| SEPTEMBER EDITION HEMP Party changes name to Legalise Cannabis Australia A Message from Dr Brian Walker MLC Launch of Facebook advertising campaign Roadside Drug Testing Local producers, less red tape key to lower prices Cannabis vs The State – Playing the Long Game Party News from around the country HEMP changes name to Legalise Cannabis Australia The Help End Marijuana Prohibition (HEMP) Party has formally lodged an application with the Australian Electoral Commission (AEC) to change the party’s name to ‘Legalise Cannabis Australia’.READ MORE A Message from Dr Brian Walker MLC My question without notice is to the people of Australia. WATCH HERE Facebook Ads Ready to Roll (…finally) What is it about the word “cannabis” ? After numerous false starts and months of protracted negotiations with Facebook we have finally been given the all-clear to run advertisements. The ads are designed not only to raise awareness but also to build membership numbers. .  ROADSIDE DRUG TESTING Latest News – LIVE Q & A – Write to your MP  DRIVE CHANGE – Q & A SESSION ON RDT Thursday 30 September Hear from Experts and Have your Questions Answered Mark your calendars and prepare your questions. You’re invited to attend this virtual event hosted by Drive Change on September 30 at 6:30 pm AEST. Ask anything you’d like regarding drug driving laws and medicinal cannabis. Panel speakers for this public webinar are:- Facilitator: David Heilpern (ex-NSW Magistrate, Drive Change Campaign Director) – Dr Teresa Towpik (Founder and Director, MediHuanna) – Fiona Patten MP, Leader of the Reason Party – Michael Palmer AO (ex-AFP Commissioner) – Dr Thomas Arkell (Psychopharmacologist, Swinburne University) FAIR GO FOR DRIVERS CAMPAIGN ANGRY ABOUT RDT ? TAKE ACTION Use this link to send an email to your local MP and tell them to lobby for change Enter your postcode and it finds your MP for you.The email is even written for you.Takes less than 2 mins. EMAIL YOUR LOCAL MP. TAKES 2 MINS Roadside Drug Tests Do Not Make Our Roads Safer Roadside drug testing does not distinguish detection from impairment. As a result the millions spent on policing the current RDT program do not make our roads safer instead they are used as a tool to conduct a proxy drug war, using invasive technology to pry into people’s private lives. READ MORE Local producers, less red tape key to lower prices Despite the fact that parts of Australia are ideally suited to cannabis cultivation and that we have an enormous talent pool of cannabis growing expertise there are very few local producers approved to supply the medicinal market. This means higher prices for patients, difficulty securing supply and ultimately leads many patients to return to the black or grey market for their medicine. Earlier this year Nick Wallis spoke with Tom Forrest who was awarded the first-ever Churchill Fellowship for cannabis agronomy in 2018. Cannabis vs The State: Playing the Long Game The instant success of the Legalise Cannabis Party in Queensland and WA should come as no surprise to many within the “legalise” movement. In fact, it should come as no surprise to many outside the movement either, particularly those in political circles.READ MORE PARTY NEWS In WEST AUSTRALIA, Legalise Cannabis Party MPs Sophia Moermond and Brian Walker continue to take every opportunity on the floor of Parliament to make their case on a wide range of cannabis policy matters. Besides the obvious push for legalisation, they have also played a key role in the debate on a number of other key policy issues facing WA. From family court matters to domestic violence legislation, the team are helping people in their community on a plethora of issues (not just drug law reform) – as every good MP should – and the community is responding! Reforms to the WA Electoral SystemProposed reforms to the way the Legislative Council is elected in West Australia will not stop Legalise Cannabis MPs from getting elected at the next state election due in 2025. READ THE STATEMENT FROM THE PARTY NSW and South Australia are in the final stages of their application process with their respective state Electoral Offices. The lock-down in NSW has been particularly challenging in getting the required number of members. It is going to be very tight but we are hopeful of getting across the line. Meanwhile in Victoria the first supporters and volunteers meeting was held on September 20. The group is open to all members and will meet once a fortnight to discuss policy platforms, plan campaigns and organise. We encourage all supporters to personally reach out to their contacts across the country and encourage them to sign up as members of the party. Every new member counts, so help spread the word amongst your friends. Penington Institute Makes Sense. Futile efforts to stamp out cannabis is costing Australia around $1.7 billion a year in law enforcement and diverting police and court resources away from far more serious drugs and crimes.This profound failure of policy has been decades in the making. It’s time that we reject the myths and panic around cannabis in favour of rational discussion and real evidence. READ MORE About the Legalise Cannabis Party Legalise Cannabis Parties have formed or are in the process of forming in every state and territory of Australia. At the Federal level the HEMP Party is in the process of changing its name to Legalise Cannabis Australia. The first Legalise Cannabis Party was formed in Queensland ahead of its 2020 election with the West Australian party getting registered just in time to contest its state election in March 2021. The plan is to have a Legalise Cannabis Party running at every state and Federal election. LegaliseCannabis.org.au, PO Box 840, Neutral Bay Junction, NSW 2089, Australia |
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New South Wales
Victoria
South Australia
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