BC Conservatives slam BC Provincial Health Officer’s safe supply report

Jul 11, 2024 | 2:43 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – “Clearly, safe supply and decriminalization have been a huge failure in this province,” says John Rustad, Leader of the BC Conservative Party in response to a recent report from BC’s Provincial Health Offer Dr. Bonnie Henry. She recommends the province expand its “safer supply” program to prevent overdoses, including allowing access to alternatives to unregulated drugs without a prescription.

She says in her latest report on the overdose crisis that efforts centred on drug prohibition have not only failed to control access to controlled substances but have also created the toxic unregulated drug supply that has killed thousands since a health emergency was declared eight years ago.

“We have the highest level of addictions in North America. We have an unmanageable society. We’ve got crime all over the place. This needs to change. We need to go in the complete opposite direction. And what I’m shocked at is that David Eby has his provincial health officer out in Ottawa and doing these reports suggesting that we should expand this.”

The Conservative Party of British Columbia is urging the government to reconsider Dr. Henry’s position and to take immediate steps to reverse any plans to implement the sale of such dangerous drugs in government stores.