Feb. 01, 2012 - Issue #850: Godot

Waiting for delivery

Premier Redford has promised an increase for AISH recipients

Ask a politician of any political stripe if picking a fight with the disabled is a good way to start an election campaign and odds are they will answer, "No!" But there's an exception to every rule and when it comes to Alberta politics, one need go no farther than Ralph Klein to find an example of this. The one predictable thing about our province's 12th premier was, after all, his unpredictability.
And so it came to pass, on day three of the 2004 general election campaign that Klein went off script during a speech to make disparaging comments about two women on AISH "yipping" at him about boosting payments. "They didn't look severely handicapped to me," Klein said, suggesting that a vast number of AISH recipients were undeserving of benefits at all.
AISH benefits had last been increased in 1999, when monthly rates were raised to $855. Given the rate was $810 when Getty left office in 1992, it was clear the matter fell low on Klein's priority list. Now, to add insult to injury, AISH recipients found themselves being depicted by their premier as phonies defrauding the treasury.
Reaction was loud and swift. Advocates for the disabled argued that the rigorous AISH screening process imposed under Klein had resulted in an extremely low rate of fraud amongst recipients. The opposition rose to the occasion, painting Klein as heartless and accusing the government of balancing the budget and slaying the debt on the backs of the most vulnerable. Sure, they'd been saying the same thing for a decade. But now people were listening to them.

As day four of the campaign dawned, instead of headlines applauding Alberta's robust economy, newspaper stories used words like "ugly" and "mean-spirited" to describe how Ralph Klein was threatening to cut disability benefits.
In full damage control mode, Klein’s press office issued a statement assuring Albertans that, yes, the premier recognized that some disabilities aren’t visible and, no, he meant no offense. Despite their efforts, the situation was about to go from bad to worse.
Later that day, according to numerous reports, Klein attended a sod-turning event for a water line in Grande Prairie. After initially ignoring a CBC-TV reporter when she asked him about the AISH furor, he veered off his sod-turning script moments later to address the matter.
"The CBC wants to talk to me about AISH. I'm sure none of you want to talk to me about AISH, do you?" Klein said. "That's because you're normal. Severely normal people." He went on to berate the CBC as the "laziest outlet" he'd ever encountered, mocking its "very, very small" audience. His outburst was carried by news outlets across the country.
Graham Thomson of the Edmonton Journal wrote that by using the term "severely normal Albertans" in the context of a debate over the severely handicapped, "Klein couldn't have dug himself in deeper if he had used dynamite and a backhoe." By Friday, Klein was grudgingly apologetic. "If there are some people who are legitimately on AISH programs, I'll apologize to them," he told reporters. Klein went on to win the election, of course, but with a reduced majority and significant damage to his reputation as being a fighter for the underdog.

While it's unlikely Premier Alison Redford will try to emulate Klein's 2004 week one performance, AISH rates are sure to loom large when the writ is dropped, nonetheless. AISH benefits were last raised, to $1188 per month, in 2009. During the Progressive Conservative leadership race, Redford pledged to increase monthly benefits by $400 and to double the amount AISH recipients can earn (from $400 to $800) before the government starts clawing back their payments. "I have been troubled by the fact there is a group of people that are truly vulnerable and very much want to live their lives with dignity and confidence," Redford told reporters while announcing her proposal. "I don't think the payment level the government has been providing them has allowed for that to happen."
Since taking office in October, Redford and her staff have repeatedly confirmed her intention to deliver. Folks like Joe Ceci and Mirella Sacco have their fingers crossed. Ceci is the coordinator of the non-profit Action To End Poverty in Alberta, an initiative that grew out of a partnership between the Inter-City Forum on Social Policy and Family and Community Support Services Association of Alberta. His group has identified the disabled community as one of five groups that experience poverty more than others, so Ceci says Redford's promise caught his attention. "Albertans will be watching the budget closely to see whether the Premier follows through on her commitment," he says, "and people will be taking that with them to the polling station."
Ceci, who served on Calgary City Council from 1995 to 2010, warns that Redford risks significant political capital if she reneges. "As an elected official, you put your reputation on the line and are judged on whether you come through on your pledges," he said. Ceci believes there will be an increase to AISH benefits in next week’s budget but suspects the full $400 might be phased in over time.
The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation's Fall 2011 Rental Market Survey indicates the average rental rate for a bachelor apartment in Edmonton in October 2011 was $713/month. An AISH recipient receiving the maximum benefit is left with just $475 a month to cover food, transportation, clothing and everything else one needs to survive.
According to the Edmonton Social Planning Council’s 2011 "Tracking the Trends" report, just over 15 900 Edmontonians receive AISH benefits. Mirella Sacco considers herself one of the lucky ones. "I usually make it to the end of the month without running out of money," says Sacco, "unless I have an unexpected out-of-pocket medical expense. That always leaves me short."
Sacco thinks for a moment when asked what a $400 increase to her monthly cheque would mean to her. "Freedom," she says. "Freedom to choose where I live. Freedom to choose what I eat." Does she expect Premier Redford to follow through on her promise? "Like everybody else, I'll just have to wait and see."
The provincial budget will be introduced on February 9 with an election to follow before the end of May.

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