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Media & Policy News: 8 April 2016

April 8, 2016

Top Stories

Nunavut stops clawing back the National Child Benefit Supplement from social assistance payments:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/nunavut-child-benefit-social-assistance-1.3519915

  • Government of Nunavut news release: http://www.gov.nu.ca/family-services/news/national-child-benefit-supplement-exemption
  • New Canada Child Benefit must be indexed to inflation now, not by 2020: http://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2016/04/05/anti-poverty-policy-needs-protection.html

Duclos says new Canada Child Benefit is a form of basic income guarantee, open to do more – but provinces would have to take the lead:
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2016/04/07/canada-child-benefit-is-basic-income-guarantee-says-families-minister-jean-yves-duclos.html

Two Innu First Nations to deliver income assistance program to their members in Labrador:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/innu-first-nation-income-assistance-program-1.3521615?cmp=abfb

Food insecurity in Nunavut and NWT reaches record levels:
http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/north/food-insecurity-reaches-record-level-nunavut-northwest-territories-1.3523105

Study says all Canadians should have dental care as part of basic health care coverage:
http://vancouversun.com/health/local-health/dental-care-should-be-part-of-basic-health-care-ubc-study

  • Simcoe Muskoka Health Unit wants expansion of dental coverage: http://www.theenterprisebulletin.com/2016/03/31/expand-dental-coverage-health-unit
  • Op-Ed: It’s time to expand dental care coverage: http://www.orilliapacket.com/2016/04/06/its-time-to-expand-dental-care-coverage

The Panama Papers: How offshore tax havens are costing Canada billions per year:
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/2016/04/04/how-offshore-tax-havens-are-costing-canada-billions-of-dollars-a-year.html

  • Iceland’s Prime Minister resigns in wake of leak: http://www.thestar.com/news/world/2016/04/05/iceland-pm-asks-president-to-dissolve-parliament-after-panama-papers-leak.html
  • Armine Yalnizyan takes on Kevin O’Leary on offshore tax havens, and listeners agree: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/programs/metromorning/offshore-tax-havens-1.3522907
  • Why doesn’t Canada measure the “tax gap”?: http://globalnews.ca/news/2619198/why-doesnt-canada-measure-the-tax-gap/
  • Ottawa under pressure to calculate the “tax gap” in wake of Panama Papers: http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawa-under-pressure-to-calculate-tax-gap-in-wake-of-panama-papers/article29521364/
  • Walkom: Homegrown loopholes cost Canada more than Panama tax havens: http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2016/04/06/homegrown-loopholes-cost-canada-more-than-panama-tax-havens-walkom.html
  • Canadians for Tax Fairness campaign: Close unfair tax loopholes now!: http://www.taxfairness.ca/en/node/585?cid1=0

House of Commons Finance Committee Chair wants independent review of Canada’s tax system:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/commons-finance-committee-chair-wants-independent-review-of-tax-system/article29523821/

  • Op-Ed: Governments need more money to pay for the things we all need: http://www.thewhig.com/2016/04/01/governments-need-more-money

CMHC to start consultations on a National Housing Strategy:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-04-04/canada-housing-agency-to-push-for-national-housing-strategy

  • Opinion: Only the feds can really fix housing in Canada: http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/lauren-heuser-only-the-feds-can-really-fix-housing-in-canada
  • BC Supreme Court rejects province’s bid to remove homeless tent city on the grounds of City’s law courts: http://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/mobile/b-c-judge-refuses-to-order-homeless-from-grounds-of-victoria-court-1.2846223
  • The impossibility of managing a chronic disease while homeless: http://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2016/03/homeless-patients/475830/?utm_source=SFFB

Hennessy: Ontario’s $15 minimum wage campaign just got a boost:
http://behindthenumbers.ca/2016/04/04/ontarios-15-minimum-wage-campaign-just-got-a-boost/#.VwJzS13D114.twitter

  • OFL applauds Ontario NDP support for $15 minimum wage: http://www.marketwired.com/press-release/ofl-applauds-ontario-ndp-support-for-a-15-minimum-wage-2111640.htm

The Living Wage movement goes global, finally catching hold in Canada:
https://www.opencanada.org/features/the-living-wage-movement-goes-global/

Joseph Stiglitz calls the Trans-Pacific Partnership “the worst trade deal ever”:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/joseph-stiglitz-tpp-1.3515452

