NEW WESTMINSTER: Pierre Poilievre has vowed to crack down on "drug dens" and fund recovery for 50,000 Canadians struggling with addiction.
The Conservative leader also suggested Mark Carney represented a continuation of the Liberals' drug policies, citing his decision to recruit former Vancouver mayor and early decriminalization advocate Gregor Robertson.
Poilievre made the announcement during a press conference on Sunday, noting that, "we've lost 50,000 people to overdoses; the least we can do is, in their honour, save 50,000 more.
"To fund this program," he explained, "we will end federal funding for opioids, defund the drug dens, sue the opioid manufacturers and consulting companies who created this crisis, eliminate back-office bureaucracy, and we will fund directly those people who need the help through groups that have success in delivering drug-free outcomes."
Poilievre made it clear he believed drug consumption sites "do not work," citing a Lancet Commission study that found "there is no evidence accessing a site lowers an individual's risk of fatal overdose over time, or that sites lower community overdose rates."
He went on to note that, contrary to how the system is currently run, a Conservative government would ensure addiction recovery centres are paid based on the number of months they keep addicts drug free, and that more funding is provided for "harder cases."
The Conservative leader added that such sites would not be permitted within 500m of schools, daycares, hospitals, playgrounds, and "other areas where the community is vulnerable."
Poilievre said that British Columbia was "probably the worst place for fentanyl overdoses in the world," and argued that this was "a direct result of Liberal/NDP policies."
Poilievre pointed out that while mayor of Vancouver, Robertson oversaw a 600% increase in drug overdoses.
The new Vancouver Fraserview–South Burnaby candidate was not the only one the Conservatives cited as problematic.
Also called out over their past comments on drugs and public safety were Victoria's Will Greaves, Yukon's Brendan Hanley, and Lethbridge's Chris Spearman. The former proposed to "defund" and "disarm" the police and legalize fentanyl, while the latter helped usher in the first drug consumption site in North America that allowed inhalation.