Health department admits 'safe supply' drug policy failed
Despite a failed 15-month 'safe supply' experiment in B.C., Minister Ya'ara Saks dismissed criticism from the Opposition.
A health department memo to the former Addictions Minister Ya'ara Saks cautioned that decriminalizing personal possession of narcotics in British Columbia, which occurred nearly two years prior, would be insufficient on its own to reduce overdose deaths.
"If pressed on lessons learned from B.C. so far, changing laws alone is not sufficient," said the December 17 memo Supplementary Estimates (B). "An exemption such as this needs to be accompanied by a comprehensive suite of actions."
Despite a failed 15-month experiment, the minister dismissed criticism as "stigma and fear" from the Official Opposition. "We are saving lives through health care support and services."
Drug overdoses have killed more than 32,000 people since 2016, when "safe supply" became official policy.
Weeks before the memo, Parliament voted 210-117 to decriminalize simple possession of all narcotics. According to a Blacklock’s report, all House parties except the Conservatives voted to legalize heroin, cocaine, and other illicit drugs, as recommended by the public safety committee.
The report A Path Forward: Reducing Gun And Gang Violence In Canada follows up on Bill C-216, a failed NDP bill to decriminalize all narcotics.
Cabinet was noncommittal on decriminalization, Blacklock’s learned. The December 17 memo advised Minister Saks against publicly discussing expanding drug decriminalization, stating there was "no plan for national decriminalization" if questioned.
Last May, the Commons supported the "safe supply" policy (209-113), defeating a Conservative motion by Pierre Poilievre to instead fund addiction treatment programs.
"The evidence is so clear that [safe supply] has been a nightmare," Pierre Poilievre, the Tory leader, said on March 8, 2024. "You have to ask yourself, what is motivating this policy?"
In 2023, B.C. suspended enforcement of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, allowing public possession of up to 2.5 grams of narcotics through a first-of-its-kind order since 1911. The experiment was halted last May 7 over growing public disorder.
From February 1, 2023, to May 7, 2024, overdose deaths totalled 3,313 in British Columbia, according to the British Columbia Coroners Service. That surpassed the 2,843 deaths recorded in the 15 months before decriminalization, a 16.5% increase.
The Addictions Minister's office offered no data for the rise in overdose deaths, stating it's a complex health crisis, amidst criticism that the exemption is causing more deaths.
Minister Saks, in testimony last December 18 at the Commons health committee, would not discuss the program's failure. "It seems only the Opposition is preoccupied with national decriminalization," she said, claiming Poilievre lacks an "evidence-based view" of addicts struggling with substance abuse.
Meanwhile, Cabinet's sudden reversal of its "safe supply" drug policy aligned with health department research in 2024 indicating increased Canadian opposition to decriminalization, with the belief that it would worsen community safety having risen by five percentage points since 2023.
British Columbians in federal focus groups called it a major worry. A total of 48% said "decriminalizing drugs would make my community less safe."
Saks was dismissed from cabinet weeks before losing her York Centre re-election bid last Monday to Conservative Roman Baber by 5,792 votes.
Since 2017, the Trudeau government has committed over $1 billion to combat overdose deaths, as reported in a December 2023 update on federal actions. This figure does not include the $27 million allocated last year to fund 22 "safe supply" sites in B.C. and Ontario.
Alex Dhaliwal
Journalist and Writer
Alex Dhaliwal is a Political Science graduate from the University of Calgary. He has actively written on relevant Canadian issues with several prominent interviews under his belt.
Help fund Alex's journalism!
Featured Stories
14:18
