Inequality and poverty

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Little has been said by the political parties about housing in the lead up to the federal election on May 2. This is surprising, considering that approximately 1.27 million households (or 12.4 percent of Canadian households) live in housing that requires major repairs, is overcrowded, and/or costs more than 30 percent of household income. Although housing may not be top of mind according to the polls, for these Canadians, access to safe, affordable housing is an urgent necessity.
The Manitoba Government recently announced increased funding of $700,000 per year for adult literacy programs and Adult Learning Centres, bringing the yearly total to 20.6 million. This was a welcome increase against the backdrop that, according to the 2003 International Adult Literacy and Skills Survey (IALSS), 285,000 working age Manitobans or 40% of the population have literacy scores below the level considered the minimum for full participation in a knowledge-based economy and society.
Hennessy's Index is a monthly listing of numbers, written by the CCPA's Trish Hennessy, about Canada and its place in the world. Scroll down for a PDF version.  For other months, visit: http://policyalternatives.ca/index
The renegotiations of the federal-provincial-territorial health accord are on the horizon, and everyone is looking for a way to save money and improve health. Sound impossible? Why don’t we put our money where our mouth is?
Five years ago, I went looking for statistical proof that poverty in Canada was inexcusable and that its eradication was something the country could easily afford.      The proof was found by comparing the rise of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from 1970 to 2005 and converting the figures to constant dollars with the same inflation-adjusted value. The gross figures were then broken down on a per capita basis to show how much each Canadian man, woman and child would have received if the total wealth produced by the economy each year had been equally divided.
Five years ago, I went looking for statistical proof that poverty in Canada was inexcusable and that its eradication was something the country could easily afford. The proof was found by comparing the rise of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from 1970 to 2005 and converting the figures to constant dollars with the same inflation-adjusted value. The gross figures were then broken down on a per capita basis to show how much each Canadian man, woman and child would have received if the total wealth produced by the economy each year had been equally divided.
Over the past 30 years, Canadians have increasingly been led to believe that community compassion expressed through charitable food handouts is the most effective way of feeding our hungry poor and homeless. Since the establishment of the first food banks in the early 1980s, domestic hunger has become increasingly socially constructed as a matter for philanthropy, not as a political and human rights issue necessitating the priority attention of governments.
 There is no shortage of media coverage about the global financial crisis, bank bailouts, bankers’ bonuses, fears of double dips, and the like. But there is another financial crisis occurring on the streets of every Canadian city: the spread of the cheque-cashing and payday loan industry. The growth of these fringe financial institutions illustrates a collective failure of the financial system in Canada to adequately address the basic financial needs of low-income Canadians.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) annually puts out figures comparing infant mortality rates in countries around the world. Perhaps the biggest story of the OECD’s latest figures were those attributed to Canada. This country has always boasted of its social stats — life expectancy, infant mortality, university graduates, and other measures of our success as a nation. But not this time.
On March 10, 2011, the Standing Committee on Property and Development recommended a move of $500,000 from the Housing Rehabilitation Investment Reserve (HRIR) to the Home Renovation Tax Assistance Program, despite years of calls from housing and community organisations for increased funding to the HRIR. Although the recommendation was not passed, this move calls attention to the vulnerability of the funding intended to support housing rehabilitation and development in Winnipeg’s inner city.