A commentary by the MLA for Skeena, Official Opposition critic for mental health and addictions.

It has been five years since the NDP government began expanding what it calls “safe supply.”

In that time, not one provincial agency has provided clear, measurable answers to the most basic questions:

• Has the policy reduced ­overdose deaths?

• Has it prevented new cases of opioid addiction?

• Is it contributing to diversion and downstream harm?

• Are vulnerable youth and non-prescribed individuals gaining access?

The truth is: either the government doesn’t know — or it knows and refuses to release the data. Because if British Columbians saw the full picture, public confidence would collapse.

After half a decade, that’s not just negligence — it’s a betrayal. A betrayal of the thousands who have died, the families left behind and the communities now dealing with the fallout of a policy built on blind faith rather than evidence.

We’ve been told “safe supply saves lives,” but there is still no province-wide surveillance ­system to test that claim.

No standardized outcome tracking. No consistent data-sharing. No cross-jurisdictional monitoring of diversion.

There are simple, practical steps the government could have taken to improve oversight. One of the most obvious would be to make “safe supply” tablets chemically or visually distinct from other opioids........

© Times Colonist