Canadian province recriminalises open drug use after users move to public parks and beaches

A Canadian province hailed for its liberal approach to drugs has recriminalised public use of crack cocaine and heroin after addicts took to using the class-A substances on beaches and in public parks.

British Columbia has rolled back a core element of its drug harm reduction strategy by announcing it will once again enforce laws against possession of small amounts of the drugs in public.

The decriminalisation approach, launched in the province in January 2023, was designed to treat drug addiction as a health problem, rather than as a crime.

It means that drug users who are found with 2.5 grams or less of heavy narcotics will not face prosecution from the police. Instead, addicts are directed towards public health services.

The rule applies to heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine and ecstasy.

But the authorities have faced backlash from the public after drug users began taking crack cocaine, heroin and other drugs openly in leisure areas.

The southwestern province, which includes the city of Vancouver, has long struggled with high drug usage and been described as a pioneer of liberal drug laws, which have also been deployed in some US states.

The decriminalisation effort came in response to a drugs public health emergency, declared in 2016. Since then, more than 14,000 people have died of an overdose.

Last month, Fiona Wilson, the deputy chief of the Vancouver Police Department, told MPs that she had seen “several high-profile instances of problematic drug use at public locations including parks, beaches and around public transit”.

The concerns, from members of the public and small businesses, left police powerless to intervene.

“If you have someone who is with their family at the beach and there’s a person next to them smoking crack cocaine, it’s not a police matter,” she said.

David Eby, the province’s premier, said last month: “Keeping people safe is our highest priority.

“While we are caring and compassionate for those struggling with addiction, we do not accept street disorder that makes communities feel unsafe.”

‘Tough love’ needed to stop public drug use

Mr Eby said that while “addiction is a health issue … not a criminal law issue”, some “tough love” was needed to prevent drug use taking place in public areas.

He has requested that the federal government roll back the decriminalisation plans, making it illegal to use drugs in public spaces.

Ya’ara Saks, the Canadian minister of addictions and mental health, said on Tuesday that the request had been granted.

Mr Eby faces accusations from drug campaigners that it has changed its approach in response to public pressure ahead of an election in the province in October.

Garth Mullins, a member of the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users, told The New York Times that the reversal of decriminalisation would mean addicts would be less safe on the streets.

“This is going to force people back into the alleys and into the shadows, and that’s not good,” he said.

“It’s going to mean more people getting arrested, getting records and going to jail for simple possession.”

Shortly after the decriminalisation plans were launched, The Telegraph visited Vancouver to see the effect of the policy.

Jason Kenney, the former premier of neighbouring Alberta, told this newspaper at the time that the policy would “likely result in a dramatic increase in drug use, violence, trafficking and addiction – something that health systems are already overburdened with”.