MAYOR FUREY SAYS NO TO INJECTION SITES AND YES TO MANDATORY TREATMENT

Toronto Mayoral candidate and former newspaper columnist Anthony Furey announced on Wednesday morning his plans to halt the planned creation of two new drug injection sites and instead redirect those resources into creating drug treatment facilities. 

Furey also announced plans to work with the province to push for more mandatory treatment.

People see what’s happening in Vancouver and San Francisco and they don’t want it to happen here,” Furey said. “We are seeing awful things happen on the streets of those cities. If we want to keep Toronto safe, we have to put the breaks on the drug culture.”

Furey added: “Law enforcement and health professionals tell me that so many of these random attacks we’re seeing are related to the drug crisis. A compassionate society doesn’t keep people on drugs. It helps them get off of drugs. And by doing that, we also make our streets safer.”

The City of Toronto recently announced plans to create two new injection sites in partnership with University Health Network and Unity Health. Instead of proceeding with these plans, the Mayor’s office under Anthony Furey will instruct Toronto Public Health to work with these partners to pivot these projects into drug treatment centres. 

As the number of injection sites has increased in Canada, so has the number of overdose deaths and so has the violence,” said Furey. “This is not a sustainable situation. We need to prioritize treatment. Isn’t that what you’d want for yourself or a loved one?”

Furey also announced plans for Toronto Public Health to work with the Toronto Police Service and its provincial health partners to push for more mandatory treatment options.

There are people who are not able to care for themselves and are a danger to others who should not be allowed to roam free,” Furey said. “They need our help. Law enforcement and the health profession should be supported and encouraged by the system to place more people into mandatory treatment. It’s the most humane and safest path forward.”

Provincial law currently allows for a physician to admit someone for mandatory treatment under specific circumstances. But the system does not currently encourage this approach and physicians have previously called for more options and support. Furey will see that City Hall pursues a coordinated approach that facilitates a greater volume of mandatory treatment.