Today, the Honourable Marco Mendicino, Minister of Public Safety issued the following statement:
Two years ago today, the lives of countless Nova Scotians were forever changed in the worst mass shooting in our country's history.
It's been two years since we lost Tom Bagley, Kristen and baby Beaton, Jamie Blair, Greg Blair, Joy Bond and Peter Bond, Lillian Campbell Hyslop, Corrie Ellison, Gina Goulet, Lisa McCully, Dawn Madsen, Frank Gulenchyn, Sean McLeod, Alanna Jenkins, Heather O'Brien, Jolene Oliver, Emily Tuck, Aaron Tuck, Cst. Heidi Stevenson, Joey Webber, Elizabeth Joanne Thomas, John Joseph Zahl. Today, we remember them.
These 22 souls came from many walks of life. They had families. They had friends. They were loved. And they were fixtures of their communities - in Portapique, Wentworth, Debert, Shubenacadie and many other towns across Nova Scotia. In addition, there are those like Cst. Chad Morrison who were injured and continue to suffer daily. Today, we honour them.
While two years may have elapsed, many wounds remain open and raw. Some may never heal. This is especially true for the members of RCMP H Division, who both responded to the tragedy and lost a friend and colleague. In such a tight-knit province, few families were unaffected. Today, we mourn with them.
We seek to understand the events of that tragic day, for the victims and their families. The Joint Public Inquiry into the Nova Scotia April 2020 Tragedy (Mass Casualty Commission) is examining some of the hard questions we must confront together, including access to firearms, the response of law enforcement and the role of gender-based violence. While the process is not easy, the independent public inquiry will continue its steadfast pursuit of the truth.
As Minister of Public Safety, it is my solemn pledge that we will do everything in our power to learn from this tragedy - and do our utmost to ensure it never happens again.
Today, all of Canada grieves with Nova Scotia.
