Thank you, Mr. Chair.
First of all, I would like to take a few seconds to thank the minister for being here with us this morning, since I had no time to do so in the 30 seconds I was given earlier. We appreciate it.
My question is about Vancouver; that's where we were yesterday. A recent study published in the British medical journal The Lancet has showed that the Vancouver supervised injection site was giving good results and was making real progress possible. It works, since there was a 35% drop in overdose cases for people with drug addiction problems in the Downtown Eastside. I was in this neighbourhood this past weekend. It is shocking and brutal to see.
A recent study from Quebec has also showed that a similar site in Montreal, which is unfortunately now closed, had not caused any disturbance in the area. So these sites are not under attack for security reasons.
If these methods are working and they are an effective weapon against substance abuse, making it possible to avoid senseless deaths, why does the minister or the federal government insist on wanting to close Insite in Vancouver?