Current Problems: Housing
Exploring Stakeholder: "Government of Canada"
Updates on this page: 40
April 11, 2024
MP rebukes top housing official for chronic underfunding of Prairie First Nations
‘That is one of the most nefarious and deceitful things a bureaucracy could do,’ says NDP’s Blake Desjarlais CBC Indigenous: A New Democrat member of Parliament rebuked a federal housing executive on Thursday, after an audit found his organization shortchanged Prairie First Nations out of more than a quarter-billion dollars in housing cash. Alberta MP Blake...
April 10, 2024
Alternative financing solutions needed to close infrastructure gap, say First Nations leaders and advocates
‘We would be foolish if we didn’t look at other options,’ says Kebaowek Chief Lance Haymond CBC Indigenous: Some First Nations leaders and advocates are saying alternative financing solutions need to be explored to help close the infrastructure gap on-reserve, especially when it comes to housing. “We’re really going to be pressing the government to come...
April 9, 2024
Assembly of First Nations says $350B needed for housing, infrastructure
APTN News: A new report from the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) says $349.2 billion is needed to fix housing and other infrastructure after decades of “underfunding, failed fiduciary duties, and unfair distribution of Canada’s wealth as a country.” The report, prepared with the federal government department of Indigenous Services Canada (ISC), was released Tuesday...
April 4, 2024
PM won’t say if First Nations on Prairies will be compensated for housing shortfall
AFN regional chief hoping to make headway at meetings in Ottawa. APTN News: Prime Minister Justin Trudeau won’t say whether First Nations in Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba will be compensated after the Auditor General found they’ve been shortchanged for years on federal housing funds. Trudeau was in Winnipeg Wednesday to announce $1.5. billion for a...
March 26, 2024
CMHC won’t say whether Prairie nations will get compensation after being shortchanged $274M for housing
‘Confirms what we know’: Treaty 6 grand chief says he wasn’t surprised by AG report on housing The Assembly of First Nations estimates it would take about $40 billion to close the housing gap on reserves. Photo: APTN file APTN News: The grand chief of the Confederacy of Treaty 6 First Nations says the auditor...
March 25, 2024
Grand chief in Alberta says his community’s housing money hasn’t changed since the ‘90s
APTN News: The grand chief of Treaty 8 in Alberta says the auditor general’s latest report on housing is an example of the federal government not honouring the treaties. On March 19, Karen Hogan issued a scathing report saying that in more than 20 years, the federal government and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation,...
March 19, 2024
Feds, CMHC have made ‘little progress’ with First Nations housing problems
APTN News: Four audits and 20 years later, the federal government and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, commonly called the CMHC, have made “little progress” in improving housing in First Nations communities across the country, says Auditor General Karen Hogan. “Indigenous Services Canada and the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation have been mandated to...
February 27, 2024
‘Our guys don’t have somewhere to go’: Trudeau government criticized for taking too long to fund Indigenous housing
Housing organizations supporting Indigenous people say they are desperate for the money Ottawa’s new housing strategy is preparing to distribute. NationTalk: OTTAWA — Karl Cousineau has been living in shelters for half of his life. Raised in foster care from age nine after losing his father, Cousineau moved from Ottawa to Toronto when he was 20,...
February 16, 2024
AFN National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak calls for full implementation of National Encampments Response Plan recommendations
NationTalk: Unceded Algonquin Territory, Ottawa, Ontario – Assembly of First Nations (AFN) National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak welcomed the release of the Federal Housing Advocate’s final report of her review of homelessness encampments as a human rights issue. “First Nations citizens experience homelessness at disproportionate rates across the country,” said National Chief Woodhouse Nepinak. “This...
February 15, 2024
Federal housing advocate says Indigenous people grossly overrepresented in Canada’s homeless population
APTN News: Canada’s housing advocate says a staggering number of Indigenous people are part of the country’s growing homeless population. “Manitoba reported that in Winnipeg in 2018 two-thirds of people experiencing homelessness were Indigenous and that number climbs to 94 per cent in Thompson,” Marie-Josée Houle told Nation to Nation. “In Saskatoon an estimated 90...
