You are the mom of two soldiers. Thank you.
I didn't say that our effort toward mental health is done, not at all. We are active, absolutely, and we understand that it's not there yet. What you're referring to in terms of the military college is something I've been personally very involved in over the last few months. Currently there's a board of inquiry happening at RMC as we speak to understand what is going on, not only in terms of what the students know and what they're being told, but what the environment is at RMC. Is there something we can do? Is it the leadership? It's a very complex issue.
I didn't come here prepared to talk about mental readiness, so I don't have any statistics to give you, but let me just say this. I can assure everybody here, and actually every Canadian, that the number one priority of the leaders in the Canadian Armed Forces—the number one priority—is the care and well-being of their troops. As soon as you talk about anything that could jeopardize that, and mental health is one of them, it's our top priority.
It will take time, however. It is a societal problem. We know this. We need to deal with it. We're never going to stop looking at it. Actually, be aware that General Vance's mission on mental health—and actually he goes even further, to suicide—is to eliminate suicide in the CAF, and we're working on it. It's not to reduce it, but to eliminate it. While some people tell him that he can't do this, he says, and I may even almost quote him, “I'll be damned if I don't try.” We'll never stop working on this until we get there. Whether we do get there is something else, but we won't stop.
I'm sorry I don't have statistics to give you.
Thank you again.