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6 uw ° =z = Ss = HOUSING PRICES 2 AND DAY-T0-DAY § LIVING EXPENSES ls | Thursday, December 23, 2021 | Hi IFP- 2 ADDRESSED, WRITES MICHAEL CHONG MICHAEL CHONG Column The price of day-to-day living has gone up — a lot. The price of gas, groceries and other essential items have gone up significantly in the last two years. has the price of hous- ing; it's not an exaggera- tion to say there is a hous- ing crisis. The Trudeau govern- ment needs to be focused on this problem but, in my opinion, has yet to do any- thing meaningful. The cost of living has 4.7 per cent — lay year-over-year gain since February 2003. Prices are up every- where. Beef is up 50 per cent, chicken is up 13 per cent and other items are al- so up, such as eggs and ba- con. Gasoline is up 41 per Cal home prices. There are several rea- sons for rising prices, some § of them external to Cana- : da. But many of the rea- SKYROCKETING COSTS CANNOT BE IGNORED sons, particularly f for home ices, are — eve — within the Trndoan gov- ernment's control. While mo policy is the responsibility of the arm's length and indepen- dent Bank of Canada, the government has a an array of regulatory d fiscal tools to help moderate pric- ugh the O: Superintendent of Finan- cial Institutions, mortgage finance policies through the Canada Housing and Mortgage Corporation, tax expenditures, government programs and fiscal policy. With more Canadians struggling to make ends meet, the Liberal govern- ment needs to do a better job of managing Canada's banking system and its ic fiscal poli- TO LEARN HOW TO SUBMIT YOUR OWN CONTENT VISIT THEIFPCA SNAPSHOT Anne Philpott photo A blue jay prepares to make off with a peanut in a backyard on Hamilton Crescent in Georgetown. Do you have a great local photo you'd like to share? Send it to sleblanc@metroland.com, along with a brief description. cies. Conservatives have pro- posed measures to address affordability, including curbing the bricefxing of groceries and in sing competition for telecom munications to ensure low- er internet and cellphone bills. Conservatives have also pledged policies that would incentivize the construc- tion of a million new homes to increase the housing sup- Ply ar and affordability. In Ottawa, my focus is on putting pressure on the Trudeau government to do thing al the rising cost ‘of living and the hous- ing crisis. Michael Chong is the MP for Wellington-Halton Hills, and the shadow minister of foreign affairs Sor the official opposition. He can be reached at mi- chael.chong.a3@parl.gc.ca. SIGN UP FOR UR WEEKLY NEWSLETTER AT HEIFPCA THE PERFECT GIFT FOR YOUR CHILD IN 2022 THE LEARNING EXPERIENCE OF OWNING A MUTUAL FUND INVALUABLE, WRITES PETER WATSON It's a new year almost — so why not g ve your children a gift they re- ally deserve? The gift: a mutual fund that invests in a broadly di- versified portfolio of stocks around the world. Why is this important? It is not about the money, but rather the educational experience of owning an in- vestment. The key isallowing your child to watch their invest- ment fluctuate in value. In- tment statements PETER WATSON Column should also be given to your ch: The mt important op- portunity to learn is when the value of their invest- ment declines. They need to under- stand that some years of losing are just part of the game. This knowledge will be helpful when they are an adult. One of the most signifi- cant risks of investing is human behaviour. People are thrilled to buy invest- ments when the market is doing well. Then, when the markets go down in value and you have lost Tae decline, then when that happens, it is very easy to panic and sell. It's all about managing expectation: Thatis sourgitas apar- ent to your children. Peter Watson is regis- tered with Angra Capital Partners Inc. (ACPI) to provide investment advice. Investment products are provided by ACPI. ACPI is a member of the Invest- ment Industry Regulatory Organization of Cai The opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily those of ACPI. Watson provides wealth ent services through Watson Invest- ments. He can be reached at www.watsoninvestment- s.com. ABOUT US This newspaper, published every Thursday, is a division of the Metroland Media Group Ltd., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Torstar Corporation. The Metroland family of newspapers is comprised of more than 70 community publications across Ontario. This newspaper is a member paper and, if not satisfied, write The National NewsMedia Council, Suite 200, 890 Yonge St., Toronto, ON M4W 2H2, Phone: 416-340-1981 Web: www.mediacouncil.ca NewresaiaCounet BO newsroom@thei IndependentAndFreePress @IFP_11 WHO WE ARE VP, Regional Publisher Kelly Monta; Regional General Manager Jason Pehora Director of Content Lee Ann Waterman Deputy Director of Content Catherine O'Hara Managing Editor Karen Miceli Director rr Distribution ‘Advertisin; Cindi Campbell and Graeme Macintosh CONTACT US Burlington, ON L7R 3N8- Phone: 905-873-0301 Classifieds: 1-800-263-6480 Fax: 905-873-0398 Letters to the editor All letters must be fewer than 320 words and include your name and telephone number for verification purposes. We reserve the right to edit, condense or reject letters. Published letters will appear in print and/or online at theifp.ca For all delivery inquiries, please e-mail Ipotar@miltoncanadianchampion.com or call 905-234-1019. EO}