February 14, 2024
Recovering from years of federal intervention, Kehewin First Nation rebuilds
The Accounting for Colonialism journalism consortium found that First Nations under imposed financial intervention were more likely to experience problems with crowded housing as compared to those Nations where no financial interventions were made. Photo: Brett McKay/MacEwan University APTN News: Development is moving fast in Kehewin Cree Nation. With project after project, the First Nation...
February 4, 2024
Calls for accountability, national Indigenous fire strategy after fatal house fire in Peawanuck
2 dead, 3 others remain in hospital as a result of the blaze, say police Nishnawbe Aski Nation Grand Chief Alvin Fiddler says the chronic lack of fire-firefighting, fire prevention, and emergency services in First Nations communities contribute to fatal fires. (Marc Doucette/CBC) CBC Indigenous: Police have confirmed two adults have died as a result of...
November 30, 2023
AHMA Position Statement: Recognizing Urban, Rural and Northern Indigenous Housing Need and a Call for Equitable Funding
NationTalk: The Aboriginal Housing Management Association (AHMA) has over 25 years of expertise in advancing housing rights for Indigenous Peoples. It is widely known that the playing field is not even due to centuries of colonial oppression. Safe, affordable, culturally supportive housing is integral to health, healing, belonging, and well-being: without it, Indigenous Peoples fall...
November 27, 2023
Poor Inuit housing ‘direct result of colonialism’: federal housing advocate
Inuit right to housing not being upheld: report: A federal housing advocate is accusing every level of government in Canada of failing to uphold the Inuit’s right to housing — and therefore denying their human rights. The Toronto Star: OTTAWA – A federal housing advocate is accusing every level of government in Canada of failing...
August 24, 2023
Some Indigenous leaders reject PM’s ‘out of touch’ housing comments
‘I can’t believe he said that,’ responds Native Women’s Association of Canada head Carol McBride CBC News: Don’t tell Carol McBride housing isn’t a primary federal responsibility. As a former chief, McBride remembers being in a housing crisis when she led the Timiskaming First Nation in northwestern Quebec — and that was in the 1990s....
August 19, 2023
Federal underfunding of Indigenous housing leads to years-long wait-lists, frustration
Assembly of First Nations said last year $44B needed for current on-reserve housing requirements Nojoud Al Mallees, Alessia Passafiume · The Canadian Press · Posted: Aug 19, 2023 12:34 PM EDT | Last Updated: August 19 CBC News: The Canadian Press – Stefania Giesbrecht was hoping that by the time she finished her studies, she could move back to her...
June 12, 2023
Canada’s continued ‘failure’ to provide adequate housing led to lawsuit says chief
First Nation in Manitoba proposes class action against Ottawa for housing conditions. APTN News: The chief of a remote First Nation in northern Manitoba is proposing a national class action lawsuit against the federal government for failing to address the housing crisis in Indigenous communities. Chief Elvin Flett of St. Theresa Point First Nation is seeking $5...
May 19, 2023
Inaugural First Nations First Responders Gathering held in Ottawa, First Nations Fire Protection Strategy updated
NationTalk: Indigenous Services Canada – The Assembly of First Nations hosted the three-day event in Ottawa to focus on advancing First Nations fire protection priorities An inaugural First Nations First Responders Gathering was held in Ottawa over the past three days. The event brought together Indigenous fire protection and emergency responder leadership to explore how...
May 4, 2023
Community support ‘overwhelming’ after fire destroys 8 homes on Sask. First Nation
Mosquito Grizzly Bear’s Head Lean Man First Nation band hall packed with donations CBC News: On April 24, Ameilia Young woke up to a loud sound at her home on Mosquito, Grizzly Bear’s Head, Lean Man First Nation, 125 kilometres northwest of Saskatoon. “The shingles from my roof were flapping or something,” she said. “I thought...
March 13, 2023
Shamattawa First Nation declares state of emergency
2nd Manitoba First Nation to declare a state of emergency in the past week CBC News: A First Nation in northern Manitoba, recently hit by a major fire that left several families without homes, has declared a state of emergency. Shamattawa First Nation Chief Jordna Hill has called a news conference for 1:30 p.m. Monday in Winnipeg....
