I want to be clear, from the NDP side, we agree that we need to build 1.5 million homes. As a matter of fact, there’s enough land in the province of Ontario that we could actually build two million homes. Your own task force—not mine, not my colleagues’, but your own task force—was very clear that you could reach that goal without touching the greenbelt. Yet you continually stand up there for the last couple of hours that I’ve been here, defending your government on attacking the greenbelt.

You continue to talk about farmers and building homes on farmers’ land, but right now, today, right across the province of Ontario, guess what? We’re losing 319 acres a day of prime farmland. If you become a country or a province that can’t feed yourselves, you’re going to be in trouble. Take a look what happened with COVID when we had no PPE because it was all made offshore. Do you remember what happened? People died.

I’m currently standing up to a developer that wants to touch a heritage location in my riding so he can build homes.

So my question is very clear to you guys: Do you agree with Premier Ford that we should be building million-dollar homes on the greenbelt?

Thank you.

Further questions?

During the election, the NDP had a very clear platform on housing and the details were there. However, the Conservatives did not have descriptions of how their housing plan would roll out. The Premier said he would not touch the greenbelt, and then here we are today. We are talking about homes being built on the greenbelt. But the government member says that they don’t work in silos and they talk to people. Which people did you talk to that gave you consent and consultation going forward on building on the greenbelt?

It’s a pleasure and honour to rise in the House to speak on behalf of the good people of Toronto Centre.

Here today, we’re debating government Bill 97, Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act. Like already pointed out by some of my colleagues, the title of the bill doesn’t always line up with the true intention of the content of the bill, which I think is rather misleading. But we are accustomed to that here, especially as every bill has a nice, benevolent-sounding title, but what the bill does is oftentimes something very different, perhaps less benevolent.

This bill does not do anything to prevent the demolition or the destruction of rent-controlled, serviceable buildings that are currently in the city of Toronto or anywhere else in your communities or right across Ontario.

It actually creates a lot of confusion regarding the rental replacement program, especially for some cities that may have a stronger bylaw than what the province is proposing. So it looks like we’re actually going to be perhaps weakening what is municipally provided rental replacement, and of course, that’s the wrong way. We want to lift all boats, not sink them.

Neighbourhoods like St. James Town in my community—it’s one of the most dense in the country, and now, there is encouraging legislation on the table which is before us, which is what we’re debating today, that will actually incentivize the owners, the corporation, to go tear down these older buildings that are protected under rent control.

This bill doesn’t do anything to encourage and actually foster the completion or the design of family-sized units, which is what people really, actually want, especially if we’re going to intensify to protect the ecologically sensitive greenbelt.

This bill doesn’t do anything to address the public sector’s role in the provision of affordable housing. Instead, the government is overly relying on private sector developers, which we know is always going to fail to meet the mark with respect to social housing needs. That is just how the market works: They’re not going to build you non-profit subsidized units. That’s what governments are there to do.

I know, in my communities, that some of the largest, most prominent BIAs as well as the biggest pension funds, which own some of the most significant real estate in downtown Toronto, are asking, every single time, when this government is going to get serious about building public housing. Because they’re seeing the chronic homelessness on the street, and they need to have that addressed, and they are not going to build it for you. You will have to do it yourself.

There are so many other challenges with this bill. I think that it’s been spoken to before, Speaker, but I want to be able to hit the point around sprawl. Bill 97 does a lot of things, including promote very expensive sprawl, which will ultimately hurt the pocketbooks of every single Ontarian. It will cost more in housing to build very large mega-mansions that are over $1 million, $2 million, $3 million on the greenbelt. It’s going to be an environmental fiasco as it pertains to how much you have to clean up afterwards if you’re building this sprawl. Infrastructure costs will go up under this bill. Energy consumption will go up under this bill. Road congestion will go up under this bill. Transportation costs, including social fragmentation—all of that is actually being manufactured by Bill 97.

In my community, in Toronto Centre, we have over 80% of our population actually living in high-rise communities. Some of them are in purpose-built rentals that have been there since the 1960s. They’re in really great shape; what they need are investments, and the government’s bill right now actually de-incentivizes that. Instead, what it does is it actually encourages them to go apply for demolition permits.

I’m facing, and your community will be facing, exactly the same threat. Buildings that have over 250 resident families will be losing their home, as they are at 25 St. Mary’s, because a developer wants to tear it down so they can build, perhaps, two luxury apartment buildings as opposed to servicing the building that’s there. Those are rent-controlled apartments, and they will not be affordable when the new project is complete.

