Dont want to rush: Ontario holds steady on not declaring intimate partner violence an epidemic [Video]

The Ford government is facing fresh calls to immediately declare intimate partner violence an epidemic in Ontario but insists it will not  “rush” the process, despite committing to the declaration earlier in the year.

On Monday, politicians on both sides of the aisle at Queen’s Park stood for a moment of silence to honour the victims of intimate partner violence, with many also wearing purple to acknowledge the lives lost.

The appearance of unity ended there, however, as the Ontario NDP sought government support to immediately declare intimate partner violence an epidemic.

Tempers flared and, at the end of question period, both Housing Minister Paul Calandra and NDP MPP Jill Andrews were ordered to leave the chamber after a shouting match following another question about intimate partner violence.

Asked why the government was so reluctant to fast-track the NDP’s request to declare an epidemic — an action that would not immediately come at any cost to the government — so …