Dogged by questions about his party’s relationship with the Marijuana party, Jack Layton, the New Democratic Party (NDP) leader, has distanced himself from the B.C. Marijuana party. This reaction has come as a result of the emergence of embarrassing videos of drug use by two NDP candidates in British Columbia.

Commenting that the resignations that followed from the two candidates were voluntary, Layton told reporters that he never made a deal with the party, and did not force the two pot activists to resign. However, Edmonton marijuana activist, Marge Groenendyk said that she has talked to both the candidates who told her the NDP forced them out.

In fact, the resignation of the two candidates - Dana Larsen and Kirk Tousaw - has angered several advocates of decriminalizing marijuana. Layton is being accused of abandoning the candidates to gain middle-class votes. Marijuana promoter Marc Emery has said he raised thousands of dollars for the NDP, and signed up new members in exchange for support for his cause of legalization.

Among a crowd of more than 200 people at an NDP rally at which Layton promised to get tough on street gangs and violent crime, Groenendyk reacted by saying: “I’m furious. You have two honest candidates that have been studying this matter for many, many years, and it’s time for education.”

Layton refused to discuss the two candidates’ resignations, saying only: “They’ve resigned. They’re no longer our candidates anymore. So we’re moving on to the issues that Canadians want us to take action on.” He told the crowd of NDP supporters that, if elected, his government would spend $100 million a year to put 2,500 new police officers on the streets. His plan also includes $50 million a year for prevention programs to help at-risk youth, and $25 million over four years to strengthen witness protection.

He asserted that: “New Democrats are committed to stopping the spread of gangs and to stopping the epidemic of gun violence threatening your families in our cities. As prime minister, I’m going to make sure that we invest in the long-term preventative measures that keep our kids out of gangs - tackle the problems of violent crimes at the root.”