New Zealand Prime Minister-elect John Key said Monday he had won enough support to form a new government by mid-November, after meetings with two small parties.

THROUGHOUT the western world — Europe, the USA and Canada, Australia and here in New Zealand — there is an extraordinary debate as to the appropriate legal status for cannabis, with often sharply-divided opinion ranging from those advocating a harsh old-style crackdown through to a growing chorus of users, police and medics who want a more liberal law and a separation of cannabis from hard drug dealers.

The opposition National Party conceded defeat today in New Zealand’s general election and its leader said he expected Labour leader Helen Clark to form the next government.