Mr. Speaker, October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. The month encourages open dialogue to help break the silence surrounding a difficult experience faced by over 1,600 grieving families in Canada each year.
I am proud of my colleague from Burnaby North—Seymour for introducing Evan's law, a long-overdue measure to support grieving parents while on parental leave. Evan's law was inspired by the experience of a constituent of mine, whose personal grief can inspire lasting change.
When passed, Evan's law would amend the Employment Insurance Act and the Canada Labour Code, ensuring that families would no longer experience additional trauma caused by having to notify Service Canada and file a new claim to continue receiving their benefits. This small change would mean that families would be able to focus on healing from their loss rather than navigating bureaucratic processes.
As we observe Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month, let us create space for the voices of families who have experienced the heartbreaking loss of an infant.