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Housing

Question Period exchanges on housing and immigration levels. Conservatives said government officials had warned that high immigration was contributing to the housing shortage, argued rising rents and limited supply were hurting young Canadians and newcomers alike, and asked whether the government would lower immigration levels. Liberals replied that immigration levels are now under control, pointed to declines in temporary residents, students and asylum claims and to falling rents, and cited government housing construction programs as evidence that building is keeping pace with immigration.Written by AI from the debate. Updated .

Official text

8 statements

Michelle Rempel Garner

Conservative
“Government officials warned that high immigration affects housing supply. Both Canadians and newcomers need affordable homes. If the Prime Minister plans to bring in more people, where are they going to live?”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, in response to a question about why the Prime Minister is suggesting he will increase immigration levels, even though government officials are warning that housing supply has been impacted, the housing minister gave a completely inane answer that is unbefitting of the gravity of the situation. When newcomers are invited to Canada, they should be able to afford a place to live, and Canadians should be afforded that opportunity, too. If the Prime Minister plans to increase immigration levels, where are all these people going to live?

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Lena Metlege Diab

Liberal
“Canada needs immigration to build the country. Almost a quarter of our builders and contractors are immigrants. When we do not have enough Canadian workers, immigrants fill the construction jobs we need. We will keep managing immigration responsibly to help all Canadians.”

  • Government answer in Question Period

    Relevance 45 of 100

    None of this answer addressed the specific question that was asked.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, Canadians understand that immigration and immigrants have built this country and have contributed to building Canada. Quite literally, when I say “building Canada”, 23% of all contractors and builders are immigrants, and in some regions it is a lot higher. Immigration is critical to addressing skill gaps in the construction sector when Canadians are not available to fill those jobs. In the coming months, we will continue to take a responsible approach to immigration to maximize benefits for all Canadians.

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Michelle Rempel Garner

Conservative

Linked statement

“The government is letting in too many immigrants. This makes it too hard for both newcomers and long-time Canadians to find or afford homes. The government needs to lower immigration levels. Will they do that?”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, the government’s own officials are saying that housing is outpacing demand. It has been reported that the Minister of Housing held a $10-million real estate portfolio. That must be nice. I want him to know something. Millions of long-time Canadians and newcomers alike cannot afford housing, and that is because he, the Prime Minister and the immigration minister, a real trio of quality there, are setting levels so high that people cannot afford or find a place to live. Levels must be decreased. Will they agree?

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Gregor Robertson

Liberal
“Immigration levels are under control. We are building record numbers of homes across the country, and we are making sure that building keeps up with immigration.”

  • Government answer in Question Period

    Relevance 100 of 100

    Of this answer, 100% addressed the question that was asked.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, as the immigration minister said, the levels are under control right now. We are working very closely between immigration levels and housing starts. We see the success we are having on the housing front. We have seen 141,000 homes created by the MLI select program. We have seen over 80,000 homes in the apartment construction loan program. With Build Canada Homes, there are over 19,000 non-market affordable homes. We are seeing a scale of construction right now across Canada that is unprecedented, and we are making sure it fits with our immigration levels.

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Costas Menegakis

Conservative
“There are not enough homes for everyone who needs one. This makes rent go up, keeps young couples from buying a home, and forces newcomers into crowded basements or shelters. The government does not understand this basic problem.”

  • Opposition question in Question Period

    Signal 37 of 100

    Much of this statement went to praise, blame, greetings, routine procedure or general stories rather than reasons, requests or specific points.

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Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, here is the reality. When housing supply cannot keep pace with demand, the result is higher rents, higher wait lists and young people giving up on their dream of ever owning a home. That is not fair to young Canadian couples who cannot afford a home to start a family, and it is not fair to the newcomer who was promised an opportunity and ended up in an overcrowded basement suite or a shelter. This is something the government does not get. Why does the government not understand this basic principle?

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Gregor Robertson

Liberal
“The Conservatives vote against affordable housing, and that is hypocritical. We are working to build more homes across the country. Rents have gone down for 23 months in a row, and we want Conservatives to help us keep building.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, that is rich coming from the other side who vote against affordable housing measures at every turn. That is hypocrisy. We are focused on scaling up construction of housing across our country. I have just recited the latest numbers we have. We have positive news on rent. Rents have come down for 23 months in a row, making life more affordable for Canadians and for newcomers. We have to make sure we continue that trend and that we build strong. We could use more support from Conservatives on that front.

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Costas Menegakis

Conservative
“The government created this housing shortage, but the housing minister blames immigration. Officials warned the Prime Minister that bringing in too many people made the shortage worse, but he wants to bring in even more. This is ruining public support for immigration. Conservatives would fix this, and the government should too.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, what is rich is the housing minister blaming immigration for the housing shortage that his government created. The Prime Minister’s own officials warned him that his out-of-control immigration levels were causing a housing shortage, yet he told The New York Times that he wants to increase immigration levels. His decisions are destroying support for immigration in this country. Conservatives would restore Canada’s consensus for immigration. Why will the government and the Prime Minister not do the same?

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Lena Metlege Diab

Liberal
“The opposition member needs to listen to the facts. The number of international students, temporary workers, and asylum claims has dropped sharply. Canada's population fell for the first time, rents are down over 9%, and experts say this immigration slowdown is lowering housing costs.”
Official Hansard

Mr. Speaker, for the benefit of the member in the opposition, who cannot seem to listen, here are the facts. The temporary resident population has dropped by 80% for international students and 59% for temporary workers, with a 69% decline in asylum claims. The StatsCan figures show the population has declined for the first time in our history. Rentals.ca reports that rents are down by an average of 9.2%. TD Economics reports an immigration slowdown, reduced housing prices—

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