Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I would like to address the issue of the need of family violence legislation for the Northwest Territories. Other Canadian jurisdictions have realized the merit of this type of legislation. It is time that we further demonstrated our commitment as an Assembly to the elimination of family violence by enacting legislation as well.

We've been talking about this for long enough. I do not believe that there are any credible arguments to be made for deferring or delaying the passage of this legislation during the life of the 14th Assembly. I am not deluded in thinking that this legislation in and of itself is the answer to all our problems with family violence in the Northwest Territories. However, I do believe that it could be a very significant piece of what needs to be a comprehensive approach to not just family violence, but to many of the underlying root causes which manifest themselves as violence. Things such as substance abuse, mental illness, frustration and societal indifference. One of the most important things that family violence legislation would accomplish, is to provide a tool which could expedite the process by which victims, mostly women and children, could be distanced from the immediate harm of the offender without involving lengthy channels normally used in dealing with criminal offences. This would enable law enforcers to assess the situation, seek timely approvals and remove the offender from the home. An intervention could occur before an incident would potentially escalate to bring irreparable harm to the victim or children in the home, an intervention which would be logistically and emotionally less disruptive to the family. What would happen next is as variable as the circumstances and dynamics of the relationship. It might depend on how prepared the parties are to deal with the situation, how long it has gone on or what supports and remedies are available to assist.

I would liken it to a medical intervention. When someone is injured, remove the patient from the immediate threat of further harm, assess the situation and stabilize the patient. Hopefully removing the offending party would at least temporarily stabilize the situation long enough to assess potential options. With effective help, maybe a relationship could be saved; maybe the integrity of a family could be preserved. Everyone in the family loses when family violence goes unresolved. Mr. Speaker, violence of any type, especially family violence is a very complex matter. Situations get out of control and what ensues can be a very traumatic and debilitating force, both in terms of the obvious physical trauma, but also the more difficult to quantify psychological effect for both victims and even witnesses, often children.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.