Canadian government has spent massive amounts but homelessness is still on the rise

Hundreds of millions of dollars were spent to combat the homelessness problem across Canada but the crisis has only worsened according to the Parliamentary Budget Office. 

The federal government budgeted $443 million dollars in new annual spending to assist in reducing those without a home but the number of homeless grew by 20% in Canada. 

The $433 million in new spending was an increase of 374% compared to prior spending on the issue but the additional money did not have any effect on reducing the problem.

Much of the new spending was allocated to a program called ‘Reaching Home” and was part of Infrastructure Canada’s 10-year and $82 billion dollar National Housing Strategy. 

Reaching Home was mainly aimed at funding communities and helping them reduce or prevent homelessness according to the report from the Parliamentary Budget Office. 

The funding for Reaching Home helped communities provide both housing support and the services associated with housing that tens of thousands of at-risk people required. 

Despite the federal government's best efforts, homelessness in the country increased by 20% to 34,270 and the number of chronically homeless people grew by even more. 

“We estimate that the number of chronically homeless people had increased by 38% relative to 2018,” the Parliamentary Budget Office report explained about the situation. 

“The number of individuals living in unsheltered locations also increased 88%,” added the report's authors. However, the extra spending did help Canada’s homeless situation. 

The Parliamentary Budget Office report noted that from 2019-20 to 2022-23, Canada’s funding supported the placement of at least 17,849 people in stable housing annually. 

Moreover, emergency housing funds also placed 5,399 people in stable homes annually while also providing 31,164 individuals with access to core prevention services annually. 

The Parliamentary Budget Office concluded that the Reaching Home program reduced point-in-time homelessness by 6,000 (15% ) relative to if there were no interventions. 

The report also estimated that a 50% reduction in chronic homelessness would require an additional $3.5 billion dollars annually, which would be a 7-fold increase in spending. 

Housing Minister Sean Fraser noted that the government's response to the homelessness crisis in Canada goes beyond its Reach Home program but said there is more to do. 

“The solution to the challenges we’re facing around homelessness is not going to be achieved simply by supporting community initiatives,” Minister Fraser said according to the National Post. 

“To address them you have to go upstream, without the affordable housing stock to provide a roof over the heads for everyone in this country, we will never end homelessness,” the minister added. 

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