The 2019 AMO Conference is just about to wrap up in Ottawa, and myself and a number of my Regional Council colleagues and a few staff have spent the last three days learning about several issues related to municipal/regional governance, the changes that are coming from the province, and meeting with Ministers and Parliamentary Assistants to advocate for what’s important to Niagara.
At the end of the day today, there was a 75-minute Ministers’ Forum where conference attendees were given time to ask brief questions of specific Ministers.
I posed my question to Minister Steve Clark, who is the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, and took the opportunity to follow-up on some asks we made of his Parliamentary Assistant (Housing), Parm Gill, yesterday.
I asked:
I know that you’re well aware of the housing and homelessness crisis that is occurring in the province and how it’s impacting some communities more than others, particularly when you take into consideration the opioid crisis and other addiction and mental health issues.
Considering that the funding model for the Community Homelessness Prevention Initiative does not take into consideration population and demographic changes that have occurred over the life of the program, will you commit to undertaking a municipal comparison to confirm the refined needs of municipalities to ensure the fund is distributed equitably?
Minister Clark’s answer can be heard in the link below, as I recorded my question and his answer.
question-to-minister-clark-re-chpi-funding-1.m4a
Laura Ip - Regional Councillor 