September 17 - Update
Dear neighbour,
Over the past two weeks, I’ve been living on a social assistance diet of $47.60 per week to draw attention to the 900,000 people living on poverty-level Ontario Disability and Ontario Works payments, who often don’t have enough money left over for food. I’ve mostly been living on oats, beans, milk, and potatoes. It’s not healthy.
Shauna Harris is a University–Rosedale resident and the executive director of a local food bank called Spadina–Fort York Community Care. I interviewed Shauna this week to get her take on the state of poverty and food security in downtown Toronto and University–Rosedale. This is what she told me:
“Food scarcity changes people’s behaviour, so it’s an incredibly stressful situation. Our food bank at St Lawrence Market opens at 5 pm and people start lining up at 2 pm. We have families who don’t eat because they want to feed their children, and seniors living on crackers. There’s higher demand overall for more affordable products in general, so there’s nothing available in the supermarkets for people who can’t afford anything else but the cheapest products, like pasta. The struggle is to provide healthy options for people when life is so unaffordable.”
I asked Minister Fullerton in Question Period to join us on our social assistance diet and double social assistance rates. She didn’t answer the question, of course - and that’s exactly why the Minster needs to hear a personal message from you explaining why she needs to act with compassion.
Here’s an abridged version of my interview with Shauna, and where you can learn how to help local residents.
Yours,
Jessica Bell, MPP
University–Rosedale
Queen’s Park:
Action Now:
Community:
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Join us for an education forum to improve schools on September 28
Welcome to another school year! As the MPP for University–Rosedale and a parent of two school-aged children, I work with the community to ensure our schools provide an excellent education. I’m visiting the schools in our riding over the next months so please say hi if you see me at drop-off.
Ontario had the longest school closures of almost any jurisdiction in North America. As a result, our children’s learning suffered. The past two years have been extremely challenging for students, families, and education workers and it's more important than ever we invest in good quality, publicly delivered education. Yet, the Ford government continues to cut funding.
The Centre for Policy Alternatives calculated that when taking inflation and enrolment into account, school boards received $1.6 billion less for the 2021-2022 school year than they did in 2017-2018 – that is the equivalent of an $800 cut per student.
Our kids deserve so much more. We need to work together and advocate for:
- More funding for schools
- Lower class sizes
- More teachers, education workers, social workers, and mental health workers
- Well-maintained, green, and energy-efficient school buildings
- Safe, in-person learning
- Fair wages for education workers and teachers
- And more.
I would like to hear your thoughts on education, give you the chance to ask questions and speak with other parents, teachers, and education experts, and discuss how we can work together to improve schools for our children.
Please join our virtual forum for education on September 28th, from 6 -7 pm to discuss these issues and more. RSVP here.
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We asked Minister Fullerton to join us on our social assistance diet in Question Period
For the 900,000 Ontarians who live on social assistance (ODSP or OW), the atrociously low rates make it impossible to afford necessities, such as food, housing, or medicine. Ford's Conservatives promised to raise ODSP rates by a paltry 5%, which amounts to an additional $58 per month per recipient. Ontario Works recipients have had their rates frozen at just $733 per month.
Last Tuesday, I began living on a social assistance diet of $47.60 a week, joining my colleagues MPPs Vaugeois, Pasma, Harden, and Taylor. Our plan is to draw attention to the 900,000 people living on poverty-level Ontario Disability and Ontario Works payments, who have been ignored by governments for too long. You can follow my progress living on this amount right here.
Over the last week and a half, many people have contacted me to describe their experiences living on social assistance, delaying medications because they’re too expensive, and going hungry because their children need to be fed first. Please join in calling for change.
Here’s how you help:
Send a message
Tell Minister Fullerton to join our welfare diet and double social assistance rates. You can download a paper petition to collect signatures for me to be read in the legislature here.
Donate to a local group
ODSP Action Coalition
Avenue Road Food Bank
Fort York Food Bank
Sistering
Spadina Fort York Community Care
Make the case
To help me pressure the Conservative government to raise the rates, I will be highlighting the experiences of residents who live on social assistance, as well as those of us, who help people on social assistance, in the legislature. If you have a story to share please email us at jbell-co@ndp.on.ca or call at 416 535 7206.
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University–Rosedale tenants join me in calling for strong real control law
Last week, I held a press conference with MPP Bhutila Karpoche (Parkdale–High Park) and MPP Terrance Kernaghan (London North) to announce we are reintroducing our Rent Stabilization Act. Thank you to the tenants of 145 St. George, Lateef, Richard, and all those who stood with us. You can watch the full press conference here.
