Swift action would show the government is serious about implementing the recommendations of its own Social Assistance Review Advisory Council, meeting the commitments it made to poverty reduction in December 2008 – and, especially, improving the lives of low-income Ontarians across the province.

“The government now has the advice it sought from experts in the field – it is time for the Premier and Cabinet to act, without delay,” said 25 in 5 Network co-chair Greg de Groot-Maggetti. “We urge government to appoint two income security commissioners and an advisory council, and lay out a broad public consultation schedule, by September 1.”

“We especially welcome the Council’s recommendation to immediately increase the incomes of adults without children who are on Ontario Works,” said Mike Creek, co-chair of 25 in 5. “They bear the largest burden of poverty and make up a significant number of the people on assistance. No one anywhere in Ontario can live on the current single adult benefit of $580 per month.”

“And we would extend the recommendation to the incomes of everyone on Ontario Works and ODSP. There are many ways to do this, such as the $100 Healthy Food Supplement, a Housing Benefit for all low-income tenants, or increased tax credits.”

25 in 5 highlights some important recommendations in the Council’s report, including:

• Immediately implementing short-term rule changes in Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program, as recommended by the Council in February;
• Separate and substantive discussions with First Nations to ensure long-term reforms reflect their needs and priorities;
• Developing an expanded range of income supports and services to be available to all low-income Ontarians, building on the approach of the Ontario Child Benefit;
• Re-engineering long-term coverage in Ontario Works as an ‘opportunity planning’ program to support achieving full labour market potential through skills building, education, training, employment and related support;
• Ensuring the labour market offers effective pathways out of poverty by strengthening initiatives such as minimum wage increases, enhanced employment standards, fair employment initiatives and the federal Working Income Tax Benefit;
• Developing standards for a livable income and a process to use those standards to ensure the adequacy of Ontarians’ incomes.

The decision the McGuinty government has taken to end the Special Diet Allowance for people on Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program has been interpreted as a disturbing signal about the degree to which government is committed to the goals of poverty reduction and the importance of protecting the human rights of people with disabilities.

However, it also presents you with the opportunity to create a new program that will address the acknowledged shortcomings of the Special Diet Allowance program, while ensuring continuation of the important financial support it provides to people with documented health challenges.

In light of the government’s announcement that the Ministry of Health will be creating a replacement program for the Special Diet Allowance, we are writing to forward our proposal for Five Principles that should form the basis for this new program.

The 25 in 5 Network and its partners, the ODSP Action Coalition and the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO), are circulating the enclosed Five Principles document to other partner organizations, individuals, and supporters. We trust that you will hear from many around the province who also believe that the new program must be based on these principles.

Statements about the scope and mandate of the new program have been made by members of government that have led many to fear that people currently receiving Special Diet will no longer be adequately supported by our government. We trust that these statements are not an accurate reflection of your position as the minister responsible for the creation of this new program.

We request a meeting with you at your earliest convenience to discuss these principles and your vision for the new program. We have worked well with you in the past, and trust that we can continue to do so in this instance.

Sincerely,

Mike Creek, Co-Chair, 25 in 5 Network

Doris Grinspun, Executive Director, RNAO

Kyle Vose, Co-Chair, ODSP Action Coalition

CC:

• The Honourable Dalton McGuinty, Premier of Ontario
• The Honourable Dwight Duncan, Minister of Finance
• The Honourable Laurel Broten, Minister of Children and Youth Services
• Tim Hudak, MPP, Leader of the Official Opposition
• Andrea Horwath, MPP, Leader of the New Democratic Party of Ontario

Click here to download a PDF of this letter.

Click here to Take Action in support of the Five Principles for the Ontario Nutritional Supplement Program

As it designs this new program, the government must ensure that it is not viewed in isolation from other aspects of the social assistance system and the problems that people who rely on it experience on a regular basis.

There is widespread recognition that the levels of financial support provided through Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program are insufficient to meet even the most basic needs of the people who rely on these programs. This means that people on OW and ODSP cannot adequately afford healthy food, appropriate shelter, clothing, transportation, hygiene supplies, and other basic items.

There is also widespread consensus that the poverty experienced by people on social assistance is directly related to poor health outcomes. Income and food security are two of the primary social determinants of health, and people with low incomes have been shown to have a much higher incidence, prevalence, and severity of chronic illness, acute illness, injuries and death. People relying on social assistance incomes thus have more extensive needs for additional dietary support.

Communities across Ontario agree that the entire social assistance system needs to be re-imagined so that programs can be created that better support the financial, educational, employment training, nutritional, and social needs of the people who rely on them. Ontario has responded by committing to undertake a Social Assistance Review as part of its Poverty Reduction Strategy.

Recognizing that the new program will be created before the Review can take place, we urge the Ontario government to use the following five principles as guideposts for the development of an “Ontario Nutritional Supplement”:

1.  CLEAR POLICY OBJECTIVE:

The overriding policy objective of the new program must be to ensure that people who depend on social assistance benefits, who have associated additional dietary costs due to health challenges, receive the additional financial support that they need for dietary purposes.

2.  ACCESSIBILITY, ADEQUACY, AND EQUITY:

The design of the new program must be driven by a commitment to:

• Genuine accessibility to the program. This includes ensuring that the program is delivered locally, and that health challenges be verified by a range of health care professionals, including nurse practitioners, physicians, registered dietitians, registered midwives, and traditional Aboriginal midwives.
• Adequate levels of support. This includes using an evidence-based process to determine levels of financial support so that the supports provided will be sufficient to meet the additional financial requirements of people with health challenges. Such a process must reflect the needs of people living in communities with disproportionately more expensive food costs, such as those in remote, rural, and otherwise food insecure areas.
• Regular adjustments to keep up with rising costs. A special market basket measure that reflects the costs of nutritional needs related to various health challenges should be developed as the benchmark for determining increases.
• Equity. This includes ensuring that all people on social assistance who have health challenges are given financial support appropriate to their needs.

3.   MEETING THE NEED:

The new program must provide monetary support.

Expansion of the Ontario Drug Benefit, distribution of coupons, or some other non-monetary program intended to only provide access to nutritional beverages and vitamins will not be sufficient to meet the variety and extent of the special dietary needs that people with health conditions require.

The new program must start with an initial budget at least equal to the current budget of the Special Diet Allowance program, which the Premier has indicated is approximately $250 million per year.

4.  RESPONSIBILITY FOR CURRENT RECIPIENTS:

Ontario has already committed to ensure that current recipients of the Special Diet Allowance Program will continue to receive this benefit until the new program is put into place. However, recognizing that people’s health and social circumstances can change at anytime, it is essential to ensure that everyone – current recipients or those newly diagnosed – who meets the criteria of the Special Diet Allowance Program should be granted access to that program during this time of transition.

Ontario should also ensure that no one will be worse off as a result of this transition by grand-parenting every person who is now covered by the Special Diet Allowance Program into the new program.

And Ontario must also ensure that no one will lose their entitlement to OW or ODSP as a result of the cancellation of the Special Diet Allowance, because of the way in which OW and ODSP general budgetary requirements are calculated.

5.  TAKE THE TIME TO GET IT RIGHT:

Ontario should take the time to get the new program right, recognizing that an insufficient program will result in higher costs to government in other parts of the health care system.

The government’s primary consideration should be to ensure that the new program has a coherent policy objective, as outlined above, and a sound delivery mechanism, and that key stakeholders – including health care experts, community agencies, advocates, municipalities, social services delivery agents, and people with lived experience – are adequately consulted in the design of and prior to the implementation of the new program. The process and its results need to be open and transparent.

TAKE ACTION!

Click here to help make sure the new Ontario Nutritional Supplement meets the test.

Click here to download the Five Principles for a New Nutritional Supplement Program PDF

We’ve received the following response from the Premier: (click here to download PDF)

May 6, 2010

Dear Mr. Creek and Mr. deGroot-Maggetti:

Thank you for your valuable feedback regarding poverty in Ontario. I appreciate the importance of this matter and want to acknowledge the hard work of your organization and its members in this regard.

