Marijuana task force wraps study but findings stuck in translation

OTTAWA – Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's cabinet had expected to receive findings from a task force studying the legalization of marijuana, but the document is stuck in translation limbo.

The team behind the report says it will be given to ministers and the public when it is in available in both English and French, which is expected to take two weeks.

The work of the task force is meant to inform the Liberal government as it looks to bring forward legislation to legalize pot by spring of next year.

The government faces key questions as it moves toward a legalized regime, including the best minimum age for legal purchase, advertising and marketing restrictions and taxation and pricing.

Task force chair Anne McLellan, a former Liberal public safety minister, and vice-chair Dr. Mark Ware say the group spoke with a number of ordinary Canadians who shared their views on how to approach the issue.

They also gained insight from visits to Colorado and Washington states, two jurisdictions where cannabis is legal.

The panel also spoke with representatives of the Uruguayan government — the only nation that has a regulatory system for legal access to cannabis.