Advocates for drug users are expressing concern over British Columbia’s request for Health Canada to empower police to intervene when they see illicit drug use in public spaces, saying it could be a step backwards in the deadly crisis of opioids.
Brittany Graham, the executive director of the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users, said that while she hasn’t seen the details, the currently proposed change only appears to affect those who are homeless and living in poverty.
“They will be recriminalized in every sense of the word and it is very disappointing, in the midst of this overdose crisis when 14,000 people have died, that our current government is blaming our biggest problems of homelessness and poverty, and the welfare state about individual people who have nowhere to go,” he said in a phone interview.
Graham said the fallout from the proposed change shines a light on other issues the government should focus more on addressing.
“People can’t afford housing anymore,” he said. “This is a housing problem, not decriminalization.”
The three-year decriminalization pilot was enacted on January 31, 2023, exempting those in possession of small amounts of opioids from facing criminal charges. Exemptions apply to drugs such as heroin and fentanyl, as well as cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA, in amounts of 2.5 grams or less.
The province said Friday it is working with Health Canada to “urgently change decriminalization policy to stop public drug use.”
BC’s request comes after repeated criticism from politicians, health workers and police about the policy, including the open use of drugs in public spaces.
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The province previously tried to outlaw drug use in public places with its own legislation, but the Harm Reduction Nurses Association challenged the bill in court. Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson ruled in December that if the laws are enacted, “irreparable harm will be caused.”
Premier David Eby said the province has requested the changes come from Health Canada by requesting an amendment to its exemption under the Controlled Substances and Drugs Law. The requested change would give police the power to intervene when they see illicit drug use in public spaces, including hospitals, traffic and parks.
Corey Ranger, president of the Harm Reduction Nurses Association, called the move “grossly unethical.”
“We are very concerned and we sincerely believe this is an improper circumvention of the BC Supreme Court order,” he said in an interview. “BC has not acted transparently, or consulted with the people who will be most affected by this issue.”
The association issued a press release earlier this month saying it had reached out to the provincial government “to discuss legal and policy changes.”
“The association is calling on the province to turn to productive endeavors instead of continuing to defend a law that puts lives at risk,” said the April 16 press release on the legislation.
Ranger said Friday’s announcement came as a surprise, noting the province did not provide a formal response to the association’s request.
“It appears that their response was their announcement that they were going to seek an amendment to their exemption for the decriminalization pilot,” he said.
Ranger said he believes the request was an attempt to “score political points” ahead of a provincial election scheduled for this fall.
“We need to work toward solutions like housing and mental health supports, and instead they fell back on the only thing they know, which is punishment,” he said.
Ranger said the association cannot yet determine what the next steps will be because members have not yet seen the request from the province.
The prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the criticism.
Eby said during a news conference Friday that police need tools to address extraordinary circumstances when people compromise public safety with drug use. He said police would be given guidance to arrest people only for simple possession in “exceptional circumstances”.
Guy Felicella, a Vancouver-based harm reduction expert, said he agrees there should be some rules about public consumption in places like playgrounds, but he still has a lot of questions about what the exemption, specifically regarding police discretion.
“That’s the part that worries me and that’s what I need clarity on,” he said.
As someone who struggled with addiction for decades and has faced more than 50 drug-related convictions, he believes recriminalization won’t work.
“When you get caught up in that, it’s very, very, very difficult to break free,” he said of the justice system. “It’s just a revolving door (of) rinse, wash and repeat for decades, and I can tell you, when I look back, it was probably the hardest thing to break free from.”
He credits his recovery in large part to harm reduction services.
“Without harm reduction, I wouldn’t be alive today, my kids wouldn’t be alive today, and I wouldn’t be 11 years sober at my job. My recovery gives me the life I have today,” Felicella said. But it was all built on a continuum of care, from harm reduction to recovery services.”
He said he’s grateful the province supports supervised consumption and other harm reduction methods, but argues there needs to be more participation from municipalities across the province.
“We have to give them a place to go,” he said of drug users.
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