This report is part of a series of reports commissioned by the Office of the Federal Housing Advocate. See the full series here: homelesshub.ca/resource/security-tenure-reports

Everyone has a right to feel stable in their home, to know they can stay there long term without being displaced. This is known as security of tenure, and it is an essential part of the right to adequate housing. Raquel Rolnik, the former United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Adequate Housing, defined security of tenure as “a set of relationships with respect to housing and land, established through statutory or customary law or informal or hybrid arrangements, that enables one to live in one’s home in security, peace, and dignity.” Security of tenure is the foundation that makes possible all other elements of the right to housing—such as affordability, access to services, and habitability—and it also allows for the enjoyment of other human rights, such as the right to dignity and life. 

First, this report will outline the international jurisprudence regarding security of tenure in order to understand Canada’s obligations in more detail, relying on the report by the Canadian Centre for Housing Rights. It will then draw on Martin Gallié’s report on evictions to show how the right to security of tenure is violated for tenants, before discussing how a right to counsel for tenants facing eviction could help address this issue, using Sarah Buhler’s work on the subject. 

As Buhler notes, not all groups face the same risks to their right to security of tenure. The security of tenure of First Nations people is undermined both on and off reserve by historical and present-day policies, as Alan Hanna explains in his report Systemic Barriers for First Nations People, and Canada has distinct responsibilities to realize their right to housing. As well, the tenants most vulnerable to eviction also are those most likely to experience poverty and intersecting forms of oppression on the basis of race, gender, and ability. To better understand this process, this report will consider Priya Gupta’s report, entitled Race and Security of Housing and Luke Reid’s report, Issues for Persons with Disabilities. Just as there is no singular problem with eviction facing all tenants, solutions to improve security of tenure will have to take into account race and ability if they are to actually improve conditions for those most impacted. 

Finally, this report will draw on the work of Estair Van Wagner to consider an often overlooked group that experiences the most extreme violation of their rights to housing and security of tenure: those experiencing homelessness and living in encampments. 

After summarizing the seven reports, this report will briefly present the subjects discussed at the Security of Tenure Symposium that was held online on March 2, 2022. This symposium, organized by the Office of the Federal Housing Advocate, brought together 78 participants from across the country and offered a glimpse into how security of tenure issues are playing out on the ground.