Evidence of meeting #5 for Health in the 45th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was program.
A video is available from Parliament.
Conservative
Helena Konanz Conservative Similkameen—South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC
Perfect. Thank you, Minister.
Last Friday, the Premier of British Columbia, David Eby, who once requested this policy, now says he was “wrong on drug decriminalization...it wasn't the right policy.” Six thousand people have died since the beginning of that pilot program.
Do you agree with Premier David Eby, that this decriminalization pilot program should stop?
Liberal
Marjorie Michel Liberal Papineau, QC
One overdose death in this country is one too many.
You mentioned this statement made by the Premier of British Columbia. He was the one who initially called for decriminalization. I am here to work with the British Columbia government to tackle the opioid crisis.
Conservative
Helena Konanz Conservative Similkameen—South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC
Excellent.
Now that you know that he would like to end this program, will you work with him to end that today?
Liberal
Marjorie Michel Liberal Papineau, QC
The British Columbia government has already requested changes. It has not requested renewal. I will continue to work with them and will keep you informed when a decision has been made.
Conservative
Helena Konanz Conservative Similkameen—South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC
We know that Premier David Eby would like to end this program. Six thousand people have died since it started. Your fellow Liberal colleague, Mr. Danko, said in the House of Commons last Thursday, “after reflecting on the British Columbia example of decriminalizing illegal drugs, I completely agree that it was a terrible policy decision. We have seen the fallout in municipalities across Canada”.
Do you agree with your colleague, Mr. Danko?
Liberal
Marjorie Michel Liberal Papineau, QC
As I mentioned earlier, every death tied to the opioid crisis is deeply regrettable. I am working with British Columbia, which now wants to move in a different direction. I am here to support it.
Conservative
Helena Konanz Conservative Similkameen—South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC
Now you know that David Eby, the Premier of British Columbia, and the people of British Columbia don't want anyone else to die as they have. There have been 6,000 who have died since this program started. Even some of your colleagues believe—at least Mr. Danko who spoke in the House of Commons—that it was a terrible policy. We have a few months left of this program.
Could you end it now so that fewer people die needlessly in the drug addiction crisis, which I know you hold as a priority?
Liberal
Marjorie Michel Liberal Papineau, QC
The program was implemented by British Columbia. If it is going to end, we have to work with British Columbia. That province seems to want to go in a different direction, and I am here to work with it.
Conservative
Helena Konanz Conservative Similkameen—South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC
Minister, thank you. I don't have much time.
Will you stop this program today, knowing that all sides want it to stop and end the endless deaths in British Columbia?
Liberal
Marjorie Michel Liberal Papineau, QC
Providing services is the responsibility of the British Columbia government, not the federal government.
Conservative
Conservative
Liberal
Marjorie Michel Liberal Papineau, QC
Providing services is the responsibility of British Columbia, not the federal government.
October 9th, 2025 / 11:50 a.m.
Conservative
Helena Konanz Conservative Similkameen—South Okanagan—West Kootenay, BC
Okay. David Eby would like to end it.
Thank you.
Conservative
Liberal
Maggie Chi Liberal Don Valley North, ON
Thank you, Chair. You're doing a fantastic job. Thank you for stepping in on short notice. I appreciate your doing this.
Thank you, Minister, for coming to present to committee, and thank you to all the officials who are here today to help us understand the mandate and the health issues that are impacting all Canadians.
To follow up on my colleague's line of questions, I want to clarify. In order to make a decision on safe consumption sites or some of the strategies or policies around them, does it take the province to formally make a request on something like this?
Liberal
Marjorie Michel Liberal Papineau, QC
Yes. It requires that the province make a request.
It is important to understand that the provinces are the ones that provide funding, not the federal government. All we do is grant the exemption. We must first receive a request from the province.
For example, some provinces that had approved supervised consumption sites have decided to stop funding them. So, automatically, these sites are closing.
Liberal
Maggie Chi Liberal Don Valley North, ON
Thank you, Minister.
This question might be for one of the officials.
Have you received a request from the B.C. government to stop the program or to extend...?
Liberal
Marjorie Michel Liberal Papineau, QC
Are you talking about British Columbia's pilot project to decriminalize drugs?
Liberal
Liberal
Maggie Chi Liberal Don Valley North, ON
Thank you.
I will shift gears, because, Minister, you mentioned that mental health is one of your top issues. Indeed, I've had many conversations in my riding and across the board in the province about mental health issues in youth, especially after coming out of the pandemic. It's impacting a whole generation of young people quite a bit, and it is definitely a top concern of mine.
I also wanted to ask you to expand a bit on your top priority in mental health and how that ties into the Prime Minister's mandate. I know it's a short mandate, but it really impacts many areas. I just wanted you to expand a bit on that.
Liberal
Marjorie Michel Liberal Papineau, QC
One of my priorities is the mental health of Canadians, particularly young Canadians, and I would say even more so young Canadian men, since the suicide rate among young men is currently much higher than among young women. This priority is fully in line with the mandate given to us by the Prime Minister to protect Canadians. It also has a direct impact on the productivity of all Canadians. The more people are affected, the less productive they are for the economy, of course.
Following research conducted by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, a model for young people emerged. This is the integrated youth services model. The equivalent in Quebec is called the aire ouverte. These are centres created by and for young people, where young people can go not only for services, but also for broader medical support, for example from social workers, or simply to hang out. It's a model that works very well. I have visited several of these facilities across the country. I encourage you to do the same. My belief is that, in the long term, we need to increase the use of these centres. The closer they are to communities, the more accessible they are to young people.
In addition, as you know, the 988 helpline also exists as a preventive measure. More than 600,000 people have already used it. It is definitely another tool that allows people to quickly access services in a crisis.
Liberal
Maggie Chi Liberal Don Valley North, ON
Earlier, my colleague mentioned accessing primary care. Primary care physicians and emergency doctors end up being the first point of contact for a lot of people in crisis. There is a capacity issue. There is a triage that has to happen at the first stage. Sometimes the decision is very quick. Our capacity in the system can also be.... What can I say? There is a lot of improvement to be made.
We talk about prevention, and we talk about catching people early on in the stage. How have your conversations been with the provinces and territories?