I’m extremely nervous, and I think you should be as well, about what you’re actually going to be doing to communities that right now are struggling to meet the affordability and housing crisis in Toronto, because certainly your bill is not going to help that. We need downtowns and we need all communities right across Ontario to be as diverse as possible. I want to live in communities where we have newcomers, long-time Canadians, students, seniors, people on disability, people of all incomes. That’s what makes a vibrant, dynamic community, and that’s what we need to design and build. But we’re not doing that with this type of legislation, which actually incentivizes only one type of construction, and most of us are not going to be able to afford that.

Diversity is what makes our communities vibrant. It’s actually what makes communities successful. But in this government’s future, you’re not going to be building any of that. We’re going to be seeing more people being squeezed out. Whether they be bus drivers, taxi drivers, receptionists, daycare workers, no one is going to be able to live in this Premier’s Ontario, to be quite honest, Speaker, and it’s going to make things significantly worse.

I’ve talked about St. James Town, a community that is one of the densest in Canada—it’s definitely the densest in Toronto and Ontario. This community is already overcrowded. We have some of the most overcrowded schools, overcrowded and overloaded community centres and libraries, and we need to be able to invest in the social infrastructure so that the neighbourhoods are vibrant, exciting and dynamic, and not actually worse.

That’s what your bill is going to be doing: It’s going to make things much more expensive. Rather than tearing down what is decent, acceptable, already rent-controlled housing stock—you’re actually tearing it down. This neighbourhood has been called by all occasions a world within a block, because it is so diverse.

Residents of my community know that disruption is coming. They see the threat on the horizon. They are following and tracking the government’s housing bills very closely, and they keep asking the question: What’s in it for them, and how is it going to work? They know that they’re asking a lot of questions that they’re not getting answers to, including: Where are they going to go when they’re being displaced? How are they going to afford to stay in the city—and your residents will be asking the same thing, to stay in their communities—and how long do they have to wait before they get to return, if they even come back to a community that they recognize?

All of this is happening under this government’s watch, and it’s not that we don’t know what to do; it’s just that the government is not willing to do it.

I’ve spoken to people who are living in apartments in downtown Toronto right now who are facing that imminent threat. Imagine if it was your child. Imagine if it was your kid who goes to you and says, “Mom and dad, my apartment has just been rezoned. I’m about to lose my rent-controlled apartment. Is there anything you can do as a government member to help?” Imagine what they would learn if you were to tell them this is actually going to be building more affordable housing and they know in their gut that it is not. That’s exactly what this bill does.

Every day, constituents visit my office. They share so many stories of how they’re overcrowded. They talk about the inaccessibility of some of their units. All that means is you invest in the properties that you have. You don’t need to tear it down. You don’t need to scale it and raze it.

The government likes to talk about building 1.5 million homes. The question is, who is going to afford these homes, and how are they going to be living in these vibrant and dynamic neighbourhoods when there’s nothing but homes? Sprawling subdivisions are expensive, and they will continue to be expensive. There’s nothing cheap about them. Even if it means an easy, quick profit for the developer, they are much more difficult and much more expensive to service for municipalities.

We should all agree that housing is a human right, and there are so many people right now, especially in our communities, in your downtowns and my downtowns, that are struggling with that. Government supportive housing is something that my local business community, including the financial district—the commercial business district of Canada is asking for government supports on that. The business community has actually identified this as being their number one priority. Believe it or not, it’s actually that, that they’re asking for more supportive housing than I have heard from activists as well as housing providers.

The business community in Toronto is leading the charge, demanding that the government get back involved with public housing service delivery and making sure that mental health and wraparound addictions supports are there. That’s what their ask is. And certainly, for a government that talks about being business friendly, their request is falling on deaf ears.

You may recall that I had a resident come to the House about five or six weeks ago. Her name is Sarah. She’s been homeless since she brought her newborn infant out of the hospital. She couldn’t return back to the apartment she was living in for reasons that are not her fault. She is plugged into every single housing provider in the city of Toronto, who are all doing the very best they can to help her. Sarah and her newborn daughter are still homeless—still homeless, Speaker.

I wish I could give her a response, I wish I could give her the keys to an apartment, but there is no solution for her. And certainly today, in Bill 97, there’s still no solution. Despite the fact that the government likes to brag that they’re delivering housing, for people like Sarah and so many others I’m aware of, there is no provision of clean, affordable, decent, safe housing for them, and certainly not coming out of Bill 97.

Thank you to the member from Mississauga–Malton, my good colleague and also a hard-working member for that area. Thank you for your advocacy and hard work.

