Dear Editor,
After reading Mosa Telford’s column, ‘The single parent problem’ (SN, September 9) and Henry Jeffrey’s ‘Repositioning a not so ‘noble idea’ (SN, September 13) I found myself asking if there is a solution to ending (or reducing) intergenerational poverty.
The family structure is a very strong structure because not only are two parents bringing up their children but they tend to have friends and family who can offer moral support. We need to somehow rebuild the family structure. So, maybe the solution lies in giving incentives to couples, especially working couples, who stay together and take an active role in their children’s development. A working couple allowance of say $50,000 may be necessary (not too low to be a pittance and not too high to create a dependency syndrome). It is not a question of money; it is a question of how to rebuild the family structure.
Is there a way to rebuild the family structure without money? The only way that I can think of is to make parents into role models as children tend to copy their role models.
Yours faithfully,
Sean Ori
