Parties at odds over opioids crisis
The Yukon Party and the territorial government are butting heads over the opioids crisis.
The Yukon Party and the territorial government are butting heads over the opioids crisis.
The Yukon Party fired off a news release last Wednesday stating, “As Yukoners continue to experience harm from the opioid crisis, the Liberal government’s response has been inadequate on prevention, treatment and enforcement.”
The release went on to day that “statistics issued in November 2021 found the territory had the highest per-capita rate of deaths in the entire country at over 48 per 100,000 people.
“This was before the chief coroner reported an additional seven deaths in the first 19 days of 2022.”
The party zeroed in on an interview that Deputy Premier Tracy-Anne McPhee gave last week to CBC Yukon.
“The Deputy Premier claimed the government has ‘taken hundreds of actions’ to address the opioids crisis since declaring a substance abuse emergency on Jan. 20, 2022.
“This is in stark contrast to the spring sitting, when the Deputy Premier confirmed that the territorial Liberals have not delivered any new treatment spaces in the territory,” the official Opposition said.
“Further, she confirmed they have not increased mental health supports for those suffering from addictions.”
Brad Cathers, the party’s critic for Health and Social Services, added, “Aside from hosting a conference, we are left wondering what, if anything, the Liberal government has done to increase mental health supports and addictions treatment since January.
“On Jan. 31, we called on the government to take a number of actions, including making more mental health supports available in all the communities, expanding addictions treatment, improving aftercare and diversion programs,” Cathers recalled.
“Contrary to the deputy premier’s claims, the Liberals have not delivered substantial action on treatment, enforcement, or prevention.”
In the news release, the party once again called on the government to give more resources to the RCMP to stop the flow of dangerous drugs by charging and prosecuting drug dealers.
“In April during an interview where Yukon RCMP Chief Supt. Scott Sheppard outlined local police’s lack of resources, he also indicated that prevention of illicit drug trafficking and targeting drug dealers is an essential element of any strategy to stop the drug crisis in our communities,” the Yukon Party pointed out.
The government’s cabinet communications team didn’t take long to fire a broadside in return.
“The Yukon Party is either not paying attention to the Liberal government’s response to the Substance Use Health Emergency or they are misleading Yukoners,” the Star was told in an email sent last Thursday.
“More than $5.5 million in this year’s budget – which the Yukon Party voted against – is dedicated to an immediate response, including expanding the safer supply program and additional mental health and social services throughout the territory.
“Upgrades to the territory’s Supervised Consumption Site (in downtown Whitehorse) to accommodate inhalation as a method of drug consumption were completed in May,” the statement noted.
“The Supervised Consumption Site is the only such site in northern Canada and one of the first indoor facilities in Canada to support inhalation as a way to help reduce harm amongst people that use drugs.
“Nearly $300,000 is also bolstering the RCMP’s response to the toxic supply of illegal drugs in the territory.”
The Yukon Party, the statement added, “has made it clear that they view this emergency as a criminal problem and see no value in constructive dialogue with community partners to find solutions.
“We disagree. The Substance Use Health Emergency, in the Yukon and across Canada, is fundamentally a health problem.
“The Yukon Liberal government has taken the most progressive steps towards substance use harm reduction in the history of the Yukon.”
The government, the email added, “will continue to work with our partners, including all levels of government, communities, health and social care professionals, and those with lived experience, to address substance use by reducing harm and working to make our communities safer and healthier.”
Comments (13)
Up 9 Down 4
MITCH on Jul 28, 2022 at 11:43 am
Kate White, I am ashamed of your leadership. You need to seriously reconsider what you are supporting in this coalition. Before you estrange most of the people you claim to represent.
Up 15 Down 3
Lost In the Yukon on Jul 27, 2022 at 5:10 pm
The “shyte-show” that now describes Yukon has been greatly sped along by the agreement between the Liberals and NDP … which we all can expect to see it renewed this coming winter because this is the closest Kate “I’d rather be biking” White will ever get to any real power.
Up 20 Down 9
MITCH on Jul 26, 2022 at 11:48 am
@ Richard Smith - Spot on good sir. The reason you are right about that is because the territory is only beneficial to yuppy government fat bike riders. Everyone else is suffering so they turn to vices eventually. But hey, at least when we do, the government will kill us off for free to develop our land into more game centers.
I say we start spiking their drinks with their own supply.
Up 24 Down 7
AdmiralA$$ on Jul 26, 2022 at 8:17 am
Hard to question illegitimate authority when your high. Even harder when said authority is your addiction supplier. Sort of amazing how much our current government pretends to care while making best efforts to keep you in the gutter, kill you faster, Starve you faster. "Why do prices go up"? because we inflate our money supply to pay for addicts addictions and unproductive to sit around.
