JASON SETNYK
Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry MP Eric Duncan used his recent House of Commons budget speech to tie national numbers to local realities, warning that Cornwall’s stalled housing starts and rising food bank use show how federal policies are falling short for residents in Eastern Ontario.
Speaking to the Liberals’ 10th federal budget, Duncan argued that repeated deficit spending is driving up the cost of living while failing to deliver results on core issues such as housing and food insecurity. He called it a “costly credit card budget,” pointing to $55 billion in annual interest payments on the national debt – money he noted cannot be spent on “health care, roads or housing.”
Duncan zeroed in on the situation in Cornwall, citing a recent city council update that described local homebuilding as “at a standstill.” In a city of roughly 47,000 people, he said only 12 building permits for single-family homes and seven for duplexes have been issued since May.
“That goes to show that buyers can’t buy, sellers can’t sell, and, most importantly, builders can’t build,” he told MPs, adding that thousands of Canadians are being shut out of ownership as demand far outpaces supply.
He criticized the federal Housing Accelerator Fund as one example of a program that looks good on paper but is not reaching communities like Cornwall and the United Counties of SDG. Duncan said local municipalities and the Cornwall-SDG housing services department are “banned from even being able to apply for funding,” leaving the region locked out of help that could unlock new construction.
Instead of “billions and billions” in new announcements and another national agency, he said Ottawa should focus on clearing red tape and supporting builders directly.
As an alternative, Duncan promoted the Conservative proposal to remove the GST from all new homes up to $1.3 million, not just certain first-time buyer projects. He said that change would save buyers up to $65,000 on the purchase price while encouraging construction of an estimated 36,000 additional homes annually.
“We need to unlock more potential,” he said, arguing that the plan would both improve affordability and generate new income tax revenues from trades and builders.
With an $80-billion deficit, he questioned sending $500 million to the European Space Agency and $742 million for a national firearms buyback instead of directing those funds to domestic affordability priorities. He said local governments like Cornwall have few tools to respond when senior governments focus on announcements instead of on-the-ground solutions. The inability of Cornwall and SDG to access key federal housing programs, he added, is “blocking our communities from getting our fair share.”
The MP connected the housing crunch to escalating pressure on local food banks. While he has previously highlighted the work of Cornwall’s Agapè Centre, this time he focused on the House of Lazarus in Mountain, within the Township of North Dundas. After a recent visit with executive director Cathy Ashby and her team, he told Parliament the rural food bank has seen a 100 per cent increase in use since 2019, and over the summer alone, they recorded a 45 per cent jump, now serving more than 850 people.
Duncan said those numbers reflect the strain on families coping with rents they can scarcely afford and mortgages that leave little left over at the end of the month. Organizations such as House of Lazarus, he added, are facing higher demand at the same time as donations are stretched, forcing them to do more with limited resources.
“It is Canadians like those who volunteer and work at the House of Lazarus who are going to help us get through this challenge,” Duncan said, praising staff and volunteers for “the great things they are doing to try to help people in need in S, D and G.”
Duncan closed his remarks by reiterating his opposition to the budget and calling for what he described as “constructive solutions” to get shovels in the ground and support community agencies on the front lines. For Cornwall and surrounding townships, he argued, the stakes are clear: more affordable homes built faster, and stronger support for organizations feeding a growing number of households.
L’article MP Talks Cornwall Housing Standstill, House of Lazarus est apparu en premier sur Cornwall Seaway News.
