We also support the general move towards decriminalising cannabis users, and instead concentrating on a non-punitive health-based approach of helping those being harmed by cannabis use and addiction.

We note that police are generally no longer prosecuting recreational cannabis use (and we want them to apply that discretion without any bias).

However, we do not support the legalisation of recreational cannabis use, as proposed in the Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill. We believe legalisation would help normalise cannabis use and increase its use (as has happened overseas).

Cannabis use remains addictive and dangerous for some people, especially those under 25, and can induce psychosis, depression, loss of cognitive function, lung (and other) diseases, suicidal tendencies, and foetal harm.

Legalisation, and the rise of a cannabis industry with a network of retail shops in many communities, would undermine societal messages about reducing drug use (and also undermine the campaigns against tobacco smoking, and about driving under the influence of drugs).

The evidence from overseas is that legalisation would not end the black market in cannabis. In Canada, over 70% of cannabis is still purchased on the black market). Illegal dealers including gangs would continue to sell cannabis (at lower prices, with unsafe levels of THC, and also to those under the age of 20).

We are concerned that legalising and normalising cannabis use will increase domestic violence, cannabis-related road deaths, work place accidents, and educational failure. We are also worried that society's socio-economically disadvantaged groups are likely to suffer most from the increased availability and use of cannabis.

We suggest that voting ‘No to the Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill carries significantly fewer risks of long-term damage to New Zealand society than a ‘Yes' vote.

We also suggest that a ‘No' vote still leaves space for New Zealand to further decriminalise cannabis law in relation to users, while retaining penalties only in relation to producers and dealers. At the same time it could strengthen a health-based approach towards those affected by drugs, while continuing to warn society about the risks of all drug use.

Signed

• Bishop Jay Behan, Church of Confessing Anglicans in Aotearoa New Zealand
• Pastor Steve Burgess, Regional Overseer, Senior Leader, C3 Churches
• Commissioner Mark Campbell, Territorial Commander, The Salvation Army
• Cardinal John Dew, Archbishop of Wellington, Roman Catholic
• Pastor Iliafi Esera, General Superintendent, Assemblies of God in New Zealand
• Rev Dr Jaron Graham, National Superintendent, Church of the Nazarene
• Rev Tale Hakeagaiki, Chairman, Congregational Union of New Zealand
• Rev Charles Hewlett, National Leader, Baptist Churches of New Zealand
• Rev Brett Jones, National Superintendent (Acting), Wesleyan Methodist Church of NZ
• The Right Rev Fakaofo Kaio, Moderator, Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand
• Rev Dr Stuart Lange, National Director, New Zealand Christian Network
• Pastor Brent Liebezeit, President, Christian Churches New Zealand
• Rev Andrew Marshall, National Director Alliance Churches of New Zealand
• Pastor David MacGregor, National Director, Vineyard Churches Aotearoa NZ
• Pastor Sam Monk, The National Leader of Acts Churches NZ & Equippers Church
• Pastor Peter Mortlock, Senior Pastor, City Impact Churches of NZ
• Assistant Bishop Jim Pietsch, Lutheran Church of New Zealand
• Pastor Boyd Ratnaraja, National Leader, Elim Church of New Zealand
• Pastor Eddie Tupa'i, President, New Zealand Pacific Union Conference of the SDA Church
• Rev Setaita Taumoepeau K. Veikune, President, Methodist Church of New Zealand
• Pastor Adam White, Leader, New Life Churches

They make those calls in their 2020 Election Statement-Whakapuaki Poti 2020, which also urges people to consider the poor and vulnerable when voting.

The bishops' statement expressly says it is not the bishops' role to tell people who to vote for.

It is published in Maori and English throughout.

What kind of a nation do we want?

"We hope and work for a nation that looks to ensure the sanctity and wellbeing of whanau; that ensures families have time to spend with each other; that supports all families to access the basic human needs of food, clothing, housing, education and healthcare," the bishops say.

"Rather than thinking about what will benefit each of us personally regarding the election and referendum choices we face, we ask you to pray and discern what will protect the poor and vulnerable and what will uphold the dignity of creation so that we create a connected future for all, without discarding any of us."

Euthanasia

Urging a "no" vote in the End of Life Choice Act referendum, the bishops say the demand for euthanasia is driven not by pain but by personal and emotional factors such as fear of being a burden or being disabled, fears that reflect negative attitudes towards the elderly and disabled that run deep in society.

They note that key medical groups, including the Medical Association, oppose the End of Life Choice Act and criticise the act for not requiring that people first access palliative care when that is available.

