Defence Minister David McGuinty has refused to roll back recent rent increases on military housing, telling MPs that higher rents are needed to pay for repairs and upgrades after auditors found widespread problems on bases.Blacklock's Reporter says in a written response to the House of Commons defence committee, McGuinty rejected a recommendation to freeze on-base rents, saying rental revenue is essential to maintain Department of National Defence properties.“The Government of Canada disagrees with this recommendation,” McGuinty wrote, adding that rental income is “important for the maintenance and upkeep” of military housing.Cabinet approved an average rent hike of 4.2% in 2024, pushing typical monthly rents on bases to roughly $972 before the increase. The defence committee had urged the minister to reverse the April 1, 2024 hike in a September 23 report examining housing and support gaps faced by Canadian Armed Forces members and their families.According to the report, the Canadian Forces Housing Agency manages 11,530 housing units nationwide while coping with a waiting list of about 4,500 military families..McGuinty defended the increases as a reflection of market conditions. He said the housing agency reviews rental rates annually and adjusts them based on local costs, insisting military housing remains affordable.“Occupants are protected from being charged more than 25% of their annual gross household income,” he wrote, noting families can request rent reductions if their circumstances change during the year.The decision comes amid sharp criticism from auditors. A report released October 21 faulted National Defence for mismanaging its housing stock, leaving service members assigned to overcrowded or deteriorating homes that failed to meet departmental standards.Auditor General Karen Hogan said some housing lacked basic necessities. “Some buildings were in poor condition, lacking basic amenities such as safe drinking water or working toilets,” she told reporters at the time..She described conditions ranging from broken toilets to structural damage, adding these were not standards Canadians would accept, particularly for members of the armed forces.Internal defence audits have also acknowledged the scale of the problem. National Defence is the federal government’s second-largest landlord after Public Works, managing roughly 21,000 buildings.A 2024 Audit of Defence Infrastructure found about 25% of military infrastructure is more than 50 years old and in need of major maintenance, repairs and recapitalization to meet health, safety and environmental requirements.
