NDP Leader Howard Hampton says when it comes to child poverty, Ontario is covered in shame.
"This year, Ontario became the child poverty capital of Canada. Not Newfoundland, not Prince Edward Island, not a poor Prairie province," Hampton told reporters yesterday while campaigning in Toronto before heading to Northern Ontario.
"It is absolutely disgraceful."
Hampton pointed an accusatory finger at Premier Dalton McGuinty's Liberal government, saying that, among other things, the Liberal government has continued to claw back federal money destined for poor children and adults.
"Four years ago Mr. McGuinty said it was wrong to be clawing money from the lowest income kids in the province, that's the National Child Benefit Supplement," Hampton said yesterday, as McGuinty was pledging to act on child poverty.
"It's $1,500 from the federal government that's meant to go to low-income kids to help escape poverty ... but here we are four years later and the McGuinty government is still clawing back almost $1,500 a year from almost the lowest income kids in Ontario."
In its last budget, the Liberal government announced the Ontario Child Benefit, which it says will put about $1,100 per child into the pockets of parents who are on welfare or among the working poor.
Hampton said the Liberal government has no credibility on child poverty, given that only now is McGuinty promising action. The NDP leader said he would not be setting hypothetical poverty reduction targets, but would instead concentrate on how to get there.
The Ontario Social Planning Network last month issued a report stating that Ontario is home to almost 44 per cent of the country's poor children. The report, based on an analysis of Statistics Canada income data, said there are 345,000 children living in poverty in Ontario, or 43.8 per cent of all the children living in poverty in Canada.
Hampton has been using the election campaign to drive home his message that the minimum wage should be raised immediately to $10 an hour from $8, saying that people can't live in Toronto on the current minimum wage without holding down several jobs. The Liberals have said they will increase it to $10.25 by 2010.
Hampton reminded reporters that McGuinty also promised to increase social assistance rates to keep pace with inflation, "but that hasn't happened either."
In the May 2004, the Liberals announced a 3 per cent rate increase to the basic needs allowance and maximum shelter allowance for individuals and families on social assistance. It was the first since 1993. Since then the rate has been increased twice by 2 per cent.
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