B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton dead following prison attack
Convicted B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton, who preyed on women he lured from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside to his rural pig farm, has died.
The Scottish government has proposed decriminalizing possession of all drugs for personal use to tackle one of Europe's highest overdose death rates.
The suggestion was almost instantly blocked by the Conservative U.K. government in London, which said it had "no plans" to soften drug laws.
The semi-autonomous Edinburgh government, led by the pro-independence Scottish National Party, said Friday that removing criminal penalties for drug possession would "allow for the provision of safe, evidence-based harm reduction services."
Scotland's death rate from drug overdoses is three times the rate in the U.K. as a whole and the highest in Western Europe. Last year there were almost 1,100 drug-related deaths in Scotland, which has a population of 5.5 million, according to government figures.
"The war on drugs has failed," Scottish drugs minister Elena Whitham said at a news conference alongside former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and ex-Swiss President Ruth Dreifuss, both advocates of drug law reform.
"Our current drug law does not stop people from using drugs, it does not stop people from experiencing the harm associated and, critically, it does not stop people from dying," Whitham said.
The Scottish government said decriminalization would free "individuals from the fear of accessing treatment and support, reducing drug-related harms and, ultimately, improving lives." It cited the example of Portugal, which ditched criminal penalties for drug possession more than two decades ago and focused on treatment.
Whitham said the government also wanted to change the law so it could create supervised drug consumption rooms and would consider introducing the regulated supply of drugs.
She said the crisis would worsen without radical change. She said Scotland was "facing down the barrel of a storm in terms of synthetic opioids and new and novel street benzodiazepines that are heading to our shores."
"If we are not prepared for that arriving here, with 21st century drug laws in place, I'm terrified as to what that could look like," she said.
But Russell Findlay, justice spokesman for the Scottish Conservative Party, said "essentially legalizing heroin, crack and other class-A drugs" would not solve Scotland's drug deaths problem.
Scotland already allows people caught with illegal drugs to be given a police warning rather than being prosecuted, but decriminalizing drugs would require support from the U.K. government.
Max Blain, spokesman for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, said that was not going to happen.
"There are no plans to alter our tough stance on drugs," he said.
The Scottish government has often taken more liberal positions on social issues than the Conservative administration in London. Last year a law passed by the Scottish parliament that would make it easier for people to officially change gender was blocked by Sunak's government.
The governing SNP uses such disagreements to bolster its argument that Scotland would be better off leaving the United Kingdom and becoming an independent country.
Convicted B.C. serial killer Robert Pickton, who preyed on women he lured from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside to his rural pig farm, has died.
The federal Liberal government learned Friday it might have to retreat on a proposal within its electoral reform legislation to delay the next vote by one week, after all opposition parties came out to say they can't support it.
The ex-husband of Tatjana Stefanski – the woman whose disappearance and death set the small town of Lumby, B.C., on edge last month – has been charged with her murder.
Ryan Nugent-Hopkins scored two power-play goals as Edmonton smothered the Dallas Stars 3-1 to take a 3-2 lead in the NHL's Western Conference final on Friday.
A newborn is dead after being delivered via emergency C-section to a woman in police custody.
Jennifer Lopez has cancelled her 2024 North American tour, representatives for Live Nation confirmed to The Associated Press.
There's a luxury 'tree home' for sale in Calgary.
The Department of National Defence is moving approximately 1,000 employees out of an office building in Ottawa's Lowertown neighbourhood, citing safety concerns for its employees.
A man convicted of murdering a Toronto police officer more than four decades ago has been granted day parole for six months.
A hefty donation by a renowned local activist to the University of Winnipeg has created what is believed to be the most comprehensive two-spirit archives in all of Canada.
Leanne Van Bergen discovered a skulk of 10 baby foxes, and two mothers, had made themselves at home on her property in Beausejour.
An 81-year-old Waterloo, Ont. woman thought she’d never ride a horse again after a brain bleed led to severe physical complications.
A CP24 camera caught the moment a driver frantically got out of her car as it was being dragged by a truck on Avenue Road Wednesday afternoon.
Prince Edward Island is celebrating its first-ever International Day of Potato on Thursday.
The president of Covered Bridge Chips in New Brunswick is hoping to have his factory rebuilt for late 2025 following a devastating fire last year.
Students and staff at Winnipeg’s Westwood Collegiate had a unique problem to solve this month; how do you lead ducks to water from the school’s courtyard when 12 of them can’t fly yet?
Debby Lorinczy remembers her father as an amazing person and as a man who also made an amazing discovery.
Abigail Strate is a member of the Canadian national ski jumping team and an Olympic bronze medallist. She's also a certified beekeeper.