Supporting the vulnerable and helping people succeed is not only fair but is also good for the economy. And, in this challenging economic climate, it is more important than ever. That is why, in the 2010 Ontario Budget – which will move forward our new, five-year Open Ontario Plan for jobs and growth – we committed to advancing our Poverty Reduction Agenda by:

• Increasing the adult basic-needs allowance and maximum shelter allowances for people on the Ontario Disability Support Program and Ontario Works again this fall – the sixth increase made to rates since 2005
• Raising the minimum wage to $10.25 per hour on March 31, 2010.
• Through these initiatives, our government has made a permanent commitment to break the cycle of poverty.

My colleagues in the Ontario government and I remain deeply committed to the well-being of our province’s most vulnerable citizens.

As this important issue would best be addressed by the Honourable Laurel Broten, Minister of Children and Youth Services, I have forwarded a copy of your correspondence to her so that she or a member of her staff can respond to you directly.

Thank you again for writing. Please accept my best wishes.

Yours truly,

Dalton McGuinty

Premier

C: The Honourable Laurel Broten

Budget Decisions on Social Assistance Call Commitment into Question

29 April 2010

Dear Premier McGuinty,

As organizations committed to the mission to reduce poverty, we write to express our serious concern about recent moves your government has taken on the poverty front.

More than a year into Ontario’s efforts to reduce poverty by 25% by 2013, your government has made the following moves that call into question your government’s commitment to meeting its own poverty reduction goals:

1. Ending the Special Diet Allowance Program without a previous and clearly thought through replacement plan, which will result in a significant drop in income for people on social assistance who have health-related nutritional needs;
2. Allowing, for the first time since 2006, social assistance rate increases to fall below the rate of inflation.

These actions are distressing, and – without adequate and commensurate resolution – threaten the health and safety of many struggling individuals in this province.

We keenly appreciate the fiscal constraints facing Ontario post-recession. We also acknowledge and have publicly celebrated the important positive steps taken in the 2010 budget. These include additional investment to improve enforcement of employment standards enforcement for precarious workers as well as your government’s commitment to permanently fund subsidized child care and invest in full-day early learning and child care. We were also very pleased to see the full-day early learning and child care legislation pass on April 27, and to see an additional $6 million in fee subsidies, growing to $51 million over five years.

These are key measures that support low-income families, but do little to directly support their health and well-being. We are deeply concerned about the actions you have taken that affect the most vulnerable people our society – those on social assistance.

By ending the special diet allowance, doctors, nurses, medical officers of health, labour organizations, activists, advocates, and many others warn that your government is putting the security, dignity, and even the lives of many sick Ontarians at risk. They cite the clearly demonstrated relationship between poverty, food insecurity, and poor health.

Others have raised concerns about what this decision says about your government’s commitment to strengthening Ontario’s human rights system, which was apparent in Bill 107, the Human Rights Code Amendment Act, in your first mandate.

Your own Social Assistance Review Advisory Council expressed disappointment with the decision to end the special diet allowance.

If an adequate replacement program to provide people with the finances required to support special dietary needs is not forthcoming, this decision will result in increased sickness, increased housing insecurity, and rising future health care costs.

The decision also underscores the critical need for your government to create a coherent plan to provide livable incomes to people on social assistance. This is because the incomes of people on Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program fall far short of what is needed cover the costs of housing, nutritious food and, for those with health issues, to be able afford special foods to stay healthy.

We feel strongly that your commitment to poverty reduction has reached a crossroads. Over the coming weeks you will have three opportunities to clearly demonstrate your determination to get the 25 in 5 poverty reduction commitment back on track.

1. Affordable Housing Strategy: Since housing takes up such a large part of a low-income person’s budget, what your government does now to make housing more affordable will make a big difference. Your Long-Term Affordable Housing Strategy will lay out a plan this spring that requires immediate action. By bringing in affordable housing measures this spring, you could help poor Ontarians – including those on social assistance – lower their budgetary costs, and create jobs at a time when the province needs them.
2. Social Assistance Review: Your Social Assistance Review Advisory Council will also make its recommendations this spring on the scope and direction of a comprehensive review for income security in Ontario, giving you an opportunity to fix a system that has long been broken and to align it with an agenda for poverty reduction and shared prosperity in Ontario.
3. Nutrition Supplement: Finally, resolution to the loss of the special diet allowance has yet to be worked out. This highly disturbing development in your government’s policy program must be remedied. The 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction is currently working with its partner groups to provide recommendations to your government on the principles that must underlie the replacement program, which we will forward to you in the coming days. However, we feel strongly that your government must immediately address the broader issue of income insecurity that people on social assistance are forced to endure.

Entire nations are recovering from the worldwide economic meltdown of 2008. Recovery efforts can, and will, test the mettle of many governments. Your challenge is to not let today’s fear hamper the future of the poorest of the poor – they are relying on your humanity, your vision and your leadership.

As a network, we strive to ensure the voices of the voiceless are heard in the halls of power. We have been supportive of your promises to reduce poverty and the steps you have taken so far to realize these promises. Our most important commitment is to the poor of this province – as should be yours.

We request a meeting with the core Ministers responsible for carrying out your poverty reduction plan to discuss our hopes and concerns:

· The Hon. Laurel Broten, Minister Responsible for Poverty Reduction
· The Hon. Madeleine Meilleur, Minister of Community and Social Services
· The Hon. Deb Matthews, Minister of Health and Long-Term Care
· The Hon. Jim Bradley, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

Sincerely,

Michael Creek and Greg deGroot-Maggetti
Co-chairs, 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction

cc: Tim Hudak, MPP, Leader of the Official Opposition
Andrea Horwath, MPP, Leader of the New Democratic Party of Ontario

The sting of recession and deep-seated poverty will continue for too many Ontarians who were left behind in today’s provincial budget, says the 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction.

“While the provincial government held the line on some poverty reduction promises, it has thrown 162,000 Ontarians with special dietary needs into limbo by announcing the replacement of the Special Diet program with another initiative – the details of which are yet to be worked out,” says 25 in 5 co-chair Michael Creek.

“There are a lot of unanswered questions about the adequacy of the new nutrition supplement.”

Creek acknowledged the government’s decision to raise social assistance rates by 1%, but criticized it for falling short of need. It amounts to a paltry $5.85 a month for a single person on Ontario Works.

“That’s not even enough to take a return TTC trip in Toronto,” Creek says. “That’s playing small at a time when the province needs to step up.”

The budget also offers no answer to the hundreds of thousands of workers who lost their job to recession and are poised to run out of Employment Insurance (EI).

“We’ve seen neighbours lose their jobs to this recession – men, women, young Ontarians, newcomers to Ontario – and they can’t get back in. They’re exhausting EI benefits, they’re falling onto welfare rolls, they’re running out of retirement investments and there’s no answer for them.”

The budget comes through on replacement of federal dollars for child care subsidies and funding for enforcement of employment standards. But it lacks new investments in other areas like the Ontario Child Benefit, housing affordability, employment equity, and social assistance adequacy and protection of assets.

“Without an investment plan in this budget, Ontario will fail at reaching its goal of reducing poverty by 25% by 2013,” Creek says. “As a result, families will fall behind and Ontario will fall behind. For Ontario to fully recover from the last year of recession, we need all hands on deck to bring us back to prosperity. This budget fails to get us there.”

The Network is calling for continued action on poverty reduction in the next budget to ensure all Ontarians get back on their feet as quickly as possible in order to contribute to a strengthened economy.

“Ontario needs all hands on deck as we face up to demographic pressures and global competition for good jobs. We have more work to do to cut poverty in Ontario – we cannot afford to waste anyone’s potential as we build a stronger economy. The next budget must lay the foundation for a strong, well-equipped workforce where everyone at their best ready to keep Ontario moving forward,” said Mike Creek, co-chair of the 25 in 5 Network.

The Network is calling for action in the March 25 budget to stimulate good jobs, save child care spaces, improve access to affordable housing and training, and introduce social assistance reforms that enable dignity and opportunity.

“The March 25 budget presents a critical opportunity to turn the corner on poverty, or risk losing too much ground to achieve the cut in poverty rates that the government committed to by 2013. We need this government to maintain a steady hand, to stick to its commitments for the long term, and to be there for the vulnerable when help is needed most. Now more than ever inaction isn’t an option.”

