There is a disturbing affordability crisis happening in Sudbury and beyond, with seemingly no end in sight.
Throughout 2022, I heard from hardworking people in our community who are telling me they are having to rely on food banks to feed their families. Nobody working full-time should have to go to food banks.
While the cost of everything goes up, Ontarians are struggling to keep up with the bills and pay for basics like gas and groceries.
The situation is worse for people who receive social assistance through Ontario Works (OW) and the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP). A single person on ODSP receives less than $15,400 a year; a single person on OW gets less than $10,000 a year.
Nobody can survive on this. It is intentional legislated poverty. As a result, OW and ODSP recipients make up 65 per cent of food bank users.
Doug Ford has the power to help people who are struggling with the soaring cost of living, but his government is shamefully refusing. Mr. Ford just doesn’t want to spend the money on investments that would bring relief to families hurt by the affordability crisis.
We should be doubling ODSP and OW rates, not keeping them thousands of dollars below the poverty line. We should be investing in delivering more affordable housing, not helping land speculators get wealthier while everyone else falls behind.
We should be helping people conserve energy, not letting their heating bills go through the roof. We should be cracking down on gouging, not letting big grocers use inflation as an excuse to jack up prices.
People in Sudbury deserve better than to be left on their own by the government as skyrocketing costs squeeze their budgets. The NDP won’t give up the fight to do right by people in Sudbury and beyond and deliver relief from the pressure on their pocketbooks.
Jamie West is the New Democrat MPP for Sudbury.
