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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 259

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
November 30, 2023 10:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 259 - Nov/30/23
Mr. Kevin Vuong (Spadina—Fort York, Ind.)
  • Nov/30/23 6:53:18 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, in my November 1 question to the government, I pointed out that 24 Liberal MPs supposedly represent ridings in the city of Toronto. However, we would never know it from their deafening silence on issues of extreme importance to the city. The Minister of Rural Economic Development said the quiet part out loud when she said other parts of the country should elect more Liberals if they want a carbon tax deferral, like Atlantic Canadians had received. Toronto has 24 Liberal MPs and they have been unwilling or unable to stand up for the city and get people, including refugees who have been forced to sleep on the city's streets, the help that they need. The missing 24 MPs were missing in action when it came to the government honouring its promise to help Toronto with its COVID-created budget shortfall. This winter, Torontonians will be struggling to heat, and hopefully keep, their homes. Others are unable to find housing due to inflation and high interest rates. They would all like to receive a carbon tax deferral, too. However, their Liberal MPs did not show up to defend the people's interest and get a tax holiday. The two Liberal MPs from Alberta can hold their regional caucus in a phone booth, so they can be forgiven for not being very effective in getting the government to do anything, much less in bringing about a carbon tax holiday. However, in my question to the Right Hon. Prime Minister, I asked if he could explain how his “Toronto 24” colleagues disappeared from their responsibilities to represent the city's interests. It is, indeed, odd that two dozen MPs vanished and their faces never even made milk cartons. In attempting to answer my question, the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing waxed poetically from speaking notes that did not address my question's salient points: one, helping Toronto with its housing issues and, two, living up to the federal promise to assist the city with its COVID-created budget shortfall. Indeed, the parliamentary secretary indicated that I had failed to mention the Toronto MPs who allegedly pushed the government to invest money in the city. It is hard to mention things that no one has seen. Perhaps they are not missing. Maybe they are just shy and, in an astounding world first for politicians, they just do not want to tell anyone about their hard work and success. National failures have local consequences and because of the Liberal government's failure, Deb, who I spoke to earlier today, and other constituents living by Clarence Park are being overwhelmed by a tent encampment. They do not feel safe walking through the park. A neighbour was assaulted this week while walking her dog. Others in Fort York saw a fire break out at an encampment two days ago and there is a new facility at 75 Elizabeth Street forced on local residents directly across the street from a day care and a children's playground. Unfortunately, we also cannot forget the low-barrier respite, now a shelter, being forced on Niagara and King West residents at 629 Adelaide Street West. Therefore, I am forced yet again to stand up for not only my constituents but all Torontonians who are being failed by their 24 Liberal MPs. Since local Liberal MPs cannot or will not do it, I am here to ask: Will the federal government help Toronto with its housing issues and, in the process, finally honour its 2021 election promise to assist the city with its COVID budget shortfall, yes or no?
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Context: House Hansard - 259 - Nov/30/23
Mr. Adam van Koeverden (Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change and to the Minister of Sport and Physical Activity, Lib.)
  • Nov/30/23 6:57:11 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I appreciate my colleague's concern for Torontonians, and I agree that we need to be there for our constituents. However, I strongly disagree with the allegation and assertion that the 24 Liberal members of Parliament who reside in Toronto are ineffective. They are extremely effective. They have great relationships with Toronto's mayor, Olivia Chow, and the previous mayor, John Tory. Those relationships are strong and deep. Toronto council members regularly contact their members of Parliament, and we have consistently been there for the city of Toronto, whether on housing, on addictions, on crime or on any issue at all. I would remind the member of Parliament for Spadina—Fort York that he was elected because of our strong relationship with the city of Toronto and our strong reputation as a party that represents Toronto very well. I would repeat that if his name had not been on Liberal signs, he would not have been elected in the city of Toronto. The government shares the firm belief that everybody in this country, regardless of income, deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. We understand that the challenges we are facing are complex and multi-faceted. Homelessness is one of the most complex and difficult problems to solve, and these things have been in the works for years. There are no single solutions. There are no quick switches that any government can flip to solve the challenges represented by homelessness. It is also a nationwide issue that can only be solved with close co-operation between partners in every sector, just like the close relationship that our government has with the city of Toronto. The city of Toronto is on the front lines of the housing crisis, and we are not just eager to work with those in Toronto; we have been working with them. The Government of Canada has been making historic investments to tackle chronic homelessness, and we are working closely with communities and service providers to deliver on those commitments. It is hard work that will not happen overnight, and it has certainly been challenging, but if we work together, set aside differences and leverage our strengths, we can make a real difference, as we have been. What the government has done recently is nearly doubled the funding for Reaching Home. That is Canada's homelessness strategy, which is at almost $4 billion now. This initiative is specifically designed to help prevent and reduce chronic homelessness. Reaching Home is a crucial part of this government's historic national housing strategy, one that understands the values of local community organizations, which are best placed to understand their communities' unique challenges. Reaching Home gives them funding to support that vital work. I am proud to share with this House that since we launched that program in April 2019, it has already improved outcomes for the more than 121,000 people who have received homelessness prevention support through its projects, and for the nearly 70,000 people it has helped to find stable and consistent long-term housing. Reaching Home is working. It is creating real, positive results right across Canada, and as we speak, Toronto is no exception. From 2019 to 2024, we have invested more than $252 million through Reaching Home to tackle homelessness in Toronto. That includes $45.5 million over the last two years, starting in 2022, to keep up the funding boost we provided throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, as my colleague mentioned. Of course, we are also making historic efforts to boost Canada's housing supply in order to create more options for stable, affordable housing in the long term. Our government will always be there for the city of Toronto. Members of Parliament are extremely engaged in their communities, and I will not stand here and listen to anything to the contrary.
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