Advertisement

Tories threaten to hold up marijuana Bill C-45 as it heads to Senate for approval

Two people hold a modified design of the Canadian flag with a marijuana leaf in in place of the maple leaf during the "420 Toronto" rally in Toronto, April 20, 2016.
Two people hold a modified design of the Canadian flag with a marijuana leaf in in place of the maple leaf during the "420 Toronto" rally in Toronto, April 20, 2016. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Mark Blinch

The federal government’s plan to legalize marijuana by next summer is a step closer.

Bill C-45 received final approval Monday in the House of Commons, passing by a vote of 200-82.

Story continues below advertisement

It now moves to the Senate, where Conservative senators are threatening to hold up passage of the bill.

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.

Get daily National news

Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day.
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

That could yet derail the government’s plan to have a legalized pot regime up and running by July.

Some provinces have complained they can’t be ready to implement and enforce the legislation so quickly.

But a Conservative bid to force a delay in its implementation went down to defeat Monday, by a vote of 199-83.

Prior to the vote, Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould said Commons approval of Bill C-45 marks an “important milestone” in the government’s plans to keep pot profits out of the hands of organized crime and marijuana out of the hands of kids.

Story continues below advertisement

She also said she looks forward to further debate in the Senate.

The federal NDP supports the government’s legislation, which was amended to scrap a requirement that home-grown marijuana plants be less than 100 centimetres tall and to require that legislation for cannabis edibles and concentrates be brought forward within a year.

The Conservatives have been pushing for the Liberal government to reconsider its arbitrary timeline for implementing marijuana legalization, arguing it would be more responsible to consider a July 2019 deadline instead of July 2018.

Sponsored content

AdChoices