Leblanc says her caucus has been pushing to declare intimate partner violence an epidemic—and designate epidemic-level funding to end it. Credit: Berit Kessler

As a woman, mother and health critic for the NSNDP, I am writing in response to Liz LeClair’s important article about making intimate partner violence (IPV) a larger issue in this current provincial election.

As a caucus of mostly women and gender-diverse people, we in the NDP have been pushing to declare IPV an epidemic as called for by the Mass Casualty Commission and, with that declaration, designate epidemic-level funding to end it.

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At the end of the latest sitting of the legislature, Claudia Chender’s Bill 482—An Act to Declare Intimate Partner Violence an Epidemic—was passed, helped by the tenacity and advocacy of Koren Beaman and others at Unifor.

In this election campaign, women have been a priority for the NSNDP. We have made commitments to universal access to birth control, universal access to midwives, a focus on improving endometriosis treatments and outcomes, and money to fight intimate partner violence.

We also see failures in policies around affordable housing as contributors to IPV: with skyrocketing rents and ubiquitous abuses of fixed-term leases, women are often forced to choose between an abusive living situation or living in a tent, which isn’t truly a choice. We would bring in real rent control which would address the use of fixed-term leases, and make sure people have housing options they can afford.

This important issue will continue to be a focus for Nova Scotia New Democrats during and beyond the election campaign.

Susan Leblanc is the New Democratic Party’s candidate for Dartmouth North in the Nov 26 election. She was first elected in 2017 to the Legislature, where she serves as NDP House Leader and spokesperson for health, among other topics.

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This article appears in Nov 7-30, 2024.

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1 Comment

  1. IPV has been an epidemic since the beginning of humams. It’s shameful, in this day and age, that it remains still a world-wide and ignored epidemic.

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