MNI BRIEF: Canada Needs CAD1 Trln To Fix Housing Squeeze- CMHC

Canada's housing agency said Tuesday that at least CAD1 trillion is needed to restore affordability by the end of this decade, far beyond what officials are offering to fix what's become a dominant issue eroding support for Justin Trudeau's Liberal government.

More must be done by governments and private investors according to the report from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, which affirmed its estimate that an extra 3.5 million units are needed by 2030. Trudeau came to power in 2015 with a decade-long plan to boost housing that cost less than CAD100 billion, and has sought to do more recently as polls show him lagging the Conservatives. The trillion-dollar figure amounts to about a third of Canada's annual GDP. (See: MNI INTERVIEW: Trudeau Must Fix Housing Without Fanning Prices)