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Global News
2 days ago
- Politics
- Global News
Montreal mayor wants Quebec government to appoint a homelessness minister
Montreal Mayor Valérie Plante is asking the Quebec government to appoint a 'top gun' for homelessness ahead of an expected provincial cabinet shuffle. She made the request at a news conference on Tuesday during which she also proposed to spend nearly $22.5 million to tackle homelessness. Plante asked Premier François Legault 'to make a strong gesture, up to the magnitude of the crisis raging throughout Quebec.' Legault has said he will shuffle his cabinet this fall, amid rising dissatisfaction with his government. Plante said it's the right time to have a minister dedicated to managing what she called a humanitarian crisis. Homelessness 'deserves a top gun,' Plante said, borrowing an expression Legault uses for his top staff. Homelessness currently falls under the responsibility of Lionel Carmant, who is the minister responsible for social services. Story continues below advertisement Plante said her request was not a slight towards Carmant, who she described as an 'ally.' However, she said a problem as 'complex and deep-rooted' as homelessness needed more attention. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy 'I would like it to be in their title, in big letters,' she said. 'It would be their mission, their cause, their fight to find lasting solutions.' She said the minister could work with people who are experiencing homelessness, but also with different government departments, including housing and health and social services. The heads of two of Montreal's biggest homeless shelters also stressed the need for more action from higher levels of government. James Hughes, the president and CEO of the Old Brewery Mission, praised Carmant's dedication and knowledge of the homeless file, but said it would help 'enormously' to have more power, budget and attention dedicated to the issue. Sam Watts, the head of the Welcome Hall Mission, said all levels of government need to show more courage. 'Mr. Carmant has done good things, but the magnitude of the crisis demands a different response,' he said. A fundamental problem, he said, is that politicians are elected for a four-year cycle, when the homeless crisis has been brewing for decades 'and continues to grow.' 'So, what should we do?' he said. 'We should have a plan for 10 years or 20 years, and the political courage to say, 'Hey! We have to plan for more than four years.' Story continues below advertisement Plante's new spending proposals include a number of projects, such as a $700,000 allocation for shuttle services to transport vulnerable people toward resources. She also proposed to grant about $21 million to roughly 40 community organizations over the next three years to address homelessness. Plante said the funds would come from the city, but she's also encouraging other levels of government to step up in the fight against homelessness. The city's executive committee will study the proposals before making decisions. Legault's office said in an email that announcements about the cabinet shuffle would be made 'in due time.' A recent report by Montreal's public consultation office found that visible homelessness grew 33 per cent between 2018 and 2022. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 19, 2025.
Global News
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Global News
Milton-Parc citizens' committee calls for more action on homelessness
A group of residents in the city's Plateau-Mont-Royal borough is proposing solutions to the homelessness problem in their neighbourhood. Members of the Milton-Parc Good Neighbourhood Committee say they deplore what they see as a 'lack of leadership' among various levels of government, and are urging decision-makers to take action. One of them, Martin Coles, lives near the corner of Milton Street and Parc Avenue where he says living conditions are clearly deteriorating. 'We see the problem here as a humanitarian problem,' he pointed out while chatting with unhoused residents at the intersection. The area has become a gathering spot for the unhoused population who spend day and night on the sidewalks. The neighbourhood committee was created in 2022 to try to understand the situation and propose solutions. Story continues below advertisement 'We wrote our report, which we've just released, and it contains five big recommendations,' Coles said. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy In addition to calling for a better dispersion of services for the unhoused, wider sidewalks and more trees along Parc Avenue, the group wants the city to expropriate the empty lot and building at south-east area of the intersection to build social housing, with the needs of the area's Inuit in mind. They also want authorities to establish a single committee empowered to coordinate the four levels of government in implementing a plan to tackle homelessness. Coles wants a single body to coordinate the resources to help to break down siloes. 'Each level of government is concerned with its own immediate resources and things,' he stressed. It's something that's long concerned others who serve the homeless community, like Sam Watts, Welcome Hall Mission CEO 'This is what I've been saying — we need to have all government levels coming together, and we need to do it quickly,' he told Global News. He stressed that the idea of housing people and providing services to help ensure they can stay there makes sense, adding that it's key to create a community where people facing similar circumstances can support each other. Story continues below advertisement 'Because simply putting somebody between four walls and a roof is never enough.' The Milton-Parc Neighbourhod Committee hopes all levels of government will make concrete moves soon to help the most vulnerable.
