Despite all the shouting, the opioid crisis continues to defy simple answers

published on May 2, 2024 by Aaron Wherry in CBC News

The debate in Parliament about British Columbia’s experience with drug decriminalization was already operating at extremes before Pierre Poilievre used the term “wacko.”

During question period on Monday, the Conservative leader said the Liberal government had unleashed “drugs, disorder, death and destruction.” Other Conservative MPs said the Liberals were pursuing a “horrific” and “radical” experiment.

“Will the prime minister prioritize recovery and stop killing Canadians with his radical ideology?” Conservative MP Kerry-Lynne Findlay asked.

Health Minister Mark Holland stood and suggested partisanship should be put aside in the face of an epidemic of opioid addiction and overdose deaths. When the minister sat down, Conservative MP Todd Doherty stood up to claim the prime minister’s “extremist drug policies” had “turned our neighbourhoods into war zones.”…