The federal government’s response to the Supreme Court ruling on Vancouver’s safe-injection site is cynical and callous, placing politics and prejudice ahead of evidence-based, sound public policy.
Drug addiction is obviously destructive. It is also a reality in every community, in many forms. A pragmatic public policy would focus on prevention and on reducing the damage done — to the individual, to communities, to the economy.
That’s the purpose of Insite, the Vancouver supervised-injection site. The evidence overwhelmingly indicates it is a success in saving lives, reducing HIV and other diseases and protecting communities.
But the Conservative government is not interested in the evidence.
It tried to close Insite, operated by the Vancouver Coastal Health Authority, in 2008. The decision faced a legal challenge. The B.C. Supreme Court heard the evidence and ruled that allowing addicted people to inject in a supervised site reduced death and illness and public disorder.
Addicts are ill, Justice Ian Pitfield found. Insite helps them manage their illness, as other medical services help those with cancer or diabetes.
The federal government argued drug use was a choice, and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms was not intended to protect people from bad choices.
But the court, after reviewing the medical evidence, concluded that Insite users weren’t choosing drugs and that addiction was a disease.
“While there is nothing to be said in favour of the injection of controlled substances that leads to addiction, there is much to be said against denying addicts health care services that will ameliorate the effects of their condition,” Pitfield found. “Society does that for other substances such as alcohol and tobacco.”
The federal government challenged the decision in the B.C. Court of Appeal and the Supreme of Court in Canada, losing both times.
Now it has introduced new legislation governing such sites. The health minister will have full discretion and applicants must include supporting letters from provincial ministers, municipalities and police forces, and prove consultation with doctors, nurses and a broad range of community groups.
The legislation is written to ensure the minister will always have a reason to say no. The government made that clear.
When Health Minister Leona Aglukkaq announced the changes, the head of the Ottawa police union appeared with her to condemn safe-injection sites.
And as Aglukkaq spoke, the Conservative party launched a petition on its website with the headline “Keep heroin out of our backyards.” The party warned “special interests” and the “Trudeau Liberals and Mulcair NDP” want safe-injection sites across the country.
It is false and shameless pandering for political gain.
Supervised injection sites are no panacea. But they reduce care costs, assist some people with managing addiction and cut urban disorder. They save lives and prevent illness. In some communities, they are an important component in dealing with drugs.
The government’s stance is sadly typical. Our approach to drug use has been a huge, expensive failure. We have spent billions, while addiction has increased and the damage to individuals and society has grown.
It is long past time for a serious discussion, based on evidence, about the best ways to deal with addiction. Sadly, the federal government places political games ahead of real solutions to a problem that damages individuals and communities.
