Debates of May 15th, 2023

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation—Main Estimates, 2023-24

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion]

Mr. Chair, this is a party that has no plan on housing. It does not have any plan with respect to supply. It has voted against every measure that we brought in place, so it is pretty rich to hear its members asking questions about supply and affordability.

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Chair, can the hon. minister tell us the last time an opposition party voted for a budget?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Chair, we on this side of the House believe in Canadians' right to housing. The Conservatives voted against that right.

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Chair, let us play a game: name that tune. Who, in the House of Commons, said the following:

Mr. Speaker, the IMF has issued a warning about the inflated Canadian housing market, cautioning that home prices have jumped more than 60% over the past 15 years. Canadian families with a personal debt burden that the IMF warns is among the highest in the OECD are at risk of $100,000 losses they can ill afford....

When will the government quit electioneering and fearmongering and table a budget that addresses Canada's cooling economy and overheated housing market?

Who said that?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Chair, it is not fearmongering to actually do something about a challenge. Fearmongering is voting against real measures to help Canadians, Canadian renters, homebuyers and the most vulnerable find a place to call home, and then coming to the House of Commons to express fake outrage about something the Conservatives continually vote against, which is real help for Canadians. It is hard to take them seriously on this issue.

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Chair, I will help the minister. That was the now Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance in 2015. Since that time, it has only gotten more unaffordable for Canadians. In fact, according to the OECD, Canada has the largest gap between home prices and incomes among all other OECD peers.

Will the minister finally admit that we are in a crisis and a housing bubble?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Chair, will the member opposite finally admit their plan to vote against the housing accelerator fund, which is exactly about creating more supply so that more Canadians have access to more homes through home ownership and rent, was a bad idea?

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Chair, will the minister tell the House how much the new national building code will increase the price of each new home built in Canada?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Chair, we do not believe in railing against mayors. We do not believe in insulting elected officials. We believe in working with them because that is how we get more homes built in Canada.

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Chair, has the minister actually talked to the Minister of Natural Resources about the new building code and how much it is going to increase the cost of each house being built in Canada?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Chair, we have a plan. It is called the national housing strategy. One of its programs is the housing accelerator fund, which is about making systemic changes at the local level to build more housing.

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Chair, if we are worried about housing affordability, we would think the minister would be talking to his colleagues about government actions that are going to make housing more unaffordable, or in other words, more expensive. The market and participants believe that the new building code is going to cost $30,000 per unit of new housing.

Does the minister think that is fair?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Chair, one of the biggest challenges to the housing crisis is a lack of supply. The housing accelerator fund is about increasing supply.

[An hon. member]

They are government gatekeepers.

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Chair, one of the hon. members is heckling me about gatekeeping. His leader is the biggest gatekeeper in this Parliament. He has voted against every measure to help Canadian homeowners, to help the most vulnerable and to help build more supply. That is a fact.

[Adam Chambers, Conservative, Simcoe North, ON]

Mr. Chair, the minister is not interested in talking his colleagues out of making housing more unaffordable. Let us talk about this one: The banks are unilaterally increasing amortization rates over 40 years in many cases, and 75% of Canadians with a variable rate mortgage have hit their trigger rate.

Does the minister think it is fair that existing homeowners can have amortization rates well over 40 years, but a new homebuyer off the street cannot?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Chair, I am proud of the fact that our government has issued new guidelines to help those who already have mortgages so they are not threatened with high interest rates and higher payments. We are doing what we can to help those who already hold mortgages, while, at the same time, helping first-time homebuyers by setting up the first- time homebuyers' savings account, which the hon. member voted against. I do not understand how he can stand here—

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

That five minutes is up.

The hon. member for Calgary Forest Lawn.

[Jasraj Singh Hallan, Conservative, Calgary Forest Lawn, AB]

Mr. Chair, can the minister tell us how many rental units the national housing strategy has made available for Canadians and newcomers? I just want a number.

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, Minister of Housing and Diversity and Inclusion]

Mr. Chair, can the hon. member tell us how attacking and insulting mayors actually leads to building more rental units?

[Jasraj Singh Hallan, Conservative, Calgary Forest Lawn, AB]

Mr. Chair, can the housing minister just tell us the number? How many are there?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Chair, could the hon. member tell us, with his cuts to housing, which programs they would cut from the national housing strategy? They believe in cutting their—

[The Chair, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

The hon. member.

[Jasraj Singh Hallan, Conservative, Calgary Forest Lawn, AB]

Mr. Chair, can the minister tell us what the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Calgary is? How much is it?

[Ahmed Hussen, Liberal, York South—Weston, ON]

Mr. Chair, can the hon. member tell us how he votes against the housing accelerator fund, but expects more housing supply, including rental—