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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Nov/15/22 10:11:24 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Madam Speaker, at home in Halifax, we need to be building about 10,000 units a year. We have a complicated machine composed of tradespeople, supply chains, building inspectors, people who grant permits and people who provide the appliances that go into homes, and we can only deliver about 3,000 homes a year. It is clear that we need help across that continuum, that big machine that builds housing, not just in Halifax but across the country. A critical piece of that, of course, is the talented workforce. We are seeing the Minister of Immigration focus, with great precision, on creating streams that would bring talented and skilled tradespeople into the country.

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Mr. Brad Vis

Nov/15/22 10:55:31 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Madam Speaker, the only hypocrisy in the House of Commons right now is for a government to call an unnecessary election during a pandemic, to make pie-in-the-sky promises about addressing housing, and a year later doing absolutely nothing. Shame on the government for making it harder for young families to have a home. Shame on the government for spending too much. Shame on the government for putting so many Canadians into a position where they cannot afford their variable rate mortgages because the government overspent.

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Mr. Denis Trudel (Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, BQ)

Nov/15/22 11:09:11 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Madam Speaker, it is rather fascinating to listen to my colleague. The Liberal government is pleased to be pleased. It is pleased to be pleased on housing. In the statement we are looking at today, the first-time homeowner tax credit has been doubled. That increases demand. Last year, the president of the CMHC said in committee that the first thing to do to help with the housing crisis in Canada is to increase supply. We need 3.5 million housing units in Canada over the next 10 years. We are halfway through the Liberal government's national housing strategy and 35,000 housing units have been built. Bill C‑32 does not provide for any more, either. Is my colleague truly satisfied with her government's record on housing over the past five years?

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Mrs. Brenda Shanahan

Nov/15/22 11:10:01 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Madam Speaker, I have had the pleasure of participating in debates with my hon. colleague on social housing in our region. I think he knows that projects are under way and people are working on it. To hear him speak, it is as though the people working for FROHME and for co-operatives back home were doing nothing. That is just not the case. We receive applications, we support projects and we are getting results. We will keep doing the work. Is there still a lot to be done? The answer is yes, Madam Speaker. However, everyone has to work on it.

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Mr. Denis Trudel (Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, BQ)

Nov/15/22 11:26:57 a.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Madam Speaker, my question is somewhat related to Bill C‑32. I would like to talk about Bill C‑31, because I have never had the opportunity to ask my NDP friends a question about something that puzzles me. Bill C‑32 contains some mini-measures on housing, but they do not really address the housing crisis. There is an important measure in Bill C‑31, a $500 cheque to help people. I have spoken to every housing agency in Quebec and they were just about beside themselves when it came to Bill C‑31, which hands out so much money without building a single thing. People had expectations about the agreement between the NDP and the Liberals. They thought that the NDP would be able to push the government to build housing. Does it not seem to my colleague that the NDP members sold their souls for a bowl of lentils with their agreement with the Liberals?

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Mrs. Anna Roberts (King—Vaughan, CPC)

Nov/15/22 12:26:29 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Mr. Speaker, there is nothing in the fall economic statement that addresses single senior women. There was a report from the CBC. I am sure colleagues have all read it. It was about two women, one in Nova Scotia and one in Toronto, who are still living in their cars and unable to afford housing. What does the government plan to do to help single female seniors to have the retirement they so much deserve? If it were not for them, we would not be here today.

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Ms. Julie Dzerowicz

Nov/15/22 12:27:02 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Mr. Speaker, there are a number of measures that we have introduced. As I mentioned as a part of my speech, we have already introduced a doubling of the GST credit for the next six months. That is going to give individuals an additional $234 and seniors an additional $225. That is one of many measures. We also have a national housing strategy that has put billions of dollars more of investment into building more affordable housing and to make housing more affordable for Canadians. That includes all Canadians, including our seniors. The fall economic statement has some targeted measures that I do not have time to go through, but I would urge the member to review this. The message I want to leave is that we will continue to do more for Canadians.

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Ms. Lori Idlout (Nunavut, NDP)

Nov/15/22 12:29:41 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Uqaqtittiji, I was particularly interested in the member's comments about welcoming immigrants. Nunavut Premier P.J. Akeeagok said in a statement recently that Nunavut was not able to welcome immigrants because there was a lack of housing. I wonder if the member agrees that there needs to be investments in housing so that Nunavut can take part in welcoming immigrants?

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Ms. Julie Dzerowicz

Nov/15/22 12:30:13 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Mr. Speaker, I agree with the member 100%. New immigrants cannot be brought in without having a housing plan and without ensuring there is sufficient support for settlement services across the country. Both of those things are absolutely necessary. In the north, in my opinion, there is a need for additional IRCC resources in general just to support the population with respect to additional newcomers to that part of Canada.

