The Conservative government's new drug strategy could end up further victimizing those caught up in drug useage and addiction, warns one expert.
"If it was just rhetoric, it would be less serious," Tim Stockwell, director of the Centre for Addictions Research of B.C., told Canada AM on Friday.
But the Conservatives are pushing to toughen enforcement of marijuana laws, which could potentially criminalize large numbers of 18 and 19-year olds, he said.
Toughening enforcement around needle-exchange or safe-injection sites would render them less effective and could lead to more deaths, he said.
Stockwell, however, did praise the Conservatives for directing more funds towards addiction treatment and prevention campaigns.
In unveiling the two-year, $64-million plan on Thursday, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said: "If drugs do get hold of you, there will be help to get you off them. But if you sell or produce drugs, you will pay with prison time."
The plan allocates funds as follows:
- $22 million for enforcement
- $32 million for treatment
- $10 million for prevention
Some critics have argued the approach the Conservatives are taken has been proven ineffective.
The federal government already spends about $1.2 billion annually "on substance abuse programs.
Innovative approach
"We're taking an innovative approach. We're going to be targeting younger teenagers, targeting their parents to make them aware of the harmful effects of drugs," Justice Minister Doug Nicholson told Canada AM.
"I think it's a step in the right direction and coupled with the other components of it on the enforcement side, I think it will be a success."
The government plans to introduce mandatory minimum sentences for people convicted of producing or trafficking in hard drugs.
Bills establishing those changes will be reintroduced in the new Parliament.
Nicholson wouldn't predict whether the opposition parties will support the measures.
"I think what we're proposing is reasonable and I think it's consistent with what most Canadians want," he said.
"We want to make sure the message gets out that ... if you're a serious drug dealer, you'll be doing some time."
Others have criticized the government's apparent skepticism about the value of harm-reduction programs.
Nicholson noted that Health Minister Tony Clement has extended the operating permit for the Insite safe injection site in Vancouver for another six months.
"This program is designed to encourage people to get off of drugs, to reduce their dependency," he said, adding it also targets those who seek to exploit drug users.
Tony Cannavino of the Canadian Professional Police Association has endorsed the government's approach. He said it sends a strong message.
The New Democrats call it heavy-handed and an American-style "war on drugs."
Marijuana activist Marc Emery claimed that passing around a joint could make someone a trafficker under the Tory plan.
