The latest news articles featuring BC Centre on Substance Use.
Vancouver drug advocates barred from symposium on addictions treatment amid protest concerns
May 30, 2024 | CityNews Vancouver
A planned protest by drug user advocates forced a conference on drug policy and addictions treatment to relocate from downtown Vancouver to Richmond Thursday. The Policy Roundtable on Substance Prevention, Education and Recovery (PROSPER) Symposium was set to be held at the Sheraton Wall Centre on B...
126 children and youth died of toxic drugs in 5 years: B.C. coroner
May 28, 2024 | CBC News
The B.C. Coroners Service has found that 126 children and youth younger than 19 died due to toxic drugs between 2019 and 2023. The numbers, released in a Tuesday report, showed that unregulated drug toxicity was the most common cause of unnatural death among youth during that time period. More than...
Reality check: Pierre Poilievre says Justin Trudeau legalized hard drugs in British Columbia. Is that true?
May 26, 2024 | Toronto Star
OTTAWA—You’ve probably heard him say it: Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre claims Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government “legalized hard drugs” in British Columbia, a move he believes will unleash “chaos and carnage” across Canada. He’s referring to B.C.’s three-year pilot program,...
Backtracking on drug decriminalization is politically cowardly – and illogical
May 22, 2024 | Globe and Mail
British Columbia’s three-year pilot project to decriminalize personal possession of drugs hadn’t even hit its halfway point when the province delivered a catastrophic blow to its own policy. In January, 2023, the federal government created an exemption for B.C. to decriminalize drug use, allowi...
Toronto’s denied drug decriminalization is a step ‘backwards,’ expert says
May 18, 2024 | Global News
Provinces and territories should not stop pushing for drug decriminalization despite the federal government’s rejection of Toronto’s request, one expert says. Guy Felicella, a harm reduction and recovery expert in British Columbia, says all regions in Canada need to persevere with treating sub...
