Ontario anti-encampment law punishes the homeless, avoids long-term solutions: critics [Video]

A new provincial law that aims to clear encampments from public spaces does not address the root causes behind homelessness and punishes people who have no access to affordable shelter, critics say. 

The Safer Municipalities Act, which passed last Tuesday in the Ontario Legislature, gives municipalities and police “enhanced tools they need to end encampments and clean up our parks and public spaces,” according to a provincial news release from April. 

But the Association of Municipalities of Ontario (AMO), which represents all 444 municipalities in the province, says the law does not provide longer-term, permanent solutions for homelessness — an issue municipalities across the province have described as a top concern in recent years. 

“It doesn’t really focus at all on the root causes of homelessness … the lack of deeply affordable housing, the lack of mental health and addictions services at the levels that we need them, as well …