Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today, as you can see, we are talking about alcohol. I want to talk about alcohol abuse. We don't talk about it enough. Could it be that we have become acclimatized or desensitized to the presence of alcohol abuse in the North? Maybe we have accepted it as a fact of life in the North and we have just learned to live with it.
Occasionally, we throw up some stats on some of our social indicators compared to other jurisdictions or national averages. Yes, there we are still with some of the worst instances of premature deaths, suicides, motor vehicle accidents, boating accidents, teen pregnancies, FASD and sexually transmitted diseases. Alcohol abuse affects all of these indicators. Is this what we are prepared to accept? We spend millions of dollars addressing health, wellness, child and family violence, justice, policing and education challenges related to alcohol abuse. I often wonder how the RCMP members can stay positive about the work that they have to do, when we think about how much of their time and efforts are absorbed by alcohol-related calls to deal with domestic violence, disorderly conduct and public drunkenness. It must be very discouraging after awhile.
So what does our society and attitudes toward alcohol abuse teach our young people? One other Member shared with me today -- and this is what they observed when they were growing up -- if there is something to celebrate, just about anything, drink alcohol. If it is a sporting event, drink alcohol. If you are unhappy, sad or stressed out, drink alcohol. Mr. Speaker, abusing alcohol is a personal choice, but it is little wonder that so many people make that choice when it has become such a normal way of life in the North. As a personal choice, people need to understand that it affects everybody in their sphere of influence. They are sending a message to everyone around them that it is normal, it is okay.
Alcohol abuse in some way touches on and permeates a life in every region, in every community, every family and every individual in the North today. It impacts the work of every teacher, nurse, RCMP member, counsellor and extensively affects the work of us as a government. What could we do with the resources now dedicated to the ravages of alcohol abuse? Just imagine the possibilities. We need to recognize alcohol for what it is. Mr. McLeod said that it is a killer. I have to tell you today that I state that I hate alcohol and the effect it has on our people. Thank you.
---Applause