As Christy Clark is said to increase welfare rates by $100 a month, from $610 to $710, one B.C. group says that’s not good enough.
“It does not pull people above the poverty line,” said Poverty Reduction Coalition Development Coordinator Viveca Ellis.
She says $100 is far too little to make a dent in the wellbeing for those on assistance.
Ellis claims this is a one-off random grab for the Liberals to save their party.
She says the extra money will likely go towards food, but that people have many expenses.
“The average that someone is left with is around $200 and that is for everything – transportation, food, clothes, dish soap, tampons, you name it, for the entire month.”
Ellis says the NDP and Green Party have a better plan.
“They offered to raise the welfare rates within the context of a poverty reduction plan, with legislated targets and a timeline.”
If the BC Liberals move to increase the rate, it would be the first time in a decade welfare rates go up.