The province announced its new Poverty Reduction Plan earlier this month. The announcement included a variety of program additions and changes and largely focused on childhood poverty, supporting seniors, income support, and employment support.
A few of the highlights for us were the investment in school food, the growing support for a basic income, and changes to the income support and child benefit programs. Our recent op-ed with Food Banks Canada, Coalition for Health School Food, PROOF, and Community Food Centres Canada goes further in-depth about some of these key investments.
Spotlight on School Food Investment
The Province’s commitment to increase investment in school food programs is a big deal. By the end of the 2025/26 school year, every student (Pre-K to Grade 9) should have access to lunch in their school. We are only the third province to make this kind of commitment, the others being P.E.I. (already in place) and B.C. (announced in April). Manitoba also committed to a school food program this week.
Although school food isn’t a poverty reduction piece, per se, it is a meaningful action to set kids up for success at school and provide some relief to their caregivers. It is also a signal to the federal government that it’s time to step up and make good on its 2019 commitment to a national school food policy and programming.
Read more in our school food media release (PDF) as a member of the Coalition for Healthy School Food and with the School Lunch Association.
Spotlight on Basic Income Support
Basic income is another promising area of investment. The province announced its second basic income program as part of the Plan. This program will support seniors, aged 60 to 64, who already take part in the Provincial Income Support and the Community Supports Program.
Although this is a relatively small program, it signals yet another step towards a broader basic income — one that has the potential to be transformative. This, in tandem with the premier’s vocal support of a broader basic income, also helps to build momentum for national-level conversations about a basic income as a tool to reduce poverty.
Read more in our basic income media release (PDF) as a member of Basic Income NL and with Coalition Canada Basic Income - revenu de base, Basic Income Canada Network, and UBI Works.
A Fine First Step But More Is Needed
The Poverty Reduction Plan is a fine first step and could have a positive impact on those who are most vulnerable but, in this current crisis, that’s not enough.
The planned increases in income support rates and the N.L. Child Benefit, changes to the Early Childhood Nutrition Supplement, and streamlined income support programs are all good first steps. However, the baseline payments and/or the income thresholds for these programs are all so low that many of the people who need support right now either won’t benefit and/or won’t qualify.
This plan just doesn’t go far enough.
We need to look at this as a beginning. The start of what we hope will be an urgent and effective response to a growing crisis.
Next Steps
First, we have to hold the provincial government accountable for what they’ve announced.
Changes and programs should be rolled out in a way that benefits as many people as possible while minimizing access barriers and reflecting feedback from the folks being supported. We also need transparency and updates about the plan’s progress moving forward.
Second, we have to push for more.
As the cost-of-living crisis grows, we need to make sure that poverty reduction measures include more. That could mean reassessing benefit thresholds, increasing the minimum wage to a living wage, and/or implementing more basic income programs. We also need to index income support rates to inflation so recipients have more predictable incomes.
Third, we need to critically examine the systems that have gotten us here in the first place.
Radical systems change is needed if we want a province where food is treated like a human right. Systems change takes time but it is possible and it is necessary.
Our work isn’t finished until the Right to Food is realized for everyone in Newfoundland and Labrador and everyone can eat with joy and dignity.
