From a criminal justice policy viewpoint, legalizing pot and funding mental health services are probably the two biggest no brainers out there.
The resources consumed in policing and prosecuting Marijuana are huge, particularly given the associated costs of gang activity. In BC, it probably takes about 1000 policing man hours just to bust a single grow op. Then it probably means those cops sitting around waiting for trial over 2 days, not to mention court and prosecutor costs. If the prosecution is successful it leads to possible jail costs as well as probation costs and the costs associated with bail breaches. There may also be costs associated with housing exhibits and dealing with litigation related to the return of seized equipment or civil damages if the prosecution is unsuccessful. All while criminal gangs make 10s or 100s of millions in profit while providing a product with no safety guarantees.
And there are probably about 70,000 grow ops in BC alone at any given time.
Legalization would offer significant employment in this province, curtail crime, and offer a multi billion dollar revenue swing for the government.
On the mental health side, so much is already spent policing, prosecuting, and jailing the mentally ill (not to mention the huge social cost of having untreated people committing crimes) that I'd bet proper treatment facilities would pay for themselves.
I wish the latter issue was getting some play this election.
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