Bill 33 takes wrong approach to addiction

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 12/04/2023 (924 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

As the official Opposition, the Manitoba NDP has the ability to delay five government bills each session. This past week, we publicly announced the first of the five, as we committed to delaying Bill 33 – the Addictions Services Act.

We chose to delay Bill 33 as it fails to take any meaningful action to address the addictions crisis and would have created needless barriers for organizations that offer critical harm reduction services for those struggling with addictions. Bill 33 would put the status of life saving harm reduction services such as Sunshine House’s mobile overdose prevention site at risk. That’s the wrong approach.

Manitobans know that the Progressive Conservatives’ approach to the addictions crisis has failed. Far too many Manitobans are falling through the cracks and dying of drug overdoses. The number of overdose deaths has increased year after year under the PCs. There were 371 overdose deaths in 2020, 424 in 2021, and 377 in the first 11 months of 2022. Unfortunately, we don’t know the total number of overdose deaths in 2022 because the PC government has refused to make this data publicly available. The rising number of overdose deaths makes it clear that the government’s approach of shaming and criminalizing Manitobans struggling with addictions has only made things worse.

Bill 33 doubles down on the PC government’s failed approach as it contradicts what front-line expert physicians, nurses, addictions specialists and front-line care providers are saying we need to tackle the addictions crisis. Bill 33 would have put up even more barriers to the establishment of supervised consumption sites, despite experts constantly calling on the government to do so, as evidence shows that these sites save lives. We need to help Manitobans struggling with addiction, and we know that the current PC approach is not working – instead, it’s making this worse. That’s why we support community-based harm reduction initiatives, and it is why we will continue to fight to protect them from this government, by delaying bad bills like Bill 33.

Please feel free to reach out or connect over the coming weeks by calling 204-306-8581 or emailing uzoma.asagwara@yourmanitoba.ca