'A failed policy': Ford defends safe injection site closures during St. Catharines stop

What was supposed to be a feelgood event in St. Catharines to announce funding to train workers for shipbuilding wound up with Premier Doug Ford defending his government’s decision to close supervised safe injection sites across the province.

“I've listened to the people in the neighbourhoods. I've consulted with them,” Ford said. “I've been getting endless phone calls about needles being in the parks, needles being by the schools and by the day cares. That's unacceptable.”

Instead, the government will convert the sites to so-called HART (Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment) Hubs which Ford said will provide people living with addiction to get the care they need to recover, including primary health care, mental health services, addiction care and support. The province, he said, will be investing $378 million into the initiative.

“We need to get rid of safe supply. We need to put money into treatment detox beds,” he said. “That's what we need to do, not continue to giving people free drugs.”

In his estimation, Ford said the safe injection sites simply did not work.

“This was supposed to be the greatest thing since sliced bread,” he said. “It's the worst thing that could ever happen to a community to have one of these safe injection sites in their neighbourhood.”

He also called it “scare tactics” put forward by supporters of the sites who say that closing them will only result in more public drug use in places such as parks.

“It's a failed policy, simple as that,” Ford said. “We're making a better policy, $378 million to help these people, support them, get them help, get them back on their feet, get them a good paying job.”

In addition to the issue of addiction, Ford was also asked if municipalities, who are finding themselves dealing with more and more homelessness, could expect any help from Queen’s Park.

Ford said the Province has put “hundreds of millions of dollars” into helping municipalities deal with homelessness.

“We're always willing to sit down and talk to the mayors and see their situation, but we're there to support them,” Ford said, adding that “there’s no government that's put more money into homeless and homeless shelters, mental health and addiction than this government has.”

Niagara West MPP Sam Oosterhoff defended the government’s work on the homelessness file and said that Niagara has received plenty of help.

“Last year, Niagara received an 86 per cent increase in their homelessness prevention program funding allocation," Oosterhoff said, adding that funding was increased to $21 million a year, up from a little under $11 million.

As for the scheduled funding announcement, Ford was at Ontario Shipyards in St. Catharines on Wednesday to announce $10 million in funding via its Skills Development Fund to train workers for careers in shipbuilding and repair.

David Piccini, Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, said Ontario shipbuilding workers are ready to step up and play a bigger role in the industry in Canada.

“Gone are the days where Ontario is looked to for just maintenance and repairs, but rather, Ontario workers are the ones to build the ships as well,” he said. “Ontario wants in.”

St. Catharines Mayor Mat Siscoe said the shipbuilding and repair have played a vital role in the city’s economy for generations. The funding will help provide the means for that to continue, he said.

“We know that our industrial base is capable of meeting the demands of the 21st century with the right training opportunities.”

Shaun Padulo, chief executive officer of Ontario Shipyards said the Province has been a great booster of the shipbuilding industry in the province. He said the Skills Development Fund has been a great help to the company in good times and the bad.

“(The fund) has been crucial during times when work was scarce, allowing us to keep our workforce intact through various training initiatives,” he said. “This support has directly benefited over 250 families, ensuring their stability.”

The Skills Development Fund helps partner employers, unions and other organizations to connect job seekers with potential employers and is a part of a $1.4 billion investment by the province designed to increase the workforce and productivity in Ontario.

With the investment, Ontario Shipyards will deliver programs to train, re-skill and upskill workers in millwright, welding, electrical and painting trades in its yards in St. Catharines, Hamilton and Thunder Bay. Courses will include ship building and ship repair, shipyard orientation and health and safety procedures, along with professional development, leadership training and mentoring to recruit and retain the next generation of leaders and workers.