The Time is Now: A Poverty Reduction Plan for BC Slideshow

0. THE TIME IS NOW – Introduction from CCPA on Vimeo.

This is a narrated presentation about how BC could end street homelessness and reduce poverty by one third — within the mandate of the next provincial government (first chapter is shown above — view the full slideshow here). It includes interviews with people working on health, immigration and family well-being issues, and with Erna Calingasan, a parent struggling to make ends meet by working two jobs. Here is the interview with Erna:

THE TIME IS NOW – Erna Calingasan from CCPA on Vimeo.

Poverty Amid Plenty: A Slideshow About Welfare in BC

1. POVERTY AMID PLENTY – Introduction from CCPA on Vimeo.

Welfare is the program of last resort for people who find themselves without work, or who are unable to work because of a disability. It is supposed to protect people from homelessness, hunger and other hardships. BC was in the midst of an economic boom when this slideshow was created, but as we enter a recession in 2009, welfare is more vital than ever (first chapter shown above — watch the rest here). The slideshow addresses some myths about welfare and poverty — that welfare is easy to get; that life on welfare is an easy ride; that poverty is inevitable; and that solutions to poverty are too expensive.

The slideshow includes interviews and images of people who are living on welfare benefits, as well as advocates who work with welfare recipients and/or anti-poverty groups (these interviews can be watched separately). Here’s four of them:

POVERTY AMID PLENTY – Judy Graves from CCPA on Vimeo.

POVERTY AMID PLENTY – Richard Watson from CCPA on Vimeo.

POVERTY AMID PLENTY – Matthew Matthew from CCPA on Vimeo.

POVERTY AMID PLENTY – Susan Henry from CCPA on Vimeo.

But there is a new sheriff in oil town. And one bold new initiative is to end homelessness within ten years. As reported by the Wellesley Institute:

The Alberta government … released a dramatic plan to end homelessness in 10 years by committing $1.2 billion in capital investments and $2 billion in operating funding. The plan – based on the “housing first” approach (which provides immediate housing and then offers supports as required) – will lead to the creation of 11,000 new homes by 2012, according to the provincial government. Full details, including funding and implementation lines, will be released in next month’s provincial budget. Alberta’s plan – the first of its kind among the federal government and Canada’s provinces and territories – builds on top of a record of dramatic increases in affordable housing investments in recent years. Alberta cut provincial affordable housing investments in the early 1990s, as did many other provinces, but has dramatically increased investments in the past couple of years.

From fiscal 2007 to 2008 (the latest year for which numbers are available), Alberta’s housing investments jumped 140% to $4.57 billion – a record increase compared to other provinces. With today’s announcement, Alberta’s investments are scheduled to continue to increase. The critical details of the Alberta plan will be closely scrutinized by housing experts (more detailed analysis from the Wellesley Institute will follow), but the news has surprised more than a few housing advocates who don’t expect the Alberta government to be blazing the lead on critical social policy issues such as affordable housing. Compared to Ontario, for instance, Alberta – at about one-quarter the population – is making investments in affordable housing that are substantially higher than Ontario, which is leading to the creation of more affordable homes in that province. Much of the credit for today’s announcement goes to active and energetic housing groups in Calgary, Edmonton, Red Deer and many other municipalities which created local 10-year housing plans and then “uploaded” the requirements to meet those plans to the provincial level.

So now that Alberta is doing it, let’s hear the Liberal and NDP plans to do the same. So how about some time lines and targets? Here is what Minister Coleman had to say when we released our poverty reduction strategy (which includes homelessness but is more comprehensive in addressing poverty overall):

“We’re committed to ending it, but they say, ‘Give us a time frame.’ You know what, it’s just not possible because you don’t know how many people with mental health and addictions are coming at you at any given time, so what you do is you do the job based on the population you have.”

The response from the Leader of the Opposition was only somewhat better:

“I think those are ambitious targets. I don’t know if that’s realistic, but I think you have to start somewhere.”

Actually, we did have a good news day today, as the BC government announced $300 million in new housing investments that will create 569 units in Vancouver and 478 units elsewhere in the province. I’m waiting to see the fine print, and while acknowledging that this is a good start, it is a bit late in the game. About six years ago we flagged the problem of poverty and homelessness as something that needed to be tackled – if only because the Olympics are coming to town. Yet, only now, right before an election, are we starting to see some action, and relative to Alberta the numbers are still on the small side.

UPDATE (March 23): An email from Jenny Kwan, the NDP critic on this issue (and my MLA) informs me of a policy release two days before I made my blog post:

The NDP commitment is to end the crisis in homelessness in 5 years with annual progress reports to the legislature on how that target is being met. The primary mechanism will be investing in a new housing program with 2400 units in year one and 1200 annually to year 5 – there will be support services connected. This is a total of at least 7200 units. We will reallocate the existing $250 million B.C. Housing Endowment Fund to kickstart the expansion of social housing immediately.

