B.C. municipalities join growing call for provincial poverty reduction plan

The cities of Vancouver and Victoria are the most recent municipalities to join the BCGEU and others in calling on the provincial government to implement a comprehensive and accountable poverty reduction plan for British Columbia.

"We're thrilled that local governments are throwing their support behind this important campaign," says Darryl Walker, president of the B.C. Government and Service Employees' Union. "It's clear that they understand the urgency of this issue."

The BCGEU is a member of the BC Poverty Reduction Coalition, a diverse group that is recommending legislated targets and timelines for reducing poverty rates, increasing income levels and ending homelessness.

The City of Vancouver endorsed the coalition's call last week, and Victoria added its voice the week before. Several other municipalities have joined the campaign, including Nelson, Grand Forks and Parksville. A number of city councils have also forwarded poverty reduction plan resolutions to the Union of B.C. Municipalities, for consideration at its fall convention.

"A broad consensus is emerging," says Walker. "There's a growing recognition among community organizations, faith-based groups, non-profits, businesses, health organizations, Aboriginal groups, individuals, and now local governments, that B.C. needs a plan to reduce poverty."

Momentum for this campaign is also building outside of British Columbia. Several provinces and municipalities across Canada are already developing or implementing comprehensive poverty reduction plans, and the need to reduce poverty was recently affirmed by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. In addition, national anti-poverty legislation was recently introduced by NDP MP Tony Martin (Sault St. Marie).

The BCGEU is continuing to encourage its members to add their individual voices to the call for a B.C. poverty reduction plan. Visit the coalition website to join the campaign.