Fentanyl czar Kevin Brosseau, right, who was appointed in February, said evidence shows Canada is not the source of illicit fentanyl being seized in the U.S., although domestic production is happening.Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press
Canada’s fentanyl czar says he is “singularly focused” on disrupting the flow of the synthetic opioid, regardless of U.S. efforts to weaponize trade policy over debunked claims that it is pouring south across the border.
In a wide-ranging interview with The Globe and Mail, Kevin Brosseau said evidence shows that Canada is not the provenance of the illicit fentanyl being seized stateside – despite President Donald Trump using that as a basis to justify some of his tariffs.
However, the rise of sophisticated, large-scale drug labs in Canada – including one dismantled last October in British Columbia that Mounties called the country’s biggest and most sophisticated to date – shows that domestic production is happening.
“I don’t want Canada to ultimately be a potential source,” Mr. Brosseau said Thursday.
“I don’t want anybody to rest on their laurels. The efforts that we take, with respect to strong measures taken against organized crime, will benefit Canadians – and, at the same time, will be seen to be benefiting Americans.”
White House using misleading fentanyl data to justify tariffs
Then-prime minister Justin Trudeau appointed Mr. Brosseau in February, 10 days after Mr. Trump signed an executive order saying that the flow of illicit drugs from Canada constituted an “unusual and extraordinary threat” that required expanded executive authority to impose tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
The White House repeatedly cited U.S. Customs and Border Protection data to assert that 43 pounds of fentanyl were seized at the northern border last year, and that this represented a “massive 2050% increase” compared with the year prior.
However, a Globe investigation and subsequent reporting found that just 0.74 pounds of fentanyl had originated in Canada. On April 2, a bipartisan coalition of U.S. senators voted in favour of ending what Senator Tim Kaine called a “fake emergency,” and, on May 28, the U.S. Court of International Trade ruled that Mr. Trump does not have “unbounded authority” to impose tariffs under the act.
“I try not to get mired in that mud, because I feel that would be a distraction to really trying to be clear with officers, police chiefs, prosecutors and others to say that, at the core, about 21 Canadians are dying per day of an opioid overdose,” Mr. Brosseau said. “Surely that ought to incentivize us to do as much as we can.”
Mr. Brosseau said his primary role is to integrate the various efforts under way to combat fentanyl. Mr. Trudeau in December announced a border plan that will inject $1.3-billion over six years to support the work of the RCMP, the Canada Border Services Agency, Canada’s cyberspies and the federal Public Safety Department.
How fentanyl transformed Victoria’s Pandora Avenue from downtown hub to open-air drug market
And on Tuesday, Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government tabled a border-security bill that would give police authority to search mail and compel electronic service providers to hand over information to support criminal investigations, among other new powers.
Mr. Brosseau described the bill as a concerted effort to respond to some long-standing concerns raised by police and a recognition that so much crime is being carried out in the digital space.
The bill would also give the Minister of Health power to more quickly classify as controlled substances precursor chemicals used to make fentanyl and other illicit drugs.
Jennifer Pelley, director of legislative and regulatory affairs for Health Canada, said the country already has “very strict” controls and regulations in place for these chemicals. In February, a ministerial order was issued to control three additional fentanyl precursors, but this had to be done through an exemption.
Ms. Pelley said the proposed legislative change would allow the minister to bar imported precursor chemicals used by organized crime and to allow companies to access them for legitimate needs. The chemicals are used in various industries, such as pharmaceuticals, and companies must meet specific requirements to receive a licence.
From increased police power to stricter immigration, here’s what’s in the new border bill
Eight months after the bust of the so-called “superlab” in Falkland, B.C., only one person has been charged. Critics have said that officers often work in siloes or even at cross purposes with investigators in other RCMP units or other police agencies, and better co-ordination is needed.
Asked about this, Mr. Brosseau cited the Joint Operational Intelligence Cell launched in March as part of the border plan, saying it was the first time he had seen intelligence services sharing information on organized crime with law enforcement.
Since his appointment, Mr. Brosseau says he has spoken with policy makers in both Canada and the U.S., law enforcement and experts from around the world. He has also met with front-line service providers, first responders, grieving family members and representatives from treatment and recovery centres.
“These problems aren’t simply about enforcement,” he said. “Arrests are obviously very important, and making sure police have the tools to be able to do so, but at the same time, this is so complex that that alone is not going to resolve it.”
With a report from Kristy Kirkup