Thank you, Mr. Chair.
That's a fair point. I think what I hear is that many are saying there's a lot that you know, but it's action you're looking for, and some positive steps.
On a less serious note, in the last round it was said that many politicians do a lot of blowing in the wind, so to speak, and you were saying it's with heads in the sand, and I suppose that's partly true. Some would displace more sand than others, but the fact of the matter is that it is a serious issue. I think my colleague said there's a bit of a transformation in thinking, in not looking at dealing with the roots of poverty as a matter of charity but as a matter of social justice, and really also as an investment in our social infrastructure.
I take note of your words, Kelly, when you say that when you look at the health costs we have, and the criminal justice system.... I was a lawyer in my former career and I know something about the costs associated with the justice system. When we put that together, we could, by trying to deal with the root causes much earlier, actually save some money if we were prepared to make that investment.
I do appreciate that treating the individual, the whole person, takes more effort. It will take more moneys to do that rather than to just look at it as a black and white issue, which maybe we have been doing from point to point.
My initial question is to Mr. Richard. Senator Kirby talked to us about mental health issues, about some of the stigma and misunderstanding there, and how we might deal with that. But could you describe what you see in terms of young people with issues falling through the cracks? Can you describe what you see as the inadequacies now? Also, maybe you can describe some of the practical things we might consider in fixing those gaps. Then I'll move on to some other areas.