BILL C-

``Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.'';

``The States Parties to the present Covenant recognize the right of everyone to an adequate standard of living for himself and his family, including adequate food, clothing and housing, and to the continuous improvement of living conditions. The States Parties will take appropriate steps to ensure the realization of this right.'';

``The Committee is gravely concerned that such a wealthy country as Canada has allowed the problem of homelessness and inadequate housing to grow to such proportions that the mayors of Canada's 10 largest cities have now declared homelessness a national disaster.'';

``The Committee recommends that the federal, provincial and territorial governments address homelessness and inadequate housing as a national emergency by reinstating or increasing, as the case may be, social housing programs for those in need, improving and properly enforcing anti-discrimination legislation in the field of housing, increasing shelter allowances and social assistance rates to realistic levels, providing adequate support services for persons with disabilities, improving protection of security of tenure for tenants and improving protection of affordable rental housing stock from conversion to other uses. The Committee urges the State Party to implement a national strategy for the reduction of homelessness and poverty.'';

(a) a right to security of tenure against arbitrary eviction, forced relocation, expropriation or threat of any of them, or against any other form of harassment;

(b) a right to housing that is appropriate to the individual's special needs, including the availability of attention combined with independence;

(c) a right for all children, women and men to a home in a safe and healthy environment;

(d) a right to a home free from violence, threat of violence or other form of harassment, both domestic and from outside the home;

(e) a right to enjoyment and respect of privacy in the home;

(f) a right to the economic security that results from protection from rent increases, property tax increases or other housing cost increases that

(i) are sudden or excessive,

(ii) are primarily intended to yield an unreasonable profit or to increase the value of rental property, or

(iii) have the effect of diminishing the other rights established by this Act.

(a) to a fine of not more than $5000 for a first offence; and

(b) to a fine of not more than $10,000 or to imprisonment for not more than six months or to both fine and imprisonment for a second or subsequent offence.

GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND HOUSING STRATEGY

(a) financial assistance in respect of rent for those who are otherwise unable to afford the rights to rental housing established by this Act; and

(b) availability of finance and credit without discrimination based on a characteristic listed as a forbidden ground of discrimination in subsection 3(3) for those who, with such finance and credit, may be able to purchase housing.

(a) is adequate, affordable, accessible, and not for profit in the case of those who cannot otherwise afford it;

(b) reflects the needs of local communities, including aboriginal communities;

(c) does not cost more than thirty percent of the occupants' pre-tax household income;

(d) is appropriate for different needs and provides reasonable design options, including, in an appropriate proportion, access for the elderly and the disabled;

(e) uses design and equipment standardization where appropriate to accelerate construction and minimize cost;

(f) includes not-for-profit rental housing projects, mixed income not-for-profit housing cooperatives, special-needs housing and housing that allows senior citizens to remain in their homes as long as possible;

(g) includes the housing for the homeless specified in section 11;

(h) includes provision for temporary emergency housing and shelter in the event of disasters and crises; and

(i) complies with standards for the maintenance of existing housing stock or for the construction and maintenance of new housing and appropriate health, security and safety standards.

(a) those who have had not had adequate, accessible and affordable housing over an extended period;

(b) those with special housing requirements because of family status or size or because of a mental or physical disability; and

(c) those who have difficulty in obtaining housing because of a characteristic listed as a forbidden ground of discrimination in subsection 3(2).

(a) develop standards and objectives for the national housing strategy described in section 8, and programs to carry it out;

(b) set targets for the commencement of the programs;

(c) recommend a time by which an additional one percent of the annual expenditures of the federal and all provincial and municipal governments during the fiscal year ending March 31, 2002 are to be assigned to national housing programs throughout Canada; and

(d) develop the principles of an agreement between the federal and all provincial governments and representatives of the municipalities and aboriginal communities for the development and delivery of the programs.