In December 2008, the government introduced a Poverty Reduction Strategy with a target of reducing child and family poverty by 25% by the year 2013.

The 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction – a multi-sectoral network endorsed by more than 1,500 organizations and individuals throughout Ontario – continues to advocate for stronger and more effective action on poverty reduction and to track government’s action on the commitments made in the Strategy.

Read the government’s Throne Speech here
Read 25 in 5’s Pre-Budget Submission here

Ontario has been hit harder than most provinces by the global recession. Hundreds of thousands of contributing members of our province have lost their jobs and haven’t even had an Employment Insurance (EI) system to fall back on.

Many Ontarians are silently hurting. For some, the recession meant joining the growing ranks of poor people in this province. Others were forced to take lower paying jobs. Still others struggled with the brutal reality of poverty long before recession made each and every one of us vulnerable to an economic transformation that is nowhere near finished.

25 in 5 has prepared its Pre-Budget Submission for the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs, and the message is simple.

Ontario must stay the course. Rash moves to eliminate the deficit by cutting public sector spending could be disastrous – for Ontarians and for the province’s economic recovery.

Ontario is not yet out of the woods, nor is the rest of the world. The World Bank has already warned that the global economic recovery could wilt if governments pull back on their stimulus efforts too quickly. Without bold provincial leadership, we risk plunging back into recession or faltering with a jobless recovery. We cannot afford either scenario.
Read the full submission here. And read the entire Blueprint here.

Partners and supporters of 25in5 can use the information in the submission when preparing their own submissions to the Standing Committee (william_short@ontla.ola.org by February 3) or to the Finance Minister (submissions@ontario.ca).
25 in 5 will be presenting this submission to the Standing Committee on February 1st.

December 7, 2009

Presented by
Michael Creek, Voices from the Street
Greg deGroot-Maggetti, Mennonite Central Committee Ontario
Co-chairs of the 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction

Background

The 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction is a multi-sectoral organization comprised of more than 450 provincial and Toronto-based organizations and over 1,000 individuals working on the elimination of poverty in Ontario. We believe that making good on the province’s commitment to reduce child and family poverty by 25 percent in the next five years is key to addressing the challenges facing Ontario today and into the future.

It is critical that Ontario apply a “poverty lens” to any new initiative that it is bringing forward. Be it fiscal, economic or social policy, new proposals must be subject to questions about how they will contribute to, or undermine, Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy.

Poverty reduction must be top of mind because:

More and more people are hurting. Action on poverty reduction is crucial to support hard-hit Ontarians right now, so that we can ensure that we can all get back on our feet as quickly as possible. Now more than ever inaction isn’t an option.

A focus on poverty reduction is key to Ontario’s economic recovery strategy. Policies to tackle poverty lay the foundation for a stronger, well-equipped workforce where all hands are on deck ready to take on the challenges of a 21st century global economy.

Social investments will continue to stimulate the economy and help to prevent a longer recession. Investments in economic stimulus targeting the poor are helping to stave off the worst of the recession and create jobs.

Poverty Reduction Benchmarks for HST

The 25 in 5 Network has identified five key areas that must be addressed to ensure that the HST contributes to the objectives of the poverty reduction strategy:

1. Introduction of mitigating measures, such as:
   • indexed tax credits for low income families; and
   • the exclusion of key household items from any tax increases.
2. Regular payments of credits to ensure that low income households have access to regular cash flow. These credits should be staggered with the GST credits to ensure a more even distribution of income throughout the year.
3. Outreach efforts in partnership with communities, including First Nations communities, to ensure take up by low income Ontarians of the refundable sales tax and property tax credits.
4. Monitoring of the impact of the HST and related mitigating measures on low and income households (including annual reporting in the Budget), and a commitment to further action if it is found that there are negative impacts on low and modest income households.
5. Careful consideration of the cost of the proposed personal and corporate income tax cuts proposed in Bill 218.

Mitigating Measures

We note that the Bill 218 proposes a refundable sales tax credit of up to $260 per adult and child per year for low and modest income individuals and families. In addition, Ontario is also committing to $270 million in annual property tax relief for low- to middle- income homeowners and tenants.

We recommend that the Government move ahead with these measures, to monitor their impact on low and modest income households, and commit to further action if it is found that there are negative impacts on low and modest income households.

Bill 218 also sets out to exclude key household items—including diapers, feminine hygiene products — and low-cost meals from the provincial portion of the HST.
We recommend that the Government move ahead with these measures, monitor their impact on low and modest income households, and commit to further action if it is found that there are negative impacts on low and modest income households.

We also recommend that the Government consider increasing the refundable sales and property tax credits as a way to improve income security for low and modest income households and thus contribute to the goal of poverty reduction in Ontario.

Payment Schedule

We note that Bill 218 proposes to provide HST credits quarterly starting in August 2010, to be staggered with federal GST credits, to ensure a more even cash flow to help lower-income families.

We recommend that the Government move ahead with this measures, to monitor its impact on low and modest income households, and commit to further action if it is found that there are negative impacts on low and modest income households.

Take Up by Low-Income Households

In order to benefit from the HST credits, households must complete annual income tax returns. Many low income people do not file tax returns, for a variety of reasons, yet will be required to pay HST on many daily items.

We recommend that the Government of Ontario work with community partners and First Nations communities to implement strategies that will ensure maximum uptake of the refundable sales and property tax credits by low and modest income households. For example, providing funding for annual tax filing clinics would both ensure uptake and support the work of these partners in their local communities.

Monitoring

Advanced planning is critical to ensure that the HST aligns with poverty reduction objectives. Such attention must be sustained throughout the roll-out of the new initiative to ensure that the proposals are having their intended impact.
We recommend regular monitoring of the impact of the HST and related mitigating measures on low and modest income households, including annual reporting in the Budget.
We also recommend that the Government commit to further action if it is found that there are negative impacts on low and modest income households.

The Cost of Corporate and Personal Income Tax Cuts

In addition to the sales tax credit and the property tax credit, Bill 218 proposes reductions to personal income tax and corporate income tax rates. We understand that the aim of these tax cuts is to make the introduction of the Harmonized Sales Tax revenue neutral for the Government, to ensure that the HST includes mitigation measures for all households across the income scale and to create low corporate tax rates.

The 25 in 5 Network feels it is important to emphasize that taxes are the way we all – individuals and businesses – contribute to the public services and public programs that set a foundation for a prosperous and inclusive society.

As we look toward the recovery from the current recession, for example, we need to be sure that people have the education, skills and training to take up the jobs that will be created. Businesses will need to be able to find people with the skills to do the jobs they have available. And businesses benefit substantially from the public investments that are put into everything from early learning and child care, to primary school, high school, colleges and university, as well as training programs. Corporate income taxes contribute to having a well educated and highly skilled workforce. The lost tax revenue due to corporate tax cuts depletes the resources needed to ensure businesses can find the people they need with the skills they need.
In a similar way, as individuals and households we benefit from public education, public healthcare, public transit and public income security programs. Many of the jobs that were created in the last two recoveries did not provide extended health insurance – to cover dental care, prescription drugs, and vision care. The few dollars in personal income tax cuts that individuals and households will receive will not be enough to meet those expenses. That is why it is so important to develop public dental, prescription drug and vision care for those who do not have private coverage. Public revenue from personal and corporate income taxes would make it possible to do that.

We recommend that the Government – and Ontarians – carefully consider the cost of the proposed personal and corporate income tax cuts for the public infrastructure and services that provide the foundation for a productive, prosperous and equitable society.

Conclusion

Aside from the benefit to individuals and families of our recommendations, we want to emphasize that investing in poverty reduction benefits everyone and needs to be an integral part of Ontario’s economic recovery. Every dollar provided through the Ontario Child Benefit and through new HST credits ends up with local retailers and grocery stores. These dollars will help prevent a longer and deeper recession and get Ontario into recovery mode faster. Investments in public programs and services help ensure that all Ontarians can be a part of that recovery.

