Alberta says no to B.C.’s safe supply

By Chantelle de Jonge Chestermere-Strathmore MLA

Last week, Canadians were shocked to learn that B.C. is planning to provide free recreational fentanyl to kids of all ages and are seeking to do this without the consent of parents or guardians. Our government will never adopt this so-called “safe supply” drug policy and have brought in regulations to prevent this and making this illegal in Alberta.

Alberta is on a better path. Since 2019, our government has added more than 10,000 addiction treatment spaces across the province and eliminated the $1,240 in monthly user fees that were once a barrier to treatment. We’re building 11 long-term recovery communities across the province (two are already open in Red Deer and Lethbridge). And we’ve expanded same-day access to life-saving treatment medication anywhere in the province through the Virtual Opioid Dependency Program.

Alberta’s government is providing housing providers with a one-time $10-million increase in operating funding to help them continue to house low-income Albertans during high inflation. This one-time funding has already been received by the province’s housing providers so they can address their immediate needs. It is in addition to the $165.9 million over three years that Budget 2023 allocated for housing providers to operate family and community housing. Through the Stronger Foundations plan, Alberta’s government is supporting $9 billion in housing investments to provide affordable housing for 82,000 more households by 2031.

The government is also investing more than $3.6 million to help post-secondaries advance research-driving innovation and technology development. The latest round of successful applications includes projects ranging from advancements in unmanned flight to developments in energy storage and agricultural technologies.

I want to continue hearing from you on issues that matter to you. I will be hosting a series of Coffee Meet & Greets across our constituency in the coming weeks. On Friday, January 26th, I will be at Rocky’s Bakery in Strathmore, located on 126 2nd Ave, from 10:00am to 11:30 am. Please stop by for a coffee and chat!

(Chantelle de Jonge is the MLA Elect for Chestermere-Strathmore and the Parliamentary Secretary for Affordability and Utilities)