THUNDER BAY - A Thunder Bay anti-poverty expert is welcoming the improvements to Canada's Child Benefit Program.
Northwestern Ontario Women's Centre director Gwen O'Reilly said there's still a lot more to be done to pull every child above the poverty line.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced yesterday that parents would begin receiving the larger cheques this week.
The government said the new child benefit will help lift hundreds of thousands of children out of poverty.
The average family will get about $2,300 a year under the new program.
The size of the payment depends on how many children under 18 live in the house as well as net family income.
O'Reilly added that it's just one of the steps needed to reduce poverty levels in the Northwest.
Only families that filed 2015 tax returns will get the cheques, and that's raising concerns that half of the country's aboriginal families living on reserves could miss out, because they typically don't file tax returns.
(TBT News)
