Since buying my home in 2015, I’ve played a game with every politician who tells me they have a 'housing affordability' plan. I put on a worried face and say, “but… I just bought my home. How much cheaper? Will I be underwater on my mortgage!?”.Without fail, every politician starts doing backflips and tells me not to worry. You see, their plan will make every existing home go up in value, while providing plenty of new similar homes at much lower prices and everyone gets a unicorn!.No one had a realistic plan to build affordable homes in existing neighbourhoods. That is, until the 2022 Conservative Party leadership when Pierre Poilievre thundered on stage. Poilievre announced his housing plan in front of an average-looking house in Vancouver, that came with a nearly $5 million asking price. It sat next door to a new six-unit housing development built where there used to be a single house..Poilievre identified the problem with municipal gatekeepers who were denying people the freedom to build more homes on their land, and he proposed real policy solutions. It was good public policy well communicated and worthy of praise, and I wrote about it in the Western Standard..Poilievre wasn’t the only MP with good ideas on the housing file..Scott Aitchison, to his credit as a former mayor, had a detailed housing plan; but in a leadership race he communicated it with far less charisma and earned only 1% of the vote. In a testament to Poilievre’s maturity and leadership, he made Aitchison his Shadow Minister for Housing..With Poilievre as leader and Aitchison as his shadow minister, the Conservatives have dominated the housing file with sound policies and brilliant communications..The strategy is working..Housing (un)affordability is now a key issue that will shape the next election, and Poilievre’s leadership has the Conservatives polling within reach of a majority government..But there are “conservative” gatekeepers in Calgary who risk blocking this momentum..Calgary’s population is growing rapidly, and housing costs are skyrocketing..The city’s 2023 Housing Needs Assessment confirms the problem: Nearly one in five Calgary households cannot afford their housing. The median cost to buy a detached home has increased by 37% in the last three years. An annual income of $84,000 is needed to afford the average market rent in 2023, up from $67,000 in 2022..In June, Calgary’s Housing and Affordability Task Force presented policy recommendations to council..Most of these proposals were consistent with Pierre Poilievre’s Conservative housing policies. The gatekeepers on council, many of whom call themselves 'conservatives,' voted against the pro-housing reforms..Scott Aitchison called them out on Twitter ("X"), and his strong words were followed by a similar statement from Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner..The negative attention sparked a motion to reconsider. The task force reforms will get a second chance on September 14..This wasn’t the first time some 'conservative' Calgary politicians have gone from praising Poilievre in public to voting against his policies in council..In one egregious example, Ward 13 Councillor Dan McLean put a photo of him with Pierre Poilievre in his newsletter, directly under his vote against the grade-oriented housing reform Poilievre championed in his Vancouver campaign video..Right before the Labour Day long weekend, Councillors Sharp, Wong, Chabot, Demong, Wyness, Chu, and McLean tried to sneak in a motion to once again block Poilievre’s Conservative housing policies..Camouflaged with pro-housing language, the motion would delay real reforms with another meaningless pilot project..Scott Aitchison was watching, cracked the party whip and called out the gatekeepers:.“Calgary’s Housing and Affordability Task Force presented recommendations for the urgent action that is required. Including recommendations that would remove minimum parking requirements and to implement R-CG zoning across Calgary to make dense housing options legal, which I fully support. We won’t close this divide with half-measures. We won’t get there with another pilot project.”.It’s time for Conservatives to come together, support Pierre Poilievre’s housing policies, and bring back affordable homes..If you live in Calgary, then tell your councillor to stand with Pierre and support the reforms on September 14. Calgary could be the Conservative success story that helps Poilievre bring home a majority government..'Conservative' politicians such as Dan McLean need to decide if it’s more important to be gatekeepers, or if they want to help Pierre Poilievre become Prime Minister.
