Press Release: UBCM calls for Provincial Housing as a Human Right Legislation
Published October 1, 2025
For Immediate Release
In the midst of a destabilizing provincial and national housing crisis, the Union of BC Municipalities has passed a resolution in favour of a rights-based approach to housing in the province.
"The passage of the resolution ‘Declaring Housing as a Human Right’ at UBCM is a historic milestone for British Columbia—and a signal to the rest of Canada. By affirming that housing is a fundamental right, not a privilege, we are taking a decisive step toward tackling the housing crisis head-on,” states Rowan Burdge, Provincial Director at the BC Poverty Reduction Coalition. “This sends a clear message to all levels of government: housing justice must guide our policies and investments. We now have both the mandate and the moral clarity to build a future rooted in fairness, equity, and compassion—where everyone has access to safe, affordable, and secure housing."
Following successful motions in nine municipalities earlier this spring, the Union of BC Municipalities will call on the Government of British Columbia to formally legislate housing as a human right. The motion at the 2025 UBCM overwhelmingly passed.
The Union of British Columbia Indian Chiefs Council passed a similar resolution in 2024, calling on the BC government to legislate housing as a human right, citing the province’s commitment to implementing the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act across ministries
Housing as a human right has been legislated in Canada at the federal level since 2019. In 2023 the Federal Housing Advocate called on all provincial and territorial governments to pass right-to-housing legislation, consult with Indigenous leaders, and create a provincial housing advocate.
Recognizing the inconsistency between the federal and provincial recognition of housing as a human right, Saanich Councillor Teale Phelps Bondaroff instigated the wave of concurrent motions this spring. “Treating housing as a commodity has turned homes into investment vehicles, while people struggle to find housing that meets their needs and the most vulnerable in our communities are left to sleep on the streets," said Councillor Phelps Bondaroff. "Recognizing housing as a human right shifts our focus from profit to people and is essential to ensuring everyone has a place to call home."
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Quotes:
“We raise our hands to the municipalities that are showing leadership on Right to Housing. Now, more than ever, people are struggling to find a place to call home or making impossible choices between rent and food or bills. Indigenous Elders, youth, those with disabilities, and low-income households are disproportionately impacted by the growing housing crisis - we need to do better to protect those most vulnerable to housing precarity. Housing is healthcare; it is foundational to wellbeing and the best investment that every level of government can make in community wellness." - Margaret Pfoh, CEO of the Aboriginal Housing Management Association
“Congratulations to the BC Poverty Reduction Coalition and their partners on a successful motion at the Union of BC Municipalities calling on the Government of British Columbia to enshrine the human right to adequate housing into law. This significant step forward carries with it the power of local communities to lead the change they want to see in their neighbourhoods, including holding their governments accountable for the right to housing. Recognizing housing as a human right means that all people are equally entitled to live in dignity in a safe and secure home, free from discrimination or harassment. It also creates an obligation for all levels of government to advance the right. I urge the Government of B.C. and all provinces, territories, and municipalities to adopt the right to housing and the necessary accountability tools to ensure the realization of the right.” – Marie-Josée Houle, Federal Housing Advocate
“Alongside community members and advocates, I have long been urging the provincial government to recognize and work toward realizing the right to housing. I am pleased to see growing momentum behind this grassroots movement to garner support among municipalities, and I am hopeful that UBCM will take up the call to action. Addressing homelessness and housing unaffordability requires cooperation and action at all levels of government. Fulfilling the right to housing is not only a legal requirement under international law; it is also the only viable path forward to resolving the housing crisis in our province.” - Kasari Govender, British Columbia’s Human Rights Commissioner
"When governments recognize housing as a human right, it fundamentally shifts the way that we approach housing. It moves the focus away from profits and commodification towards policies that serve people and communities, especially those most impacted by the housing crisis. It results in policies that focus not just on the number of units built, but on whether those homes are accessible, appropriate, and truly affordable." - Teale Phelps Bondaroff, Saanich Councillor
“Housing is not a luxury. It is the foundation for safety, health, dignity, and participation in society. Yet across Vancouver and the province, we continue to see escalating homelessness, unaffordable rents, and precarious living conditions that are driving people into poverty—or keeping them there. This motion works towards access to truly affordable, adequate, and appropriate housing for everyone—especially those historically marginalized: Indigenous people, racialized communities, people with disabilities, low-income workers, and youth aging out of care.” - Sean Orr, Vancouver City Councillor
“The data shows that housing strategies rooted in housing as a human right are cost effective and lead to better outcomes. We can reduce overnight sheltering, police and emergency room costs and help those that need support to find or stay in their housing." - Mary Wagner, Langford City Councillor
“The affordability, housing, homelessness, and climate crises are intertwined and require action from all levels of government. Declaring housing as a human right will support collaboration to accelerate the policies and actions required to ensure everyone has access to a climate-safe, affordable, and secure home.” - Jessica McIlroy, North Vancouver City Councillor
“Safe, secure housing is essential for physical and mental wellbeing, safety and stability, employment, and community involvement, and it needs to be recognized as a human right. This is critical for our neighbours who are currently unhoused, our neighbours who are living in precarious and unsafe housing, and all of us. The world is uncertain, but what we should be certain about is making sure our housing policies meet the needs of our community. Housing as a human right gives us an opportunity to examine how we are doing things, and organize across all levels of government to develop a clear path forward.” - Amy Lubik, Port Moody City Councillor
“Municipalities have to deal with massive costs as a result of managing the downstream effects of homelessness and unaffordable housing. That makes it hard for employers to attract new people, or for people who grew up here to stay here. We all suffer as a result of the province not treating this issue with the urgency required. Until everyone has a safe, secure roof over their head, we need to keep collectively sending this message and doing what’s within our power to do.” - Hilary Eastmure, Nanaimo City Councillor
“While the realistic execution of housing as a human right will be challenging, I fail to see how it could result in a housing system worse than the one we have today: privatized, financialized, commodified, and increasingly out of reach for a growing portion of our society. Let’s return to housing as a social good; let’s begin by recognizing housing as a human right.” -Susan Kim, Victoria City Councillor
