(OTTAWA) A Senate committee says that the current cannabis market and the new legislative framework have prevented Aboriginal people from taking full advantage of the favorable economic opportunities offered by the federal law on the legalization of cannabis for recreational purposes.
In a report released Wednesday, the Standing Senate Committee on Indigenous Peoples wants Canada to change its approach to cannabis to help Indigenous communities and entrepreneurs better take advantage of the country’s legal cannabis market.
The committee found that some First Nations have “no way to participate in the market” because provinces and territories, including Quebec, have failed to respond to their requests for agreements to produce and sell cannabis.
Although agreements have been reached in British Columbia, Ontario and Saskatchewan, Indigenous communities told the Senate committee that Quebec and the Northwest Territories have yet to negotiate such agreements.
The committee also wants to see the development of a new framework for sharing excise tax proceeds, so that Aboriginal communities can benefit more widely from tax revenues from this market.
First Nations communities do not receive a portion of the excise tax on cannabis products; these tax revenues are shared between the federal, provincial and territorial governments.
Federal excise tax is also levied on the sale of alcohol, tobacco and motor fuel.