Finance committee  Okay. I would like to follow up.

Finance committee  Yes. I would argue that we really strongly encourage that there be an overall strategy enshrined in legislation so that we'd have this on the public radar screen in a more permanent, focused way.

Finance committee  Certainly, they are important and positive. If we also look, though, at the proportion of GDP that we spend on tax measures, transfers, and services—and this comes from the UNICEF report—we're lower than we should be, so there's a lot still to do.

Finance committee  I guess they're not coordinated in any particular way; it's very ad hoc. So if they mutually benefit each other, that's great. I didn't come prepared to talk about the great details. I'll talk about the CST, which has no transparency. We have no idea whether those transfers are s

Finance committee  Certainly. I will say, in a positive tone, that I think we now know more about what's needed to address poverty reduction and eradication in Canada. You'll all remember that the HUMA committee studied it for two and half years, and all parties endorsed that report in principle.

Finance committee  Not that I am aware of.

Finance committee  I'm saying that. Among our partners, be they food banks, women's shelters, community service organizations, health care providers, housing providers, people we work with—and we look at the trend in terms of health, aging, and work. People are saying they think we should be going

Finance committee  Yes, from my understanding, certainly, I think we have to worry about a number of things, including what will happen to the 65- and 66-year-olds who, for whatever number of reasons, are not able to be in the labour force. In fact, some groups that I'm involved in have indeed reco

Finance committee  Are you referring to the UNICEF study?

Finance committee  Absolutely. First of all, we should also remember that of course some groups are at much greater risk of poverty than others. One in two children in recent immigrant families lives in poverty. Unfortunately, children of all immigrants, including those who may have been here for

Finance committee  Hello. Thanks for the opportunity to appear before you. You're probably aware that Campaign 2000 is a network of organizations representing low-income people, affordable housing, child care and health care providers, food banks, labour organizations, and women's groups. We've b

Status of Women committee  I would agree with what Carol Stephenson said about mentorships. In work I've done in newcomer communities, I think it is important that it's a good fit between people. But I would say that the other important role government could play is just to support some kind of career en

Status of Women committee  What I would start with is that my most recent experience was doing this cross-Ontario project where I did go to all 11 communities, and we met with more than 250 low-income women. I think what I heard.... It was before the Occupy movement, but let me say that these women very mu

Status of Women committee  Well, the cuts to advocacy and research, and if you will, civic engagement are of serious concern to lots of the groups we work with. I guess we were particularly upset to see the cuts to the national statistical agency working with first nations communities and the National Abor

Status of Women committee  Thank you. Thanks very much for the opportunity to meet with you and speak with you. I appreciate it. You may or may not know that Campaign 2000 is a cross-Canada network of organizations holding the government's feet to the fire on ending child and family poverty. It comes f