Justin Trudeau joins Ken Dryden during cross-country tour to fight poverty

from The Canadian Press

MONTREAL - Liberal Ken Dryden was in good company when he dropped in on Montreal on Monday to meet with community groups as part of his national anti-poverty tour.

Dryden, the chair of the Liberal caucus's social development committee, was joined by Justin Trudeau and Senator Celine Hervieux-Payette, a key party organizer in Quebec. The son of the late prime minister is running for the federal Liberals in the Montreal-area riding of Papineau in the next election.

The Liberal group met with 30 community groups and visited Sun Youth, a community aid organization.

After the visit, Trudeau told reporters his ethnic working-class riding was "filled with challenges and difficulties."

But he said several community organizations are working to deal with its problems.

"There are no excuses in Canada that there are so many people suffering from hunger and poverty," Trudeau said.

Liberal Leader Stephane Dion announced a plan last November to reduce poverty in Canada.

It sets firm targets to cut poverty by 30 per cent and child poverty by 50 per cent within the first five years of a Liberal government.

Dryden insisted the targets can be reached, adding it is "time to take a significant bite out of poverty in this country."

"I don't think that any government in this country, federal or provincial, one party or another, has done very well, but that doesn't stop you from making the big try," the former Liberal leadership candidate said.

"If you don't try, the loser is the person living under the poverty line."

Montreal was Dryden's fifth stop on his 15-city cross-country tour to talk with Canadians about poverty.

Monte Solberg, the Conservatives' human resources minister, argued the Liberals have "failed to present a specific, detailed and credible costed plan."

"Without costing, a plan to eradicate poverty is just talk," he said in a statement.