Tasmanians would be able to grow up to two cannabis plants each, possess small amounts of dry or wet product and smoke it on private property in a draft decriminalisation bill put forward by a group of legal experts.
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The Australian Lawyers Alliance has provided its draft legislation to the state's Attorney-General, Labor and the Greens, based on similar laws passed by the Australian Capital Territory last year.
The decriminalisation would only apply to adults, a maximum of four plants would be allowed per property provided two people were growing them, and Tasmanians could possess 150 grams of wet cannabis, and 50 grams of dry.
Retired Tasmanian chief magistrate Michael Hill was among those advocating for the law change, believing current cannabis laws were a burden on the courts and did not achieve reasonable justice outcomes.
"I was a magistrate for nearly 30 years and the numbers of people who were before the courts for personal use situations involving small amounts of cannabis was quite overwhelming," he said.
"There's a recognition that possession and use of this material, in certain circumstances, is really a health issue. It's not a legal issue that should be brought before the courts to impose a criminal sanction.
"There is a significant feeling in the community that therapeutic responses to what's been traditionally seen as criminal behaviour are becoming more acceptable."
Like with the ACT, the state's road safety laws would not be altered meaning anyone caught driving under the influence of cannabis would still face a sanction.
The laws also prohibit smoking cannabis in a public place and in the presence of a child.
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ALA Tasmania spokesperson Fabiano Cangelosi said decriminalising cannabis use and possession in small amounts would fit into the principles and policies of Tasmania's political parties, and he urged them to seriously consider it.
"The war on drugs has failed. We know that it had failed in the early 90s, early 2000s we knew it had failed, in 2010s we knew it had failed, and now in 2021 we are still dealing with the failure of the war on drugs," he said.
"Just today, the Attorney-General Elise Archer was talking about the need of ensuring that our law ensures we don't do harm, that laws are evidence-based. This sort of policy is based on evidence.
"The bill was in a form where it could be enacted by parliament today, it would fit into the existing Misuse of Drugs Act, it would fit into existing policy settings."
Ms Archer said the government did not support the proposed laws.
"While we support the use of medical cannabis and have enacted a scheme to facilitate this, we do not support the ALA's proposal," she said.
"Recreational use of cannabis is illegal for a reason and that is because it can lead to more complex health and other issues."