March 28, 2024

NDP Children and Family critic demands change to deal with child poverty

The NDP are condemning the provincial government for aborting the fall sitting of the legislature after the latest update on child poverty in BC.

 Children and Family critic Claire Trevena says the report shows politicians need to be working on solutions in Victoria.

 She calls a disproportionately large number of first nations kids affected by child poverty a “huge problem.”

 “Which underlines why we need to have a province wide poverty reduction plan the Minister has heard directly from some of these communities that have a pilot project and these communties are saying it doesn’t work the way you have it because the Ministery of Children and Families is involved we have to have a province wide approach.”

 Trevena calls the deaths of 101 children either in foster care or recieving services by the ministry, a tragedy.

 “There is clearly something going very wrong when a child in care dies we have to really provide the best protection possible right the way through from birth all the way through teen and into young adulthood and I think we let our kids down there aren’t the supports in place needed there are lots of pressures in many families facing severe poverty.”

 Trevena says sweeping changes, and lots of them, is exactly the problem.

 “I think that one of the things that is really needed in this area is stability there has been too many sweeping changes I think that this is one of the things that has been a real problem for the Ministry of Children and Family Development that it has gone from one extreme to the other and back I think what we need is we need stability and we need to work on the root causes of why many times children end up in care and that is often times because of poverty.”

 She says the province needs to work on root causes for child poverty.

CKNW Vancouver News

Posts Related to this Article:

About The Reporter

The Reporter knows what's happening in and around Vancouver and the Lower Mainland. He reports the latest news (sometimes a bit biased) and other updates. Look to The Reporter for information about Vancouver news.