Dear Editor:
Re: Failing grade for B.C.'s child poverty numbers, Our View, Burnaby NOW, June 29.
We all want to reduce poverty - it is a job that this premier, myself, and the entire cabinet are committed to.
In British Columbia, we are focusing on creating a strong economy with sustainable jobs, while providing targeted supports to low-income families - and our efforts are working.
We have seen the child poverty rate decline by almost 38 per cent since 2003 and it is at its second-lowest point in the past 20 years. In addition, the poverty rate for children living with a single mother has dropped by 70 per cent.
It's clear that our actions across government are supporting families and putting money in people's pockets now.
Actions like increasing the minimum wage, which means an additional $4,000 annually for a full-time employee; reduced MSP premiums; the lowest tax rates in Canada for 215,000 families; providing rental assistance for 9,000 families; and the creation of 15,000 new affordable housing units - with another 4,200 on the way - are making real differences in the lives of B.C. families.
We're also helping families by committing to reducing the HST to 10 per cent, in addition to the one-time transition payments of $175 that will be sent to every child under the age of 18 and every senior who earns up to $40,000 a year.
We have a plan - you can call it a prosperity plan, an economic development plan, a job creation plan, a good taxation policy plan or even a poverty reduction plan. But whatever you call it, our plan is working.
Mary McNeil, Minister of Children and Family Development