If passed, the Rent Stabilization Act will establish:
- rent control that operates during and between tenancies, so a new tenant pays the same
- rent as a former tenant;
- a public rent registry so tenants can find out what a former tenant paid in rent; access to legal aid for tenants that want to contest an illegal rent hike; and
- stronger enforcement and tougher penalties for landlords who do not properly maintain a renters’ home.
We need your help to send a loud and clear message to Doug Ford that renters matter and we deserve to live in affordable homes.
Click here to tell Doug Ford to act now.
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BC’s speculation and vacancy tax turned thousands of empty units into homes
A recent report commissioned by the BC government showed its speculation and vacancy tax (SVTA) brought 20 000 new condo units into the rental market from 2018 to 2020, and made homes more affordable for those who rent or buy.
University–Rosedale has some of the most expensive housing in Canada, where the average rent for all properties is now close to 2,400 dollars a month and home ownership has moved further and further out of reach.
People and families need affordable housing now. That’s why I am calling for the Ford government to join BC and implement my vacant homes and speculation tax today.
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New details on Ford’s Bill 107, denying elderly patient rights
On August 31, the Ford government passed the More Beds, Better Care Act, making it easier to coerce Alternative Level of Care (ALC) patients out of the hospital and into long-term care homes they did not choose. On Wednesday, the Ford government confirmed the details of the bill.
As of September 21, if there is no space at a discharged patient’s long-term care home of choice, seniors can be transferred to a home within a 70-kilometer radius in southern Ontario or a 150-kilometer radius in northern Ontario. If patients refuse the spot, the hospital is required to charge a daily fee of $400.
It’s a myth that denying elderly patients’ rights is the only way to address the ALC crisis. Health care experts have been calling for compassionate measures for years. They include:
- Increasing health care workers' wages to relieve staff shortages and increase capacity
- Increasing home care funding, and requiring homecare providers to guarantee permanent jobs with benefits. PSWs often make less than minimum wage as many are not paid to travel from home to home.
- Government investment in quality non-profit and public long-term care.
In addition to continuing our campaign to secure support for these measures, our office is gearing up to advocate for people who are forced into substandard long-term care homes far from their families. If you have concerns about a loved one, please contact our office at JBell-CO@ndp.on.ca or 416 535 7206.
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Reminder: Rally for migrant rights on September 18
Federal Minister Sean Fraser is preparing a program to expand pathways to permanent residency, in response to a unanimous House of Commons motion in May. Right now, the federal Liberal government faces a political choice: to establish a small, exclusionary program that continues to leave people in precarious situations and vulnerable to exploitation – or to seize this moment to correct a historic failure and ensure equal rights for all.
On September 18 – one day before the Canadian Parliament returns – we will gather at Christie Pits Park to demand equal rights and permanent resident status for all undocumented people, migrant workers, students, families, and refugees. A historic regularization program is on the horizon, but we need to take to the streets to ensure that no one is left behind.
Rally & March: Rights, Regularization, Status for All!
Start: Sunday, September 18, 2022, at 2:00 pm
Where: Christie Pits Park - 750 Bloor St W, Toronto, ON M6G 3K4 CA
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Reminder: Take part in the Global Climate Strike on September 23
The need to tackle the climate crisis has grown increasingly urgent with an Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, published this February, stating that climate change is intensifying and the world is far behind on the goal to keep temperature increases below 1.5 degrees Celsius — a global commitment agreed in Paris in 2015. Another IPCC report, published in April this year, highlighted that it is still possible to keep warming below 1.5C — but we need urgent and widespread climate action now.
Take part in the Fridays for Future Toronto on Friday, September 23 at 2 pm on the steps of Queen’s Park to call for real climate action now. To learn more about Fridays for Future, including how to volunteer and support, click here.
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Workers need your help to fix EI before September 24
At the start of COVID-19, the federal government relaxed employment insurance (EI) eligibility to improve access to emergency support for those most in need. Without these supports, it would have been much worse for workers and their families due to COVID-19 closures, lockdowns, and layoffs. As a Statistics Canada report shows, the positive impact of an accessible EI system on workers' lives is undeniable. Despite this, on September 24, all temporary measures that improved access to EI will expire.
It's urgent we extend the Recovery Measures as a bridge to permanent EI improvements. Workers will otherwise face a huge jump in the current minimum of 420 qualifying hours for both Regular and Special Benefits (parental, sickness, etc), and the allocation/clawback of separation payments. Women, workers of colour, and others in precarious jobs are at particular risk.
