Ontario might not need to pass major encampments bill, housing minister says [Video]

As funds begin to flow to local municipalities around Ontario to clear encampments, the housing minister has admitted he may not need to pass an already-tabled bill that was supposed to deal with the issue.

In mid-December, the Ford government proposed a new homelessness law designed to clear encampments from parks across the province and to give police new tools to handle public drug use and repeat trespassing.

The bill was announced at a choreographed event where 16 mayors promoted the approach and explained how it would allow them to tackle the growing issue of homeless encampments.

The proposed law was held up by the government as a solution to the growing issue of homeless encampments in downtowns and parks around Ontario.

Housing Minister Paul Calandra, however, now says encampments might be dealt with without needing to pass the planned bill into law at all.

“I’m excited that we might not …