Premier Kathleen Wynne says she is “encouraged” by recent comments from MP Bill Blair indicating his support for the possible sale of marijuana at provincial liquor stores.

The former Toronto police chief, who has been tapped as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s point person on the legalization of pot, told The Toronto Star last week that there is already a “strong system in place for the control and regulation” of sales of the drug in the form of government-run liquor stores such as the LCBO.

Blair’s comment came about a month after Wynne told CP24 that she would be in support of LCBO’s being given the additional responsibility of selling marijuana once the drug is legalized.

“I am encouraged that he (Blair) has said as a preliminary approach that it might make sense to use the distribution network that is already in place but that is not a foregone conclusion,” Wynne said at Queen’s Park on Monday. “He has got a lot of people to talk to and he has got a lot of questions to ask and decisions to make over the coming months.”

In his interview with The Star, Blair stopped short of endorsing the sale of legalized pot at government-run liquor stores but he did say that the retail outlets represent a “model and framework” that can be built on.

Speaking with reporters, Wynne said she has “a lot of respect for Bill Blair” and is looking forward to the “opportunity to talk to him” about the legalization of marijuana.

“His taking on this role is the beginning of that national conversation that I have said we need to have,” she said.

In addition to Wynne, the head of the head of the Ontario Public Service Employees Union has also called for legalized marijuana to be sold exclusively through LCBO’s.

The idea, however, may prove controversial with Ontarians.

One poll commissioned by Forum research last month found that 47 per cent of respondents opposed selling marijuana at LCBO’s while 44 per cent supported it and 10 per cent had no opinion.

In a speech from the throne in December, the new Liberal government promised to “legalize, regulate and restrict access to marijuana.”

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