1. What are the chances that you could experience poverty in your lifetime?
| a) 1 in 8 | b) 1 in 4 | c) 1 in 3 | d) 1 in 2 |
2. What is the maximum amount of money a single employable social assistance recipient in New Brunswick can receive per month?
| a) $260 | b) $310 | c) $425 | d) $565 |
3. According to Statistics Canada Low-Income Cut Offs, how many Canadians were considered poor in 1994?
| a) 956,000 | b) 1,567,000 | c) 4,941,000 | d) 10,676,000 |
4. According to Statistics Canada Low-Income Cut Offs, what percentage of Canadian children (under 18) were considered poor in 1995?
| a) 11.5% | b) 15.3% | c) 21.0% | d) 24.3% |
5. What percentage of unattached women live in poverty?
| a) 25.8% | b) 36.5% | c) 44.4% | d) 57.4% |
6. How prevalent is welfare fraud in a large province like Ontario as a percentage of total welfare budgets?
| a) 2 - 4% | b) 5 - 8% | c) 10 - 12% | d) 20 - 28% |
7. The world`s richest 358 people have the combined wealth of how many of the world`s poorest people?
| a) 400,000 | b) 1,500,000 | c) 500,000,000 | d) 2,300,000,000 |
8. How much does it cost to send a letter to the federal government to share your concerns about poverty?
| a) 45 cents | b) 75 cents | c) $1.50 | d) nothing |
Answers
Question 1 c)
1 in 3
The Economic Council of Canada estimates that one in three Canadians
will experience poverty at some point in their working careers.
(Economic Council of Canada, 1992) Next Question
Question 2 a) $260/month
New Brunswick has the lowest social assistance rates in Canada.
As of March 1996, single employable social assistance recipients
can receive up to only $260/month. A single parent with one child
can receive up to $720/month and a couple with two children can
only receive $806/month. (National Union of Provincial and
General Employees Research Department, 1996) Next
Question
Question 3 c) 4,941,000
That is 17% of Canada's total population. (NAPO, Dec 1995)
Next Question
Question 4 c) 21.0%
(NAPO, Dec 1996) Next Question
Question 5 answer: c) 44.4%
Unequal wage rates between the sexes and increasing need for a
two-income household contributes to 44.4% of all unattached women
living in poverty compared to 34% of men. Again among single
parent families, 56.8% of those headed by mothers are poor, while
30.7% of those headed by fathers live in poverty. (Statistics
Canada, Income Distributions by Size in Canada, 1995) Next Question
Question 6 a) 2 - 4%
A study conducted by a national auditing firm estimated fraud to
be in the range of 2.59 - 3.66% of the Ontario welfare budget. We
have reason to believe that this estimate can be generally
applied to other parts of the country. (Peat Marwick, Welfare
Fraud and Over payment: Final Report to the Ontario Social
Assistance Review Committee, Toronto, 1987, p.ii) Next Question
Question 7 d) 2,300,000,000
It would take the combined wealth of 2.3 billion of the
globe`s poorest individuals to equal the combined wealth of the
globe`s 358 richest. That means these super-rich 358 people
control almost half of the world's wealth. (United Nations, Human
Development Report 1996) Next Question
Question 8 d) nothing
That's right, you can mail a letter to the House of Commons
postage free! To share your concerns write
House of Commons, Ottawa, ON K1A 0A6
address your letters or link directly to:
Rt. Hon Jean Chrétien: [email protected]
Hon Paul Martin Minister of Finance: [email protected]
Hon Pierre Pettigrew
Minister of Human Resources Development: [email protected]
Copyright © 1997 The National Anti-Poverty Organization (NAPO)