Join Justice for Workers is demanding the federal government immediately extend the temporary EI measures and implement the following permanent changes:
- A 360-hour or 12-week qualifying rule with 50 weeks of income support
- An end to harsh disqualification rules
- Ensure migrant workers have access to EI
- End misclassification, a practice where employers falsely label their employees as self-employed independent contractors to avoid paying their fair share of EI and CPP.
- Improve the weekly benefit rate and include a guaranteed weekly minimum
- Fund a new, annual federal government contribution to EI to help pay for improvements, provide adequate staffing with fair pay, and ensure EI acts as an effective economic stabilizer at times of crisis.
You can help Justice for Workers by joining the phone zap here and signing a petition here.
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Harvest Walk to stop Highway 413 on October 1
I’m opposed to the construction of Highway 413 and the Bradford Bypass. Instead of locking Ontario into building unsustainable subdivisions and highways, our province should be investing in public transit and building more services, schools and housing in neighborhoods already zoned for development.
A community walk to stop the reckless endangerment of wildlife, waterways and farmlands that come with the construction of Highway 413 will be taking place on October 1. The event is being spearheaded by Mississauga Climate Action and Grandmothers Act to Save the Planet (GASP), and will include a community walk, a Harvest Walk, and rally. There will also be a family fun festival held at the Brampton fairgrounds throughout the day.
For more information and to register, please visit the Environmental Defense website here.
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Everyone 18+ can book an Omicron variant booster vaccine
Adults in Ontario can begin booking a bivalent COVID-19 vaccine booster dose. This vaccine targets both the original virus and the Omicron variant BA.1.
Spots are open for everyone, though appointments for especially vulnerable people will be prioritized until September 26 before widening to all residents 18 and older.
Those vulnerable populations include:
- Ontarians aged 70 and older.
- Residents of long-term care homes, retirement homes, Elder Care Lodges and individuals living in other congregate settings that provide assisted-living and health services.
- First Nation, Inuit and Métis individuals and their non-Indigenous household members aged 18 and older.
- Moderately to severely immunocompromised individuals aged 12 and older.
- Pregnant individuals aged 18 and older.
- Health-care workers aged 18 and older.
- The availability of bivalent vaccine doses will be based on shipment schedules and supply from the federal government, the Ministry of Health said in a news release.
Appointments can be secured through the provincial COVID-19 vaccine portal or directly through public health units that use their own booking system, as well as via participating primary health care providers and pharmacies.
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Learn your housing rights with the Federation of Metro Tenants’ Associations
Are you a tenant interested in learning about your rights under the law? The Tenant School program provides free legal information to tenants. The school is run by the Federation of Metro Tenants' Associations.
There will be six free workshops, each running from 7 to 8:30 pm Eastern Time:
- Tuesday, September 20, 7-8:30 pm: Introduction to Landlord-Tenant Law
- Wednesday, September 21, 7-8:30 pm: Getting Repairs Done
- Thursday, September 27, 7-8:30 pm: Human Rights and Housing
- Wednesday, September 28, 7-8:30 pm: Above Guideline Rent Increases
- Monday, October 3, 7-8:30 pm: Community Organizing & Tenant Organizations
- Tuesday, October 4, 7-8:30 pm: Tenant Organizing During The Municipal Election
To register for the workshop please fill out the form at this link: https://forms.gle/WwJYH33d2beUdHn37
For more information, please email: joeita@torontotenants.org.
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Come celebrate the Annex Residents Association corn fest this Sunday
Well, it’s finally back! Do plan on ambling over to Jean Sibelius Square next Sunday, September 18th between 3:00 and 5:00 pm to catch up with neighbours and munch on some farm-fresh corn, all the while being entertained by live music at our annual ARA Cornfest. We ask only that you bring with you your own cup for beverages – our intention is to make this as waste-free an event as possible.
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Participate in the UniRose AGM
We're looking forward to our joint federal and provincial NDP Annual General Meeting taking place on September 27. It will be a great chance to catch up with our community, see some new and familiar faces, and elect our riding executives! Some of us are moving on to new opportunities, but many of us hope to return to continue to organize with UniRose in 2022.
The Joint AGM will be held on September 27, 2022, at 7 pm (registration will begin at 6:30 pm).
To join this meeting please RSVP here.
While everyone is welcome to attend the AGM, you must be a member in good standing of the Ontario NDP in University–Rosedale to vote at the meeting.
Questions about joining the Riding Association or about the AGM? Please get in touch with us at UniRoseNDP@gmail.com.
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