Thank you for talking about the homeless people who have died this year, in Montreal, but also in Toronto and in other places.
This highlights the failure of our social policies, especially with housing and homelessness. Likewise, we see the extent to which the right to housing is intertwined with the right to health, the right to security and the right to dignity. These are basic rights and Canada is committed to uphold them. Now the rights to adequate housing is recognized in federal legislation. We must have that approach in our minds as we deal with housing.
In Quebec, the comprehensive community approach to the fight against homelessness is specifically based on social housing with community support. We are seeing that demand appear elsewhere in Canada. The funding for community housing also includes community support provided by the Ministry of Health and Social Services. This provides a helping hand for the vulnerable and for those getting out of homelessness.
However, the approach also includes prevention. The comprehensive approach to homelessness does not simply address social housing or community support with the housing, it also includes prevention. So it is important to recognize the link between physical and mental health, security and the various needs of people who are homeless and of those who are at risk of becoming homeless. We also have to acknowledge that some live in invisible homelessness, often young people and women.