In a formal response released today, the federal government has promised only to take “under advisement” a detailed report adopted unanimously by the Senate of Canada that calls for a comprehensive and co-ordinated national strategy on housing, homelessness and poverty. In from the Margins includes 74 specific recommendations, but the federal government has refused to accept even one.  The federal rejection came on the same day that the Chamber Chamber of Commerce adopted a resolution calling on the federal government to create a national plan to end homelessness. Also on the same day that the federal government told the Senate that it was relying on private markets to meet the housing needs of most Canadians, RBC Economics released a report showing that affordability is seriously eroding in ownership housing markets across Canada. The Wellesley Institute hosted a webinar with Senator Art Eggleton, who chaired the Senate committee that produced the report, earlier this year. The Wellesley Institute’s Precarious Housing in Canada 2010 includes a detailed analysis of housing issues and a pragmatic 10-year action plan. A more detailed review of the federal response to the Senate report will be posted shortly.

- Michael