Re: Living with dignity

Yanick,

Breaking news! The fall economic statement has just been announced, and – despite the government’s many promises to address the urgency of the disability poverty crisis – there is no funding allocated for the Canada Disability Benefit (CDB). [1,2,3]

Bill C-22 will be the first federal benefit of its kind in Canada. [4] This benefit was never going to be the silver bullet solution to the disability poverty crisis, but it is an essential first step. And until there is funding allocated to the CDB, the federal government is merely paying lip service to a community in crisis. That is unacceptable.

Already 5,851 people like you have emailed Kamal Khera, the Minister in charge of CDB, and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland, calling on them to urgently fund the CDB. Yanick, will you support the disability community by sending a message now?

https://act.leadnow.ca/cdb-ett-fec23/?source=k

With hope,

Ellen and Rivka for Leadnow

Sources:

[1] https://liberal.ca/our-platform/introduce-a-disability-benefit/

[2] https://www.pm.gc.ca/en/news/statements/2022/12/03/statement-prime-minister-international-day-persons-disabilities

[3] https://www.budget.canada.ca/fes-eea/2023/report-rapport/FES-EEA-2023-en.pdf 

[4] https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/canada-disability-benefit-bill-passes-parliament-1.6448999

Yanick, our allies are telling us that the Canada Disability Benefit (CDB) , which was passed to address the disability poverty crisis, may not be funded until 2025 . [1] This is unacceptable .

Food and housing prices are at an all time high – exacerbating the day to day struggle of people with disabilities, and making a difficult living situation nearly impossible. [2] Current disability benefits are not meeting the rise of inflation, which is why the federal government decided to pass CDB in the first place.

The fall economic statement is being announced next week, and if the federal government is waffling we need to force their hand. The disability community has already waited too long for the government to address the disability poverty crisis. We need to showcase strong public support for funding the CDB now without delay.

Kamal Khera is the new Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Persons with Disabilities, and is charged with making progress on the CDB file. If thousands of us email Kamal Khera and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland before the fall economic statement, it could convince them to fund the CDB now. Will you email Ministers Khera and Freeland now and demand that they fund the CDB urgently?

One in five Canadians – 6.2 million people – live with a physical, developmental or psychiatric disability and forty per cent of Canadians living in poverty have a disability. [3] That is a huge portion of the population, living in a crisis that is nearly invisible to those not directly affected by it.

This benefit can only begin to help address the disability poverty crisis once it is funded. Unless the government feels pressure from everyday Canadians, those directly impacted by the crisis and allies, this benefit could get caught in a political quagmire again.

Yanick, this has happened before and we can’t let it happen again. [4] Will you stand with the disability community and email Ministers Khera and Freeland, demanding that they fund the CDB urgently in response to the disability poverty crisis?

https://act.leadnow.ca/cdb-ett-fec23/

With hope,

Ellen and Cheryl for Leadnow

Sources:

[1] https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/it-will-be-many-months-before-canada-s-new-disability-benefit-is-ready-minister-vows-to-get-it-right-1.6548352

[2] https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/rising-cost-of-living-taking-toll-on-canadians-living-off-disability-benefits-1.6012701

[3] https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/89-654-x/89-654-x2018002-eng.htm

[4] see 1