Increasing child poverty numbers require action from Liberal government

Halifax-- NDP Leader Gary Burrill made the following statement in response to the CCPA’s annual report card on child and family poverty in Nova Scotia:

“Today’s report shows that Nova Scotia is not close to doing enough to ensure children in our province have what they need. Over 40,000 children are living in poverty, almost a quarter of all children in our province. Nova Scotia is the only province in the country where child poverty is getting worse instead of better.

Because food, housing, and child care costs are so increasingly high, more and more families are unable to make ends meet.

The government needs to address this issue with the urgency it calls for.”

The NDP has suggested a number of ideas that would help address child and family poverty, including increasing assistance rates, implementing a $15 minimum wage, and re-establishing rent control.

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