Ottawa, Nunavut cough up $9 million for housing

The governments of Nunavut and Canada have agreed to a deal under which Nunavut will spend about $9 million on social housing, under a larger nation-wide housing handout program first announced in 2008.

The money will pay “to create new and renovate existing affordable housing,” a Dec. 15 press release said.

The cash flows from a Harper government promise, made in September 2008, to spend $1.9 billion over five years, from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., on social housing across Canada.

It’s not clear how many new housing units, if any, would be built in Nunavut under the program.

It’s also not clear how many damaged social housing units in Nunavut would be renovated.

“This funding will help people throughout the territory access safe and affordable housing that meets their needs,” Nunavut MP Leona Aglukkaq is quoted as saying in the press release.