Carol Goar retires: Parting reflections of an inveterate storyteller:
http://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2016/04/06/parting-reflections-of-an-inveterate-storyteller-goar.html

 

Ontario

A fair appeal system for Ontario’s injured workers is under threat with changes to tribunal:
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2016/04/06/fair-appeals-for-injured-workers-under-threat-experts-warn.html

Starting June 10, it will be illegal for employers to keep a portion of employees’ tips:
http://yourlegalrights.on.ca/news/tips-and-gratuities

Doctors call on governments to address medical crisis on Ontario reserves:
http://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/doctors-call-on-governments-to-address-medical-crisis-on-ontario-reserves-1.2835898

Ontario backs down on increasing Ontario Drug Benefit program costs for seniors:
https://news.ontario.ca/mohltc/en/2016/4/ontario-lowers-drug-costs-for-over-170000-more-low-income-seniors.html

Income threshold for eligibility for legal aid services increased another six percent April 1:
http://legalaid.on.ca/en/news/newsarchive/2016-04-01_eligibility-threshold.asp

Ontario Children’s Aid Societies launch major training reform:
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2016/04/03/childrens-aid-societies-launch-major-training-reforms.html

Ontario is at the back of the pack on the Big Mac minimum wage index:
http://www.thestar.com/business/2016/04/04/stuck-at-the-back-of-the-big-mac-pack-wells.html

Sun editorial: It’s time to review corporate welfare, whether they’re friends of government or not:
http://www.torontosun.com/2016/04/04/time-to-review-corporate-welfare

Ontario is ready to test a basic income:
http://www.basicincome.org/news/2016/04/canada-ontario-is-ready-to-test-a-basic-income/

 

Reports, Events, Campaigns, and Other Good Things

International study on youth homelessness finds biggest driver is poverty:
http://www.rcinet.ca/en/2016/04/06/poverty-conflict-drive-youth-homelessness-study/

  • Report fuels push to repeal Ontario’s Safe Streets Act: http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2016/04/04/poverty-the-leading-cause-of-youth-homelessness-study.html

Angus Reid survey: Majority of Canadians having trouble affording food:
http://angusreid.org/rising-food-prices/

Report: Household food insecurity in Canada: Problem definition and potential solutions in the public policy domain:
http://proof.utoronto.ca/new-publication-household-food-insecurity-in-canada-problem-definition-and-potential-solutions-in-the-public-policy-domain/?platform=hootsuite

Keep the Promise: A call to action on child poverty in Canada:
http://www.keepthepromise.ca/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Keep-the-PromiseA-Call-to-Action.pdf

Living in the grey area of disability: Ableism and disability binarism:
http://themighty.com/2016/03/living-my-life-in-the-grey-area-of-disability/

Worth repeating: 10 book about residential schools to read with your kids:
http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/aboriginal/10-books-about-residential-schools-to-read-with-your-kids-1.3208021

 

Around the Province

Rural poverty hidden in Waterloo Region:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo/rural-poverty-hidden-in-waterloo-region-advocates-say-1.3521504

Report: One in eight households in Toronto are hungry:
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2016/04/07/hunger-a-problem-for-one-in-eight-people-in-toronto-census-metropolitan-area-says-new-report.html

Steve Barnes of Toronto’s Wellesley Institute talks transit equity as a health issue on MetroMorning:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/programs/metromorning/transit-equity-1.3516270

Library workers call out City of Toronto for perpetuating precarious work:
http://torontoist.com/2016/03/library-workers-union-calls-out-precarious-work-austerity-budgets/

Niagara conducting count of people who are homeless this week:
http://www.chch.com/niagara-homeless-count/

Gentrification in Toronto’s Moss Park a cause for concern:
https://nowtoronto.com/news/moss-park-gentrification-a-cause-for-concern/#.VwWWGgb-fes.twitter

Peterborough Council silent on basic income:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/rogers-10-dollar-internet-pilot-expands-1.3526165

Trudeau on a budget tour in Northern Ontario:
http://globalnews.ca/news/2623940/trudeau-makes-his-way-to-northern-ontario-on-post-budget-tour/

 

Across the Country

Cities Reducing Poverty conference in Edmonton has mayors discussing innovative solutions to poverty:
http://www.calgarysun.com/2016/04/05/nenshi-urges-innovative-solutions-to-poverty

Report: Many New Brunswickers struggle to afford food:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/food-insecurity-brunswick-report-proof-1.3522175

