The durability of roll-out neoliberalism under Centre-left governance: The case of Ontario's social housing sector

Studies in Political Economy

Volumn , Issue 81, 2008, Pages 7-26

  Hackworth, Jason ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO   (Canada)

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EID: 45249098459     PISSN: 07078552     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/19187033.2008.11675071     Document Type: Article

References (37)

1. The word "neoliberalism" has evolved as a concept and its meaning has become a bit flexible. I am defining it as a very specific political movement, currently promulgated by a range of think tanks, ideologues, and political figures, but selectively drawn from the classical liberalism of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Though it has many variants, three philosophical elements often float to the surface of neoliberal ideas and policy: a) an unwavering focus on the individual; b) a disdain for state-sponsored collectivism that might interfere with the individual; and c) an equally unwavering belief in the "free market" as the most efficient and equitable way to organize society. For a more drawn-out version of my view on this topic, please see, J. Hackworth, The Neoliberal City: Governance, Ideology, and Development in American Urbanism (Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2006).
2. P. Anderson, "Renewals," New Left Review 1 (2000), p. 17; for a more systematic account of the spread and importance of neoliberalism, see D. Harvey, A Brief History of Neoliberalism (Oxford University Press, 2005).
3. D. Wilson, "Toward a Contingent Urban Neoliberalism," Urban Geography 25 (2004), p. 771.
4. Harvey, A Brief History of Neoliberalism; Hackworth, The Neoliberal City.
5. J. Hackworth and A. Moriah, "Neoliberalism, Contingency, and Urban Policy: The Case of Social Housing in Ontario," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 30 (2006), pp. 510-527.
6. K. Newman and P. Ashton, "Neoliberal Urban Policy and New Paths of Neighborhood Change in the American Inner City," Environment and Planning A 36 (2004), pp. 1151-1172.
7. J. Peck, "Neoliberalizing States: Thin Policies/Hard Outcomes," Progress in Human Geography 25/3 (2001), pp. 445-455.
8. J. Hackworth, " Local Autonomy, Bond-rating Agencies and Neoliberal Urbanism in the US," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 26 (2002), pp. 707-725.
9. K. Goonewardena, "The Future of Planning at the 'End of History,'" Planning Theory 2 (2003), pp. 183-224.
10. Hackworth, The Neoliberal City; Goonewardena, "The Future of Planning at the 'End of History.'"
11. N. Brenner and N. Theodore, "Cities and the Geographies of 'Actually Existing Neoliberalism,'" Antipode 34 (2002), pp. 349-379.
12. J. Peck and A. Tickell, "Neoliberalizing Space," Antipode 34 (2002), pp. 380-404.
13. Peck and Tickell, "Neoliberalizing Space"; Brenner and Theodore, "Cities and the Geographies of 'Actually Existing Neoliberalism.'"
14. W. Larner, "Neoliberalism?" Environment and Planning D 21 (2003), pp. 509-512;
15. C. Barnett, "The Consolations of 'Neoliberalism,'" Geoforum 36 (2003), pp. 7-12.
16. Harvey, A Brief History of Neoliberalism, p. 13.
17. Ibid., p. 13.
18. Statistics here were derived from the Ontario Non Profit Housing Association website (). These rates do not include subsidies for single family private housing like government-based mortgage insurance.
19. J. Doling, Comparative Housing Policy: Government and Housing in Advanced Industrialized Countries (New York: St Martin's Press, 1997).
20. Statistics here were derived from figures published on the city of Toronto website, .
21. Doling, Comparative Housing Policy.
22. J.D. Hulchanski, "How Did We Get Here? The Evolution of Canada's 'Exclusionary' Housing System," Finding Room: Policy Options for a Canadian Rental Housing Strategy, J. D. Hulchanski and M. Shapcott, (eds.), (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2004).
23. N. Smith, "Challenges of Public Housing in the 1990s: The Case of Ontario, Canada," Housing Policy Debate 6 (1995);
24. J. Sousa and J. Quarter, "The Convergence of Nonequity Models in Canada: Changes to Housing Policy since 1990," Housing Policy Debate 14 (2003). These four sectors exclude on-reserve native housing, which has had a very different history than other forms of social housing.
25. Bruce Porter makes the interesting point that Martin was warned, in a confidential letter from the IMF, against spending too much on social programs in the mid-1990s - a warning that he and his ruling Liberal party took very seriously by slashing all funding for public housing and significantly reducing it for other social programs: B. Porter, "The Right to Adequate Housing in Canada," National Perspectives on Housing Rights, S. Leckie, (ed.), (New York: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 2003).
26. The major exception to these cutbacks was the on-reserve aboriginal housing program.
27. Arguably the best account of this transition can be found in R. Keil, "'Common-sense' Neoliberalism: Progressive Conservative Urbanism in Toronto, Canada," Antipode 34 (2002).
28. J. Hackworth, "Neoliberal Ideas and Social Housing Realities in Ontario," Progressive Planning Magazine 164 (2005), pp. 17-19, 22.
29. Sousa and Quarter, "The Convergence of Nonequity Models in Canada."
30. M. Shapcott, M., "Made in Ontario Housing Crisis: Ontario Alternative Budget," Technical Paper 12 (Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, 2001).
31. Carol Goar, "Province Starves Housing Sector," The Toronto Star (27 October 2006).
32. Federal NDP leader Jack Layton - architect of the original agreement with the federal Liberals - has threatened to sue the Ontario provincial government if the funds are used for nonhousing purposes.
33. K. Gillespie, "Plea for Housing Funds Unites Foes: Miller, Pitfield Rip Queen's Park, Feds Layton Says Legal Action May Be Taken," The Toronto Star (27 October 2006), p. 1.
34. The Social Housing Reform Act is still a matter of confusion for many nonprofits in the province. The sector's main policy advocate - The Ontario Non Profit Housing Association - still (fully seven years after its passage) holds yearly seminars and prints informational brochures for providers struggling to comply with its dictates.
35. Hereafter, nonprofits will be described as "small," "medium," and "large." "Small" MNPs are characterized by managing fewer than 40 units (n=39); "medium" MNPs have between 40 and 499 units (n=57); and "large" MNPs have more than 500 units (n=15).
36. "Devolution," "downloading," and other forms of diffusing power are not an intrinsically neoliberal phenomenon, but we need only return to Hayek's iconic Constitution of Liberty to understand their importance for ideologues like Harris who were unabashedly trying to implement neoliberalism: "Competition between local authorities or between larger entities within an area where there is freedom of movement provides in a large measure that opportunity for experimentation with alternative methods which will secure most of the advantages of free growth. Though the majority of residents may never contemplate a change of residence, there will usually be enough people, especially among the young and more enterprising, to make it necessary for the local authorities to provide as good services at as reasonable costs as their competitors" (Hayek, 1960), pp. 263-264.
37. Most MNP officials interviewed were incredulous that the SHSC was actually supportive in any material sense. They saw the independent Ontario Non Profit Housing Association as a more reliable advocate, and more able to assist with legal matters and administrative support.