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Laurie Scott, MPP (Progressive Conservative)
Haliburton--Kawartha Lakes--Brock

Constituency Office
14 Lindsay Street North
Lindsay, Ontario
K9V 1T4

Another concern about Bill 69 is the fact that it's an amendment to the existing Smoke-Free Ontario Act and is only specific to tobacco. It does not include other legal, yet dangerous, materials such as medicinal marijuana. That's certainly an apparent loophole.

In March, my colleague from Burlington, under the very best intentions of protecting people, including children, from the negative effects of second-hand smoke and from materials beyond just cigarette tobacco, presented her Bill 42. I was certainly pleased to speak in support of it. She crafted it in a way to close the loophole in the McGuinty government's own anti-smoking legislation, which fails to include medicinal marijuana and controlled substances in the definition, thereby allowing these products to be smoked in public places where cigarettes are not allowed. It just doesn't make sense. I'm sure it' s just a loophole. We were trying to bring that loophole in the smoke-free Ontario legislation forward.

It has been on TV many times-Gator Ted's is the facility that's involved, and they were here on the day that the member from Burlington brought forward that legislation. I think it was on CTV last week; it was in the news again.

Unfortunately, in the private members' committee, where this bill was being discussed, the Liberals used their majority. They killed that bill moving forward, even though in the Legislature the day we debated it, it did get support from all party members. I was hoping the Premier would pay attention to the fact that his party members, on that day private members' bills were brought forward, were in support of that, but he silenced them.

I'm asking the Minister of Health Promotion to maybe put some pressure at the cabinet table to look at that again. I'm sure it was just a loophole, it was oversight, when it was first introduced. But, really, it's not fair to have the public and children exposed to second-hand smoke of medicinal marijuana. There's a place and a time. It is medicinal marijuana, it does have a purpose, but we're saying it shouldn't be in a public spot where the exposure to second-hand smoke from medicinal marijuana. That's what the excellent member for Burlington-she heard from her constituents and brought that legislation forward. We're saying-we're talking about Bill 69 here-m aybe we should look at that angle as it relates to both Bill 69 and the Smoke-Free Ontario Act.

Again, we cannot have double standards. I've mentioned a few double standards in the Legislature today and before. We are here to say that we think you've got this wrong; this is how we can help; this is what we're proposing. I'm hoping that the government does act on this private member's bill that the member for Burlington brought forward.
We need to ensure-t he government is trying to appear to ensure-that we are safe when travelling in a vehicle where a person is subjected to the toxins that are coming out. Again, it's not just tobacco; it's medicinal marijuana. It's a fair question, as are the many examples I've mentioned here before.

2004 H.U.M.A.N.: Hemp Users Medical Access Network - Toronto Medical Marijuana