Sudbury MPP Jamie West wonders if Premier Doug Ford’s plan to abandon a planned increased to social assistance payments signals a return to the “deprivation” of former Tory Premier Mike Harris’ Common Sense Revolution in the 1990s.
In question period on Monday, West said the cut is making life harder for Sudbury families, particularly those who were already struggling to make ends meet.
“Sarah is a constituent of mine, and she’s worried that the announced 1.5-per-cent cut to social assistance will return us to the deprivation of the Harris years,” said West.
“Sarah recalls how as a child, when the former Conservative government cuts came, her family was evicted. They had to move onto campgrounds and slept on relatives’ floors. Sarah wants to know what Doug Ford has to say to the people who will lose their homes, be unable to eat, or be unable to buy medication because of his cuts.”
The Tory government isn’t doing away with the three-per-cent increase to social assistance the Liberals had planned. There will still be an increase, just a smaller one. The ruling PC government is cutting it in half, to 1.5 per cent.
In question period, West asked the government how far it would go to “move Ontario backwards and make life even harder” for families already struggling.
“The poorest citizens of this province — many of them are unable to work — were expecting the rates to go up by three per cent this year; 1.5 per cent is less than that by half,” said West.
He demanded to know if further social assistance cuts were planned.
When she announced the cut on Aug. 1, Social Services Minister Lisa MacLeod said the government would spending 100 days revamping the social assistance programs that serve nearly one million Ontario residents. She said the three-per-cent increase the Liberals promised represented money “the province didn’t have.”
The cut to social assistance was criticized by advocacy and anti-poverty groups as well.
