Senate bill, now waiting to be considered in the House, as of April 21, 2026
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This is from the published bill.
This enactment designates the 5th day of February in each year as “National Thanadelthur Day”.
All sorts of information on this bill is available at LEGISinfo, an excellent resource from Parliament. You can also read the full text of the bill.
Bill numbers are reused for different bills each new session. Perhaps you were looking for one of these other S-225s:
The Assistant Deputy Speaker John Nater
I have the honour to inform the House that a message has been received from the Senate informing the House that the Senate has passed the following bill to which the concurrence of the House is desired: Bill S-225, an act to establish national Thanadelthur day.
Marie-Hélène Gaudreau Bloc Laurentides—Labelle, QC
Mr. Speaker, we are discussing a very important topic today, and I find it reassuring that we are able to talk about it. I hope that we will be able to vote on this bill quickly. In my speech this morning, I will explain the content of Bill S-225, but I will also talk about what I experienced before becoming an MP. Members may not be aware, but I worked in community organizations for many years. I served as the director of community organizations in the Antoine‑Labelle RCM. Laurentides—Labelle is home to many extraordinary organizations that will have to adapt to this bill if it is passed.
This bill is sponsored by the member for Kamloops—Thompson—Nicola. I am very pleased that this bill is coming back in another form and that it was tabled by my Conservative colleague. This bill would amend the Criminal Code to “create specific offences in respect of intimate partner violence”. Second, it would “prohibit a peace officer from releasing a person arrested for an intimate partner offence if the person has committed an intimate partner offence in the preceding five years or is at large on a release order in respect of an intimate partner offence”. Third, it would “increase the detention period of things seized under section 490 of the Act from three months to one year and...provide for circumstances in which notices to the person from whom the thing was seized may be dispensed with”.
All of this seems quite complicated, but I hope that this bill leads to the creation of better measures that will help all victims, who have my full sympathy and support this morning. This sort of thing should never happen. Unfortunately, as my colleague from Shefford mentioned a few minutes ago, the number of victims is on the rise. The number of reports is also growing. Action must be taken. The bill could have completed all the steps in the legislative process a few years ago, but here we are today, still dealing with this matter.
I would note that this proposal originally came from the NDP, and now the Conservative Party is picking up the baton. This tells me that we need to sit down at committee and fine-tune the bill to ensure that it is consistent with all our values. I am very pleased this morning, and I would really like victims to know that we are doing all we can to help them. When a bill dies on the Order Paper, we have to start over, but I am sure that we will move forward. I spoke a bit earlier about the parliamentary context. Bills were proposed in 2020 and in 2023, and then came the prorogation and the election. I think, however, that we are going to get to the finish line quickly.
I would like to move on to talk about statistics, because I am not convinced people are fully aware of the situation. Every 48 hours, a woman is killed by an intimate partner in Canada. That number comes from the Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability for the year 2024. Furthermore, according to Statistics Canada data for the year 2023, 76% of victims of domestic violence are women. More than 127,000 cases of domestic violence were reported to the police in 2022. This is an increase of approximately 5% over the previous year.
I have three more statistics to share. Indigenous women are three to four times more likely to be victims of domestic violence. Women aged 15 to 24 are the most at risk. I will conclude by saying that four out of 10 victims report coercive control before physical violence occurs.
What is coercive control? Today's technology makes it possible to learn a lot about a person, but also to monitor their activities and to use that information to limit their privacy and freedom. Today's discussion needs to be about what can happen when, six months after a breakup, an intimate partner still has an unhealthy attachment and attempts to control or dominate their former partner. This domination can be financial or verbal. It has to stop. When people talk to us about this type of situation, they ask if there are enough resources. In my opinion, we need to agree from the outset on the need to legislate and make significant changes to put a stop to this. We will have to adjust and ensure that there are sufficient resources.
Earlier, I was talking about existing organizations. I would be remiss if I failed to mention an organization in Mont‑Laurier that is very important to me: La Passe-R-Elle. This organization is over 30 years old. In fact, I believe it just celebrated its 40th anniversary. It is an emergency shelter where women can go when they feel so threatened that they need to leave their homes to go into hiding. For decades, this organization has been providing support and guidance so that these victims can take back control of their lives.
I feel sure that the organization has helped prevent femicide, even though there is probably no data to prove it. Furthermore, right now, in 2025, the organization is taking the next step. Due to the current economic situation, people who leave their homes are worried about what is going to happen next. Will they have the necessary means, resources and financial support? This organization has just built housing units for these women and children, so they can take the time to get back on their feet, regain their freedom and and become self-reliant by reclaiming their power. That takes courage, but it also takes time. Often, time is what is lacking. I believe that, today, we will be able to take a step in the right direction.
In closing, I would like to make one last point. We talk a lot about women, but we should also talk about children. Sixty per cent of children are exposed to domestic violence. It has been noted that they develop trauma-related symptoms, which is something that should not be overlooked. What is more, 30% of children become direct victims of violence themselves. Children who are exposed to violence are seven times more likely to develop anxiety disorders. I hope that we will quickly vote to refer the bill to committee for review so that we can offer all the victims the help they deserve.