The history of this country is defined by progressive federal policy around housing. I make it a habit of collecting, when I'm out west in particular, the posters that show when families were seeking refuge from all parts of Europe over the last 100 years. The federal system would grant them land. The land had the sticks and stones and clay to build housing, settle, and start businesses. That's how the west was settled. It was a federal policy present across the globe, attracting Canadians from around the world. That's what has built this country.
Since Confederation, the federal government has had a stake in the federal housing policy. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation is called Canadian for a reason. There is a responsibility for federal governments to be engaged.
I agree with the member from B.C. The mistakes that were made in the early 1990s devastated people in this country and created the national housing crisis. The policies over the last 10 years made it worse. We stepped up with a significant 10-year plan that's already spending dollars. I can show the news releases from British Columbia—a very good, very aggressive government on housing. We are spending those dollars and solving those problems now.
The challenge we have is that the emergency shelter system in certain large cities is running at full capacity and as a result can't handle the surge. We have to address that. We have a responsibility.