For further information contact:

Michael Creek
Voices from the Street

Greg deGroot-Maggetti
Mennonite Central Committee Ontario

“There are consequences when societies develop an underclass, demoralized and falling out of contact with the mainstream. The inequality that matters here is … between the poor and the middle class. A poor family is not demoralized because it cannot afford a yacht, but because it cannot aspire even to the sorts of everyday things that average families take for granted.”

Who said it? Andrew Coyne, in Maclean’s Magazine, December 8, 2009.

Ontario Auditor General’s Report Underlines Need for Social Assistance Reform

From: Income Security Advocacy Centre

Whether he meant to or not, the auditor general’s December 7th analysis of OW/ODSP let a dysfunctional social assistance system off the hook, instead laying blame with the people who have nowhere else to turn for basic support.

The ensuing debate risks losing sight of the simple fact that when it comes to social assistance, it’s not the people who are the problem. Instead it’s the 800+ rules that trap people in poverty and powerlessness, fail to provide social and community supports and education and training tools to enable opportunity, and leave people so short of income that living a healthy, dignified life is impossible.

As Premier McGuinty recently stated, social assistance “stomps people into the ground” and something must be done to make the system work the way it should. That something cannot come soon enough, as evidenced by the confusing picture painted by the auditor general’s report:

• The AG’s analysis compares apples with oranges: Comparing the yearly cost of OW and ODSP ($5 B annually) with the historical value of all unrecovered overpayments in the system over decades ($1.2 b over 5+ years) is highly misleading;
• The AG’s analysis inflates the reality of overpayments: The comparison between annual and historical amounts invites the public to falsely conclude overpayments make up 24% of the cost of OW and ODSP. It’s more like 1.4%. That’s not even including the 20% municipal contribution which would bring this numbers even lower
• Overpayments are endemic to the OW and ODSP systems and are routinely generated because of the way the system works. In fact, ‘Overpayment’ is a misleading term: ‘Overpayments’ are automatically generated by the system for the smallest of routine changes, such as a recipient getting long-awaited back pay from a previous job or child support arrears.
• The AG questions the growth of “special diet” benefits simply based on the growth of claims. No medical evidence is offered to suggest that a single recipient does not qualify for this vital medical benefit.
• The AG report does not address the fact that incomes for people on social assistance are dangerously low and compromise people’s health and dignity, leaving society with higher costs down the road. Welfare literally makes people sick. People who experience chronic food insecurity and a lack of access to a healthy diet suffer from numerous negative effects on their health, including higher risk of chronic illness, depression, heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure.

Backgrounder: Just the Facts

From: Income Security Advocacy Centre

1) Overpayments and Program Costs: Comparing Apples to Oranges

The yearly cost of both OW and ODSP was reported by the auditor general as $5 billion. In addition, the historical value of all overpayments in the system, potentially reaching back many decades, was reported as $1.2 billion. Comparing these two numbers leads to the faulty conclusion that overpayments make up 24% of the cost of programs.

This is simply not true. It’s unfair and misleading.

Doing the math the right way compares annual program costs with the annual amount of overpayments – which the report indicates is about $26 million. That means that overpayments account for only 1.4% of the cost of the programs. That’s not even including the 20% municipal contribution, which would bring this numbers even lower

2) What Is An Overpayment?

The auditor general’s press release on Ontario Works states that, “More should be done to ensure these overpayments do not occur in the first place,” and “if the required financial and other eligibility procedures were being properly followed, many of these overpayments might not have been given out.”

The problem is, even the term ‘overpayment’ is misleading.

In other business systems, what social assistance calls ‘overpayments’ are called ‘adjustments’ or ‘debits’. Heating and hydro bills, for example, are typically adjusted at the end of the year to account for credits or debits. When families use more heat or water than expected, they owe money to the utility company. We don’t think of this as ‘abuse’ or ‘fraud’.

Unfortunately, OW and ODSP calls these routine debits and adjustments ‘overpayments’, which contributes to a misperception that there is widespread abuse in the system.

3) The System Routinely Generates Overpayments

The real issue is that overpayments are endemic to the OW and ODSP systems and are routinely generated because of the way the system was set up in the first place.

Both OW and ODSP subtract any income a person makes in a month from their monthly benefit cheque. But any number of daily life occurrences can cause an “overpayment” to be generated by the system. For example, overpayments are automatically generated when:

• Income from work or any other source is estimated by a worker or a recipient and the amount actually received is higher than estimated;
• A benefit like back pay, child support arrears, or any kind of retroactive payment is paid to a recipient for a previous time period.

The fact is, the vast majority of what we call ‘overpayments’ are these kinds of routine occurrences. They are systemic differences between ‘budgeted’ and ‘actual’ amounts of assistance caused by normal changes in people’s lives. So, for example:

• Being asked by a part-time employer to work an extra hour will result in an overpayment;
• An former spouse unexpectedly paying a bit more child support in a month will result in an overpayment;
• An unexpected cheque from any program will create an overpayment.

The irony is that from the point of view of the system, overpayments are a good thing. They mean that more money is being paid to recipients from ‘other sources’ – which reduces the cost of social assistance to government. In fact, if there were fewer overpayments, the programs would cost much more.

4) Overpayments are Generated Monthly – Increasing Misperceptions

The income tax system and businesses like hydro or home heating companies reconcile debits (or ‘overpayments’) and credits on a yearly basis.

For example, the federal government determines how much GST credit or child benefits a person is entitled to once a year. Typically, the amount that person gets from credits or benefits is not adjusted until the following tax year. Utilities also do a yearly reconciliation of their billings and costs and either credit a person’s account or send a notice for payment.

OW and ODSP, on the other hand, adjust credits and debits on a month-to-month basis.

Not only does this result in additional paperwork and scrutiny, it also multiplies the appearance of abuse twelve-fold over other similar systems. It also results in a huge number of underpayments, which continue to cause hardship for people but so far have not been accounted for by either the auditor general or the public at large.

If social assistance adopted the same reconciliation rules as most other businesses and major public sector programs, they could slash overpayments and underpayments by a factor of 12 – and they could do it with one simple rule change.

5) Overpayments and Breaking the Rules

While government and society need to be concerned about fraud, it’s clearly the case that fraud in the social assistance system is low.

The number of people convicted of social assistance fraud is a tiny fraction of the number of overpayments in the system. In fact, to quote one report, “more people cheat on their income taxes and lie about their cross-border shopping than defraud the welfare system. Corporate crime, white collar fraud and tax evasion in Ontario cost the public more every year than the entire cost of the social assistance system,” (Six Degrees from Liberation: Legal Needs of Women in Criminal and Other Matters” Department of Justice, Canada, 2003.)

The difference is that, under social assistance, breaking the rules is often committed out of desperation.

The system may in fact encourage breaking the rules by setting rates at levels that no one can live on, and by clawing back half of any income that people earn from employment. Worse yet, on Ontario Works, any money that a person receives from any source other than employment is clawed back at a rate of 100%, forcing people to live on incomes that are below subsistence levels.

It would be laudable and visionary to undertake an accounting of just how far social assistance incomes are from any measure of acceptable living standard. For example, how does one account for the feasibility of having a healthy life given a monthly income of $585 for a single person on Ontario Works in a city like Toronto?

Indeed, under these dire living standards, expecting recipients to quickly settle overpayments and is unrealistic and punitive.

6) Program Complexity and 800 Rules

The social assistance system is so overly and unnecessarily complicated that any number of situations can generate an overpayment.

In fact, in a 2004 report, Deb Matthews, the former Minister for Poverty Reduction and current Minister of Health, indicated that,

“There are now approximately 800 rules and regulations within the system that must be applied before a client’s eligibility and the amount of their monthly cheque can be determined. Many of those rules are punitive and designed not to support people, but rather to keep them out of the system. Because there are so many rules, they are expensive to administer and often applied inconsistently from one caseworker to another, even within the same office. Further, the rules are so complicated that they are virtually impossible to communicate to clients, and it takes years to train a caseworker.”

Little has changed since then. The system is overburdened. Overpayments – and, more troubling for people who need the support, underpayments – are inevitable. It’s time for a new system.

7) “Temporary” Assistance?

Unfortunately, the auditor general made unwarranted comments on issues outside the laws and rules that are in place. He observed that:

“Although the government considers Ontario Works assistance as temporary, about one-third of recipients in three municipalities were paid longer than two years and 13% longer than five years.”

