The House of Commons is set to hold a lengthy discussion Monday evening on how Canada should tackle its opioid crisis.
Members of parliament will debate a number of recommendations, including how to stop criminals from profiting from bringing illegal drugs like fentanyl into vulnerable communities, how to improve treatment services for drug users and how best to address the socio-economic conditions that push people towards drug use and related criminality.
WATCH: John Barlow recounts his best friend’s fight with opioid addiction
The discussion, scheduled for 7 p.m. ET on Monday, comes in the wake of a series of Global News investigations that laid bare how an assortment of criminal groups, ranging from China-based gangs and Mexican cartels to small-time street dealers, are making a killing from the fentanyl trade.
READ MORE: China won’t stop flood of fentanyl into Canada, sources say
Global News’ multi-part series, Fentanyl: Making a Killing, revealed that the scale of the fentanyl trade is so large that related money-laundering is suspected to have disrupted the Vancouver-area housing market.
While fentanyl traffickers and dealers gained astounding wealth, they have also left a trail of bodies behind — nearly a dozen Canadians died each day from opioid overdoses last year. Over 8,000 have lost their lives due to fentanyl use since 2016.
WATCH: How fentanyl gets into Canada
Behind those shocking statistics are tragic stories of individuals, families and communities plunged into crisis by the scourge of fentanyl.
WATCH: Global News reports on the impact of the opioid crisis on families
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Mothers losing children to fentanyl overdoses speak out on small community in crisis -
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The tragic impact of Canada’s opioid crisis on children -
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Six mothers who lost their children to fentanyl and carfentanil talk about what needs to change -
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Grandmother becomes parent again after son died from opioid overdose -
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Melissa Hurst says she’s frustrated that nothing was done after losing son to fentanyl overdose -
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Okanagan mother proposes solutions to opioid crisis
The plight of opioid-ravaged communities such as Simcoe County in southern Ontario, highlighted in Global News’ reporting, is expected to take centre-stage in Monday night’s discussions.
READ MORE: How lethal opioids devastated a small region of Ontario
Also likely to be discussed is the lack of specific plans to help children affected by the opioid crisis, data on which isn’t even collected by Statistics Canada.
WATCH: Coverage of Canada’s fentanyl crisis on Globalnews.ca
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The suspected kingpins of fentanyl in Canada -
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How profitable is fentanyl -
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How organized crime groups launder suspected drug money in B.C. real estate -
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Police investigation links dirty cash to luxury real estate -
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How fentanyl gets into Canada -
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What is the ‘Vancouver Model’? -
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Making a killing: Global News investigation into fentanyl trade
MPs will also be urged to look to success stories in jurisdictions such as Portugal and Miami, Fla., both of which have implemented radical policies — including allowing drug users access to outpatient programs in lieu of jail time — and discuss how Canada could follow their examples.
A range of recommendations tackling specific issues ranging from harm reduction, education and outreach to data collection, criminal penalties and federal-provincial-municipal cooperation are also expected to be discussed and debated.
— With files from Stewart Bell, Andrew Russell and Sam Cooper
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