Mr. Chair, it's not only in Nova Scotia and Ontario but across the country that the lack of skilled trades is affecting house prices.
For example, in Alberta the lack of skilled trades means that most houses have to sit for several weeks, even several months, while the various trades become available to do the next phase of construction. Having a house sit waiting for the trades to be available means that there are significant increased costs in carrying that project for the additional time. There are severe effects to the homebuyer because of this lack of skilled trades to keep the production moving along efficiently.