Suicide is the second leading cause of death among youth in Canada and more than 3000 Canadians die every year from suicide, yet less than five per cent of research dollars are devoted to its prevention. In response to this, Federal Liberals have tabled a motion for Government to fund a Suicide Prevention Strategy.
In late September, a Conservative private member’s bill was also tabled for a suicide prevention framework. The framework would:
- Promote research in suicide
- Promote knowledge exchange among different jurisdictions
- Define best practices to prevent suicide
The Liberals have posted a petition at petition.liberal.ca/suicide-prevention for members of the public to support the motion, and to date almost 4000 signatures have been gathered.
To read the CBC article on this topic, go to www.cbc.ca.