"Every level of government has an opportunity to work together to develop a national action plan aimed sharply at reducing housing need"
OTTAWA
,
Dec. 3
/CNW Telbec/ - A long-awaited meeting of federal, provincial and territorial (FPT) housing ministers may offer hope to 1.5 million households of struggling renters, seniors, single-parents and recent immigrants living in housing need. But only if ministers rally behind a national housing plan, tied to measurable outcomes in housing need reduction, said the Co-operative Housing Federation of
Canada
(CHF
Canada
) and the Canadian Housing and Renewal Association (CHRA) in a joint statement issued on the eve of the meeting.
The meeting takes place tomorrow in Gatineau,
Quebec
. It provides Canada's housing ministers with an opportunity to make significant progress, building on a set of principles adopted at their last formal meeting, four years ago. At that meeting, ministers agreed to work together to address the numerous 'pressing housing needs' for all Canadians.
"Affordable housing providers across
Canada
are urging FPT ministers to make real progress and work towards developing a national action plan tying federal housing spending to measurable outcomes in housing need reduction," said Nicholas Gazzard, Executive Director of CHF
Canada
. "Ministers should create an accountability framework, agreed to by the provinces and territories, setting out clear targets to make sure that housing need is reduced across
Canada
."
"FPT housing ministers can work with affordable housing providers, advocates and municipalities to support an effective, straightforward affordable housing policy for
Canada
. Canada's non-profit housing sector has been advocating for a national housing action plan that aims to meet the needs of all Canadians," said
Jody Ciufo
, Executive Director of CHRA. "A long-term funding plan, that looks 10 to 20 years down the road, needs to be a key part of any sustainable national housing action plan. FPT ministers must also realize that because housing happens on the ground, important decisions on how funding is spent need to be made locally."
Both organizations are committed to working with all levels of government to make progress on housing need reduction.
CHF
Canada
is the national voice of the Canadian co-operative housing movement. Its members include nearly 900 non-profit housing co-operatives and other organizations across
Canada
. More than a quarter of a million Canadians live in housing co-ops, in every province and territory.
Established in 1968, the Canadian Housing and Renewal Association is a national non-profit organization dedicated to supporting and strengthening the social housing sector.
For further information: For further information: Nicholas Gazzard, Executive Director of CHF Canada, (613) 230-2201 ext. 230, or (613) 293-8913 (cell), [email protected]; Geoff Gillard, Spokesperson for CHRA, (613) 594-3007, ext. 15, or (613) 325-6321 (cell), [email protected]
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