Social Development Minister Jean-Yves Duclos speaks to reporters at a Liberal cabinet retreat in Calgary, Alta., Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2017. The federal government is looking for a few good people to help it craft a poverty reduction strategy and is turning to public consultations for ideas. Duclos plans to use the expertise of an advisory committee on poverty to produce a national program that the Liberals are expected to deliver late in their four-year mandate.
Image Credit: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Todd Korol
February 13, 2017 - 9:00 PM
OTTAWA - The federal government is looking for a few good people to help it craft a poverty reduction strategy and is turning to public consultations for ideas.
Social Development Minister Jean-Yves Duclos plans to use the expertise of an advisory committee on poverty to produce a national program that the Liberals are expected to deliver late in their four-year mandate.
The committee will operate for one year and be made up of experts from academia, business and social services, as well as people who have lived with poverty.
The body will act as a sounding board to test ideas that emerge from the public consultations on ways to help those living in need.
The announcement today comes as the Liberals finalize a national housing strategy designed to help make housing more affordable and reduce homelessness.
It's estimated that some three million Canadians live in poverty and 235,000 experience homelessness annually.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2017