Ontario Says No to Cannabis Cafés
Full Report Available to Read on Cannabis Cafés and Special Occasion Permits – LPC
The Ontario government is saying no to cannabis cafés – at least for now.
CBC Toronto obtained the complete report through a Freedom of Information Act request and posted it to their website. (Please see link below.) The report details findings from two questions the province wanted answered. One: should Ontario open cannabis cafés? Two: should Ontario allow Special Occasion Permits (SOPs)? The answer to both appears to be no.
Jenessa Crognali, a spokesperson for Ontario’s attorney general, issued an email statement saying: “No changes to the cannabis framework are expected at this time nor is there a current timeframe for any additional changes that may be informed by this feedback.” The government stated health concerns as a major factor.
The province stated in February that Ontario cannabis lounges were a possibility, along with event permits. Lounges were always a long shot since that would require changes to the Smoke-Free Ontario Act. (The Ford government already stated that wasn’t going to happen.)
Special Occasion Permits were much more likely, but perhaps in the age of COVID, there is no real rush to push through that legislation.
It had looked like that the Ontario government was warming up more to the idea of cannabis. First, it opened up the retail cannabis market. Then, it allowed cannabis retailers to offer cannabis delivery and curbside pick-up options in April during COVID. It even announced the possibility of farm-gate cannabis.
However, since then, things have been moving backwards. Ontario seems to be on the path to repealing cannabis pickup and delivery once the COVID emergency is over. Now, as it says no to cannabis cafés and SOPs, that hope for a freer cannabis environment in Ontario is fading.
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