Press Release

(Halifax/Moncton) A new study released today, entitled Cost of Poverty in New Brunswick, co-authored by economist Angella MacEwen and Christine Saulnier, reveals that:

• Poverty costs the New Brunswick government a half a billion dollars per year.


• These costs accounted for 6.5% of the 2009/10 New Brunswick government budget.


• Health care spending on poverty alone costs the government $196 million per year.


• When the costs to government are added to the broader costs to the economy, the total cost of poverty for the province is $2 billion dollars.


• Investing in a comprehensive plan to alleviate poverty could cost as little as half as much as the quantifiable costs of poverty.

"It is clear that delayed action to address poverty in New Brunswick is very costly to government directly and to society more broadly," says Saulnier, who is also the director of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives-Nova Scotia, which released the report today in partnership with the NB Common Front for Social Justice Inc.

BY HEATHER SCOFFIELD, THE CANADIAN PRESS

OTTAWA—The federal government cancelled the long-form census with little heed to the consequences of its decision, according to a new first-hand account of the drama that unfolded a year ago.

An essay by former chief statistician Munir Sheikh says the census decision has shaken Statistics Canada’s neutrality and independence, and put at risk the government’s own work in many areas.

READ: Sheikh’s essay in full.

In the essay, Sheikh warns statisticians working at the federal agency to “guard against political intervention” until better solutions are found.

Sheikh also raises concerns over poor data on aboriginal populations, especially housing on reserves, and about the government making key decisions on pension reform without having reliable information on wealth in Canadian households.