Published October 10, 2026 · Équipe Le Québec Vote
In a QUB interview, James Hughes stresses eviction prevention and the protection of affordable housing. His assessment deserves attention. However, reported reasons for losing housing must be distinguished from evidence about the causes of homelessness as a whole.
As winter approaches, one question runs through the debate: how can people be sheltered while preventing others from losing their homes?
Speaking with Benoit Dutrizac, James Hughes, introduced by QUB as the Liberal member for Vaudreuil and former head of the Old Brewery Mission, argues for work on both fronts. According to the transcript provided to LeQuébecVote, he supports an immediate response alongside a collective approach to prevention. QUB interview.
The host’s wording, the politician’s assessment
The video title highlights the phrase “spéculateurs crosseurs,” a derogatory description of property speculators. In the transcript, Dutrizac uses that expression. The host describes buildings being bought and tenants expelled under the pretext of renovations; Hughes agrees, then returns to the role of evictions regardless of their reason.
The distinction matters. Hughes endorses an interpretation of the problem, but the title’s forceful wording belongs to the host. No particular landlord is identified, and no individual case is substantiated in this exchange.
What the figures establish
Table 31 of Québec’s 2022 homelessness count ranks eviction first among reported reasons for losing the last home: 22.6%, ahead of substance use problems at 21.3%. In the municipality categories outside Montréal, however, substance use ranks first. MSSS report, Table 31.
This ranking establishes neither a single cause nor a majority of cases. It describes responses collected from people experiencing homelessness, without isolating the responsibility of property speculation.
Another qualification: the Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal’s summary states that 53% of respondents citing eviction reported unpaid rent. Eviction cannot therefore automatically be equated with renoviction. Non-payment alone does not explain why someone could no longer afford the rent. CMM analysis.
CMHC also notes that most evictions in Canada do not lead to homelessness, although they increase the risk for people who are already vulnerable. Research published in September 2025.
Housing remains an important structural factor
These qualifications do not remove rents from the discussion. The summary of CIRANO research published in May 2026 identifies rent levels as an important structural predictor of homelessness. It also highlights the value of programs providing permanent housing with psychosocial support. CIRANO, *Les coûts économiques associés à l’itinérance au Québec*.
Preliminary official results from the 2025 count estimate 12,077 people experiencing visible homelessness in the 15 participating regions. The MSSS reports an increase of approximately 20% since 2022. This measure concerns a single night, rather than everyone who experienced homelessness during the year. MSSS release, April 9, 2026.
Protect housing while preparing for winter
In the interview, Hughes advocates more non-market housing: publicly owned housing, cooperatives and homes managed by non-profit organizations. He also proposes protecting existing affordable units. Building and preservation are complementary approaches in his argument.
One documented example exists: in December 2024, Montréal announced its intention to acquire more than 700 homes in Côte-des-Neiges for approximately $103.8 million, using its right of first refusal. This release documents an announcement; it does not establish the current status of each acquisition. Municipal release.
For winter, Montréal announced nine new warming centres and requested approximately $20 million annually for three years. The nearly 3,000 spaces cited refer to the full emergency and transitional resource network, including almost 500 additional seasonal spaces. Winter plan, October 8, 2026.
The City states that opening the warming centres remains conditional on provincial funding and the selection of operating organizations. Announced capacity should not be presented as already available. Preparations update.
LeQuébecVote’s assessment
The role of evictions and affordable housing is documented. However, describing speculators as the main cause of all homelessness goes beyond what the evidence reviewed establishes.
Assessing political responses will require tracking housing actually preserved, spaces actually opened and the residential stability of people receiving support. Announcements and meetings alone do not constitute outcomes.
*Method: analysis of a reader-provided transcript, cross-checked against public sources. The audio was not verified; statements are mainly paraphrased. Detailed figures on reasons for losing housing cited here date from 2022. The full MSSS PDF was inaccessible during research, so its indexed table was cross-checked with the CMM summary. Research closed on October 11, 2026.*