MLA Jagrup Brar undertook a welfare challenge in January 2012, living on a welfare budget of $610 per month to experience and raise awareness of poverty in BC. Over the course of the month, Brar stayed in homeless shelters, struggled to afford food and housing, and discussed the hardships of living in poverty with social services organizations and residents of Surrey and Vancouver's Downtown Eastside. At the end of the challenge, Brar held a final press conference to discuss the findings and impact of his experience living on welfare.