Most of the discussion around legalization has been centered on the provinces, but how will it affect the northern territories differently?

When the government begins to digest the marijuana legalization task force’s report, the feedback they will be reading will come from numerous stakeholders — from individual citizens, to activist groups, health professionals, and municipal, provincial, and territorial governments, to name a few.

We’ve covered a lot of issues arising from many of these groups, but we’ve not yet discussed in  depth the issues facing Canada’s territories.

As Canada struggles to reduce the number of people addicted to and overdosing on opioids, some doctors say cannabis may be part of the solution.

They are finding it can replace or reduce the use of pharmaceutical painkillers. 

“Can cannabis be used to help manage patients who are currently taking opioids? Broadly, the answer is yes,” says Dr. Alan Bell, a family physician, clinical researcher and professor at the University of Toronto. “Cannabinoids are far safer than opioids, there is no doubt about that. No one has died from a cannabinoid overdose.”

Marijuana dispensaries, lounges, and recreational smokers all have reasons to be optimistic following the release of a government report on how legalization in Canada should be shaped.

The Task Force on Cannabis Legalization and Regulation made 80 recommendations to the government Tuesday. They include allowing for pot to be sold in retail spaces (a.k.a. dispensaries) and to be smoked at indoor marijuana lounges and tasting rooms.

A highly-anticipated report has given Canada the green light to sell recreational marijuana through a wide range of retail outlets in a boost to the nascent cannabis growing industry as the country moves toward legalizing the drug.

Why are so many military veterans reeling with "a sense of anger, hurt, frustration and betrayal?"

And why is a group of them marching on Parliament Hill? 

Shockingly, it's because ex-servicemen with PTSD aren't getting our government's respect and full support. 

Consequently, the suicide rate among ex-servicemen is at an all-time high. (I'll explain in a moment.) 

This is why a group of wounded warriors have set out on a 1,000-kilometre trek to protest veterans' access to medical marijuana being severely curtailed.

This disregard is going to accelerate an already alarming body count of ex-servicemen driven to suicide.

The dispensaries, which operate illegally, sell to anyone over the age of 19.

Come this Thursday recreational marijuana users in Montreal will be able to walk into a store, browse for their favourite strains and walk away with a few grams of cannabis — all in defiance of federal drug laws.  

That's because a Canadian chain of recreational marijuana dispensaries is planning to open multiple locations in the city. But how long they'll stay open is another question. 

Cannabis Culture, which operates dispensaries in 12 locations across British Columbia and Ontario, said it will announce the new Montreal locations on Dec. 14. They will open their doors to the public the next day.

As Canada prepares for full-scale legalization next year, more and more Canadians sign up for medical marijuana.

A millwright who lost his job at the Terra Nova oil field — because of a tiny amount of marijuana found in his jeans pocket at the airport — did not violate his employer's anti-drug policy, according to the Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court.

Justice Donald Burrage ruled Wednesday that the zero-tolerance policy was not violated because the man had forgotten the drugs were in his pocket, and did not intend to bring them to work.

Burrage's ruling came after an appeal by the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union which challenged a January 2016 arbitrator's decision on the case. 

A summary of the facts said the man had been working on a call-in basis and had made more than 40 trips offshore before his dismissal in January 2014.

The growth prospects for the U.S. marijuana industry are phenomenal. Investment company Cowen & Co. anticipates that today's $6 billion in legal sales could turn into $50 billion in legal sales by 2026, while cannabis research ArcView has suggested that compound annual growth for the industry could average about 30% through 2020.

The impetus behind this rapid growth is the dramatic shift in public opinion toward marijuana. National pollster Gallup has shown that in roughly two decades, support for nationwide legalization has jumped from just 25% to an all-time high of 60%.

It's a sight typically seen in Royal Canadian Legion halls — veterans gathered and sharing stories. But instead, that was the scene at the opening ceremony for a new wellness centre in Headingley, Man. this weekend, which focuses on helping vets get medical marijuana.

The province's first Marijuana for Trauma centre opened on Saturday morning, the 13th such centre the company has opened in Canada.

The centre, located west of the Perimeter Highway at 4280 Portage Ave., helps veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder and other conditions get access to marijuana for medicinal purposes.

"Marijuana for Trauma grew from an absolute need, a true need," said Riley McGee, the western Canada director of operations for the company.