TORY GOVERNMENT WOULD BE A STEP BACK FOR CANADA'S DRUG POLICY,
THINK-TANK SAYS

Electing a Conservative government would be a huge step backwards for
Canadian drug policy, according to an international think-tank.

The Senlis Council said Friday that a Conservative victory in Monday's
federal election would blunt the innovative approaches Canada has
taken to combat the effects of illegal drug use.

The organization said the harm reduction measures such as the needle
exchange and safe injection sites in Vancouver were examples of
progressive steps supported by the federal Liberal government.

The Senlis Council argued a Conservative government would not support
harm reduction policies, nor would it decriminalize possession of
small amounts of marijuana.

"The individuals responsible for Conservative Party policy do not
appear to be asking themselves whether or not the methods used to
combat drug abuse and trafficking over the past 40 years of the drug
war are working or not.

"The repressive, law-enforcement-based 'War on Drugs' approach has
clearly not been effective, and other solutions should be considered,"
the Council said Friday in a press release.

The Senlis Council was established in 2002 by a network of European
drug policy foundations in Senlis, France.