'Treat people like adults': Doug Ford responds to alcohol at convenience store concerns

Ontario Premier Doug Ford dismissed concerns from mental health advocates about alcohol being sold in convenience stores on Thursday.

“We need to treat the people of Ontario like adults and that’s what we are doing. They have a responsibility to drink responsibly,” Ford said at a news conference.

Moments earlier, he announced that beer, wine and coolers will be sold at convenience and big box stores in Ontario by 2026.

Camille Quenneville, CEO of Canadian Mental Health Association in Ontario, noted that an increase in the number of alcohol stores has proven to increase negative health outcomes including violence, injuries, alcohol-related crashes, and death by suicide.

• Ontario allowing alcohol to be sold in convenience stores by 2026

"This is a healthcare issue," Quenneville said in a news release on Thursday.

Without a prevention plan, Quenneville said the expansion will place more strain on the already overloaded mental health and addictions system.

On Thursday the government committed $10 million over five years for public health efforts tied to safe alcohol sales and consumption, but even so, Quenneville urges caution, pointing to the more than 4,000 deaths and 22,000 hospitalizations in Ontario due to alcohol every year.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford arrives at a press availability at a convenience store in Toronto, Thursday, Dec. 14, 2023. The Ontario Government announced that in 2026 they will allow sales of beer, wine, cider, coolers and pre-mixed drinks to be sold at convenience stores, grocery stores and "big box" retailers.. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

President and CEO of the Ontario Safety League Brian Patterson also voiced concerns about making alcohol easier to access for minors. “Where is the assurance that soft drinks won’t be used as a gateway to market new alcohol based products to kids?" Patterson asked on Thursday.

“The province should give this idea a sober second thought.”

In response to a reporter’s question on the topic, Ford said, “That’s just not going to happen.”

“It’s no different than buying a pack of smokes or a lottery ticket.”