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e-3943 (Health)
E-petition
Initiated by Leslee Hynes from Langley, British Columbia
Original language of petition: English
Petition to the Government of Canada
Whereas:
- Data shows that most illicit drug toxicity deaths detect fentanyl and carfentanil;
- Current safer supply access does not fully encompass the needs of all substance users, creating a system full of barriers that make users continue to rely on street drugs;
- Overdoses are only increasing, creating a public health crisis;
- Current policies only further enforce stigma;
- Almost half of Canadians have used illegal drugs in their lifetime;
- Current drug policies and overdose deaths disproportionately affect racialized populations;
- Many systems have a significant financial burden that decriminalization efforts could positively change;
- Other countries' successes in decriminalization, such as Portugal, have lowered drug-related deaths, reduced other health-related issues that come alongside substance use, and increased public safety;
- Decriminalization is recommended by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, the Health Canada Expert Task Force on Substance Use, the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police, the Canadian Public Health Association, the WHO, and the UN; and
- Under the UN’s various conventions, Canada is obligated to implement a different strategy.
We, the undersigned, residents of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to:
1. Shift thinking of overdoses as a criminal issue to a health issue in the form of policy change;
2. Expand controlled access to a regulated supply;
3. Expand death prevention efforts throughout Canada, not just in urban areas;
4. Eliminate criminal charges for possession of small quantities of controlled substances, excluding drug-trafficking amounts;
5. Implement policy changes that can provide more opportunities to seek support without fear of stigma and criminal/legal repercussions;
5. Involve those with lived experience in the implementation of policy changes to understand their unique perspective in developing policy surrounding substance use.
- Open for signature
- March 25, 2022, at 8:41 a.m. (EDT)
- Closed for signature
- June 23, 2022, at 8:41 a.m. (EDT)
