A Surrey MLA is down to his last few dollars as he tries to survive one month on a welfare budget.

With more than one week to go, New Democrat Jagrup Brar is down to just over $8. Brar is living off $610 for the month of January to raise awareness about poverty in B.C.

As the CBC's Meera Bains reports, Brar is living in a single room occupancy hotel in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, where residents say day to day survival is a struggle.