Nova Scotia General

The provincial government has introduced a new regulation to allow Mi’kmaw communities to open legal cannabis retail stores on reserve by agreement with the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation (NSLC).

“We’ve spoken with Mi’kmaw leaders across the province, and they have raised concerns about the sale of illegal cannabis in their communities,” Environment and Climate Change Minister Timothy Halman said in a news release on behalf of Finance and Treasury Board Minister John Lohr.

“These changes will allow bands to open a legal store for those who wish to buy and use cannabis.”

The new regulations will allow a band, or a band-owned corporation, to become an authorized seller within their community through an agreement with NSLC to set up a legal retail store.

Any cannabis stores in Mi’kmaw communities will sell cannabis purchased through the NSLC.

The NSLC is currently the only authorized cannabis seller in Nova Scotia.

There is an on-reserve NSLC location in Eskasoni that sells cannabis, which opened in September 2022.

The regulation was a result of a request from several First Nations because of concerns about safety and a regulated supply.

Finance and treasury board spokeswoman Rachel Boomer said the band would be in charge of running the stores, which would be a licensed NSLC store but not an outlet. The employees would come from the community and not be NSLC workers.

The regulations require cannabis to be retailed in a socially responsible manner. Authorized Mi’kmaw sellers must:

• sell cannabis in its original package

• sell no more than 30 grams of dried cannabis, or the equivalent, in one transaction

• only sell at the authorized, permanent location

• allow no sampling on the premises

• display a certificate issued by the NSLC indicating they are authorized cannabis sellers

• follow the NSLC’s responsible retail training and guidelines, ensuring cannabis products aren’t sold to minors or those who are impaired

• follow all Health Canada requirements.

The timeline for opening is up to the individual bands, who will decide whether they want to be involved. They would then sign an agreement with NSLC to set up the store, with training provided by NSLC.

There are currently no plans to authorize other third-party cannabis sellers.

Someone's going around on Reddit recruiting for a Nova Scotia 'friendlies' Discord server. I just wanted to pass the link along in the off chance that someone here was interested.

https://discord.com/invite/C2qPFDMc

Absolute kitchen party here!

Seriously, though... anybody around?

We have a new rental house across the road. The neighbours have decided to put up a no trespassing sign and an F*CK Trudeau flag. Our neighbourhood has always been a mix of different political backgrounds but everyone is lovely and respectful. Seems as though someone close by called the police about the flag. It wasn’t us although we have the same feelings about it. The flag is offensive but we decided to educate our child about why the display of signs like this are hateful rather than uplifting and supportive. Since the police showed up we heard them loudly exclaim “someone has too much time in their hands”. I’m guessing it was directed at us as we have a pride flag in our front window. Shortly after that the Trudeau flag showed up. How can one approach this? We’re all for free speech. But why act like a trash human to get your opinion across?

Rant over.

Because an empty community is sad.