There is no legislation, no regulation, no guideline or government directive that places time limits on the receipt of Ontario Works.

Rather than commenting on issues outside the legal and accounting frameworks within which government does business, it would be more helpful to comment on issues like the systemic nature of overpayments or the other procedures endemic to social assistance that cause the situations that the auditor general calls to task.

For example, it would be more than fair to comment that a 55% increase in Ontario Works rates is required to bring them to the levels that they stood at in 1993. It is possible to argue that many of the “problems” that have been identified in the social assistance system can be related to the considerable loss in purchasing power of the extremely low incomes on which people have to survive.

8) Special Diet

The Special Diet program provides additional funds for people whose medical needs, as determined by a physician, require particular nutritional treatment. There are a limited number of conditions for which a special diet allowance is available, and these conditions must be verified by a physician.

There are many people on ODSP who continue to suffer from medical conditions with documented nutritional treatment needs that are not funded by the program because they don’t appear on a list of conditions for which support will be provided.

In fact, the government appointed Special Diets Expert Review Committee recommended a number of conditions that can cause unintended weight loss be added to the list, including multiple sclerosis, congestive heart failure and muscular dystrophy. Multiple sclerosis and lupus were added to the list only after a legal challenge to the program.

The auditor general makes the following observation:

“Many special dietary allowances were paid under questionable circumstances. The total amount spent on the allowances has increased from $5 million in the 2002/03 fiscal year to more than $67 million during 2008/09.”

He does not mention that the increase in program costs were in large part a result of Ministry staff promoting what had been an under-utilized program.

Furthermore, what does “questionable” mean in this instance? Innuendo rules the day over facts, debasing a program that provides vital support to people for whom nutritional treatment can mean the difference between managing a health condition or sliding into serious deterioration.

CONCLUSION

The welfare system as it now stands fails to adequately provide for people’s basic needs and offers few real supports or opportunities to help people climb out of poverty, build better lives and play their part in the economy.

That’s why it’s critical that Ontario move ahead with its promised review of social assistance – to remove the stigma and shame that accompany these programs and to align these programs with what should be their real goal – support and opportunity for all Ontarians.

The 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction has offered the following five benchmarks for a successful Social Assistance review.

• The review must be grounded in a bold vision: economic security and opportunity for all Ontarians. Tinkering with Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program rules is simply not enough. We need social assistance programs that ensure people’s well-being, and provide the opportunities people need to contribute to the province’s prosperity – because the province is going to need all the help it can get.
• The review must be proactive. Immediate changes must be made to unfair and counterproductive rules that deny people supports they need to get ahead – rules like asset limits that virtually guarantee more hardship, not less, and that continue to hamper Ontario’s recession recovery efforts.
• A timely process to launch deep reforms must be part of the review package. A fundamental transformation must be made to overcome the silos of current programs and make further progress in crucial areas like the early childhood years, housing security, dental care and more.
• Providing decent, adequate income supports must be a stated outcome of the review. Immediate and longer term steps must ensure that people who rely on social assistance, and all low-income people, are assured living standards of health and dignity as well as access to supports and tools, like meaningful training and education, to enable the pursuit of opportunity. The 25 in 5 Network has proposed two policy actions that government can take to move quickly on adequacy – a $100 a month nutritious food supplement for adults on social assistance, and the creation of an Ontario Housing Benefit to help low income renters, including the working poor.
• People who have had to rely on Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program must have a leading role in shaping the review’s recommendations. This means seeking out and heeding the expertise of people who have been there. They have much to teach the committee – and all of us – in the review.

Right now, Ontario’s social assistance system is simply not up to the task. Making social assistance consistent with Ontario’s goals for poverty reduction and economic opportunity is the right move now.

What Can You Do? TAKE ACTION

Renowned social justice activist Anna Willats writes in today’s Toronto Star that “we must not allow ourselves to descend into the shameful poor-bashing that was used so cynically by the Mike Harris Tories to propel themselves to power.”

Send a letter to the editor of your local paper, phone in to call-in shows, use Facebook, Twitter, your blog, and other web-based media.

It is critical that we make our voices heard in support of the integrity of people on social assistance is challenged. Send the message that poor-bashing does not belong in today’s Ontario!

Let’s underscore that:

• When it comes to social assistance, it’s not the people who are the problem, it’s the system that is broken.
• The welfare system as it now stands fails to adequately provide for people’s basic needs and offers few real supports or opportunities to help people climb out of poverty, build better lives and play their part in the economy.
• That’s why it’s critical that Ontario move ahead with its promised review of social assistance and take action to ensure everyone can live in dignity.

Are you a recipient of OW or ODSP? Tell your story of how the system really works at www.sareview.ca/tell-your-story.

Please forward your letters, op-eds, web posts, and any record of calls to radio to info@25in5.ca.

TORONTO – One year into the Ontario government’s commitment to reduce child poverty by 25 per cent by 2013, the 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction warns the province risks missing its target unless further action is taken.

An anniversary report released today by 25 in 5 that tracks Ontario’s progress shows the province’s poverty reduction strategy has taken significant steps in the first year, but the next steps cannot come soon enough to support struggling Ontarians and help with the province’s economic recovery.

“A year into the promise to reduce poverty, the damaging effect of the recession has taken root in every community in this province,” says Greg deGroot-Maggetti, co-chair of 25 in 5. “Hundreds of thousands of Ontarians have lost jobs and many are losing hope. Without immediate public support, the province’s poverty rate will explode.”

In its anniversary report, 25 in 5 documents positive progress but warns that several challenges lay ahead:

• The impact of the last year of recession makes poverty prevention and reduction an even more urgent but very do-able task for the provincial government;
• Repeating the mistakes of the 1990s – especially cuts to public sector programs and services – will act as a drag on the province’s economic recovery and perpetuate poverty;
• The province must make good on its promise to review social assistance, especially in light of the recession that is forcing many more Ontarians to seek support;
• The province must speed up several other measures necessary for poverty reduction, including an improved Ontario Child Benefit, stimulus measures in affordable housing and early learning, action to raise the minimum wage and social assistance incomes, and a new dental program for low income Ontarians.

“The good news is that investing in poverty reduction benefits everyone and can be a crucial player in Ontario’s economic recovery,” says Mike Creek, co-chair of 25 in 5. “For instance, every dollar provided through the Ontario Child Benefit and other income programs ends up with local retailers and grocery stores. These dollars will help prevent a longer and deeper recession and get Ontario into recovery mode faster.”

Read the report online.

In this week’s eBulletin:

• Quotes of the Week
• Communities Speak: Housing Network of Ontario Report
• New Brunswick Announces Big Changes to Social Assistance! When Will Ontario Act?
• Take Action: What Can You Do?

Quotes of the week

“We know the existing model [of social assistance] has not produced the results that New Brunswickers expect…It has hindered people from entering into a life without poverty.”

Who said it? Premier Shawn Graham of New Brunswick, announcing significant immediate and longer-term reforms to that province’s social assistance system.
Read the coverage.

“When the price of healthy food remains out of reach for so many people, we are faced with serious health threat that is within the power of government to prevent.”

Who said it? Dr. David McKeown, Toronto’s Medical Officer of Health, about why government must significantly increase the incomes of people on social assistance.
Read the coverage.

Communities Speak: Housing Network of Ontario

Leadership now. That’s what people across the province called for during nearly 40 community consultations across Ontario on the government’s upcoming Long-Term Affordable Housing Strategy.

And the Housing Network of Ontario was listening. On Monday, November 16, the HNO released a report entitled Communities Speak: A Summary of the 2009 Provincial Housing Consultations, which summarizes the core messages and recommendations made by communities at both the government’s official consultations and locally-organized meetings between June and November.

The main messages that emerged from these consultations were:

• Ontarians need a comprehensive, fully-funded long-term affordable housing strategy with bold targets.
• Housing insecurity, homelessness and poverty are inseparably linked.
• People with lived experience of housing insecurity and housing related poverty should be at the centre of any housing strategy.

Thousands of people have participated in consultations to let the province know what they have to do to properly address the affordable housing crisis in Ontario. The report brings all their input together.