Cannabis

On the recreational cannabis referendum, the bishops say as proprietors of many of the country's 237 Catholic schools with 66,000 students, they are keenly aware that rangatahi are the group most vulnerable to the adverse effects of cannabis.

"We think people do need to give serious thoughts to the issue, and we hope you will use your vote in a way that considers the impact of legalised recreational cannabis on the young and vulnerable in our communities."

Click here for the full 2020 Election Statement-Whakapuaki Poti 2020 in PDF format.

Source

Supplied

Associate Professor Chris Wilkins and Dr Marta Rychert of Massey University argue in Addiction that New Zealand's Cannabis Legislation and Control Bill (CLCB) needs to be strengthened in two critical areas:

Set a formal minimum price for cannabis

The legalisation of cannabis in other jurisdictions has resulted in significant declines in the legal price of cannabis.

Minimum unit pricing has been shown to be effective at reducing alcohol consumption levels and related harms.

The CLCB includes a discretionary power to raise the excise tax for cannabis for a maximum of 12 months if the price of cannabis drops below the level consistent with the purposes of the Act.

This discretionary power lacks clear criteria for activation and thus falls short of a clear minimum price provision.

Lower the potency cap for cannabis products

High potency cannabis is associated with increasing first-time cannabis treatment admissions, transition to daily use, cannabis dependence and a higher risk of psychosis and psychosis relapse.

In the proposed cannabis legislation maximum potency levels for cannabis plant (15% THC) appears to be at the higher end of those currently found in the black market in New Zealand.

Potency levels for edibles and extracts are expressed as milligrams "per unit" and "per package" without defining what constitutes a unit or package. (Edibles and concentrates will not initially be sold but they are included in the CLCB for future approval.)

Wilkins and Rychert also argue that there are two public health objectives of the CLCB that will be difficult to achieve:

Difficulties reducing cannabis use over time via a commercial market

The CLCB objective of lowering cannabis use over time appears at odds with the proposed commercial cannabis sector, which will focus on expanding sales.

Non-commercial or not-for-profit operators can provide legal access to cannabis while avoiding profit-driven commercial companies.

Difficulties taxing products by THC potency

Considerable work will be required to implement a potency-based tax, including consistent sampling procedures, certified testing facilities, and effective auditing to prevent producers gaming the system.

Also, the reliability and replicability of testing THC is problematic. A weight-based tax (similar to the taxation of tobacco) may be a more practical alternative for now.

Source

• addictionjournal.org
• onlinelibrary.wiley.com
• Image: referendums.govt.nz

This is a somewhat spurious argument along the lines of "Would you rather be eaten by a lion or a bear" or "Would you rather be run over by a truck or a bus". Nevertheless, it provides a good opportunity to examine the differential harms posed by both substances.

This statement is true in one regard. Psychotic disorder related solely to alcohol is indeed a rare event. It is generally in the form of an uncommon condition called Alcoholic Hallucinosis, which occurs in older individuals who have been using alcohol heavily for many years.

I have seen only one or two cases in my clinical career.

Individuals who are withdrawing from alcohol can suffer from hallucinations and acute paranoia as part of the withdrawal reaction but this is not a psychotic disorder.

Cannabis, on the other hand, is strongly associated with psychotic symptoms and psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia.

In fact, cannabis use is now the most powerful single environmental risk factor for a psychotic disorder.

Many well-designed studies have examined this association, and the majority have shown that cannabis is significantly related to psychotic disorder with the remainder showing a strong trend in that direction.

In the early 2000s, I was involved in a research team investigating the link between cannabis use in adolescence and the risk of psychotic disorder in adulthood.

This research was carried out on a group of approximately 1000 young people from Dunedin, who had been followed up since the 1970s (and are still being followed up to this day).

We found that young people who started using cannabis before age 15 had a four times increased risk of being diagnosed with schizophrenia or schizophreniform disorder by age 26.

To put this in perspective, 10 per cent of the young people who had been using cannabis by age 15 developed a psychotic disorder in young adulthood compared with 3 per cent of the remainder of the group - a one in 10 chance is certainly not a rare occurrence.

The association between cannabis and psychosis appears to be getting even stronger in line with the increase in strength of cannabis (the THC content is now regularly over 20 per cent, whereas it was only about 1-2 per cent in the 1960s and 70s.)

Recent studies from Europe have examined the risks associated with high-potency cannabis (defined as greater than 10 per cent THC) and have found that daily users of high potency cannabis have a nine-fold increased risk of developing schizophrenia or another clinical psychotic disorder.

