As budget day approaches for Ontario, Anglicans are stepping up calls for the province to help those hardest hit by the recession.<\/p>\n
In a brief called \u201cStanding Together,\u201d\u009d submitted to the Ontario government\u2019s Pre-Budget Consultations, Archbishop Colin Johnson and the diocese\u2019s Child Poverty Subcommittee urge the government to carry out the following steps to help people in poverty:<\/p>\n
\u201d\u00a2 A $100-per month Healthy Food Supplement for people receiving social assistance so they can afford a more healthy diet.
\n\u201d\u00a2 Greater funding for affordable housing.
\n\u201d\u00a2 Funding for a threatened child-care subsidy program for low-income families.<\/p>\n
While agreeing that the government faces a major fiscal deficit, the brief notes society\u2019s \u201ccolossal human deficit, of needless suffering, hardship and lost opportunity.\u201d\u009d Foodbank usage soared by 19 per cent in Ontario in 2009, so that 374,000 Ontarians now use foodbanks.<\/p>\n