Vancouver’s poverty rate is the highest in Canada

October 3, 2011

Income inequality is on the rise across the country, but Vancouver, viewed by many as Canada’s most livable city, holds the title of being the “Poverty Capital of Canada.”BC has the lowest income rates and the highest child poverty rates in all of Canada. This combined with a crisis in affordable housing means that Vancouver is a challenging, stressful place to live for many of its citizens. An excellent article in Crosscut, discusses inequality and the affect on society as a whole. According to studies by Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett of Equalitytrust, there is no correlation between increased average income and social well-being, whereas there is a strong relationship between levels of inequality and social well-being. Read article in Crosscut.