On Tuesday night, council unanimously voted to declare food insecurity an emergency in Kingston.
Kingston Public Health estimates that one in three Kingston households are food insecure, and the city and local organizations are feeling the pressure.
Partners In Mission Food Bank just experienced their fourth record year in a row, and are in the process of moving to a new facility to meet growing demand.
Executive Director of Partners In Mission Dan Irwin spoke before council, stating, “I’m very concerned that at some point we’re going to hit a wall and we’re going to be helping so many people that we won’t have enough to help.”
The advocacy-based motion includes a number of requests to higher levels of government. These requests range from immediately raising social assistance rates to considering solutions like Guaranteed Livable Basic Income.
“It’s a Hail Mary,” Counc. Gregory Ridge stated in support of the motion.
