PUBLIC-OPINION AND THE LEGAL STATUS OF MARIJUANA IN AUSTRALIA

Since the late 1950s, when the medical use of heroin was banned in Aus tralia, government policy toward marijuana has been based on prohibiti on. Despite an upsurge in the use of marijuana in the 1960s, governmen t policy has remained virtually unchanged, except for the introduction of the expiation notice in South Australia in 1986. The authors use a wide range of opinion poll data to show that attitudes toward marijua na have remained stable over the past two decades, although the most r ecent data suggest that public support for reform of the legal status of marijuana may be increasing. There are notable differences in opini on between sociodemographic groups, with men, the young, and those who have been exposed to marijuana being more likely to support reform. T he authors argue that as more people who have been exposed to marijuan a enter the electorate and as New Politics issues become more prominen t, the legal status of marijuana could become a political party issue. Data collected during the 1990 federal election among election candid ates suggest that the potential for political party conflict already e xists.