BC Conservative Party Leader Lorne Doerkson announced on Tuesday that a Conservative government will take back our streets from hard drugs and disorder, restoring safety to towns and cities across British Columbia.
“British Columbia is the most beautiful place in the world. But after a decade of the NDP, our communities have been devastated by crime,” said Doerkson. “People don’t feel safe going downtown anymore. Families have to share parks and walking paths with chronic drug users who have been captured by horrific drugs like fentanyl.”
He said that British Columbia has been devastated by the NDP’s dangerous drug policies. David Eby pushed to fast-track the province’s hard drug decriminalization program, and continues to tell the police that hard drug use, even when it breaks the law, is not a criminal issue. Drug overdoses are now the leading cause of death for young British Columbians.
Main streets across the province have paid the price, as open drug use and disorder drive away customers, families and small businesses. Almost 90 percent of businesses stated that crime is impacting their business or district. And nearly 40 percent reported losses exceeding $5,000.
For this reason, the Conservative Party of BC will take the following action:
- End street disorder by deploying more police to the hardest-hit neighbourhoods.
- Improve access to mental health care by expanding psychiatric services, crisis response and residential treatment.
- Introduce compassionate intervention so that people whose severe addiction, mental illness or brain injury are taken off the street and into care.
- Empower police to enforce the Mental Health Act and amend the Act so officers can connect people with mandatory treatment.
- Hire and deploy 250 more police officers by expanding the JIBC Police Academy.
- Add 500 RCMP officers and 150 civilian staff over five years to restore policing in rural and regional communities where crime is rampant.
- Hire 50 new Crown prosecutors, work with Ottawa to fund 20 more trial judges, and add sheriff and court capacity so criminals no longer walk free because of delays.
- End the NDP’s failed “safe supply” experiment and expand access to naloxone.
- Stop illegal drug use in hospitals, shelters and publicly funded supportive housing, so residents and staff are protected.
- Report public safety results openly, tracking repeat offending, bail compliance, court delays, treatment access and long-term recovery.
“Our streets belong to families and small businesses, not to drug dealers and disorder,” said Doerkson. “A Conservative government will hire hundreds more police and prosecutors, give officers the power to enforce the law, and take back our streets.”
