I stand corrected.
I am obviously very pleased to be here and I want to congratulate the members of the committee for having decided to leave Ottawa. There is certainly real work being done in Ottawa but it is also important for Canadian citizens to have this kind of access to their Members of Parliament. We are privileged to have this opportunity.
Thank you.
I am New Brunswick's ombudsman, child and youth advocate, privacy and right to information commissioner, and civil service commissioner; I have many hats and different roles. In the past, I've been a member of the legislature for a number of years and a cabinet minister in a previous government.
In the course of several years now I've had an opportunity to look at the face of poverty and to reflect upon what kinds of challenges it poses to any society and why it's important to deal with it, so I certainly welcome you here. I am sure you've been reminded a million times that the House of Commons has already taken a firm stand on poverty, way back in 1989, promising to abolish child poverty by the year 2000. We're not quite there yet. None of you was there in 1989, so I'm not holding you personally responsible for the fact that we're not quite there yet.
But I think it's important to remind ourselves that this is something that needs to be done, if all of Canadian society is to continue to advance. We have many advantages in this world and we are a model for many countries. Those of you who travel around the world have been approached by people who want to immigrate to Canada, who really hold Canada as a model, as just a wonderful place—and it is.
That, I think, makes it more embarrassing for us to realize that many children in Canada still live in poverty, and that while we export our wonderful water to other places, many children don't have access to clean drinking water. We should be embarrassed about that.
I think we need to understand that if we're to continue to be a beacon for the world in terms of human rights and economic development—and of equal opportunity, to use a phrase that was coined in New Brunswick—then we need to make sure that our tide lifts all ships and that all members of our society have an opportunity.
In my work I've had the chance to develop some recommendations around mental illness, particularly around youth suffering from mental challenges and how our criminal justice system responds not very well to them—not just in New Brunswick but in other parts of the country as well. If I can ask you anything in these very short minutes, it's to focus on child poverty and on some of the challenges that youth are facing in regard to limited access to mental health services.
I think it's true all across the country. I have had the opportunity to meet with ombudsmen from every province, and with child and youth advocates and right to information and privacy commissioners from every province. I think it is important to remember that these are not just challenges in New Brunswick, and that however well we're doing in places such as Quebec or Alberta, we are leaving behind some of our citizens. That holds back our possibility of becoming all that we can be.
So, it is important to include all our citizens in our efforts to make Canada what we want it to be and what it is in the eyes of many on planet Earth. However, we will not really have reached our objective if we cannot find a way to include everyone.
Furthermore, MPs' words are very important. Even though you were not there in 1989, Parliament made that commitment. And Parliament belongs to all Canadians. We all rely on commitments made not only by our MPs but also by our Parliament.
As MPs, we are proud to say that we fulfill our promises. At least, that was the case when I was an MP. And I do believe this is true of all Members of Parliament, whatever their party.
We make promises; we keep our promises. Well, Parliament has made a promise to Canada's children and has not kept that promise. I think we have the means of doing it, but it takes more than words; it takes action and commitment.
Thank you.