Mr. Speaker, regarding parts (a)(i), (ii) and (iii), Indigenous Services Canada, or ISC, will continue to advance its mandate to work with first nations, Inuit and Métis to improve access to high-quality services; improve well-being in indigenous communities across Canada; and support indigenous peoples in assuming control of the delivery of services at the pace and in the ways they choose.
Budget 2024 proposes $630.2 million over two years, starting in 2024-25, to support indigenous people’s access to mental health services, including through distinctions-based mental wellness strategies. This investment will help provide indigenous peoples with equitable access to compassionate, trauma-informed and culturally based mental health resources and care in communities across Canada. The budget 2024 funding builds upon the over $300 million annually the department invests on an ongoing basis in indigenous mental wellness services.
This continued funding for mental wellness demonstrates the government’s commitment to support and improve health equity, access to culturally appropriate health services and support for holistic approaches to healing, including community-based, culturally relevant and trauma-informed mental health services.
Communities and indigenous leadership are actively working to address their unique mental health challenges. By supporting indigenous-led, community-driven initiatives that reflect the cultural needs and aspirations of the people that use them, indigenous leadership and communities are better equipped to address their unique mental health needs and improve mental health outcomes.
Regarding parts (b) and (c), ISC works closely with first nations and Inuit partners to gather and develop monitoring systems to address the need for timely, community-based and national-level data. We work collaboratively to ensure high-quality, timely data informs policies and programs, and seek to build upon national monitoring and research activities.
The department currently uses results from the first nations regional health survey administered by the First Nations Information Governance Centre for first nations living on reserve and in northern communities, as well as the indigenous peoples survey administered by Statistics Canada for self-reported results for first nations living off reserve, Métis and Inuit. When data becomes available, the department plans on using results from the Qanuippitaa? National Inuit Health Survey, an Inuit-owned and Inuit-led national survey program.
Regarding part (d), budget 2024 proposes $630.2 million over two years, starting in 2024-25, to support indigenous people’s access to mental health services, including through distinctions-based mental wellness strategies. This funding will support continued access to mental wellness teams in communities, wraparound services at opioid agonist therapy sites, suicide prevention and life promotion services, as well as trauma-informed cultural and emotional support services across Canada.
ISC is working with indigenous partners towards achieving the mental health targets identified in the departmental results framework, which seek that 55% of first nations and Inuit report “excellent” or “very good” mental health, by March 2028. The department measures distinctions-specific progress towards increasing positive outcomes by using data from self-reported health surveys that ask respondents to rate their mental health.