The Alberta government is vowing to do more to crack down on drug trafficking as drug poisoning deaths spike.
Provincial data from April reveals 179 people died from drug poisoning, up from 45% in April 2022, and marking the deadliest month on record.
Public Safety Minister Mike Ellis said criminal entities across Canada have been increasing their capacity to produce and traffic deadly and dangerous drugs over the past decade, leading to a tragic loss of life.
“The criminal actions of drug traffickers are abhorrent and will not be tolerated by Alberta’s government,” he said in a statement. “We must have zero tolerance for the manufacturing, trafficking and dealing of these deadly and dangerous drugs.”
The development comes amid a renewed push on the United Conservative Party’s recovery-oriented system of care after they formed a majority government for the second time last month.
Mental Health and Addiction Minister Dan Williams said Tuesday that his government has funded services such as naloxone distribution, sterile supplies and drug consumption sites. He also said his government is constructing 11 new recovery communities across the province, including those in partnership with First Nations.
But, Williams urged that it’s clear from the data that more needs to be done to address the addiction crisis.
“Investing in recovery is not a choice that we make, but it is our moral obligation to allow for better futures for those suffering today,” he said in a statement.
During the election campaign, the UCP also announced it would pass legislation to force addicts who are a danger to themselves or others into treatment if re-elected.
The Compassionate Intervention Act would be the first involuntary treatment law in Canada to specifically target addiction. It’s unclear when the province plans to introduce such legislation.
Smith said all the premiers have some programs in place to address addiction and mental health treatment.
“In Alberta, we’ve got a recovery-oriented system of care that forms the basis for how we address mental health and addiction issues,” she said at the western premiers meeting in Whistler, BC on Tuesday.
“But each of the premiers knows that there are two sides to this. Those who are the victims of the disease and the victims of those peddling these poisonous opioids, and those who are on the crime side (of it),” she said.
