Bill S-212 Fails to Advance in Parliament: A Missed Opportunity for Canada’s Children and Youth

Bill S-212—a National Strategy for Children and Youth—has failed to progress beyond second reading in the House of Commons. Yet the urgent challenges facing children and youth in Canada have not gone anywhere.  

For too long, issues affecting children and youth, from poverty and mental health to access to healthcare and opportunity, have been addressed in silos rather than through a coordinated national approach. Bill S-212 would have been an important step forward in creating just that.  Instead, we’ll continue to see too many children be left behind.  

UNICEF's Report Card 20, a ranking of high-income countries on the state of child and youth well-being, found that Canada ranks just 22nd out of 37 peer countries on key indicators, despite being one of the world's wealthiest nations. One in five children in Canada lives in poverty, and Canada continues to have one of the highest adolescent suicide rates among wealthy countries 

UNICEF Canada has supported Bill S-212 and the call for a coordinated national strategy for children and youth because the conditions children experience today will shape the prosperity, resilience, and social cohesion of the Canada they inherit.  

While this legislation has not moved forward, the need for action remains. We urge governments, policymakers and partners across sectors to champion children’s rights in their decision-making. This includes meaningfully engaging children and youth on issues that affect them, conducting Child Rights Impact Assessments to better understand the implications of proposed policies and legislation, and embedding children’s rights considerations across government processes. It also means reducing inequalities by ensuring meaningful and strategic investments into the supports and services some families rely on to ensure all children enjoy an equal opportunity to thrive. 

Children cannot afford for any momentum to be lost. The work continues, and UNICEF Canada will be there every step of the way.  

Read more about why UNICEF Canada believes a national strategy for children and youth remains urgently needed here.