My question is to the Premier. Nikki has lived in a rental home for two years. She pays $1,995 for a 600-square-foot basement apartment. Earlier this month, her landlord slapped her with a $200 rent increase, and now Nikki can no longer afford to pay the rent. This unaffordable rent increase is allowed because this government scrapped rent control on new units.

As more and more people in Ontario are struggling to pay the rent, what is this government’s plan to make rent affordable now?

Good morning, everyone. My question is for the Premier.

We are in a housing affordability crisis in this province. We all know that. Our major urban centres have an entire generation of young people and essential workers who are unable to find rental housing that they can afford.

Enter 8 Dawes Road, a plot of land in the centre of my beautiful riding of Beaches–East York. Originally a site owned by Metrolinx, it was recently sold to a housing developer. Great: more housing just steps from the Danforth GO train station and TTC subway at Main, exactly where new apartment buildings should be encouraged. And yet, that Metrolinx land deal contained zero requirements for delivering any on-site affordable housing units.

My question is, why doesn’t this government require that Metrolinx include minimum affordable housing requirements in their property sales to private housing developers? And why wasn’t this done for the Danforth GO station site at 8 Dawes Road?

It’s an honour to rise to participate in this debate because the housing affordability crisis is at a complete breaking point.

Last week, it was reported that in the first quarter of this year, average rents in the GTA for purpose-built apartments hit $3,000 for the first time, the sixth straight double-digit, year-over-year increase in the Toronto area—and it’s not just Toronto; it’s literally cities all over the province. In my own riding, average rent for a one-bedroom apartment hit $2,085 at the end of last year; that’s up 22.4%.

It is heartbreaking to see so many Ontarians with jobs, like nurses, teachers, retail workers and so many others, struggling to be able to find an affordable place to live in the communities they want to live in, where they work in, being forced to spend well over 30% of their income just on housing—let alone minimum wage workers and people who are living in legislated poverty because this government refuses to raise social assistance rates.

Advocates on the front lines have been telling us for decades now that we have to invest in homes that people can actually afford. According to the Daily Bread Food Bank Who’s Hungry Report, 87% of their clients are living in housing that is completely unaffordable; seven in 10 were paying half of their income—imagine that, Speaker—just on rent; and 18% were paying all of their income just on rent. Imagine how you afford sky-high food prices and so many other expenses in a day-to-day life.

Let’s be clear: The government’s expensive sprawl agenda will not solve the housing affordability crisis. It’s too expensive for municipalities, who simply can’t afford the cost of servicing sprawl, and it’s too expensive for people and families, who simply cannot afford the long, expensive, soul-crushing commutes this government is imposing on them.

That’s why we actually have to invest in homes that people can afford. That’s exactly why the Ontario Greens housing affordability plan, which some have called a master class plan in delivering the solutions we need—that’s why we’ve introduced Bill 44 and Bill 45, to end exclusionary zoning and build the gentle density and missing middle housing supply in homes that people can actually afford, in communities they want to live in.

That’s why we’re working so hard to end speculation in the housing market—because homes should be for people, not speculators.

That’s why I support this motion to bring in rent control, to bring back what this government took away—and not just rent control on units, but rent control between tenants, within units, so we have vacancy control, to get rid of the incentives for landlords to renovict and push their tenants out just so they can jack up rates even higher.

Speaker, we also need to have an honest conversation at all three levels of government. Up until 1995, in the 1970s and 1980s and early 1990s, 15,000 to 20,000 housing starts in this country every single year were government-supported non-profit and co-op housing that people could actually afford. So we’re not going to solve this problem with supply alone—even though I’ve put forward numerous solutions to increase affordable supply within the communities that people want to live in. That alone, if we’re going to be honest, is not going to solve the problem. We need both the federal government and the provincial government to come back to the table with the financial supports to help non-profit and co-op housing providers build the deeply affordable homes that people need to be able to survive month to month, to stabilize their lives.

Finally, we’re going to need government to come up with more than $202 million if we’re actually going to build permanent supportive housing with wraparound mental health and addictions supports to support people in our communities, because we know that every $10 invested in supportive housing saves government $22 in services.

Those are the solutions we need. That’s what we need to fight for for the people of this province.

Listening to the debate this afternoon, I am astounded by the arrogance and the hubris of some of these speeches, because it demonstrates such a stark and painful disconnect that this government has with the people of this province.

In Q1 of 2023, rents are now at $3,002 for a one-bedroom apartment in the city of Toronto. The only rent that hasn’t really gone past $2,000 are micro-units, which is 350 square feet. Most of our offices are bigger than micro-units at $2,000 month.

Just a few headlines: “A ‘Landlord Market’ Is Keeping Rents High in Waterloo Region, Says Realtor.” One person came forward, and her rent has gone from $1,750 to $2,750. An increase of $1,000 per month is this government’s legacy.

