The latest figures from Statistics Canada (2010) show BC near the bottom of the heap when it comes to most major measures of poverty: •. BC had an overall poverty rate of 15.5 percent – the worst rate of any province in Canada using the before- tax low income cut-offs of Statistics Canada as the measure of poverty. [...] The ratio of the average incomes of the richest ten percent compared to the poorest ten percent was the worst of any province at 13.8 to one. [...] The main reason for higher poverty rates in Vancouver and other large cities in Canada is that poverty lines are based on the size of the area of residence. [...] In 2010, the sample BC two-parent family was at 51 percent of the poverty line for a large city, and the BC lone-parent family was at 61 percent of the poverty line. [...] The calculations start with the total welfare incomes reported by the National Council of Welfare for the year and the province and family type in question.