Email that would be sent on your behalf
Email To: YourMP@parliament.govt.nz
cc To: Your email address
From: Your name, ruabionz@gmail.com
Kia ora [MP Name],
Decriminalisation of personal cannabis consumption and cultivation
I am writing as a resident of [Electorate] to ask for your support in decriminalising personal cannabis consumption and limited home cultivation for adults in Aotearoa, New Zealand.
The Cost to taxpayers – Every year millions of public dollars are spent on policing and processing low-level cannabis offences - These resources could be far better directed towards essential public services. Over a four year period, front-line policing hours, court time and imprisonment for minor drug offences have been estimated to cost taxpayers approximately $60 million. Some estimates for the full cost of cannabis to the justice system is $720 million over the same period.
Discretion isn’t enough – The 2019 Misuse of Drugs Act amendment instructs Police to use discretion for personal possession. Yet last year roughly a third of all drug-possession charges - about 5,000 cases - involved cannabis; and that number is rising in recent years.
Low relative harm – Independent public-health analyses consistently ranks cannabis as less harmful than alcohol and tobacco, while acknowledging that any use is not risk-free. Continuing to treat a comparatively lower-harm substance as a criminal matter is inconsistent with evidence-based policy.
The hidden cost of minor convictions - Even when no prison time is served, a minor cannabis conviction can have life-long consequences: hundreds of dollars in fines, thousands more in lost earnings and employment opportunities, greater reliance on benefits, and reduced life chances. These impacts fall disproportionately on young people and Māori.
I am not calling for full commercial legalisation. Rather, I support a sensible, health-focused reform that allows adults to possess and grow a small amount of cannabis for personal use without fear of criminal sanction - similar to the successful model adopted in the ACT, Australia.
Such a change would:
Free Police and courts to focus on serious harm.
Align the law with scientific evidence
Reduce inequity in the justice system while upholding public health objectives.
I respectfully urge you to support, sponsor, or vote for legislation that enacts decriminalisation and home-grow provisions. I would welcome the opportunity to discuss this further or provide any information that might assist your deliberations.
More detailed information can be found at www.ruabio.com/tell-parliament-decriminalise
Ngā mihi nui,
[Your Name]
[Email and contact details]
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