Poverty in Canada

Healing Poverty: A Reflection from the Commission on Justice and Peace of The Canadian Council of Churches

January 2019: Poverty has been a focus of the Commission on Justice and Peace of The Canadian Council of Churches for decades. As the Government of Canada consulted on a Canadian Poverty Reduction Strategy, the Commission engaged in its own conversations over several meetings. We now offer this reflection as one way for communities of faith to engage in dialogue  and action for a faithful response to  overcoming the poverty that is all too widespread in Canada.

Download a printable copy of the “Healing Poverty” [PDF] / En français [PDF]
The resource is also published in a bound booklet form and can be ordered at our online store.

Marking 25 years since government resolution to end child poverty in Canada by the year 2000

Tuesday, November 25, 2014, marked the 25th anniversary of a unanimous 1989 resolution by Parliament to eradicate child poverty by the year 2000. Despite this resolution “to seek to achieve the goal of eliminating poverty among Canadian children by the year 2000” and the 2009 House of Commons vote to “develop an immediate plan to end poverty for all in Canada” the rate of poverty in Canada remains high.

Read a statement from the CCC on this important anniversary.

 Campaign 2000’s 2014 Report Card on Child and Family Poverty in Canada; En français

The Burden of Poverty: A snapshot of poverty across Canada by Citizens for Public Justice

The Canadian Council of Churches has also formally endorsed the Dignity for All campaign for a poverty free Canada. To indicate your support, sign on at www.dignityforall.ca. The CCC, together with its partners in the Dignity for All campaign, wants:

  • A federal plan for poverty elimination that compliments provincial and territorial plans
  • A federal anti-poverty Act that ensures enduring federal commitment and accountability
  • Sufficient federal investment in social security for all Canadians

The Federal Contribution to Reducing Poverty in Canada – June 1, 2009

Brief Presented to The Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons Disabilities – June 1, 2009

Click here to view the brief.

Ending Poverty in Canada

Dear Prime Minister Harper,
As nations leaders of Canadian churches and members of the Canadian Council of Churches, we call on our government to take immediate steps to develop and implement a national poverty reduction strategy.

Click here to view the church leaders’ letter to the Prime Minister.

Vision to Action: Faith Based Movement for a Canada Without Poverty – 30 May, 2007

Now is an opportune time for your Party to make a commitment to develop and implement a poverty reduction strategy with specific targets and timelines for reducing poverty in Canada. A joint letter to all political party leaders from

  • The Campaign Against Child Poverty
  • The Canadian Council of Churches: Commission on Justice and Peace
  • Citizens for Public Justice (CPJ)
  • The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada: National Roundtable on Poverty and Homelessness
  • Faith and the Common Good
  • KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives

Click here to view a sample of the call.

Fifteenth Anniversary of All-Party Resolution – 24 November, 2004

Dear Prime Minister,
I write to you today on an important anniversary. Fifteen years ago the House of Commons unanimously voted to end child poverty in Canada, and to do so by the year 2000. Today however more than one million children, or one in every six children in our country, live in a low-income family.

Click here to view the letter to Prime Minister Martin from the Chair of the Commission on Justice and Peace.

Child Poverty – 10 January 2000

“We affirm the commitments made in the Speech from the Throne to ‘extend and make more accessible Employment Insurance benefits for parental leave’, to ‘make a third significant investment in the National Child Benefit’ and to reach an agreement with the Provinces ‘on a national action plan … to increase resources and further strengthen supports for early childhood development’”.

Click here to view the church leaders’ letter to Prime Minister Chrétien.

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