Green MLA preparing legislation that aims to eliminate poverty on P.E.I.

The Opposition critic for social development and housing is looking to set targets to eradicate poverty on Prince Edward Island. 

Green MLA.Hannah Bell is preparing legislation that she said fills in some of the gaps in the province's poverty reduction action plan.

"The action plan, it has a series of actions, but it doesn't actually have any long-term strategy or targets," said Bell of the government's approach.

"If you don't have a goal to work towards, then you're checking off a list of activities, but we're not really fundamentally making an impact on a big scale."

Bell said the Poverty Strategy and Elimination Act proposed by the Green Party would establish a framework to help government tackle the issue.

"The only way that can happen, where we can actually see effective change, is if we have a target that we're working towards that you can measure against," she said.

Bell said the bill would also clarify what tools the province should use to measure progress, and government should name a minister responsible for poverty.

"The usual assumption would be that it would be with the minister of social development and housing," said Bell.

"But you need to have that kind of central focus and point where the responsibility for measuring, managing and communicating and delivering actually sits."

One-third of Islanders are currently living at or below the poverty line, Bell said, based on the market basket measure, which is a Statistics Canada tool for the cost of a specific basket of goods and services representing a modest, basic standard of living..

"We can't afford not to do this in the same way that we can't afford to ignore the climate crisis," she said.

"It's really important that we recognize that this is work that needs to be done regardless of who it is that does it."

Bell said she hopes to table the legislation during the spring sitting.

"Every piece of legislation brought forward by a member of the opposition is a negotiation game, and sometimes we're successful and sometimes we're not."

In the meantime, Bell said she is looking for public feedback and support from other members of the legislature.

"I'll be working on discussing with my colleagues and hopefully building up that support," she said.

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