Ontario Big City Mayors are asking the province to review mental-health laws and whether to expand the scope of involuntary treatment for people who are addicted to drugs and live on the streets.
The organization that represents 29 mayors of cities with more than 100,000 people say they are taking no position on treatment given without consent — a practice British Columbia’s government recently committed to expanding.
But they say they want to spark a discussion with the provincial government, noting homelessness has risen across Ontario since the COVID-19 pandemic, in communities big and small.
Encampments have popped up in recent years throughout the province, while the cost of both purchasing and renting housing has increased significantly.
Toxic overdose deaths are also up, and the mayors are demanding immediate action from both the province and the federal government.
Last year, nearly 2,600 Ontarians died due to opioids, a 50 per …