Treaty 1 Territory, Homeland of the Red River Métis, Winnipeg, MB -
Cindy Lamoureux, MLA for Tyndall Park and Interim Leader of the Manitoba Liberal Party
calls the spike in youth suicides this past year as reported by the Manitoba Advocate for Children
and Youth heartbreaking.
“I have been calling for psychotherapy to be regulated in Manitoba for years now. The previous
government did not take this issue seriously. I’m now calling on this new NDP government to
act urgently to help those struggling with mental health.”
The release of the Manitoba Advocate for Children and Youth’s Annual Report came with grim
findings that as of the 2022-23 fiscal year, Manitoba lost 37 people under the age of 21 by suicide. This number represents an increase by 42% from the previous year, the highest annual
number of deaths by suicide that MACY has been notified of by the Office of the Chief Medical
Examiner.
“One problem is that mental health supports have been chronically underfunded for decades
under both NDP and PC governments.” Says Lamoureux.
According to the annual report for the Department of Mental Health and Community Wellness,
the Mental Health and Addictions Branch was underfunded by over $4 million in the past fiscal
year. The department cited staffing vacancies as the explanation for the under spending.
“We know that Manitoba has a serious shortage of psychologists and psychological nurses. We
need to have the necessary departmental staffing measures in place to better support the rollout
of comprehensive mental health and addictions strategies in Manitoba. Mental health challenges
are present in every community in our province.” Lamoureux says.