Mr. Speaker, I rise today to address perhaps the greatest social issue affecting the Northwest Territories: the crisis of addiction, substance abuse, and chronic mental health problems.
I first want to acknowledge the work of the Standing Committee on Social Development and the efforts undertaken by the honourable Minister of Health and Social Services to review our current addictions treatment options and in working together to make progress on this continuing problem. However, the honourable Members of this House are not alone in their diligent efforts to make a difference in this government's support for addictions treatment. No, Mr. Speaker, as I have a constituent, Jennifer Lafferty, who has taken it upon herself to advocate for renewed focus on local addictions treatment options.
Mr. Speaker, it has been encouraging working with Ms. Lafferty, a former addict who has become a tireless advocate for those seeking treatment. Since the fall of last year, she has hit the streets of our capital with a petition calling for more treatment options for those affected by addictions. For her efforts, I will now be introducing a petition later today with hundreds of signatures in support of this cause.
Mr. Speaker, addictions and mental health is one of the government's most important mandate priorities. It affects the lives of hundreds of Northerners and lingers on to impact future generations. As it has been made so clear to us by the work of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Indigenous peoples face systemic barriers in our society that non-Indigenous Canadians take for granted. Further, the Northwest Territories has the most residential school survivors per capita in Canada, not to mention the ongoing trauma caused by the Sixties Scoop, missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, and the continued overrepresentation of Indigenous people within our jails, our courtrooms, and the child welfare system. These shameful elements of our colonial past have contributed to the oppressive conditions for ever-present substance abuse and addictions borne of intergenerational trauma that Northerners are faced with on a daily basis.
Mr. Speaker, although this government is working hard to address the problem, we need even more tools and resources to be made available here at home to help our people heal and break the cycle of abuse. Too many of our most vulnerable community members are falling through the gaps in society. We need to close these gaps and give people the best chances possible at recovery here in the North. Northerners seeking wellness for themselves and their families need more than residential treatment options, but aftercare and detoxing services available in their communities. To quote Ms. Lafferty, "They want help, and not just a phone number."
Mr. Speaker, I will have questions later today about the state of aftercare and detox programs in the Northwest Territories. Thank you, Mr. Speaker.