Through you, Mr. Chair, to my colleague Mr. Chiang, first I want to thank you for your record of service as a police officer in keeping your community safe.
It was in your community of Markham that we launched the building safer communities fund. This is a $250-million fund that is going to give more support to local organizations, people who work on the ground, the volunteers, the community leaders, the people who know those young kids who are at the greatest risk of being exposed to gun violence and who work with them day in, day out. We made a similar announcement just last week in Surrey, British Columbia.
It's the local heroes who are doing the life-saving work. We want to give them more support, and that's what the building safer communities fund does. It taps into their expertise. It taps into their wisdom. Whether it's through the manifestation of more mental health supports or more educational and career training, by providing that additional capacity, I believe we're saving lives.
This is another important pillar of our comprehensive strategy, which is to stop gun crime before it starts, and that is exactly what we are doing through the rollout of the building safer communities fund.