Child care and early learning

EDMONTON—“While last year's budget could be characterized as a chicken little 'the sky is falling' because of the bitumen bubble, this year's budget is just a 'little chicken,'” said Bill Moore-Kilgannon, Executive Director of Public Interest Alberta. “Rather than addressing the priorities expressed by Albertans in the consultations last fall and following through on many of their election promises, the Redford government is taking only a few baby steps.”

"Vibrant Communities Calgary applauds the From Words to Action report on eliminating poverty from our province. The report was done by the Alberta College of Social Workers, Public Interest Alberta and the Edmonton Social Planning Council."

"The latest report on the state of poverty in Alberta says that unless the provincial government injects $1 billion into poverty reduction strategies, it is unlikely to meet Alison Redford’s 2012 election campaign promise to eliminate child poverty by 2017 and reduce poverty overall by 2022. 'Social programs and public services are instrumental in supporting families, and the government will certainly not eliminate child poverty unless it stops cutting budgets and starts investing in real solutions,' Public Interest Alberta executive director Bill Moore-Kilgannon said in a November 26 press release."

"While Alberta’s economy is growing, an estimated 84,000 Albertan children—one in 10—were living in poverty in 2011, according to Public Interest Alberta’s report, released Tuesday. That number is declining, said the group’s executive director, Bill Moore-Kilgannon, but about 60 per cent of those children have at least one parent who works full-time, year-round. He’s urging the provincial government to do more toward its promise of ending child poverty in Alberta by 2017 by addressing root causes of poverty in the province, including lack of access to education and low wages for the working poor.

Edmonton’s child poverty rate is the highest in the province according to a new report, with one in six local children living in poverty.“It is partly because we are a little bit of a magnet, particularly we have more recent immigrants in Edmonton you tend to earn lower incomes and tend to live in poverty. We (also) have the highest aboriginal population in the province,” said John Kolkman, research coordinator for Edmonton Social Planning Council.

"A report says more than 10 per cent of Alberta children were living in poverty in 2011. The authors of the report are urging Premier Alison Redford to come through on an election promise to eliminate child poverty by 2017.The report says there were 84,000 children whose families were below the low-income measure after taxes.The survey was done by Public Interest Alberta, the Edmonton Social Planning Council and the Alberta College of Social Workers.The report also says that almost 60 per cent of kids in poverty had at least one parent working full-time."

"A new report is calling on the Alberta government to take action on eliminating child poverty in the province.According to the report, From Words to Action: Alberta Can Afford a Real Poverty Reduction Strategy, one in ten children is living in poverty in Alberta. The report suggests, in 2011, there were 84,000 (29,800 under the age of six) living below the low-income measure. 'Premier Redford’s 2012 election promise to eliminate child poverty by 2017 will not be achieved unless the words in the government’s soon to be released poverty reduction strategy, will be backed up with real action and investment in programs that prevent, reduce and ultimately eliminate poverty,' said Bill Moore-Kilgannon, executive director of Public Interest Alberta."

A new report was just released, and it says that more than one in ten children in Alberta lives in poverty—a shocking statistic, considering the province’s wealth. The authors are challenging the government to move from words to action and make some lasting changes.Lori Sigurdson, from the Alberta College of Social Workers, joins us. [VIDEO]

"Statistics published by Public Interest Alberta estimate there were 84,000 children living in poverty in Alberta in 2011, the last year for which data are available. The number is actually down from 91,000 the year before, but one of the study’s authors said the reduction has more to do with an overall improvement in the economy than any action by the provincial government. 'You can’t eliminate child poverty in this province without actually investing,' said Bill Moore-Kilgannon of Public Interest Alberta, which put together the report with the Alberta College of Social Workers and the Edmonton Social Planning Council.' Having a job isn't a panacea for poverty, Moore-Kilgannon said, because so many among Alberta’s poor have jobs."

"A report by Public Interest Alberta released Tuesday shows that 84,000 children in the province live in poverty, with 29,800 of those children under the age of six. They say it's costing the province up to $9.5 billion a year. Many of those kids have at least one parent with a job, says report co-author Bill Moore-Kilgannon. 'Close to 60 per cent of those children are actually living in a family where at least one parent worked full time, full year. So what that tells us is that a job itself is not in and of itself a pathway out of poverty,' he said."