Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre┬аsays he supports┬аinvoluntary drug addiction treatment┬аfor minors and prisoners when they are found to be incapable of making decisions for themselves┬атАФ┬аbut is still┬аlooking into whether┬аhe can┬аsupport it┬аfor┬аnon-incarcerated adults.
In July, when asked about a potential national strategy to compel drug users into treatment, Poilievre told reporters he was “open” to the idea of involuntary drug treatment for addicts┬аbut was not sure whether you could take someone off the street who hadn’t┬аcommitted a criminal offence and successfully rehabilitate them.
On Thursday,┬аhe was asked the question again.
“I believe for children, and for prisoners who are behind bars, there should be mandatory drug treatment, when they are found to be incapable of making decisions for themselves,” Poilievre┬аsaid in Toronto.┬а┬а
“For adults, I’m still doing a lot of research on how that would work.”
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says he thinks that for children and prisoners, тАШthere should be mandatory drug treatment when they are found to be incapable of making decisions for themselves.тАЩ When it comes to adults, Poilievre says he is тАШstill doing a lot of research on how that would work.тАЩ
Poilievre┬аalso repeated his promise to defund programs that prescribe┬аdrugs to people at high risk of overdosing on┬аtoxic street drugs┬атАФ what the federal government calls “safer supply” тАФ and to promote recovery and rehab instead.
He also promised to tighten border controls to prevent drugs from being imported into Canada.
Poilievre cited the case of Brianna MacDonald, 13, of Abbotsford, B.C. MacDonald died of a suspected overdose in August after leaving treatment,┬аdespite her parents’ objections.
“There’s no question in my mind that she should’ve been in mandatory, involuntary, psychiatric and substance abuse treatment, rather than in a homeless encampment in a tent,”┬аhe said.
Involuntary addictions care is a topic of fierce debate in several provinces, including British Columbia, New Brunswick, Alberta and Ontario.
Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was asked about Poilievre’s position Thursday. Without agreeing or disagreeing with the Conservative leader, she said her government supports a “science-based approach.”
“We have to use all the tools that we have at our disposal, to make sure people get the treatment they need, and sometimes a person can be too sick to really recognize what treatment they need and we also have to be sure that people are safe in their communities,”┬аFreeland said.
Asked if she supports Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s call for involuntary care for some youth and incarcerated individuals with substance use issues, Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland spoke of the need for a compassionate, science-based approach.
According to recent government data, there have been more than 44,000 opioid-related deaths in Canada┬аsince 2016,┬аand 80 per cent of opioid-related deaths involve fentanyl and fentanyl analogues.
Civil liberties groups, including the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA), have raised concerns about the prospect of involuntary treatment. They point out that the courts have established individuals have a Charter right to decline medical treatment, and people who are incarcerated have not lost their Charter of Rights protections.
“I would add that it’s well documented within prisons that there’s a lack of resources for voluntary treatment, so why not start there?” said Ana├пs Bussi├иres McNicoll, director of the fundamental freedoms program at the CCLA.
New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs has┬аrefused to rule out preemptively using the Constitution’s notwithstanding clause to protect any involuntary treatment law from a Charter challenge.
Others have warned that forcing people into care is not an effective way to treat┬аaddiction and risks driving people away from the health care system.
“If you look at global statistics, it doesn’t work,” said Leslie McBain┬аof the group Moms Stop the Harm, an advocacy group representing Canadian families affected by substance-use-related harms and deaths.
“It isn’t successful because people have to want to recover, they have to come to the need to recover on their own.”
She also said the “devil is in the details” and without knowing what form of involuntary treatment is being proposed, it’s hard to┬аjudge┬аthe potential effects.
She said provinces should focus on making sure there are enough low-barrier recovery options for people with addictions who want treatment.
