The vanity plates is just another tilting at windmills thing Rob and most of don't care but personally I think the whole program sucks and I continually ask the question; "Who pays for the "drugs" and from where does that money come?"
Vanity plates needle council members |
The Toronto Public Health needle exchange program has three vans on the road and each one has a personalized vanity licence plate, angering some councillors who view it as a waste of taxpayers' money.
"It's ridiculous," Councillor Rob Ford said. "The vanity plates are another example of a complete waste of taxpayers' money. Why are we paying for people's home delivery of needles anyways? It's absurd and appalling, if you ask me."
Councillor Doug Holyday said in other departments "they differentiate vehicles like Toronto parks, fire trucks and buses by a code number on the vehicle. It's a far less expensive way of identifying vehicles and that system works for everyone else."
Shaun Hopkins, manager of The Works, the needle exchange program run by Toronto Public Health, said the vanity plates were purchased at least 10 years ago.
The three vans have personalized licence plates displaying: WORKS1, WORKS2, WORKS3.
"We may have paid $100 each for them back then as a one-time expense. They were purchased so people in our target population would know what the van was for," Hopkins said.
Hopkins said the vans used to be low-key and it was a way to help their target population feel comfortable flagging down the correct vehicle. Since then, the vans have been changed and there's extensive identification on the doors.
"We have new vans, but we took the old plates off the old ones and put them on the new vans and keep renewing the sticker on the licence plate," Hopkins said.
The Works' mandate is to prevent the spread of communicable disease in drug users and sex trade workers. Services include distribution of needles and other safer drug use materials, condoms and testing for diseases and illnesses.
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