Québec Solidaire to introduce a bill banning animal clauses in leases

Québec Solidaire has committed to introducing a bill before the end of the parliamentary session that would allow animals in all Quebec housing.

The MNA for Sainte-Marie-Saint-Jacques, Manon Massé, and the MNA for Laurier-Dorion, Andrés Fontecilla, made the commitment Thursday morning in the presence of the Montreal SPCA’s executive director, Sophie Gaillard.

“For me it’s really important to have equity between the landlord,” said Massé during the press conference.

“People who are able to buy a house are able to have a pet. Why do those who aren’t as rich [and can’t] own a place, why do they not have the right to have a pet?”

Gaillard spoke about the impact of the current legal framework on animal welfare.

“It’s really time for this to change,” she said. “It’s been done since the 70s in France, since the 90s in Ontario. It’s time for Quebec to make this move.”

Gaillard says this bill would be an easy way to relieve some of the pressure on tenants as the housing crisis continues to unfold and help solve the issue of abandoned pets.

“It’s a recurring issue every year for the Montreal SPCA, as well as shelters all across the province,” she explained.

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“We face high levels of animal abandonment in shelters due to the difficulty in finding animal-friendly housing, and every year we’re witness to heartbreaking situations where people who lose their animals, people who consider them part of their family, are forced to surrender them to us because they can’t find affordable housing.”

The MNAs emphasized animal companions have scientifically been proven to provide mental-health benefits, especially for seniors and for those living alone.

They say the bill would help reduce the number of animals abandoned in Quebec, provide tenants with some flexibility in the midst of a housing crisis, and have a positive impact on thousands of people’s mental health, particularly seniors and more vulnerable individuals. It’s also worth noting that the bill does not require any public spending.

On June 7, 2022, Massé tabled a Montreal SPCA petition at the National Assembly calling for a ban on residential lease clauses prohibiting animals. Although the petition collected 33,000 signatures, the October general election stopped it in its tracks.