Food banks on the minds of Northern dippers

NEWS RELEASES

TONY MARTIN, MP

CAROL HUGHES, MP

************************* Alarming numbers show 870,000 Canadians using food banks, 80,000 for the first time OTTAWA - As the 2010 Hunger Count reveals a record 870,000 individuals using food banks, New Democrats Poverty Critic Tony Martin (Sault Ste. Marie) is demanding an urgent action plan to address this crisis and its underlying causes. “Over the past two years, food bank use has risen sharply - by more than a 25 percent. Many lose jobs, exhaust EI and fall back on inadequate social assistance," explained Martin. "The food banks are a mirror for a long-standing problem just made worse by the recession. And will get even worse with stimulus programs ending, new spending cuts starting and the government's refusal to draft a plan for addressing poverty in our communities.” Food Banks Canada takes a yearly snapshot of food bank users in March.

This year's report shows food bank use grew in every province of the country, with almost one in 10 being first-time users and 38 percent children or youth under 18. The Hunger Count report also lists several recommendations supported by New Democrats, including:

- A federal plan to eliminate poverty

- Increasing the Canada Child Tax Benefit

- Comprehensive EI reform

- Housing and child care strategies, and

- Measures to lift seniors out of poverty.

“This snapshot from thousands of hungry Canadians, and from hundreds of food banks across the country, is telling Stephen Harper to stop writing off so many people with his laissez-faire approach,” concluded Martin.

************************* Hughes calls for action on poverty: food bank grows as stimulus set to end

OTTAWA - Ontarians are being forced to do more with less and the growth in poverty statistics has been mirrored by a huge increase in the number of people dependant on Food Banks, according to Algoma-Manitoulin-Kapuskasing MP, Carol Hughes.

Hughes is calling on the government to take action on the issue and is questioning the value of ending federal stimulus in the face of such dire circumstance.

“The increase in the number of people who use food banks indicate a long-standing problem which has only gotten worse due to the recession,” said Hughes in Question Period Tuesday. “The situation will only get worse with the end of the economic stimulus program, the implementation of new budgetary constraints, and the government’s refusal to table a plan to eliminate poverty in our communities.”

Hughes question comes as poverty statistics show Ontario is slipping in all areas tracked.

With the fourth highest poverty and child poverty rates in the country, Ontario lost over half of all jobs lost in Canada at the onset of the recession, shedding 3.1 percent of its economy between October 2008 and October 2009.

During the same period, food prices grew by 4.7 percent, with the price of vegetables rising by an astonishing 10.4 percent.

“It is becoming clear that the high price of food is pushing more people into poverty,” said Hughes. “This government is going to have to come up with a plan to address this unacceptable trend, including questioning whether this is the best time to stop the stimulus program.”

New Democrat Poverty Critic Tony Martin reported earlier in the day that the 2010 Hunger Count showed 870,000 people using food banks this year and that food bank use has increased by 25 percent over a two-year period.

These are troubling statistics that highlight how much work remains undone as Canada tries to climb out of recession.

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