POLITICS

NDP wins one but the fight isn't over

MLA says families' personal stories made change in policy possible

by DANIELLE HIBEAULT

“We are talking about some of the province’s poorest children who weren’t getting the hundreds of dollars that was being set aside for them.” — NDP MLA Michelle Mungall

The B.C. NDP has won a victory in its fight against the provincial Liberal government’s child support clawbacks, but the real winners are B.C.’s poorest children.

When the B.C. Liberals came into power in 2001, one of the first pieces of legislation they passed was to end the exemption in place for child-support payments to parents on income assistance. This meant that court-appointed child support payments were rerouted to the government if the supported parent was on income assistance. Basically, families that needed child-support most were being denied it due to their income-assisted status.

NDP MLA Michelle Mungall felt this backward logic of the clawbacks was unfair, and ultimately detrimental to the children of these mostly single-mother-headed households. “We are talking about some of the province’s poorest children who weren’t getting the hundreds of dollars that was being set aside for them,” she said.

The B.C. Liberals do not have a great track record when it comes to addressing the child poverty issue. B.C. is the only province in Canada without a poverty reduction plan, and the clawbacks are an example of government doing more harm than good for those living in poverty.

Mungall is unable to help in all the ways she wants to. Three times since 2011, the NDP has put forward, but failed to have passed, legislation to have the government start a poverty reduction program. Mungall, the spokesperson for social development, has given notice for this legislative session that she will be reintroducing this legislation. “The Liberals have every opportunity any time they’d like. There is a bill sitting there ready to be debated and voted upon,” she said.

The NDP made ending the clawbacks part of its election platforms in both 2009 and 2013. But for Mungall, it became a personal mission.

Mungall said that what really made the difference is when families started coming forward with their personal stories. Mungall notes that it takes a lot of courage to come out publicly about what it is like to be living in poverty: “If you can’t feed your kids, it is a very difficult thing to have to admit.” But their personal stories are what pushed this issue into the spotlight. “More and more families came forward and they were standing up for not only their children, but for all the 6,000 children that were impacted on an annual basis by this policy,” said Mungall.

In the last year, together with advocates and families affected by this problem, Mungall took the issue to the floor of legislature in a concerted effort to end the child support clawback.

In the Feb. 17, 2015 budget, the Liberals formally announced the end of the clawbacks as of September of this year.

“They were the best phone calls I’ll ever make in my life,” said Mungall. “To call several of the single parents with whom I was working, to call them up and tell them that they’re going to get to keep their child support. That was a good day.”

The fight is not over for Mungall. “Many of these children are still not living above the poverty line, but they are going to get to go to school with a decent breakfast now.”

There is more work to be done. As a member of the opposition, she has to wait for the Liberals to come forward with a bill in order for any legislation to change. Parliamentary process prohibits private members from introducing any kind of expenditure legislation. So as far as minimum wage, taxation or income assistance is concerned, unless the NDP wins the next election, it cannot make any changes.

Mungall stresses that this case is an example of why it is so important for people to vote. This success story is not a common one. “It’s not common for right-wing government to respond to this kind of pressure, so kudos to the families that made it happen,” said Mungall.

She adds that, “If this is important to you, the only way to communicate that is to vote. If you’re not voting you’re missing the most fundamental aspect of changing policy.”

Related: Province not planning to roll out poverty legislation