STONE – A better plan for making British Columbians feel safe in their communities
(Image: Mel Rothenburger)
By TODD STONE
MLA, Kamloops-South Thompson
PEOPLE DESERVE to feel safe in their communities. But, unfortunately, due to rising crime and overlapping crises, this is not the case for so many people across our province. For years, we have been forced to deal with the negative repercussions of the NDP’s catch-and-release justice system and its ineffective approaches to mental health and addictions.
MLA Todd Stone.
It’s clear that something needs to change, and soon. That’s why our BC United leader Kevin Falcon recently announced his ‘Safer B.C.’ plan — a roadmap of concrete actions a BC United government would immediately take to restore public safety, close David Eby’s revolving door of justice, and put the interests of law-abiding British Columbians first.
The plan is designed specifically to address the issues facing our province right now. It would include aggressively working to fill the 500 police vacancies across the province, as well as ensuring police agencies can attract and retain officers.
BC United would also end the NDP’s failed drug decriminalization experiment — which has only served to put more people at risk — focusing instead on a compassionate and evidence-based recovery approach to mental health and addictions, as articulated in our ‘Better is Possible’ mental health and addictions plan.
Additionally, our plan would implement alternative sentencing and rehabilitation, giving individuals facing sentencing the choice between traditional incarceration and secure treatment. This initiative would include constructing new facilities and repurposing existing prison spaces to make it possible to offer addiction and mental health services within BC Correctional institutions.
The central objective of this measure is to ensure people do not get released into the public with unresolved addiction or mental health challenges — protecting them as well as the wider community.
In contrast to David Eby and the NDP’s approach, BC United would take all crimes seriously. This means ensuring consequences for all crimes, including shoplifting, bike theft, hate crimes and vandalism. Not all crimes require jail time, but they should all have consequences.
The consequences should be particularly serious when people’s lives are put at risk or lost due to illegal activity, which is why our Safer B.C. plan would include pursuing civil consequences for drug dealers who sell lethal drugs that result in death by overdose.
Drug dealers deserve severe repercussions for preying on vulnerable British Columbians and selling fatal drugs like fentanyl, carfentanil and W-18. It’s time to make sure they are held accountable for the harm they have caused to so many people in our province.
No matter where you live in B.C., whether it’s downtown Kamloops, Fort St. John, or the heart of Vancouver, you should be able to feel comfortable in your neighbourhood and have confidence that government is working to keep you safe. However, over the last six years, we have watched that sense of security erode under the leadership of the NDP government and that is simply unacceptable.
British Columbians deserve a government that fights every day to create a safer B.C.
Todd Stone was elected MLA for Kamloops-South Thompson in 2013, 2017, and again in 2020. He currently serves as the Official Opposition House Leader as well as the Critic for Jobs, Economic Recovery, Trade and Innovation.
ArmchairMayor.ca 
Your statements on the Liberals’ record while in power are all fair game. They messed a bunch of things up and that is why they lost power to the NDP. But with your logic, we might as well not have elections any more because the Liberals made mistakes 10 years ago. They made mistakes. They were sent to the penalty box. We need to assess their approach to the problems we have today and compare them to the approach of the current NDP govt. One common complaint is that they criticize the govt without offering their solutions. However in this article, they are offering solutions. How about you critique their solutions compared to what is currently being done by the government. What do you think about reversing the drug decriminalization approach of the NDP. What do you think about forcing the justice system to either incarcerate or use forced treatment models instead of simply releasing back into the community where the offender will re-offend (often dozens of times). Personally, I think these ideas should be considered. The current approach is failing.
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I have never voted NDP, always right wing, including Terry Lake & Peter Milobar but never again.
I thought Todd Stone would have been a good leader, but now like Falcon and several others, nothing but big mouth to NDP with nothing possitive to help.
Kevin Falcon was Finance Minister, did he sell the Land held for a second hospital in Surrey to help balance the budget. Now nothing but big mouthing.
Was he Finance Minister that took the profit from ICBC & BC Hydro to balance the Budget?
Falcon was Health Minister, then Terry Lake Health Minister and he promised every person in BC would have a Doctor.
Health was a big mess turned over to NDP then Covid destroyed health care world wide but BC United has all the answers. What a Joke. Different name same trough.
Then Falcon lost the Leadership race to Christy Clarke and became Deputy Premier. Falcon was a big part of the 17 years of the worst Government in BC History.
Gordon Campbell gave us Carbon Tax July 2008, HST and took the Golden Handshake to Canada House in the UK. Then we got Christy Clarke the worst Premier in BC history, best asset was Byelections and China. Don’t forget Gordon Wilson.
Recently a BC Liberals MLA was elected in Surrey, retired RCMP member. We heard nothing from her as a RCMP about crime etc. but now all mouth.
I don’t know if the faults in the Justice system is Provincial or Federal but it seems to be the same across Canada so would that be Federal?
I disagree with the legal Drugs.
Then who closed Essendale / Riverview Hospital, Tranquille Hospital? I don’t believe it was NDP.
Conservate Party, please run 2 great candidates in Kamloops next election.
Then The Coquhalla Toll Booth. Under Campbell, millions of dollars were spent renovating it and with in weeks torn down. Loosing so much money from Tourist to help with Maintenance.
NOW KEVIN FALCON THINKS HE IS A LEADER!
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