Poilievre accuses Trudeau of wanting to legalize hard drugs

The Conservative leader alleges on all his platforms that the Liberal government in Ottawa intends to legalize hard drugs like crack, despite evidence to the contrary, while Quebec Public Health is warning against this kind of shortcut.

According to an Instagram post by Pierre Poilievre dated Monday, Justin Trudeau’s Liberals are proposing nothing less than legalizing heroin and fentanyl from coast to coast.

“It has been confirmed that [le premier ministre Justin] Trudeau has a plan for “national decriminalization.” That means Trudeau wants to legalize hard drugs like crack, methamphetamine and fentanyl across the country,” read a statement from the Conservative Party of Canada released shortly after.

As proof, a federal document shared by the leader on the X network specifies that the government intends to collaborate with provinces that opt ​​for approaches to decriminalizing drugs. The text does not mention the concept of legalization.

The content of this note should not surprise Pierre Poilievre, since it is essentially what Justin Trudeau replied to him in the House on the 1st^er last May when questioned about the request for decriminalization formulated by the mayor of Montreal, Valérie Plante.

The premier had defended British Columbia’s drug decriminalization pilot project, adding: “If there are ever provinces that want to do something [de similaire]we will look at their project.”

This exchange was also closely followed, since it was the first held after the Conservative leader was reinstated in the Commons, having been excluded the day before by the president for having called Justin Trudeau a “nutcase” because of his approach to drugs.

Decriminalization, not legalization

Pierre Poilievre has been hounding the government over its approach to drugs since the spring. In doing so, he has been using the term “legalization” indiscriminately to refer to decriminalization plans. “It’s essentially the same thing,” he said during an exchange in the House on May 8.

Experts say the exact opposite. “Decriminalization and legalization are not the same thing,” emphasizes Jean-Sébastien Fallu, associate professor at the School of Psychoeducation at the University of Montreal and an expert on the issue. “Legalization provides a legal framework that specifies the rules.” […] Under legalization, there are generally quality controls and consumption is permitted rather than tolerated,” he explains.

For example, cannabis has been legalized in Canada, not simply decriminalized. That is why the regulated product has been sold in Société québécoise du cannabis stores since 2018. Nothing like that is planned for crack, fentanyl or other hard drugs.

The Institut national de santé publique du Québec produced a five-page summary in February specifically to end the confusion between legalization and decriminalization. Mixing these concepts “has the consequence of limiting the understanding of their respective legal issues and their potential repercussions for drug users and the population, particularly in terms of health,” warns the Institute.

Informed of this analysis, the Conservative Party did not change its interpretation, writing to Duty that “the use and possession of hard drugs such as crack, methamphetamine and fentanyl would be legalized” by the Liberals.

“There is no such plan,” denies the office of the Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, Liberal Ya’ara Saks.

Confusion nevertheless seems to persist among the public. With Quebec’s decision to discreetly decriminalize simple drug possession, revealed by The duty In July, drug users and even drug addiction workers are mixing up what is allowed and what is not, says a harm reduction organization in Gatineau.

“We sometimes have to remind our workers that just because the police no longer arrest anyone doesn’t mean it’s legal,” says Yves Séguin, who heads the Outaouais Drug Addiction Intervention and Prevention Centre.

It’s hard to fully understand why the overdose crisis has worsened in B.C. without understanding what the province’s decriminalization entails, he says. “Just because you’re not getting busted with your dope doesn’t mean your dope isn’t contaminated with fentanyl or something else.”

British Columbia decided in 2023 to stop arresting people who transport or consume small amounts of drugs to divert them from the criminal justice system. However, the province adjusted its course this spring by recriminalizing consumption in public places.

By opting for dejudicialization, Quebec has kept hard drugs illegal, but asks prosecutors to avoid filing criminal charges for their simple possession for personal consumption, in certain circumstances.

To see in video