Commission on the Reform of Ontario's Public Services

Recommendation 8-9: Advocate for federal reforms in two key areas:
Appendix: <strong>Commission</strong> Recommendations
� Work with other provinces and the federal government to establish a national incomesupport
program for people with disabilities who are unlikely to re-enter the workforce.
� Implement the final recommendations of the Mowat Centre Employment Insurance
Task Force.
Recommendation 8-10: If growth in expenditures for social programs is contained below
the 0.5 per cent annual growth rate, reinvest savings into social assistance, with priority
given to:
� Increasing asset limits for social assistance qualification;
� Tying specific benefits (beginning with the Ontario Drug Benefit program) to income levels
rather than to social assistance status to help tear down the “welfare wall”; and
� If funds remain, raising basic needs and shelter amounts.
Recommendation 8-11: Continue implementing reforms to child welfare proposed by the
<strong>Commission</strong> to Promote Sustainable Child Welfare. This must include building on reforms to
Children’s Aid Societies, implementing an outcome-based accountability structure and
strengthening links between the child welfare sector and services in other sectors, such as
education, post-secondary education, and employment and training services.
Recommendation 8-12: In light of the <strong>Commission</strong>’s recommendation to reinvest savings
achieved by holding the increase of social program spending below the recommended
0.5 per cent annual growth rate into specific social assistance reforms, the government should
retain the current maximum level of the Ontario Child Benefit.
Recommendation 8-13: Reconfigure child and youth mental health services to consolidate
agencies and improve service delivery and integration both within the sector itself and with
other sectors such as children’s services, health, education and youth justice.
Recommendation 8-14: Integrate children’s services to enhance early identification
and intervention.
Recommendation 8-15: Move towards consolidating developmental services funding for
community-based support programs into a single direct funding program.
Recommendation 8-16: Reduce excess capacity in the youth justice system through
strategic closures of facilities.
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