PM Justin Trudeau's Canada

[Coolibop]

I will also add that some are switching to electricity to heat homes with heat pumps - they are simply more efficient. Enbridge and the feds put up rebates for those to switch - those programs have already wound down, because the money was all used up.

The higher-than-expected uptake of heat pumps under the Greener Homes Grant program and the relatively high cost of heat pumps (compared to other retrofits) has meant that the average grant payment size to Canadians under the Greener Homes Grant program (over $4,200) has been significantly higher than initially expected.

Source

 

[Richard White]

I will also add that some are switching to electricity to heat homes with heat pumps - they are simply more efficient. Enbridge and the feds put up rebates for those to switch - those programs have already wound down, because the money was all used up.


Source

They are more efficient.. in places like California, Louisiana and possibly BC.

Once the temperature gets to zero or slightly below they become less efficient and the electric backup heating kicks in. There have been horror stories about people being told they are more energy efficient only to find out they cost more in the winter.

They work well in warm or mild climates but they would work primarily from electric heating in places like Winnipeg over the winter.

 

[evandyk]

Even if people aren't buying electric cars (which they are, but it will take many years), the whole point of the price on carbon is to get people with gas cars to drive fewer km. And even if they don't switch from carbon-intensive home heating, to get people with oil/gas heating to turn down the thermostat a degree or two.

 

[afransen]

They are more efficient.. in places like California, Louisiana and possibly BC.

Once the temperature gets to zero or slightly below they become less efficient and the electric backup heating kicks in. There have been horror stories about people being told they are more energy efficient only to find out they cost more in the winter.

They work well in warm or mild climates but they would work primarily from electric heating in places like Winnipeg over the winter.

This is woefully out of date.

Cold climate heat pumps have COP >1 down to as low as -25C.

What is a cold climate heat pump? • CleanBC Better Homes

Heat pumps are the perfect heating system option for colder parts of British Columbia. While in these regions, cold climate heat pumps are recommended, they become increasingly popular even in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island. Cold climate heat pumps are built to work efficiently in...

www.betterhomesbc.ca

 

[afransen]

Even if people aren't buying electric cars (which they are, but it will take many years), the whole point of the price on carbon is to get people with gas cars to drive fewer km. And even if they don't switch from carbon-intensive home heating, to get people with oil/gas heating to turn down the thermostat a degree or two.

It also encourages people to:
Choose a hybrid over conventional ICE
Choose a more efficient ICE over less efficient in the same class
Choose a smaller ICE vehicle (get a midsize SUV instead of full-size or a pickup, etc).

 

[evandyk]

Yeah, it leaves all of the choice up to you, which is why conservatives have traditionally embraced carbon pricing as the most freedom-enhancing way to target emission reductions.

 

[Northern Light]

The Globe has a series of pieces on housing on its front page at the moment.

The first of these (linked below) is on the subject of temporary residents in Canada (TFWs, International Students and Asylum seekers) who collectively now represent 2.7M of us, roughly double what it was just 2 years ago!

A whopping 6.5% of the population.

Temporary residents jump to 2.7 million as Ottawa tries to curb migration

The total – which includes international students, asylum seekers and people on work permits – has nearly doubled in two years, according to Statscan data released Wednesday

www.theglobeandmail.com

Economists are cited expressing exasperation that the supply side of the economy can't possibly keep up:

The level of growth is utterly unprecedented in the last 80 years:

If you assumed Ontario's growth were only in line w/the national rate (It was almost certainly higher); that would require 175, 680 new homes (residential units) just to tread water from 2022 levels. Housing starts in Ontario were under 110,000 last year.

 

[Northern Light]

In this next piece, columnist Tony Keller eviscerates the Liberals for less than half hearted measures to reign in the problems outlined above.

Opinion: The Liberals broke the immigration system at high speed. They’re repairing it by baby steps

Immigration Minister Marc Miller has pledged to reduce the share of temporary residents to 5 per cent by 2027, a record high it took 3 months to achieve

www.theglobeandmail.com

From the above:

****

*****

He then goes on to discuss how we got here, in respect of the TFW side of things:

****

He then laments that the Minister seems to think the biggest problem w/the program is its branding, rather than its substance.

Keller goes on to advocate an immigration system that seeks out the best and brightest, not a "Suppress wages at the bottom scheme"

Great piece, can't say I disagree with a word of it.

 

[jje1000]

I mean does it matter if the Liberals have already allowed the caps to be violated in practice?

IMO see two important elements that have led us to this point of infinity immigration as 1.)Immigration advocates/lawyers (immigration industry), the total belief in 'immigration' (reduced to a sacred inherent good), and immigrants (who vote in blocs and want family reunion)—which deflects criticism of mass immigration to a debate in the margins while entrenching it in society/politics, and 2.) Businesses (big and small)—who want to bypass actual productivity investment by instead destroying the value of labour and thereby suppressing worker wages.

Though these might seem to be politically opposed (liberal- vs conservative-coded), they both work hand-in-hand. The Star might publish some sob-stories about 'the poor immigrants ' and the National Post might whine about the birth rate and the lack of 'skilled labourers', but the net result is about the same.

Ironically, infinity immigration is also mortgaging out a country's reputation in exchange for warm bodies, many of whom are instead disappointed to find themselves stuck tending these minimum-wage jobs instead of the dream they were promised. This ultimately destroys a country's reputation as a destination for skilled immigration (especially as the Global South begins to offer more opportunities to these individuals to stay home), and instead increasingly relegates immigration to the realm of low-skill labourers and refugees.

