While the opposition criticizes her for her “inaction” in the issue of evictions of tenants, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Andrée Laforest, suggests that cities tackle the phenomenon themselves.
Municipalities and boroughs can act against evictions by determining “whether we can continue to issue renovation permits for assignment or subdivisions,” the minister said during a debate in the National Assembly on Friday.
Solidarity deputy Andrés Fontecilla had urged her to act as a priority on what his party considers to be two scourges: evictions and clause F of leases, which allows owners of recent buildings to impose excessive rent increases.
With regard to evictions, the Minister initially suggested that this was a relatively marginal problem. “If we talk about evictions, repossessions of rent, we have 286 requests [au Tribunal administratif du logement] out of a rental stock of 1.3 million housing units. So, you still have to consider that the causes in eviction, 286 out of a park of 1.3, it’s still… It’s still too much, but at the same time…”
The solidarity deputy Andrés Fontecilla then retorted that the files did not all end up before the TAL and that there were many more cases. It was after this that Ms. Laforest argued that the cities could take care of it, before adding that she too was “working” on it, but that this posed a problem “with the Civil Code”.
Clause F
Regarding Clause F, she said her government would “change things” but remained vague. ” What we do ? Yes we are working on it. Then stay positive because I believe it’s going to be fine. […] We have to work as much with the owners as with the tenants, but we are going to change things. »
Ms. Laforest had been invited to an interpellation on the subject of housing in Parliament by Liberal MP Marie-Claude Nichols. Like the other opposition parties, the Liberal Party criticizes the Coalition avenir Québec for its “inaction” on housing.
The minister says she is focusing her efforts on increasing supply by accelerating the construction of new affordable housing. It is also pleased to have adjusted the regulations on HLM to prevent apartments from remaining vacant.