TORONTO- Hamilton East-Stoney Creek NDP MPP and Poverty Reduction critic, Paul Miller, called out the government’s decision to prorogue the Ontario Legislature which will mean his Private Member’s Bill, Bill 6, will not become law.
“Bill 6 was the answer that Ontario’s social welfare recipients were looking for. For too long social assistance programs like OW and ODSP have been drastically underfunded, leaving those in poverty with little capacity to live as they should. It forces them to live off a pittance. Bill 6 would have changed this by creating an evidence-based research committee to advise the government on what social assistance rates need to be each year and in each region of the province. This was a good bill.”
Miller went on to express his clear disappointment for the government’s decision to prevent the bill from becoming legislation.
“It is unconscionable that Kathleen Wynne let Bill 6 slide away. She had all the time in the world to make this happen, but this recent stunt just proves to me that she isn’t thinking about the many Ontarians living in poverty who do matter.”
Miller also reflected on the bill’s success in bringing awareness to the issue and where he intends to go from here.
“There were a number of incredibly hard-working groups that supported this bill and brought the issue of the need for better social assistance rates to the fore. A special thank you to- the Hamilton Roundtable for Poverty Reduction, the Hamilton Organization for Poverty Elimination, the Campaign for Adequate Welfare and Disability Benefits, and the Advocacy Committee for Bill 6,” Miller said.
“I promise the people of my city of Hamilton and this great province that I will do everything in my power to ensure this bill becomes law.”