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Subject: letter
Re: Protecting our social programs, March 16, 2006. While in Opposition,
Sandra Pupatello made the rounds of anti-poverty and Faith groups groups
commiserating with them about how awful the Conservative government was
treating people on social assistance. Her party promised to end the
claw-back of the National Child Benefit to families on social assistance.
Once elected, they changed their mind. Enough said.
Dennis Raphael
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Protecting our social programs
Mar. 16, 2006. 01:00 AM
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Queen's Park ignoring looming health crisis
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Opinion, March 10.
I am writing in response to the opinion article written by Dr. Gary Bloch
and Kathy Hardill who raised concerns about the special diet allowance for
social assistance recipients.
Our government strongly believes those who are eligible should be able to
receive the special diet allowance. That's why we took action to protect
the program so that it does, and will continue to do, what it was always
supposed to do - help people on social assistance who have special dietary
needs because of a medical condition.
I am greatly concerned by some of the inaccurate reports I have seen and
heard regarding what the special diet supplement was originally meant to
do.
It was, and continues to be, a compassionate way to help people on social
assistance who have medical conditions - such as diabetes, cystic fibrosis
or kidney disease - that require them to follow specific diets. It was not
meant to be a back-door route to a social assistance rate increase.
For the past two years, our government has focused on restoring integrity
to our social assistance programs. We are working hard to make changes that
treat social assistance recipients with fairness and dignity, because
everyone deserves to be treated with respect, no matter what struggles he
or she faces.
Our government is the first to recognize that it's difficult to live on the
current social assistance rates. That's why we invested more than $100
million in the form of a rate increase for all social assistance recipients
— the first increase in 12 years. Since we took office, we have also made
certain all increases to the national Child Benefit Supplement stay in the
hands of the people who need them most. This means that by the end of this
month, families with children in receipt of social assistance will have
received an additional $36.5 million in support.
In addition, social assistance recipients who are eligible can access a
wide variety of other programs and benefits to help them with costs such as
heating, utilities, assistive devices and dental, drug and vision care
benefits, among other things.
Our government believes people deserve help in their time of need. By
maintaining the integrity and sustainability of our social assistance
programs, we are protecting them for the people who need our help today and
for those who will need it in the future.
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Sandra Pupatello, Minister of Community and Social Services, Queen's Park,
Toronto
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