‘You’ve Got to Be Kidding Me’: Premier Ford Opposes Toronto’s ‘Nightmare’ Drug Decriminalization Proposal

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has opposed a city of Toronto proposal to decriminalize the possession of hard drugs, calling the policy of decriminalization a “nightmare” where it has already been put into practice. The Ontario leader stated that the province should be doing more to invest in treatment for drug addicts as well as more investment in mental health. “That’s what we should be doing, not legalizing hard drugs. Like you got to be kidding me. Like letting people do cocaine and crack and heroin. You’ve got to be kidding me,” he said. In late March, the city of Toronto released a report on “Toronto’s Model of Decriminalizing Drugs for Personal Use,” which called on the federal government to grant an exemption request for the city for the possession of small amounts of illegal narcotics under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act....