Plan for the Ban: Federal Court of Appeal Upholds Order Underlying Canada's Single-use Plastics Prohibition Regulations - McMillan LLP

In a watershed moment for the drug user liberation movement, the BC Supreme Court has ruled that section 5(2) of the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA) – the linchpin of Canada's drug trafficking prohibition regime – is unconstitutional. Canada has six months to re-legislate in accordance with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the findings of the Court. The case centers on Jeremey Kalicum and Eris Nyx – co-founders of the Drug User Liberation Front (DULF), a compassion club that offered supervised consumption and low-barrier access to a rigorously tested drug supply in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside (DTES) from August 2022 until October 2023. Kalicum and Nyx were charged and convicted of drug trafficking under s. 5(2) of the CDSA. In response, the pair argued that section 5(2) is unenforceable, because it violates sections 7 and 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (the right to life, liberty, and security of the person, and the right to equal treatment under the law).

Canadian inflation held at 3% year-over-year in August, unchanged from July. Energy price growth remained elevated but was little changed, with gasoline prices edging lower from July while remaining 23% above year-ago levels. Food inflation continued to put pressure on household budgets but ticked lower to 2.8% year-over-year in August, the lowest since late 2024. Underlying inflation pressures remained comparatively contained. CPI excluding food and energy edged up to 2.1% year-over-year, while the Bank of Canada’s preferred CPI-trim and CPI-median measures remained close to the 2% target. Measures of inflation breadth were also contained, suggesting that unusually strong price growth remained concentrated in a relatively narrow group of categories.