A bill to create a new federal Crown corporation called Build Canada Homes to promote affordable housing supply and innovation. In debate, the Bloc focused on how this encroaches on an area of provincial jurisdiction and touted Quebec's distinct approach to housing. The NDP critiqued the bill's lack of concrete targets, accountability measures, or a specified responsible minister. The Liberals emphasized collaboration with stakeholders. The Conservatives warned of added bureaucracy, costs and benefits to Liberal insiders.
“Housing is a Quebec jurisdiction. The federal government should not be involved. But there is a housing crisis. The federal government has money. We will take the money. We don't like how they are doing it. But we will take the money.”
“I think the federal government should take a leadership role in housing. The provinces have their own programs. But I think the federal government should be involved too. I think we can agree on that.”
“I want to cheer on Quebec taking full control over its affairs. I hope that jurisdictions will be respected. I think that when the Constitution is followed, things go well.”
“I enjoy talking about history. Quebec can thrive when it controls its own affairs. I want Quebec to be independent so it can have full control of its finances.”
“I want Quebec to get money for many different types of social housing. I'm worried this bill will only fund some of them. Let's fund social housing in every way Quebec wants.”
“I want the government to respect Quebec's unique social housing models. Why does it take so long to reach an agreement? We need flexibility. Let Quebec control more of the funding directly.”
“Thank you for your kind words. I want to respond to what you said about the role of the federal government in housing. We believe that the provinces can manage housing better if they have more control and resources. We would like to see the federal government transfer more funding and decision-making power to the provinces so that they can address the housing needs of their residents more effectively. This would allow for faster and better results than the current approach.”
“People can't afford homes. The government should spend a lot more money to build affordable housing directly. The private sector won't fix this. We should tell people how many affordable homes we built and make sure it's a lot. I proposed an amendment to make the government say exactly how many affordable homes they will build. Liberals and Conservatives voted it down. They don't really want people to know what's going on. The government isn't doing enough. They need to set targets and build a lot more housing that regular people can actually afford.”
“I want to say the word 'collaboration' a lot. The federal government can't fix housing alone. We need to work with many stakeholders. The NDP member wants to build one million public homes. I want to know what she means by public homes. Does she want the government to build all of them? Would the government subsidize them by 30%? I want more details on her proposal.”
“I'm sad the Liberals cancelled a housing program in 1993. The 'build Canada homes act' won't build social housing or co-ops. My amendment would make the government prove it achieved something! Liberals voted against that. They don't want you to know what they did.”
“There's no accountability in the bill. No minister has to make sure it gets done. The government isn't saying what it will do. How many houses? Where? The bill doesn't say what it needs to do and there's no way to make sure it tells Canadians if it's working. It doesn't say what affordable means. That won't fix the housing crisis. The government just relies on the private sector. That hasn't worked for 30 years.”
“I'm filling time with kind words and saying nothing anyone could pin down later. This bill doesn't build homes. It just sets up a Crown corporation. There are no goals, no timelines, no accountability.”
“The bill's supporters should be able to clearly explain what it will cost and what it will do. Instead you're filling time with kind words about collaboration and processes. Remember that spending more borrowed money is not proof the government is doing enough to help. A holistic approach doesn't mean anything if none of the parts have clear goals or accountability.”
