Scofflaw pot users who don’t declare all of their marijuana at the border, will now be fined up to $2,000, says Blacklock’s Reporter..The Canada Border Services Agency said the crackdown follows warnings of “repercussions” when Parliament legalized cannabis in 2018..“While cannabis was legalized, it does remain illegal to carry cannabis across the border without a valid permit,” the Agency said in a legal notice..All travelers who “fail to properly declare cannabis” will be fined unless they have a federal permit. Minimum fines are $200..Parliament had criminalized marijuana possession from 1923. Bill C-45 repealed a 95-year ban on recreational marijuana but CBSA managers in 2018 testimony at the Senate national security committee said travelers posed special problems..“Our Border Services officers at all points of entry are detecting non-compliance and seizing contraband including cannabis, generally in small quantities, on a daily basis,” testified Peter Hill, then-associate vice president of the CBSA..“We envision a very similar posture in the days ahead.”.The CBSA has not disclosed the amount of cannabis it’s seized since legalization..“Enforcement measures will continue to be taken when incidents of non-compliance are detected,” said Hill..“The Agency will be introducing a mandatory question for travelers coming into Canada as part of the legislation, as part of our effort to maintain an absolute prohibition on the import of cannabis into this country. The question will be, are you bringing any cannabis into Canada?”.Senators at 2018 hearings predicted far-reaching consequences of Bill C-45..“I’m worried that people I represent may be lulled into thinking that since it’s legal in Canada they may not be as careful as they were in the past,” said Senator Mobina Jaffer (B.C.)..“It’s all very well to pass a bill but we have to be able to tell Canadians exactly what the consequences are when the bill is enforced,” said Senator Jean-Guy Dagenais (Que.)..“Passing the bill is not that complicated but we have to tell Canadians what the repercussions will be.”.Bill C-45 allowed adults to publicly possess up to an ounce of processed marijuana, grow up to four plants at home, and store an unlimited amount of dried cannabis on their own property..“Use of cannabis is common in Canada,” said a Canadian Cannabis Survey 2020 by the Department of Health..Researchers found 44 per cent of teenagers as young as sixteen had used pot since legalization, and were twice as likely to rate marijuana as more socially acceptable than tobacco..Dave Naylor is the News Editor of the Western Standard.,dnaylor@westernstandardonline.com,.Twitter.com/nobby7694
