Evidence of meeting #80 for Transport, Infrastructure and Communities in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was communities.
A video is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS
You raised two distinct issues, and I'll quickly try to address both.
How much time do I have, Mr. Chair?
Liberal
Liberal
Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS
I will try to deal with them both swiftly.
When I was the parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Environment, I was involved in some of the waste-water effluent regulations. This is actually a big deal on the west coast, because it's not just the steelhead salmon population that you're referring to. If you actually go up the food chain, so to speak, when pollutants get stored in the salmon that orcas eat, and when the orcas start to run out of food and draw on their fat supplies, it can actually have a damaging impact on the health of vulnerable orca populations as well. We need to deal with waste-water effluent challenges in every region in the country.
We are trying to marry the advancement of a regulatory framework with investments in water and waste water that we have made at a level not seen in a very long time, through the ICIP. From your question, I expect that that's where people have applied to; if I'm wrong, you can correct me. It's a bit challenging for me to speak about how the process works because typically we have the provincial government, which is a signatory to the bilateral agreement, take the applications and then send prioritized projects to the federal government. As long as they're eligible, we tend to fund them.
I'm happy to take this off-line because I have only a few seconds remaining and I don't think we're going to solve it during this exchange. We can follow up on the cost escalation issue if we have more time—because I'm sure I'm out.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Peter Schiefke
Thank you, Minister.
Mr. Bachrach, please know that you have two and a half minutes in the next round to allow the Minister to respond.
Next we have Mr. Seeback.
Mr. Seeback, the floor is yours for five minutes.
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Minister, I'm going to ask some direct questions, and I hope that you're going to be able to give me answers that are just as direct.
I want to start with your recently announced GST rebate. How many homes has the GST rebate built?
Liberal
Liberal
Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS
There have been many thousands announced, but the kinds of homes that we're dealing with can't be built in a matter of weeks; they're typically large developments. However, there have been many thousands of units announced as a result of this policy.
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Those are the 5,000 units that you talked about in the House of Commons. Is that correct?
Liberal
Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS
That project actually isn't the one I was thinking of. That particular project involved 5,000. I've seen others of 3,000, or 1,000, or several hundred. I'm seeing, in every region of the country, significant announcements of thousands and thousands of units.
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
How many homes have been built as a result of the housing accelerator fund?
Liberal
Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS
Again, a program that launched a matter of weeks ago won't have completed constructions.
Liberal
Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS
Yes, it was funded. I'm sure you are aware that it was in the city of London last month that we began to roll out that fund. That's already yielding plans from cities that will result in thousands and thousands of homes. However, given that it's been weeks, they are not yet complete.
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
What's the estimate, then, for the GST rebate? How many homes is it estimated will be built?
Liberal
Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS
The estimates tend to range between 200,000 and 300,000 over the next decade or so from that one policy change.
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
How many is the estimate for the housing accelerator fund?
Liberal
Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS
Over the next three years or so, it's about 100,000, but it will have a permanent impact, given that it changes the way cities build homes every year thereafter as well.
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
That's about 400,000 units that you're suggesting as a result of these two policies. Is that correct, approximately?
Liberal
Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS
No, it's not, because with regard to the housing accelerator fund, I'm only talking about the next few years. The GST estimate is over the next decade.
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
What is it for the next decade for the housing accelerator fund?
Liberal
Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS
I don't have a number for you. If you extrapolate the 100,000 over the next three years to 10 years, presumably you could triple it, but it doesn't operate that way. I can't give you a number beyond the three years because it's too hard to predict how zoning changes will result in behavioural change. There are a lot of market forces at play that would change and that are outside of the control of any level of government, frankly.
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Even if we took it that way, then that would be about 300,000 units for the housing accelerator fund and approximately 300,000 units for the GST rebate. Am I in the ballpark?
Liberal
Sean Fraser Liberal Central Nova, NS
You might be, but I can't say that with confidence on the housing accelerator fund because of the explanation I gave you a moment ago.
Conservative
Kyle Seeback Conservative Dufferin—Caledon, ON
Last week at HUMA, you stated that this is a housing crisis. That was in your opening statement. Is that correct?