Up 33 Down 7
Matthew on Jul 26, 2022 at 7:10 am
FACT: more dead in Yukon from overdose, than covid! But here we are still giving away free drugs.. clever..
Up 13 Down 8
Josey Wales on Jul 26, 2022 at 6:50 am
Hmmm, so our one party system has elite members bickering over virtue portfolios...lovely.
Across this vast land once thought, true north strong and free in a state propaganda song...team blue?
Should be not even able to speak, as they SHOULD HAVE been screaming at the top of their capacity about actually being...
True north strong and free for the last near THREE FREAKING YEARS!
Nope...globalist weak and cucked would be a better change up in the state propaganda song.
Once our alleged “opposition party” sorts out the restoration of freedom proper, our sovereignty proper and surgically reinstall our nations balls.
Then they can waste time bickering over opioids.
We have a freedom and national cuckery crisis to destroy.
...in my opinion.
...off the charts more important than the self serving theatre we get from political blowholes and their sycophants called state actors.
THEY ARE ALL ACTING, as they actually give a rats ass.
I am suggesting they do not, the whole lot.
Up 24 Down 12
bonanzajoe on Jul 25, 2022 at 8:35 pm
Appoint conservative judges. Anybody caught dealing drugs should go to jail and stay there for a very long time. No bail, no "with time served". IF the Correction Centre gets too full, hire more officers. By the way, who do those drug dealers vote for? Liberals and NDP of course. They are the ones who keep them in business.
Up 5 Down 18
JC on Jul 25, 2022 at 5:34 pm
Hey Richard!
Are those people dying from the safe supply drugs? Hm?
You don't actually care about these peoples lives. Get a clue.
Up 7 Down 28
JC on Jul 25, 2022 at 5:33 pm
Getting people off drugs and helping them overcome their problems is hard.
But if the government was serious about preventing deaths, the solution is easy:safe supply. Decriminalize drugs and monopolize the market with safe drugs to undermine criminal trade.
Anybody talking about anything else isn't serious about saving lives.
Up 18 Down 5
Mitch - You are not alone! on Jul 25, 2022 at 5:19 pm
STFU - It’s not about safe supply, injection sites or harm reduction. It is about your pandering enablement, a lack of consequences for one’s own behaviour, and the licentiousness with which Liberals and Dippers approach drug use. Notwithstanding the repeated lessons unlearned from the consequences of one’s own inaction.
The government is a shyt-show, and the politico-legal system is absolutely corrupt - Caucasians in jail (political prisoners) for very minor offences, if any, while minorities kill and are released on bail…
And when they break their conditions of release they are given bail again. Hell, they can commit further criminal offences, not just failing to comply with the conditions of one’s release in the Yukon and elsewhere and are given another piece of paper telling them what to do and what not to do… I think there is a rewards program in the Justice system.
And yes - The Federal Liberals are absolutely responsible for this drunken/drugged actual shyt-show on our streets. From their complicity in the Residential Schools cultural genocide to their continued and unrelenting segregation by race, gender, and other intersectionalities.
The only tool these child-like ministerial representatives have is your money - All the special interests clamouring into the Price Is Right money shower… Exciting times!
Up 63 Down 14
Richard Smith on Jul 25, 2022 at 4:09 pm
Two of the Liberals answers for the opioid crisis are "expanding the safe supply program" (free illicit drugs) and "upgrades to the the supervised consumption site" (government run crack house).
These methods have proven to be total disasters, especially in Whitehorse. Is it a surprise the territory has the highest per- capita rate of drug deaths in the country?
Addictions treatment centre's, mental health counseling (including the spiritual), and a major police and courts enforcement overall are good first steps.
Up 35 Down 51
Klaus G. on Jul 25, 2022 at 4:02 pm
Typical Brad going ahead with alternate facts in spite of knowing better, wasting everyone's time. And people want to vote these clowns in?
Up 56 Down 19
John on Jul 25, 2022 at 3:07 pm
You notice that the Lieberals take credit for being the first to do something about the opioid crisis. Well that is easy to respond to: it was under their watch when the crisis became a crisis like a jet. To make it more sadder - it has only gotten worse from their inability to get the task at hand under control. Akin to a wild fire, everyone running about with sprinkler hoses trying to doss a raging inferno. What to do. Well they do it the liberal way - throw money at it. Not enough? Throw more money at it - do whatever it takes - lots of money. Like throwing logs on a forest fire. Except it does little good. They are lost at sea with no compass, maps, GPS, or any other navigational tools. Simply put, they are leaderless in the space continuum.
It is likely they truly believe they are doing good. Good at what I ask? Mismanagement of course. Now we have nothing to offer the community but civil drunkenness, drugs, drug dealers galore, mental health issues to fill a sanitarium, oh and lest we forget - derelicts wandering aimlessly about the city in a constant daze.