News: Poverty in Canada

Keep up-to-date with the latest news and views from CPJ on poverty in Canada by reading the articles written by CPJ staff and citing CPJ’s work.
A leaf on a sidewalk

Curiosity as an Expression of Trust

In the final video of the series on poverty and congregational responses by the Flourishing Congregations Institute, I encourage us to embrace a life of curiosity rather than control when facing the unknown – a timely reminder for the Eastertide season. Discover how a curious mindset can help us better understand and address the complex…

Read More »

The back of the Parliament Building in Ottawa, Canada. The Peace Tower is in the background and the Library is in the foreground.

Budget 2023: A Meaningful Step Forward, But Is It Enough?

The 2023 Federal Budget was announced at a time when Canadian residents share deep concerns about affordability, access to health care, and the ever-accelerating climate crisis. The question that CPJ asks around every federal budget cycle remains the same: Does this budget prioritize systemic solutions that could eradicate poverty, uphold the rights and dignity of…

Read More »

Cover of Poverty Trends 2022 update

2022 Poverty Trends Update

Released annually, CPJ’s Poverty Trends reports provide readers with a review of data on poverty in Canada and the state of government action, as well as a vision for how we can move forward. Using the latest data from Statistics Canada and research reports by advocacy groups across the country, Poverty Trends provides us with a…

Read More »

Gas tap with pipeline system at natural gas station

Natural gas prices rising in Ottawa as anti-poverty advocate warns of impact on lower income users

“This would not be the crisis that it will be for folks if we had adequate social assistance rates and support for people with disabilities, if we had enough affordable housing for people, if we had pharmacare in place,” Appleyard said. “We can’t blame this affordability crisis on climate change mitigation, or even just on…

Read More »

Budget 2022 Prioritizes the Status Quo

Budget 2022 was announced in a moment of multiple overlapping crises. In Canada and across the world we are living with rising costs of living, social and political unrest, and an ever-accelerating climate crisis, all in the midst of an ongoing pandemic. Ahead of the budget, CPJ called for an approach that would reflect the…

Read More »

A small group of people providing a meal to the homeless and any other people in need in downtown Calgary

Pandemic Benefits are Punishing those with the Lowest Incomes

Within the first few weeks of the pandemic, the federal government moved quickly to provide income support to people across the country. A new program, the Canadian Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), was created because it became quickly apparent that the existing system, Employment Insurance, was inadequate to deal with the scale of unemployment. However, the…

Read More »

2021 Federal Election

Creating a Just Canada 2021 Election Bulletin When the last federal election was called in 2019, no one could have imagined the events that would define the next two years: A global pandemic; over four million dead from COVID-19 (including 26,575 Canadians) exposing and exacerbating the pre-existing crises of poverty, homelessness, and inequity, as well…

Read More »

Creating a Better, More Just Canada

Creating a Better, More Just Canada Dignity. Everyone living in Canada should have confidence that their human rights are respected and that they can live their life with dignity. Children must have the freedom to enjoy all the opportunities of a safe, healthy childhood with access to culturally appropriate education, health care, and homes. No…

Read More »

We Can’t Settle for a Return to “Normal”

We Can’t Settle for a Return to “Normal” Before the pandemic even started, 1 in 8 households in Canada were struggling to put food on the table. 5.9 million people were estimated to be living in poverty. While data for the most recent years is limited, we know that poverty and precarity have been exacerbated…

Read More »

A Canada-wide system of Early Learning and Child Care

The Federal Government’s 2021 $30 billion budgetary commitment to build a Canada-wide system of early learning and child care services begins a hopeful chapter in the decades-long struggle for high-quality child care. The COVID-19 pandemic has called attention to the child care crisis that families across the country have faced for years. In short, there…

Read More »

Get updates by subscribing to JusticE-News, CPJ's e-newsletter

  • Your postal code will let us notify you about events relevant to your location.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.