E-petitions to the House of Commons

Millions of Canadians continue to face financial barriers when seeking counselling, psychotherapy, addictions treatment, and other community-based mental health services;

Nearly one in five Canadians experiences a mental health problem or illness each year, and about half of Canadians will experience mental illness by age 40;

Canadians are too often forced to pay out of pocket, rely on inadequate private insurance, endure lengthy wait times, seek help only in crisis through emergency departments, or go without care altogether;

The human and economic costs of untreated mental illness are profound, placing growing pressure on hospitals, first responders, families, workplaces, and communities, while costing Canada’s economy billions of dollars annually;

Evidence shows that investing in timely, community-based mental health care improves outcomes, reduces long-term costs, and strengthens the sustainability of our public healthcare system; and

Canadians overwhelmingly support universal access to mental health care and have called for mental health to be treated with the same importance as physical health.

We, the undersigned,citizens and residents of Canada, call upon theGovernment of Canadato:1. Work with provinces, territories, Indigenous partners, healthcare professionals, people with lived and living experience, and community organizations to establish parity between mental and physical health in Canada’s universal healthcare system; 1. Work with provinces, territories, Indigenous partners, healthcare professionals, people with lived and living experience, and community organizations to establish parity between mental and physical health in Canada’s universal healthcare system; 2. Provide stable, long-term federal funding to expand access to medically necessary mental health, addictions, and substance use services in every region of the country; and 3. Pass Bill C-280, the Mental Health Parity Act, to create a national framework that ensures Canadians can access medically necessary mental health, addictions, and substance use care based on need, not their ability to pay or where they live.

The Government of Canada is legally obligated under the 2021 Safe Drinking Water for First Nations class action settlement agreement to introduce legislation that upholds First Nations’ equal right to clean, safe drinking water;

The Liberal government’s Bill C-37, the First Nations Clean Water Act, falls significantly short of this legal obligation, failing to recognize the human right of all First Nations individuals to clean drinking water;

Bill C-37 limits First Nations’ jurisdiction and authority over water to RESERVE LANDS ONLY, excluding lands over which Aboriginal title is claimed by a First Nation, or has been confirmed by a court;

The Liberals have excluded Article 25 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples from Bill C-37 to bypass First Nations’ rights in Modern Treaties and in traditional lands and territories; and

Just like in Bill C-5, Bill C-37 is part of a broader trend of the Carney Liberal government repeatedly violating Indigenous Constitutional and Treaty rights and ignoring their duty to consult and obtain the free, prior and informed consent of Indigenous Peoples.

We, the undersigned,residents of Canada and First Nations,, call upon theGovernment of Canadato amend Bill C-37 to recognize the human right of all First Nations individuals to clean drinking water, to be compliant with ALL articles of UNDRIP, and to commit sufficient funding to ensure the right to clean water is upheld in practice.