Defeatist approach won’t work

LETTERS

Re: “Police deserve an apology,” Sept. 19 Lethbridge Herald.

Last week, my caucus colleagues and I travelled to Lethbridge to prepare for the fall session of the Legislature, and to engage with the local community.

We had the good fortune to meet with a wide range of residents and stakeholders and the issue that came up time and time again? The opioid crisis, and the apparent acceptance that local political leaders, including NDP Environment Minister Shannon Phillips, have had for the influx of poison into Lethbridge as the “new norm.”

The United Conservatives do not share this perspective. In comments to the local media, Jason Kenney indicated that a UCP government would not accept this defeatist approach to tackling the opioid crisis. We will not accept the shrugging of shoulders as the number of overdose deaths in this city continues to increase.

We want to empower police to crack down on the people importing and selling these dangerous drugs — while also helping the growing number of people already addicted — something the NDP has placed very little emphasis on up to now.

It is ridiculous to suggest that Mr. Kenney and the UCP have anything other than the utmost respect for law enforcement in Lethbridge and across the province. As a former police officer, I can tell you that our approach, which does not simply rely on harm reduction as a solution to this crisis, is more robust than anything put in place by the NDP.

It takes real leadership to tackle a crisis of this magnitude — leadership that so far, the people of Lethbridge have not seen from their government. It’s clear that Minister Phillips and her colleagues are feeling the heat as this crisis escalates, and meaningful change continues to elude them. As the election approaches, I have no doubt that this kind of over-heated rhetoric and false logic will only intensify.