Ford Invites Trudeau to Joint Housing Summit

Ontario Premier Doug Ford has invited the prime minister to a summit on housing affordability.

Ford made the request in a letter to Justin Trudeau , saying he needs the "federal government’s help to tackle the rising price of home ownership."

Set for December 16, the meeting will comprise Ford, Municipal Affairs Minister Steve Clark and the mayors and regional chairs of big cities. Clark is also set to hold a session on housing affordability with rural municipalities in January.

Ford says his goal for the summit is to work on solutions to address the “crisis” of housing affordability so more families can become homeowners.

Ontario Real Estate Association CEO Tim Hudak says the summit is a good step toward greater collaboration on the issue and called for zoning bylaws to change to allow for more family-friendly housing.

The Progressive Conservative government claims it will launch a housing affordability task force that will also look into the issue.