Premier Doug Ford has vowed to shut the doors on ten supervised drug consumption sites as Ontario moves towards a recovery and housing model to deal with the addiction crisis.
The Ford government tabled its Safer Streets, Stronger Communities Act on Monday, which codifies a ban on where supervised injection sites can be located.
The legislation bans supervised drug consumption sites near child care centres and schools in response to growing public outcry, closing 10 existing sites, including five in Toronto.
The omnibus legislation is part of a broader bill introducing other changes involving sex offenders and auto theft.
While Ontario will still be permitted to greenlight municipal requests to the federal government regarding supervised consumption sites, Minister of Health Sylvia Jones confirmed that she doesn’t plan to approve said requests.
“Municipalities and organizations like public health units have to first come to the province because we don’t want them bypassing and getting any federal approval for something that we vehemently disagree with,” Jones told reporters on Monday.
The new legislation extends the provincial government’s powers in areas where it previously had to defer to the federal government, meaning cities will now have to seek approval from the provincial government first when requesting such facilities.
When asked what criteria would have to be met for the province to grant an exception, Jones made it “clear” that “there will be no further safe injection sites in the province of Ontario under our government.”
Within the announcement that it will be shutting down 10 existing sites, the Ontario government also announced the creation of 19 new intensive addiction recovery facilities that will be referred to as HART Hubs.
The new spaces, which will combine addiction recovery with 375 “highly supportive” housing units, have been granted a $378 million budget.
According to government figures, over 80 non-profit groups have already expressed interest in running 10 of the 19 hubs and preference will be given to those that have a pre-existing relationship with housing and addiction services.
The supervised sites slated to be shut down have until March 31 next year to close their doors, at which point the HART Hubs program is poised to be up and running, allowing for a smooth transition.
However, Jones noted that supervised consumption sites would still be closing in March even if the HART Hubs are not yet ready.
“We are assessing the proposals right now and we fully intend to have the approvals in place in time,” said Jones.
The Hubs will receive an annual budget of $6.3 million, with $1.3 million specifically allocated to supportive housing.
An additional $1.8 million will be granted for one-time startup costs.
“In a year from now, you will see HART hubs operationalized in the province of Ontario, 19 demonstration sites in total,” said Jones.
“We will be able to assess the efficacy, the ability for those HART models to actually provide the services out of addiction and into treatment pathways.”