Scott AlastairALASTAIR SCOTT (National—Wairarapa): Thank you Mr Chair. I too would like to comment on Chlöe Swarbrick's message that loose leaf is not mentioned in the bill—and it's not. But it's quite clear that one is able to smoke plant material. So let's be honest about it: we are talking about loose leaf.My point today is that I am disappointed and I know others are disappointed with this bill because the general public—well my constituents—expected medicinal cannabis to be able to be used for pain relief; to be considered—and I'm talking about the tablets and the oils and the sprays—as a regular medicine to be prescribed by a doctor or a nurse practitioner perhaps. Ms Swarbrick talked about medicinal cannabis that people were smoking it already—43 percent of them apparently—for medicinal or medical purposes. That seems like a very large number and I'm not sure where she got the numbers from.But my point is that if it's good enough for a terminally ill person to smoke loose leaf for compassionate reasons as the Minister has said—for compassionate reasons"; he's said that a couple of times—why can we not be compassionate for those who are in pain immense pain and enduring pain who can't get up in the morning are restricted to a wheelchair or a bed and find it difficult to move around the room but are not in a terminable space—they're not in a terminable space? So if—if; it's a hypothetical—it's good enough for a terminally ill person why is it only good enough for a terminally ill person on compassionate grounds to smoke loose leaf? I say that this is just a foot in the door. The problem here is that the scope—the terminally ill will of course be able to smoke loose leaf on compassionate grounds and then next week or the week after it'll be able to be used for someone with debilitating pain for example. Marja Lubeck: What's wrong with that?ALASTAIR SCOTT: Well if there's nothing wrong with that put it in the bill. The reason you can't put it in the bill is because the general public will not accept loose leaf generally for medicinal purposes. They will accept a regime that is tested and tried and monitored and regulated so that the doctor or nurse knows what their patient is receiving when they prescribe. To me if you promote and accept that medicinal loose leaf is OK for compassionate grounds then get it out there. Let the doctor do their job and prescribe the stuff on compassionate grounds. But we know that's unacceptable to the public. We know that that would just legitimise the smoking of loose-leaf cannabis in the malls as Mr Woodhouse has said—in the malls; on the streets—because they've got a back pain they've got debilitating pain. And that's why this loose-leaf option is a problem.Compassionate grounds is not a good enough reason to allow loose leaf. Compassionate grounds—we should be using a certified regulated measured and qualified tablet oil or spray that's been produced by certified growers if you like—producers; manufacturers—and is able to be prescribed by a doctor for any purpose. Let the doctors do their job. Rely on them to say "You've got this condition sir or madam. These are the options: we can use medicinal cannabis in tablet form or spray form or we can use some other type of painkiller or medicine or penicillin" or whatever it might be—I'm not a doctor. There's lots of options available. Let the doctors do their job but don't let loose-leaf cannabis out legitimately on the grounds of compassion because if it is for compassion I say let it be for compassion."