This "psychotogenic" effect is not confined to adolescent-onset cannabis use and appears more linked to frequency of use.

In addition, it is not confined to people with a history of psychotic disorder in their family (although they are at high risk and should avoid cannabis).

It has been estimated that between one third to half of all the cases of psychotic illness in places like London or Amsterdam could be due to cannabis.

In my clinical experience, I have observed an increase in presentations of young men with psychosis related to cannabis over the past few years. The type of psychosis associated with cannabis is one with high levels of agitation, aggression and paranoia and can present a risk to family and others.

In a groundbreaking study in the UK, 16 healthy volunteers were given one dose of intravenous THC.

Remarkably, 70 per cent developed psychotic symptoms within 20 minutes and this demonstrates the powerful impact of the THC component of cannabis on psychosis.

Aside from its effect on psychosis, several large international studies have shown that cannabis use in youth has a more detrimental effect on cognition and later functioning in adulthood than alcohol use in youth.

A study from Christchurch showed that young cannabis users had greater rates of school dropout, unemployment and dependence on social welfare payments than their peers did even after taking account of alcohol use.

The Dunedin study showed that young cannabis users had lower incomes later in adulthood than their alcohol using peers. Heavy, early-onset cannabis use has been associated with up to 8-point drop in IQ that appears to be irreversible.

No one would deny that alcohol is associated with a host of social problems and serious physical health problems.

However, I would argue that cannabis use is actually more damaging to the brain - especially the brains of young adults and teenagers, and their life prospects.

The failure of governments worldwide to control alcohol harms shows that once an addictive substance is legalised and freely available public health takes a second place to profit.

Once society normalises the widespread use of a drug it is almost impossible to undo that and put the genie back in the bottle.

• Mary Cannon is Professor of Psychiatric Epidemiology and Youth Mental Health, with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.
• First published in the NZ Herald. Republished with permission of the author.

"Isn't it illegal for a high school to push political opinions on students?" a Reddit user posted in the forum.

According to Education Ministry guidance, boards of trustees as a state agency need to be politically neutral.

They cannot encourage electors to vote or not vote for specific parties, policies or candidates or show political party information on school sites.

But Katrina Casey of the Ministry of Education said the cannabis referendum is an important social issue and "people are free to express their views about it."

She said if the school's parent community had any concerns about the sign, they should contact the school's board of trustees.

An Electoral Commission spokesperson stated they have received an enquiry about the sign and are in the process of contacting the school for more information.

"The election and referendum laws allow any person to publish an election or referendum advertisement as long as they comply with the rules, for example, on promoter statements and expenditure limits."

In Rotorua Patrick Walsh, principal of John Paul College is among community leaders who have signed up to a new alliance of people who will work to oppose any attempt to legalise cannabis in New Zealand.

The coalition is urging people to say no to the referendum.

Walsh said he had seen "first-hand the devastating effect of drug use on teenagers, their whanau and other victims."

In their statement before the 2017 general election, the New Zealand Catholic bishops stated that "moves to legalise 'soft' drugs and other substances - which wreak havoc in particular sectors of our society - are a deeply cynical and cheap way of side-lining a complex social ill that needs to be addressed creatively and resolutely."

Source

• stuff.co.nz
• newshub.co.nz
• nzcatholic.org.nz
• stuff.co.nz

But Dr Juliet Gerrard says whether that would come to pass if the country voted to legalise recreational cannabis is unknown.

The report says evidence for overseas outcomes is uncertain, reflecting:

• The short time since reforms were made
• Different regulatory approaches
• A commercial industry that isn't yet fully established

Pre-existing or time-lagged trends in health and social impacts also contribute.

The evidence may never become entirely 'certain', and interpretation will require value judgements.

The Aotearoa experience will depend on the nations unique environment and specific regulatory approach and implementation.

"We're pretty sure of the situation at the moment. We're much less sure of what will happen if we legalise it," Gerrard told the New Zealand Herald.

She has led an expert panel of academics, researchers and health and social experts - co-chaired by Auckland University Professor Tracey McIntosh - in gathering information to inform the debate in the lead up to September's vote.

The panel's work, peer-reviewed internationally and nationally went, live on Wednesday and contains a wealth of information.

A new poll shows 48 per cent of Kiwis would support the proposed Cannabis Legalisation and Control Bill at the referendum this year, compared to 43 per cent who are opposed.

