The proposal to create the Mental Health Commission of Canada was first made by the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology in November 2005. Almost two years earlier, in February, 2003, the Committee, under the leadership of Senator Michael Kirby, had undertaken the first-ever national study of mental health, mental illness and addiction.

During the final phase of its study, the Committee held more than 50 meetings, comprising more than 130 hours of hearings. The Committee heard from more than 300 witnesses, whose testimony filled more than 2,000 pages. The Committee travelled to every province and territory, and supplemented its public hearings by two separate e-consultations through the committee’s website that gathered hundreds of individual stories.

Based on this evidence, the Committee tabled its final report, “Out of the Shadows at Last – Transforming Mental Health, Mental Illness and Addiction Services in Canada” in May, 2006. In it, the Committee reaffirmed the need for a Mental Health Commission to provide an ongoing national focus for mental health issues.

The Government of Canada announced funding for the Mental Health Commission of Canada in its March 2007 budget, and indicated that the mandate and structure of the Commission would be closely based on the proposal contained in the Senate Committee report.

The creation of the Commission was also endorsed by all provincial and territorial governments (with the exception of Québec) at a meeting of Ministers of Health in October 2005, and all these governments have since confirmed their support for the Commission. In addition, the creation of the Commission has been enthusiastically welcomed by all mental health stakeholder communities.

The Government of Canada named Former Senator Michael Kirby as the first Chair of the Mental Health Commission of Canada, and the Commission was incorporated as a non-profit corporation in March 2007.