- Member of Parliament
- Prime Minister
Leader of the Liberal Party
- Liberal
- Papineau
- Quebec
- Voting Attendance: 55%
- Expenses Last Quarter: $79,187.97
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- May/22/24 3:08:36 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the fact is we will continue to be there responsibly with a science-based, evidence-based approach that works with jurisdictions on the tools they need to counter the growing opioid and toxic drug epidemic.
I understand the ideological desire by Conservatives to simply look at every problem as if it is a nail because all they have is a hammer. We are going to continue to be there to invest in community supports. We are going to be there to continue to work with jurisdictions that want to help people struggling with addictions. We will continue to be there, grounded in science and evidence.
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- May/8/24 3:12:08 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we are facing, right across the country, a toxic drug and opioid epidemic that is taking lives left, right and centre, that is hurting communities and that is hurting family members who are losing loved ones at an alarming rate, and that is something we need to respond to.
We have continued to work, jurisdiction by jurisdiction, in thoughtful ways to try to do everything possible to keep communities safe, to keep families from suffering these further losses and to support people who are struggling with addiction. We will continue to be grounded in evidence and support.
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- May/8/24 3:10:16 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I do not know that any Canadian would think that adding more ideology to our approach to public health in dealing with the opioid epidemic is a solution, yet that is the only thing the Conservative Party seems to offer.
We will continue to be grounded in a compassionate, science-based approach that works with local partners and that attempts to provide the kinds of wraparound services in housing, in health care, in addiction treatment and recovery or in culturally appropriate services to those who need them. We will continue to be there to help heal people, not to imprison them.
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- May/8/24 3:08:50 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition proposes to return to the failed Harper-era approaches on opioids that Harper's former adviser Benjamin Perrin called obsolete and “immoral”.
Over the past number of years, we have invested in a compassionate, science-based, evidence-grounded approach that includes harm reduction through a public health lens. It also includes investments in housing, in mental health supports, in frontline workers, and in addiction treatment and recovery programs. These are the things that move us forward.
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- May/1/24 2:56:01 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for Courtenay—Alberni for bringing up those stats, which show that there are real challenges around the opioid and toxic drug supply epidemic right across the country.
Every step of the way, the government will continue to be anchored in compassionate, evidenced-based approaches that look at this as a public health crisis. We will work with provincial governments across all jurisdictions to move forward on measures that support and save lives. That is our commitment to Canadians, and that is what we will continue to do.
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- May/1/24 2:44:59 p.m.
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No, Mr. Speaker. For eight years, almost nine years now, Canadians have seen that our approach on the opioid epidemic is grounded in public safety, in public health, in compassion, in funding frontline workers and in doing things that work to save lives and help people. It is not to have some sort of secret plan, as he proposes.
If the Leader of the Opposition wants to talk about secret plans, he would probably do well to actually clear the air for Canadians about his seeking support among members of extremist right wing organizations like Diagolon.
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- May/1/24 2:39:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, from the beginning, we have been there to work on an evidence-based, science-based, compassionate public health approach to the opioid epidemic, and that included responding to B.C.'s request for a pilot program. Now that it is asking to adjust the pilot program, we will work with the province to adjust it in ways that make sense for the province.
Given the new, more reasonable tone of the Leader of the Opposition, I wonder whether he might take this opportunity to reassure Canadians that he neither supports extremist, white nationalist organizations like Diagolon nor wants their votes.
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- May/1/24 2:31:20 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, a number of years ago, British Columbia approached us with a pilot project that it wanted to bring in to look at a different way of dealing with the ongoing public health crisis that was hitting British Columbians with the opioid epidemic. We worked with the British Columbia government as it developed this pilot project, and now that it is asking for modifications to that project, we are looking at those modifications. We will work with B.C. as it seeks to adjust its plans for public health and dealing with this opioid epidemic.
