Frankly, it's essential.
What happens now is that if somebody tells me they are experiencing intimate partner violence, I will put in the time, and I will do everything I can to find a shelter bed or alternative places for her to go. I do have some excellent social work resources, but it's not simple when they ask and they assume that the courts are going to take care of them and that if they leave their abusive partner they will be able to have custody of their children and that's going to be taken into account. I sometimes have to explain and I'll often say they should talk to their lawyer about that.
I have friends who are lawyers, and it's an unspoken problem in this country that the lawyers fully know that it really just depends on the judge. There are excellent judges who are well educated on the topic, and then there are those who are not. I have to believe that Canadian judges don't want women and children to die. I think we can all agree across the country that we can do better, and the way we can do better is by proposing this bill. Is it perfect? No. There will still be loss of life. There's still going to be violence. It's not going to get into every pocket of the country, especially in rural areas, as was mentioned, but that's like saying we shouldn't treat cancer because we know some people won't survive and it's not fair. It can make an impact.