Poilievre vows to revoke MAID for mental illness
Also proposes First Nations industry tax
• Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is promising to revoke the planned expansion of medical assistance in dying for people suffering solely from mental illnesses if he forms government.
“We will not expand MAID to include mental illness. So, where Justin Trudeau has delayed this decision until after the election, we will revoke it entirely,” he told reporters Thursday in Vancouver.
Poilievre accused Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of being “once again in the pursuit of a radical agenda that is totally out of step with the values of Canadians” and of seeking to expand MAID while many parts of the country are grappling with an opioid drug addiction crisis.
The federal government introduced legislation last week to seek another pause for assistance in dying for three years — until March 2027 — for those whose only medical condition is a mental illness. The next federal election must be held no later than fall 2025.
Federal Health Minister Mark Holland said Canada’s health system is still “not ready” for the expansion and that it was clear from the conversations he had had that “we need more time.”
The new legislation is in line with a recent report from the Special Joint Committee on Medical Assistance in Dying, which found an additional delay is needed to ensure the system can safely provide MAID.
Conservatives had already made it known that they would prefer the expansion be repealed altogether, but Poilievre fleshed out his intentions on Thursday.
“MAID will continue to be available for people who have irremediable health conditions, physical health conditions, as it is now,” he said. “But it will not be expanded to include mental health as a sole reason for a lethal injection.”
Canada introduced MAID in 2016, after the Supreme Court of Canada ruled in 2015 that adults with a “grievous and irremediable medical condition” have a right to an assisted death.
In 2019, the Quebec Superior Court ruled that it was unconstitutional to require that a person’s death be reasonably foreseeable to be eligible for MAID. The Liberals decided not to appeal this decision to higher courts and sought to update the law to reflect this change in 2021.
During that process, the Senate amended the new law to add a two-year sunset clause on people whose sole underlying condition is a mental illness and the government accepted that amendment.
But in 2023, the federal government decided to postpone that deadline for an extra year, arguing the healthcare system was just not ready and needed more time.
Conservatives have said that they will support legislation to extend the delay, but the bill might face some hardships in the Senate, where some Senators have already made it known that they are opposed to the government’s decision to extend MAID for mental illnesses.
The expansion is currently set to take place on March 17 if the new legislation is not adopted before then.
FIRST NATIONS TAX POWERS
Also on Thursday, Poilievre proposed a new plan for First Nations to collect taxes from
industry that he says would speed up negotiations and project approvals.
Poilievre promised that a future Conservative government would implement what he called an optional First Nations resource charge, garnering support from some Indigenous leaders and skepticism from others.
The policy was developed by the First Nations Tax Commission, an arm’slength body that works to support First Nations taxation, and brought to the party.
Poilievre made the announcement alongside First Nations leaders, dubbing the policy a First Nation-led solution to a made-in-ottawa problem.
The opt-in program would permit First Nations to collect 50 per cent of the federal taxes paid by industrial activities on their land, with industry getting a tax credit in exchange.
“The direct result of the Ottawa-knows-best approach has been poverty, substandard infrastructure and housing, unsafe drinking water and despair,” Poilievre said.
“Putting First Nations back in control of their money and letting them bring home the benefits of resource development will get faster buy-in for good projects to go ahead.”
Poilievre said the charge would not preclude communities from using other arrangements like impact benefit agreements, and that it would uphold treaty rights and the duty to consult.
Chief Donna Big Canoe of Chippewas of Georgina Island First Nation said alongside Poilievre that Canada’s legacy of colonialism has led to inequalities, and the resource charge is a step forward.
Poilievre has teased the plan before, saying he’s been holding consultations on it for about a year. But the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs said its member First Nations were not consulted on the initiative. The assembly is approaching the announcement “with caution,” it said in a Thursday news release, citing concerns about the approach of the last federal Conservative government under former prime minister Stephen Harper.
“It is crucial to acknowledge that First Nations are rights-holders, and any policy or law affecting them must involve meaningful consultation,” said grand chief Cathy Merrick.
IT WILL NOT BE EXPANDED TO INCLUDE MENTAL HEALTH.