The UMR poll was commissioned by the Helen Clark Foundation and surveyed 1,128 New Zealanders 18 years of age and over. The margin of error is 2.9 per cent.

It showed support had increased by two points since the last UMR poll February, while the opposition had fallen by one point.

Read What might happen if you vote

Read The whole report

Source

• nzherald.co.nz
• nzherald.co.nz
• pmcsa.ac.nz
• Image: nzherald.co.nz

Patrick Walsh, principal of John Paul College in Rotorua, is among those in Smart Approaches to Marijuana NZ (SAM-NZ), the formation of which was announced this month. Continue reading in NZ Catholic

The book once again raises the conjecture that Aubert was New Zealand's first commercial cannabis grower.

Mulligan asked the author to expand a bit on what he had written about Mother Aubert's use of cannabis.

Was it true that "New Zealand's first commercial cultivator of cannabis also turns out to be New Zealand's first saint?"

Borrowdale replied that he had not been able to find any conclusive evidence either way that Aubert was a cannabis grower.

He said there had forever been conjecture that Aubert was New Zealand first cannabis grower.

Conjecture there may be, particularly from those who favour the legalisation of cannabis, but there is no evidence.

In his book, Borrowdale records that he spoke to Fr Maurice Carmody, the postulator of the Cause for the Beatification of Aubert.

Carmody said she might have used cannabis in some of her preparation, but whether or not she did was of no concern.

"Her use of it or otherwise is irrelevant to whether we consider her a holy woman or a saint."

Jessie Munro, Aubert's biographer, told Borrowdale that while it is most likely Aubert was aware of the medical use of cannabis she had not come across any evidence that Aubert had made use of it in own her preparations.

The Sisters of Compassion website says that over the years there have been many people who have made claims that Suzanne Aubert experimented with or was the first person in New Zealand to cultivate cannabis or marijuana and hemp.

"These stories are often based on anecdotal accounts that are frequently many times removed from a direct source.

"Most accounts stem from the 1960s."

When Borrowdale asked a sister from the Home of Compassion, by email, she replied: "I am really sorry I am no help to you.

"There is no physical evidence that she ever used cannabis in our archives. She may have I don't know."

Source

• podcasts.google.
• books.google.co.nz

They conclude there is no evidence to suggest that legalising cannabis will provide a solution to the drug-related issues that disproportionately affect marginalised/minority groups.

"These issues include negative impacts on health, education, employment and criminal convictions.

Although in some jurisdictions where recreational cannabis has been made legal, there is a reduction in the overall conviction numbers, legalisation does nothing to reduce the disproportionate conviction rate of marginalised/minority people."

Decriminalisation

Bowyer and Stevens suggest a better way forward may be to take the time to explore and publicly discuss the decriminalisation of cannabis.

Decriminalisation involves removing the criminal penalties for possession and use, without actually making possession and use legal.

They suggest decriminalisation would facilitate the separation of cannabis use from issues of social justice and provide space in which the broader negative issues that plague marginalised people can be adequately addressed.

Two Polls - different results

A poll commissioned by New Zealand's largest medicinal cannabis company, Helius Therapeutics. shows that 56% of New Zealanders would vote in favour of legalising the personal use of cannabis in the upcoming referendum.

43% indicated they would vote against the proposed changes.

Horizon Research conducted the survey between June 10 and 14, 2020.

However, a One News Colmar Brunton poll found that 49 per cent of New Zealanders opposed legalising cannabis.

Those in favour of legalising it had gone up a percentage point to 40 per cent.

The poll, of 1007 eligible votes, was done to mobile phones and landlines between June 20 and 24.

In both polls, when compared to the previous polls, the number favouring change had increased and the number opposing change had declined

Longitudinal studies

The findings of the Christchurch Health and Development Study and the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study show that:

• Cannabis use is very common, with as many as 80% of participants having used cannabis on at least one occasion.
• Rates of regular use (using at least weekly) were far lower (35%).
• Higher levels of cannabis use, particularly at younger ages, were related to mental health problems including increased risk of cannabis use disorder and major depression.
• Earlier and heavier cannabis use was also related to increased reports of psychotic symptoms in the Christchurch study, and increased risk of meeting criteria for a diagnosis of psychotic illness in the Dunedin study.
• Further research by both studies has found that long-term cannabis use is also associated with gum disease, impaired lung functioning, and cognitive problems.
• Earlier and heavier users of cannabis were less likely to complete educational qualifications, and were more likely to report being unemployed, or receiving a benefit.
• While only a minority of cannabis users went on to use other, possibly more dangerous illicit drugs, those participants who were heavy cannabis users in adolescence were especially at risk.

