Small-scale possession of illicit drugs will be decriminalized in B.C. starting next year: federal government

Adults in British Columbia will be allowed to possess small amounts of some illicit drugs starting next year, the federal government announced Tuesday.

The federal government says Canadians 18 years of age and older will be able to possess up to a cumulative 2.5 grams of opioids, cocaine, methamphetamine and MDMA within British Columbia. The announcement is in response to a request from the province for an exemption from the law criminalizing drug possession.

This first-of-its-kind exemption will go into effect January 31, 2023 and last until January 31, 2026.

Federal Minister of Mental Health and Addictions Carolyn Bennett and her provincial counterpart Sheila Malcolmson announced the policy shift together in Vancouver today.

The city has been the site of a surge in drug overdose deaths which accelerated throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. B.C. saw 2,224 suspected toxic illicit drug overdose deaths.

It’s a dramatic policy shift in favour of what decriminalization advocates say is an approach that treats addiction as a health issue, rather than a criminal one.

B.C., Vancouver and Toronto Public Health have all separately filed exemption requests to decriminalize possession of small amounts of illicit drugs.

Under the Controlled Drug and Substances Act, the health minister has the authority to grant exemptions if it is “necessary for a medical or scientific purpose or is otherwise in the public interest.” The federal government confirmed that the applications from Vancouver and Toronto Public Health are both still under review.

The principle of decriminalizing possession of a small amount of illicit drugs has been endorsed by the Canadian Association of the Chiefs of Police. The B.C. Association of Chiefs of Police also has supported the idea, though it recommended decriminalizing possession of just 1 cumulative gram.

While the federal government has granted an exemption, it’s not giving B.C. exactly what it asked for.

One major difference is the quantity of drugs being decriminalized for personal possession. B.C. asked for a cumulative 4.5 grams — the federal exemption allows for just 2.5 grams.

Health Canada said it consulted numerous sources of information to set its possession threshold. It also acknowledged a lack of evidence to determine what an effective threshold would be. The department said that once the exemption is in place, it will be thoroughly examined by a third party and its details could change as evidence is gathered and analyzed.

Delaying implementation until January 2023 was meant to give governments and agencies time for training, consultation and outreach, and to otherwise prepare for the shift in policy, federal and provincial officials said.

Activities like production, trafficking still illegal

The exemption carries certain other limitations. It does not apply on the premises of elementary or secondary schools, in child care facilities or airports. It does not apply to Canadians subject to the military’s disciplinary code.

The B.C. Ministry of Health said that they view decriminalization as only one part of a set of policies meant to address the opioid overdose crisis.

Health Canada said that the exemption does not decriminalize activities like trafficking, producing, importing or exporting controlled substances.

The exemption comes just a day before a vote is expected on a decriminalization bill put forward by NDP MP Gord Johns.

CBC