Advocate urges city council to maintain discretionary benefits for social assistance recipients, despite provincial funding cut

Discretionary benefits are critical for people on social assistance, a poverty reduction advocate told city council Monday night urging the city to maintain those benefits until the end of the year despite the province clawing back funding.

Income from Ontario Works and Ontario Disability Support Program is already inadequate, said Martha Macfie, with Peterborough Community Legal Centre.

"There is no extra money in a family budget to cover the cost of a crisis... to pay for a bus pass, dental care or a child's recreational activities," she said. "These are necessary benefits."

City council approved maintaining the current level of discretionary benefits until the end of the year with the municipalities covering the lost revenue from the province.