441-02003 (Social affairs and equality)

The Government of Canada thanks the petitioners for sharing their concerns about the right to a safe and affordable place to call home.

Providing a safe and secure space for persons fleeing domestic violence is a priority for our Government. The National Housing Strategy (NHS), a 10-year, more than $82-billion plan launched in 2017, is giving more people living in Canada a place to call home. The NHS consists of complementary programs and initiatives that aim to address needs across the housing continuum and prioritize populations most in need, including women and their children. The federal government aims to put 33% of the strategy’s investments, with a minimum of 25%, toward serving the unique needs of women and their children.

NHS programs and initiatives support the creation of shelters, such as the $13.2 billion Affordable Housing Fund, previously known as the National Housing Co-Investment Fund, which aims to create 2,000 new shelter spaces and repair 2,000 shelters for survivors of family violence. As of September 30, 2023, the Government of Canada has committed to create 1,388 new shelter spaces or transitional housing units available for survivors of gender-based violence, and to repair/renew a further 347 shelter spaces or transitional housing units.  

The Government recognizes that Indigenous women and children face unique challenges and barriers to housing. For those who experience violence, a shelter is often a first step to rebuilding their lives and protecting them from further violence. The NHS includes programming and funding exclusively for shelters in Indigenous communities and in the North. This includes $420 million through the Indigenous Shelter and Transitional Housing Initiative to build a minimum of 38 shelters and 50 new transitional homes for Indigenous women, children and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people escaping gender-based violence. As of September 30, 2023, the Government of Canada has committed $89 million toward the construction of 11 shelters and 23 transitional homes through this program.

In May 2020, our government committed $44.8 million to build a total of 12 new shelters across Canada for Indigenous women, children, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people escaping family violence. These Indigenous-led shelters will provide vital refuge and culturally appropriate critical supports and services to help survivors of family violence recover from the trauma of their experiences, access support programming and create a stable environment where they can begin to regain an independent life. They are also a crucial element of the Federal Pathway to Address Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ People, the Government of Canada’s response to the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, and an important contribution to the National Action Plan to end violence against Indigenous women, and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people.

Gender-based violence is one of the most pervasive, deadly and deeply rooted human rights violation of our time.  This is why the Government of Canada is taking action.  

The pandemic created unprecedented challenges for those experiencing gender-based violence (GBV) and the organizations providing supports and services to them. While preventing and addressing GBV is a shared responsibility between the federal, provincial, and territorial governments, the Government of Canada acted swiftly in 2020 to provide an initial $90 million in COVID-19 emergency funding, through Women and Gender Equality Canada, to organizations across Canada serving those experiencing GBV. A year into the pandemic, the government responded to high demand and pressing needs by more than tripling the funding support and extending the timeframe for this emergency measure through Budget 2021. Since April 2020, approximately $300 million in total funding has been committed to organizations, providing emergency funding to over 1,400 organizations including women’s shelters, sexual assault centres, and other GBV organizations. As a result, more than 2 million individuals experiencing violence had a safe place to go, and access to supports across Canada.  These investments served as an emergency response to the crisis above and beyond the ongoing work under the Federal Gender-Based Violence Strategy.

Like other COVID-19 emergency measures introduced by the federal government since 2020, this temporary measure has come to an end. However, the Government of Canada remains committed to addressing GBV:

• Budget 2021 invests $601.3 million over five years in initiatives to advance towards the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence. This included $200 million (of the $300 million) specifically for COVID-19 emergency funding. 
• Budget 2022 invests a further $539.3 million over five years to support provinces and territories with the implementation of the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence.

On November 9, 2022,  Federal-Provincial-Territorial Ministers Responsible for the Status of Women launched a historic 10-year National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence. This Plan is a concrete step in fulfilling a long-standing commitment of Federal, Provincial and Territorial governments to work together towards a Canada free of gender-based violence.  The Plan is supported by an investment of $539.3 million over five years, committed in Budget 2022, to support the provinces and territories in their implementation efforts.  This funding is provided to provinces and territories through bilateral agreements.

As of December 2023, the Government of Canada announced agreements with all provinces and territories. These agreements, along with the respective provincial/territorial implementation plans are available on Women and Gender Equality Canada’s website.