Past Campaigns and Law Reform

Income Security Consultation and Reform Project

ISAC is undertaking a major consultation on the income security system to identify priority concerns for litigation and generate new ideas for law reform.

We are seeking to involve those most affected by income security policy by working with anti poverty and grassroots organizations and we need your help to reach across the province. We are inviting community groups, legal clinics, and others concerned about poverty to join us in this project.

It is a very important time to get communities across Ontario thinking and acting on income security issues as the province heads towards an election, and the Federal government is again talking about tackling child poverty and the reform of income security programs. Given the political window of opportunity we believe this consultation can actually make a difference if we work together to ensure it is innovative and inclusive.

Please review the following and let us know if you can help by no later than January 31st 2003.

The process will involve two focus groups in each community:

The problems with income security programs and systems
What kind of income security systems do we need for today’s economy?

ISAC's Income Security Strategy:

Distribute Consultation kit across province to host groups and legal clinics
Gather local reports identifying local concerns and recommendations
Combine local reports with a representative sample of proceedings and develop a consultation report capturing the main concerns and recommendations
Circulate the consultation report to participants and partner organizations for review
Meet with poverty law experts and activists to define litigation priorities
Develop a report on common issues and litigation priorities
Hold a think tank session with reference group and selected participants to develop options for a draft policy reform paper
Circulate paper to all concerned
Hold a major income security conference with a wide variety activists, policy experts and academics to develop a draft platform of basic demands for reforming income security
Circulate draft platform to groups and networks across the province for endorsement
Work with community based organizations and networks as well as participants to push for implementation of income security reforms