Poilievre calls Niagara Falls home 'tiny little shack,' apologizes to tenant
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre says he has apologized to a woman in Niagara Falls, Ont. for calling her home a 鈥渢iny little shack鈥 in an attempt to illustrate high housing costs in the area.
鈥淗ousing costs under (Prime Minister Justin) Trudeau have doubled, and it is not a global phenomenon, it is unique to Canada,鈥 Poilievre said at a press conference Wednesday.
鈥淚鈥檒l give you just one example. It costs $550,000 for a tiny little shack,鈥 he also said, before listing a specific address. 鈥淵ou can go check it out yourself.鈥
The home 鈥 a three-bedroom, two-bathroom, 1.5-story home on a half-acre lot 鈥 is .
鈥淗e called it a shack. A shack,鈥 the house鈥檚 tenant, Asha Letourneau, told CHCH. 鈥淭hat was a little embarrassing, also because it鈥檚 not.鈥
According to CHCH, Letourneau works as a waitress and saw Poilievre鈥檚 comments online after working a night shift.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not the greatest house on the street, but it鈥檚 definitely not a shack,鈥 she told CHCH.
The home鈥檚 listing describes the house as a 鈥渇antastic north end property located on a quiet street with mature trees and set back on a generous lot.鈥
鈥淭his home is bursting with potential and is just waiting for you to give it your own finishing touches and make it yours,鈥 the listing adds, including details about the finished basement and large yard with room for a pool.
Poilievre has called Letourneau to apologize, his office confirmed to 愛污传媒.
鈥淗er home is in many ways not a lot different than the one I grew up in,鈥 Poilievre said in a statement. 鈥淢y point was that every waitress, welder, barber, and factory worker should be able to afford a home, which is not the case in Canada today, after housing costs have doubled under Trudeau and are often twice what they are minutes away south of the border.鈥
He added that home in particular was used to illustrate the need to 鈥渂uild, build, build鈥 more housing in an effort to rein in current prices.
At his press conference Wednesday, Poilievre pointed out comparative housing prices on the American side of the Niagara River, where for half the price there are listings with 鈥渁 big beautiful multi-level (house), with a garage and a big lot.鈥
鈥淭he answer is that Justin Trudeau鈥檚 policies have inflated the cost of everything,鈥 he said.
According to the real estate listing, the average household income in the area is $89,159, though nearly 40 per cent have a household income of less than $60,000 a year.
About 50 per cent of residents in the area are listed as working in trades and transport, or sales and service.
Meanwhile, other MPs have weighed in online and called out the Conservative leader for his comments.
鈥淧ierre Poilievre ridiculed a working class house as a 鈥榮hack'," tweeted NDP MP Charlie Angus. 鈥淭his dude lives in a 19-room mansion with a personal chef. All paid for by the taxpayer. No wonder he thinks ordinary Canadians live in 鈥榮hacks.鈥欌
Many people have also taken to Twitter to point out the home is seemingly built in the 鈥渧ictory home鈥 or 鈥渟trawberry box鈥 architectural style popularized after the Second World War to house soldiers returning from the war.
The style and layout was used to build several houses quickly to address a shortage both for factory workers during the war, and afterwards, for veterans, and similar homes can still be found across the country. The year Letourneau鈥檚 house was built is not included in the listing.
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