Protestors gathered outside of Service New Brunswick in Moncton on Friday battling the minus 20 wind chill to demand an overhaul of landlord-tenant laws.
The province’s tenant laws have been under fire over the past month with some residents calling it the worst in the country.
Protests were organized by the New Brunswick branch of ACORN, a community union of low-to-moderate income people.
Doug Forbes a member of ACORN says zero rent control, and an easy eviction process means “Landlords can intimidate tenants to live in places that you wouldn’t expect an animal to live in.”
The demands echoed those of the New Brunswick Coalition for Tenants Rights, who sent a letter to the Premier earlier this month.
The request is that:
- An eviction ban be implemented
- A 2% cap on rent be introduced
- A full review of the Residential Tenancies Act be conducted
Premier Blaine Higgs announced at the State of the Province Address that a 90-day rental review would occur, but Robert Gauvin, MLA and Social Development Critic believes that’s not enough.
“There’s a study going on right now that will bring us to June but in the meantime how can we assure the public is protected,” says Gauvin, who attended the protest.
The MLA for Shediac Bay-Dieppe voiced displeasure with a minuscule rise of the minimum wage that saw an increase of 5 cents.
“The rent is going up and the salaries are not,” Gauvin said.
Gauvin called on the government for immediate changes stating that leaving tenants in their current situation is not the New Brunswick thing to do.
“We’re not supposed to leave people behind, and the people here don’t have a voice,” he said.
Similar protests are expected to continue across the province over the coming weeks.