Federal cannabis law hurts property owners

We would like to discuss with you the demands that CORPIQ is making to the federal government regarding the Cannabis Act.

English subtitles are available in the settings of the video on YouTube. Don't forget to also turn on the "Subtitles/closed captions" option.

You know, it's been a little more than 4 years since the Government of Canada adopted a law that has important effects for managers and rental landlords in Quebec. This law is currently under review, and we have been taking advantage of the opportunities to gather your point of view, but especially to defend the problems resulting from the application of this law. We will not hide the fact that during the last four years we lived through the covid-19 pandemic which created a lot of social isolation and generated repercussions related to the application of this new law on cannabis. Today, we have concluded that this law is a failure for landlords mainly because there are gaping holes related to the granting by Health Canada of special permits for cannabis for medical purposes. There is also a competing interpretation between the federal and provincial governments that is related to "am I allowed to grow plants at home or not?"

So obviously we all know the effects and then the impact of home growing of cannabis plants. We can name for example the humidity that may generate insalubrity in the dwellings, but it can also be the whole issue of the quietness in your rental park related to the comings and goings of people who will do illicit trade related to cannabis and it is without counting all the neighborhood that suffers the consequences of the insecurity generated by the home production of cannabis.

So obviously, you can see that the social impacts are numerous. The dysfunctional behaviours of tenants who consume more and who also produce create issues for the most vulnerable people. Not to mention that when this new law was passed, we were promised more social and community support, which unfortunately has not been forthcoming for the past four years. It is therefore in this context that CORPIQ has made a protest to the Federal Expert Panel on the Cannabis Act. You know, we have many demands, but I will name two of them very quickly.

First, it is necessary to prohibit the production of cannabis plants in rental properties, which has harmful effects on rental management, but above all, it is absolutely necessary to respect provincial legislation that allows, for example, a rental landlord to prohibit smoking. Whether it is the Tobacco Act or the Cannabis Act, the same rigour and the same laws must apply. This is what CORPIQ intends to demand for you, dear landlords.

Marc-André Plante, Director of Public Affairs and Government Relations of CORPIQ