Social assistance in a shrinking Canadian welfare state

Social assistance, variously known as "welfare" or "the dole", stands at the very base of the modern welfare state and must remain when all other societal, community and family supports have vanished. This paper examines social assistance in Canada, primarily through the Canada Assistance Plan (CAP), the key legislation operative in the area of divided jurisdiction between the central and provincial governments. It considers how CAP has fared in the midst of a substantial weakening of the country's total social support system over the past 15 years, attempts to explain the programme's relatively protected position, and speculates briefly on the future of social assistance.