Canada's housing minister called on Ontario to contribute more funding to address the growing homelessness crisis, particularly concerning encampments before winter. The federal government announced funding deals with Ontario and Saskatchewan municipalities, bypassing provincial governments after they failed to match federal funding. Ontario maintains it is investing in homelessness prevention and claims the federal government is underfunding the province. The federal government, however, insists on increased action from Ontario and highlights the severity of the issue, citing a recent report suggesting over 80,000 people were homeless in Ontario in 2024.
The federal government is calling on Ontario to “do more” to support the homelessness crisis after the province failed to strike a deal to match funding to help with encampments before the winter.
Ottawa announced last October it would bypass the two provincial governments and work directly with cities after the provinces failed to commit to matching the funding dollar-for-dollar. At the time, Ontario Housing Minister Paul Calandra said he was under the impression that negotiations with the federal government were still underway.
The province reiterated that it is investing $3 billion over three years in homelessness prevention, including money for the new addiction and recovery hubs. Testani also said the federal government is “underfunding Ontario by more than $400 million for housing and homelessness programs.” Erskine-Smith, who took on the role of housing minister in December, acknowledged that “our collective efforts are not at a scale they need to be at.”
The data does not include individuals who are not known to the social services system, which means the total number of homeless Ontarians is much larger.
HOMELESSNESS FEDERAL GOVERNMENT ONTARIO GOVERNMENT FUNDING ENCAMPMENTS
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