The Victorian Government's decision to amend the law to stop the automatic cancellation of a driver's license if medicinal cannabis is found in their system is long overdue and welcome, say lawyers.
The Australian Lawyers Alliance today welcomed the government's decision to allow magistrates to exercise sentencing discretion for drivers who test positive for the cannabinoid chemical tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), if they hold a valid prescription for medicinal cannabis and are unimpaired while driving.
"This is a positive step forward, but we would like to see it as a full defence to drug driving if a person has a medical cannabis script and has taken their medication in accordance with their script," said Mr Greg Barns SC, criminal justice spokesperson, Australian Lawyers Alliance.
"Medicinal cannabis is the only prescribed drug, the use of which by drivers, is criminalised. Drivers who take opioids or other prescription medication do not find themselves in court or risk losing their licence, and neither should drivers who have taken a prescribed and legal dose of cannabis.
"Laws need to change to stay relevant. Current drug driving laws were developed before cannabis became a legally recognised prescribed medication and have not kept up with change.
"We are pleased to see progress on this issue in Victoria. People have been losing their licences, and sometimes their jobs, not because of impaired driving, but because of flawed laws and this change was urgently required."
