Kyle MacDonald: Jacinda Ardern has failed us on mental health - and it's only going to get worse 4 Apr, 2021 05:00 PM 5 minutes to read In 2017, Jacinda Ardern promised to make mental health a priority for her government. Photo / Getty Images In 2017, Jacinda Ardern promised to make mental health a priority for her government. Photo / Getty Images OPINION: It was September 10, 2017. Hundreds were assembled on Parliament's lawn. Next to us - laid out in heartbreakingly neat rows - were 660 pairs of shoes representing each of the people who had ended their life in the previous year. They were there due to the hard work of so many advocates and families of those lost, who had worked to bring to the public's attention the scale of our growing suicide toll.