Jorge Barrera
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Oct 25/00) - The working poor have been left out of the recent Liberal mini-budget, says Yellowknife Salvation Army Capt. Karen Hoeft.

"It seems that the main issue is hitting the middle of the road but (they're) not seeing the bottom end," said Hoeft, of the mini-budget released last week in Ottawa.

Her comments came after the Canadian Council on Social Development (CCSD), a left-leaning think-tank based in Ottawa, released an analysis of the mini-budget and stated that recent federal spending decisions are helping widen the gap between rich and poor.

"Tax cuts benefit those who have more money," said CCSD executive director Marcel Lauziere.

The report also notes that while the federal government recently increased health-care transfer funds, funding hasn't returned to 1995 levels. The mini-budget also increased the maximum child care benefits from $2,056 to $2,400 and cut tax rates on income of $7,200 to $32,000 from 17 per cent to 16 per cent.

Under the tax proposal, someone earning income up to $30,754 will receive a tax savings of $350 while someone earning up to $100,000 will receive a tax savings of $2,900.

According to the report, the federal government spends only 11.7 per cent of the total gross domestic product (GDP) on social programs, an amount expected to go down by 0.3 per cent over the next three years.

Western Arctic MP Ethel Blondin-Andrew disagrees with the CCSD analysis, saying the mini-budget takes in all Canadians and that the Liberals have implemented countless programs that deal with issues at the bottom end of the economic scale.

"Just look at our national child/youth strategy," said Blondin-Andrew.

"We've looked at every facet of education, even at issues not in our jurisdiction," the MP said. "The budget represents the Liberal philosophy of equality."

Hoeft said programs are great but what lower income families really need is money in their pockets.

"I know mothers that live off their children's tax benefits," said Hoeft.

"These people live in Yellowknife where the average income is ($41,000) and they're working at $8-an-hour jobs," she added.

Under the new child tax credit rates, a family with an income below $21,744 will receive $2,400 for the first child and $2,200 for the second child by 2004.

This works out to $375 a month for a single child family.

According to 1996 statistics, 510 families in Yellowknife, and 1,445 in the NWT, earned less than $20,000.

The CCSD says child tax benefits should rise to a maximum of $4,000 to cover the true costs of raising a child. This would mean a family with one child earning less than $21,744 would get $480 a month.

The CCSD also suggests raising the level of non-taxable income to $8,000 would help every tax bracket, especially those on the low end.

Hoeft says that investing in the poor would have long-reaching positive social effects.

But Hoeft believes it's an investment the government won't take on wholeheartedly, preferring to focus on tax-cuts because that's what people seem to want.

"If we are selfish and not willing to give up things, then our government will represent that thinking," she said.