One of the consistent themes of Niagara’s regional council this term has been to veer off course from their mandate and weigh in on issues that are beyond their scope. From national child care strategies to de-fund the police to a national affordable housing strategy, there’s been a fairly regular stream of correspondence providing direction to MPPs and MPs.
One of the areas both local municipal councils and regional council weighed in on recently was that of decriminalization of drug possession. The original motion put before Council by St. Catharines Regional Councillor Laura Ip, urged the federal government to “decriminalize the possession of all drugs for personal use” while scaling up preventative and treatment services. It also urged the federal government to convene a taskforce to explore the “legal regulation of all drugs in Canada, based on a public health approach.”
As part of a recent TNI reader’s survey the question was asked; “Some regional and municipal councillors from Niagara have been seeking formal endorsements from their respective councils to promote decriminalization of drug possession at the federal level. In your opinion, do you think Canada should decriminalize the possession of drugs?”
There were 524 respondents to the question with the majority selecting either a clear “no” or “probably not”. Most readers, 42%, chose “No, it’s criminal for a reason and a good deterrent” while 21% selected “Probably not – there’s too much uncertainty and is unlikely to work or have a positive impact”.
On the other end of the spectrum 23% were on the fence selecting “Maybe but we need more evidence of the advantages”. Just 14% feel it is time to decriminalize drugs in Canada.
During the September regional council meeting when this motion was discussed, councillors spoke both for and against decriminalization.
Niagara Falls Councillor Peter Nicholson spoke fervently against the motion at Council and said following the meeting; “We need to look for innovative solutions to substance abuse problems, but the decriminalization of drugs for personal use is not the answer.” Nicholson went on to say, “Decriminalization of the possession of potentially highly dangerous and addictive substances, in my opinion, could unintentionally normalize drug use and send the wrong message to children and our community.”
Councillors Barbara Butters, George Darte, and Kelly Edgar all indicated their support for the motion with Edgar saying “I think it’s obvious that whatever we’re doing now isn’t working and I’d like to try something new.”
It doesn’t appear the feds will take Niagara’s council up on their suggestion as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has stated publicly he’s not interested in going down the road of decriminalization. Don Mitchell with Global News, recently reported that Trudeau stated the federal government is not considering decriminalizing drugs, that Ottawa would be looking at “other things” to mitigate the opioid issue, and that further decisions would be made “based on science”.
Not surprisingly Niagara’s two Conservative MPs spoke against any form of decriminalizing drugs.
Niagara West MP Dean Allison, who has seen this discussion come up numerous times before in Ottawa, said all levels of government should be doing more about addictions but it should be about providing treatment not decriminalizing or legalizing drugs. “The focus shouldn’t be a carte blanche on decriminalizing every drug,” said the veteran MP. “We need to make sure the drugs don’t get on the streets in the first place and we need to get addicts the help they need.”
Niagara Falls Conservative MP Tony Baldinelli added, “Illicit drugs such as heroin, cocaine, and meth are extremely dangerous substances that tear families apart, negatively impact communities and have lasting effects on individuals who become addicted. It would be irresponsible for government to decriminalize these highly addictive and destructive drugs.”
