NDP renews call for federal help for looming mortgage and rent crisis

OTTAWA – With the first of the month just days away, New Democrat Leader Jagmeet Singh, NDP Finance Critic Peter Julian, and NDP Housing Critic Jenny Kwan have written to the Prime Minister, renewing their call for a moratorium on rent, mortgage and utility payments.

“Renters, landlords, and homeowners urgently need our help,” they wrote in the letter. “The federal government must act immediately, before April, to suspend rent, utility bills and mortgage payments and impose a moratorium on evictions across the country.”

The New Democrats also called on the federal government to mandate the banks to waive interest fees and charges on credit cards, bank loans, lines of credit and mortgages for at least the next two payments cycles.

“The federal government needs to do much more to help people facing this crisis, particularly Indigenous Peoples. Food, shelter, and essentials need to be provided. Help is needed now,” they wrote. “The federal government possesses numerous policy tools to enact this urgent policy. Let’s put in place effective solutions to ensure that no one is left behind in these extraordinary times.”