Thank you, Ms. Landolt.
Chief Larkin, you mentioned that you support the bill. I don't think anyone around this table is deciding there is no need for a legislative framework. It's obviously clear from the Supreme Court that there is need for a legislative framework. But I want to also congratulate you for pointing out the need for this to be specific with regard to the region, the city, the town, etc., which is really important.
I belong to the group of people who are saying that this bill just goes a little too far and is a little too intrusive on cities, municipalities, etc., and what they did.
I would like to tell you I was a minister responsible for the downtown eastside and the Vancouver agreement when this was brought in. One of the key issues we looked at when we were looking at this research project was crime rates, so we had to bring in the police on it; the need for a supervised injection site based on the number of addicts and the deaths that had occurred; the regulatory structures in place to support the facility, which came from the province, which came from the municipalities, which came from the Vancouver Police Department; and of course, the other resources such as money, etc., available. In doing so, we also had two years of extensive public consultations with the people who live in the area, with the people who didn't even live in the area, with Vancouverites in general.
So all of the requirements that the Supreme Court put down, which are those five broad requirements, were in place when we brought in the supervised injection site.
At the end of the day, there was clear evidence from the Vancouver police, who still support it, that crime rates went down, that public disorder went down, etc. I won't go over that. We agree, the minister needs to hear from the provincial minister of health, from the municipalities, etc. But the point is that if you're going to get all these answers as a yes from the various people who the Supreme Court said you need to ask and that this bill says you need to ask, do you not think it's really very intrusive of the Minister of Health, who's the federal Minister of Health, to then question the people who are hired? It is obvious that this is part of the provincial jurisdiction, the police jurisdiction to get criminal checks, etc. That's kind of intrusive in provincial and municipal jurisdictions.
The big questions should be asked and the answers should be given, but that really in-depth intrusion is what many of us oppose and are concerned about.