Since the beginning of human history, decent folks have lamented the tragedy of suicide. We still do. When one of our citizens takes his or her own life, we recognize this as a failure of our society to encourage and uplift every individual who may be vulnerable to the temptation to “end it all.”

Movies as far back as black and white, and even silent flicks have touched on this topic, on more than one occasion, depicting a distraught person preparing to take his life. Audiences feared the unnecessary and premature ending of a life and breathed a huge sigh of relief if the potential suicide was averted.

Suicide and the hopelessness which precedes it are often connected with poverty, broken relationships, lost fortunes or shame in its many forms. In Canada, most folks are aware of the troubling statistics that show suicide is a significant cause of death in indigenous communities. Efforts to prevent or reduce suicide are ongoing.

But since 2016—when Canada legalized the injection of lethal poison by a medical professional—the intentional and premature ending of life has become one of the leading causes of death in Canada. Over 5% of all deaths in Canada are the result of a toxic chemical injection performed by a doctor or medical professional. It’s even worse in Quebec, where 7.9% of all deaths are the result of lethal injection or ingestion. Before 2016, doctors were prohibited from deliberately taking the life of a patient, but now they are paid to do so. Sadly, many have made it a habit.

Fortunately, many folks still stand against the deliberate taking of an innocent life. Since 2003, September 10 has been recognized as Suicide Prevention Day. It was first established by the joint efforts of the International Association for Suicide Prevention (IASP) and the World Health Organization (WHO) raise awareness and prevent suicide worldwide. Readers of this column know that I am not a huge fan of the WHO and its globalist overreach but, in this case, I heartily approve of its stated intentions.

Ironically, Prime Minister Carney and his predecessor, Justin Trudeau have ignored public concerns about the expansion of MAiD (Medical Assistance in Dying) to include those who could be killed for mental illness alone, with no underlying physical condition. The law still in place—which was passed while Justin Trudeau was PM—would allow medical killing for mental illness alone starting on March 17, 2027.

In June 2026, a Parliamentary Committee recommended that the expansion of MAiD for mental illness alone should be scrapped. Over 90 disability and mental health organizations have called on Parliament to permanently halt the planned expansion. Yet the Prime Minister has been coy in his response. The law has not yet been changed to respond to this committee recommendation. The PM said only that “the direction is clear.” He did not clarify what “clear” means.

Part of the confusion surrounding this question again involves the national debt and budgetary pressures. It is no secret that the elderly and infirm—including those with mental illness—constitute a significant portion of healthcare costs, both for families and for the nation. That was one of the reasons Parliament opened the door for the medical killing of those with terminal illnesses in the first place. Since MAiD became “normalized”, many cases have come to light where the government—through its surrogates—has suggested it as a solution to a patient’s problems. There are even Canadian veterans who have been told that MAiD was available but actual medical help was not. Others have chosen MAiD due to poverty or having no place to live.

One troubling aspect of all this is that, “We’ve seen this movie before.” The first victims of Nazi extermination programs were those suffering from physical or mental disabilities. Hitler called them “useless eaters.” In Canada today, a similar temptation for those administering healthcare budgets is to remove the elderly, the infirm and the vulnerable from the lineups of those needing care.

Alex Schadenberg and his organization, the Euthanasia Prevention Coalition, have done yeoman’s work in exposing the agenda of those who are seeking to legalize medical killing. We need to support their work and continue to educate our elected representatives on this issue. When some Canadian citizens are deemed to have “lives not worthy of living,” all human life is cheapened and the protections of the law are weakened.

The Christian Heritage Party stands firmly on the defence of innocent human life at all stages and we encourage Parliament not only to halt the expansion of MAiD but to repeal it. Every human life deserves protection “from conception until natural death.”