Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, colleagues. Some kids will come to their senses and pull back. They find an appeal of such choices worn off and turn their attention to

wholesome pursuits. But what about the ones who don’t, the ones entangled in a life of struggle with addictions? What can we as a government do to support the parents and caregivers through these years? I don’t think we can throw up our hands and say hey, you’re on your own. They are people with a right to their own choices, even if these choices are unquestionably bad choices.

I believe that we need to do more to support parents, maybe counselling, coping skills, the understanding of other parents who have been there, social workers specially trained in the management of these types of behaviours, training for educators who can detect early on and liaise with parents of children who are showing the signs of destructive behaviour, maybe even placement options, not necessarily foster care, but alternative care with programming to teach and help young people to set better boundaries for themselves.

Mr. Speaker, in question period today I’ll have further questions on this matter for the Minister of Health and Social Services. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.