Bill S-233 in the Canada Senate

[Joseph]

The Croll report, as well as former Senators Segal and Eggleton, has called for the implementation of a national guaranteed livable income to help alleviate poverty. Last month, the Basic Income Canada Network outlined ways that a fully funded guaranteed livable income could be implemented — not as a pilot, not as a promise, but as a present-day national reality.

Hon. Kim Pate, Canadian Senate February 6, 2020

The majority of Canadians live paycheque to paycheque. Many of those living under the poverty line are employed but are not paid enough to get by. In 97% of neighbourhoods in cities across Canada, a person working in a full-time, minimum-wage job cannot afford to rent a one– or two-bedroom apartment. For young Canadians, this is part of being “Generation Squeeze,” young adults who are facing stagnant earnings; high costs of education, housing and child care; and mounting debts, including public debts associated with environmental degradation.

For nearly 50 years, senators have been studying the poverty problem and recommending a guaranteed livable income as a solution.

Hon. Kim Pate, Canadian Senate February 25, 2020

Looking at these programs — the CRB, CRCB, CRSB, CERB, CESB, CEWS and CERS — where would a person go to begin to apply for help? The eligibility criteria change every day. One day you’re on EI, the next one carries you to the CERB, and then back to EI. For a lot of Canadians, it was their first time turning to government programs for support, and it must have been an even more difficult experience to get the answers and support they needed.

Hon. Rose-May Poirier, Canadian Senate March 16, 2021

Introduced: December 16, 2021

Quote 1: https://sencanada.ca/en/senators/pate-k ... 4220/7#hID
Quote 2: https://sencanada.ca/en/senators/pate-k ... 676/37#hid
Bill S-233: https://www.parl.ca/legisinfo/en/bill/44-1/s-233
Text of the bill: https://www.parl.ca/DocumentViewer/en/4 ... st-reading