The NDP is the only party that’s serious about ending domestic violence, Thomas Mulcair declared Monday, as he rolled out a package of initiatives that included a $40-million plan to build and renovate women’s shelters.

The New Democrat leader made the announcement at a campaign stop in Saskatchewan, the province with the highest rates of admission to shelters for women fleeing abuse.

“After decades of Conservative and Liberal governments, no concerted action has been taken on violence against women,” Mulcair said at a press conference in Saskatoon, where he vowed that an NDP government would make “steady progress” toward ending the phenomenon “each and every year.”

“Now I say this to every mother, to every daughter, to every sister, that it’s time you had a prime minister who cares,” he said.

In response to Mulcair’s announcement, Chrystia Freeland, the Liberal candidate for University-Rosedale, said the Liberals “support any measures that make women safer,” but noted the NDP leader had passed up an opportunity to discuss such issues on the national stage when he decided not to participate in a proposed debate on women’s issues.

“Canada’s leading women’s organizations came together to create a platform to discuss women’s issues, and it’s really surprising and disappointing to me that Mr. Mulcair has decided not to take part,” Freeland said. Asked for her party’s plans to fight violence against women, she stated that the Liberals will introduce a “comprehensive set of measures around women’s issues” before the end of the campaign.

Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau has already promised to hold an inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women.

On Monday, Mulcair repeated his promise to call an inquiry within 100 days of taking office. His proposal also includes a pledge to consult with women’s and indigenous groups to create a national action plan on violence against women, and to invest in more affordable housing.

The party’s most concrete financial commitment is to spend $40 million over four years on building or renovating women’s shelters, which the NDP estimates could create or renovate 2,100 spaces in shelters, and nearly 350 beds in transitional housing.

“Under an NDP government we will take action to ensure that never again will a woman in need be turned away from a shelter,” Mulcair said.

Over the weekend, the Liberals and Conservatives hammered the NDP on its spending plans, claiming the party is not being transparent about how it intends to fund expensive election promises while keeping its pledge to balance the budget. Asked where the $40 million would come from, an NDP spokesperson declined to provide specifics to the Star on Monday. The party has said it intends to unveil a fully costed platform before the Oct. 19 vote.

Mulcair’s announcement was welcome news for Sojie Tate, the communications manager at the Women’s Habitat domestic violence shelter in Etobicoke. Last year the 25-bed facility for women and children had to raise $3.5 million for renovations to repair electrical problems and mold issues. According to Tate, the shelter received no government funding for the project, which made securing the money “hugely difficult.”

“We happened to have private donors and community members who stepped up,” she said, noting that shelters in more rural areas might not have the same access to funding sources. “That’s not the way to make sure that there is shelter and places for women and children to go when they’re fleeing violence.”

Tate said she’s also seen first-hand the urgent need to build more women’s shelters. Her facility is full every day and turns away between five and six hundred people a year, she said.

Maureen Adams, the director of advocacy and communications for the YWCA Toronto, said Mulcair’s call for a national strategy on violence against women is long overdue. A United Nations campaign launched in 2008 called on countries to implement fully funded national action plans by 2015. Adams said that a Canadian strategy should focus on prevention, trauma counseling, and housing, legal, and employment supports for women.

“We’ve been, with others, calling for a national action plan on violence against women for many years,” Adams said. “So this is a very good step, and we encourage all parties to take this issue on seriously as well.”

Campaigning in Ottawa on Monday, Conservative Leader Stephen Harper, who has rejected calls for a national inquiry into violence against aboriginal women, said his government has already taken action on the issue, by taking steps that include providing more investigative tools to law enforcement agencies and funding prevention programs.

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“We also brought in a series of criminal justice reforms to make sure there are serious penalties for those who commit violence against women, obviously commit violence more generally,” Harper said.

“Also, we’re making use of the existing 40 studies to figure out what additional action we should take, so we’re taking a whole range of actions across the spectrum.”

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