Mr. Speaker, at the end of February, I was able to host an online town hall in my riding of Saskatoon West on the issue of affordable housing. The town hall was attended by our shadow minister for housing, along with a panel of local experts and a good number of constituents from all backgrounds.
Through my previous work as a home builder, and my wife's involvement with the Bridge on 20th Fellowship Centre for 20 years, giving a hand up to those who need it is something I take seriously. Helping everyone get an adequate roof over their head is a critical first step in addressing other challenges, such as drug addiction.
Unfortunately, the Liberal rapid housing initiative, as we learned from the experts and constituents who attended my town hall, falls far short of the real need. Saskatoon was left out of the initial phase of the program entirely, which forced individual projects to compete and undercut each other for the remaining money, with requests being nearly 10 times the available funding.
I will continue to listen to my constituents and fight for the affordable housing that Saskatoon needs. I only hope the Liberal government heeds this call.