SoVote

Feb/8/22 6:25:59 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I think the Weston shops, if not in the member's riding, might be just outside, but certainly some of his constituents would work there. I really miss Centre Block, because when we look up in Centre Block, we see the coats of arms of all of the provinces and realize what a special place on earth this is. If I am not mistaken, I think the tiger lily is the flower of Saskatchewan. Indeed, I have been to Saskatchewan and the Prairies to see those beautiful flowers and the environments of Saskatchewan in person. I am a prairie boy. I would say to some of the other folks from Saskatchewan who have spoken that we are doing so much together that I do not think we realize how much we do co-operate, such as in the Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization, which is producing the vaccines of the future for animals and humans in this country. STARS was also mentioned, which was championed by the Hon. Ralph Goodale, who unfortunately is no longer with us. I mentioned water as well.

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Hon. Andrew Scheer (Regina—Qu'Appelle, CPC)

Feb/8/22 6:27:37 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I want to congratulate my colleagues from Saskatchewan for introducing this motion. On this day, great tidings of joy came to Saskatchewan when our premier announced he was ending the vaccine and mask mandates. By the end of the month, people will no longer have to wear a mask in Saskatchewan. We are thrilled to see these restrictions being lifted in our home province. Freedom is coming back to Saskatchewan, the first province in Canada to put an end to the government's interference and its overreaching into people's lives. We are very excited. This motion is also making people excited, because they see an effective opposition. We may be on the verge of history here. I do not know that any opposition party has ever amended the Constitution of Canada. That is historic. When Saskatchewan sent 14 Conservative members of Parliament, it sent a message that Saskatchewan wants us to fight for its interests against this government's policies, which have so hurt our province. Therefore, I am thrilled and grateful to see that all parties will be supporting this common sense amendment to the Constitution of Canada. Whatever the reasons were for granting a rail company this kind of exemption so many years ago, it is certainly clear that there is no need for it today. It would represent a huge loss to Saskatchewan if this change is not made, so I am very grateful to have support from all parties in the House, which I hope is a sign of something new for the Liberal government. One thing about the Conservatives MPs in Saskatchewan is that we can always be counted on to stand up for Saskatchewan. We are always on our province's side. Let us look at what the current government has done. In the middle of an election campaign, the Prime Minister said he would claw back Saskatchewan's health care transfers. These are transfers that every province gets, yet he singled out Saskatchewan specifically. When our government proposed an environmental plan based very closely on New Brunswick's environmental plan, the Liberal government said no to Saskatchewan, even though it had said yes to other provinces. I see that I am getting the signal that I have to sit down. I want to congratulate my colleagues in Saskatchewan. I am excited for this motion to pass so that we can ensure that Saskatchewan does not lose out on any of its fair share of tax revenue. This is a great moment for our province.

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The Speaker

Feb/8/22 6:30:17 p.m.
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It being 6:30 p.m., it is my duty to interrupt the proceedings and put forthwith every question necessary to dispose of the business of supply. The question is on the motion. Shall I dispense? Some hon. members: Agreed. Some hon. members: No. [Chair read text of motion to House]

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The Speaker

Feb/8/22 6:36:45 p.m.
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If a member of a recognized party present in the House wishes to request a recorded division or that the motion be adopted on division, I would invite them to rise and indicate it to the Chair. I see that we will require a recorded division. Pursuant to an order made on Thursday, November 25, 2021, the division stands deferred until Wednesday, February 9, 2022, at the expiry of the time provided for Oral Questions.

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Mr. Kevin Lamoureux

Feb/8/22 6:36:45 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I suspect if you were to canvas the House, you would find unanimous consent to call it 6:45 at this time so we can begin the take-note debate.

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The Speaker

Feb/8/22 6:36:56 p.m.
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Pursuant to an order made on Friday, February 4, 2022, the House shall now resolve itself into committee of the whole to consider Motion No. 6 under government business. I do now leave the chair for the House to go into committee of the whole.

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Resolving into a Committee of the Whole

The Speaker

Feb/8/22 6:37:27 p.m.
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Before we begin this evening's debate, I would like to remind hon. members of how proceedings will unfold. Each member speaking will be allotted 10 minutes for debate, followed by 10 minutes for questions and comments, pursuant to an order made Friday, February 4, 2022. The time provided for the debate may be extended beyond four hours, as needed, to include a minimum of 12 periods of 20 minutes each. Members may divide their time with another member, and the Chair will receive no quorum calls, dilatory motions, or requests for unanimous consent. We will begin tonight's take-note debate.

