Latest news with #Kilfoil
CBC
17-04-2025
- Business
- CBC
P.E.I. group part of coalition calling for federal parties to include basic income guarantee in platforms
Social Sharing A new cross-Canada coalition of feminist organizations is calling on all federal parties to include a basic income guarantee in their platforms as a policy commitment. Women's Network P.E.I. is one of the groups advocating for basic income to be a national election issue. "P.E.I. has kind of been the hub of the basic income movement in Canada for many years," said Jillian Kilfoil, the executive director of Women's Network P.E.I. Leveraging that energy on P.E.I. and using it to stir up momentum across the country is one of the goals of the coalition's campaign, she said. Discussion around a basic income is nothing new on P.E.I. A detailed report released in 2023 said such a program would drop the poverty rate in the province from 10 per cent to two per cent. The report recommends a basic income amount to 85 per cent of the official poverty line in Canada. Based on the time of the report in 2022, that would be $19,252 for a single adult or $27,227 for a family of two adults. 'Exactly why we need basic income' The new coalition is passing out door hangers in advance of the April 28 federal election to encourage voters to have conversations about basic income guarantee with candidates. "We want to hear from candidates and future elected officials what their stance is," Kilfoil said. "What is their belief related to basic income? And how would they use their future role to be able to leverage some action related to the implementation of basic income?" WATCH | Canada's political parties urged to make basic income guarantee an election promise: Canada's political parties urged to make basic income guarantee an election promise 5 hours ago Duration 6:26 A new cross-Canada coalition of feminist organizations wants to make Basic Income Guarantee a national election issue, calling on all federal parties to include it in their platforms as a policy commitment. CBC News: Compass host Louise Martin spoke with Jillian Kilfoil, executive director of Women's Network P.E.I., to find out whether there has been a commitment from any of the candidates. Tariffs and international relations have taken up a lot of bandwidth throughout this election cycle, said Kilfoil, but basic income should also be an important part of the conversation. "What's happening in the U.S. and what's happening with the trade wars is exactly why we need basic income," she said. "If something happens where people need more income to be able to weather a storm like tariffs, you already have that in place." The extent to which tariffs and U.S. President Donald Trump's administration have been dominating the political conversation doesn't mean Canadians and Islanders don't care about basic income, Kilfoil said. Rather, the "acute situation south of the border" has caused some people to put other important issues on the backburner. Persistent myths When it comes to arguments against implementing basic income, Kilfoil said there are some common misconceptions. "The two most persistent myths around basic income is that it costs a lot and people won't have an incentive to work." If you knew you had a guaranteed income, what kind of risk would you take to open a new business that you may not take without that guarantee? — Jillian Kilfoil On the issue of cost, she said there will be expenses regardless. "Either we can pay it up front by trying to prevent some of these costly situations that burden our health-care system and other systems, or we can pay for it later," she said, adding that paying for it later is more expensive. Kilfoil said a more progressive tax on the ultra-wealthy would help redistribute resources to those who are struggling. When it comes to the workforce, Kilfoil said people are still very motivated to work. "The reality is that we have people working 40 hours a week or more, and they still can't cover their basic needs," she said. "Something isn't working." A basic income guarantee could also spur entrepreneurship and small business growth. "If you knew you had a guaranteed income, what kind of risk would you take to open a new business that you may not take without that guarantee?" she said. "If we look at taxing people who have way too much already [and] redistribute that to people who don't have enough... then we're not going to see any impacts on the workforce overall."
CBC
21-02-2025
- Business
- CBC
P.E.I. advocates push for guaranteed basic income as Liberal leadership race heats up
A number of groups are urging political leaders — and Liberal leadership hopefuls — to make a basic income guarantee a priority. The P.E.I. Working Group for a Livable Income and Coalition Canada Basic Income recently sent an open letter to Liberal leadership candidates. The letter asks for resources for the working group to continue its efforts and calls for a five- to seven-year pilot project on the Island. It also urges candidates to include a guaranteed basic income in the party's platform. Among those who put their names on the letter is Liberal MP Sean Casey. "My hope is that this goes forward with the support of the leadership," Casey told CBC News. "One of the leadership candidates has already indicated an interest in this topic. I hope and expect that this will be part of the discussion in the debates that are coming next week." The idea of a basic income guarantee has been discussed on P.E.I. for a number of years. A 2023 report suggested that implementing such a program could reduce poverty on the Island by 80 per cent. The report also proposed a funding model involving both the federal and provincial governments. Provincial officials told CBC back in 2023 about P.E.I.'s targeted basic income pilot program, which focused on social assistance clients facing employment barriers. That initiative topped up existing benefits, ensuring recipients received at least 85 per cent of the market-basket measure — also known as Canada's official poverty line. P.E.I. as a testing ground Casey said the Island is well-suited for a basic income pilot thanks to its size and demographic diversity. "We have urban and rural communities, a place where we have a Francophone minority, a place where we have Indigenous communities, a place where we have both advanced and primary industries," he said. "All of those things are transferable in other parts of Canada." Jillian Kilfoil, executive director of Women's Network P.E.I., agreed with Casey that P.E.I. is an ideal location for a basic income pilot. The organization is among the groups that signed the letter. Kilfoil pointed out that significant groundwork has already been done on the Island, and it would make sense to start here. "There's a lot of complexity to implementing basic income guarantee, and so having a place where you can start like P.E.I. and figure out a lot of those kinks, figure out how it interacts with a lot of the existing programs, work those out here over five to seven years, and then bring that to the rest of Canada," she said. Kilfoil said a basic income program is needed here given the mounting struggles Islanders have been through the past few years. "The pandemic COVID-19, hurricane Fiona, the inflation crisis, climate change, automation and job loss. As a result of that, people are really struggling to make ends meet, and the situation is only getting worse. People really need some type of floor so that we all have our basic needs met."
