New poll: Kiwis back euthanasia, support for legalizing evaporating cannabis

Personal cannabis use is likely to remain illegal according to the latest poll figures, as support for the bill continues to decline ahead of the upcoming referendum.

The latest Newshub Reid-Research poll showed that only 37.9 percent of respondents said they would vote yes on the proposal.

In just over two weeks, voters will be able to weigh in on a possible legal cannabis market; which would allow for special bars for consumption, special outlets and outlets, and strict rules for homegrown cannabis.

New Zealanders will be asked in the next election if they support the cannabis control and legalization bill.

The referendum in the 2020 elections will ask about support for the cannabis control and legalization bill, which would include:

• Allow products to be purchased only from a licensed outlet of a licensed and registered retailer, and prohibit online or remote sales,

• Prohibit the use of cannabis publicly, allowing it only in a specially licensed premises or on private property,

• Control the potency of cannabis in available products,

• Enter a legal purchase age of 20, and

• Ban the advertising of cannabis products and require that the products convey health messages.

According to the Newshub Reid-Research poll, 50.5 percent of respondents say they will vote against the proposal, topping the 37.9 percent who said they would vote in favor.

Green party voters were most likely to support the proposed bill (85.5 percent voting in favor), followed by Labor Party supporters (45.9 percent in favor), Newshub reported.

National voters are the most likely to strongly oppose the proposal, and 71.6 percent of those who responded said they would vote no.

Of those surveyed, 10.9 percent said they did not know how they would vote and 0.8 percent said they would not vote.

The results are in line with recent polling trends ahead of the next election, with only 39 percent of those who responded to an August poll saying they would vote in favor.

In March, a Research New Zealand poll found that 43 percent of respondents were in favor of legalizing cannabis and 33 percent opposed, RNZ reported.

But at the end of August, the numbers changed: 39 percent supported the law change and 46 percent of people were against the legalization of recreational cannabis.

The Newshub Reid-Research poll also asked respondents which box they would check on the end-of-life election bill on Election Day.

It found that the bill would likely pass if people voted the same on October 17, with 61.6 percent of those polled saying yes to the bill.

Meanwhile, 25.5 percent of those polled said they would vote against and 11.9 percent said they didn’t know.

Those numbers are just a drop below TVNZ’s July poll, in which 63 percent of respondents said they would vote for the bill.

Twenty-four percent answered no, saying they wanted it to remain illegal, while the rest were unsure or said they would not vote.