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QUEBEC — The Legault government has denounced federal plans to create a renters bill of rights and a standard national lease agreement as an invasion of its powers.
Caught off-guard by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s pre-budget housing announcement Wednesday in Vancouver, two Quebec ministers emerged to say the plan is unacceptable from Quebec’s point of view. It will formally request to opt out of the program and seek financial compensation from Ottawa.
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“The answer is simple, it’s no,” Canadian Relations Minister Jean-François Roberge told reporters following a cabinet meeting. “Tolerating this new invasion of Quebec’s jurisdiction by the federal government, which wants to meddle in our affairs, is out of the question.
“Housing is a Quebec responsibility. If the federal government really wants to help, let it do its work by reducing the level of temporary immigration and the number of asylum seekers. Right now they are artificially increasing the demand for housing, they are causing part of the problem.”
“I am very surprised,” added Quebec Housing Minister France-Élaine Duranceau, who said recent reforms included in Bill 31 adopted by the legislature in February already dealt with many of the renter’s rights issues Trudeau raised in his announcement.
Bill 31 shifts the burden of proof for evictions to landlords instead of requiring tenants to prove they did nothing wrong. The law also requires landlords to pay evicted tenants the equivalent of one month’s rent for every year they have lived in the dwelling.
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“On Quebec’s side, we acted,” Duranceau told reporters. “Maybe they are drawing inspiration from what was done in Quebec but on our side we have acted on all this already.”
She said Quebec has no plans to change its legislative framework which, she noted, makes use of the Civil Code and not common law like the other provinces.
Quebec ruled out the idea of a registry of renters during the last reform process because it was way too expensive to operate, Duranceau said, noting Ontario also cancelled plans for such a registry for the same reason.
The ministers were reacting to Trudeau’s announcement of plans to create a Canadian Renters’ Bill of Rights that would introduce a national standard lease agreement and implement requirements for landlords to disclose an apartment’s pricing history to help tenants negotiate their rent.
The bill would require partnerships with the provinces and territories.
Ottawa also wants to put $15 million into a new Tenant Protection Fund, which would allow housing groups fund legal challenges to unfair rent increases, renovictions and landlord abuse.
It proposes to change federal rules so that rental payments be considered toward’s a person’s credit score when they go to purchase a home.
Duranceau conceded that Quebec may not have anything to say about credit rating since banks are a federal jurisdiction.
But Quebec did not appreciate Ottawa making the announcement — which will be included in the April federal budget — without alerting it in advance.
“It’s a very cavalier way of working,” said Roberge. “It’s clear if this involves additional funding which affects our jurisdiction, we will want the right to opt out with compensation.
“We will opt out,” Roberge said. “It’s unacceptable that they are trying to manage housing here in Quebec.”
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