The UN Special Rapporteur, Miloon Kothari, visited Canada for a few weeks in October 2007, as part of the UN’s efforts to ensure countries are living up to their international obligations to respect economic and social rights. Mr. Kothari’s mission focused on four areas: homelessness, women and their right to adequate housing, Aboriginal populations, and notably, the possible impact of the 2010 Olympic Games on the right to adequate housing in Vancouver.

The Special Rapporteur’s report is a very worthwhile read (and very concise). He emerged from his mission with very keen insights and an excellent historical understanding of Canada’s housing record. And he makes very astute observations about the jurisdictional buck-passing in Canada that blocks progress on housing.

He lauds Canada’s strong run of building new social housing between 1973 and 1993, but laments how little progress has been made since. Consequently, “While 40 per cent of all housing in the Netherlands is social housing, 22 per cent in the United Kingdom and Sweden, 14 per cent in Germany France and Ireland, and 10 per cent in Finland, Canada has only 5 per cent of its overall housing stock as social housing.” He was clearly particularly taken aback by Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, and alarmed by the state of Aboriginal housing.

His recommendations include: that all levels of government recognize and legislate the right to adequate housing; that Canada commit to a comprehensive and coordinated national housing strategy with long-term and stable funding; re-embark on large scale building of social housing; and this:

Reducing homelessness and the number of people living in inadequate housing requires Canada to adopt a comprehensive and coordinated national poverty reduction strategy. Whilst three provinces have already taken important steps in this direction, the federal government should also be active in this area. This must include a review of the income available through social assistance and minimum wage in light of actual housing costs and a timeline for ensuring an adequate income to cover housing costs. (p. 26)

That recommendation clearly lends support to the campaign currently underway in BC, calling on provincial political parties to commit to a poverty reduction plan with legislated targets and timelines to reduce poverty and homelessness. For more on that (and to add your name to the call), see here.

Minister Rich Coleman was dismissive of many of Doyle’s findings. Nevertheless, in his response, the Minister did say some notable things I’ve not heard him say before. According to the Vancouver Sun, Coleman said that he would soon be introducing “performance targets to measure progress,” and he said his goal now is to end homelessness in five years (although it is unclear if he means street homelessness or all homelessness, an important distinction). There is no mention of legislating that goal, but I take this as some movement nonetheless. About a year ago, NDP MLA David Chudnovsky introduced a private member’s bill that would have legislated a five-year goal of eliminating homelessness, but at the time the government didn’t bite.

NDP critic Jenny Kwan, responding to last week’s Auditor’s report, said, “What we need are measurable targets, objectives and timelines.”

The CCPA is part of a growing chorus of organizations that have been calling for something very similar – a poverty reduction plan with legislated targets and timelines to reduce poverty and homelessness. So perhaps both parties are moving closer to making that commitment. Those wanting to add their voice to such a call should visit the website www.bcpovertyreduction.ca, and sign the Open Letter to BC’s political parties calling for clear targets and timelines.

Investments will be made in new and refurbished housing. We will expand supportive housing to combat homelessness and to shelter those with mental illness.

That new housing will be supported by a new integrated, personalized homelessness intervention strategy and a new community safety strategy.

Could it be that now, one year prior to hosting the Winter Olympics, the government had finally come up with a meaningful strategy to address homelessness?

I wasn’t the only one to notice. This promise made the headline of today’s article reporting on BC’s Throne Speech in the Globe: Homelessness takes centre stage in Throne Speech.

Imagine my disappointment, then, when I opened my paper copy of the 2009 Budget and Fiscal Update and found out that there was no new money to match the Throne Speech rhetoric. The only dollars attached to homelessness in particular are $30 million in 2008/09 “to acquire and renovate rental properties including 4 single room occupancy (SRO) hotels in Vancouver and 4 hotels/motels throughout British Columbia.” (p. 26).

That’s it? This amount would be woefully inadequate to meet current needs, let alone any potential increases in homelessness that may result from the economic crisis. Not to mention that these money were already announced late last year!

Instead, we are told that “Budget 2009 maintains previous funding commitments to implement new and expanded measures to help break the cycle of homelessness and support low income seniors and families.” Last I checked, previous funding commitments do not count as new investments.

To be fair, there is a line item called “Other spending” in Table 1.16 (Capital Spending) which, we are told, includes BC Housing Management Commission, Provincial Rental Housing Corporation and other service delivery agencies. It amounts to $125 million in 2008/09 and another $110 million over the next three years. Even if this all went to new social housing, and it likely does not, it would hardly solve the problem.

At the same time, the Budget doesn’t seem to include increased operating spending on housing or homelessness and the Ministry of Housing and Social Development is projected to shed 128 FTE positions in each of the next three years.

Without a funding commitment, the Throne Speech’s promise of tackling homelessness amounts to mere pre-election rhetoric. Don’t be fooled!