Madam Speaker, this government made a commitment to the people of Ontario that we would introduce a housing supply action plan each year over four years to cut red tape and to speed up the approval process to build 1.5 million new homes over the next 10 years.

We have always said that transformational change will be desperately needed to build the housing supply action plan. Can my colleague please outline how this plan aligns with the commitment we made to the people of Ontario?

I usually say that when we meet, we talk. When we talk, we discuss. When we discuss, we find out the problems and the solutions together and, right now, the biggest problem we have in this province of Ontario is that we have about 300,000 immigrants coming.

Somebody like me, for example: I came on January 15, 2000, as a first-generation immigrant, and I had the opportunity to buy a house at that time. But somebody new who’s coming, a young man or a woman looking to buy a house, they don’t have the affordability. They have to wait 20 years.

But as I said earlier, every problem has a solution. What we need to do is we need to build homes faster. That is exactly what this government is doing with all the caucus members, with a single vision and goal to build 1.5 million homes by 2031. We’ll continue to work together to have a bigger, better, strong Ontario.

But when the member opposite was talking about who did you consult with—look, you don’t even need to go beyond this room. We have members with diverse backgrounds with a lot of experience in these fields. But along with that, when we speak to residents on an everyday basis, that’s what they tell us, and we believe the housing supply action plan is the largest in a series of steps our government is taking to increase housing supply. Our plan will streamline and simplify Ontario’s land use policies under a single document. Through the new planning document, the legislation would help accelerate the implementation of the changes and will make sure that we are actually planning to freeze 74 provincial fees at current levels. The impact is going to be lower cost and building homes faster.

Madam Speaker, if you really look at this bill, it’s not just talking about building homes faster, building more homes, but it’s also helping the tenants. We’re doing this by making sure that—one of the things that we heard is that it’s taking much longer for the Landlord and Tenant Board—delays—so we’re making sure we’re investing into that.

We’re also making sure that we are putting policies in place so that there is an adequate supply of rental units. And something which I already spoke about: Under this government, we have seen, in 2022, 15,000 new units, which is the highest ever.

This government believes in making sure to help and support all Ontarians, including the tenants.

I would like to thank the member from Mississauga–Malton for his presentation. I’d also like to remind the member that the Conservative government got rid of rent control on new rental buildings first occupied after November 2018. I have heard from many tenants, as I’m sure the member from Mississauga–Malton has as well.

My question is two: What do you say to your constituents who face these massive rental increases, and how do you justify removing protections from your constituents?

I want to thank the member for Toronto Centre for her remarks. This is, I would say, an area that I don’t see a lot of in my riding. I definitely have buildings, but I haven’t run into the same scale.

I know, just last fall, I believe it was the member for University–Rosedale who mentioned that the government had removed rental replacement bylaws as part of Bill 23. Looking at Bill 97, it doesn’t look like that’s true, because it’s right there. The enhanced protections for tenants are there and it allows the government to expand rules around tenant compensation in our communities. So I’m wondering if you can elaborate on this point. I see a bit of a disconnect.

Thank you very much to the member across for the question. The challenge that we have is that there are some municipalities that have already strong and stronger rental replacement bylaws, and what the government is proposing in this bill actually is less than what some municipalities have. The city of Toronto has had a rental replacement bylaw empowered by the previous governments so that we can develop our own, so we can meet the needs of Torontonians. This bill actually is going to undo that or looks like it’s going to muddy those waters.

As you try to lift the boats around other municipalities in Ontario, you’re actually sinking the tenant protections in Toronto. That’s certainly something that needs to be clarified and fixed at committee, and I really urge you to do that because it’s going to make a huge difference in the communities that I serve and, I suspect, in the communities that you serve as well.

Businesses and BIAs and the most prominent downtown business owners are all calling on the government—this government, in particular—to lead. They know that municipalities can’t do it themselves, which is why the biggest cities in Ontario have called on this government to convene a meeting with the Premier to specifically address homelessness, mental health and addictions. And as far as I know, that meeting with the Premier has never taken place.

Questions?

Thank you for the opportunity to answer this question. The NDP housing platform is on the website. There’s a lot in there. I can’t get into it all in less than 30 seconds, but what I can offer you is this: The province of Ontario used to be in the housing business. You used to fund and support the construction of co-ops. The Mike Harris government actually downloaded the provincial housing portfolio onto the city of Toronto, and now we operate it as something known as Toronto Community Housing. But you left us with a massive capital deficit and reduced operating costs. You’ve shirked off your responsibility.

