Conservatives demand an ethical investigation into Carney's plan to buy unsold apartments in British Columbia

Ottawa —
The Conservatives have escalated their attack on Prime Minister Mark Carney's government, after the Ethics Committee chair confirmed holding a meeting to discuss a request for an investigation into a potential conflict of interest related to a government plan to purchase unsold housing units in British Columbia.

The Conservatives see the plan as an indirect bailout for real estate developers and financiers, by using taxpayers' money to buy apartments that the market could not absorb, instead of letting prices fall to allow buyers to enter the market.

Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre had called for an ethical investigation into the proposal, considering that the government is granting a new privilege to a group close to the Liberals, while Canadians, especially young people and renters, bear the cost of policies that have failed to reduce housing prices.

This debate comes at a time when the rental crisis continues to pressure Canadian families, despite the decline in average rents offered from their peak in some markets.

A recent survey showed that affordability remains the biggest challenge for renters in Canada, with 70% of participants saying that rising prices are the main obstacle in their search for housing, compared to much lower percentages who pointed to weak supply or unsuitable available units.

The numbers reveal a wide gap between renters' budgets and market reality, as 42% of them are looking for units costing less than $1,500 per month, while the national average rent is $2,029, rising to more than $2,700 in Vancouver, and more than $2,500 in Toronto.

The survey also indicated that 40% of renters are looking for new housing in order to find an option they can afford financially, reflecting a forced rather than voluntary move in a market where cost has become the decisive factor.

The Conservatives say the plan to buy unsold apartments does not address the roots of the crisis, but may maintain high prices by protecting developers from market losses, at a time when Canadians need policies that increase real supply and reduce construction and purchase costs.

The opposition accuses the government of failing to fulfill its commitments related to building hundreds of thousands of homes annually, pointing out that the pace of construction is still far from the announced targets, and that housing market forecasts indicate a further slowdown in the number of new units.

In contrast, the Conservatives propose an approach based on reducing bureaucracy, speeding up permit issuance, and removing what they describe as local and tax obstacles that delay construction and raise its cost.

The ongoing debate about the plan confirms that the housing file has become at the heart of the political confrontation in Canada, between a government that says it is seeking innovative solutions to convert vacant units into affordable housing, and an opposition that sees the path to homeownership not through bailing out developers, but through lowering prices and increasing real construction.