Madam Speaker, I am rising to follow up on an immigration question I had asked the minister just a few weeks ago. I want to quote directly from the immigration levels plan that was tabled. It states on page 8, “Canada is in the midst of a housing crisis – highlighted by the insufficient supply of rental units and family homes. In this context, any population growth, which generally necessitates a corresponding increase in housing supply, puts additional strain on the overall supply and affordability of housing.” It goes on to cite how deep the housing crisis has become over the last few years.
It is an interesting quotation because it is the first time I have heard the government publicly admit that it has created a housing crisis in this country through its own policies. In fact, if we go back to October 2015, the month before the Prime Minister took power, people only needed 39% of the median pre-tax household income to afford the cost of home ownership, to be able to purchase a home. Now it is almost 60%. CMHC reported that housing starts continue to decline and the six-month trend reveals a 1.9% decrease from 246,972 units in August to 243,759 units in September. Housing starts are down 15% year to year.
Why did I talk about housing when I am talking about immigration? It is because two years ago, in a briefing note prepared by IRCC officials to the Minister of Immigration, they warned him that repeat record-high immigration levels in previous target plans would lead to a housing crunch. It would lead to a housing crisis.
I have a simple question for the parliamentary secretary. Why did the immigration minister ignore those warnings from officials in 2022 and why did it take him two full years before he acted to reduce immigration levels from their record highs?