Thank you to all of the witnesses from the two departments for being here. We appreciate your time.
I want to pick up where Ms. Smylie left off. I think there's the pre-pandemic phase and then there's the pandemic phase. I'm struck by the lack of funding that was in place under the previous federal government and then how things turned from 2015 to 2019.
My understanding is that the funding increased from between $20 million per year for women and gender equality-seeking organizations to about $65 million per year. That's the first important point.
The second important point is that, I understand, the statistics show that in 2019-20, we invested nearly $66 million in 533 women's and equality-seeking organizations, which is critical. As Ms. Smylie reiterated, in this year alone that number will increase to $110 million.
The pandemic then enters. For a person like me, a lot of it is anecdotal, but I appreciate the statistics we're being provided now, which are very helpful in terms of the rise in claims and the rise in incidents of violence that are occurring. Funding is increased to the tune of an additional $40 million during the pandemic to address this present concern.
Ms. Levman, can you tell us whether the criminal tools we currently have are sufficient? We have heard a lot about the various different heads that are provided—harassment, mischief, trespassing, etc. Is a new criminal offence required that is more along the lines of a pattern of behaviour rather than in a specific incident from your perspective? If so, why is that?