Leading the effort to end encampments and address homelessness in Canada

OTTAWA, ON, Sept. 22, 2024 /CNW/ – As much progress as Canada makes to solve the housing crisis, it will not be over as long as there are people living in tents because they cannot afford a place to live.

Through Canada’s Housing Plan, we made it clear that we would be taking a leadership role to help end encampments and to address homelessness. We intend to do this by supplying funding and coordinating with other orders of government.

Today, the federal government announced that we are ready to negotiate agreements and invest in any province or territory who will cost-match the federal government’s funding to support communities facing the most pressure.

The government is allocating $250 million, as outlined in Budget 2024, to address the urgent issue of encampments and unsheltered homelessness. This funding is intended to be cost-matched by provinces and territories, leveraging up to $500 million to provide more shelter spaces, transitional homes, and services to help those in encampments find housing.

This builds on existing programs like Reaching Home, a federal investment of $5 billion over nine years to address homelessness. This includes a Budget 2024 investment of $1 billion over four years to stabilize program funding. Additionally, the federal government is investing $79.1 million through the Veteran Homelessness Program (VHP) to serve those in need.

We look forward to working with all provincial and territorial leaders who want to see the funding invested into their communities.

Canada’s housing crisis will not be solved by any one level of government, any single service provider, or any home builder alone. We must work together to put an end to encampments in our communities. Today, we are calling on provinces and territories to help us do just that.

Quotes

“Across Canada, playgrounds, parks, and public squares have become the last refuge for too many individuals. The harsh realities faced by those living without stable shelter do not reflect the values we hold as Canadians. This reality divides our communities and impacts us all. We must work together to help the country’s most vulnerable find safe and affordable places to call home. We can and must do better.”

The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities

Quick facts

Provinces and territories will be required to cost-match federal investments. The Government of Canada will negotiate agreements with provincial and territorial governments on the roll-out of this funding, including the selection of communities.
This funding complements federal investments made through Reaching Home: Canada’s Homelessness Strategy, which provides funding and support to urban, Indigenous, territorial and rural, and remote communities to help them address their local homelessness needs.
Since 2015, the federal government has helped almost two million Canadians find a place to call home.
In addition to investments to address homelessness, Budget 2024 includes the following measures to help solve Canada’s housing crisis:
- Launch a new Rapid Housing stream under the Affordable Housing Fund to build deeply affordable housing, supportive housing and shelters.
- Restore generational fairness for renters, particularly Millennials and Gen Z, by taking new action to protect renters’ rights and unlock pathways for them to become homeowners.
- Launch a new $6 billion Canada Housing Infrastructure Fund to accelerate the construction or upgrade of essential infrastructure across the country and get more homes built for Canadians.
- Top-up the Apartment Construction Loan Program with $15 billion, make new reforms so it is easier to access, and launch Canada Builds to call on all provinces and territories to join a Team Canada effort to build more homes, faster.
- Support renters by launching a new $1.5 billion Canada Rental Protection Fund to preserve more rental homes and make sure they stay affordable.
- Change the way we build homes in Canada by announcing over $600 million to make it easier and cheaper to build more homes, faster, including through a new Homebuilding Technology and Innovation Fund and a new Housing Design Catalogue.