Source

• horizonpoll.co.nz
• nathaniel.org.nz
• stuff.co.nz
• nzherald.co.nz
• thespinoff.co.nz
• Image: horizonpoll.co.nz

"I know people are saying, 'Look, 14 grams means 21, or 42, or even more kind of joints a day'.

"It's a bit like saying, 'somebody who goes off to buy a bottle of vodka at 7 o'clock on a Friday night, is going to consume it there and then'.

"Find me somebody who has smoked 42 joints in a day and I'll take the objection seriously," he said. Read more

Within months of its first sitting, it was voting on not one, but two medicinal cannabis bills and things only became more complicated from there.

Euthanasia, abortion, and drug reform followed. Continue reading

The state's first dispensaries began legal recreational sales on January 1, 2014. In 2014, combined recreational and medical sales totaled $683.5 million, and are expected to top $1.5 billion in 2018.

Over the 5-year period, recreational sales generated 78% of sales revenue. The most recently published sales data shows combined 2018 sales though October of $1.27 billion.

$247 million in tax revenue

Tax revenues jumped 266% during the period, from $67 million in 2014 to $247.4 million in 2017. Colorado's tax revenues have risen each year since recreational legalization, and currently represent about 1% of the state's 2018 - 2019 fiscal year budget.

Marijuana taxes are spent on public school projects, human services, public affairs, agriculture, labor and employment, judicial affairs, health care policy, transportation and regulatory affairs.

The financial data, read together with a social impact report released this week by Colorado's Department of Criminal Justice, is insightful for Colorado and states considering legalization.

Social costs of legalisation

The report presents a mixed bag of encouraging and frustrating data.

The number of marijuana-related arrests during the 5-year period, shows overall arrests decreased, including for African-Americans, though African-Americans were arrested for such offenses at double the rate of whites.

DUI traffic citations with marijuana-impaired drivers increased 3%. In a subset of arrest data from 2016, where blood tests were performed, 73% returned a positive screen for cannabinoids

"The number of fatalities with cannabinoid‐only or cannabinoid‐in‐combination positive drivers increased 153%, from 55 in 2013 to 139 in 2017," the report states, going on to note that "detection of cannabinoid in blood is not an indicator of impairment but only indicates presence in the system."

Fatal traffic accidents involving a THC-positive driver, on the other hand, decreased 5%.

Cannabinoids characterize both THC and CBD. Cannabidiol "CBD" is a non-psychoactive biochemical found in hemp and marijuana plants. Tetrahydrocannaabinol "THC" is the psychoactive biochemical found in marijuana.

Both biochemicals are cannabinoids that interact with neurotransmitters, known as the endocannabinoid system.

Marijuana-related hospitalizations, including possible marijuana exposures, diagnoses, or billing codes, increased from 575 in 2000 to 3,517 in 2016.

Emergency room visits and calls to poison control related to marijuana increased.

The numbers are likely to disappoint lawmakers and politicians who tout recreational legalization as a cure for discriminatory criminal justice practices. Continue reading

About 75 per cent of New Zealanders have used cannabis at least once by the age of 25, according to The Christchurch Health and Development Study.

"That suggests trying cannabis is a normal part of growing up in New Zealand," University of Otago associate professor Dr Joseph Boden said.

Legalised cannabis would unlikely increase that figure any further. This country's "high rates of cannabis use" suggest we are already at saturation point.

"If we're already at 75 per cent of young people who have tried it, then there isn't many more young people who are going to come on board.

​"The ones who want to are already doing it."

Boden said the majority of cannabis use among young people was experimental or occasional; "there are not a lot of people using it heavily".

While it was difficult to predict if the number of users would increase under legalisation, he thought "it would be small".

University of Queensland Centre for Youth Substance Abuse professor Wayne Hall said legalising the drug would likely have the most significant impact on current users.

Hall said if cannabis was made more affordable and easier to access then consumption would increase, like any commodity.

"The people who already enjoy using it when it's illegal will use more heavily and more frequently when it's cheaper and decriminalised."

Those who used cannabis frequently (more than once a week) were most likely to suffer effects to their health and wellbeing.

The commonly held perception that cannabis was a harmless drug was wrong, said Massey University drug researcher Dr Chris Wilkins.

"If you're using high potency, using daily or if you've a history of mental illness or drug addiction it can have serious health problems bringing on mental illness or further addiction. Continue reading

• Laura Baker is a life and style reporter at Fairfax Media