What's behind Canada's housing crisis? Decades of policy failures, says former deputy PM

Canada's housing crunch is the result of decades of poor policy stemming from the federal government leaving the issue to the provinces in the 1980s, according to one former deputy prime minister.

Canada’s housing crunch is the result of decades of poor policy stemming from the federal government leaving the issue to the provinces in the 1980s, according to one former deputy prime minister.

Former deputy prime minister Sheila Copps said in an interview with BNN Bloomberg that when Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) was involved in building housing, there was a significant amount of national investment in housing as well as housing policy and strategy.

“The decision that was made back in 1987 to get out of housing at the federal level has resulted in 30 years of underbuilt housing, and also 30 years of not really analyzing good public policy on housing,” Copps said. “I think that's a big issue.”

According to Copps, who served as a Liberal deputy prime minister in the 1990s, housing policy in the 1970s saw the national government more directly involved in building housing, including the development of seniors and Indigenous housing.

This changed in the 1980s when provincial governments took over housing policy, Copps said.

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While some provincial governments, like Quebec, decided to allocate funding to social housing, Copps said many others have not.