Thank you, Mr. Chair.
We talked about social housing. You did indeed say that CHRA would like the $1.6 billion—even $1.7 billion or $2 billion—kept in social housing. We're talking about money that is already in the system. You aren't the only one to say that. The FCM representatives, who we can see at the back of the room, said the same thing. Big cities, all cities, in fact, share that view.
We've talked a lot about social housing, and now I'd like us to discuss affordable housing.
Last week, you probably heard that the child homelessness rate had jumped by 50% over the last decade. I did just say child homelessness.
In recent years, the vacancy rate has risen slightly and currently sits at about 3% in most cities. That's good, but it doesn't mean the appropriate type of accommodations are available. For instance, people who are single, big families and regular-sized families have a harder time finding housing. In fact, housing is the foundation that many other things depend on, especially health.
If the government wanted to address the housing issue and establish economic and social targets to overcome poverty, do you think a national housing strategy would be useful?