Another headline: “Landlord Doubles Rent for Syrian Refugees Using Exemption that Allows for Unlimited Increases.” This is an example—and I hope the minister is listening. The lack of rent control in the province of Ontario is hitting our most vulnerable people. This family are refugees from Syria. Imagine going through hell and then coming to Canada, and then to the province of Ontario, to be renovicted from your townhome. This landlord is increasing the rent from $2,000 a month to $4,000 a month. The family, whose income is only $4,000—so their entire income now must go to rent.

Another headline: “Tenants at Kitchener Complex Told to Move by End of April, But They’re Fighting to Stay.” The renoviction loophole is real, and this government has known it for five years. These are 14 tenants who are paying market value for their units. But of course, greed rules in the province of Ontario. They make a point—and this is a direct quote from the article: “If it’s up to tenants to enforce these punishments, then the landlords will keep getting away with it because tenants are already exhausted, especially if they’re going through renoviction. And to file” cases “with the Landlord and Tenant Board is an exhausting and stressful process.” Also, it’s a two-year wait to get justice at the Landlord and Tenant Board.

Finally, the Waterloo region is seeing a lack of rent control on vacant units, which creates a financial incentive for landlords to evict long-term tenants, many of whom pay below market rates. These are predominantly, in Waterloo region, senior women.

I do want to say: The government has talked about affordability, has ruled out real rent control in Ontario, and they keep raising the carbon tax. Well, the reason we have the carbon tax in the province of Ontario is because this Premier cancelled cap-and-trade. He repealed cap-and-trade in 2018. Because this province has no plan around pricing pollution, we ended up with a carbon tax, so on this side of the House we just think of it as the Ford carbon tax.

I’m very proud to rise in support of the NDP motion to implement rent control on all units.

Speaker, this government’s decision to remove rent control from units built after 2018 and to stand by as tenants are pressured to move out of their units so that landlords can jack up rents by any amount they want is making life difficult for many in London West, but especially for those on fixed incomes, like seniors and people on social assistance.

Patricia Jones is a senior who called my office because her anxiety about rent increases is keeping her up at night. She currently pays over $1,400 per month for her apartment, which is unaffordable on her fixed income. She has looked for cheaper alternatives, but with the average one-bedroom rent in London almost $1,800 per month, she cannot find any rentals in decent condition to move to. Without real rent control, Patricia says she will not be able to afford more rent increases, and she doesn’t know where she will live.

Another senior, Dave Clark, contacted my office to say that seniors do not get pay increases: “I have not received a raise on my company pension since I retired in 2011.... It’s very unfair to have some buildings under rent control and not the latest-built units.” Dave has done everything he can to reduce his housing costs, including selling his house and moving to a newer apartment, but the lack of rent control on that unit means that his budget is uncomfortably tight every month.

London West constituent Anita Zahn has a son on ODSP who pays 98% of his monthly budget on housing. She says, “There is no money for food, bills, medications, clothing, transportation. Nothing. He is always 25 cents away from being homeless.”

Speaker, rentals.ca just reported that rent for a one-bedroom apartment in London has increased 27% year over year. It’s the second-biggest jump in the province. How can Londoners living on fixed incomes be expected to absorb that increase? The reality is that they can’t, which is a big part of the reason that London has found itself in a very deep and serious affordable housing crisis. There is a real lack of housing options that meet the needs of seniors like Patricia and Dave, and others living on fixed incomes, like Anita’s son.

Speaker, housing is a human right. Londoners need housing they can afford. They need real rent control so they don’t have to live in fear of losing their home when the next rent increase comes.

I call on all members of this House to support our motion today.

In St. Catharines, we have watched residents within whole apartment buildings being displaced in the pursuit of profit—regular tenants, good community members, often seniors, bullied out of their homes. Why is that? This is because if a tenant is removed, the price of the unit can be raised up to any amount. As a result, seniors who have been living in affordable units for long periods of time—typically, due to their long tenure, they have lower-than-market rents—are being displaced.

Now what happens? Time and time again, out-of-region speculators and investors see these buildings with seniors as targets to double their profit. These seniors are seen as only numbers on a spreadsheet—that is it. These companies know that if they remove a senior out of their home, they can double their profits overnight. They are incentivized to do what they can to displace current tenants. This market only exists because we have no rent control in Ontario that protects these tenants, that protects seniors.

I am reminded of a story of a local senior who was being renovicted from 137 Church Street in St. Catharines, a building owned by Bedford Properties. His name was Kenneth Gogo. He had terminal cancer, with less than six months to live. This corporation was attempting to renovict Ken. When he pleaded with them and told them, “I have cancer, and I just want to stay in my own home,” they ignored his pleas. They ignored it until I brought his issue forward in this chamber. The actions that were taken got Kenneth results. They decided to withdraw their crass tactics when exposed to public scrutiny. This is what it took to save one senior in St. Catharines. It took pointing out the incredibly immoral tactics of this company on Ontario’s biggest stage. Kenneth Gogo is no longer with us. However, he became a symbol of the harassment that we are allowing in Ontario. Kenneth won that day, but his neighbours and friends lost their fight. He watched as the building had their older tenants displaced and replaced.

