Lorne Doerkson vows to 'take back' streets from hard drugs and disorder
Lorne Doerkson, the leader of the Conservative Party of B.C., announced the party’s public safety plan earlier today, promising to end open drug use in B.C.’s towns and cities.
In a release, the party said that they will “take back our streets from hard drugs and disorder” and restore “safety to towns and cities across British Columbia.”
The Conservatives are promising to do this by deploying more police to the “hardest-hit” neighbourhoods, expanding psychiatric services, crisis response, and residential treatment, and introducing “compassionate intervention” to take people with severe addiction, mental illness, or brain injury off the street and into care.
They also said they would amend the Mental Health Act so that police officers can connect people with involuntary care.
Further, the Conservatives are promising to bring more police officers into B.C. They said they will expand the JIBC Police Academy to hire and deploy 250 more police officers, adding 500 RCMP officers and 150 civilian staff over five years to bring more policing to rural and regional communities.
They said they plan to hire 50 new Crown prosecutors, work with Ottawa to fund 20 more trial judges, and add sheriff and court capacity “so criminals no longer walk free because of delays.”
“After a decade of the NDP, our communities have been devastated by crime,” said Doerkson in a statement.
“People don’t feel safe going downtown anymore. Families have to share parks and walking paths with chronic drug users who have been captured by horrific drugs like fentanyl.”
The Conservatives said that main streets “have paid the price,” with open drug use and disorder keeping away customers, families, and small businesses.
They pointed to the drug decriminalization pilot that the BC NDP ended earlier this year after a three-year run where Health Canada had granted B.C. a three-year exemption under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act to decriminalize people who use drugs.
This meant that anyone in B.C. age 18 or older could possess up to 2.5 grams of MDMA, methamphetamine, cocaine, or opioids for personal use. For three years, individuals didn’t face arrest for possession, nor could police seize the substances.
The purpose of this program was to respond to the deadly toxic drug crisis, with the idea that if people believe they’ll face law enforcement for possession of drugs, they might hide their drugs and avoid treatment.
Before the pilot started in 2023, the B.C. government said that criminalization had resulted in “visible harms,” including overdoses and deaths, stigma, and shame, the economic costs of processing people through the criminal justice system, as well as users resorting to unfamiliar drug sources after a seizure.
However, it proved to be a controversial policy, with some people attributing increasing crime in Vancouver and other parts of the province to it.
In 2024, B.C. started walking back on it, making illicit drug use illegal in public spaces. It worked with the federal government to change the legality of possessing drugs in B.C., giving police the power to enforce against drug use in public places.
What have other provincial parties promised?
On Oct. 2, the BC Greens released their toxic drugs policy with candidate Lisa Lapointe, who is the former chief coroner of the province.
Lapointe said that the toxic drug crisis “will only be solved” if regulated alternatives are available, voluntary treatment is available when people need it, and when people who use drugs have ” the same access to resources, medical care, housing, dignity, and respect as anyone else.”
The Green Party said this crisis will not be solved “by expanding a punitive system that leads to more overdoses and a reduction in trust in health services” or “unnecessary involvement with the criminal justice system.”
The BC NDP has yet to unveil their drug policy platform.
The provincial election will be held on Oct. 24.