By Michael Hammond
With a second-straight federal surplus expected in February, there will likely be tax cuts and new social spending, but nothing for Canada’s homeless. The Liberals pledged to help the homeless in December and, by doing so, missed an opportunity to provide real help for the growing homelessness problem.
The speculation this year centers around Prime Minister Jean Chretien’s pledge to divide the expected $2 billion surplus into two parts, one for debt reduction and tax cuts and the other for increased social spending.
A major Liberal pledge made Dec. 17 devoting $753 million to Canada’s homeless problem complicates speculation over this year’s budget.
At a Dec. 17 press conference held in Toronto, federal minister in charge of homelessness Claudette Bradshaw told a cheering crowd the money will go towards a number of initiatives over the next three years.
Included in the grant will be schemes to build some affordable housing, upgrading existing affordable housing and securing more overnight shelter for those on the streets.
Logic dictates there will be nothing new for the homeless in this year’s budget since the December pledge will be spread over the next three years.
At first glance, the $753 million seems like good news for Canada’s growing homelessness problem. But, when you consider the amount is being spread over three years and divided among 10 provinces and three territories, the amount begins to look noticeably smaller.
Libby Davies, New Democratic Party critic for homelessness, says she is skeptical of the government’s agenda.
“I’m very fearful that it’s a one-shot deal,” she says. “The main reason we have homelessness in Canada is because of the government’s policy of cutting social housing in 1993.”
Davies adds that the federal government’s withdrawal from social housing has had “devastating effects” in provinces where the provincial government has also backed out of social housing funding.
Joyce Potter, Ottawa-Carleton advisor on social housing, says the region will only build 150 new social housing units this year. She says there are 15,000 households on the waiting list for affordable housing in Ottawa-Carleton, twice the1995 amount. The average wait for affordable housing is five to eight years.
With grim statistics like these, how far will the $753 million go in solving these problems?
Kerry Kaiser, coordinator of the Centretown Emergency Food Centre, says she is worried about the effectiveness of the latest homeless solution.
“We’ll be lucky if we even see $1 million in Ottawa before it goes through the government,” she says. “This is just the flavour of the year.”
There’s something to be said for the flavour-of-the-year mentality. Last year, it was the Millennium Scholarship Fund which was supposed to help the sagging prospects of Canada’s university and college students.
This year is rumoured to be the year for investment in children. Perhaps Canada’s farmers will be next in line for some further funding in next year’s budget.
By adopting policies to cut taxes, reduce the debt and increase social spending all at once, the Jekyll-and-Hyde Liberal government is trying to be everything to everyone.
For every crisis that comes along, the Liberals seem to swoop in at the last second to save the day. But, a one-time infusion of $753 million over three years is not going to change the problems facing Canada’s homeless.
What would help is an ongoing commitment to subsidize an affordable housing program and an addiction support program aimed at getting people off the streets. The money committed will only keep overcrowded shelters temporarily afloat and prolong the homeless’s dependence on them.
Considering that bigger surpluses are expected from Ottawa in the coming years, it seems more reasonable to commit future surpluses to tax cuts and debt reduction while using this year’s surplus to effectively take care of more immediate concerns like homelessness.
Liberal MP Roger Gallaway is a vocal backbencher who supports tax cuts and debt reduction, but even he admits applying half this year’s surplus to tax cuts and debt reduction will not make a significant dent to taxpayers.
“Will it make a difference if the surplus is at $2.6 billion? The answer is no,” he says.
Gallaway says a surplus of about $8 billion is needed .
Despite Gallaway’s preference for tax cuts and debt reduction, he says he is pleased that the government is reacting to the homeless situation. But he cautions that existing social programs are “starving.”
That is why the government should devote this year’s surplus to the homeless. Many feel tax cuts are overdue, but applying half of $2 billion won’t make a difference. Tax cuts can wait.
The government was shrewd to implement the $753 million program before this year’s budget.
By providing temporary help for the homeless over the next three years, the government has given itself an excuse. It can say it is helping the homeless, but it is really missing an opportunity provided by this year’s surplus.