Madam Chair, I would like to acknowledge how important this issue is across the country, but how important it is specifically in communities like Durham.
We believe that the government has an important role to play when middle-class Canadians, and particularly those working hard to join the middle class, struggle to find ways to improve their livelihoods. This is especially true when it comes to social infrastructure. Investments in this area can measurably improve the quality of life for Canadians both by giving them a home so that they have the possibility of going out and finding a job, but also by providing safe facilities for vulnerable people and homes for those really struggling to find one.
We know that it is really about building stronger communities, so in budget 2016, we provided funding totalling $3.4 billion over five years for affordable housing, early learning and child care, cultural and recreational infrastructure, and community health care facilities on reserves. Specifically we allocated $1.5 billion to expand affordable housing across the country, a significant portion of which will be made available to provincial, territorial, and municipal partners. In addition, $739 million will be invested in first nations, Inuit, and northern housing, making a real difference in housing across our country for so many Canadians struggling to find and maintain themselves in adequate housing facilities.