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Rules of debate

Hon. Carolyn Bennett (Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Associate Minister of Health, Lib.)

Feb/8/22 6:38:35 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-5

moved: That this committee take note of the opioid crisis in Canada. She said: Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the member for Yukon. I join you today from the traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, where we honour all indigenous peoples who paddled these waters and whose moccasins walked this land. I want to begin by thanking the member for Yukon for his unbelievable hard work and dedication, both as Yukon's former chief medical officer of health and now as its member of Parliament, to end the toxic drug supply and opioid overdose crisis in Canada. I would also like to thank him for advocating so strongly for this important national debate to take place here in the House of Commons. Our hearts go out to all the loved ones in communities of those we have lost to the worsening toxic drug supply and to opioid overdoses. For decades, effective drug policy has had four pillars: prevention, harm reduction, treatment and enforcement. Unfortunately, progress on harm reduction has met significant obstacles based upon ideology and not evidence. Our government is working with provinces, territories and communities to develop a comprehensive, evidence-based strategy to address this ongoing tragedy. Over 20 years ago, Insite, the first safe consumption site, opened in Vancouver. It continues to save lives. The evidence is clear. Harm reduction measures save lives. Since 2017, supervised consumption sites across Canada have reversed 27,000 overdoses without a single death on-site. Communities across Canada now have increased access to lifesaving Naloxone, including remote and isolated indigenous communities. Our government will use every tool at our disposal to end this national public health crisis. People are dying from toxic substances in the drug supply, and we will not turn the tide of the growing death toll until we address that reality. The pandemic has led to an even more uncertain and dangerous illegal drug supply, resulting in significant increases in overdose-related deaths. The provision of a safer supply of drugs is essential to help prevent overdoses, and it is a vital part of our comprehensive approach to the opioid overdose crisis. Our government has invested over $60 million to expand access to a safe supply of prescription opioids. We also need to divert people who use drugs away from the criminal justice system and toward supportive and trusted relationships in the health system. The Public Prosecution Service of Canada has issued guidance stating that alternatives to prosecution should be considered for simple possession offences. My colleague, the Minister of Justice, has also introduced Bill C-5 to get rid of the previous government's failed policies, which filled our prisons with low-risk first-time offenders who needed help, not to be put in jail. This legislation would provide further space to treat simple drug possession as a health issue. Health Canada is also currently reviewing several requests from Vancouver, British Columbia, and Toronto Public Health for section 56 exemptions under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act to decriminalize the personal possession of drugs. We are working closely with our provincial, territorial and municipal partners and with other key stakeholders such as the impressive network Moms Stop the Harm, with more than $700 million to reduce the risks, save lives and give people the evidence-based support they need. Canadians can rest assured that fighting the opioid crisis remains a priority for this government. We will continue to do everything possible to save lives and put an end to this public health crisis.

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Mr. Gord Johns (Courtenay—Alberni, NDP)

Feb/8/22 6:43:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, since the government was elected, 25,000 lives have been lost in this country due to a poisoned drug supply. There was no mention of this in the Speech from the Throne, and nothing in the mandate letter to the health minister. It ranked sixth in the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions's mandate letter. The courageous answer to this crisis is full decriminalization, regulated safe supply, record expungement, treatment on demand by a public health system, prevention and education. These are all things recommended by the minister's expert task force on substance use. I have to ask the minister a question. We have had applications from B.C., Toronto and Vancouver for section 56(1) decriminalization exemptions sitting on her desk since last June. This has had the formal support of council, public health officials and Vancouver police chief Adam Palmer. Hundreds of people have died in the city while the government dithers. When is she going to give an answer to their applications? When is she going to put the expert task force's recommendations into place? Will she support an NDP bill that is a blueprint and a road map for her to take action on this crisis, which is not a crisis but an emergency? It is a national health emergency, and she needs to call it that. This government needs to act like it is an emergency, as they did with COVID-19. Where are the Liberals? Lives are at stake. It cannot be about votes. This cannot be about votes and getting re-elected. We were elected to do the right thing. When it comes to saving lives, that is the right thing to do. She needs to act now.

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Hon. Carolyn Bennett

Feb/8/22 6:45:23 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for his passion and for the private member's bill that he has now tabled, which we will be able to work on together. I look forward to being able to work on these things, particularly safe supply, as he knows. At this moment, the public prosecution service has given guidance that people possessing small amounts of drugs should not be arrested. It is the toxic drug supply that is killing people. It is the need for safe supply. We have put $60 million into safe supply, but in terms of those 17 projects, we need to do more. That is what I heard when I walked in the downtown east side. People who use drugs should not die doing so. We cannot help people who are dead.

