Finance committee  I think that would be acceptable to us if there were caveats and mechanisms to protect people who are never going to work. It would have to not incentivize work so strongly that those people who are never going to be part of the workforce, who are still valuable, dignified citize

Finance committee  Yes. I mean, we are looking for more accountability on the Canada social transfers overall, and that would certainly be something we would want to see in an act that would impose principles on the Canada social transfer. As I said, as long as it wasn't going to be penalizing thos

Finance committee  We think they could.

Finance committee  We don't go so far as to calculate the savings, because we know that for every different province, different things would be replaced or changed. We also know that in the model we're proposing the tax brackets would have to change. Really, we do think there would be savings. Let

Finance committee  The thing people ask a lot when they're asking me this question is, what model do you think is best? Is the one they're testing in Scotland right now the best? Is the one they're doing in the Dutch city of Utrecht the best? Is the one in Barcelona the best? Is the one in Ontario

Finance committee  This is a question we get a lot, and that's why I addressed the benefit trap at the beginning of my comments. I just want to say that it's called a “benefit trap” because it's not a benefit choice. In traditional income support models, it becomes a trap; not working becomes the r

Finance committee  Thanks very much. On behalf of our board, and of course the social workers whom we represent across Canada, thank you for inviting the Canadian Association of Social Workers to this consultation. Social workers know that when people are supported out of poverty, they're happier

Human Resources committee  I will just toss it briefly back to Mr. Pegg's comment—I think it was yours—about single, unattached people living in poverty. I think that your comments about the Canada child benefit having a profound impact are absolutely correct. Social workers on the front line see that it's

Human Resources committee  To tie it back briefly to the concept of basic income.... I think there is a lot of fear of that term, as if it's something that would be a huge program that would change our whole landscape of social services. I don't think that's what it would have to be. It could be something

Human Resources committee  We know what we don't want. What we probably would want would be negative income tax.

Human Resources committee  We aren't economists and we don't want to comment on that.

Human Resources committee  We're active with IFSW, which is the International Federation of Social Workers, which is what you're referring to. Our president meets yearly, actually, three times yearly, but once in person with them. The major thing that came out of the last meeting in terms of poverty reduct

Human Resources committee  That's a very difficult question to answer in the sense that sometimes I am a little bit jealous that I'm not up here as a housing association or as an association representing persons with disabilities. I am representing the Canadian Association of Social Workers, and it's a ver

Human Resources committee  Thank you, Mr. Robillard.

Human Resources committee  Ontario is as well.