Human Resources committee  Yes, I think a national housing strategy is a key element for reducing poverty and eliminating poverty in Canada. The simple reason is that there's a high proportion of people, particularly renters, who pay a disproportionate amount of their money for rent. There's not enough affordable housing.

Human Resources committee  I think this is a good illustration of why, when the federal government brings in poverty reduction legislation, it needs to include reviewing the impact of laws, policies, and regulations in light of what impact they might have on poverty reduction. I think this is a good example of where it likely won't have a very big impact on families in poverty.

Human Resources committee  That's an excellent question. Thank you very much. Let me start by recommending to the committee that if you haven't already looked at this document that was created by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, published in 2004, called Human Rights and Poverty Reduction: A Conceptual Framework, it really does a nice job of looking at human rights and poverty reduction and looking at the connection between the two.

Human Resources committee  Thank you for those questions. They're really good ones. I'll start with the issue of the minimum wage. That provides a good opening to thinking about one of the fundamental basic human rights in terms of economic, social, and cultural rights, which is the right to freely choose one's work, to work in safe conditions, and to be paid enough to enjoy a decent standard of living.

Human Resources committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair and committee members. The Mennonite Central Committee is very pleased to be able to participate in these hearings. I want to start by acknowledging the role that this committee and its members have played in keeping a focus on the federal government's role in poverty reduction across Canada.