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- May/1/24 2:29:59 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the opioid epidemic is hitting families, communities and individuals right across the country, and it has for many years. This is why we are continuing to use an approach grounded in compassion, public safety and public health through facts-based decisions.
We responded to the British Columbia government's ask for a pilot project. We will, yes, work with it to adjust it in ways that it sees fit. It is important to make sure that B.C. continues to do the things it needs to do to keep people safe in its jurisdiction.
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- Apr/30/24 2:20:43 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the opioid crisis is terrible and is wreaking havoc across the country. However, what is required in terms of a response is not more Conservative ideology. We need responses that are rooted in compassion and based on health care, science and proven processes.
We will continue to work in partnership with the provinces and the communities to respond to this public health crisis in a rigorous but compassionate manner. That is what Canadians expect.
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- May/31/23 3:23:39 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we know how devastating the opioid epidemic is for families right across the country. That is why we have continued to step up, while being grounded in science and evidence and working in partnership with others.
I salute the intention of the member opposite to contribute to this debate, but, as we have worked concretely on the ground with partners, including with the government of B.C., for example, to move forward on decriminalization in a way that is showing positive impacts across B.C., we will continue to be grounded in evidence as we take action to save lives and keep Canadians safe.
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- May/10/23 3:01:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the ongoing opioid epidemic is taking far too many lives across the country, whether it is families, whether it is workers or whether it is communities from coast to coast to coast. We need to stay grounded in the science and evidence in how we are going to respond to it.
Now, the Conservatives' ideologically driven solutions are good for bumper stickers, but they are not effective in supporting people in moving forward on a health-based approach to opioids and making sure we are supporting people and getting them through this.
We will continue with harm reduction—
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- Feb/1/23 3:12:35 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the opioid epidemic is heartbreaking for Canadians right across the country, which is why we have consistently stepped up with evidence-based policy to protect Canadians, moving this into a public health space rather than a criminal justice space, where the Conservatives continue to want it to be.
We know there is more to invest. There is more support for our frontline workers. There is more support for vulnerable Canadians living with addiction right across the country. We will continue to be there, working with our colleagues, provinces and territories, and municipalities to support Canadians with the best science and evidence.
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- Feb/1/23 2:40:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I know Mr. Barton is looking forward to appearing at committee and answering any and all of those questions.
What I will highlight is that, as a government, we will continue to stay grounded in science, facts and data as we address the terrible opioid epidemic across this country. Where Conservatives dig into random conspiracy theories and ignore science and evidence on how to keep people safe through the opioid epidemic, we are going to continue to step up with a harm reduction approach, with an approach that puts science first and keeps Canadians safe through this terrible ordeal.
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- Jun/1/22 3:14:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country for his incredibly hard work on this file and others.
We are taking concrete action to tackle the opioid epidemic, including the announcement of the approval of B.C.'s proposal to decriminalize personal possession of certain small amounts. We will work in partnership with B.C. through its comprehensive monitoring and evaluation strategy to address both public health and public safety. Our approach is supporting community-led solutions to reduce harm, treat addiction and prevent overdoses.
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- May/31/22 2:35:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the opioid crisis has severely affected the families and communities of those we have lost to overdoses.
Our approach follows other steps we have taken previously to address the opioid crisis, including investments of more than $800 million in community-led harm reduction, treatment and prevention initiatives. We also just approved British Columbia's request to decriminalize the personal possession of small amounts of certain illicit drugs in the province.
We will continue to work with all provinces and jurisdictions to save lives and end this crisis.
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Mr. Speaker, we have long recognized the importance of tackling the opioid epidemic with all the tools that science and experts are recommending. A significant number of the investments we have made have been in safe supply, but we know there is always much more to do.
That is why we continue to work to divert people who use drugs away from the criminal justice system and toward supportive and trusted relationships. Our multi-faceted approach builds on previous actions to address the opioid overdose crisis, including investments of over $700 million in community-led harm-reduction treatment and prevention projects. We will continue to do everything we can to protect Canadians from this national crisis.
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