Posts Tagged ‘poverty’

« Older Entries | Newer Entries »

It’s good the government has promised a Canada Disability Benefit. Here’s how to fix the flawed bill

Saturday, November 12th, 2022

The CDB shouldn’t be restricted to “working age” people. The bill should set a mandatory minimum CDB amount, indexed to inflation, and a mandatory start date for paying it… The bill must set specifics on things like eligibility, requirements that cabinet’s regulations can clarify but can’t contradict… It should require that none of the benefit will be clawed back by federal, provincial or territorial programs.

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Inclusion Policy Context | No Comments »


Landmark Dental Benefit Act passes House of Commons final vote – so, what’s next?

Wednesday, November 2nd, 2022

Bill C-31… the Dental Benefit Act is an interim step toward the much fuller and more comprehensive public dental program… the new public dental program will be a federal program without cooperation from the provinces and territories. The NDP agrees with the Liberals’ go-it-alone approach to avoid the new program becoming embroiled in federal-provincial wrangling over health care dollars…

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Health Policy Context | No Comments »


Doug Ford’s math on social assistance doesn’t add up — and doesn’t solve the problem of legislated poverty for people on ODSP

Wednesday, November 2nd, 2022

… none of the increases noted above come anywhere close enough to lift people on ODSP to a livable income, especially in the face of rampant inflation, years of stagnated rates and various “clawback” rules that reduce other sources of income… Doubling ODSP rates wouldn’t just mean more money in the pockets of clients — it would mean more money spent in local communities. It would mean reduced reliance on food banks and other public supports.

Tags: , , , , , , ,
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »


A catalyst to mend child welfare

Wednesday, November 2nd, 2022

… youth transitioned out of Ontario’s child protection system… experience low academic achievement, unemployment or underemployment, homelessness or housing insecurity, criminal justice system involvement, early parenthood, poor health and deep loneliness… The inquest presented the opportunity to change that approach, as it focused on the flaws in the system… and suggested how they could be fixed.

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Child & Family Delivery System | No Comments »


Why voting for municipal action on affordable housing is in everyone’s interest

Monday, October 24th, 2022

Many people with mental illness and addictions, older adults, people with disabilities and victims of violence can only maintain housing with help. Encampments are a symptom of inadequate supportive housing. And demonstration projects have shown that supportive housing for high-need clients is cost effective, reducing service use in other sectors like hospitals, emergency services, policing and the criminal justice system. But this type of supported housing is woefully undersupplied.

Tags: , ,
Posted in Governance Debates | No Comments »


The toll of police work

Monday, October 24th, 2022

Due to tears in the social safety net, many vulnerable people fall through the cracks, and it then falls to police to pick them up. Police therefore become, by default, de facto doctors, nurses and social workers, as they have to deal with issues for which they’re neither qualified nor equipped: homelessness, addictions and mental illness. This adds enormously to operational stress — and to trauma — for overpoliced, vulnerable people who need care, not cops.

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Child & Family Delivery System | No Comments »


What a new food-bank reports tells us about deep poverty

Thursday, October 20th, 2022

“We are failing people every step of the way”… Policy-makers have a selection of choices before them to slow or halt that cascade… but they boil down to this: either give people access to more money to buy food or help the charitable sector, like food banks, with more resources to bridge the gap. Right now, Yalnizyan adds, “the governments are doing none of the above.” 

Tags: , , , , ,
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »


Strengthening the social safety net for people in greatest need

Saturday, October 15th, 2022

Maytree recommends that the federal government: 1. Transform part of the Canada Workers Benefit (CWB) into the proposed Canada Working-Age Supplement (CWAS)… 2. Enhance the Canada Housing Benefit so that it provides more consistent support to renters with lower incomes… 3. Work with provincial and territorial governments to ensure alignment with federal initiatives…

Tags: , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »


BICN Pre-Budget Submission to the Federal Finance Committee

Thursday, October 13th, 2022

A basic income is the kind of simpler, more automatic, counter-cyclic stabilizer we need, adjusting to ups and downs, maintaining a more even keel, making us more resilient… We can learn from CERB and from evidence amassed that a basic income is a far better option than what we have now. Statistical modelling shows it is affordable… We now urgently need a permanent basic income system that leaves no one behind

Tags: , , , , , ,
Posted in Social Security Policy Context | No Comments »


Better income assistance programs are needed to help people with rising cost of living

Friday, September 30th, 2022

If the goal of temporary assistance is to help those in need, it must have broader coverage and better tapering. The only program that qualifies at present is the GST credit, but even these payments are modest and only delivered quarterly… A more generous income assistance program should also have more frequent regular payments… a guaranteed basic income for working-age Canadians, might provide better support for those in need.

Tags: , , ,
Posted in Social Security Debates | No Comments »


« Older Entries | Newer Entries »