Small-scale possession of illicit drugs will be decriminalized in B.C. starting next year: federal government & More News Here

Adults in British Columbia will be allowed to own small quantities of some illicit drugs starting next 12 months, the federal government introduced Tuesday.

The federal government says Canadians 18 years of age and older will be in a position to possess as much as a cumulative 2.5 grams of opioids, cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA inside British Columbia. The announcement is in response to a request from the province for an exemption from the legislation criminalizing drug possession.

This first-of-its-kind exemption will go into impact January 31, 2023 and final till January 31, 2026.

Federal Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Carolyn Bennett and her provincial counterpart Sheila Malcolmson introduced the coverage shift collectively in Vancouver at present.

The metropolis has been the positioning of a surge in drug overdose deaths which accelerated all through the COVID-19 pandemic. B.C. noticed 2,224 suspected poisonous illicit drug overdose deaths.

WATCH | After document overdose deaths, B.C. decided to battle opioid disaster:

It’s a dramatic coverage shift in favour of what decriminalization advocates say is an strategy that treats habit as a well being challenge, relatively than a prison one.

B.C., Vancouver and Toronto Public Health have all individually filed exemption requests to decriminalize possession of small quantities of illicit drugs.

Under the Controlled Drug and Substances Act, the well being minister has the authority to grant exemptions whether it is “necessary for a medical or scientific purpose or is otherwise in the public interest.” The federal government confirmed that the functions from Vancouver and Toronto Public Health are each nonetheless beneath evaluation.

The precept of decriminalizing possession of a small quantity of illicit drugs has been endorsed by the Canadian Association of the Chiefs of Police. The B.C. Association of Chiefs of Police additionally has supported the concept, although it advisable decriminalizing possession of simply 1 cumulative gram.

While the federal government has granted an exemption, it is not giving B.C. precisely what it requested for.

One main distinction is the amount of drugs being decriminalized for private possession. B.C. requested for a cumulative 4.5 grams — the federal exemption permits for simply 2.5 grams.

Health Canada mentioned it consulted quite a few sources of info to set its possession threshold. It additionally acknowledged a scarcity of proof to find out what an efficient threshold would be. The division mentioned that after the exemption is in place, it will be totally examined by a 3rd social gathering and its particulars may change as proof is gathered and analyzed.

Delaying implementation till January 2023 was meant to provide governments and companies time for coaching, session and outreach, and to in any other case put together for the shift in coverage, federal and provincial officers mentioned.

Activities like manufacturing, trafficking nonetheless unlawful

The exemption carries sure different limitations. It doesn’t apply on the premises of elementary or secondary faculties, in youngster care amenities or airports. It doesn’t apply to Canadians topic to the navy’s disciplinary code.

The B.C. Ministry of Health mentioned that they view decriminalization as just one half of a set of insurance policies meant to handle the opioid overdose disaster.

Health Canada mentioned that the exemption doesn’t decriminalize actions like trafficking, producing, importing or exporting managed substances.

The exemption comes only a day earlier than a vote is anticipated on a decriminalization invoice put ahead by NDP MP Gord Johns.

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