A left-wing Canadian think tank says the child poverty rate in Cape Breton is still bad, and getting worse; not better despite politicians promises.
The Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives says while Nova Scotia has a child poverty rate of 22.5%, third worst in the country, the rate in Cape Breton is 32.8%. That’s up from 32.4% in 2013. It’s much worse at Eskasoni at 75.6%.
Lynne McCarron, executive director of the United Way of Cape Breton, told the Cape Breton Post the easy thing to do is throw money at it, but that’s not the most productive. McCarron does expect to see the rate decline next year because of the changes to the child tax credit, but it won’t neccessarily change much about actual living situations if they’re not smart about how they resource that.