With Budget Day 2024 happening next Tuesday, today, the Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, the Honourable Chrystia Freeland and Honourable Sean Fraser unveiled a new round of measures in housing policy, with a focus on skilled trades development, as well as a new $15 billion round of investment in the Apartment Construction Loan Program. CASA is encouraged by continued attention to housing, especially to the importance of promoting skilled trades post-secondary training and we look forward to details in Budget 2024 on April 16th. 

Investments in the Apprenticeship Service Program and Skilled Trades Awareness and Readiness program will strengthen the training network for apprentices in Canada. These funds will provide funding for communication to prospective apprentices, especially from marginalized communities, and will support employers creating apprenticeship spots within their companies. CASA sees these as positive investments which would be well supplemented by direct support to apprentices through the Apprenticeship Incentive Grant. 

Topping up the Apartment Construction Loan Program will ensure ready access to funds for post-secondary institutions looking to build housing. CASA will continue to push for implementation of post-secondary eligibility for this fund with the student context in mind.

You can find the Government’s New Release here.

CASA is encouraged by the government recognition of students as being affected by the housing crisis and as part of the solution. We will work with the government to ensure it upholds its student focus in its new housing plan. Canada must ensure that rental affordability measures consider the over two million Canadian post-secondary students who are often renters and among the most housing-vulnerable, and that student affordability metrics are core in measuring the success of the government’s housing policy.