Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
Good morning everyone.
My first question is for Mr. Dickie, who is appearing before us today in order to discuss a matter of national interest, namely housing. This is a matter that has an impact on everyone. I come from Quebec and your association has an impact on me.
During your presentation, you talked about housing for low- and medium-income households, which is in short supply in Canada. You raised a really important question. You recommended tax deferral on sale and reinvestment as solutions to improve affordability. There may be a link, but I find it somewhat tenuous. Yesterday, in our committee, we heard about affordable housing and a national plan to build housing, which is sorely lacking in Canada. What do you think about the intervention of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation in building affordable housing?
Could it play a role? We know that it has accumulated a tremendous surplus. Could it in some way play a role in facilitating the construction of affordable housing? You talked about selling housing in order to facilitate the cost of such housing, but we have to start by building housing that is not too expensive. I would like to hear your thoughts on the matter, since you are a specialist in the sector. Do you see a role that the government could play?