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Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown wants Ontario to get rid of homeless encampments by using controversial measures that experts say go against the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

In an open letter, Brown and some members of Ontario’s big city mayors’ group called on Premier Doug Ford to help cities and towns “with issues related to mental health, addiction and homeless encampments.” ”.

The mayors are calling on Ford to invoke the notwithstanding clause “when necessary” despite warnings from civil rights advocates who say using the measure is “deeply problematic.”

The request came after Ford challenged mayors last month to directly ask the government to get involved, asking whether they “have the backbone to do it if they really want the situation for homeless people to improve.”

The letter was signed by Brown along with the mayors of Pickering, Oakville, Barrie, Cambridge, Oshawa and others. Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish’s signature is not on the list of demands, as is Ottawa Mayor Mark Sutcliffe’s.

In the letter, the mayors call on the Ford government to intervene in court challenges that would paralyze municipalities when dealing with encampments, introduce legislation on the “open and public use of drugs”, change the Trespass Law to include jail sentences for repeat offenders, and create a drug diversion court to relieve pressure on the legal system.

The mayors are also calling for the province to “strengthen the existing system” of involuntary mental health and addictions treatment, similar to a watered-down motion that sought to ask Ontario to introduce forced treatment on a broader scale.

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association called the previous proposal “dangerous” for fundamental rights and freedoms.

Invoking the notwithstanding clause gives Canadian parliaments the power to pass legislation that overrides parts of the charter for a period of five years. The province would have to use the clause to circumvent a 2023 decision by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice that rejected the Region of Waterloo’s efforts to clear the encampments.

Around 50 people moved from Brampton camps this June after Brampton city councilors raised safety concerns related to residents living in tents and structures in Calvert Park.

Many of the occupants were moved to Peel Region shelters, including a motel used to house at-risk people, but a local outreach group said many of its clients were left isolated by the move and have had difficulty accessing to services such as addictions and mental health. deals.

Involuntary treatment is already an option for serious cases if someone poses a danger to themselves or others in Ontario under the Mental Health Act. But Brown has said he favors expanding the program to reduce the number of overdose deaths and free up police resources.

Peel Regional Police say there were 18,000 police-attended overdoses and 328 drug deaths between January 2022 and June 2024 in Mississauga and Brampton. Officers have spent more than 30,000 hours waiting in the hospital for mental health and addiction calls since 2022, “instead of being on the front lines protecting the community,” he said.

Peel Regional Council rejected a motion from Brown calling for support for mandatory treatment and instead called on the province to commit more funding to voluntary treatment programs.

We need the tools to work in camps where prolific drug use and violence affects our communities. We ask the province to take steps now towards a permanent, long-term solution to treat addiction and restore safety to our parks and streets. pic.twitter.com/8MJSw4WWb3

– Alex Nuttall (@AlexFromBarrie) October 31, 2024

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