Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the hon. member for Don Valley East.
First, I would like to thank the citizens of Hochelaga for entrusting me with a second term. While walking around Hochelaga during my last term, I met with women, men, business owners, shopkeepers, and representatives of community organizations who thanked us for all the help they received during the pandemic.
Now that we are in the recovery phase, their demands are clear. Canadians want us to increase the housing supply and access to home ownership, take bold action on climate change, ensure green, resilient and inclusive economic growth, defend diversity and inclusion, and ensure the survival of the French language. That is exactly what we announced in the throne speech.
We are in the middle of a housing crisis in Quebec and across Canada. Housing is an essential need, a fundamental right. I would like to remind the House that our government implemented the very first national housing strategy.
When I was a young adult, I was living in a two-bedroom apartment on the third floor with my mother and my two brothers, one of whom is in a wheelchair. My colleagues can imagine how hard it was for my mother to climb three flights of stairs every day for years.
Today, I am thinking about Fatima, Ali and Joanne, who are on a waiting list for affordable social housing. I think that it is our duty to work together, since the situation has obviously not gotten any better. For families, the stress and anxiety of having to find a place to live that meets their needs are real.
Consider students, for example. My riding has a large number of students—