Oral Questions
Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister plans to quadruple the carbon tax on heat, gas and groceries. Now he has decided to pause the pain for the 3% of families where his poll numbers were plummeting and his MPs were revolting. The Liberal rural affairs minister said that, if people in the Prairies want a carbon tax break, they should elect Liberals. Well, the people in Sault Ste. Marie did elect a Liber…
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Mr. Speaker, I would reiterate for my hon. colleague what his own minister of housing said just a few weeks ago at our committee: At the start of the current government's term, in 2015, the housing situation in Canada was not in crisis. People could afford to buy a home and find a place to rent. Eight years later, house prices have doubled, rents have doubled, people cannot find a place to rent, i…
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Mr. Speaker, I move that the 11th report of the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities, presented on June 12, be concurred in. We are talking about the national housing strategy report, which was done by our human resources committee and delivered in June 2023. We should know that the national housing strategy is a program t…
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Mr. Speaker, I would simply acknowledge that our party understands the importance of investing in municipalities and infrastructure. However, the difference is that Conservatives will require results for that investment. If municipalities are seeking billions of dollars in federal infrastructure funding for things such as transit and transit improvements, we will require them to be on board and at…
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Mr. Speaker, there was an awful lot to unpack there. I think that if anybody is engaged in science fiction, it would be the NDP, because it keeps supporting a government that does not seem to understand the damage it is causing to Canadians. The fact of the matter is that government makes more money on housing than anyone else in the whole phase, at 33% of every housing unit in this country, on av…
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Mr. Speaker, the NDP-Liberal government's inflationary spending is making everything more expensive, proving once again that the Prime Minister is just not worth the cost. Food Banks Canada reported that in March of this year, almost two million Canadians visited food banks. That is a 78.5% increase since March 2019. Rent has doubled, mortgages have doubled and the number of Canadians needing food…
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Mr. Speaker, I am happy to present a petition started by Tammy Lachapelle-Ward, from Katrine, in my riding. The petitioners are calling on the Minister of Transport to request an amendment to current regulations that water aerodromes must follow the same requirements as land aerodromes on water. It is a loophole, and they often go around the local zoning and protections that exist on the shoreline…
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Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 13th report of the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities. It is in relation to the motion adopted by the committee on Monday, October 16, 2023, regarding the housing crisis in Canada.
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Mr. Speaker, we know that food insecurity is not a new thing. It has only been getting worse under the Liberal-NDP coalition. In fact, 67% of those using food banks this year were living in market rental housing and paying so much they could not afford groceries. What is worse is that children now make up 33% of food bank clients. The NDP-Liberal talking points and photo ops are clearly not workin…
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Mr. Speaker, I think the government maybe misses the point. Canada has 20 times the land and half the people of France and it is still cheaper to buy a house in France. Of course, after eight years of the Prime Minister's inflationary deficits, mortgage costs have doubled. In 2015, the average mortgage payment was $1,400. Today, it is over $3,500, and now half of Canada's housing markets are sever…
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years of the NDP-Liberal government, all Canadians now know that the Prime Minister is simply not worth the cost. In 2021, a couple from Fergus, Ontario, swapped their four-bedroom, 2,400-square-foot home on three-quarters of an acre for a 6,300-square-foot, 16th century French château on 37 acres near the Bordeaux wine region in the south of France. Today, they admit that…
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Mr. Speaker, I do not know why his colleagues are clapping for him because he is clearly confusing zoning processes and planning applications with building inspectors. It should not take six years to get a piece of property rezoned to what someone wants, which is the exact same thing that is next door and on either side of the property. Making sure the building is built properly has nothing to do …
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Mr. Speaker, this summer I was proud to host The Scotty Charity Golf Tournament in my riding. We raised over $100,000 for charities in Parry Sound—Muskoka. I would like to thank our generous presenting sponsor, Andy Kidd with Devonleigh Homes, and the gold sponsors, Tulloch, HLD Muskoka and the Burry family, for their generous support. Over 150 participants came together to raise funds for Communi…
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Mr. Speaker, in 2017, we saw the Prime Minister announce with great fanfare the national housing strategy. He said it was going to be life-changing and transformational. That was in 2017. Since then, house prices have doubled, and we have just heard the opposition whip remind us that about nine out of 10 young people in this country do not own a home and do not believe they will ever have that opp…
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Mr. Speaker, I was on a municipal council when that downloading happened. The reason that was downloaded is because the federal government was reducing transfers to provinces because of the outrageous spending of the first Trudeau government, the downturn and the global economy. They stopped building housing. Of course, that trickle-down effect impacted municipalities the most. I know that member,…
