A local MLA and a poverty advocate are pleased as the provincial government has ended its clawback of child support payments from social assistance and disability payments to single parents.
Under the policy, for example, a single parent with one child who received $946 monthly on income assistance or $1,242 in disability assistance would have the amount of any received child support deducted from that payment.
The Gordon Campbell government initiated the policy shortly after the 2001 election.
This week's change follows an intense public campaign over the past couple of years by anti-poverty and women's groups, with the support of Nelson-Creston MLA Michelle Mungall, who is the NDP opposition's social development critic.
“The fact that we are seeing this policy come to an end,” she said, “is a real testament to parents who came forward and shared their stories and worked with community organizations to make it happen.”
Community groups and several legal organizations have stated that the clawback was a violation of a child's right to be supported by both parents. Even some members of the BC Liberal caucus reportedly had problems with it.
A Ministry of Finance press release states that the change will result in an extra $32 million for families over the next three years, and that 5400 children will be affected.
Phyllis Nash, co-chair of the Nelson Committee on Homelessness, has been involved in poverty reduction activities locally since 1977, and she's happy to see this change.
“I am delighted that it was announced. It was about time.” she said. “The stats indicate we have a higher proportion of single parents in Nelson than any place in the province, so that tells us that increasing the income for those families is going to assist in the reduction of poverty.”
BC is the first province to fully exempt child maintenance payments, although several other provinces exempt them partially. The average child support payment in B.C. is $300 per month, according to Mungall.