Reports that private marijuana dispensaries will soon be able to operate in Ontario are being hailed by cannabis activist Jodie Emery.

In the wake of reports in Vice News and the Globe and Mail, who cite unnamed government sources, Emery told the Star she is “very excited by the news,” which she hopes will provide an opportunity for small business owners.

According to the reports, the Tory government will allow legal cannabis to be sold in private stores.

Vice News states that sources close to Premier Doug Ford’s government are planning to overturn the previous Liberal government’s decision for a monopoly on cannabis sales via the Liquor Control Board of Ontario.

“We’ll have more to say in the near future,” said a source in Premier Doug Ford’s office.

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Provincial Finance Minister Vic Fedeli and Attorney-General Caroline Mulroney are expected to announce the new plans next week, according to a report in the Globe and Mail.

The report notes the new plan will mirror the Alberta model, which allows for privately owned stores to sell marijuana if they carry a license from the liquor commision.

The policy decision is not new ground for Ford, who has mused in the past about reversing LCBO-run sales. In June, Ford said that he was “focusing” on the LCBO to run cannabis stores until he had consulted with his caucus and municipalities.

At that time, Ford told the Star this was a road to “tread carefully,” saying “... My priority is to make sure we protect the children. That’s a number-one priority.”

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In March, however, the Premier suggested that he was open to free market sales for the cannabis industry. At that time, Ford said on CBC Ottawa morning that he is “open to a free market” and will consult with the PC caucus.

“I don’t believe in the government sticking their hands in our lives all the time,” Ford said.

The previous plan saw brick-and-mortar store fronts run by the LCBO and dubbed the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS) opening across the province in the early days of legalization. The plan projected a mere four stores to be established by the end of 2018, with a total of 150 by 2020. Only one of the first four locations was set to open in Toronto.

“It’s great to see that the Ford government is looking to cut the bureaucracy and the cost to taxpayers by allowing private retail to generate tax revenue,” Emery said.

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While she couldn’t give an exact number, Emery estimated that there are approximately 80 cannabis dispensaries operating in Toronto at this time, despite hundreds of drug raids that have shut down the businesses.

“Toronto itself could sustain, based on supply and demand, hundreds of cannabis retail stores,” Emery said, noting that she hoped that the sales would also reflect retail and coffee shops looking to sell cannabis-based products.

Emery’s own dispensary, Cannabis Culture, was raided in March 2017. In December, Emery and her husband Marc pleaded guilty to a number of drug-related charges related to their seven shops.

Last September, a Campaign Research poll found that 51 per cent of those surveyed backed the original plan for OCS locations across the province. A Forum Research poll conducted around the same time found that 50 per cent of respondents wanted cannabis treated like alochol, while 32 per cent stated it should be regulated in the same way as tobacco.

With files from Robert Benzie, Kristin Rushowy and Rob Ferguson

Jenna Moon is a breaking news reporter, working out of the Star's radio room in Toronto. Follow her on Twitter: @_jennamoon

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