Close X
Thursday, November 14, 2024
ADVT 
National

Ongoing cost-of-living crisis should trigger another housing benefit payment: Singh

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 31 Aug, 2023 03:47 PM
  • Ongoing cost-of-living crisis should trigger another housing benefit payment: Singh

The federal government needs to issue another $500 benefit payment for low-income families struggling to keep a roof over their heads, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said Thursday.

Singh was in Sooke, B.C., on a cross-country summer tour where the national housing crisis and ongoing anxiety about the cost of living is taking centre stage. 

In an interview, he said the federal Liberals have done an "abysmal" job dealing with the housing crisis and he intends to make the upcoming fall sitting of Parliament all about getting more housing built.

"They're a failure," he said bluntly of the Liberals.

He said the NDP have a long list of policies they want the government to implement, but chief among them is a second top-up to the Canada Housing Benefit targeting low-income Canadians who spend more than a third of their income on rent. 

The first $500 top-up, which was announced in September 2022 alongside a temporary boost to the GST rebate, was rolled out just before Christmas. 

The government budgeted $475 million for the program. Statistics reported by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation say 815,190 individuals and families applied for the benefit for a total cost of $402 million.

The one-time housing benefit payment was among the items in the supply-and-confidence agreement reached between the Liberals and NDP in March 2022. The agreement lists policy items the two will collaborate on in exchange for the NDP supporting the Liberals on key votes to prevent the minority government from being defeated.

The agreement says the government should consider a second round of the housing benefit payment if cost-of-living issues continue. 

When asked if he thinks that applies now, Singh said: "Yes, absolutely."

Singh said the agreement has worked the way he had hoped it would, allowing for progressive NDP policies to be implemented, including a dental care benefit for children in low and middle-income families. He also agreed that the recent trouble the Liberals have had in the polls increases the leverage the NDP have to push for even more than was spelled out in the deal.

The Liberals have fallen below the Conservatives in most polls, and some have the Conservatives verging on majority territory. The change would suggest the Liberals have more at stake — such as losing their governing status altogether — if they don't keep the NDP onside. 

Singh said the deal was never meant to be a complete list of what the NDP would demand, and he does anticipate pushing for more in the months to come. 

He said he wants more co-operation between Ottawa, provinces and post-secondary schools to build student housing, as well as a fund to buy-up affordable homes that are at risk of being sold to developers and builders who won't keep them affordable.

Singh said the "housing acquisition fund" would "prevent us from losing the affordable homes that we do have."

"That would prevent a building being bought up by a developer and then the tenants being renovicted," he said. 

"Instead, that building that does have affordable rent could then be kept in the hands of the community with this fund, and that would allow for a community group, a not-for-profit or even the residents to turn it into a co-operative."

The Liberals have said housing is their chief priority right now, as millions of Canadians face rising rents and increased mortgage costs on top of a housing market that has seen house prices soar in the last few years. 

A recent cabinet retreat in Charlottetown was heavily focused on the issue, but the government did not announce any new policies there. 

Many housing experts and economists say the main problem is a basic lack of housing supply. There are not enough houses in almost any category to keep up with demand. 

Singh said he recently spoke to a family in Alberta with two good-paying jobs who were going to lose their home because they could not afford the rising rent. 

He said for the Liberals to leave their cabinet retreat without any solutions on the table is not acceptable.

MORE National ARTICLES

Man arrested for fatal stabbing in Toronto

Man arrested for fatal stabbing in Toronto
A man was arrested in Surrey, B-C, for his role in a fatal stabbing that happened in downtown Toronto in March. Toronto Police say an altercation between a 55-year-old and four other men resulted in the stabbing and while the man was transported to hospital, he died soon after.  

Man arrested for fatal stabbing in Toronto

Shooting in Oliver

Shooting in Oliver
Mounties in the southern Interior of British Columbia are asking for the public's help after the body of a 29-year-old man was found. This comes after officers were called to a vineyard on the road Wednesday, where they confirmed a man was shot and killed. Police say the suspect left the scene but was found later that day at his home, where he was then arrested.    

Shooting in Oliver

Man flees from U.S. police, crashes in B.C. after speeding across border

Man flees from U.S. police, crashes in B.C. after speeding across border
Mounties in Surrey, B.C., say a driver who fled from authorities in the U.S., sped through the Peace Arch border crossing and crashed in British Columbia is now in custody.  They say RCMP responded to a report that a suspected stolen vehicle had crossed the border from Washington State around 8 p.m. Saturday.

Man flees from U.S. police, crashes in B.C. after speeding across border

Surrey RCMP need the public's help in locating missing man Kewal Singh

Surrey RCMP need the public's help in locating missing man Kewal Singh
Kewal Singh was last seen at approximately 4:00pm on July 23, 2023 in the 8500 block of 151A Street in Surrey. He has not been seen or heard from since. It is unusual for Singh to not be in contact with his family Police and family are concerned for his health and well-being.

Surrey RCMP need the public's help in locating missing man Kewal Singh

B.C. port union to recommend settlement agreement to its members

B.C. port union to recommend settlement agreement to its members
The BC Maritime Employers Association said Friday the agreement to be presented to workers is the same one the union's caucus rejected just days ago. In a statement, the association said the deal is the proposal reached with a federal mediator and was originally agreed to by both sides on July 13.

B.C. port union to recommend settlement agreement to its members

Arrest made in suspicious death

Arrest made in suspicious death
Prince George Mounties say they've made an arrest in a suspicious death of a woman found on Tuesday. Mounties say a 22-year-old woman died during a home invasion which they believe was a targeted incident.  

Arrest made in suspicious death