Supervised drug consumption site in Winnipeg announced in budget
Plans for a future supervised drug consumption site in Winnipeg are becoming clearer following the release of the Manitoba budget.
The NDP government has set aside $2.5 million for a site in the North Main Street area of Winnipeg.
“We have a very interesting proposal brought forward by an Indigenous-led consortium on a supervised consumption site,” said Premier Wab Kinew. “We're looking at that.”
The site won’t be operating until 2025, the premier said, noting proper consultation with the community is required.
“How do you ensure the impacts on public safety and the immediate neighbourhood are going to be addressed? These things take time,” he said.
Nicole Richard, a Winnipeg resident who knows the area well, said a lot of people in the north Main Street area are struggling with addiction.
“I think it would be one hundred per cent beneficial,” she said.
Not everyone is convinced a safe consumption site is the right solution.
James Audy, a recovering addict and former drug dealer, believes the area will be a magnet for crime.
“It’s a place where a lot of drug dealers would go, a place where people, a lot of people would get hurt, their stuff stolen,” he said.
Harm reduction advocates have long been calling for a site, and welcomed the announcement.
“It would reduce infectious transmissions due to the sharing or the using of a tainted needle,” said Jason Whitford with End Homelessness Winnipeg.
“I’ve been waiting for this change for a long time, so I’m very pleased,” said Arlene Last-Kolb with Moms Stop The Harm.
However, they said there wasn’t enough in the budget to address the prevention of toxic drug deaths by providing a safe supply.
The budget set aside money to cover new initiatives for drug testing in Winnipeg and northern Manitoba. The government will also be spending $1.5 million to expand treatment options, and is spending $500,000 for 24/7 sobering centres in Brandon and Thompson.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Police officer hit by driver of fleeing vehicle in Toronto
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.
The kids from 'Mrs. Doubtfire' are all SUPER grown up now, and we're not OK
The adorable trio of child actors from the 1993 classic comedy 'Mrs. Doubtfire,' which starred the late and great Robin Williams, are all grown up and looking back on their seminal time together.
TD worst-case scenario more likely after drug money laundering allegations: analyst
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
Premier Legault reiterates that McGill pro-Palestinian camp must be dismantled
Quebec Premier François Legault reiterated that the pro-Palestinian encampment at McGill University must be dismantled while police remain 'on the lookout for new developments.'
Drew Carey is never quitting 'The Price Is Right'
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.
Video shows suspect setting Toronto-area barbershop on fire
Video of a suspect lighting a Richmond Hill barbershop on fire earlier this week has been released by police.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
'I have the will to live': N.B. woman needs double lung transplant
A New Brunswick woman suffering from sarcoidosis, a disease that limits your lung capacity, is in need of a double lung transplant.
Hulk Hogan, hurricanes and a blockbuster recording: A week in review of the Trump hush money trial
Crucial witnesses took the stand in the second week of testimony in Donald Trump's hush money trial, including a California lawyer who negotiated deals at the center of the case and a longtime adviser to the former president.