Taking action to protect our community
by Peter Van Loan, MP York-Simcoe

Canada's New Government will Introduce Drug-Impaired Driving Legislation

Canada's New Government will take action to help police keep drug impaired drivers off the road. We hope to make drug-impaired driving as socially unacceptable as drunk driving has become amongst adults and teens alike.

Our Government recognizes the need to target drug-impaired driving. We are prepared to take action to prevent future drugimpaired incidents. The objective of the proposed legislation is to avoid reckless deaths and injuries of innocent people.

For many years Mothers Against Drunk Driving has been working to raise awareness and to crack down on impaired drivers. Over the past year we have significantly stepped up our campaign to target both alcohol and drug impairment. It is particularly gratifying to be part of a government that will take meaningful steps to save the lives of innocent Canadians.

Under the proposed legislation Canada's new government will:

- Provide police with more tools to detect drugimpaired drivers;

- Increase penalties for drug-impaired driving;

- Strengthen presumptions of breath and blood tests; and

- Promote awareness about drug-impaired driving with partners like MADD.

Drug-impaired driving often has terrible consequences for people, families and communities. Government, police, parents and organizations like MADD can work together to save lives and make our community safer by educating Canadians about the dangers of driving high.

Cracking down on drugimpaired driving is just one of a number of initiatives to tackle crime Canada's new Government has introduced since January. These include legislation to:

- Impose stricter conditions on dangerous offenders;

- End conditional sentences (require jail time rather than house arrest) for serious offences;

- Implement mandatory minimum sentences for crimes involving guns; and

- Crack down on street racing.

Canada's new Government is protecting the safety and security of the residents of York- Simcoe!