Likewise, infinity immigration and the societal waves it brings has a strong chance of prying apart the monolith that is the total belief in immigration, and reintroduce discourse into the actual pros and cons of mass immigration. Perhaps a few more cycles from now, a prospective PM supporting dramatically reduced immigration might no longer be courting political suicide—but at what cost?

Housing Crisis, Packed Hospitals and Food Lines: Even in Canada?​

From Montreal to Vancouver, some residents are losing faith in a longstanding social safety net that is central to the country’s identity.
27 March 2024 at 10:00 GMT-4

Canada is growing faster than any other Group of Seven nation, China or India, thanks to welcoming immigration policies intended to be a solution to falling birth rates. As longtime residents and newcomers alike struggle to meet their basic needs, there are growing worries about nascent anti-immigration sentiment.
[...]
The net result runs counter to the country’s longstanding vision of itself as a rich nation with a robust system of social supports that celebrates diversity and has historically relied on immigration as a pillar of economic growth. Although prone to exaggeration, it’s an ideal that has, nonetheless, long been part of Canada’s international brand, especially in comparisons with the US.

Before she left India, Thakur considered studying in the UK, Australia and the US but says she chose Canada because it seemed to offer the best long-term prospects for success. Although grateful for the opportunities that do exist, she says she wishes she’d chosen differently, and housing is a big part of why.

“My friends are calling, and they’re crying: ‘Is this the way a human lives?’ Excuse me, they’re living like animals.”

Housing Crisis, Packed Hospitals and Drug Overdoses: What Happened to Canada?

From Toronto to Vancouver, some residents are losing faith in a government social safety net that is central to the country’s identity.

www.bloomberg.com

 

[123GTA123]

Interesting announcement. Tying in Credit Scores to rent payment I think is an extremely positive thing.

Fairness for every generation

One of the biggest pressures on young people right now is housing. This is particularly true for renters – where it feels like the deck is stacked against them. They are facing skyrocketing rents, renovictions, unfair competition, and a lack of housing options. While we’ve taken bold action to...

www.pm.gc.ca

Here's what Trudeau says the upcoming federal budget will offer renters

The federal government will create a new 'Canadian Renters' Bill of Rights,' which would require landlords to disclose their properties' rental price history to prospective tenants.

www.ctvnews.ca

 

[kEiThZ]

Tying in Credit Scores to rent payment I think is an extremely positive thing.

Tokenism.

And won't do much when we are growing this fast:

Canada’s population hits 41M months after breaking 40M threshold | Globalnews.ca

Nine months after reaching 40 million people, Canada cracked a new threshold on Wednesday, the same day Statistics Canada released a report showing the pace of population growth.

globalnews.ca

This article goes over the fact that Millennials and Zoomers have substantially soured on this government and have moved from Liberals to Conservatives. It's going to take results (where they actual see better affordability) than simply a pledge of having a better credit score.

 

[kEiThZ]

Right on cue. This is why the feds constantly trying to run the provinces won't work:

Trudeau's housing plan 'meddling' in Quebec jurisdictions: Roberge

"The answer is simple, it's no," the Canadian relations minister says of Ottawa's plan to intervene in the housing crisis.

montrealgazette.com

If they want to fix the housing crisis, they should stick to levers they control.

 

[lenaitch]

Right on cue. This is why the feds constantly trying to run the provinces won't work:

Trudeau's housing plan 'meddling' in Quebec jurisdictions: Roberge

"The answer is simple, it's no," the Canadian relations minister says of Ottawa's plan to intervene in the housing crisis.

montrealgazette.com

If they want to fix the housing crisis, they should stick to levers they control.

I'm surprised how no one in the Liberal backroom didn't see this coming (or perhaps did and didn't care). Opting out and wanting compensation is textbook Quebec. I agree that the feds and provinces should stay in their lanes, except it always seems to be a moving line.

 

[kEiThZ]

I'm surprised how no one in the Liberal backroom didn't see this coming (or perhaps did and didn't care). Opting out and wanting compensation is textbook Quebec. I agree that the feds and provinces should stay in their lanes, except it always seems to be a moving line.

They don't care. This government and its base is desperate to tell the provinces what to do. That's somewhat tolerable when they are using the powers of the purse and trying to encourage change with the lure of dollars. But now we're getting to the point where they are telling provinces how to write rental contracts.

I'm guessing they believe the way out of their political predicament is to push hard against the provinces and then blame them for the housing crisis. I don't think it'll work. But somebody in the LPC back offices seems to be thinking otherwise.

 

[evandyk]

It's very difficult to operationalize a million small-time landlords reporting on rent payments to a credit bureau or whatever other bureaucracy they think they'll set up. In any event, do renters want whoever owns the basement apartment they're renting to be able to ruin their credit if their rent cheque is a few days late? It might be a great idea, but I'd be careful what they're wishing for... Imagine how much fun it's going to be trying to convince your landlord to correct an error in reporting to a credit bureau. It's just another thing for landlords to wield power with over tenants.

And how does the government propose forcing lenders to consider whatever information is generated by this reporting. It's not like there's legislation today forcing anybody to take credit scores at face value or do anything on the basis of them (there's some weak protections in some provinces against making decisions on the basis of wrong information that's gone into your credit score).