Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the hon. member for York South—Weston for, once again, bringing the issue of affordable housing before the House.

I am pleased to reiterate our government's commitment that Canadians in all parts of the country have access to safe, suitable and affordable housing. That commitment has been backed up by more than $15 billion in federal investment in housing and homelessness since 2006.

First, I would refer the hon. member to the 2012 annual report of Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation for the most up-to-date information on federal social housing investments. The Government of Canada provides $1.7 billion a year in funding in support of almost 594,000 households living in existing social housing, on and off reserve. Provinces and territories also contribute annually to this housing.

This funding is provided under long-term agreements, covering a 25- to 50-year period, with housing groups that provide affordable housing to those in need. Contrary to what the opposition continues to say, there is absolutely no cut. At the end of these agreements, the government will have fulfilled its commitment and the funding will end.

At the same time, the mortgages on the properties would generally be paid off, allowing most housing groups to continue to provide affordable housing and to be free to operate their projects as they see fit. Collectively, housing groups will find themselves with billions of dollars in real estate assets, which they can use to best meet the needs and priorities of their communities.

I would remind the member opposite that this was a decision made by the previous Liberal government. It has always been the plan that once these long-term agreements came to an end, so too would the subsidy.

For those housing groups that need additional assistance, the federal government is providing significant funding under the investment in affordable housing. Funding is provided through provinces and territories, which have the flexibility to use the federal funding to design and deliver programs that meet local needs and priorities, including rent supplement programs that can be made available to housing providers once their existing operating agreements mature.

Further to this, just last month, my colleague, the hon. Minister of State for Social Development, announced new common-sense changes that would allow providers to keep any federal money they have left over in their subsidy surplus funds. Until now, these funds needed to be returned to the government once these operating agreements matured.

In fact, Nicholas Gazzard, the head of the Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada, said that the CHF “warmly welcomed” the announcement and that co-ops can use federal funds to provide assistance even after their agreements have expired.

That is not all. Economic action plan 2013 renewed the investment in affordable housing with a $1.25 billion announcement of funding over five years, which provided $100 million over two years for new affordable housing in Nunavut. The funding will be implemented through amendments to existing agreements with provinces and territories with an effective date of April 1, 2014, ensuring continuity and delivery of programs.

Meanwhile, current federal funding for affordable housing continues to flow under the existing arrangements until March 31, 2014, leaving no gap between these announcements.

In addition to the $1.7 billion provided annually to support the existing social housing stock, the stimulus phase of Canada's economic action plan included an investment of more than $2 billion over two years to build new and renovate existing social housing. This funding has resulted in more than 16,500 housing construction projects and renovation projects across Canada, improving the living conditions for tens of thousands of Canadian families, while creating jobs and stimulating local economies.

Scott Armstrong

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Adjournment Proceedings

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