Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I am quite astounded to see my Conservative colleagues so obsessed by the inflation rate, and whether it's 4.1%, 4.8% or 5.1%, when people are freezing to death on the streets of Montreal. People are dying because, in the last 30 years, no one has managed to find them a place to live. Various federal governments have been faced with the problem. It's quite fascinating. Just a few days ago, a lady died because no one found housing for her.
There was an encampment on rue Notre-Dame; people put up tents. A number of homeless people do not want to go to shelters. They want housing but there is none, much less affordable housing. Why are we obsessed with numbers while people, human beings, are freezing to death because we haven't been able to do our job?
I would like to hear Ms. Laflamme speak about the topic once more. The result of the federal government's lack of investment, its lack of commitment, over the last 30 years is that Quebec has developed a social and community approach to homelessness.
Clearly, housing has to be found for the homeless. But if no one teaches them how to make a budget, to pay their bills and to buy groceries, and if they are not provided with psychological support, they will be back on the street in three months. That's a fact. Quebec has developed an approach for this, but it must be funded.
I would like Ms. Laflamme to talk to us about the importance of supporting communities as well as building housing. That would prevent cases like those we have seen in Montreal in recent weeks.