Senator Boisvenu: Senator Gold, I wasn’t referring to the role of the government, but to the cause. There’s a big difference. The Financial Post has a drastically different opinion than that of the person you quoted. It predicts an increase of the price of housing and rental units in urban centres where a majority of immigrants choose to live.

It also predicts that the health care system will be under a huge amount of pressure. We already know that our hospitals and schools are bursting at the seams. Our roads can barely handle the traffic as it is right now.

Senator Gold, immigrants aren’t the only ones who will be impacted by the lack of employment, health services and infrastructure. All Canadians are already feeling the effects of this out-of-control immigration.

Senator Gold, are you still convinced that the current housing crisis in Canada created itself?

Hon. Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu: Senator Gold, yesterday, in answer to a question from Senator Batters, I was surprised to hear you state that your government was in no way responsible for the current housing crisis that is having a major impact on Canadian families, particularly single-parent families.

In an article published in the August 25 edition of the Financial Post, Jack Mintz, a tax and urban infrastructure expert, said that the Liberals brought in more than a million newcomers in 2022 and are preparing to welcome over 1.2 million in 2023.

The combined total for these two years represents an increase of over 5.4% in the Canadian population, which is triple the average of the past 40 years. That makes Canada the country with the highest population growth in the G20.

As an August National Bank of Canada study shows, housing starts are currently only a quarter of population growth, compared to the historical average of 61%.

Senator Gold, with such an out-of-control immigration policy, do you still think that your government isn’t responsible for the housing crisis?