And now it’s time for the province to act.

Visit www.stableandaffordable.com to learn more about the HNO.

Read coverage in the Toronto Star.

Read coverage in the Ottawa Sun.

New Brunswick Announces Big Changes to Social Assistance: When will Ontario Act?

The government of New Brunswick has just announced big changes to social assistance in that province.

These changes come as part of New Brunswick’s new five-year Poverty Reduction Strategy that aims to reduce income poverty by 25% and deep income poverty by 50% in that province by the year 2015.

In a two-track process, New Brunswick aims to make a series of immediate changes to improve incomes, assist in the transition to work, and eliminate punitive rules. Longer-term changes will see a more significant overhaul of social assistance in New Brunswick.

What has Ontario done? While a commitment was made in December 2008 to review Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program, as yet nothing has happened.

25 in 5 continues to press government to meet this commitment, and to institute a Social Assistance Review that fundamentally transforms social assistance in Ontario. Government should follow these five benchmarks to make sure a Social Assistance Review does the job.

* The review must be grounded in a bold vision: economic security and opportunity for all Ontarians.
* The review must be proactive. Immediate changes must be made to unfair and counterproductive rules that deny people supports they need to get ahead.
* A timely process to launch deep reforms must be part of the review package.
* Providing decent, adequate income supports must be a stated outcome of the review.
* People who have had to rely on Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program must have a leading role in shaping the review’s recommendations.

New Brunswick has recognized that old ways of providing support through outdated social assistance programs just don’t work. When will Ontario follow suit?

See the government’s commitment to review social assistance programs in Ontario.

For more details about 25 in 5’s Five Benchmarks, read 25 in 5’s recent editorial in the Toronto Star.

Take Action! What Can You Do?

As the one-year anniversary of the government’s Poverty Reduction Strategy nears, 25 in 5 is working toward releasing a report that tracks government’s progress over the past year.

What can you do? Take the actions below to remind government of their commitment to reduce child and family poverty by 25% by 2013.

A) Book a meeting NOW with your MPP

** If you are planning to meet with your MPP on December 4, please contact us at info@25in5.ca! We’ll be in touch to provide resources and help you organize a delegation. We’ve had lots of people contact us – so send an email and count yourself in!

Communities across Ontario are gearing up to meet with their MPPs to send the message that poverty reduction must be a top priority for government.

MPPs will be in their local offices for a “constituency day” on December 4 – the one year anniversary of the government’s Poverty Reduction Strategy, called Breaking the Cycle.

Call your local MPP now and book a meeting for December 4 to discuss the steps they’ll take to ensure the government’s commitment to Poverty Reduction continues.

To find your MPP and their contact information, check the Ontario legislature’s MPP contact webpage or the Elections Ontario electoral district lookup.

It’s especially important to speak to members of the provincial government’s Results Table, so if you live in the riding of one of the following Liberal MPPs, make sure to call and book your appointment today.

* Minister Laurel Broten – Etobicoke-Lakeshore – 416-259-2249
* Minister Madeleine Meilleur – Ottawa-Vanier – 613-744-4484
* Minister John Milloy – Kitchener Centre – 519-579-5460
* MPP Carol Mitchell – Huron-Bruce – 519-396-3007
* Minister Gerry Phillips – Scarborough-Agincourt – 416-297-6568
* Minister Kathleen Wynne – Don Valley West – 416-425-6777

B) Keep Up the Pressure on the Social Assistance Review

Government has made some headway towards their commitment to reduce child and family poverty by 25% by 2013.

But they haven’t met their commitment to review Social Assistance. A system that provides opportunity for all Ontarians will be critical to meeting the 25% target.

Send an email TODAY to urge government to meet their commitment to a Social Assistance Review.

Complete the form on the 25 in 5 site and send a message to the Premier, Minister Meilleur, and Minister Broten – the new Minister Responsible for Poverty Reduction.

Now, more than ever, Ontario needs the province to show leadership and ensure everyone can contribute to and benefit from the province’s prosperity.

C) Plan a Poverty Reduction Anniversary Action in your community!

Hold a Poverty Reduction event – a rally, a breakfast, a letter-writing campaign, or any other activity that will keep poverty reduction on the radar in your community.

Make sure to include local government and religious leaders, people living in poverty, social service providers, and the media in your efforts.

Let us know your plans at info@25in5.ca.

We can share resources and tips with you, and we’ll let everyone know what you’re doing in an upcoming e-bulletin.

Communities Speak: A Summary of the 2009 Provincial Housing Consultations, reflects government-led consultations held between June and November with housing providers, tenants, agency staff, private landlords, and low-income people in housing need. It summarizes core conclusions of those consultations with 40 recommendations for the provincial government to enact.

“Ontarians have spoken: the province must take bold action to resolve Ontario’s housing crisis,” says Yutaka Dirks, Co-chair of HNO.

“Acting on the expert recommendations of people who are living this crisis, like the ones in this report, will be key to moving forward on housing and it has the added advantage of addressing some of Ontario’s core economic challenges.”

The report calls on the provincial government to invest in a plan to build more affordable housing, to repair existing public housing, and ensure more Ontarians in need have access to affordable housing when they need it.

“Resolving Ontario’s housing crisis isn’t just a matter of bricks and mortar,” says Harvey Cooper, Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada, Ontario. “The recommendations in this report provide guidance in a wide range of policy areas. Bold leadership in these areas will not only start to address housing affordability, but also help Ontario reach its target of a 25% reduction in poverty by 2013.

“Thousands of people have come to community meetings to let politicians know what they must do to properly address the enormous affordable housing need in Ontario. This report brings all their input together, and we expect government to act on these recommendations,” said Dirks.

The HNO will be releasing its own submission to the government’s consultation process in early December. Over 450 organizations and individuals have endorsed the HNO Declaration.

In Breaking the Cycle: A Poverty Reduction Strategy for Ontario, government said:

We will undertake a review of social assistance with the goal of removing barriers and increasing opportunity – with a particular focus on people trying to move into employment from social assistance. The review will seek to better align social assistance and other key programs and initiatives, better communicate program rules and ensure that programs as a collective work to achieve the aims of increasing opportunity for the individual.

One year has almost passed, but no review has yet been announced.

Complete the form below and send a message to the Premier, Minister Meilleur, and Minister Broten – the new Minister Responsible for Poverty Reduction.

Now, more than ever, Ontario needs them to show leadership and ensure everyone can contribute to and benefit from the province’s prosperity.

For more information, check out the Toronto Star Editorial from October 27th written by Jennefer Laidley of ISAC and Pat Capponi of Voices from the Street on behalf of the 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction.

Ontario’s fiscal woes come as bad news for the growing number of Ontarians dealing with the fallout from the recent economic storm.

As provincial coffers dry up, thousands of individuals and families also face increasing financial hardship. With unemployment expected to hit 10 per cent by 2010, there could soon be 400,000 of us out of work.

And while federal changes to employment insurance will offer some short-term relief, they may be too little, too late.

But times of crisis are also times for tough decisions, as Finance Minister Dwight Duncan said in his economic statement last week. The province has already made the tough but smart decision to stick with its economic stimulus plan. Standing firm on the commitment to early learning is another tough but smart choice.

The next bold move the government must make is to stick to its guns on a comprehensive review of Ontario’s broken social assistance system.

The commitment to review Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program – made in the province’s poverty reduction strategy last December – has been agonizingly slow to get off the ground.

With the first anniversary of the strategy quickly approaching, more and more Ontarians are being forced to deplete their savings and join Ontario’s swelling welfare rolls.

As the province moves to more effectively employ resources to meet people’s needs and promote economic recovery, we can no longer afford to wait.

That social assistance needs fixing isn’t a surprise. Premier Dalton McGuinty himself has acknowledged that Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program “stomp people into the ground.”

Not only do these programs fail to adequately provide for people’s basic needs, they offer few real supports or opportunities to help people climb out of poverty, build better lives and play their part in the economy.

Countless studies have shown the contradictions and inconsistencies in existing programs – how they make it difficult to escape the poverty trap, as too often one part of a program works at odds with other facets of the system.

