The Legalise Cannabis South Australia Party (LCSAP) proposes a comprehensive reform agenda focused on health-based responses, fairness and evidence-driven policy.
A two-stage Cannabis Law Reform plan begins with an immediate Medical Cannabis Amnesty that ends penalties for adults possessing or growing small amounts for personal or medicinal use, stopping the criminalisation of patients and low-level users. After the 2026 election, a statewide Community Drug Summit will convene experts, front line workers, and community voices to design a modern, health-focused drug policy covering alcohol, tobacco, prescription misuse and illicit substances.
LCSA will reform impairment testing laws by replacing outdated THC ‘presence’ rules with scientifically valid assessments of real impairment, protecting medicinal cannabis patients while maintaining road and workplace safety. The policy package invests in safety, wellbeing and rehabilitation.
A new Police Officer Compensation Fund will deliver up to $2 million in ex-gratia support to officers permanently injured in the line of duty, ensuring they receive financial security beyond existing schemes.
LCSA further proposes converting Port Augusta Prison into a secure mental health and drug treatment facility aimed at rehabilitation rather than punishment, providing trauma-informed care, addiction treatment and vocational support. Together, these reforms strengthen community safety, modernise cannabis and drug policy and shift South Australia toward a compassionate and evidence-based approach.
Like all our policies, to be released during the coming State Election Campaign, they will be fully funded from the combined proceeds of an established, deregulated hemp industry and a regulated and licensed cannabis market.
1. Cannabis Law Reform
Phase 1 – Immediate Cannabis Amnesty:
South Australia’s Cannabis Amnesty aims to immediately end all penalties for adults who use, possess or grow small amounts of cannabis for medicinal or personal use. The goal is to stop South Australians from being penalised financially and/or criminalised for low-level cannabis offences that could restrict their access to and use of cannabis. This will allow patients who cannot afford prescription medicinal cannabis to self-supply via home cultivation.
Under the Amnesty, adults would no longer face fines, arrest, charges or prosecution for simple possession offences. To achieve this, the policy introduces a straightforward set of administrative and policing changes that the Police Minister and Attorney General can immediately implement.
Police would be instructed not to issue fines or charge adults for minor cannabis offences unless commercial activity or other serious crime is involved. Prosecutors would discontinue the pursuit of existing low-level cannabis cases and decline to pursue new ones.
This approach reduces harm, reflects community expectations, and provides an urgent protective measure that can be implemented before the March 2026 State Election through executive action rather than waiting for full legislative reform.
These measures together shift cannabis law enforcement away from criminal justice and toward a more successful, health-oriented approach.
Phase 2 – Community Drug Summit
Following the Election, LCSA will ask the Government to convene a Community Drug Summit to address broader reform on psychoactive substances, including alcohol, tobacco, prescription drug misuse and illicit substances.
The Summit will bring together medical professionals, law enforcement, researchers and affected communities to shape future policy direction based on health and evidence—not punishment. It will develop evidence-based recommendations for legislative reform, including diversion programs, regulation models and harm-reduction initiatives, consistent with world’s best practice.
Estimated cost: $5 million.
2. Police Officer Compensation Fund
LCSA recognises the essential role that South Australia Police (SAPOL) play in maintaining public safety. To support those injured in the line of duty, we propose the establishment of a $25 million Police Officer Compensation Fund.
The Fund will provide up to $2 million in ex-gratia payments to officers who are permanently incapacitated or unable to return to work due to on-duty injury.
This will complement, not replace, existing workers’ compensation schemes and will ensure that officers and their families receive appropriate financial and medical support.
Governance will be managed through an independent board with representation from SAPOL, Treasury and the Police Association of South Australia. Annual reports will ensure transparency and accountability.
Estimated cost: $27 million.
3. Medicinal Cannabis & Impairment Testing Reform
South Australia’s road safety and workplace laws must reflect modern scientific understanding and end discrimination against medicinal cannabis patients and responsible adult users. Current ‘per se’ THC laws penalise individuals based solely on the presence of THC, even when they are not impaired, creating an unfair two-tiered justice system.
This policy seeks to replace outdated THC thresholds with evidence-based impairment testing that measures if someone is genuinely unsafe, rather than simply detecting lawful therapeutic cannabis use. Such reform will protect road users, ensure fair treatment of workers and patients and bring South Australia in line with international best practice.
To achieve this, South Australia will need to update its road traffic and workplace safety legislation so enforcement relies on demonstrated impairment, not the presence of THC alone. The state will adopt cognitive and psychomotor assessments—such as the internationally used DRUID app—for real-time impairment evaluation. Confirmatory tests will use portable oral-fluid analysers like the Dräger DrugTest 5000 or DrugWipe 6S for scientific accuracy.
Additionally, a comprehensive training program will be rolled out for police, transport authorities and workplace safety officers to ensure consistent and compliant application of the new standards. A pilot program will be launched in high-risk and selected regional areas to test and refine the tools and operational protocols, grounding the reform in strong empirical evidence and legal certainty.
The estimated cost for the four-year reform is $33 million. This includes mobile app licensing, procurement of oral-fluid analysers, consumables for confirmatory testing and training and change-management programs. This investment will deliver a fairer, safer and more scientifically sound approach to impairment detection on roads and in workplaces.
It ensures that medicinal cannabis patients, who use cannabis legally for conditions such as chronic pain or PTSD, are not criminalised for their treatment. By prioritising real impairment over outdated testing methods, South Australia will again lead the nation in evidence-based cannabis law reform.
Estimated cost: $33 million.
4. Conversion of Port Augusta Prison to a Secure Mental Health and Drug Treatment Facility
LCSA proposes to repurpose Port Augusta Prison into a secure mental health and drug treatment facility focused on rehabilitation, not punishment. This transformation will target the underlying causes of crime, including untreated trauma, addiction and mental illness.
The estimated cost of conversion is $50 million, with further feasibility and design studies to confirm. The facility will provide trauma-informed treatment, addiction counselling, mental health services, vocational training and transitional programs for eligible prisoners.
This initiative mirrors international best practices seen in therapeutic justice models across Europe, Canada and parts of Australia. It will be delivered in partnership with SA Health, the Department for Correctional Services and community treatment providers.
Estimated cost: $50 million.