Human Resources Committee on June 18th, 2026

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

You do incredible work. Truly, I've been following what you do, and it's very inspiring. You take funding that is unfortunately nowhere close to meeting the need, and you work miracles. I believe you said in your opening remarks that you need four times the amount you got to meet the demand. That's more or less the situation.

You need not only long-term certainty, but also more resources at a time when people are more in need, with July 1 coming up. As I mentioned, the City of Montreal and the Government of Quebec announced additional funding. The federal government needs to provide more funding too, because the Reaching Home program, which helps to address encampments, is very appreciated. What I gather is that you need those additional resources because the demand is four times the amount you got.

Is that correct?

[Annie Savage]

More funding is definitely needed. When it comes to Reaching Home, the program's direction isn't the biggest issue. It's mainly the level of investment, which isn't sufficient to meet the need.

Flexibility is another problem. The funding streams or categories under the program are very rigid. They don't allow for broader or integrated responses. For instance, they don't allow for coordination between community-based services and health care services.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

We mustn't forget to create a link between the network and the community groups that work with people on a daily basis. After receiving support, people often need additional care, which the network must provide.

I'd like to come back to the Reaching Home program.

Ms. Savage, our realities are different. You work in Montreal, whereas I am the member for Shefford, whose main city is Granby. The community has growing needs when it comes to homelessness.

Something I've been asking for years, which has unfortunately not yet been answered, relates to designated communities. There has been a lot of talk about the decentralization of homelessness. Granby, for example, doesn't receive the same attention because it's not a designated community.

Is that something you've heard from your colleagues elsewhere in Quebec?

Do we need to recognize more designated communities in order to meet more needs across the board?

[Annie Savage]

Absolutely.

Indigenous people are a good example. If those people had been able to find services in their community to meet their needs, they wouldn't have left their home base for Montreal and, ultimately, run up against a lack of services.

Montreal is the epicentre of homelessness, but the count clearly shows that homelessness is widespread and on the rise everywhere. Taking preventative action and investing in communities across Quebec, in all regions, is certainly one of the solutions to put forward.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

I don't have much time left, but I'd like to come back to the issue of affordability.

A question sometimes arises regarding Canada Homes and housing.

Do you think we should focus more on social and community housing in order to better address the needs?

[Annie Savage]

Yes, precisely.

I'm not an expert on Canada Homes, but my understanding is that the focus is on affordable housing. From our point of view, that does not match the needs. People who are truly excluded from the rental market need access to rent that they can pay.

Community groups develop housing responses on a small scale. We have to be able to develop responses that enable us to create real living environments, to intervene and support people, and to help them find housing and keep it.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Thank you, Ms. Larouche.

Thank you, Madame Larouche.

Mr. Reynolds, you have five minutes, please.

[Colin Reynolds, Conservative, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you so much to the witnesses for coming here today. Also, thank you so much for your hard work, day in and day out, to try to make Canada a better place with fewer homeless people.

My first question is for Krystyna. You mentioned “hidden homelessness”. Can you explain that? What does that mean?

[Krystyna Lloyd]

Hidden homelessness is the experience of couch surfing. That is a good way to describe it. It's that sliver of time when youth in particular are doing everything they can to avoid being at home. That means spending extra time at a friend's house, which is how it may begin, sleeping in an extra room or on a couch, and potentially putting the need for a place to stay out on social media.

What quickly occurs is that the goodwill starts running out, the options become fewer and more dangerous, and the wrong people take notice and start to pay attention. That's when there's the greatest risk but also the greatest opportunity to intervene and provide whole-person support.

[Colin Reynolds, Conservative, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

You mentioned that you intervene at that point, or you intervene before there's homelessness. How does that work?

[Krystyna Lloyd]

It's at that point that we often step in.

Who we hear from and start to receive referrals from might be the parent of a youth whose friend is spending a whole lot of extra time at their home and has opened up and shared. We rely very heavily on educators, teachers, who can identify the early indicators of a youth returning to school wearing the same clothes or potentially sharing.

That's why when I talked about what we can do to invest more greatly in prevention, I noted education systems. In Alberta, our education system is so overwhelmed that teachers don't have the time and space anymore to pay attention to those indicators, and that's putting us at greater risk.

[Colin Reynolds, Conservative, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

Thank you.

