Sask. NDP introduces rent control legislation, but government says it won't happen
CBC
The Saskatchewan NDP has introduced a long-promised bill that, if passed, would introduce rent control to the province, but the provincial government has maintained it will not vote for rent control.
The NDP's proposal would tie the maximum rent increase allowed to the consumer price index, or CPI, a tool commonly used to measure inflation.
If passed, the private-members bill would make Saskatchewan the sixth province to have some form of rent control legislation.
"Not only has the average rent in Saskatchewan risen for 40 consecutive months, it's increased 24 per cent in just the last two years," said NDP Leader Carla Beck, citing data from Rentals.ca.
The official Opposition spent much of the summer campaigning throughout the province on the issue of rent control.
The NDP produced its own website to solicit feedback and held multiple news conferences highlighting the punishing cost of high rent on seniors, low-income residents and students.
NDP housing critic April ChiefCalf renewed the call Monday, pointing to large corporate landlords as the reason behind dramatic rent increases.
"We heard from countless seniors and young people concerned about 20, sometimes 30 per cent rent increases from big corporate landlords, many of which are headquartered in Alberta and Ontario," ChiefCalf said.
"That has to end."
ChiefCalf has led the charge on the NDP's efforts and introduced the private-members bill on Monday.
Finance Minister Jim Reiter has repeatedly said that rent-control is not how the provincial government wants to address concerns around housing affordability.
Reiter admitted Monday that he had not yet had the opportunity to read the full text of the legislation, but repeated his opposition to the proposal.
"It dries up investment, so we're not likely to support rent control," he said.
Reiter said the province will make housing affordable by leveraging investment from private companies toward the construction of more units.
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