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November 2nd, 2017

Jagmeet Singh takes a hands-on approach to opioid crisis

VANCOUVER – On Thursday, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh urged the federal government to do more in the fight against opioid related overdoses while visiting an overdose prevention site in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside known as ‘62’.

“If people were dying in these numbers from any other cause the government wouldn’t hesitate to deploy all the resources needed to address the crisis,” said Singh. “Yet, for a year now the Liberals have refused to declare this a Public Health Emergency which would provide additional support for these amazing front lines workers.”

Singh said such a national declaration could designate pop-up sites like ‘62’ as official emergency sites, bringing them into the legal framework and able to receive federal support. While there, Singh also learned how to administer the life saving drug naloxone, training he says more Canadians should receive.

“This isn’t just happening in downtown cores. It’s happening in the suburbs, in rural communities. Everywhere,” Singh said. “I fundamentally believe it’s our shared responsibility to save lives.”