Archive for the ‘Social Security Debates’ Category
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Here’s hoping for results on poverty front
Wednesday, December 15th, 2010
Dec 15 2010
The rate of inter-generational poverty may, thankfully, be lower in Canada than some other countries. However, it exists. It doesn’t always have — although, again, it would be disingenuous to suggest it never has had — anything to do with something inherently deficient in “poor” people. Each of us is made up of varying degrees of what’s necessary to “pull ourselves up by our bootstraps.” Some just can’t do it… Surely the goal is to improve life of the impoverished by giving them the best possible opportunities…
Tags: budget, ideology, poverty, standard of living
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Root causes of inequality and poverty
Friday, December 10th, 2010
Dec 10 2010
The notion of a “cycle of poverty” suggests poverty that is transmitted from generation to generation and implies something inherently deficient in poor people rather than placing a focus on basic living conditions, which are the root causes of inequality and poverty in our society… Research evidence is clear that, compared to the United States and even the United Kingdom, the rate of poverty passed from one generation to the next in Canada is very low. The structural conditions that produce high rates of poverty are…
Tags: budget, featured, ideology, poverty, standard of living
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Impoverished voices speak out
Sunday, December 5th, 2010
Dec. 4, 2010
“… As soon as that housing piece is not there, not safe, or not appropriate to their needs, it really impacts negatively on other aspects of their lives”… there seems to be some “disincentives” in the forms of clawbacks within social assistance programs. “There’s a constant fear people live with that they’re going to be kicked off their benefits and then they’ll lose their homes and won’t be able to pay the bills,”… each interviewee had a story about how the system works against them and frustrates them. They spoke of a system that fosters fear and disincentive to work.
Tags: homelessness, housing, ideology, poverty, standard of living
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Welfare reform: Breaking the cycle of poverty
Saturday, December 4th, 2010
Dec 04 2010
What we have now is a punitive, rules-bound system that not only humiliates and demoralizes recipients but also impedes their transition to the workforce and self-sufficiency. It senselessly forces people into complete destitution before they can apply for benefits; restricts their access to educational opportunities once they are receiving assistance; and urges them to work but strips them of the financial benefits that come with employment. Ultimately, this all costs taxpayers more, not less, and it undermines the province’s goal of breaking the cycle of poverty.
Tags: featured, ideology, poverty, standard of living
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Diet supplement: Patchwork on program
Thursday, December 2nd, 2010
Dec 02 2010
Under the new rules announced this week, numerous medical conditions will no longer qualify for the special diet allowance. But many of the remaining conditions, such as diabetes and hypertension, will qualify for larger amounts to enable people to manage their illnesses with healthier diets. That’s important for them and for our health care budget… As a temporary solution, the changes are not bad.
Tags: Health, ideology, poverty, standard of living
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Ex-StatsCan chief to lead Ontario’s welfare reform
Tuesday, November 30th, 2010
Nov 30 2010
The panel will make targeted recommendations to overhaul Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program. It will have the support of a special commission, made up of bureaucrats and poverty advisers… not only look at social assistance but how does it interact with things like employment insurance, the Ontario Student Assistance Program and job programs… Anti-poverty groups say current social assistance incomes have the same purchasing power as they did in 1967. The panel begins work in January and has 18 months to report back with a detailed plan…
Tags: budget, ideology, poverty, standard of living
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Public better than private on pensions
Tuesday, November 30th, 2010
Nov 30 2010
The notion that we can’t afford strong public programs — that we’re better off buying services or benefits on our own — is one of the central falsehoods blocking meaningful progress toward improving Canadian well-being… management costs at Canadian mutual funds eat up nearly 2 per cent of assets — the highest rate in 20 countries surveyed. By comparison, CPP management costs were just 0.17 per cent last year. This enables the CPP to pay out more in pension benefits.
Tags: economy, ideology, pensions, standard of living
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Guaranteed income: an idea worth rethinking
Sunday, November 28th, 2010
November 27, 2010
Such handouts, the assumption runs, would create a work-resistant underclass prepared to milk the state for all it’s worth. But the time has come to rethink the idea, without preconceptions. A guaranteed annual income (GAI) might well allow us to sweep away the burdensome, confusing, inefficient, intrusive, overlapping tangle of current federal and provincial programs for income support. And a number of pilot studies seem to suggest that the disincentive to work is not enormous, while immediate benefits, notably in improved nutrition and health, are significant for the individuals and for the whole economy.
Tags: budget, featured, ideology, poverty, rights, standard of living
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Poverty, food banks are different issues
Friday, November 26th, 2010
26/11/2010
Many people believe that food banks are a necessary evil, a community response to the failure of governments to address increasing poverty, and even a canary in the mine for our society. The evidence, however, does not support the notion that food bank use and poverty rates are closely linked. Over the period the food banks have been collecting statistics, while food bank utilization has been rising, poverty has in fact been falling… If poverty is not getting worse, why are more people using food banks? The answer probably lies in the way food banks operate their service.
Tags: Health, poverty, standard of living
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Increase welfare to decrease hunger, inquiry hears
Wednesday, November 24th, 2010
Nov 23 2010
“(Hunger) is a serious problem and all indications are it’s getting worse,” University of Toronto public health professor Valerie Tarasuk told the inquiry, which was hosted by the Recession Relief Coalition. “It can’t be fixed without addressing the income problem,” said Tarasuk. “The ripple effect is gigantic and I don’t think we’ve begun to calculate those costs.”… There is a strong link between housing costs and hunger… the Daily Bread Food Bank… has seen a 16 per cent jump in food bank visits in the past year — the largest increase since social assistance rates were cut in 1995.
Tags: budget, Health, poverty, standard of living
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