Mr. Speaker, Hamilton's Social Planning and Research Council released a report on September 16 entitled “A Profile of Vulnerable Seniors”.
This report shows that the poverty rate for Hamilton seniors is now at 17%, which is nearly three times the national average of 5.9%. The single most important factor contributing to this poverty is of course inadequate income.
A single senior who relies solely on old age security and the guaranteed income supplement still lives well below the poverty line. Worse still, the poverty rate for senior women in Hamilton is 22%, which is twice the average for senior men.
To address this problem, the report's lead researcher believes that the Canada pension plan should be increased, and I could not agree more.
The government also needs to implement the NDP proposal to increase the guaranteed income supplement beyond the meagre $50 a month offered by the Minister of Finance. We know that more needs to be done for seniors to eliminate poverty. The only thing lacking is the political will of the government.