I’m proud to be part of this caucus, with a plan to make life more affordable by bringing back real rent control so young families can save for their first home, and to prevent seniors from being bullied out of their last.

Together, we can make a difference in the lives of countless families and individuals throughout the province. The solution is real, simple and practical. Ontario needs real rent control.

I’m pleased to rise today to speak to this motion put forward by the leader of His Majesty’s loyal opposition calling for real rent control in the province of Ontario. This reflects a real need and concern that I hear about all the time in Ottawa West–Nepean.

The truth is, life just keeps getting more and more unaffordable in Ontario, and housing is a very big part of it. This government, instead of doing anything about that, keeps coming out with new sweetheart deals for developers.

What people in Ottawa West–Nepean and across Ontario need is real action and real solutions. They need action that brings down the cost of rent and protects them against unscrupulous landlords.

When you’re only hanging out in the backrooms, like this government is, it’s very easy to forget that we are talking about deeply stressful, challenging and heartbreaking situations.

Michele is an Ottawa resident who reached out to me after getting no response from her Conservative MPP. Michele lived with her son and granddaughter, but they were evicted because her son’s addiction issues led to him falling behind on rent. Now Michele and her granddaughter are homeless, and this is despite the fact that Michele gets OAS, CPP, and works a part-time job. Her granddaughter, who is in high school, has two part-time jobs. But they still can’t find a place that they can afford. They are on the wait-list for affordable housing in Ottawa, but that wait-list is over five years long. Michele wrote to me: “I have just rented a storage unit to store my life in and we are able to sleep in my friend’s basement for the next month but I am very concerned about what we will do after that.” It is devastating that after a lifetime of contributing to our community, a senior is in the position of putting her life in a storage unit and sleeping in a friend’s basement. But the truly maddening thing is that Michele is far from alone.

There are so many people in Ottawa and across Ontario who are being put in this position. Rents in Ottawa are 15% higher this April than they were last April, according to rentals.ca, and the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Ottawa is now $1,925. That’s more than double what someone on Ontario Works gets, it’s way above what someone on ODSP receives, and it is 80% of the monthly earnings of someone working full-time, earning minimum wage.

It doesn’t need to be this way. We can actually make life more affordable here in Ontario, implement real rent control and make sure new tenants pay what the last tenant paid so that your landlord isn’t trying to squeeze you out.

I urge the government to vote in favour of this motion and provide real relief and support to people like Michele.

Earlier in this debate, I heard the Minister of Municipal Affairs and—unaffordable—Housing boast about the Conservatives’ housing plan. He said, “Our plan is working.” We just found out recently that the average rent has surpassed $3,000 a month. We’ve had five years of a majority Conservative government, and the average rent has just passed $3,000 a month. I’m wondering what the minister was talking about when he said, “Our housing plan is working”—and then I realized he forgot to put in “for the developers.” That’s what’s really happening here.

The Conservatives’ solution to unaffordable housing is to pave over the Greenbelt, to give developers a $5-billion taxpayer-funded subsidy, and to strip Ontarians in Toronto, Peel, York and Niagara of their right to democratic, majority vote municipal governance. And they cancelled rent control for anyone living in a building that’s newer than 2018. This is hitting people across this province.

In my own riding, Sam and her partner are a young couple. They pay $3,200 a month rent for their one-bedroom apartment, which is more than 50% of their combined income. Their lease expires in May 2024, and other units in that building are now renting for $3,600 a month. So they’re worried that if the Conservatives do not pass the NDP motion today to provide rent control for all units, they could face a $400-a-month rent increase.

Megan, another resident of Spadina-Fort York, faced a rent increase, from $2,100 a month to $2,900 a month. That’s an $800, 38% increase. She was able to negotiate that down to just a $400, 19% increase—still incredibly unaffordable and incredibly unfair to her.

Marcy, another resident in Spadina–Fort York, makes the median income in her neighbourhood, and she says that it’s just not enough to afford rent. She has a full-time job and a part-time job. She is debating whether to move out of the province. She is a young widow, and she feels incredibly unstable at this stage of her life. She said, “It can happen to anybody and it’s happening to so many people. I don’t want to leave” Ontario.

This affordability crisis is impacting people across this province, and the government’s solution is not working. But the NDP—we are offering solutions. We are saying that the Conservatives should acknowledge their mistake in stripping Ontarians of rent control protections and reinstate rent control on all units. We’re saying that you should be building not-for-profit housing, including co-ops, social and supportive housing. And you have to stop subsidizing developers with that $5-billion tax subsidy.