The Legault government is not on track to catch up on its accumulated delay in the construction of social housing. More than 5,000 homes are still awaiting financing and less than 1,000 were delivered last year.
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In the most recent fiscal year, 2021-2022, only 977 housing units were built thanks to the AccèsLogis program, which funds social and affordable housing.
“This is among the lowest results in recent years,” said Véronique Laflamme, spokesperson for the Front d’action populaire en réménagement urbain (FRAPRU), an organization that defends the right to housing.
According to data compiled by his organization, Quebec has been able to deliver more than 1,000 social housing units, and even up to 2,700, per year since 2000, except in the last two years.
Only 123 of these dwellings were built in Montreal, where the needs are the most urgent, specify the data provided by the office of the Minister of Housing, France-Élaine Duranceau.
Far from its promise
In 2018, the CAQ committed to building 15,000 social and affordable housing units within its four-year mandate.
Like the City of Montreal, Quebec has not kept its promise. Only 5,150 dwellings have been built according to data from the Société d’habitation du Québec.
At present, 3616 others are in the works, that is to say that they could see the light of day within the next few months or the next few years.
And 5248 others are still in development, that is to say that their funding is not yet confirmed.
Minister Duranceau says she is working to get these projects off the ground.
“The Société d’habitation du Québec is carrying out a meticulous review in order to determine the progress of all the social and affordable housing projects announced in Québec and to understand the causes explaining the delay in certain projects”, emphasizes its press officer, Philippe Couture.
Insufficient
According to FRAPRU, Quebec’s efforts are insufficient.
“Quebec did not put the money it needed on the table to get the projects out. We are not going to solve the problem with 1,000 housing units, when we know that there are 40,000 low-income households on a waiting list in Quebec, ”believes Véronique Laflamme.
The 15,000 housing units promised were projects already announced and sometimes pending “for almost 10 years”, she recalls. The CAQ had assured that it would settle these arrears, but this was not done.
