Cannabis law reform

The question put

That this house notes that: (1) cannabis is the most widely consumed illicit substance in Australia and 80 per cent of Victorians support cannabis law reform; (2) a plebiscite on cannabis legalisation would ensure that every Victorian has a direct voice in shaping one of the most significant and long-overdue drug policy reforms of our time; (3) we have endured nearly 100 years of prohibition, and this policy has failed to reduce use and failed to eliminate the illicit market; (4) thousands of Victorians continue to come into contact with the criminal justice system simply for the personal use of small amounts of cannabis; (5) First Nations people are disproportionately affected by the policing of cannabis and are 11 times more likely to be arrested for cannabis-related offences than non-Indigenous Victorians; (6) as Victoria progresses treaty, Parliament must address the ongoing inequities created by our current cannabis laws; and calls on the government to ask Victorians if they support the legalisation of cannabis in Victoria as proposed in the Drugs, Poisons and Controlled Substances Amendment (Regulation of Personal Adult Use of Cannabis) Bill 2023.