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Mr. Dan Albas (Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola, CPC)

Feb/8/22 6:46:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the minister for starting off tonight's take-note debate. This is a very serious subject in my home province of British Columbia, as was raised by the previous questioner. In 2016 and 2017, former minister of finance Bill Morneau put in his budget $50 million every year and touted this as a new approach for dealing with opioids. Just to break down the numbers, it was $50 million a year for five successive years, broken down by 10 provinces and three territories. Places such as Princeton, or even more urban areas such as Kelowna, do not show that the resources from the federal government are being fairly distributed. Neither the new minister nor the new finance minister has put in place a comprehensive plan to deal with this. I have a question for the minister. What has the minister done differently? I ask because people in my home province of British Columbia, especially during this pandemic, have suffered. Their families have suffered. I have been told time and again there are not the resources, and that no federal or provincial government cares about this problem. Can the minister start off by addressing that?

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Hon. Carolyn Bennett

Feb/8/22 6:47:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that could not be further from the truth. My very first trip was to go and learn from the people doing this life-saving work every day in Vancouver and to listen to people with lived experiences. What they are saying is that we have to move forward on safe supply. We have to get the ideology out of this and have pharmaceutical-grade narcotics available for people using drugs. We had put $700 million into this program, in terms of substance use and addictions, and another $500 million into the platform. We will get this done, but it needs to be a comprehensive approach with all of the modalities. All of the creative, innovative things that are happening across this country need to know they have a serious partner with the federal government.

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The Speaker

Feb/8/22 6:48:51 p.m.
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If I can have the hon. members' attention, I know we ran into a bit of a problem last night when we tried to get as many questions in as possible. I just want to ask hon. members, if they can, to be as concise as possible so everyone gets a chance to speak, not only with the questions, but also with the answers. Resuming debate, the hon. member for Yukon.

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Mr. Brendan Hanley (Yukon, Lib.)

Feb/8/22 6:49:12 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the minister for allowing me to share her time. I thank her for all she has done so far in her new role as Minister of Mental Health and Addictions. Two days ago, there was another burial in Yukon after yet another fentanyl overdose death. This was not just a person. This was somebody's child. In the Yukon, mothers and fathers are burying their children. Children are losing their parents before they are old enough to know what is going on. These people should not be dying. Parents should not have to bury their children. Children should not have to become orphans because of overdose deaths. In Yukon last month, eight people died of an overdose. I can tell members that the scale of eight lives lost in rapid succession sent us reeling, and it is enough for Yukon to continue to lead the country by far in per capita deaths. We feel the pain of these deaths. We know that each of these deaths was preventable. For very complex reasons, people took a single dose of a toxic drug and died. They often died alone. They died seeking a last high. They died without realizing that this high would be the last ever, or worse, they died not caring because the high was more important than the risk of dying. In our small territory, we all know someone who has died, or someone who is close to someone who has died. Opioids have struck in urban and rural settings, in first nations and non-indigenous settings. The vulnerable and the known addicted have succumbed, as have successful sons and daughters, aspiring students, professionals and elders. We are witnessing the death of all manner of people. No class, no race, no group of people has been spared. In the past weeks in Yukon, some first nations, particularly Mayo and Carcross, and citizens of Vuntut Gwitchin in Old Crow, have been hit hard. People already grieving from pandemic strains and losses now have to endure the unimaginable grief of young ones lost to sudden, drug-driven deaths. In Canada, we have lost more than 25,000 people to overdoses since 2016. Opioids kill 20 Canadians a day. I was serving as Yukon's chief medical officer of health back in 2016, when the first fentanyl fatality occurred in the territory. Since then, we have introduced many improvements in prevention and care, and much of our progress occurred thanks to the work of community partners and the support of Yukon's government. Much of it was through federal spending and support. In fact, if it were not for the array of solutions we have put in place since the onset of the opioid epidemic, such as better clinical management of addiction, increased awareness, take-home naloxone, and harm reduction measures, this crisis would have been far worse. We have also had groundbreaking interventions, such as the Kwanlin Dün first nation community officer safety program. It has saved lives in that community, and is a program that could be amplified around the territory, but we must do more. The scope of the crisis exceeds our efforts to solve it. The opioid crisis requires intervention on the scale of the pandemic. The debate tonight is an opportunity to share how this opioid crisis has touched our lives and our communities. It is an opportunity to share our concerns and our ideas of the steps we can take to address it. It is an opportunity to talk about best practices in Canada and around the world, and to consider where we can go from here. No single government or body can solve this crisis alone. We need all hands on deck, including the voices of people who use drugs, to continue to keep us honest. We need everyone, every level of government, experts in addiction medicine, harm reduction and mental health, community and indigenous leaders engaged in a dialogue and looking to address this crisis. Sometimes legislative and strategic changes are required as well as a debate about making the required changes. I look forward to participating in those debates in the House, and we need every option on the table. We must learn for this country to handle simultaneous crises. Like a busy global emergency ward, we no longer have the luxury of only one emergency at a time. What gives me hope is that we have successes around this country, and we have experts and evidence that tell us there is much more we can do to save lives and to protect our children. Let us work together across the country and protect Canadians from a toxic drug supply. We can work together, and we can save lives.

