Elizabeth May calls for national affordable housing plan

14 April 2011 - 6:00pm

SIDNEY - Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party, is calling for a national plan to help expand affordable housing. May spoke today at Tower Premium Woodworking in Sidney with owner Ian Brown, also on the board of the Saanich Peninsula Chamber of Commerce, about the numerous reasons why the creation of affordable housing is a must.

“Business owners in Saanich and in many parts of the British Columbia have complained that the lack of affordable rental units and housing in their regions makes it difficult for them to attract and retain the necessary labour force that they need to run their businesses,” stated Ms. May.

“Without affordable housing, either the employees eventually leave because the rent is too high, or they tire of the long and expensive commutes from regions where affordable housing is more available. Businesses need a large enough, stable labour pool in order to thrive, and the lack of affordable housing in much of BC and certainly in Saanich is a real problem,” stated Ian Brown, owner of Tower Premier Woodworking.

Increasing the densities of urban cores increases the supply and affordability of housing units, while at the same time minimizing suburban sprawl in farmlands and green spaces in surrounding regions. The Green Party would implement federal programs for municipalities, “Municipal Superfunds” that would provide hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for infrastructure development that would act as incentives for municipalities to regulate new developments to conform to higher densities in their urban cores.

Affordable housing is also vital to stem the growth of poverty, homelessness and related social problems. The greater Victoria region has one of the largest homeless populations in Canada, with previous surveys indicating that there may be one thousand homeless persons in the municipality of Victoria alone. Homelessness began to escalate in the 1990’s with federal government cuts to social housing programs and cuts in income support programs by both the federal and provincial governments. As housing prices skyrocketed in the 2000’s, even people working minimum wage jobs were increasingly unable to afford rental housing.

“If people who need help are not properly cared for, this puts a strain on everyone. It should be the right of every Canadian to have affordable, safe and secure housing. It enhances people’s health, dignity, and life opportunities,” stated Ms. May. “Affordable housing will alleviate poverty, and ultimately make for a more stable, secure, and prosperous society for everyone.”

The Green Party would implement a National Affordable Housing plan to set an annual rate of building affordable housing so that the supply of housing is no longer an issue by 2019. Under the plan the government would build 20,000 new and 10,000 rehabilitated, subsidized affordable units per year for the next 10 years using capital grants and changes in tax and mortgage insurance regulations. The party supports the delivery of dramatically increased social housing dollars to provincial and municipal governments through the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The housing provided must be designed with energy conservation in mind.

"I believe in a Canada where every Canadian has the right to safe and affordable housing," said Jared Giesbrecht, Green candidate for Victoria. "With approximately 50 deaths every year in Victoria associated with living on the streets, we do not require further study and investigation – we need clear priorities and inspired leadership."

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Contacts:

Debra Eindinger
National Press Secretary
613-240-8921

Kieran Green
Director of Communications
Green Party of Canada
613-614-4916
Kieran.green@greenparty.ca

Elizabeth May calls for national affordable housing plan

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