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Mr. Speaker, it is clear to me that he does not really understand how the CMHC does or does not work, and that is not surprising considering the fact that we have an agency that is charged with the responsibility of delivering this life-changing, transformational national housing strategy. It has been an abject failure and they still pay themselves massive bonuses at the end of the year for a job …
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, as I met with people across the country this summer, I heard the same message over and over again: young people locked out of the housing market who cannot find a place to rent and who now believe they may never be able to own a home of their own; families that have to renew their mortgages, thanks to the Liberal-NDP deficits, inflation and interest rate hikes, are afraid of losing th…
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With regard to buildings and office space owned or leased by the government, excluding the Department of National Defence: (a) how much office space, by square footage, is currently (i) owned, (ii) leased; (b) how much did the government pay to lease office space during the last fiscal year; (c) what are the annual operating costs to run government buildings and office space, broken down by type o…
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Mr. Speaker, I rise on behalf of the Conservative members of the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities to table a dissenting report to the main report of the committee with respect to the national housing strategy. We all know that when the national housing strategy was presented by the government some years ago, it was des…
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With regard to the Housing Accelerator Fund: (a) will having municipal regulations that encourage housing development be a pre-requisite for communities to receive money through the fund, and, if not, why not; (b) will communities who receive funding be required to avoid taking any action that makes the building of housing more difficult, such as restrictive zoning changes or by-laws; (c) what are…
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Mr. Speaker, on the same day we learned that the price of the average home shot up again, the Minister of Housing would not answer simple questions about the housing crisis. We asked why rent had doubled over the last eight years. We asked why home prices have doubled over the last eight years. We asked him why his own officials have said that they could see a 32% decline in housing starts this ye…
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Mr. Chair, nine out of 10 young people in this country who do not own a home believe they never will. Does that sound like a successful housing plan to the minister?
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Mr. Chair, does the minister realize that voting against plans that do not work actually makes a lot more sense than just continuing on with plans that are not working and that are in fact making the situation worse?
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Mr. Chair, Covenant House Vancouver constructed a new facility. It cost $50 million. It received $12 million from the CMHC, but it cost $1 million in lobbyists and consultants. Does that sound like a wise housing plan to the minister?
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Mr. Chair, Covenant House Toronto says that one-third of its residents are students. Does that sound like a successful housing plan to the minister?
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Mr. Chair, of those 28,000 properties, only 20,000 are for single family or duplex units, so it is 71% of those properties within a one-kilometre radius. The federal government has committed $1 billion to this project. I am curious to know if he thinks that is wise considering the fact that there is not enough multi-unit residential housing next to those stations.
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Mr. Chair, I am not sure if the minister understands how this works. I ask the questions. Is Canada facing a housing crisis right now?
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Mr. Chair, I will be splitting my time with two of my colleagues. My first question for the minister is this: Does he believe that Canada is in fact in a housing crisis?
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Mr. Chair, is the minister aware that within a one-kilometre radius of all SkyTrain stations in Vancouver, there are about 28,000 properties? Of those properties, does he know how many are actually available for multi-unit residential housing?
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Mr. Chair, does the minister believe that a massive increase in insurance premiums for multi-unit residential rental buildings is going to slow construction of those units?
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Mr. Chair, is the minister aware that the CMHC just recently raised insurance premiums on multi-unit residential construction? Can he tell us what the percentage increase was?
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Mr. Chair, the minister's own officials have predicted a 32% decrease in housing starts this year thanks to outrageous spending and high interest rates. Is that a good housing plan?
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Mr. Chair, I am wondering if the minister is aware of the number of rental units we are required to build in this country to make them more affordable again?
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Mr. Chair, how many rental units do we need in this country to make them more affordable again?
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Mr. Speaker, maybe the minister should come with me as I criss-cross the country talking to community groups whose members have given up. They come to me in tears because of the disastrous housing policy the government has presented. They have handed out $26 million in bonuses. How many homes could we build with an extra $26 million?
