Saint John, September 17, 2018 – The NDP believes that it’s time to lift New Brunswickers out of poverty, so we can build strong communities where everyone can thrive and where all children have a chance to succeed in life. A $15 minimum wage along with a $10/day child care would help to make life more affordable for thousands of individuals and families.
‘’Poverty is a real problem in our province. More than one third of New Brunswickers make below $15 an hour, the majority of whom are women. New Brunswick has among the highest youth poverty rates in the country. In Saint John, as in Campbellton, we have the highest child poverty rate in the province (23%). ‘’ – Jennifer McKenzie
We need also to fix social assistance, to help people return to work and not keep them in a poverty trap. An NDP government would raise all social assistance rates immediately by 10%, so it better reflects the cost of living.
People need more affordable housing options. Many families are spending well over 30% of their income on shelter. When an unexpected expense comes up that can be enough to force families into precarious living situations or homelessness.
‘’There is infrastructure around the city, old houses and apartments that are falling into ruin or are abandoned. We are facing a housing crisis, and our province is not adequately addressing housing and homelessness challenges.’’ – Jennifer McKenzie
An NDP government will adopt a ’Housing First’ strategy to end homelessness and expand municipal powers over social housing, give cities the powers and resources they need to enforce housing standards and emphasize public management of social housing, to reduce practice of giving subsidies and grants to landlords who provide substandard housing.
Social housing, and more affordable housing options, are something that would really help people and families in Saint John, and everywhere in New Brunswick.