February 25, 2023
One dead, two unaccounted for after house fire in Pikangikum First Nation
The Globe and Mail: A remote northwestern Ontario First Nation lacked the facilities to extinguish a house fire that left one dead and two others missing, two local leaders said as they implored the federal government for help bolstering fire services. The CEO of the Independent First Nations Alliance, a group that represents five communities...
February 16, 2023
Liberals on pace to miss First Nations housing targets by ‘between 58 and 141 years,’ NDP says
First Nations built 4,200 new homes through federal program since Trudeau won power, documents show CBC News: Liberal government spending for on-reserve housing is on pace to leave First Nations out in the cold for decades, if not more than a century, two New Democrat MPs charged on Thursday in Ottawa. Newly released figures obtained...
February 7, 2023
Indigenous Housing Coalition calls on the federal government to commit to funding a National Urban, Rural and Northern Indigenous Housing Strategy
NationTalk: TERRITORY OF THE ANISHINAABE ALGONQUIN PEOPLE, OTTAWA – In a press conference held today, the National Urban Rural and Northern Indigenous Housing Coalition, an organization representing Indigenous housing providers across the country, called on the federal government to commit $6 billion in the 2023 federal budget to meet its commitment to develop an Urban,...
February 2, 2023
People from First Nations 10 times more likely to die in a fire, says Indigenous Fire Marshal
On Jan. 28, a 10-year-old girl from a remote Cree community died in a house fire CBC News: People in First Nations are 10 times more likely to die in a fire than people from other communities in Canada, according to the Indigenous Fire Marshal Service. On Saturday, Jan. 28, a 10-year-old girl from the...
January 31, 2023
10-year-old girl killed in fire in remote Cree northern Ontario community with no fire services
Peawanuck has bought a fire truck but it’s stuck in Winnipeg CBC News: A 10-year-old girl died in a house fire in the remote northern Ontario community of Peawanuck, Ont., which does not have access to fire services or basic firefighting equipment. Alison Linklater, grand chief of Mushkegowuk Council, said the small community is “in...
January 23, 2023
‘No partners willing’ to support fire codes on First Nations, Ottawa says
NationTalk: The federal government does not have a willing partner to find a way to introduce fire codes on First Nation reserves, a newly released document shows. The senior director for the Indigenous Fire Marshal Service, however, says there are steps Ottawa can take now to better protect communities. “Doing nothing is not an option,” said Blaine Wiggins. “Analyzing...
January 9, 2023
Indigenous group seeks control of $300M housing fund
Funds are part of a new federal $4.3 billion Indigenous Housing strategy to support improvements to First Nation and Metis housing By Frank O’Brien | January 9, 2023, 10:40am NationTalk: BIV – A new Indigenous group is seeking control of $300 million in federal government funds meant to deliver housing to remote and rural Aboriginals across Canada....
December 4, 2022
Investments in Inuit housing inadequate, federal watchdog says
Toronto Star: From a family living for seven years in a condemned home that was meant to be temporary to people with disabilities having to be carried in and out of their bathrooms, Canada’s housing advocate says during a tour this fall of several Inuit communities she got a glimpse into the dire living conditions...
August 11, 2022
NAN Chiefs Endorse Housing Strategy look to Canada and Ontario to Address Housing Crisis
TIMMINS, ON: Nishnawbe Aski Nation (NAN) will seek support from the governments of Canada and Ontario for a new First Nation-designed strategy endorsed by Chiefs-in-Assembly to address the housing crisis in NAN First Nations and improve the health of community members. “The NAN Housing Strategy was developed by our members as a solution to the...
June 27, 2022
AFN Regional Chief Presses Urgent Action at Meeting with Federal, Provincial, Territorial Ministers of Housing
(Ottawa, ON) – Assembly of First Nations: AFN Manitoba Regional Chief Cindy Woodhouse participated in a meeting today with Federal/Provincial/Territorial (FPT) Ministers of Housing and National Indigenous Organizations (NIOs), calling for more investments and support for First Nations housing and challenging Provincial and Territorial governments to work in partnership with First Nations. “I believe we...
