Hon. Margaret Dawn Anderson: Quyanainni. My question is for the Government Representative, Senator Gold.

On October 3, 2022, after a disturbing increase in the number of deaths by suicide within the Northwest Territories, the Chief Coroner took the unprecedented step of releasing early data.

In 2020, the N.W.T. Coroner Service’s 10-year review reported that 10% of all deaths recorded in the N.W.T. are deaths by suicide. The largest demographics are males and young people between the ages of 20 to 40 in two key regions: the North Slave and the Beaufort Delta Region. In my home community of Tuktoyaktuk, there have been four deaths by suicide within the last three months.

Earlier this month, the federal government allocated an additional $11 million to the Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, or ITK, for the organization’s suicide prevention strategy over the next two years. Unfortunately, the current financial allocation does not address equitable standards across the N.W.T.

Senator Gold, my question is as follows: With the mental health crisis in the Northwest Territories, what concrete steps is the federal government taking, both in the short and long term, to help the territory, communities and people address the key factors that contribute to death by suicide?

Hon. Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu: Senator Anderson, I completely understand your question, having visited your village. I hope that the government will help you.

Senator Gold, my question is for you. Yesterday, I was asking you about the illegal criminals who have sexual assault records and who fell off the Canada Border Services Agency’s radar. As you know, these criminals are a threat to women’s safety. Since 2015, we’ve seen a rise in sex crimes. According to Statistics Canada, level one sexual assaults increased by 18% in 2021 alone.

Senator Gold, in light of these two disturbing observations for women, why did the Auditor General of Canada say in his 2020 report that the CBSA didn’t open an investigation to track these dangerous criminals? Why did the CBSA fail to investigate these dangerous offenders?