Gregor Robertson

Leader of the Opposition Mr. Speaker, the, this summer, when asked what he would do about building housing, said absolutely nothing. That was his response. Leave it to the market to solve all our housing woes. We have established Build Canada Homes to build affordable non-market housing. We have over 19,000 homes under way right now. We are building Canada strong and we are offering Canadians in [plus]

Mr. Speaker, not only are we cutting red tape, working with local governments to make it faster to build and reducing development charges dramatically, we have also had a first-time homebuyer break on the GST. The Conservatives fought it all last year. They fought against giving first-time homebuyers an opportunity to save on their first home purchase. We went to the next step with a GST break [plus]

Mr. Speaker, the actions are clear. We are seeing the results. We have been seeing rents go down for 23 straight months. That does not happen by accident. That does not happen based on a plan that nobody has seen, nobody believes in and nobody voted for. We have an opportunity to build affordable housing on an unprecedented scale. We need every member of the House on board with that. We need to [plus]

Mr. Speaker, we have a plan to deliver affordable housing. We are seeing it work, with 23 consecutive months of average rents going down across Canada, so families like the member opposite mentioned are saving money on their rent. They are also able to save money on the purchase of a new home. In Ontario alone, up to $200,000 can be saved on the purchase of a new home. Whether it is renting or [plus]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the member's highlighting the fact that the Canada groceries and essentials benefit is providing up to $1,900 to a family of four, which is very significant. Just as we are seeing rents come down, we are providing the opportunity for young Canadians to not pay GST on first-time home purchases. Whether it is housing, whether it is groceries or whether it is the price of [plus]

Mr. Speaker, the Conservatives keep flagging affordability concerns with respect to housing. We have great news to share on that. Average rents have come down for 23 straight months across Canada. That is a sign of success. Talk to developers across Canada right now. The apartment construction loan program is financing tens of thousands of rental homes. This is the biggest rental housing boom we [plus]

Mr. Speaker, there is no doubt that we have challenges with housing across Canada. That has been the case for about 40 years. We have to build more affordable housing. That is what Build Canada Homes is focused on. It crossed the threshold of 19,000 homes under way in less than a year. We have seen really good success on the ground, with agreements right across the provinces and territories, [plus]

Mr. Speaker, that is precisely what the housing accelerator fund has been doing. It has been accelerating permitting and licensing, working in partnership with 241 cities and towns across Canada. We are seeing success with that accelerator program. Housing is getting built. Canada has averaged 250,000 homes a year, and that is not enough housing. We know it needs to grow. We need to do that in [plus]

Mr. Speaker, it is good to be back in the House and to see my colleagues. We are absolutely focused on getting housing built for young Canadians and making sure they are not paying GST on their first-time home purchases. This is a move that was not supported by the Conservatives across the way, unfortunately. They should be consistent, at least. Rents are coming down across Canada. Average [plus]

Mr. Speaker, CMHC also weighed in on the fact that the lowering of the development charges by this government in Ontario and B.C. is actually improving the prospects for housing supply in those provinces, and we are just getting started. There is a mix of housing starts across the country. Housing starts are up in critical markets such as Montreal and Vancouver. We need to see that across the [plus]