London North Centre MP Peter Fragiskatos was named Parliamentary Secretary for Housing, Infrastructure, and Communities over the weekend.
Fragiskatos announced the change on social media Saturday evening, following a release about the new parliamentary secretary team from the Prime Minister's office.
"It's a huge opportunity for me to serve this community and serve the country," Fragiskatos said about the appointment.
"I am very passionate on all issues related to housing, whether [they are] the challenges that we see manifest in homelessness, expensive rent, difficulty buying a home... This is something that communities in every democracy, not just within Canada, but in every democracy are challenged with, are plagued by. And the opportunity to work on these issues is something that I very much look forward to."
With Fragiskatos' appointment and MPP Rob Flack's recent promotion to Associate Minister of Housing, the residents of London now have local representatives working on housing both federally and provincially.
"I think Londoners can be optimistic," Fragiskatos said about that fact. He pointed out that both he and Flack worked on housing for the community before they were given their roles, but said, "the fact that we now have these particular roles makes housing that much more of a priority."
Fragiskatos was previously the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Revenue, under Minister Diane Lebouthillier.
In his post, Fragiskatos thanked the former Minister of National Revenue, and her team for their time working together, saying "I will use that experience as a foundation for this role."
Fragiskatos explained that, though the two files are very different his previous appointment helped him realize what exactly is required of a parliamentary secretary.
Assisting the Minister during Question Period, helping to articulate the government's message to the masses, being part of relevant committees, and assisting with and advocating for policies, regardless of the file, are all tasks Fragiskatos now has experience with.
Though he believes being a liaison between the Minister and others is one of the most important duties of a parliamentary secretary.
"Across the House of Commons, regardless of party, there's a call for attention on housing," he said. "It will be inevitable that those Members of Parliament come to me and ask me to bring their particular advocacy to the table."
During the last cabinet shuffle, Sean Fraser was named the Minister of Housing which makes the role even more enticing to Fragiskatos.
"[Fraser] and I have known each other for a number of years. We have an excellent rapport," he said. "He's just a fantastic person, a great professional, and someone who's really tasked with an enormous responsibility on the housing file. The ability to help him in this capacity is something I look forward to."
Fraser was part of the announcement in London last week that saw the city receive $74 million from the new Housing Accelerator Fund.
"There's not a community in Canada where citizens are not asking questions about housing. Whether it's people on the street who are unfortunately living homeless, whether it's the single mother who can't afford rent, a young couple who can't afford to buy a house... All of these things weigh on people and our government is going to continue to make [housing] a priority," Fragiskatos said.
