent said ‘don’t know’

The Bill would make recreational cannabis legal for over 20s, with restrictions.

Euthanasia referendum
Our poll also asked the euthanasia referendum question: Do you support the End of Life Choice Act 2017 coming into force?

61.9 percent said yes
23.7 percent said no

ACT leader David Seymour, who’s behind the proposed legislation, says: “The majority of NZers have seen bad death and they’re saying ‘when my time comes not for me it’s my life and it should be my choice’.”

Euthanasia just one of three big choices the public will make on Election Day in September.
READ MORE: https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/politics/2020/02/new-poll-shows-support-for-both-recreational-cannabis-and-euthanasia-dropping.html

TVNZ One News 19 February 2020
Family First Comment: Don’t tell the politicians or the Drug Foundation. They’ll start suggesting that we legalise the awful drug ☹…
“The study, the first of its kind to draw a correlation between meth use and violence, has found even those who try meth once are 60 per cent more likely to be involved in a violent incident. The survey showed 28 per cent had tried meth once, 11 per cent used it monthly and 5 per cent used it weekly. That’s the third-highest level of consumption after cannabis and ecstasy.”
#DrugFree2025
#DefenceOfOurBrainsNotAWarOnDrugs

Almost a third of middle-aged New Zealanders have tried methamphetamine at least once, according to a new University of Otago, Christchurch study.

TVNZ One News 17 February 2020
On September 19th you’ll be voting on who you want to govern the country, as well as a referendum on whether to legalise cannabis.

NZ Herald 17 February 2020
Family First Comment: Once again, well said Mike!
“Poverty, deprivation, crime, emergency housing, feeding kids with no lunch, mental health, and every one of those social issues can be directly linked to drug issues of some sort. Mental health especially is riddled with drug abuse. They can’t be the government who wants to heal the ill, and yet pedal dope in a decriminalised environment. We have all worked that out, of course, and that’s why the poll is the way the poll is.”

And then the cannabis, this is the one that has a real battle going on. People like me, and as it turns out the majority of the country who don’t want to legalise it, against taxpayer funded, concerted, ideologically driven obsession that somehow making drugs more available is good news.

There are a couple of clear reasons why the gap is 12 points – 51 per cent voting for it to remain illegal, compared to 39 per cent for it to be legalised.

And that is because, apart from the basic fact that most of us have seen a bit of life, have kids, worry about them, and know full well we already have an abysmal drug issue in this country, so there can’t be any good reason to exacerbate it, but the government has blown their messaging.

Firstly, they’ve left it to Chloe Swarbrick. That’s a fatal mistake, she appeals to those who already vote yes. She’s not a voice of reason, experience, or any sort of gravitas.

Where are the heavyweights? Where is Jacinda Ardern, Grant Robertson, Winston Peters, or James Shaw? You know where they are? Hiding, they are only involved in this because of a pathetic coalition sop to the Greens.

It is yet another weakness of MMP. We will spend millions on this farce when it never should have seen the light of day.

But perhaps more importantly than that, the reason the government can’t sell this is because they’ve spent the last two years, and literally billions, on the myriad of social issues they’ve identified as being their calling card.

Poverty, deprivation, crime, emergency housing, feeding kids with no lunch, mental health, and every one of those social issues can be directly linked to drug issues of some sort. Mental health especially is riddled with drug abuse. They can’t be the government who wants to heal the ill, and yet pedal dope in a decriminalised environment.

We have all worked that out, of course, and that’s why the poll is the way the poll is.

Whether poor old Swarbrick gets that or not, who knows? But consistency in messaging is critical; you have to be authentic and they’re not.

Fortunately, we are saving ourselves from ourselves, because tragically those charged with the job in Parliament are failing abysmally.
READ MORE: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?objectid=12309214&ref=twitter

TVNZ One News 14 February 2020
Family First Comment: Paula Bennett said the result showed that “people are realising that actually legalising recreational cannabis can’t be good for our mental health as a nation”.
Exactly.
#saynopetodope
#VoteNO

New Zealanders are more likely to vote against legalisation of cannabis in the upcoming referendum, according to the latest 1 NEWS Colmar Brunton Poll.

Office of National Drug Control Policy (USA) 3 February 2020
Family First Comment: 3 superb goals:
* preventing initiates to drug use,
* providing treatment services leading to long-term recovery for those suffering from addiction,
* aggressively reducing availability of illicit drugs in communities
Contrast that with the liberalisation and ‘soft’ approach to drugs by our government ☹

Today, White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) Director Jim Carroll released the Trump Administration’s National Drug Control Strategy, which establishes the President’s priorities for addressing the challenge of drug trafficking and use.

