RCMP OPPOSES MORE DRUG INJECTION SITES

The Force Wants To See Evidence That Supervised Injection Helps Cure Addicts

The RCMP says it would oppose opening any more supervised injection
sites in Canada until it sees convincing evidence that such sites
help get people off drugs.

B.C. RCMP spokesman John Ward says because Vancouver's supervised
injection site does not fall under RCMP jurisdiction, it is not
appropriate for the RCMP to offer an opinion on whether it should remain open.

(The Vancouver police department, which is responsible for enforcing
laws around the site, says it should.)

However, Ward said the RCMP would oppose opening more sites elsewhere
in the country.

"We can't oppose [the Vancouver site] because it's not in our
jurisdiction," Ward said. "But we would certainly oppose any site
like that in RCMP jurisdiction."

He was commenting on an RCMP press release issued Monday in which it
said the force is "engaged in discussions with our community,
government and law enforcement partners on this issue."

"Until research is completed, we oppose the expansion of the
[injection site] pilot project in Vancouver. The decision to have
supervised injection sites is a government of Canada decision."

The release was issued, Ward said, to refute earlier media reports
that said the RCMP supported supervised injection sites.

Vancouver's site, known as Insite, is scheduled to close Sept. 12
unless Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative government grants
a proposed extension to Section 56 of the Controlled Drugs and
Substances Act, under which the Downtown Eastside facility operates.

Both Harper and Health Minister Tony Clement have said little on the
matter, and it is not known when they will make a decision.

But the doctor responsible for overseeing scientific research around
Insite said Ward's comments mean the RCMP is not properly acquainted
with the research done so far.

Dr. Thomas Kerr said several peer-reviewed scientific studies have
been published showing that the RCMP is wrong, and that Insite does
lead to users enrolling in addiction treatment, or detox, programs.

The most recent study, he said, showed that since the site opened
three years ago, the rate of drug users seeking such help is
33-per-cent higher than it was before the site opened.

Kerr said that study was published in the New England Journal of
Medicine, and suggested if the RCMP disagrees with its conclusions,
they should take up their disagreements with the magazine's editorial board.

He also said law enforcement on its own has proved to have no effect
on reducing drug use in the community, whereas Insite has led to a
dramatic drop in overdose deaths and the transfer of HIV and AIDS
through dirty needles.

"Because we've ruled out any negative effects that the site may have,
those positive benefits alone should justify the existence of the
program," Kerr said.

He also said that while it's "concerning" that the government still
hasn't made a decision on the site, he is optimistic that it would remain open.

"We remain optimistic based on the fact that [Clement] has repeatedly
stated that he needs to review the evidence. And that's what we want
- -- for him to make a decision based on the evidence and not on ideology."