June 15, 2022
The effects of the housing shortage on Indigenous People in Canada
Report of the Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs APTN: Indigenous Services Canada is on track to miss its 2030 target to close the infrastructure gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities, according to the House of Commons committee on Indigenous affairs. The committee’s latest report says the department should revise its housing investment strategy...
June 14, 2022
Federal Housing Advocate will receive two urgent human rights claims from Women and Indigenous groups
NationTalk: On June 14, the Federal Housing Advocate will receive two urgent human rights claims from Women and Indigenous groups raising the growing housing emergency for women and gender-diverse people – a first in Canada Today, the Women’s National Housing & Homelessness Network (WNHHN) and the Indigenous women-led Keepers of the Circle have submitted two Human Rights Claims to...
March 24, 2021
No national fire protection code that mandates fire safety standards or enforcement on reserves
“NationTalk – There is no national fire protection code that mandates fire safety standards or enforcement on reserves. All other jurisdictions in Canada including provinces, territories, and other federal jurisdictions (such as military bases, airports, and seaports) have established building and fire codes. The Aboriginal Firefighters Association of Canada (AFAC), National Indigenous Fire Safety Council...
March 31, 2020
Laurentian University Research on Indigenous Homelessness
CBC – A team of researchers at Laurentian University is compiling research about homelessness among Indigenous people — with the hopes it could influence government policy decisions, and contribute to reconciliation. Last fall, the university hosted a conference, called Reclaiming Home, which focused on issues of homelessness, housing, and reconciliation. “Just looking at the rates...
December 11, 2019
Statement on National Urban Indigenous Housing Strategy
In Canada 79.7% of Indigenous Peoples live in urban centres yet an Indigenous Urban Housing strategy has yet to be developed. Aboriginal Housing Manager Association (AMHA) applauds the Federal government efforts in the National Housing Strategy to address the needs of Metis/First Nations/Inuit groups on a distinction basis, it has failed to recognize the majority...
October 21, 2019
UN Special Rapporteur report on Indigenous housing
CBC – In Canada, close to half of all First Nations people live on reserves, and more than 25 per cent of them live in overcrowded conditions, constituting approximately seven times the proportion of non-indigenous people nationally. More than 10,000 on-reserve homes in Canada are without indoor plumbing, and 25 per cent of reserves in...
August 26, 2019
Budget 2019 invests in creation of Indigenous Fire Marshall Office
Government of Canada – Today, the Honourable Seamus O’Regan, Minister of Indigenous Services, announced Budget 2019 funding of $9.97 million over three years, starting in 2019–2020, to support the creation of an Indigenous Fire Marshal Office (IFMO). The funding will support Indigenous partners in the next steps in establishing a new IFMO, including how the...
March 20, 2019
Budget 2019 investments ignores housing crisis in Nunavut
Nationally, Budget 2019 makes major investments in housing. However, the Inuit housing crisis in Nunavut remains largely unaddressed. Housing is a social determinant of health and linked to the on-going tuberculosis epidemic, mental illness, educational outcomes and violence. https://www.tunngavik.com/2019/03/20/nunavut-inuit-left-out-of-the-canadian-middle-class/...
October 30, 2018
Indigenous leaders excluded from Regional Emergency Operations Centre dealing with Fort McMurray fires
Globe and Mail – Indigenous leaders weren’t included in the Regional Emergency Operations Centre where officials from municipalities, the province and Ottawa determined what to do to address the Fort McMurray wildfires. Metis communities weren’t eligible at all. Governments failed to consider the circumstances of Indigenous communities. Many houses damaged in the fire started off...
February 24, 2017
Government ignores request for Indigenous Fire Marshall and building code regulations
Toronto Star – “Fire and death in First Nations”. Not including funds for an Indigenous Fire Marshall and failure to enact building code regulations for home construction on First Nations reserves. Both were recommendations from the Aboriginal Firefighters Association after the high number of fire fatalities on First Nation reserves in the last year. A...
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