Dryden’s poverty tour makes stop

from The Chronicle Herald

SYDNEY — Sandra MacKeigan has pulled eight-hour shifts at a coffee shop where she was told she’d be lucky to get a 15-minute break.

But that’s what people do when they need to put food on the table, she told a forum on poverty Friday.

The single mother of three has been saving up money from odd jobs so she can get a degree in social work and get off social assistance.

"I don’t want to be on welfare, no one wants to be on welfare. We just need a hand . . . a bit of help. Someone needs to give us a chance."

Ms. MacKeigan’s story is among hundreds that Liberal MP Ken Dryden expects to hear on his cross-country tour to raise public awareness about poverty.

The chairman of the federal Liberal party’s social development committee stopped in Sydney on Friday to meet with volunteers who help food banks and shelters and those who use the services. He continued on to Halifax later in the day.

Ms. MacKeigan gave suggestions from her perspective as a woman who has had to rely on welfare and social housing to raise her children.

Income assistance needs to be higher to match rising inflation, she said. In the 12 years she’s been on assistance, she said she’s watched the prices of groceries and gas skyrocket while her welfare cheques have barely changed.

Sydney-Victoria MP Mark Eyking said people don’t necessarily see poverty in Sydney the way someone might in Toronto.

"Here it’s the low-income people who can’t meet day-to-day (living standards)," he said in an interview. "It’s a big issue, but most people can’t see it on the streets like in the big cities."

Mr. Dryden said he’s hopeful his forums will change the lifestyles of people living in poverty.

The public and political will is pushing for change, he said.

Ms. MacKeigan agreed.

"It’s no life," she said. "I continue to hope that this forum . . . finds an answer to the questions that you’re asking. I hope that the talk doesn’t stop here and that we see some action."