The 2012 federal budget outlines no plans to invest in affordable housing or in measures to end homelessness. "While the housing investments made through the economic stimulus program that wrapped up in 2011 have made a real difference, we are disappointed that this budget was effectively silent on affordable housing because so many needs remain," said CHRA President Bruce Pearce. "With 1.5 million households unable to afford a decent home and 300,000 Canadians going without a roof over their head on any given night, support from the federal government is needed," said Pearce...

When natural concern for neighbourhood safety and cleanliness turns into irrational pronouncements and wild fears, the record needs to be set straight. Montreal's public-health department wants to set up three supervised-injection facilities. One would be in a community health clinic called Cactus Montréal, which already provides clean needles to addicts in the downtown area. But a coalition of downtown residents, opposing the addition of supervised injections, says it's "worried about the honey pot effect...

HIV infection from needle sharing is declining across the country, except in Saskatchewan where there has been a significant increase – largely in the Aboriginal community. "There is some other thing going on and we have to uncover what that is," said Ann Livingston, director of the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users. She says a safe injection site, like the one in Vancouver might work in Regina, but first the treatment centres that already exist should be able to provide the right care...

"Our men's shelter has been running for the last months at full capacity. It's very rare that we are not all the way full," said Rebecca Cochrane, Development Director for the Souls Harbour Rescue Mission."The biggest factor is the housing situation in the city. That is causing the homelessness issue to come out and really be apparent." Regina' rental vacancy rate is one of the lowest in the country at 0.6%. The co-founder of the Tenants' Association said this combined with rising rents is making affordable housing harder to find...