Ontario proposes fast-tracking drug consumption site bill, skipping public hearings

A view of the Safe Injection Room in the Moss Park Consumption and Treatment Service in Toronto on Monday, Aug. 26, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young

The Ontario government is proposing to push through a bill that would close 10 supervised consumption sites without holding any public hearings.

The legislation seeks to prohibit and close any drug consumption sites that are within 200 metres of a school or daycare, and effectively prohibit any new sites from opening.

In their place, the government is launching 19 new "homelessness and addiction recovery treatment hubs" plus 375 highly supportive housing units at a planned cost of $378 million.

Government house leader Steve Clark has put forward a motion that would see the bill go straight from second reading to third reading, bypassing the committee stage that normally includes public hearings and considering amendments.

Clark says that Health Minister Sylvia Jones made the consumption site announcement back in August, and now the government needs to get the bill passed.

The bill is one of a number of pieces of legislation the government is fast-tracking, which is fuelling speculation of a provincial election earlier than the set June 2026 date.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 26, 2024.