COLUMN: Think Again – Focus on recovery, not on enabling addiction

If there’s one thing this NDP government is determined to do, it’s open a supervised consumption site.

It’s become a matter of doctrine that providing a “safe” place to consume illegal drugs is the best way to save lives. The problem with this rigid doctrine is it causes politicians to defend the indefensible.

Consider, for example, the NDP’s proposed supervised consumption site at 366 Henry Ave in Winnipeg. Last week, the Progressive Conservatives tabled documents in the legislature from the province’s 2024 application to Health Canada for the original supervised consumption site.

According to these documents, people who appear to be as young as 16 years old would be allowed to consume drugs in that site. No identification would be required. To make matters worse, family members would not be informed without the drug user’s explicit consent.

Since the NDP government initially approved these guidelines, it means that NDP politicians apparently have no problem with allowing teenagers to use illegal drugs in a supervised consumption site and that the people who run the site should keep this information hidden from parents. That is absurd.

Fortunately, Premier Wab Kinew recently backed away from his aggressive timeline to open a supervised consumption site within the next week or two, Nevertheless, the premier remains committed to moving ahead with this project. It’s an unfortunate example of left-wing politicians putting ideology before evidence.

As for the claim that supervised consumption sites are the best way to save lives, the latest evidence shows something quite different. Other provincial governments, most notably Alberta, have started closing supervised consumption sites and focusing instead on a recovery model. Their new approach is seeing positive effects.

For example, a recent study published in the scientific journal Addiction examined the impacts of the closure of a supervised consumption site in Red Deer, Alta. While opponents of the closure predicted it would lead to a dramatic increase in overdose deaths, this did not happen. In fact, many of the former clients of this injection site began seeking treatment for their drug addiction.

Obviously, it’s difficult to prove a direct causal link between closing this consumption site and seeking treatment. But at a bare minimum, this study shows that there’s no reason to assume that supervised consumption sites are the only way to save lives. There are better options available.

The good news is that the Alberta government is investing significant resources in its recovery model. This includes things such as opening new drug treatment centres, making affordable counselling options available, and expanding drug treatment courts so that non-violent offenders get faster access to treatment.

Sadly, Manitoba’s NDP government is stuck in an ideological rut. Having made a supervised consumption site a key part of its 2023 election campaign, the NDP is determined to fulfill that promise—even though the neighbourhood around this proposed site has registered strong opposition.

It’s not hard to see why people don’t want a supervised consumption site in their neighbourhood. This facility will attract people who use illegal drugs. Even worse, it will attract drug dealers since this will become an ideal location to find potential customers. The fact that young people could be using drugs in this facility makes it even more concerning.

Instead of opening a supervised consumption site that the neighbourhood doesn’t want, the government should follow Alberta’s example and adopt a recovery-focused approach to addiction. Make treatment easier to access for anyone who struggles with drug addiction. The goal should be to get people off drugs, not make it easier for them to use drugs.

There’s no reason to continue with a failed approach to drug addiction.

Michael Zwaagstra is a teacher and deputy mayor of Steinbach. He can be reached at mzwaagstra@shaw.ca.