That’s why the newly appointed minister responsible for poverty reduction, Laurel Broten, and the government’s poverty reduction results team must make the social assistance review their first order of business to support Ontario’s strategy for climbing out of the recession.

As Ontario considers its plan for moving forward, the 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction offers the following five benchmarks for a social assistance review that will meet the test:

1. The review must be grounded in a bold vision: economic security and opportunity for all Ontarians. Tinkering with Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program rules is simply not enough. We need social assistance programs that ensure people’s well-being, and provide the opportunities people need to contribute to the province’s prosperity – because the province is going to need all the help it can get.
2. The review must be proactive. Immediate changes must be made to unfair and counterproductive rules that deny people supports they need to get ahead – rules like asset limits that virtually guarantee more hardship, not less, and that continue to hamper Ontario’s recession recovery efforts.
3. A timely process to launch deep reforms must be part of the review package. A fundamental transformation must be made to overcome the silos of current programs and make further progress in crucial areas like the early childhood years, housing security, dental care and more.
4. Providing decent, adequate income supports must be a stated outcome of the review. Immediate and longer term steps must ensure that people who rely on social assistance, and all low-income people, are assured living standards of health and dignity as well as access to supports and tools, like meaningful training and education, to enable the pursuit of opportunity.
5. People who have had to rely on Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program must have a leading role in shaping the review’s recommendations. This means seeking out and heeding the expertise of people who have been there. They have much to teach the committee – and all of us – in the review.

Right now, Ontario’s social assistance system is simply not up to the task. Making social assistance consistent with Ontario’s goals for poverty reduction and economic opportunity is the right move.

In announcing major poverty reduction initiatives in the 2008 budget, McGuinty said: “Ontario is only at its best when all of us are working, building and dreaming together. Supporting each other is not only the right thing to do, it is also the smart thing to do, and part of our plan for a stronger economy.”

Now is not the time for government to renege on its commitment to people living in poverty. Now, more than ever, Ontario needs leadership that ensures everyone will play their part and partake in our future prosperity.

Pat Capponi and Jennefer Laidley are members of the 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction.

“Acting on [the Pascal Report] will establish Ontario as a world-class education leader. Families and children are ready. Municipalities and school boards are ready. Educators and champions of publicly funded education are ready…. This is our opportunity to get it right, for children and families today and for the benefit of all into the future.”

Who said it? Former Toronto Mayor David Crombie, at the release of a declaration calling on the province to enact Pascal’s early learning strategy in full. For more information, click here.

How is the Government Doing on Poverty Reduction? 25 in 5 to Release Commitments Checklist

On December 4, 2008, the Ontario government’s Poverty Reduction Strategy made 25 distinct commitments – commitments that laid a strong foundation toward opportunity for all Ontarians.

But what is government doing to meet those commitments?

As the one year anniversary of the Poverty Reduction Strategy nears, 25in5’s Accountability Table is putting the finishing touches on a report that outlines the government’s actions to date on these 25 commitments.

Watch for the release of this report during the week of December 4!

What can you do? Plan a Poverty Reduction Anniversary Action in your community!

Let us know about your plans at info@25in5.ca. We’ll share resources and tips with you, and we’ll let everyone know what you’re doing in an upcoming e-bulletin.

Action Alert! No Cherry-Picking on Early Learning!

In June, the Premier’s Advisor on Early Learning – Charles Pascal – delivered a ground breaking plan called With Our Best Future in Mind-Implementing Early Learning in Ontario.

The plan would benefit all children and families, including full-day learning for four- and five-year-olds and transforming schools into year round family-centred learning hubs with parenting, child care, and summer programs to create a continuous learning system. It’s a key component of an effective poverty reduction strategy.

Many 25 in 5 partners support this plan – but are concerned about recent media reports that the McGuinty government may “cherry pick” and only implement full day learning, without the important other continuous learning supports. A government announcement is expected shortly.

Please ADD YOUR VOICE to a growing chorus by sending a message as soon as possible to the Premier, Minister Wynne, and Minister Broten – the newly appointed Minister Responsible for Poverty Reduction.

Toward an Affordable Housing Strategy: A Message from the Housing Network of Ontario

On September 30, the final official public affordable housing strategy consultation was held in Thunder Bay. The Housing Network of Ontario would like to take this moment to congratulate everyone who has participated in the call for a strategy that leads to an Ontario where everyone can live poverty-free with dignity in housing that is stable, adequate, equitably accessible and affordable.

But the official consultation meetings are not the end of our work, and there are many opportunities to build the movement for affordable housing:

1. If you haven’t done so already, please make a written submission to the Provincial consultation process, highlighting the housing needs and solutions in your community. You can do so online or you can send a letter to Minister Watson at this address.
2. Attend a community or MPP housing consultation meeting. There are several planned in the coming weeks – check here for meetings upcoming near you.

We already have some victories to celebrate and to lift our spirits:

Inclusionary housing is one step closer in Ontario as MPP Cheri DiNovo’s Bill 198, An Act to amend the Planning Act with respect to inclusionary housing, passed second reading in the Ontario Legislature on September 24.

And MP Libby Davies’ Bill C-304, An Act to ensure secure, adequate, accessible and affordable housing for Canadians, just passed second reading in the House of Commons and is going to committee for review and possible amendment.

For more information, check the HNO’s on-line hub – you’ll get the latest news, reports from community meetings, tips for actions and plenty of other resources.

Update: Dental Treatment Programs for Low-Income Ontarians

The 25 in 5 “Dental Team” has been working tirelessly with public health authorities and Ontario’s Community Health Centres to ensure a solid dental treatment program for low-income people across Ontario.

Government has already allocated $13 million in 2009 to expand existing dental programs for low-income children. But one of their key commitments to poverty reduction is the investment of $45 million annually to provide dental care for all low-income Ontarians.

Ensuring a community-based infrastructure to deliver dental programs now and into the future has been one of the Dental Team’s priorities – in addition to making sure that adequate funds are available to pay for staff and services in those settings.

Details haven’t yet been released about the government’s plans, but work is ongoing to make sure all low-income Ontarians get the kind of dental care treatment program that we need.

“Do The Math” Highlighted in Star Editorial

Over the Thanksgiving weekend, the Put Food in the Budget campaign highlighted the importance of ensuring that people on Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program have enough income to afford healthy food and a life characterized by dignity, not despair.

The Op Ed reads: “Thanksgiving is a time to think about food. For many of us, this means planning a holiday feast with our families and celebrating an abundant harvest. But Thanksgiving also marks the beginning of the season of food-drives, the perennial call to “feed the hungry” over the winter holiday season.”

More here…

Report: Ontario’s Food Banks Hit Hard by Recession, Call for Action This Fall

A special report released on October 8th by the Ontario Association of Food Banks (OAFB) has highlighted the negative impact of the current economic downturn on families and food banks across the province.

As hundreds of thousands of Ontarians lose their jobs, food prices continue to rise, and more Ontarians turn to food banks, many organizations are also being hit by declining donations. The report was released just days before the Thanksgiving weekend, a crucial period when many food banks look to fill their shelves through community food drives.

The OAFB is also calling on the provincial and federal governments to act. Among its recommendations are: removing barriers to accessing social assistance by measures such as increasing restrictive asset limits and allowing Ontarians to collect OSAP and social assistance at the same time; and increasing the accessibility and adequacy of EI benefits by decreasing eligibility requirements for Ontarians to be in line with other provinces and by increasing benefit levels.

Download In the Midst of the Storm: The Impact of the Economic Downturn for Ontario’s Food Banks in 2009

More than 100 individuals and organizations released a declaration at a Queen’s Park news conference today, urging the Ontario government to implement the full set of educational reforms recommended by the Premier’s early learning advisor’s blueprint for change.

“This blueprint shows the government how to transform Ontario’s schools into vibrant, family-centred learning hubs for children and their parents,” says Annie Kidder, People for Education.

“This is good not only for Ontario’s families today but also for the long-term prosperity of our province. With the economy in the dumps, this is a lifeline that will pay off for generations.”

David Crombie, former Toronto Mayor and chair of Toronto Lands Trust, called on the government to make this the last study to sit on a shelf.

