Health Committee on Dec. 9th, 2025

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Dan Mazier]

Be very brief, with a quick answer.

[Greg Orencsak]

I would like to reiterate that federal transfers are continuing as committed through the Working Together plan and the CHT, so there would be no further impacts.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Dan Mazier]

Thank you.

We go now to our second round and Mr. Bailey for five minutes.

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

Thank you, Chair.

This first question is for the deputy minister, or the assistant deputy minister for controlled substances. Is any money spent by the Department of Health on encouraging recovery?

[Kendal Weber]

Health Canada does fund projects and programs across prevention, harm reduction, and treatment and recovery.

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

Treatment and recovery, okay.

You talk about harm reduction and crack pipes, but how does a crack pipe do anything for harm reduction? I'm not following this. Is it a transmission thing?

[Kendal Weber]

That's right; it's regarding infectious disease. You can imagine that whether there's sharing of pipes or needles between individuals, or multiple use or whatever the case may be, a clean tool reduces the harms to the individual, and then when they are looking for help or support, they're able to, you know, turn—

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

There's something that just doesn't add up. You say you're decreasing harms. Why are needle injection injuries up even though we are handing out needles and crack pipes? Our hospitals are showing there's been a sharp increase in needle injection injuries, and these are serious. Do you have any thoughts on that?

[Kendal Weber]

I'm not aware of the data on the needle injuries. Is that a stat you have nationally?

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

No, I'm speaking provincially, specifically in Alberta.

Health Canada enables, and the provinces are promoting, recovery. In Alberta, we have been looking at how these safe injection sites really don't promote any type of recovery. You say that they are for harm reduction, but in Red Deer, where my riding is, the safe injection site has decimated our downtown. We've lost hundreds of businesses. There's one business that loses $8,500 a day due to shoplifting from visitors to this safe injection site.

I would like to know how that is really harm reducing, because all we're seeing is more injection injuries. As for the crack pipes, I can't wrap my head around how that makes a difference.

I can tell you that some of the examples.... How many reports regarding threats to public health or public safety has Health Canada received about illegal hard drug consumption sites?

[Kendal Weber]

I think we tabled a response in a written question. We were asked about the complaints that we received for the supervised consumption sites. We did provide that in a written answer.

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

Okay.

[Kendal Weber]

I wouldn't go through it right now. It would be time-consuming, but we did table that.

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

You received 201 reported complaints.

Is that right?

[Kendal Weber]

That's right. Some of them are general. Some of them are related to loitering. There were a number of complaints that we listed in the response.

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

Okay, so it's safe I guess to assume far more complaints have been received regarding these sites.

[Kendal Weber]

More than...? I don't know what the comparison is.

In fact, we—

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

It's your data.

[Kendal Weber]

I didn't say “more than”. We listed the actual complaints in that listing.

The question asked us if we received complaints, and then we listed them by supervised consumption site in the written response.

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

Drug dealing, aggression, property damage, public nuisance, breaking in, littering, among others, are cited but according to Health Canada “In most cases, complaints do not relate to infringements of public health or public safety, but are general statements of views regarding the presence of the site.”

Would you not consider, Ms. Weber, any of the previously mentioned complaints like drug dealing, property damage, break-ins or aggression a threat to public safety?

[Kendal Weber]

The response that we've provided outlines where there were issues like you listed, and then there were some that were general concerns, and that may be a footnote that you had read.

Just to be clear, they are concerning complaints and that footnote applies to the general inquiries.

[Burton Bailey, Conservative, Red Deer, AB]

It's exactly what we're seeing in Red Deer, so if you think it's okay for Canadians to be put through this threat and decimate our downtowns....

I'll be back with some more questions.

Thank you, Chair.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Dan Mazier]

Thank you, Mr. Burton.

We'll go to Ms. Chi for five minutes.

[Maggie Chi, Liberal, Don Valley North, ON]

Thank you, Chair.

Thank you, officials, for coming in on such a frigid day.

My question is for Ms. Weber. I'm sorry, it's another round of questions for you.

Could you explain the health care rationale behind harm reduction—you mentioned that quite a bit in your testimony—and specifically how it reduces communicable diseases and prevents costly hospitalization from injuries and infections?

[Kendal Weber]

I will turn to my public health colleagues from the Public Health Agency and to the acting chief public health officer. She could give you a better description of the public health advantages that come from harm reduction tools.