ccpans pres cost of pov

Christine Saulnier, PhDNova Scotia Director, CCPA

June 20, 2013 

SHARING IDEAS/TAKING ACTION: TOWARDS A POVERTY REDUCTION STRATEGY FOR NOVA SCOTIA: A MINI-

CONFERENCE/WORKSHOP by the COMMUNITY SOCIETY TO

END POVERTY IN NOVA SCOTIA

The Costs of Poverty:the Case for Social Investment

it makes no more sense to ask "what are the costs and benefits of preventing poverty?" than to

ask "what are the costs and benefits of prohibiting torture?”

Lars Osberg, Economist, Dalhousie University The Costs and Benefits of Anti-Poverty Policy (1990)

The Moral Imperative

Moral Imperative Barriers

Too complex

Too expensive

No benefit to broader society

Right Thing

Total cost of poverty:

$2.4 billion/yr

Equivalent to 7% of

Nova Scotia’s

GDP

=$2,600 per person

Direct cost to government: $600 million dollars per

year

= 6.7% of the 2010/11 NS government

budget

Cost of Poverty in Nova Scotia

Moral, and Economic

Imperatives to reduce and

eliminate poverty

Barriers

Too complex

No benefit to broader society

Too expensive

Right Thing

Shared economic burden

High quantifiable costs to

government

Calculating the Economic Costs

• considering costs that could potentially be eliminated, and

• benefits that could

potentially be realized

• if the 20% of Nova Scotians with the lowest income were to have the same income as the second lowest 20%

Components of the Costs of Poverty

48%

12%

40%Health CareCrimeProductivity Loss

From the Spirit Levelhttp://www.equalitytrust.org.uk/resources/spirit-level-why-equality-better-everyone

Moral, Economic and Social

Imperative to reduce and

eliminate poverty

Barriers

Right Thing

Shared economic

burden

High quantifiable

costs to government

Healthier society for

everyone

Too complex

Too expensive

No benefit to broader

society

Public Investment Yields Strongest Impact

Toby Sanger, CUPE; Sources: Informetrica Ltd, Centre for Spatial Economics, Finance Canada Budget 2009 (p. 240)

We all have a share interested In transforming our society,

which includes eliminating poverty

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