Sienna Seychell

Last Edited: November 2023

All but one of my university classmates wants cannabis to be legalised. Four of my peers in my class, including my professor, admitted to enjoying a puff of the devil’s lettuce.

In 2023 Australia is far behind the Western world in normalising, decriminalising, and legalising cannabis. Weed, Zaza, pot and the good old lady Jane are all names for the cannabis you may have heard. It is all around us, such a commonly used drug that legalising could benefit Australia and Australians.

It is no secret that many Australians smoke weed or consume cannabis in various forms. The popular use of the drug was reported by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) with Cannabis being, “the most widely used illicit drug in Australia.” With its recent use having increased from 2016 at (10.4%) to 2019 at (11.6%).

This year The Greens party, made history by introducing the first bill into federal parliament to legalise cannabis across Australia. In a statement made by Greens Senator and Justice Spokesperson Senator Shoebridge he said, “It’s time to stop pretending that consumption of this plant, consumed each year by literally millions of Australians, should still be seen as a crime.”

In 2019, the AIHW found that nearly half of Australians supported legalising cannabis for home and personal use at 41 per cent.

Although Cannabis has been legalised federally for medical use since 2016, a regulated drug industry across recreational forms of cannabis and legalisation of its general use is what The Greens are calling for in this bill.

Currently in all states and territories within Australia recreational use of Cannabis is illegal except for in the ACT. In 2019 the ACT passed a bill to legalise cannabis possession in small quantities for people over the age of 18.

Justin Sinclair and Mike Armour reported that “one in ten Australian women with endometriosis reported using cannabis to manage their pain and other symptoms.” Although the survey was directed at the time, in late 2017, they found that “it’s likely most women who were using cannabis accessed it illicitly.”

With so many people who access cannabis consuming it from an unregulated market, whether it’s medicinal or recreational, it is quite alarming.

Greens Senator and Justice Spokesperson Senator Shoebridge believes that regulating the illegal market seems to be beneficial for many as legislation poses many opportunities.

With the harm of the drug seeming so low compared to already legalised substances like alcohol and cigarettes, many are questioning why its use isn’t legalised.

Emma Zahra reported that between 2000 and 2018, “No deaths were solely due to cannabis toxicity.”  However, “The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Causes of Death report shows that in 2021, 1,559 people in Australia died of an alcohol-induced death”. And in Australia in 2018, “Tobacco use caused a total of 20,500 deaths.”

Many Australians including my classmates and professor are awaiting updates on the bill introduced by The Greens back in August.