Poilievre criticisms of Housing Accelerator Fund 'categorically' false: Fraser

Housing Minister Sean Fraser is dismissing criticisms from Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre that the federal government's Housing Accelerator Fund is an attempt to incentivize mayors to give the Liberals public credit for acting on the housing crisis. 

On Tuesday, Fraser announced the latest project in Calgary through the Housing Accelerator Fund, $228 million for that city to build 6,800 housing units over the next three years, before reaching 35,000 homes over the next 10 years.

The Housing Accelerator Fund incentivizes municipalities to speed up new housing builds by cutting red tape and updating their zoning and permit systems.

The $4-billion fund was a pledge by the Liberals in the 2021 federal election, with the money earmarked in the 2022 federal budget as part of a larger $10-billion housing-focused package.

• Capital Dispatch: Sign up for in-depth political coverage of Parliament Hill
• Top headlines on Canadian politics, all in one place

But the first project — a $74-million deal with London, Ont. — was only announced this September.

Since then, the federal government has committed funds through the program to build approximately 21,000 homes over the next three years — nearly 170,000 homes over the next decade — across eight municipalities.

Poilievre has been critical of the fund, calling Fraser and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s string of announcements through the program since September a “travelling circus.”

“Sean Fraser and Justin Trudeau have been paying off mayors to give federal Liberals credit for housing that was already going to be built," he said.

In an interview on CTV’s Power Play with Vassy Kapelos, airing Tuesday, Fraser rejected the criticism, saying the Conservative leader’s assessment is “categorically” false.

“I expect the leader of the Opposition is concerned because we're making progress on the housing file,” he said.

In response to questions about the number of projected builds through the fund falling far short of the 3.5 million new units the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation estimates are needed by 2030 to improve housing affordability, Fraser said every unit helps.

“Every single home this bill is going to add to the progress that we're going to make, and the more supply that's in the market, the better level of affordability that we're going to actually see benefit Canadian communities,” he said.

He added the 170,000 projected units over the next 10 years that the federal government has announced are just the beginning of the Housing Accelerator Fund, and that the program is only one aspect of his government’s overall housing commitments.

With files from CTVNews.ca’s Senior Digital Parliamentary Reporter Rachel Aiello