441-02644 (Civil and human rights)

Whereas:

• Over 22% of Canadians have a disability;
• Housing policy discriminates against people with disabilities;
• No building code in Canada mandates that housing be accessible;
• Thousands are forced out of their dwellings at the most vulnerable time in their lives because their homes are not accessible for them;
• This results in "hallway medicine" in hospitals and long waiting lists for nursing homes;
• Approval and financing of inaccessible housing contravenes the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and the Canadian Human Rights Act, which prohibit discrimination based on a disability; and
• Universal design is defined by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) as the design of an environment that can be accessed, understood and used by all people regardless of their age, size, ability or disability.

We, the undersigned residents of Canada, call upon the House of Commons to:

• Amend the National Building Code (NBC) to make Universal Design mandatory in all new multi-unit housing developments under the jurisdiction of the Government of Canada, consistent with current legislation and conventions;
• Ensure that the Canadian Table for Harmonized Construction Codes Policy, Canadian Board for Harmonized Construction Codes and the CMHC collaborate on defining and illustrating in the NBC what is visitable, adaptable, accessible, barrierfree, and universal design; and
• Require public funds for housing conferred on municipalities, developers, or other organizations to be exclusively used for universally designed housing.