Ontario New Democrats Are On Your Side With Real Solutions To End Encampments

“I will end chronic homelessness and make encampments a thing of the past (by taking” a housing first approach.” – Marit Stiles, Leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party

An Election Message from Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles and her party

Posted February 5^th, 2025 on Niagara At Large

Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles

TORONTO – Ontario NDP Leader Marit Stiles announced a plan to end encampments and tackle chronic homelessness in Ontario.

“After seven long years, Doug Ford’s legacy is encampments in every single town and city in our province. Seeing tents in parks is a stark reminder of how utterly Ford has failed Ontario – on housing, health care, creating good jobs, and making life more affordable.

“As Premier, I will end chronic homelessness and make encampments a thing of the past. We will take a housing-first approach, put a roof over people’s heads, and connect them with the supports they need.”

An Ontario NDP government will:

• * Create 60,000 new supportive housing units, allowing people living in encampments or the shelter system to move into a safe, permanent home, while connecting them to mental healthcare, addiction treatment and other ongoing supports. This commitment is part of our broader Homes Ontario plan to build hundreds of thousands of permanently affordable in the coming years.
• * Upload shelter funding to the province. We will reverse decades of cuts and downloads imposed on cash-strapped municipalities by successive Liberal and Conservative governments, while maintaining locally focused service delivery.
• * More housing benefits that help people move out of shelters, into homes. Doug Ford has withheld funding for programs like the Canada-Ontario Housing Benefit, allowing shelters to overflow. We’ll work with the Federal government to boost the program and help more people move out of shelters into homes, freeing up shelter beds in the process.
• * Stop people from losing their homes by bringing forward real protections for renters and doubling social assistance rates so people can better keep up with the cost of housing. The best way to end homelessness is help people stay in their homes.

Facts:

• * According to the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (https://www.amo.on.ca/policy/health-emergency-and-social-services/amo-launches-groundbreaking-homelessness-study-ontario) AMO, more than 80,000 Ontarians experienced homelessness in 2024, a 25% increase since 2022, and could double in the next decade.
• * In rural communities, AMO found homelessness has grown over 150% since 2016, and over 204% since 2016 in Northern Ontario.

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