Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As we heard yesterday during opening comments for the Health and Social Services department and from speakers already today, the NWT lacks adequate mental health services, and we’re not alone. Across Canada, every jurisdiction faces the same problem.

Those who suffer from mental illness are found in all parts of our society. Some are affected in a minor way, others are severely debilitated, and we struggle with how to treat every one of them.

Sufferers of mental illness are often hidden, but many we also see every day. Perhaps the most visible are the homeless. Statistics show that about

67 percent of the homeless experience mental illness at some point in their life. Many become chronically homeless because of it. But a new concept, a new program has been showing success in helping homeless people.

Traditionally we treat the illness first. We get them into some kind of a program, for instance, and then we look at other factors in their lives which impact how they live. But the Housing First program houses people first and then provides all-encompassing, wraparound services that they need to get well. It looks beyond the illness and sees the person as a whole.

The premise of the program is that the road to recovery from mental illness is more likely to begin when individuals are provided with a home. This program has been piloted in Canada for five years in at least five major cities with positive results. Compared to traditional treatment practises, clients in the Housing First program remain housed – that is not on the streets – twice as often as those in regular treatment, 67 percent versus 31 percent.

The other positive: financial savings. For the 10 percent of homeless, who have the highest needs and use the most health services most often, the analysis shows that a $10 investment in Housing First saves an average of almost $22.

I’m really pleased that the City of Yellowknife, with the assistance of the GNWT and the federal government, will be instituting the Housing First program in the very near future. Given the success in other Canadian cities, I expect we will experience fewer homeless people and a significant number of mental illness sufferers with a new lease on life: improved mental health, improved physical health, employment and independence.

There are three key principles of the recovery approach in mental health. They are hope, self-determination and responsibility. The Housing First program gives clients all of those and a path to a better life.