Mr. Speaker, before I could finish my speech yesterday, I was talking about how the budget would fail to make any investments in treatment and recovery. Instead, the Liberals would continue with their failed policies and funding streams that enable drug use.
The Minister of Health is approving supervised drug consumption sites across the country, including next to day cares, schools and playgrounds. Parents should never have to walk their children past people smoking fentanyl in broad daylight. Children should never find used needles in their playground. Health Canada's own data shows that the most-used substance at these federally approved sites is fentanyl, nearly every second visit. How is this safe?
It is not just Conservatives who are saying this; law enforcement agencies are sounding an alarm too. In a letter sent to the Liberal government earlier this year, the chief of Ottawa Police warned that a federally approved supervised drug site in downtown Ottawa has become a focal point of community safety concerns. He reported an escalation of open drug use, aggressive behaviour and public intoxication in the neighbourhood. Law enforcement officers warned that the impacts have become so serious that nearby child care centres have shut down over safety concerns. When day cares are forced to close because children are not safe, the government should stop repeating what it is doing.
During my visit to B.C., a recovered addict told me, “If you give me the foil and the crack pipe to do drugs, you may as well give me a bullet and the gun to kill myself.” These were his words, not mine. The next day, I visited a vending machine in Kelowna; it dispensed drug paraphernalia such as crack pipes and foil. There were no ID requirements or questions. It was so easy to use that a toddler could figure it out. There are no barriers between the addict and their next hit, because the government has removed them.
This budget could have invested in treatment and recovery. Instead, it continues to pour money into the tools that fuel addiction. Recently obtained information confirms that the government's own emergency treatment fund is being used to purchase smoking kits; in other words, these are taxpayer-funded crack pipes. How can a government claim to support recovery while enabling the very practices that keep people trapped in addiction? When I was in B.C., I met with recovered addicts. They all told me the same thing: They cannot recover while surrounded by drug use; they cannot recover while the government hands out supplies, and they cannot recover when drug consumption is encouraged in their own neighbourhood.
Canadians deserve better. Canadians are sick and tired of Liberal politicians who pretend policies and funding that enable drug use are safe. They are not safe; they are lethal. However, as I stated, there is nothing in the budget to support real recovery and treatment.
I want to return to the other issue that Canadians were hoping to see when they opened the budget: affordability. They wanted financial relief; instead, they got a credit card that would drive up the cost of living. The people of Riding Mountain are some of the hardest-working Canadians we will ever meet. They put in long hours, and they played by the rules; after 10 years of the current government, they were asking for one thing: a government that makes life more affordable. However, instead, Canadians watched the Prime Minister break every fiscal promise he made. The Prime Minister said he would be responsible, but the budget shows he is willing to gamble Canada's future on record levels of borrowing.
I fear not only for Canadians who are struggling but also for the future generations that are already burdened by the financial impact of the budget. I assure members that on this side of the House, Conservatives see a better path forward. We believe Canadians deserve a government that respects taxpayers, restores affordability and brings hope for those who have been affected by addictions through real recovery and treatment. We must work harder so that Canada and the good people who call this nation home can once again be financially strong, proud and free.