MONTREAL — The federal justice minister said the government will uphold Canada’s drug laws.
READ MORE: Will Ottawa’s tightened rules stop supervised injection sites from opening?
Peter MacKay was responding to Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre’s commitment to proceeding with safe injection sites with — or without — Ottawa’s blessing.
MacKay said the Conservative government is focused on treating drug addicts as opposed to making “more available access to often illegal drugs.”
READ MORE: Conservatives to introduce tough new rules for supervised injection sites
Coderre said Montreal will open supervised injection facilities — where people can inject drugs without fear of arrest — regardless of what Ottawa says about it.
He said the project has been approved by city council and the provincial government. Montreal police have also been consulted.
READ MORE: Quebec OKs Montreal safe-injection sites
The federal government must grant an exemption under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act in order for a safe injection site to operate.
Quebec officially asked for the exemption at the beginning of May, but Ottawa has been publicly and strongly opposed to granting licences for facilities where people can inject drugs legally.
READ MORE: Safe injection sites in Montreal still need federal exemption
The only supervised injection facility in Canada is in Vancouver.
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