Andrea Horwath is an outspoken advocate for more action to prevent violence against women in our society. Here's one of the speeches she gave on the topic in the Ontario Legislature:

"The Montreal massacre led to promises of changes that step by step would eventually eradicate violence against women. Yet here in 2006, can we honestly say that we are in fact further ahead? Hundreds of Ontario women have died since 1989 at the hands of men who were strangers, but far more often by men with whom they once had close, personal relationships. Families lost their daughters, mothers, sisters, aunts, nieces, neighbours. Why? Because we as a society have not done a good enough job of changing the culture of male violence and misogyny that continues to plague women. Women still pay with their lives.

How shameful, how appalling it is to note that at a time when women's voices are needed more than ever, the Harper government cuts Status of Women Canada massively, a move that I myself have opposed by putting a resolution to the Legislature here at Queen's Park. As legislators, it is our duty to protect, in fact to amplify, these voices and prevent the perpetuation of violence against women at all costs.

Many times I have risen in this House to talk about the importance of getting at the root causes of violence against women. It's not that women's groups, service providers, coroners' juries and study after study haven't already instructed governments on what needs to be done. Ontario's coalition of women's groups has indicated a $300-million package of emergency measures that would go a long way to free women trapped in and confronted by violence. A large part of the solution lies in the provision of affordable housing and child care, resettlement funds, meaningful employment and income supports that enable a woman to support her children, enabling women to leave a violent home -- not just websites and pilot projects.
A key to erasing the violence is the will and determination to act, on all our parts, as both previous speakers have indicated. We must say no to delays in flowing the funding for programs and services women need to enable them to flee violence. We must strongly reject the Harper government's cuts to Status of Women Canada. We must say no to initiatives that languish on the back burner instead of being implemented. We must say no to attempts to downplay the severity and urgency of this life-and-death issue, which the World Health Organization describes as a global epidemic; and no to shelving reports and stalling legislation that call for stronger actions.

In fact, there is a private member's bill that I have on the books, Bill 45, which tackles workplace harassment and violence, and which has already been spoken about in today's remarks.

Alberta shows how seriously it deals with this problem as a province through a long list of items that it pays for to ensure that women can escape the violence and begin to rebuild their lives. I've mentioned these measures in the House before. They include a number of different initiatives, including that women in abusive situations can get help 24 hours a day, seven days a week, through Alberta Works. All they need to do is call a toll-free number and, if eligible, the fund will cover them. It will cover them to get to safety, to set up a new household, and it actually covers their expenses to begin their new life.
Thankfully, there are many great people in our province working in the field who support this fight, groups like OAITH, METRAC, OFL and member organizations, the White Ribbon Campaign, the YWCA, sexual assault centres -- the one in my own community does a lot of great work -- and many others.

Today, we have members of the Miss G. Project here in the gallery who have already been recognized a couple of times. These young women see education as an important plank in ending the violence, and I agree. They're hopeful that they'll see women's studies included in the core curriculum of all secondary schools.

I can tell you that nothing would make me more proud than to see Ontario emerge as a leader, expanding its programs and services to the fullest extent to protect the lives of women and girls, and to see the kinds of programs that these young women are asking for actually implemented in our schools. I urge the women of the McGuinty government -- the cabinet ministers and other women in that caucus -- as well as their supporters to make sure that these kinds of initiatives actually do come to light in the province of Ontario.

In memory of the 14 women slain on December 6 and all the women who have been murdered before and since, let us all pledge to do more and do better in their names."