Thin, visibly strained but impassioned, Surrey-Fleetwood NDP MLA Jagrup Brar ended his month-long experiment to live on welfare a changed man, so he says.
Brar who took on the challenge to live on $610 for the month, spent most of the cash on rent and was left with $108 for food, which ran out about a week before the experiment ended.
Relying on hand-outs from downtown Vancouver soup kitchens and binning for bottles, Brar managed to eke out a subsistence living and now wants to see welfare rates raised. Some people agree with him, others don't, claiming that welfare shouldn't be a lifetime stipend.
Regardless of that and the criticism of Brar's effort as little more than a publicity stunt, Brar taught everyone a lesson in humility and showed that people on welfare aren't always who they seem, a lesson everyone would benefit from learning.
What do you think?Should the monthly welfare rate for single employable people be higher than $610? Vote in The Tri-City News' online poll.
