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John Tory calls for a national mental health summit

by Post City Staff for Post City Posted: January 25, 2023 Photo: Collision Conf/flickr

Mayor John Tory has chosen Bell Let’s Talk Day to call for a national summit to address the “mental health crisis” in Toronto and beyond, but many Torontonians aren’t impressed.

Tory released a statement on Wednesday pointing to an increased demand for psychological services in Ontario and suggesting that a lack of mental health supports is contributing to “a number of issues” we’re seeing in the city.

Headlines over the past month have been filled with stories of violence on the TTC, from stabbings to staff being chased with a syringe as recently as today.

Tory noted that a lack of mental health care spending from both the provincial and federal governments has exacerbated the issue. “When the federal and provincial governments don’t fully and adequately fund mental health care, the responsibility is offloaded to ill-equipped municipalities across Canada which are without the financial resources to address this crisis — it is offloaded to our shelters, to our police services, to our transit systems and to hospital emergency departments.”

However, critics have noted that this call for a national summit comes just weeks after Tory announced a funding proposal increase of $48.3 million to the police budget. The Toronto police board approved the increase, which pushed the total police budget to $1.1 billion.

Seven new city councillors put out a joint statement criticizing the move noting that, “Decades of research and evidence has shown that increasing police spending without simultaneous investments in social and community infrastructure does not make our communities safer.”

Part of the increased budget would go toward hiring 200 new officers; 162 would be allocated to priority response units including 25 to the city’s downtown area. Tory also previously announced 50 Special Constables would be added to the TTC.

On Monday, Tory told NEWSTALK 1010’s Moore in the Morning that the decisions were prompted by increased violence in the city. “I don’t think this is entirely a policing matter, but I will say I think it puts into some stark relief why I am advocating for and have included in the budget an increase in the police resources,” he said.

Critics are questioning Tory’s choice to devote millions more to the police budget while also calling for more funding for mental health resources.

Tory’s statement noted the 2023 budget includes $1.53 million in direct tax base funding to Toronto Public Health for mental health and addictions support, along with $13.75 million to the Toronto Community Services pilot that would divert 9-1-1 calls for individuals in crisis to mental health professionals. But with $48.3 million going into the police budget, Torontonians are wondering why some of those funds aren’t going to mental health resources instead.

For now, Tory is calling on Prime Minister Trudeau and premiers across the country to come together to discuss how each level of government can coordinate better to support Canadians with mental health and substance addiction challenges.

“The summit must be the moment we start treating mental health care as health care. That we clearly decide on who has responsibility to do what, and to get on with doing much more together.”

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