Encouraging News: Canadians Support Government Action on Poverty

Last week, I posted a reflection on the recurrent question: why is poverty an issue in Canada? I said that addressing poverty in Canada is a matter of political will. I also said that part of the problem has been a willingness on the part of Canadians to let the situation be, to not call our leaders to account.

I was therefore tremendously encouraged by Monday’s release of Ready for Leadership: Canadians’ perceptions of poverty. This report, written by Trish Hennessy and Armine Yalnizyan, and published by the Growing Gap project of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives (CCPA), reflects on national polling data collected by Environics Research this fall. Some of what they found is striking.

“Poised on the brink of recession,” they say, “Canadians’ desire for governments to act is not weakened, but emboldened.” The basis for this strong statement? Seventy-seven percent (77%) of those polled say “that in a recession, it’s more important than ever to make helping poor Canadians a priority.”

Consistent with a 2007 report from the National Council of Welfare, and CPJ’s call for a Federal Poverty Reduction Strategy, 89% of Canadians say “both the Prime Minister and the provincial Premiers need to set concrete targets and timelines to reduce the number of poor Canadians.”

In light of the significant growth in the income gap in Canada over the last 10 years, the report acknowledges fears of deepening inequality in the face of an economic downturn. Still, “an overwhelming majority of Canadians (90%) say it’s time for strong leadership to reduce the number of poor people in Canada.”

The report notes that while there is some variation in responses along political party lines, upwards of 75% of Canadians, regardless of partisan preference, consistently support government action on poverty. “Nine in 10 Canadians (88%) agree that Canada should try to distinguish itself in the world as a country where no one lives in poverty.”

A significant aspect of the poll was the reminder to Canadians that anti-poverty initiatives cost money and that generating the necessary funds would have to come in the form of higher taxes or cuts to other programs. Even so, all of the potential policy areas identified by Hennessy and Yalnizyan received strong support. Here they are, in order of preference:

• Investing in more job and skills training for people who are between jobs (96%)
• Creating more affordable housing (92%)
• Raising the minimum wage so that full-time work lifts people above the poverty line (89%)
• Improving income support programs to help poor families with the cost of raising kids (86%)
• Creating more low-cost child care spaces (85%)
• Making sure welfare rates keep up with annual increase in cost of living (77%)

Encouraging news indeed.