No time to redo proposal on decriminalization of drugs: mayor

Vancouver's mayor says he understands some drug users aren't happy with the city's proposed model for decriminalization, but time is of the essence and the details can be worked out later.

Kennedy Stewart said Wednesday that a federal election could see the small window of opportunity close on the city's bid for an exemption from criminal provisions on simple possession of small amounts of drugs.

“This could all go away,” Stewart told reporters.

The mayor also defended the role police have played in shaping the so-called “Vancouver model” proposal, adding there's no way the federal cabinet will approve a pitch that doesn't have the support of law enforcement.

In 2020, 1,716 people died of drug overdoses across B.C., the highest in a single year.

The city's proposal has come under fire from some advocates. In a letter this week to federal Health Minister Patty Hajdu as well as the Vancouver and B.C. working groups on decriminalization, a coalition of 15 organizations said the proposal to Ottawa must be scrapped immediately as it risks reproducing the harms of prohibition.

The coalition asked the city to raise the proposed drug thresholds from a three-day supply and demanded the police department take a back seat in discussions.

Two members of the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users' board of directors, Brian O'Donnell and David Hamm, said the proposed threshold is about half of what it should be and will mean an increase in users' interactions with both drug dealers and police.