While gun violence gets the most media and political attention, some families are wondering why more isn't done to punish and deter those who commit violence with knives.

For example, the boyfriend of Kelly-Anne Drummond killed her with a steak knife, not a gun.

"I don't want any other mother or any other family to live what we lived through the day we said goodbye to Kelly Anne," said Doreen Haddad, Kelly's mother.

Haddad, who is with the Murdered and Missing Persons Families Association, is among those who doesn't want politicians to ignore knife crimes.

"It has gone out of whack. Something has to be done," she said.

Police say that people using knives assault or kill more people than those armed with guns.

"Every time a firearm is used in a crime of violence, the statistics would show that a knife is used at least double or more," said Bill Closs, Kingston, Ont.'s chief of police.

• 69 percent of violent crimes involve knives while guns account for only 31 percent
• 849 people were stabbed to death between 2001 and 2004, compared to 840 shooting homicides.

"Knives are used because they are so available and that's why we need to pay attention because they are so available," Closs said.

In Ontario on Friday, Premier Dalton McGuinty announced the province would spend $26 million hiring 200 police officers.

"Fifty-three of these officers will go after illegal guns, whether those guns are coming up from the U.S. or whether they're stolen right here from lawful gun owners in Ontario," he said.

Ontario is in an uproar over the recent shooting death of an 11-year-old boy, caught between the crossfire of alleged gang members.

The federal Conservative government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper has promised a get-tough approach to gun violence.

The government is accusing the Liberal-dominated Senate of dragging its feet on a bill that would boost mandatory minimum sentences for gun crimes.

Conservative MP Gordon Brown would like to see mandatory prison sentences for those who commit violent crimes with knives.

"With pre-trial custody credits someone who actually used a knife could be eligible for parole after 18 months," he told CTV News about the current state of the law.

Federal Justice Minister Rob Nicholson said he'd like to see minimum sentences for knife crimes, the same as with the gun violence legislation, but he needs the co-operation of the three opposition parties.

With a report from CTV's Robert Fife