Government of Canada provides $10 million to combat drug-impaired driving in British Columbia
May 21, 2019, 15:13 ET
VANCOUVER, May 21, 2019 /CNW/ - Impaired driving is a leading cause of criminal injury and death in Canada. While drug-impaired driving has been illegal in Canada since 1925, too many Canadians still believe consuming cannabis does not impair their driving ability. Driving while impaired by cannabis, illicit drugs, or prescription and over-the-counter medications is a crime.
Today, the Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction, the Honourable Bill Blair, announced $10.1 million over five years to the Province of British Columbia to support law enforcement by increasing the number of frontline police officers trained in Standardized Field Sobriety Testing (SFST) and Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) evaluation, and establishing dedicated trainers to deliver new and refresher training.
This funding supports frontline law enforcement by ensuring they have the tools and training they need to keep communities safe. In addition to training, this funding will also be used to purchase approved drug screening devices, and develop standardized data collection and reporting practices that will be used to analyze trends, identify gaps and provide an accurate picture of drug-impaired driving in the province, and across Canada. The funding is part of the $81 million announced by the Government of Canada for provinces and territories to support public and road safety activities.
Quotes
"Our frontline law enforcement officers work hard each and every day, often through difficult conditions, to keep our roads safe. Provinces and Territories have asked for this support for appropriate training, tools, and data collection and our government has listened. I have seen the horrifying results of people making poor decisions throughout my law enforcement career. Those who believe they aren't impaired after consuming cannabis are dangerously misinformed and they will be caught. Make the smart choice and don't drive high."
- The Honourable Bill Blair, Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction
"It's critical that we can provide our law enforcement partners with the necessary tools to ensure they can protect our roads and highways from impaired drivers. The whole point is to get unsafe drivers off the road immediately and we are thankful the Federal Government has stepped up to help us support law enforcement to train more officers to recognize drug impairment and to purchase drug screening devices. This funding will support a robust law-enforcement program that cracks down on drug-affected driving leading to safer roads for everyone."
- The Honourable Mike Farnworth, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General, British Columbia
Quick Facts
- There are over 14,400 trained SFST officers across Canada (November 2018) and 1,046 certified DREs (May 1, 2019).
- For this agreement, British Columbia has established a training objective of 481 officers trained in SFST for 2018-2019 and up to 1,686 officers over 5 years, to bring the capacity to 50 per cent of frontline officers.
- Public Safety Canada introduced its second Don't Drive High public awareness advertisement in April 2019. The campaign will continue to engage young Canadians and leverage partnerships with other levels of governments and organizations that are working toward the same goal to eliminate drug-impaired driving on Canadian roads.
- Overall, 15% of cannabis users with a valid driver's license reported driving within two hours of consuming cannabis, according to combined data from the fourth quarter of 2018 and the first quarter of 2019. This was unchanged from the first half of 2018.
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Associated Links
- Cannabis in Canada
- Government of Canada's support to provinces and territories, law enforcement, research and public education to detect and deter drug-impaired drivers
- Public opinion research on drug impaired driving
SOURCE Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Canada
For further information: Marie-Emmanuelle Cadieux, Senior Communications Advisor, Office of the Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction, marie-emmanuelle.cadieux@canada.ca ; Media Relations, Public Safety Canada, 613-991-0657, ps.mediarelations-relationsaveclesmedias.sp@canada.ca
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