Open this photo in gallery:
Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre speaks during a news conference in Ottawa on Thursday.Adrian Wyld/The Canadian Press
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is calling on Parliament to probe Ottawa’s proposal to convert unsold condominium units in British Columbia into affordable housing.
In a letter to the House ethics committee, Poilievre says a program to possibly help finance the purchase of 2,200 vacant condos amounts to a “condo bailout” for developers, bankers and investors.
Prime Minister Mark Carney says the idea is to support Canadians needing housing, but Poilievre says the Liberals are intervening in the market to help developers who built too many condos that didn’t fit demand.
Carney defends $1.45-billion plan to convert B.C. condo units to affordable housing
Carney has said his government did not explain the program well when he announced it on June 18, saying it is part of the B.C. government’s plans to help homebuyers struggling to save for a down payment.
Poilievre says the proposal will instead prop up high prices as it “prevents a price correction from taking place,” and he argues there are inconsistencies in how the project came about.
Housing Minister Gregor Robertson’s office did not have an immediate comment on the letter, which was sent to the Conservative who chairs the committee, which has a majority Liberal membership.