Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, in the North, we have had to deal with addictions for many years, from glue sniffing to the crack cocaine epidemic today. Harder drugs, I am told, are starting to find their way into the hands of our residents.
Mr. Speaker, the single biggest problem today, and has been for a long time, is the abuse of alcohol. It bothers me, Mr. Speaker, to see young men that I went to school with, and I played hockey with, asking people for a toonie for a cup of coffee, and we know what they are going to buy. I have known people, Mr. Speaker, from my youth who have overcome their dependence on alcohol, turned their lives around, and today are doing well for themselves. I have the utmost respect and admiration for what they have accomplished with their lives.
When people, Mr. Speaker, make the decision to defeat their demons, we must have the capacity to assist them. I know the last thing the Minister wants to hear is we need more facilities. I agree. We don't need more big, fancy buildings. But what we should provide is a simple, on-the-land camp whose primary goal would be to help those in
need. It will remove them from town and temptations. It can also assist those who want to overcome other addictions.
Mr. Speaker, I truly believe that once we have these people on the land, they will begin to beat their addictions and hopefully get a new start on life. Mr. Speaker, when residents decide they need help and want to overcome their addictions, let's give them that opportunity to heal close to home and not have to send them south. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.
---Applause