$90M no help to Attawapiskat

Photo: The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper stands during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Tuesday, November 29, 2011. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

Prime Minister Stephen Harper says he's not happy millions of federal dollars failed to fix a native housing crisis in Northern Ontario, but auditors warned of exactly this danger twice in last 15 months.

A 2010 audit of funds spent on reserve housing cited a serious lack of oversight by the federal government, while a separate evaluation highlighted the extreme problems on the ground.

The two reviews raise questions about the Conservative government's reaction to a housing crisis in Attawapiskat, on the western shore of James Bay, that's left some residents living in tents, uninsulated garden sheds and over-crowded trailers.

"This government has spent some $90 million since coming to office just on Attawapiskat," Harper told the House of Commons on Tuesday. "That's over $50,000 for every man, woman and child in the community.

"Obviously we're not very happy that the results do not seem to have been achieved for that."

When asked where the money has gone, Aboriginal Affairs Minister John Duncan had no answer.

"That's one of the things we're looking at," he said.

The 2010 audit of funds for housing found government hadn't been properly monitoring spending across the country.

"There remain significant gaps to provide assurance that governance, risk-management and control frameworks are adequate to provide a reasonable expectation that funds for on-reserve housing are used for the intended purpose and that outcomes will be achieved," says the document.

The study found government officials failed to check regularly on housing projects. And when they did, they didn't document what they found.

Nor did they set specific standards that needed to be met when assessing housing conditions, such as ensuring the homes were up to code.

The audit also found the department didn't explicitly track the money it spent, so it couldn't say whether it achieved results.

The department also relied on reports from First Nations on the state of housing but did not verify those reports, the audit said.

"Compliance audits and monitoring-inspection activities would mitigate the risk that housing funds are spent for unintended purposes and would enhance the department's ability to assess the completeness and accuracy of the housing information reported by First Nations."

Ottawa has spent about $272 million a year on reserve housing, and allotted an additional $192 million over five years in the 2005 budget.

A further $400 million was allocated through the Tories' 2008 stimulus program.

The money for housing flows through Aboriginal Affairs and the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp., though the funding audit only covered Aboriginal Affairs.

A government response to the audit's seven recommendations suggested that as of last March 31, some changes had been made. A formal monitoring and oversight program was also scheduled to be developed this year.

A subsequent, separate study of both departments delved into the grim reality of aboriginal housing across Canada.

Government efforts aren't keeping pace with demand, the evaluation from February this year warned.

"As quickly as new units come on stream, they require aggressive maintenance because of the overcrowding and heavy 'wear and tear' they take," the study found.

"The consequences are manifold: maintaining housing stock is costly, poorly maintained housing is unsafe and contributes to poor health, which in itself generates additional costs."

And again, the study stressed, there was no clear way to account for the funds.

"With very limited performance data, it has been next to impossible for this evaluation to determine the cost-effectiveness of the On-Reserve Housing Program using conventional measures."

And yet, the Opposition charged Tuesday, the Conservatives were attempting to blame First Nations for the latest crisis.

"I would say it is highly irresponsible, and completely inappropriate to try to blame the community for a situation that the federal government is responsible for," said New Democrat MP Peter Julian.

Liberal Leader Bob Rae said that implication was a "disgraceful" response from government.

"When is the government going to start taking responsibility for this deplorable situation, which is an embarrassment to the reputation of the entire country?" he said.

Harper is scheduled to meet with Assembly of First Nations Chief Shawn Atleo later this week.

While the meeting was set before the crisis in Attawapiskat erupted into national headlines, it's expected to be part of their discussion.

The pair are expected to set a formal date for a summit with First Nations and the prime minister.