Mr. Speaker, over the next week, millions of Canadians will gather at cenotaphs and memorial squares from St. John's to Victoria. They will gather in silence and while many will cry, all will be thankful.
There are, however, a great many of our veterans who will suffer in silence next week, as they do every day, haunted by what they had to deal with in the service of their country. They need not be silent, and my message today to veterans is that there is help if they seek it and it is okay to ask for help.
As a country, we have come a long way to end the stigma and barriers related to mental health and suicide. Canadians are good with the fact that we are having a national conversation about this, and it is okay to talk about it as individuals.
Canada owes our veterans, and we must do much more to help our veterans and their families, suffering from the effects of occupational stress injuries, PTSD, mental health issues, suicide, and homelessness.