What I’m saying and what the business community in Toronto is saying is let’s get back to business and build affordable housing for those who deeply need it. Governments have a responsibility, and you have the power to end chronic homelessness. This is something that can be done—and it can be done. Finland has done it, so we can follow their lead.

We have proposed the creation of an Ontario housing corporation that will build and finance about 250,000 units of housing right here in Ontario over the next 10 years. It’s going to be subsidized and it’s affordable. We’re going to need some support, but that support starts by this government putting their money where their mouth is, so therefore we can then go to the federal government and they can take us seriously by saying, “We’re in it for this much money to meet these targets. How can you support us?”

I appreciated the comments from my colleague and her perspective on the Toronto housing crisis. I wondered what would be the one thing she would like to see the government do that would actually protect tenants in this province—

I want to thank my colleague for the presentation. I had already raised earlier the fact that in this bill, there is not rent control for all residential units. That still is a problem. This government is not moving towards vacancy control to control the costs of when a unit becomes empty and new tenants come in.

But I want to talk about another issue where I had a constituent just last week who came in with some very serious concerns about the maintenance of her rental unit and issues with the landlord. When she calls the rental enforcement unit, there’s an automated message that sends her to the website of the Landlord and Tenant Board, who she cannot get a hold of. So the government is talking about more adjudicators, but if you can’t get through to file a complaint, you can’t actually get to the adjudication process. She has some disabilities that actually make it very difficult for her to go online, something this government is moving more towards and taking the human aspect out of it.

But I’ve also heard from landlords that are experiencing this same terrible cycle of not being able to get through to the Landlord and Tenant Board, not being able to reach someone to actually file a complaint if they do have a problematic tenant. So I’m wondering if my colleague could tell me, do you see anything in this bill that’s actually going to address those issues, whether that’s from the tenants’ side or from the landlords’ side?

As we all know, this government has introduced four pieces of legislation towards our plan to build more homes in Ontario. But we still haven’t seen the NDP plan, nor has any member of the NDP taken an opportunity to outline their alternative plan. Now, I asked the question of a different NDP member. I’ll offer the same question to this NDP member: You proposed to have a government-run corporation to build homes. It’s your idea. What does your corporation look like and how is it going to operate?

Question?

We’re going to do further debate.

Madam Speaker, we know that this housing crisis has been a long time in coming. We know that there are a lot of people coming into this country, coming into this province—because this is the best place to live in this country. And we know that that is being supported by the federal government bringing in more and more immigrants to this country and to this province. That’s a wonderful thing.

But we also know that the federal government is not providing its fair share when it comes to providing core housing. Right now, the federal government is being propped up by the NDP. So the NDP in this House, with their connection to their federal counterparts, are in a great position to support the government and to support our request to call for the federal government to provide the $480-million shortfall to provide for homelessness in this province. Will this member support that request?

It’s a pleasure to be here and be able to speak on Bill 97, Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, 2023. I’d like to recognize and thank for their hard work on this bill the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, the Associate Minister of Housing and the parliamentary assistant to municipal affairs and housing as well. Thank you for all your work in putting through this legislation.

I would like to address our government’s proposed legislation to support our much-needed housing supply action plan. Our proposals are crucial to our government’s work to get housing built that Ontarians desperately need. That’s why I’m pleased to be part of a government that is acting so strongly to support the building of more homes across all areas of Ontario and deliver on our commitment to see 1.5 million new homes by 2031.

Our housing supply action plans have made significant progress in addressing our province’s housing crisis, but more needs to be done. Together, we will continue to work diligently to ensure a brighter and more secure housing future for all Ontarians.

Our most recent housing supply action plan is the latest in a series of steps our government has taken to increase housing supply and help more Ontarians find a home they can actually afford. Our policies from More Homes Built Faster: Ontario’s Housing Supply Action Plan provide the growth work for growth, by reducing the bureaucratic costs and red tape that are delaying construction and pushing home prices even higher, by promoting and building up near transit and reforming zoning to create more gentle density, and protecting homebuyers and utilizing provincial lands to build more attainable homes.

Over the past four years, our government has introduced dozens of new policies under our three housing supply action plans. More Homes, More Choice, in 2019, More Homes for Everyone and More Homes Built Faster, both in 2022. These have helped substantially increase housing supply starts in recent years. Our past legislation has seen major support from stakeholders and is moving towards providing Ontario with more affordable housing.

