Singh commits to build more homes for students – lowering rents for everyone

TORONTO – On Thursday, following many reports that many students are struggling to find a place to rent, Canada’s NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh proposed solutions to build more affordable homes for students, which will also lower rents for everyone.

During his announcement, Singh also criticized Justin Trudeau and Pierre Poilievre for spending their time trying to blame other levels of government. While all levels of government need to do better to build more homes that people can afford, the federal government must set the tone and lead by example.

“Everyone should be able to find a place they can afford that’s safe and fits their needs. But right now, rent is at a record high – the cost of a 1-bedroom in Toronto is over $2,500 a month and $3,000 in Vancouver,” said Singh. “Across the country, it is a nightmare for everyday Canadians to find a place to rent that they can afford. This is especially the case for students and when they don’t find a place to rent close to their university, they end up competing with everyone else in the rental market – making it harder and more costly for all renters. We are a couple of weeks away from students going back to school and Justin Trudeau’s government is nowhere to be seen on making sure students have a safe and affordable place to call home.”

Due to decades of underfunding and cuts to Canada’s colleges and universities by the federal government and many provincial governments, post-secondary institutions across the country are welcoming more international students to increase their revenues. But, as many reports show, they are falling short in making sure there are enough affordable homes. It is hard and sometimes impossible for all students – domestic and international – to find a place to live.

To address this crisis, Jagmeet Singh and the NDP committed to fight for the federal government to immediately:

• Establish a federal matching (1/3,1/3,1/3) cost-share initiatives with provinces and territories and post-secondary institutions for the construction of new affordable student housing.
• Coordinate the allocation of study permits to post-secondary institutions that can demonstrate they have a credible and affordable student housing plan.
• Incentivize partnership opportunities between businesses, non-profits and post-secondary institutions to convert existing empty office spaces to residential use, including dormitory-style student housing.

“While these students are suffering, both Poilievre and Trudeau want to make solving the housing crisis someone else's problem,” said Singh. “I believe the federal government must set the tone and show leadership. That’s why I’m proposing solutions where everyone has a role to play and must do better. It is not enough for post-secondary institutions to welcome more international students to make more revenue, they must do their part to ensure that all students have a safe place to call home.”

The NDP also urged the federal government to convene a roundtable with all levels of government, relevant partners and stakeholders to develop a coordinated and bold short-, medium- and long-term housing plan to increase purpose-built affordable rentals and community housing. There needs to be federal leadership and an all hands-on-deck approach to address Canada's urgent housing crisis.