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Mr. Mike Morrice (Kitchener Centre, GP)

Feb/8/22 6:53:56 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Yukon for his leadership on this issue. The House is better with his contributions. Earlier, the member for Courtenay—Alberni shared his passion on this issue, as well as the fact that he has put forward a private member's bill that would do what so many in the House have spoken of, which is to move toward this crisis being treated as a public health crisis as opposed to a criminal justice one. Would the member for Yukon comment on his openness, and potentially that of others in the governing party, to working with other parliamentarians toward bringing that bill to fruition?

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Mr. Brendan Hanley

Feb/8/22 6:54:45 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague for highlighting the important private member's bill from the member opposite. I support the development of a bill that looks at the spectrum of the opioid crisis in the country, as well as at what policy options we should be looking at, including, as the minister referred to, the question of decriminalization and supporting people toward a safe supply. In my previous role as CMOH, I spoke many times to the subject of decriminalization and ensuring people had a safe supply when they were using drugs. I look forward to working with members on the development of this private member's bill.

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Mr. Taylor Bachrach (Skeena—Bulkley Valley, NDP)

Feb/8/22 6:56:04 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, this is an issue that affects so many northern communities so profoundly, as the member indicated in his remarks. There was a Health Canada expert task force on substance use just last year that issued a number of recommendations, and those recommendations are reflected very closely in the private member's bill of my colleague, the member for Courtenay—Alberni. The bill seeks to decriminalize simple possession of drugs listed in the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act, provide a path for expungement of conviction records for those convicted of simple possession, and develop a national strategy to show the federal leadership needed in helping provinces, territories and municipalities manage the harms associated with substance use. Does the member support those tenets, and can we stand together in the House and prevent the kinds of needless losses of life we have seen in all our communities across the country? Will he stand with us?

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Mr. Brendan Hanley

Feb/8/22 6:57:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I acknowledge the struggles that northern B.C. and the entire province are facing. I look forward to working with the members opposite on the development and passage through process, including in my role on HESA, the health committee, and to seeing it reviewed and studied there. I believe the tenets in the bill are important ones to address the urgent nature of the opioid crisis in our country, and this is an avenue for a way forward.

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Hon. Mike Lake (Edmonton—Wetaskiwin, CPC)