“The 2020 National Drug Control Strategy maintains focus on President Trump’s overarching goal from day one – reducing the number of Americans dying from drug overdoses. While the Trump Administration has made significant progress in preventing substance misuse before it starts, getting more people into treatment and long-term recovery, and curbing the flow of deadly drugs into our communities, now is not the time to rest on this success,” ONDCP Director Jim Carroll said.

“Rather, we must build on our momentum and accelerate our efforts to strengthen communities and families across America. Through our continued whole-of-government approach, this Strategy lays the groundwork to continue reversing the pattern of addiction in our country.”

Accompanying the National Drug Control Strategy is the release of the Performance Reporting System, the Data Supplement, and the first ever National Treatment Plan for Substance Use Disorder.
https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/white-house-releases-2020-national-drug-control-strategy/

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The electricity consumed by growing pot in Ontario is forecast to grow by 1,000 per cent over five years
The Star 24 November 2019
Family First Comment: “the energy munched by the fledgling cannabis-growing business is expected to rise by 1,250 per cent in Ontario over the next five years..”
And of course, all the other factors harmful to the environment – energy, water, pesticides, harm to the landscape
Read more: saynopetodope.org.nz/not-so-green/

The pot industry will not be a mellow new player on the province’s power grid.

Indeed, the energy munched by the fledgling cannabis-growing business is expected to rise by 1,250 per cent in Ontario over the next five years, according to a recent study by the province’s Independent Electricity System Operator.

“We’re seeing absolutely a significant increase in electricity demand because of the greenhouse growth in Ontario,” says Terry Young, vice-president of policy, engagement and innovation at the IESO.

“If you forecast out five years, what we’re seeing is over a thousand per cent growth in electricity to a sector,” says Young, whose Crown corporation released a study on electrical use by cannabis growers in October.

At a projected 1.258 terawatt-hour (TWh) consumption by 2024, pot producers will suck up far more energy than the 0.8 TWh the province’s auto sector used in 2018.

Last year, cannabis production in Ontario — which has the country’s largest capacity — consumed just 0.09 TWh. (Recreational cannabis was legalized in Canada on Oct. 17, 2018.)

But in the Leamington area alone,  Young says cannabis and other greenhouse production will increase overall electricity demand by 200 per cent by 2026 — a surge that would require a new transmission line be built.

Total electricity usage in the province is 140 TWh a year, with the mining industry, at 5.06 TWh usage, being by far the largest consumer.
READ MORE: https://www.thestar.com/business/2019/11/24/ontario-cannabis-industrys-electricity-use-forecast-to-grow-by-1000-per-cent-over-five-years.html

The Portugal News 20 December 2019
Family First Comment: Helen Clark and the Drug Foundation trumpet Portugal’s superb drug laws. Here’s what they don’t tell you…
“Deaths from overdose in Portugal increased by almost 30% in 2018 and reached their highest figure in the last five years, with most cases involving more than one substance”

Deaths from overdose in Portugal increased by almost 30 percent in 2018 and reached their highest figure in the last five years, with most cases involving more than one substance, according to the SICAD reports.

Data from the Intervention Service in Addictive Behaviours and Dependencies (SICAD) presented in parliament showed that, in the records of the National Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences, of the 307 deaths with the presence of illicit substances and information on the cause of death, 49 were considered overdose.

The SICAD reports highlighted in these overdoses the presence of opiates (65 percent), cocaine (51 percent) and methadone (31 percent), highlighting the increase in cases with both opiates and cocaine.

In the vast majority (92 percent) of overdoses, more than one substance was detected, with alcohol (45 percent) and benzodiazepines (20 percent) standing out in association with illicit drugs.

As for the other causes of deaths with the presence of drugs (258), they were mainly attributed to natural death (42 percent) and accidents (38 percent), followed by suicide (14 percent) and homicide (3 percent).

SICAD said that several indicators point to a greater circulation of drugs in the Portuguese market at a time of great challenges, such as the growing use of the Internet to market various psychoactive substances and the recent changes in the country’s role in international trafficking routes.

As for routes, Portugal has been a transit country in the context of international hashish and cocaine trafficking, inflows from Morocco and Latin America and the Caribbean, respectively, to other countries, especially European ones.

In the executive summary of the reports on the country’s situation regarding drugs, drug addiction and alcohol, the National Coordinator for the Problems of Drugs, Drug Addiction and the Harmful Use of Alcohol, João Goulão, said that the trends highlight the need for rapid responses and to prioritise interventions with an effective impact on the health gains of these populations.
https://www.theportugalnews.com/news/overdose-deaths-increase-by-almost-30/52412

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