New Report Reveals High Cost of Poverty in Alberta

(This is a Vibrant Communities Calgary and Action to End Poverty in Alberta Media Release. Both are members of PIA's Human Services and Poverty Task Force, and PIA is assisting with the launch of this new report.)

Media Release
February 6, 2012

Key findings from the Poverty Costs report, co-published by Action to End Poverty in Alberta and Vibrant Communities Calgary, reveal that in 2009, the cost of poverty in Alberta is between 7.1 - 9.5 billion dollars on the external costs of poverty – in healthcare, crime, and in lost economic opportunities for children and people living in poverty, not including direct expenditures on programs and social services. It would have cost $1 billion to bring Albertans living in poverty to the poverty line in 2008. Our study shows that at least 7 to 9 times that amount of money was spent on the consequences of poverty, and unless we take action the costs to society will continue to grow.

“We can no longer afford to ignore poverty.” said Joe Ceci, Coordinator of Action to End Poverty in Alberta. “The evidence has never been clearer. Preventing and eventually putting an end to poverty makes more sense and costs considerably less than continuing to mitigate its effects. We have a choice in Alberta and now there is clear evidence; now is the time to take action.”

The report calculates the external costs of poverty and makes an economic case for a preventative poverty reduction strategy in Alberta. Co-author Alexa Briggs notes that, “Evidence from this work points in the same direction as it does in all the other provinces that conducted this kind of analysis. Our approach to poverty is costly and the savings are there for us if we start to think about poverty as a problem we can end, rather than a problem we manage.”

With poverty rates on the rise in Alberta, Ben Henderson, Edmonton City Councillor said “It is becoming more and more apparent that until we give ourselves long term goals and make a long term commitment to bring about real change when it comes to poverty, that we will continue to spend larger sums of money achieving nothing except temporary alleviation of some of the effects. The level of suffering and the loss of opportunity will remain unchanged.”

“The provincial government has a choice to make – they can go on claiming that the current approach to poverty is all we can do, or they can follow through on the commitment to invest in the public services and supports that will address the root causes of poverty,” says Bill Moore-Kilgannon, Executive Director of Public Interest Alberta. “We expect all provincial political parties to explain in detail before the election how they are going to address Alberta’s growing poverty rates”.

The report is available for download at www.actiontoendpovertyinalberta.org

-30-

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR COMMENT CONTACT

Joe Ceci, Coordinator
Action to End Poverty in Alberta
Phone: (403) 402-7091 

Dan Meades, Director
Vibrant Communities Calgary
Phone: (403) 473-6223