Drug Use and Offending

Q9. Are there provincial/territorial differences in the proportions and rates of drug offences reported by the police?

In 2000, British Columbia reported the highest drug offence rate among the provinces.

Majority of drug offences reported in Ontario

Of the 87,945 drug offences reported by the police in Canada, 33% were reported in Ontario, 25% in British Columbia and 22% in Quebec. The Atlantic provinces accounted for 7% of the volume reported in Canada, while the Prairie provinces reported 13% of all drug offences. The territories reported less than 1% of all drug offences in 2000. This is similar to the numbers reported in 1999.

Among the provinces, most have experienced increases in the overall drug offence rate from 1999 to 2000. The largest increases have been reported in Alberta (+19%) and Newfoundland (+13%) while the largest decreases were reported in Saskatchewan (-10%).