Yukon Party pledges new treatment centre

The Yukon Party promises to build a new, $5-milliondrug and alcohol treatment centre in downtown Whitehorse if it's re-elected, leader Darrell Pasloski said during his weekly election news conference Wednesday.

His party would tear down theSarah Steele building and replace it with a residentialcentre that would be "more all encompassing," he said.

Inaddition to the standard 28-day treatment program, there would also be after-care services to help prevent relapses. The centre would have medical staff, which should relieve some of the pressure currently on the Whitehorse hospital's emergency ward, said Pasloski.

Separate programs for young addictsare also part of the party's plan to deal with drug and alcohol problems.

"My background is in health and dealing with health and social issues and this is a priority for me," said Pasloski, who is a pharmacist by profession.

"This is a health issue and this transcends and affects all our communities," he said. "We need to now start to deal with it."

Addictions are also a big burden to the government's coffers - especially the health and justice departments, he said.