Who made the choice to shut down housing subsidy?

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 21/09/2024 (351 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The unexpectedness of it all must’ve been the worst part.

Cutting a housing initiative that will force many vulnerable Manitobans into homelessness just as we’re heading into the winter months is a surprise move by the NDP government no one could have predicted.

The shock rippled through the community and hundreds of people who are dependent on rent top-ups are suddenly left scrambling, undoubtedly fearing they’ll be out on the street or left to languish in a shelter during the upcoming winter months.

It should be noted that this housing benefit axed by the NDP is a rent supplement that prioritized some of the most vulnerable people in our province, including youth exiting the child welfare system, families fleeing domestic violence and people with mental health issues, to name a few.

The fact that the program was over-subscribed is no surprise at all and speaks to the challenge our society is facing right now.

Putting a “pause” on applications will only increase the number of people unhoused, a move that supposedly even caught Premier Wab Kinew off guard.

In a media interview yesterday, the premier made a surprise admission that he learned about the housing cut while listening to talk radio on his drive into work.

Say what? A cut of this magnitude escaped his prior notice? That’s surprising.

Yet the premier went on to say that he would have rather liked hearing a better news story about the “great work (they’re) doing on homelessness.”

Sure, wouldn’t we all, unless you happen to be someone learning that your funding application won’t be processed.

I digress. But as hard as it is to believe that the premier knew nothing of the funding cut, it begs the question: if he isn’t responsible, who is?

His housing minister? The one who just returned from a $30,000-trip to Houston in July to study the renowned “Houston approach” on addressing homelessness? I highly doubt it.

Having once served as the housing minister myself with the current minister, Bernadette Smith, as my critic, I don’t believe for one minute that she initiated this funding cut.

I know her to be a passionate housing advocate who undoubtedly believes in creating solutions to addressing homelessness, even if it comes with a hefty price tag. To me, it’s implausible that she would’ve acted unilaterally.

Was it her department, then? Again, I’d have to say this borders on impossible.

What’s important to note here is that the assistant deputy minister, who had the dubious task of informing housing organizations that the government was “pausing” intake on the rent-top up program, is the same one who was the architect of a $126-million homelessness strategy unveiled by my former PC government a mere 18 months ago.

Not in a million years could anyone convince me she was behind the wheel on this funding cut.

So then who was?

I’m going out on a limb because I obviously no longer have a seat at the table, but from my experience, I would guess it was the Treasury Board who ordered the cut.

How these things typically go in government is that when there’s an over-expenditure in one area, the minister responsible for the program then goes to Treasury Board, sometimes with tail between the legs and doughnuts in hand, asking for an in-year increase to her budget.

In Treasury Board language, this is called a “request without an identified funding source.”

It is an uncomfortable position to be in, for sure, but as a minister invested in her program areas, it’s a risk worth taking, and one I’m sure this current housing minister rigorously advocated for.

Obviously, it didn’t go her way, leaving the minister in a terrible position with many people scratching their heads, supposedly even the premier.

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(As an aside, no one would stop Premier Kinew from attending these Treasury Board meetings or approving the minutes.)

I’m certain the Treasury Board would have offered a refrain about fiscal realities and a story about no money left for out-of-budget expenditures.

Yet I can’t help but wonder how that song and dance is going over with the NDP crowd still scratching their heads about the gas tax cut.

Undoubtedly, that will soon be a topic of conversation, if not around the Treasury Board table, certainly in the cabinet room.

But it appears to me that the NDP government is suffering from the long view of looking three years out instead of what’s happening right under their noses.