My constituent Robert is on ODSP and was faced with an impossible choice at Walmart this week: to buy diabetic socks or food. Every diabetic knows that proper socks prevent ulcers, infections and, ultimately, amputations, so Robert’s choice was really about going hungry or potentially losing his toes or feet. Some 85% of diabetic amputations are preventable with proper care.

ODSP is legislated poverty, as we all know. Low rates mean that Robert is an expert at stretching a dime into a dollar, but still, it isn’t enough.

When will the Premier listen to experts and double ODSP to lift people with disabilities out of poverty and save people like Robert from losing his limbs?

As reflected in their flawed budget, this government’s miniscule changes to ODSP are simply not enough. When Robert is choosing between food and medical necessities, that tells me it’s not enough. ODSP barely covers a few pairs of socks a year. I don’t know about the Premier, but I need to change my socks daily.

Why does this government insult people living on ODSP by insisting that they get a job, by telling them to go back to work, even as the ODSP application process tells them to describe their disability in detail?