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Mr. Speaker, we already know that the Liberals' $80-billion housing plan has only made the crisis worse. In fact, as of a few weeks ago, the CMHC has raised government fees on new rental construction. Countless housing providers have abandoned new projects because of the red tape and endless delays at the CMHC. We have now learned that every single executive at the CMHC got a fat bonus. Why do the…
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With regard to the Canadian Intergovernmental Conference Secretariat, broken down by year for each of the last three years: (a) what was the number of employees or full time equivalents working at the secretariat, broken down by employee category; (b) what was the total amount spent on (i) salary and benefits, (ii) travel and hospitality; (c) how many meetings were booked; and (d) what are the det…
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Mr. Speaker, CMHC is reporting that Canada could see a reduction of almost 32% in new housing construction this year. Its chief economist said that, with record inflation, sky-high interest rates and labour shortages, the current economic situation is “inhospitable” for new construction. The warnings are coming from inside the castle walls now. I am wondering when this government will actually cle…
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Madam Speaker, I will use a line from President Reagan: “trust, but verify.” If they are not getting the job done, they cannot be trusted. That is all there is to it. The federal government ties strings to funding all the time. This is a crisis. People say to just trust the municipalities, to not worry about it and that one should not invade in anybody else's space. In a crisis, it is all hands on…
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Madam Speaker, I was not planning on asking a question, but I will tell the member how the town of Gravenhurst is pronounced. Many times in this House I have talked about the importance of the federal immigration system working directly with the provinces to make sure we are attracting the right skills to build the homes Canadians need. I wonder if he can speak to that. Are we actually doing enoug…
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Mr. Speaker, I can assure members that when we replace the Liberals as the government, we will deliver better. We will not waste taxpayers' money so egregiously to achieve nothing for results. Under the Liberals, local politicians are delaying and even blocking new housing. Saskatoon guarantees a building permit for a house in five days. It can be done. There is no reason for the delay. When will …
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Madam Speaker, I am a former mayor, and I was a chair of planning for many years before that. I guarantee the vast majority of these complaints come from people who just do not want change. Many, many times in planning committees we would have people come to say they did not like something, it would negatively affect the value of their property or there would be too many people. The fact of the ma…
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Madam Speaker, I am a big fan of my colleague who asked the question, and I admire her passion for housing. REITs were a tool used by the previous government with tax treatment to create investment in an aging housing stock. Part of the problem we have in this country is that we stopped building purpose-built rental in the 1970s because the Trudeau government of the time decided it was unfair and …
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Madam Speaker, having a place to call home should not be merely a dream in Canada. It should not be a distant memory from generations past. It must be an achievable reality for all Canadian families. Canada cannot reach its full potential until everyone has a safe bed to sleep in and a welcoming place to come home to at the end of the day. I have had the privilege of visiting many communities in C…
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Mr. Speaker, after eight years under the Prime Minister, Canadians cannot afford a home of their own. It costs $2,500 a month for a couple to rent a room in a townhouse. That is not for the townhouse; that is just for a room. Mortgage payments have doubled. Construction of new housing is actually in decline. The Liberals' $90-billion transformational housing scheme is making the situation worse. O…
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Mr. Speaker, I have news for the minister. I have read his national housing plan, and it is not working. It is making the situation worse. Every member on this side of the House can be very proud of the fact that we did not write a blank cheque for Liberal failures when we voted against it. The housing minister does not seem to even understand that we are in a housing crisis. The Liberals' expensi…
Read full speech →Statements by Members
Mr. Speaker, the housing crisis is holding Canadians hostage. Young people who dream of having their own home have been relegated to spare bedrooms and homes with roommates because of the sky-high cost of housing. In Canada’s biggest cities, like Toronto and Vancouver, an apartment can go for upwards of $1,300 a month. Even in smaller cities, like London, Halifax, Victoria and Winnipeg, a single r…
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Mr. Speaker, “we see the interest rate increases over the course of 2022 leading to lower housing starts this year.” Those are the words of a market analyst at the CMHC. Excessive Liberal borrowing and spending caused a spike in interest rates and will stall new housing construction. CMHC has also said that we need to build 5.8 million homes by 2030 if we have any hope of restoring affordability. …
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Mr. Speaker, well, it is pretty clear it is not working. The average rent in Toronto for a one-bedroom apartment is now over $2,500 per month. Canadians who are going to renew their mortgages this year are faced with record increases in interest costs, and now the CMHC has increased fees by up to 200% on the programs builders use to finance multi-unit residential construction. If the government re…
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Madam Speaker, in over 70 countries today, the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, intersex and queer individuals are criminalized. In 12 of those countries, consensual same-sex conduct may be punished by death. Their only crime is being themselves. On July 1, 1960, on the eve of the passage of the Canadian Bill of Rights, Prime Minister Diefenbaker declared, in this House, his pledge to uphol…
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