Canada-US relations: How serious is the Fentanyl problem?

Representative Image. / iStock photo

Donald Trump spares no opportunity to slam Canada for its porous borders that pave the way for the smuggling of synthetic Fentanyl. He wants his immediate neighbors – Mexico and Canada – to act fast and stop smuggling, both Fentanyl and illegal aliens.

But how serious is this Fentanyl problem?

Gauging the gravity of the Fentanyl accusations by the US, the leader of the Opposition in the Canadian House of Commons, Pierre Poilievre, moved a resolution urging Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to “protect our people from dangers of drugs". Though the motion was defeated 210-121, it did evoke an animated debate before being put to vote this week.

Speaking in the House of Commons, the Conservative Leader held that after nine years, the NDP-Liberal Government’s radical hard drug liberalization has spread death and disorder across Canada. Since Justin Trudeau became Prime Minister, 47,000 Canadians have died of drug overdoses, representing a 200 per cent increase since 2016. We have lost more Canadians through drug overdoses than we did in World War Two.

For this reason, he said the Common Sense Conservatives had put forward a motion in the House of Commons, calling on Trudeau to protect our people from dangerous drugs. This includes reversing the Liberals’ catch-and-release Bill C-5, which eliminated mandatory jail time for certain violent offenders.

The Conservative motion also advocated for longer jail sentences for drug kingpins, besides demanding a ban on the importation of fentanyl precursors. It also urged the Trudeau government to stop buying dangerous opioids which are diverted to teenagers and other vulnerable Canadians.

It also called upon Justin Trudeau to secure Canadian ports against fentanyl by buying high-powered scanners and putting more boots on the ground there to stop fentanyl and its ingredients from coming into our country.

In the 12 months ending September this year, Pierre Poilievre said, US border agents seized about 11,600 pounds of drugs entering the United States from Canada. Seizures of fentanyl doses more than tripled between 2023 and 2024, rising from 239,000 doses to 839,000. A year ago, CSIS told Trudeau that they had identified more than 350 organised crime groups actively involved in the domestic illegal fentanyl market. And just last month, the RCMP uncovered a “super lab” operating in rural British Columbia that was capable of producing 95 million lethal doses of fentanyl. Incidentally, the kingpin of this lab has been a person of South Asian descent.

Pierre Poilievre referred to this seizure as a part of his speech. Much before the election of the US President, the Pacific Region RCMP Federal Policing program busted a major transnational organized crime group as it tracked down the largest and most sophisticated fentanyl and methamphetamine drug super lab in Canada. The combined fentanyl and precursors seized at this facility could have amounted to over 95,500,000 potentially lethal doses of fentanyl.

The Canadian law enforcement agencies have been making proactive efforts to combat the domestic production, and international export of fentanyl and methamphetamine. It has been a part of this drive that the RCMP Federal Policing units in BC started an investigation into a transnational organized crime group believed to be involved in the mass production, and distribution of fentanyl and methamphetamine across Canada, and internationally.

On Oct.25, a multiple agency task force executed search warrants on a massive drug super lab in Falkland, and associated locations in the city of Surrey in British Columbia.

After the success of its biggest-ever combined operation, the investigating agencies described it as the largest, and most sophisticated of its kind with the capability of producing multiple types of illicit drugs, Federal investigators seized 54 kg of fentanyl, massive amounts of precursor chemicals, 390 kg of methamphetamine, 35 kg of cocaine, 15 kg of MDMA, and 6 kg of cannabis. Investigators seized a total of 89 firearms, which included 45 handguns, 21 AR-15-style rifles, and submachine guns; many of which were loaded and ready for use. To date, nine of these guns have been identified as stolen.
The searches also yielded small explosive devices, large amounts of ammunition, firearm silencers, high-capacity magazines, body armor, and $500,000 (US $351,060.00) in cash.

Gaganpreet Randhawa was identified as the main suspect, and arrested by Federal Policing Group-6 investigators. Randhawa was taken into custody and has been charged with numerous drug, and firearms-related offences.

Pierre Poilievre asked: “What has Trudeau done? Absolutely nothing, other than trying to legalize and liberalize these same drugs. And now, President-elect Trump is threatening tariffs over fentanyl that would devastate our economy. This crisis must be fixed, not just to save our economy, but to save Canadian lives, with over 80 per cent of accidental opioid deaths involving fentanyl.

“Enough is enough. The NDP-Liberal Government must end their dangerous hard drug experiments, secure our border, and bring home our loved ones drug-free.”

Led by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, other Liberals who joined the debate, accused the Conservatives of cutting down the strength of the Canadian Border Agency during its previous government. They assured the House that all necessary steps were being taken to strengthen Border vigilance with helicopters and drones besides other means.

When the Prime Minister and his Cabinet colleagues met Premiers, they revealed plans to plug the holes in border security.