My next question is for you, Mr. Gladstone. You mentioned that we need to build 3,000 homes to support people with disabilities. What other supports come with building those homes? Typically, as governments, we look just at how we've built a home, and then we walk away and say, “Good luck.” What other kinds of supports are you talking about that come with it? You mentioned high-intensity supports.

[Gary Gladstone]

Number one, you are quite correct. It's one thing to build the walls for affordability, but the supports must be in place.

For individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, the supports are for daily living, which vary depending on the needs of the individual. They range from a few hours a week for help with banking, groceries and what have you to one-on-one, constant support to make sure that they're not harming themselves or others in their quest to gain as much independence as possible in the community.

It really depends, but the bottom line is that funding for the agencies, which is generally a provincial responsibility, needs to be there and needs to be strong for the supports.

[Colin Reynolds, Conservative, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

How can governments ensure that the funding reaches those in greatest need?

[Gary Gladstone]

There's been an ongoing conversation to make sure that provincial governments get their fair share and that they realize—which they do—that those with intellectual and developmental disabilities require their support.

Right now, what we are finding more and more is that this is the first generation with individuals with developmental disabilities aging into their senior years. They are now staying at home longer as they are aging. As their parents are aging and their caregivers are aging, it's a very big problem for them to be providing the necessary supports. That's why it's so important to make sure that appropriate housing is there with the supports.

Also, as I indicated, over 15% of those in homeless shelters have developmental disabilities, diagnosed and undiagnosed. They have nowhere to go and end up on the streets. With proper housing and then supports from the provinces, we'll be in very good shape.

[Colin Reynolds, Conservative, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

You're talking about how we need $1 billion. How do we make sure that it doesn't get lost in bureaucracy and actually does what it needs to?

[Gary Gladstone]

We do it by indicating quite clearly that those with intellectual and developmental disabilities are a targeted vulnerable community and that is where the carve-out is to go. We saw that proven effective with the beginnings of the national housing strategy 1.0.

I can guarantee you, based on my member agencies and other agencies across the country, that when we know that municipalities and the provinces have the funds for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities, we will ensure that it gets spent appropriately and properly. That is not an issue.

[Colin Reynolds, Conservative, Elmwood—Transcona, MB]

Thank you.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Thank you, Mr. Reynolds.

Mr. Saini, you have five minutes.

[Gurbux Saini, Liberal, Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you to all the witnesses for the great work you do for all Canadians.

My question is for Krystyna.

We are here to come up with a strategy to improve the system. What part of it is working that we need to maintain and strengthen? What homelessness initiatives are having a positive impact right now, and why do you think they are succeeding?

[Krystyna Lloyd]

The biggest change that needs to occur is supporting organizations within both urban and rural centres and supporting with depth of care. That means providing support that is not time-bound, providing life skills development, providing wellness support and showing up in the same way that a family and community around a person would. That means continuing to support a youth, in particular, while they're pursuing their education and experiencing independence for the first time, likely stumbling in the way any young person may, and being there to show up, support and coach. That's when we will begin to see transformation occur and see a step into a space of being where youth then convert to contributing members of society.

If I were to point to a program or initiative that does this work, I would point to the Safe Haven Foundation. Again, it's one of the only programs that has live-in house parents. This is a key differentiator for us. This means that it is not a group home, where staff rotate in and out and clock in and out. It's not a foster home, where there's an inherent power dynamic. It is a caring family environment that shows up for youth. Again, there is no limit on the length of stay. We walk with her until she no longer needs us.

[Gurbux Saini, Liberal, Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC]

Mr. Gladstone, in your statement, you said 3,000 homes are needed by 2031. Are we talking about one specific region of the country, or is this for the entire nation?

[Gary Gladstone]

This is for the entire country. The need is great across Canada, and more housing is needed with the appropriate supports. Build Canada Homes having the carve-out will help significantly.

I would also request that Build Canada Homes provides the funds to organizations such as the Intentional Community Consortium to work with their member agencies to make sure that the best possible applications come in and that they can get funding and shovels in the ground as soon as possible.

[Gurbux Saini, Liberal, Fleetwood—Port Kells, BC]

Thank you.

My next question is for Ms. Savage.

We know addiction can play a huge role in individuals becoming homeless and having difficulty accessing things like shelter or transitional housing. Can you share some of your experience in this negative cycle?

[Annie Savage]

I didn't hear the end of the question, in French.