Cannabis use by terminally ill may be legalised in NSW as Labor backs bill
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Version 0 of 1. Labor says it will support a bill to legalise the use of cannabis for medicinal purposes in NSW. Nationals MP Kevin Anderson will soon introduce a private member’s bill to allow terminally ill patients and their carers to legally possess up to 15 grams of cannabis. Opposition Leader John Robertson says he has great sympathy for the terminally ill and their families, who have advocated for the use of cannabis for pain relief. “People in this situation should not suffer the further humiliation of being dragged through our courts and treated as criminals,” he said in a statement on Tuesday. “Labor’s position would see the law change to provide this small group of people with the protections they need.” Labor will take its policy to next year’s state election if there’s no change before then. Premier Mike Baird has indicated he is open to supporting Anderson’s bill but has voiced concerns about the sale and regulation of the drug. Baird met with Daniel Haslam, a 24-year-old who in 2010 was diagnosed with bowel cancer and given only months to live. Haslam has been undergoing chemotherapy for the last four years and has been taking cannabis to relieve his symptoms. His mother Lucy, a retired nurse, and father Lou, a former head of the drug squad in northwest NSW, are now asking politicians to legalise medicinal use of the drug. |