Bryan Keshen, CEO of Reena agrees in his quote, if I could: “Reena is looking forward to working with the minister on the implementation of this transformative legislation, ensuring that deeply affordable housing will become a reality. By creating waivers of development charges, fees, charges and levies on non-profit affordable housing projects, Ontario is setting the stage for more affordable housing to be built for all Ontarians.”

Yet for too many Ontarians, finding the right home is too challenging. It’s difficult for young people eager to raise a family in a community of their choosing; for newcomers ready to put their roots down and start a new life; for seniors looking to downsize but wanting to stay near their family and loved ones. We are facing a critical issue in our province that requires immediate attention—the growing need for housing.

Ontario is projected to grow by almost 5.6 million people by 2046. The GTA alone is expected to be home to 2.9 million of those people. The greater Golden Horseshoe generates more than 25% of Canada’s gross domestic product and serves as the economic engine for not only Ontario but all of Canada. This growth in population will result in increased demand for major infrastructure investments, the renewal of aging infrastructure and the need to address deficits associated with growth. More growth and more people will also affect traffic congestion, resulting in delays in the movement of people and goods that could cost billions of dollars in lost GDP every year.

Also, the impact of globalization is transforming the regional economy at a rapid pace, making long-term planning for employment more uncertain. This is why we need Bill 97, Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, 2023. This bill will help tackle these pressing issues. It will also ensure that we can get homes built; homes that we desperately need now and into the future.

It’s critical that builders and developers have a clear and streamlined set of rules to follow in our province. In response, our government has proposed this new legislation as part of a comprehensive housing supply action plan.

First, we are proposing a new land use planning policy document which will streamline Ontario’s land use planning rules and encourage the development of more housing. This will make it easier for builders and developers to navigate regulations and get the necessary approvals to build homes for Ontarians.

Second, we are investing $6.5 million to appoint additional adjudicators. This will improve service standards and reduce decision time frames at the Landlord and Tenant Board. This will support both renters and landlords in navigating the rental market.

Third, we are implementing measures to protect renters and homebuyers, such as expanding the deposit insurance for first-home savings accounts and exploring a cooling-off period for newly built freehold homes. This will ensure that Ontarians have access to affordable housing options and the necessary financial protections.

Fourth, we are working on reducing the cost of building housing. We are freezing 74 provincial fees at current levels. This will help lower overall construction costs and accelerate housing development.

Our government is committed to addressing the housing supply crisis in Ontario by streamlining regulations, supporting infrastructure investments and providing financial protections for both renters and homebuyers. By working together, we can create a brighter future for our province and ensure that all Ontarians have access to the homes they need.

We are currently seeking input on a proposed new land use policy document that would streamline Ontario’s land use planning rules and encourage more housing. We are also proposing several changes to further protect renters while supporting landlords.

There are challenges and factors beyond our control, notably interest rates. Recently, they were increased by another 25 basis points to 4.5%, the highest level since 2007. Our government, however, remains focused on our long-term plan to create the right conditions so that when the economy does pick up, our housing market will also start to pick up. We are working with the private sector to remove barriers on the construction of new homes, streamlining approvals and reducing government costs and delays. Through our Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants plan, we are making it more affordable and incenting the building of homes. We are also eliminating development-related charges for affordable housing units, not-for-profit housing, affordable inclusionary zoning units and select attainable units.

Simone Swail, manager of the Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada, also had some commentary on this bill. “The commitment to waive development charges for all affordable housing developments will have a tangible and positive impact on the ability to develop new affordable co-op homes in Ontario. We also look forward to engaging with the province in order to reduce the property tax burden on affordable housing providers, including co-ops.”

We recognize the importance of addressing the housing crisis and are committed to creating and maintaining a robust housing supply here in Ontario. We will continue to collaborate with municipalities and the private sector to ensure that our province can meet the housing needs of our growing population.

In summary, Speaker, if passed, Bill 97, Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, 2023, would support renters, strengthen homebuyer protections, reduce the costs of building a new home, streamline the rules around land use planning and encourage the development of more housing. So I proudly support Bill 97, Helping Homebuyers, Protecting Tenants Act, 2023. This legislation will help the residents of Ontario and my community in Oakville.

With that, Speaker, I move that the question be now put.

Mr. Crawford has moved that the question be now put. There has been nine hours of debate on this bill. I am satisfied that there has been sufficient debate to allow this question to be put to the House.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry?

I declare the motion carried.

Mr. Clark has moved second reading of Bill 97, An Act to amend various statutes with respect to housing and development.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry?

The motion is carried.

Second reading agreed to.

Orders of the day.

Report continues in volume B.

I’d like to refer it to the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy, please.