Advocacy groups call on Ontario government to double social assistance rates
More than 200 advocacy groups have signed an open letter asking the Ontario government to double disability support payment rates and ensure they keep up with the soaring cost of living.
The letter, released by the Income Security Advocacy Centre, said the Progressive Conservative government's plan to increase disability support payment rates by five per cent in next month's budget is far from what financial aid recipients need.
"With continued inflation, and the associated increase in cost of living, 5 per cent is not nearly enough of a rate increase to survive," ISAC wrote. "We call on this government to double both (Ontario Works) and (Ontario Disability Support Program) rates, and to index these rates to inflation."
The recent provincial election campaign saw the Progressive Conservatives promise to raise Ontario Disability Support Program rates by five per cent and introduce legislation to tie annual increases to inflation.
ISAC said that proposal amounts to $58 extra per month for ODSP recipients and doesn't account for the 458,000 low-income people who receive support through Ontario Works.
Social assistance rates have been stagnant since 2018, with a single person able to receive up to $1,169 a month on ODSP and $733 on OW -- well below the poverty line.
ISAC said record-breaking inflation rates have driven costs up so high that it's "impossible" for social assistance recipients to pay for basic needs, including housing, food and medication.
The letter was addressed to Premier Doug Ford, Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy and Social Service Minister Merrilee Fullerton, and signed by more than 200 non-profits that advocate for poverty reduction and income security. Signatories include legal clinics, health organizations, social service providers and community groups.
The government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Bethlenfalvy was asked earlier this month if the government would give the program a boost larger than five per cent in light of the high inflation rate. He didn't directly answer, saying the government has many tools to fight the rising cost of living.
Other political parties had pledged larger increases to the disability support program during the spring election.
The Green Party of Ontario had proposed doubling the payment rate and Leader Mike Schreiner wrote to Ford last month asking him to make the same commitment.
Schreiner repeated his call in light of Monday's open letter, saying it's "shameful that people with disabilities are forced to live in legislated poverty" and describing Ford's planned five per cent boost as an insufficient "campaign gimmick."
"I am urging the premier to listen to advocates and immediately double social assistance rates and tie all future increases to inflation," he said in a written statement. "It would be shameful if he does not provide immediate and meaningful support to those most in need."
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 25, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.