It remains hazy whether the opposition parties at Queen’s Park will back the provincial Liberal government’s legislation for recreational marijuana.

Attorney General Yasir Naqvi last Wednesday tabled the Cannabis Act, the blueprint for how and where marijuana will be sold in Ontario after the federal government legalizes it July 1.

Naqvi’s bill creates the Ontario Cannabis Retail Corporation (OCRC), an LCBO subsidiary that will control online sales and operate 40 stand-alone weed shops as of next summer. That number will rise to 150 by 2020.

The OCRC will have the monopoly on Ontario’s recreational marijuana market and “dispensaries” now operating illegally will be forced out of business under the threat of fines of up to $1 million and jail terms of as long as two years less a day.

“We are committed to eliminating the illegal market and taking down illegal cannabis storefronts,” Naqvi said Thursday.

Only those 19 and over will be permitted to buy, consume, or grow marijuana and its usage will be restricted to private homes. Consumption will be outlawed in all public places, offices and vehicles.

Those who opt to grow their own will be allowed to have up to four cannabis plants at home, but just for personal use.

The government will soon launch a public awareness campaign about the potential perils of smoking weed.

“This . . . will help education, health, youth and social service providers who work to prevent and reduce the harms of substance use in youth and young adults,” the attorney general said.

“As we have in the past with cigarette smoke, we also need to take steps to limit the health impacts of second-hand cannabis smoke.”

The Liberals have a majority in the legislature and do not need opposition support to pass the bill, which is likely to happen before MPPs break for Christmas on Dec. 14.

Neither the Progressive Conservatives nor the New Democrats are tipping their hand on whether they will back the Liberal law.

But with an Ontario election set for June 7, 2018, either Conservative Leader Patrick Brown or NDP Leader Andrea Horwath could succeed Kathleen Wynne as premier by the time Cannabis Day rolls around July 1.

So there is keen interest on where the Tories or New Democrats will land.

PC MPP Gila Martow (Thornhill) emphasized the need for clamping down on the black market.

“They say they’re going to stop the illicit sale of cannabis. Well, we still have contraband cigarettes being sold. There are a lot of people concerned in our communities,” Martow told the legislature on Thursday.

“I didn’t hear specifically how we’re going to address testing in terms of impairment. How are we going to be testing whether or not people are indeed taking cannabis — when they took it, how long it will be in their system and how it actually affects them?” she asked.

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NDP MPP France Gélinas (Nickel Belt) said Naqvi’s bill is “more of a disappointment than anything else” due to the limited number of outlets.

The LCBO announced 14 municipalities — Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Vaughan, Barrie, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Ottawa, Sault Ste. Marie, Sudbury, Thunder Bay and Windsor — have the first legalized weed stores.

New Democrat MPP Taras Natyshak (Essex) said Friday that “40 retail locations cannot possibly serve the demand” across Ontario.

“By failing to locate retail outlets in places like Niagara, Brantford, Peterborough, Cornwall, Sarnia and North Bay and leaving large communities like Toronto, Hamilton and Ottawa underserved, it’s clear that Kathleen Wynne doesn’t get it,” Natyshak said.

While Tory MPP Bob Bailey (Sarnia—Lambton) will not have to worry about a government-run marijuana shop in his riding, he warned of potential problems at the U.S. border.

“Sarnia could be a toking tourist opportunity location, where people will cross to buy marijuana they can’t buy in Michigan and other states,” said Bailey, noting police are also alarmed at the pace of change.

“I heard from the chief of police and other chiefs of police. They say they won’t be ready for July. There’s no way that they can implement all the rules that will have to go along with this,” he said.

Only Mike Schreiner’s Greens have yet to oppose the Liberal legislation.

“The Liberals’ approach seems to ramp up criminalization of pot outside the government monopoly, which undermines the reasons for legalizing it in the first place,” said Schreiner, whose party has no MPPs at Queen’s Park.

“There is a better way — highly regulated and licensed local businesses to allow local farmers, small businesses and Indigenous groups to participate in the market, creating local jobs and contributing tax dollars to local communities across the province,” he said on Oct. 27.

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