Rustad proposes involuntary treatment
PRINCE GEORGE – It has been a controversial issue for some time. Mental health, addictions, safe supply, open drug use and decriminalization. And the Leader of the Conservative Party has come out with support for involuntary treatment, starting with children and youth.
“The parents want to try to have their child into treatment, and if the child decides not to, then they have no option,” says John Rustad, Leader of the BC Conservatives. “And so as a parent, if you have an 11-year-old child and that child is addicted, you’re going to want to do everything you can for that child to try to give them a way to be able to move on from the addiction, to get treated and to be able to have a normal life.”
Rustad says his plan would look at compassionate intervention legislation, secure facilities for treatment for those who pose a risk to themselves or others and crisis response units. And while the proposal focuses on youth, he won’t rule out adults.
“So that’s something else we are looking at. For example, if you have somebody who dies and is brought back to life, clearly they’re at risk of harming themselves.They’re obviously not in a place to be able to make good decisions on their own behalf. And so we are actually going to look at that as well as the potential for involuntary care and for voluntary treatment to try to get them into some sort of path towards building a quality of life again.”