Hundreds rally and groups unite in Vancouver for increases to BC social assistance rates:
http://themainlander.com/2016/04/04/groups-unite-to-call-for-higher-welfare-and-disability-rates/

“Extreme makeover” erodes Vancouver’s allure:
http://www.vancourier.com/opinion/extreme-makeover-erodes-vancouver-s-allure-1.2225075

Alberta repeals housing rules for people with severe disabilities after human rights complaints:
http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/calgary/pdd-regulations-repealed-1.3516602

Manitoba Poverty Tool helps doctors ask patients about their financial as well as physical health:
http://www.ucobserver.org/justice/2016/04/poverty/

Manitoba election: Community advocates questioning candidates on poverty issues:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/poverty-cbc-live-neechi-commons-1.3521962

 

National

Federal budget lacks transparency, overstates job creation, watchdog says:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/first-trudeau-budget-less-transparent-inflates-job-growth-watchdog-says/article29537855/

  • Council of Canadians campaigners comment on federal budget: http://canadians.org/blog/council-canadians-campaigners-comment-trudeaus-federal-budget
  • Notley: It doesn’t make sense to exclude Edmonton from extended Employment Insurance: http://edmontonjournal.com/news/politics/doesnt-make-sense-to-exclude-edmonton-area-from-extended-employment-insurance-premier-notley
  • EI fixes not enough for northern Manitoba: http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/feds-ei-fixes-not-enough-for-north-mp-374229351.html

Settlement workers call for more funds for migrant workers:
http://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/settlement-organizations-call-for-more-funds-for-temporary-foreign-workers

Rogers to offer $9.99 internet to low-income housing organization tenants: http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/rogers-cheap-internet-1.3523584

  • Public Interest Advocacy Centre along with other groups wants CRTC to mandate a basic internet service available and affordable to all Canadians: https://www.piac.ca/our-specialities/the-basic-service-objective-hearings/
  • Ottawa advocates say Rogers should offer low-cost internet to all low-income people: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/rogers-10-dollar-internet-pilot-expands-1.3526165

Kevin Milligan: We are not heading to a fiscal crisis:
http://www.macleans.ca/economy/economicanalysis/we-are-not-heading-to-fiscal-crisis/

  • Bank of Canada: The Canadian economy isn’t out of the woods yet: https://www.biv.com/article/2016/4/canadian-economy-not-out-woods-yet-says-bank-canad/

For Indigenous women, prison is the adult residential school:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/opinion/for-indigenous-women-prisons-are-the-adult-version-of-residential-schools/article29388499/?click=sf_globefb

Munir Sheikh on the question of social mobility:
http://ottawacitizen.com/news/national/munir-a-sheikh-how-the-great-gatsby-model-of-social-mobility-fails-in-canada

 

International

San Francisco library offers mental health services to people who are homeless, and it’s working:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/a-library-is-often-the-safest-place-for-homeless-people-thats-why-this-one-hired-a-social-worker_us_56fbf43ee4b083f5c6063b0d

San Francisco becomes first US city to mandate fully paid parental leave:
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/apr/05/san-francisco-maternal-paternal-leave-law-fully-paid?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Michigan welfare time limits save state millions, but cost 32,090 families:
http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2016/04/saving_dollars_not_people_chan.html

Panama Papers: UK’s Corbyn to tell Cameron to “stop pussyfooting over tax dodgers”:
http://www.itv.com/news/2016-04-05/panama-papers-corbyn-to-tell-pm-stop-pussyfooting-over-tax-dodgers/

Australian cashless welfare card “to combat drug and alcohol abuse” being rolled out this week:
http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2015/s4437796.htm

Report shows a fraction of global military spending could end world poverty:
http://www.newshub.co.nz/world/fraction-of-military-spending-could-end-poverty—report-2016040609#axzz45F9HvSJI

Free trade: A really dumb way to fix poverty:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/global-poverty-free-trade_us_57068933e4b053766188ef6b

Book review: Evicted: What happens if the problem of poverty is that it’s profitable to other people?:
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/apr/07/evicted-poverty-and-profit-in-the-american-city-matthew-desmond-review

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This site contains general legal information for people in Ontario, Canada. It is not intended to be used as legal advice for a specific legal problem. ISAC is a not-for-profit, non-partisan organization. ISAC is funded by Legal Aid Ontario (LAO). The funding for this website is also provided by LAO. The views expressed in any of ISAC’s publications (including written, oral, or visual) are the views of the clinic and do not necessarily reflect those of LAO.