Poverty in the Belleville area is an ongoing problem. The poverty rate isn’t improving, if anything it’s only increasing, and Belleville statistically has one of the highest rates of poverty in Ontario.
There’s also a lack of homeless shelters in the area and we want to focus on that issue. Following such a cold winter this year it is important to look at the effect on those without a permanent home.
According to a report put out by Statistics Canada, the child poverty rate in Belleville is nearly doubled compared to the rest of Ontario. Belleville’s rate is 34.1% and Ontario’s rate is 18.1%.
This live chat will be led by QNetNews reporters LaShaina Blair-White and Taylor Broderick. The special guests include Susanne Quinlan, director of operations at Gleaners Food Bank, and Ruth Ingersoll, who is the executive director for the development council of Quinte. She works with people living in poverty on a daily basis to help them find food and housing.