The housing proposals of the parties are insufficient to solve the current crisis, believes an organization for the defense of the rights of tenants in the east of Montreal.
Posted at 3:53 p.m.
On Sunday, the Infologis organization organized a march in the east of the city in the hope of drawing attention to this issue, which has been too little discussed so far, according to one of its managers, Jean-François Bureau. .
“There needs to be more attention put on this subject [du logement] simply because it is extremely decisive for all citizens. For all voters, it is the vast majority of their income that they put into housing, ”explained the latter, on the sidelines of the activity.
Without targeting a particular party since Infologis wants to be a “non-partisan” organization, Jean-François Bureau judges that the parties’ commitments in terms of housing are clearly insufficient to reach a “balance threshold” of vacations of 3% of dwellings province-wide.
“There are promises that are more ambitious than others, but it is also important not to bet on a single promise, that is to say to promise only the construction of social housing. […] In the meantime, it takes rent control, then other solutions to stop renovations, and so on, ”explains Jean-François Bureau.
“We hope that the parties play the card of keeping a few promises for the end of the campaign,” he adds.
Party commitments
If it is returned to power on October 3, the Coalition avenir Québec has pledged to build 11,700 social and affordable housing units in the next term while extending the Rent Supplement Program to 7,200 additional units.
For its part, the Liberal Party of Quebec (PLQ) proposes to increase the supply of social housing by deploying an improved investment plan over 10 years to build 50,000 new units.
Québec solidaire, for its part, promises to build 25,000 “modern and ecological” social housing units in a first mandate, in particular thanks to a building acquisition program. The same number of social housing units would be built in a second term.
The Parti Québécois promises to build 35,000 social housing units within 5 years in addition to 10,000 others reserved for students. The party also wants to set up a rent registry and ban Airbnb in cities where the vacancy rate is below 3%, among other things.
For its part, the Conservative Party of Quebec has no quantified commitments in terms of the construction of social housing, but intends to help tenants with “specific problems accessing the rental market” through allowances under the programs existing housing allowances or rent supplements.
Remember that FRAPRU, another organization for the defense of tenants’ rights, estimates that 50,000 social housing units should be built in five years to meet the current needs of Quebecers.
The Union des municipalités du Québec MQ is calling for 4,500 new social housing units per year for all of Quebec and increased support for municipalities and various housing organizations so that 13,400 additional affordable housing units per year are made available in the province.