Province Warns Toronto Against Pushing Ahead With Drug Decriminalization Application

Ontario's Health Minister Sylvia Jones speaks with media at Queen’s Park in Toronto in a file photo. The Canadian Press/Christopher Katsarov

The Ontario government is warning Toronto to drop its “dangerous” drug decriminalization application with Health Canada.

Provincial Health Minister Sylvia Jones and Solicitor General Michael Kerzner penned a letter to the city’s medical officer of health this week, warning Toronto Public Health against pursuing the matter any further.

The city filed an application with Health Canada in early 2022 to decriminalize the possession of illegal drugs for personal use.

The letter addressed to Dr. Eileen de Villa describes the decriminalization request as “misguided” and says the province is “100 percent opposed” to the proposal.

“Under no circumstances will our government ever support your request, which would only add to crime and public drug use while doing nothing to support people struggling with addiction,” Ms. Jones and Mr. Kerzner wrote in the letter posted on platform X.

“If Toronto Public Health fails to rescind its misguided application, we will be forced to explore all options available to us.”

The letter comes three weeks after Premier Doug Ford pledged to fight the city’s decriminalization request “tooth and nail.”

Toronto’s medical officer of health Dr. de Villa told The Epoch Times the city’s Board of Health directed her to submit the exemption request to Health Canada, following consultation with health organizations and experts as well as other stakeholders.

“Rescinding the request would require Board of Health direction,” she said in an emailed statement.

She described decriminalization as a tool, “supported by the best available evidence,” to address the city’s “drug toxicity epidemic.”

“More than 500 people in Toronto die every year due to drug toxicity,” she said. “These deaths are preventable.”

The premier has said Ontario should be doing more to invest in treatment for drug addicts as well as investing more in mental health. It’s a move Dr. de Villa said she supports, especially when implemented hand-in-hand with increased access to health-care interventions and supportive housing.

Decriminalization Push

Decriminalization has been publicly backed by Toronto officials since at least 2018 for its stated goal to reduce stigma and treat the overdose crisis as a health issue, rather than a criminal one. Criminalizing drug possession, Toronto’s application says, only makes it harder for people who use drugs to get support.

The city’s decriminalization push continues despite the failure of the first-of-its-kind pilot project in British Columbia. The B.C. government received federal approval last week to recriminalize public drug possession 17 months after the pilot project started in the province.

The city sent a preliminary request to Health Canada in January 2022 and, after more consultations, updated its submission in March 2023. The proposal calls for decriminalization to be paired with a host of more direct public health responses, including scaled-up harm reduction and mental health services.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has said Toronto does not have an “active” application, while the city’s health unit has said its application remains with Health Canada amid ongoing discussions. Mr. Trudeau has hinted Ottawa would require the cooperation of the province on the matter before any changes could be made.

The Ontario government has been reviewing all treatment and consumption sites in the province and said that work is now complete. It said it will enact “enhanced accountability measures,” with the health minister’s office and would provide more details in a few weeks.

The province paused approving new supervised consumption and treatment sites last fall as it conducted its review.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.