Question Period Note: Federal Homelessness Programming

What is the Government of Canada doing to address homelessness?

• Homelessness is a complex issue, and our government is committed to working with partners and communities to eliminate chronic homelessness in Canada by 2030. That is why we are investing $4 billion over nine years through Reaching Home to support communities in their vital work to prevent and reduce homelessness.

• Recognizing the seriousness of winter weather and the dangers it brings to people experiencing unsheltered homelessness, the Government of Canada is providing $100 million as a one-time allocation for emergency 2023-24 winter funding.

• Since 2019, Reaching Home has supported almost 7,000 projects. Through these projects, over 71,000 people have been placed in more stable housing, and over 125,000 people have received homelessness prevention services such as rental assistance or landlord mediation.

• Budget 2022 announced $18.1 million over three years to support Action Research on Chronic Homelessness to identify actions needed to eliminate chronic homelessness.

• In April 2023, the Government of Canada launched a new Veteran Homelessness Program that will deliver $79.1 million to provide housing support and services to veterans experiencing, or at risk of homelessness.

• Budget 2022: On April 7, 2022, the Budget announced:

  • an investment of $562.2 million over two years through Reaching Home, beginning in 2024-25;
  • $18.1 million over three years, beginning in 2022-23, to conduct action research to identify further measures required to eliminate chronic homelessness; and
  • a commitment to eliminating chronic homelessness in Canada by 2030.

• Reaching Home: Canada’s Homelessness Strategy
  As part of the National Housing Strategy, the Government launched Reaching Home in 2019. This community-based program funds specific communities through the Designated Communities, Indigenous Homelessness, Rural and Remote Homelessness and Territorial Homelessness streams.

• Since April 1, 2019, Reaching Home has supported almost 7,000 projects:

  • 71,590 people have been placed in more stable housing;
  • 31,805 people began receiving income assistance;
  • 125,154 people received prevention services such as rental assistance or landlord mediation; and
  • 12,474 people started new paid employment.

• Reaching Home in Quebec: The Designated Communities stream and the Rural and Remote Homelessness stream are governed by a Canada-Quebec Agreement that respects the jurisdictions and priorities of both governments in the prevention and reduction of homelessness. Negotiations with the Government of Quebec are currently ongoing to extend the Canada-Quebec Agreement to 2026, and to flow Reaching Home base funding, and additional funding announced in Budget 2022, to communities. The Indigenous Homelessness stream is administered by Infrastructure Canada throughout the province and is not under a Canada-Quebec Agreement.

• Action Research on Chronic Homelessness: These initiatives will inform the development of a broader strategy and identify actions needed to eliminate chronic homelessness by exploring ways to break down persistent barriers encountered by communities and facilitating broad scale learning and knowledge sharing between communities and jurisdictions across Canada.

• To do this, action research sites will:

  • Identify and document persistent barriers encountered by communities to reducing and ending chronic homelessness; and
  • Test potential approaches to address persistent barriers and document successes and challenges.

• Veteran Homelessness Program: The Services and Supports Stream will provide $72.9 million in funding for rent supplements and wrap-around services (such as counselling and treatment for substance use) and the Capacity Building Stream will provide $6.2 million in funding to support research on veteran homelessness and capacity building. Successful applicants have been notified and agreements will be in place in early 2024. Service providers are expected to start offering services in 2024.

• One-time winter funding allocation: Winter weather presents additional risks to people experiencing homelessness in unsheltered areas/outdoors. With local shelter systems, and the homeless-serving sector as a whole, nearing capacity in most regions, there is an urgent need for communities to expand their local responses this winter. To support communities in responding to unsheltered homelessness, the Government of Canada is providing $100 million for emergency 2023-24 winter funding under Reaching Home. This funding has been allocated to communities under the Designated Communities, Indigenous Homelessness, and Territorial Homelessness streams.

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