“Acting on this blueprint will establish Ontario as a world-class education leader. Families and children are ready. Municipalities and school boards are ready. Educators and champions of publicly funded education are ready,” Crombie says. “This is our opportunity to get it right, for children and families today and for the benefit of all into the future.”

York University research scientist, Dr. Stuart Shanker, called on the Ontario government to avoid cherrypicking and implement all of the recommendations in its early learning advisor’s report – starting in September 2010 with 2012 as the rollout end date.

“This is a doable timeframe,” said Dr. Shanker. “35 per cent of our schools already have the capacity to handle the first phase of change and are ready to go.”

For further information: Trish Hennessy, communications coordinator, cell (416) 525-4927

An Open Letter to Premier Dalton McGuinty

The Ontario government has before it a blueprint for major educational reform, one that will make Ontario the best place there is to raise a child. To do the best for our children, we need to create the finest possible education and family service system. With Our Best Future in Mind, the report of the premier’s early learning advisor, maps out how Ontario can achieve more family-centred schools that are vibrant learning hubs for children and their parents.

The plan envisions our elementary schools buzzing with parent programs, recreation, arts, social activities and homework clubs long after the last school bell rings. Our youngest learners, from infants to preschoolers and their families, will enjoy expanded opportunities for early learning and care, pre-and postnatal supports, playgroups, parent resources and health assessments. Every fourand five-year-old child will be entitled to a full school day of learning and four to 12-year-olds will be able to participate in extended day and summer programs
enriching their opportunities to succeed.

When the plan for child- and family-centred schools is in place Ontario will become the Canadian leader with a world-class education system. As the foremost family-friendly province, Ontario will attract the best and the brightest because it helps families raise the best and the brightest.

All eyes are now rightly on Ontario.

Families and children are ready. Municipalities and school boards are ready. Educators and champions of publicly funded education are ready. This is our opportunity to get it right, for children and families today and for the benefit of all into the future.

Getting it right: The 3Rs of making Ontario the best place to raise a child

Do the right thing: Wholesale change

The recommendations in the early learning report are interdependent parts for wholesale positive change. Implementing some changes (such as full day JK/SK and not others, such as enriching out-of-school options and holistic services for parents and preschoolers) will lessen their effectiveness, add to the fragmentation that now plagues education and family services and will fail to provide accountability for investments and results.

Do it right: Adopt the goals and timetables in the report.

That means September 2010 is the start date with 2012 the rollout end date. This is a doable timeframe: 35% of our schools now have the capacity to become centres for children and families. They should be ready to go by September 2010. At the same time the provincial government should announce its plans to make all schools child and family ready by 2012.

Do it with the right resources: Build in quality from the start

Give local governments and school boards the resources they need to do the job well. Establish the provincial infrastructure required to support the new system. Ensure staff are appropriately trained and supported. Develop standards and transparent accountability mechanisms.

Premier McGuinty, we are part of a groundswell of supporters for transformative change that makes Ontario the educational place to watch. We are committed to this vision and offer our support towards securing Ontario’s best future.

Download the PDF of the letter to see the long list of endorsers.

For more information about this campaign, visit People for Education

TORONTO, June 3 – The Housing Network of Ontario welcomes the Ontario Government’s announcement today of public consultations to develop a new long term affordable housing strategy for Ontario.

“The high cost of housing is the single biggest expense for low, moderate and even middle-income people across the province, and Ontario has the highest housing costs in Canada,” says Michael Shapcott, Director of Affordable Housing for the Wellesley Institute and one of the founding partners of the Housing Network of Ontario. “Addressing the need for affordable housing must be a key part of Ontario’s Poverty Reduction Strategy if the government is to meet its target of cutting child and family poverty by 25% by 2013. So we’re pleased to see that the Ontario government will begin public consultations this June and a new long term affordable housing strategy for Ontario will be announced early next year.”

“This is an historic opportunity. Ontario has never had a comprehensive provincial housing plan – we’ve been waiting for decades for this commitment. There are over 160,000 households on the wait list for affordable housing in Ontario, and 1 in every 5 tenant households are spending more than 50% of their income on rent. With the economic downturn making this situation even tougher now is the time for people to let our government know what we need for a provincial plan that assures stable and affordable homes for all,” said Sharad Kerur, Executive Director, Ontario Non-Profit Housing Association.

“Communities across Ontario have been eagerly awaiting these public meetings to talk about the housing crisis and what the provincial government needs to do. The Housing Network of Ontario is calling for Ontario’s Long-term Affordable Housing Strategy to address four priorities: affordability measures to increase the supply and make existing housing more affordable; availability of well-maintained housing that addresses the diversity of community needs; supports, programs and protections that help all Ontarians equitably access and maintain affordable housing; and a clear way to measure progress, to ensure that housing insecurity and homelessness are being reduced,” said Yutaka Dirks, of the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario.

The government announcement states that Housing Minister Jim Watson will hold consultations in 12 communities between June – September. MPPs are being encouraged to hold consultations in their ridings before December 2009. People can provide input via a government website or by calling 1-877-224-7271. Full information about the upcoming consultations, including resources and links, is available at http://stableandaffordable.com.

“The 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction calls on all MPPs to hold consultation meetings in their ridings to get input for Ontario’s new Long Term Affordable Housing Strategy. We will be working with our partners across Ontario to ensure that MPPs listen to the community and hold meetings beyond the 12 communities that Minister Watson will be visiting,” said Jacquie Maund, Coordinator of Ontario Campaign 2000.
“And while the government is consulting, low income people in Ontario need to see progress on spending the $600 million for housing construction and retrofit that was committed in the March Ontario budget.”

The Housing Network of Ontario includes anti-poverty activists, homelessness groups, social housing advocates, equity and human rights groups, non-profit organizations, tenants and others working to ensure the provincial government delivers an integrated and fully-funded affordable housing strategy. www.stableandaffordable.com
The Housing Network of Ontario is linked to the 25 in 5 Network for Poverty Reduction, over 450 organizations across Ontario working to eliminate poverty in the province. www.25in5.ca

Media contacts:
Michael Shapcott, cell 416-605-8316
Sharad Kerur 416-927-9144×102
Yutaka Dirks, 416-416-592-5855×5243
Jacquie Maund 416-595-9230×241

The current social assistance system in Ontario “stomps people into the ground,” says Premier McGuinty.

The question is: What is going to be done about it?

In December 2008, the Ontario government committed to review the province’s social assistance system. This commitment was part of Ontario’s new Poverty Reduction Strategy and was restated in the 2009 budget.

765,000 people rely on Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program. And thousands of newly unemployed Ontarians will soon be forced to turn to these programs. We are all entitled to a system that gives real assistance when we need it. Social assistance must provide adequate income and meaningful supports to ensure recipients can live lives marked by dignity, decency and opportunity.

Our four insightful and powerful panellists will discuss why we need a bold Social Assistance Review, and how this kind of significant change can take place.

Crystal Chin is currently a recipient of ODSP and an active advocate on the Barrier Free Council at Ann Johnston Health Station. Crystal has recently become involved with the ODSP Action Coalition and is a long-time volunteer at Bloorview Kids Rehab.

Marion Overholt is Staff Lawyer at Legal Assistance of Windsor and a long time poverty law activist and social justice advocate. She is the Social Justice Representative on the Windsor and District Labour Council and chairs the Ford/CAW Local 200 Workplace Adjustment Committee.

Angela Robertson is the Executive Director of Sistering — A Woman’s Place, and a dedicated community advocate with a commitment to anti-racism, feminism, community-based research, and social justice. Angela is the 2009 YWCA award recipient for social change.

Judy Rebick is a well-known social justice activist, educator, writer and speaker, and holds the Sam Gindin chair in Social Justice and Democracy at Ryerson University. She is also the founder of rabble.ca, Canada’s most popular independent online news and discussion site.

Join us to make a clear and compelling call for a bold and broad Social Assistance Review — one that leads to economic security for all Ontarians.

Date: June 23, 2009
Time: 9:00 am – 12:00 pm

Location:
Multi-Faith Centre Auditorium, Koffler Institute Building
University of Toronto, 569 Spadina Avenue

For more information about this event email isac@lao.on.ca or call 416-597-5820