Region of Waterloo joins calls for a national guaranteed liveable basic income

The Region of Waterloo is joining a growing chorus of lower-tier governments calling on their provincial and federal counterparts to launch a new guaranteed liveable basic income program.

Regional council voted this week to add its voice to that call, and it comes as Statistics Canada reports the Canadian economy appears to be going nowhere fast.

The motion, passed unanimously on Wednesday, advocates for a guaranteed liveable basic income to combat poverty, income inequality, and economic insecurity.

It calls on the provincial and federal governments to collaborate on the implementation of a guaranteed livable income program. It also asks for the Ontario government to increase social assistance rates for both Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program–as well as for both programs to be tied to inflation.

“At the Region, our staff have had the heartbreaking job of administering OW payments which they know all too well recipients cannot hope to live on,” said Coun. Pam Wolf, who first moved the motion.

“In Kitchener,” Wolf continued. “A one-bedroom apartment is renting for over $1,900/month and a single person on OW receives $733/month to cover rent and basic needs.”

Wolf went on to also note spiking food bank use, the growing homeless population, and argued the only way to end child poverty is to end ‘parent poverty’ as well.

“We must stop thinking people choose to be poor and stop making rules about receiving help [that are] punitive and judgmental,” she said, claiming a guaranteed liveable basic income could do this. “As our delegates also pointed out, the prosperity gap is steadily increasing–the rich, or one per cent, are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer.”

“I think what [Coun. Wolf] is suggesting is to bring an alertness to the different levels of government,” said Coun. Doug Craig, who seconded the motion. “It may be a very small sound we’re making but you amplify it by a number of different communities saying the same thing and it does have an impact.”

“I’m very appreciative and I’m very supportive of where this is going,” Craig continued. “[The motion], basically, is making a request of upper levels [of government] to start doing something about what we see every day on the ground.”

Wolf did also note similar motions have already been passed elsewhere, like in Hamilton, North Bay, Halifax, and Moncton. She said similar motions are also set to go before councils in Cambridge, Waterloo, and Kitchener.

“I believe that if the federal and provincial governments see there is a grassroots desire to try something different to eradicate poverty, they will not be ‘afraid’ to act.”

As part of the motion, Region Chair Karen Redman will also be penning a letter to the Prime Minister, local Members of Parliament and the Senate, the Premier of Ontario, and local Members of Provincial Parliament.

The Region of Waterloo will also now be adding its voice to a call for other municipal and regional counterparts also advocate a guaranteed liveable basic income to their local MPs and MPPs as well as at both the Association of Municipalities of Ontario and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.