Thanks, Chair.
Just give me a minute, if you would, witnesses, to indulge in some committee business.
I'd like to give notice of the following motion.
That, given
The Minister of Mental Health and Addictions has asserted that there is “no evidence of widespread diversion”, and yet the Health Canada data released today shows that police seizures of government-issued hydromorphone (Dilaudid) in British Columbia have increased fourfold, or 300%, since the implementation of “safe supply,” from less than 100 seizures per year to 408 seizures in 2023;
The Prince George RCMP reported the seizure of “thousands” of safe supply pills in an illegal drug bust of 10,000 individual prescription pills last month, and police in Campbell River, B.C. have reported the seizure of 3,500 diverted safe supply pills on the territory of the We Wai Kai Nation;
The chief of the We Wai Kai Nation has harshly criticized the so-called “safe supply” experiment;
3,656 people in British Columbia have received government-issued hydromorphone because of this dangerous experiment; and
There have been reports of diverted safe-supply drugs being sold in schools;
The committee call the following witnesses: the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Health Canada officials for no less than two hours; RCMP Commissioner Michael Duheme; Assistant Commissioner John Brewer of RCMP “E” Division.
That's the end of my statement. Thank you for indulging me. I appreciate that.
Dr. Hippman, when we first start talking about this, I'm wondering if we might make clear to all Canadians out there listening the difference that the Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care...the change in the recommendation, because I think maybe a lot of us here know what happened but we need to explain to Canadians in the easiest way what this really means. I don't want people to miss out on the difference this change will make to Canadian women out there.