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Mrs. Anna Roberts (King—Vaughan, CPC)

Nov/15/22 1:27:21 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Mr. Speaker, I have a question for the hon. member. You spoke about facts, targets, housing benefits and the most vulnerable Canadians. Can you please explain this to me? This morning, the Auditor General of Canada, in paragraphs 20 to 24, made some comments on that. I am going to read paragraph 20 to you. It states: [A]lthough 5 years have gone by since the launch of the federal government’s National Housing Strategy, there is still no organization in the federal government taking the lead on Canada’s target to prevent and reduce chronic homelessness by half by 2028. In addition, the organizations did not know whether their efforts so far had improved housing outcomes for vulnerable Canadians. This is my concern. We have a lot of single senior females who cannot afford housing. They are living in their cars. How is the Liberal government going to help my seniors?

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Ms. Anita Vandenbeld

Nov/15/22 1:28:28 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Mr. Speaker, I am very glad to hear the hon. member opposite talk about support for housing, because in the fall economic statement we are including a $500 top-up for low-income renters through the Canada housing benefit, which is one of the benefits from our $70-billion national housing strategy. I would add that this is very tangible. Right in my riding, at Michele Heights we have been able to build, through federal money, new community housing for families. We have also been able to build, at the Carlington Community Health Centre, affordable seniors housing for the very seniors the member was mentioning, which is right above a health centre so that these seniors have all of the supports they need when they go down the elevator. This is making a difference, and I am very glad to see that my hon. colleague is so concerned about housing that she will vote for the fall economic statement implementation act.

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Ms. Nathalie Sinclair-Desgagné (Terrebonne, BQ)

Nov/15/22 1:29:26 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Mr. Speaker, this morning, the Auditor General tabled four reports. In one of them, she mentions that Infrastructure Canada and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation are not talking to each other at all about the national housing strategy. There is a glaring communication problem. Similarly, in the economic statement, there is a complete lack of collaboration with colleagues in the same government. The Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry talks about reforming the Competition Bureau, but there is absolutely nothing in the economic statement. My question is simple. Do people talk to each other on the government side? Are they working together?

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Ms. Anita Vandenbeld

Nov/15/22 1:30:08 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Mr. Speaker, housing is necessary. The budget for housing is $70 billion. I would add that right in my riding, with the CMHC's help, we were able to build a new women's shelter. There was an old shelter in a house that was basically falling down, and now we have Nelson House, which not only is a women's shelter for women and their families, but is accessible and modular. Opposition members say they do not see the results of our housing strategy, but all they have to do is drive 15 minutes down the road here in Ottawa to see what has been built for people with the national housing strategy.

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Mr. Blake Desjarlais (Edmonton Griesbach, NDP)

Nov/15/22 1:30:58 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Mr. Speaker, I believe there are important measures in this fall economic statement, but it is important that on behalf of my constituents, we talk about the things that are not there so we can invite the government to hopefully take up some serious issues that are facing Canadians. One of those issues from the community members of Edmonton Griesbach is housing. We are seeing a housing crisis, and it is not just in my community but from coast to coast to coast. Beyond that, we need to see a true mental health strategy. We also need to see a real tackling of the problem we are seeing with the drug-poisoning crisis. Would the member speak to these three incredibly important issues facing my community?

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Ms. Anita Vandenbeld

Nov/15/22 1:31:40 p.m.
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Re: Bill C-32

Mr. Speaker, I have too short a time to talk about all of the initiatives, but in the fall economic statement, there is the $500 top-up for housing for the people receiving the Canada housing benefit. I am very pleased that the member mentioned mental health, because our status of women committee right now is doing an incredibly important study on the mental health of young women and girls. I know that his colleague is working very closely with the rest of the committee members to make sure that we are addressing what is truly a crisis. The number one issue that is raised by my youth council is mental health, and it is the reason we will be there for Canadians. I look forward to working together further with all members of the House to make sure that we address these important issues.

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Mr. Chad Collins (Hamilton East—Stoney Creek, Lib.)

Nov/15/22 2:10:38 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, creating housing rapidly to address the housing crisis is a priority for the government. That is why I was pleased to hear that the Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion has announced a third round of rapid housing funding that non-profit housing providers in my great city of Hamilton are eligible to apply for: in total, $1.5 billion dollars for communities to address their housing and homelessness action plans. We know that RHI investments help vulnerable seniors, people living with disabilities, women and children fleeing family violence, and many more. As a former city councillor and past president of CityHousing Hamilton, I had the opportunity to work on the planning, design and construction of two rapid housing projects, including the city's first modular build. To date, we have funded over 120 new units in the city of Hamilton with $34 million in support from our rapid housing fund. Local providers, like Indwell, the YWCA, Good Shepherd and CityHousing Hamilton, are anxious to build more, and there is more work to be done. The government will continue to provide the necessary resources to address our affordable housing needs.

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Context: House Hansard - 127 - Nov/15/22

Ms. Jenny Kwan (Vancouver East, NDP)

Nov/15/22 2:51:33 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, that is not true. There are 112 projects that went unfunded. According to the Auditor General, the Liberals have spent billions to build homes that Canadians cannot afford. What is worse is that they do not even know if this money is reducing homelessness in our communities. The level of incompetence is breathtaking. We are in a dire housing crisis. The cold, wet weather is upon us. People are dying on the streets. They are desperate, and the Liberals have turned their backs on them. When will the government do its job so that everyone has a safe and affordable place to call home?

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