'Extremely worried' about opioids, Trudeau welcomes Edmonton drug decriminalization pitch
CTV
One of the first orders of business when Justin Trudeau arrived in Edmonton Monday night was to meet with the mayor, where they spoke about the opioid crisis that is killing hundreds of people in the city every year.
One of the first orders of business when Justin Trudeau arrived in Edmonton Monday night was to meet with the mayor, where they spoke about the opioid crisis that is killing hundreds of people in the city every year.
"The reality is here in Alberta we've seen far too many tragedies around the opioid epidemic," the prime minister told reporters Tuesday.
"I had a great conversation with mayor Sohi about it last night when I got into town and I can tell you that he and all of us are extremely worried about what Albertans are going through on the opioid epidemic."
Hours before that meeting, Edmonton city councillors pushed forward an effort to decriminalize "simple personal possession" of illegal drugs in an attempt to "reduce drug-poisoning injuries and deaths."
More than 1,700 drug-toxicity deaths were recorded in Alberta last year and 624 of those were in Edmonton - the highest yearly totals on record.
"We have a crisis in our streets, we have a crisis in our homes. There’s a lot of pain out there, there’s a lot of trauma caused by this," Sohi said Monday.
A council committee voted 5-0 to prepare a plan that includes "safe supply, safe consumption sites, treatment and supportive housing," in addition to lobbying Ottawa for an exemption on possession laws.
