Quebec housing minister refuses amendments to law protecting seniors from eviction
Housing Minister France-Élaine Duranceau refused to improve the "Loi Françoise David" aimed at better protecting seniors from eviction, despite amendments tabled by Québec solidaire (QS) and the Parti québécois (PQ) on Tuesday.
According to Duranceau, her bill already contains several measures to protect people from evictions, regardless of age.
In 2016, Françoise David -- then a QS MNA for Gouin -- unanimously passed the "Act to amend the Civil Code to protect the rights of senior tenants." The law prevents a landlord from evicting seniors aged 70 and over who have occupied their dwelling for at least 10 years and whose income is equivalent to or below the maximum threshold to qualify for social housing.
During Tuesday's study of Bill 31 on housing, QS MNA Andrés Fontecilla and PQ MNA Joël Arseneau tabled several amendments to extend the protection offered by the "Françoise David Act."
Among other things, they proposed lowering the age limit from 70 to 65 and reducing the length of employment required to benefit from this protection from ten to five years.
"With the deepening housing crisis, it has become necessary to make another turn of the screw to this legislation to better protect senior tenants, who are often the victims of unscrupulous [landlords]," said Fontecilla.
"It's a question of improving the social safety net for the elderly. ... When we say that the phenomenon of homelessness has doubled and we see elderly people in it. These are people who have not been protected by the State of Quebec," said Arseneau.
Minister Duranceau and her CAQ colleagues voted against the QS and PQ proposals, justifying her refusal by saying that her bill would put in place several mechanisms to protect tenants against eviction. It will reverse the burden of proof for evictions to put the onus on the landlord.
If a tenant fails to respond to an eviction notice, he or she will not be deemed to have accepted it by default, as is currently the case. Finally, the legislation will also require a landlord who evicts a tenant to compensate him or her with one month's rent for each year of continuous residence in the dwelling.
"There are many people who are not vulnerable at 65. So we're protecting those who are with eviction measures, and that's where we're taking action," the minister said.
Duranceau has repeatedly stated that her objective is to increase the housing supply on the market to alleviate the current crisis.
Study of Bill 31 resumed on Tuesday after being put on pause for the holidays. There are currently no further sessions scheduled for the rest of the week.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Jan. 30, 2024.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.