Feb/8/22 6:58:24 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with the hon. member for Central Okanagan—Similkameen—Nicola. On April 29, 2003, I got a call at home from my brother Dan. I remember everything about that moment, exactly where I was in the House, the fact that I just finished an episode of 24, then in its second season. It was a beautiful spring day and there was a light breeze coming in through the patio door. I had done an ab workout that afternoon for the first time in forever and the memory of the physical pain from that workout is an odd remnant that will stick with me for the rest of my life because of Dan's next few words: “Mike, are you listening to me? Are you listening to me, Mike? Dad died this afternoon.” Our father, Mark, was 59 years old. The news was gut-wrenching but it was not surprising. As a dad, my dad was absolutely wonderful. He told us he loved us all the time. He was free with hugs, kisses and those regular “I love you's”, something that I did not always appreciate growing up but cherished as an adult. Not only did my dad not miss a single one of our hockey games, he almost never missed a practice. I could always count on seeing him with his trademark Grizzly Adams beard, standing behind the glass by the net. I do not remember him without that beard. He started growing it right after I was born in 1969 and never ever shaved it off. As an adult, he also had a perpetual beer gut. Like his father and his sisters, his hair was a beautiful snowy white. He told me during our last conversation that he was finally embracing the idea of being Santa Claus during the next Christmas season. Quite honestly, he could have pulled that off when he was in his thirties. He never went to college but he was one of the smartest people I have ever met. He was very sensitive, genuine and powerfully connected with vulnerable people, I think because he could relate to them very personally. I believe my dad started smoking and drinking around the time he was 11 or 12 years old. I do not know why. When he was 15, his father passed away and at 16 he joined the navy, likely a decision after a few too many drinks. He quit soon after when he realized he was prone to sea sickness. Again, the drinking probably did not help. About 15 years before he died, my dad quit drinking. While he had difficulty breaking some of his other negative habits, his drinking had started to affect the family. His love for his family was the one thing strong enough to give him the motivation he needed to quit. I do not know when my father was first prescribed OxyContin. It was probably sometime in 2002 or 2003. Old football injuries and years of carrying the extra weight had caused him to experience significant pain in his back and hips. I believe at first the medication helped, but I really do not know how much he was taking. We did not then understand OxyContin the way we do now, but I did know my dad. Over time, something was changing. He seemed to be a little fuzzier. It is hard to describe, but he did not look well over the last several months of his life. At some point not long before he died, my dad decided he wanted to get off OxyContin. At times, those of us closest to him had gently let him know that we were concerned that he did not seem to be himself. He would be a little defensive, something I was used to from my years trying to convince him to quit smoking. The exact timing of events in April 2003 is a bit foggy for all of us 19 years later, but I know this. We had a get-together for Easter around April 20, nine days before he died. My mom and dad planned to come separately. My mom arrived, but two hours later my dad still had not shown up. I was worried enough that I drove 30 minutes to their house and went in, quite anxious, not sure what to expect. I shouted for him. I was relieved when he walked out groggily and said that he had just fallen asleep. My brother and I debated this next part as we were reflecting on it the other night. I believe that my dad decided to try to get off OxyContin after that day and went back on it the night before he died. My brother thinks this might have happened earlier. What we agree on is that this withdrawal resulted in his being in agonizing pain. Dan tells me that he told him he thought he was going to die, something he also told me multiple times. The ultimate irony is that a couple of months after he died, when I received the call telling me that the cause of his death was a lethal dose of OxyContin, I was also told that the autopsy showed that other than the OxyContin, his overall health seemed surprisingly good. His death, at least at that age, wasn't as inevitable as he thought it would be. After 19 years, my memories of my father are very good ones, and I am so thankful that, as imperfect as he was, he was my dad. If I am being honest, I also have some other thoughts, and I hope that sharing those thoughts out loud can help us find solutions so that others do not face similar tragedies in their own lives. I wish that he had not started smoking and drinking at such an early age. I wish that he had been better able to manage his physical health, a driver of so much of his pain in his fifties. I wish that, in his case, oxycontin had not been prescribed, and I wish that he had had access to better tools and guidance when he tried to get off of it. Most of all, while I understand that stories are very powerful, I wish that I did not have this one to tell, that instead my father could have known me as a member of Parliament and one he would be incredibly proud of. I wish that we all had so few stories to share that a night like this, set aside in the Canadian House of Commons for this purpose, would not be necessary. However, all the wishes in the world will not change the past and they will not change the current reality. It is way past time we took meaningful action to tackle the opioid crisis and other significant issues of mental health in this country. Tonight I have hope, hope that one day people will speak about this as a time when their elected Parliament set aside hyperpartisanship to find evidence-based solutions to a significant crisis, hope that one day someone will talk about how the trajectory of their life changed for the better because of what we are doing here tonight. I am honoured to be with friends here, now, with the responsibility of turning this hope into action. Let us get to work.

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Ms. Lisa Marie Barron (Nanaimo—Ladysmith, NDP)

Feb/8/22 7:05:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I first want to express my deepest condolences for the loss of the member's father. I was reflecting while he was sharing his story that it is clear that the opioid crisis does not discriminate. I have seen too many loved ones lost as a result of the opioid crisis and, in my work in addictions prior to becoming an MP, I saw it time and time again. Would the member be in support of the recommendations of Health Canada's expert task force on substance use? These recommendations were supported by police chiefs, health experts, substance users and frontline workers. These recommendations were clear: full decriminalization, regulated safe supply, record expungement, treatment on demand via the public health system, prevention and education. Could the member share with us today whether he is in support of these recommendations put forward by experts?

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