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The UDI lobbies the Federal Government via Gregor Robertson the new Minister of Housing and Infrastructure, and the former Mayor of Vancouver.

The UDI “would be concerned if the Federal Government broadened its role as a
direct developer of housing that is more appropriately delivered by the private market.”

The UDI, a registered lobbying organization on the BC Lobbyists Registry and with branches across Canada, does not register lobbying activity at the federal level, despite a vast amount of evidence showing this to be the case, begging the question: Why are the Feds allowing this to happen?


By Sasha Izard

June 12, 2025


Just over a week ago on June 4, 2025 the UDI held a luncheon event at the Delta Hotels by Marriott Grand Okanagan Resort with the title:

Development In Crisis: New Fed Cabinet – UDI is on the Front Lines | Urban Development Institute

The featured speakers for the event included those at the top of the organization:

Anne McMullin – President & CEO of UDI
Rick Ilich – Board Chair, UDI & CEO, Townline Homes
Michael Drummond – Executive Vice President at UDI
Jeff Fisher – Vice President & Senior Policy Advisor at UDI
Luke Turri – Moderator, Past Chair, UDI Okanagan
& President Mission Group at Mission Group

The description of the event included the following:

“Canada’s new Federal Cabinet is in place – What does this mean for our industry?

Join us Wednesday, June 4 for an unfiltered, high-impact panel featuring UDI’s top policy insiders.

From housing supply mandates to DCC cost-sharing promises, the next 12 months will reshape what’s possible for development across B.C. and beyond. If you want to be ahead of it, not caught off guard, you need to be in the room.

They’ll unpack the real implications of the new Finance and Housing Ministers, and share exclusive intel on Gregor Robertson’s return to government — and what it means for development in this province.

Our UDI Pacific team has deep history working with Gregor, and you’ll hear what his appointment really signals for local housing policy, affordability rhetoric, and industry regulation.

What You’ll Walk Away With:

· A developer’s forecast on how the new cabinet will affect funding, timelines, and regulation

· The inside story on Gregor Robertson’s influence at the federal and provincial level

· What the new Finance Minister’s agenda means for capital markets, interest rates, and housing starts

· How UDI is pushing back, and how you can get involved

· Live audience Q&A with our advocacy team, bring your best questions

Why This Event Matters:

You won’t get this level of political insight and strategic forecasting anywhere else.

There won’t be another luncheon until October, and policy shifts are already underway.”

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2 weeks ago on May 30, 2025 the UDI wrote a lobbying letter to Gregor Robertson:

2025-05-30-UDI-Letter-Advancing-Practical-Solutions-to-Canada’s-Housing-Crisis.pdf
Archived copy: Wayback Machine

The letter included that the UDI “would be concerned if the Federal Government broadened its role as a direct developer of housing that is more appropriately delivered by the private market.”

The UDI described the letter as follows:

“UDI wrote to the Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada with policy recommendations to address Canada’s housing crisis. The development industry stands ready to partner with all levels of government to meet this challenge. By refining and expanding existing programs, modernizing tax policy, and addressing key cost drivers, the incoming government can deliver on its commitment to making housing more attainable for Canadians. “

The letter concluded:

“To make meaningful progress on housing affordability, the Federal Government must focus its efforts on enabling, not replacing the private sector. By unlocking investment, reforming outdated frameworks, and aligning all levels of government toward supply focused outcomes, Canada can build the homes it needs while maintaining fiscal prudence and economic dynamism.

We would like to request an opportunity to meet with you and your officials to discuss these recommendations further.”

No doubt, if the Federal government takes them up on their offer, and they no doubt will, the UDI will not be made by them to file that activity as lobbying.

A copy of the unregistered lobbying letter between the UDI and the federal government is below:

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Letter title and summary by the UDI:

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Conclusion:

The lobbying letter sent by the UDI to Gregor Robertson as federal Minister of Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada pushes the tired and discredited Supply Myth when it comes to housing, and requests “an opportunity to meet with you and your officials to discuss these recommendations further.”

Robertson himself appears adamant in following that myth to its faulty conclusions. Upon being sworn in as Minister, Robertson was quick to respond to reporters who had asked if he thought home prices should go down, by denying that the price of homes even needs to come down:

“No, I think that we need to deliver more supply, make sure the market is stable.”

More than 2,000 condos sitting empty in Metro Vancouver amid housing crisis – BC | Globalnews.ca

The lobbying letter sent to Robertson by the UDI, deserves close scrutiny, given as mentioned the UDI Pacific region’s (based in Vancouver) “deep history working with Gregor” the former Mayor of the City now in the powerful position of Minister of Housing and Infrastructure and mention of his “influence at the federal and provincial level”.

It also begs the question of why does the UDI have “exclusive intel on Gregor Robertson’s return to government”, as they claim.

The most important question, is why does the Canadian Government led by the Liberal Party after a decade in power prevent lobbying organizations as powerful as the UDI from having to file lobbying activity on the federal lobbyist registry?

The cost of Real Estate in Canada skyrocketed under Federal Liberal leadership over the last decade, up to doubling its cost under their leadership at one point, propelled by the frenzied immigration scheme of that other lobby acting at the federal level, the Century Initiative, with its founder’s and leader’s ties to McKinsey, Black Rock and the Business Council of Canada and even to the Canadian government itself.

Canada’s National Housing Strategy has practically nothing to show for it, other than dozens of billions of taxpayer funds spent, much of it subsidizing the real estate and development industries and propelling the failed Supply Myth when it comes to housing. Don’t expect much to change in this regard, as the Feds continue to allow the UDI to lobby their government without registering that lobbying activity.

If you thought the Liberals are going to act any different under Carney, you were almost certainly wrong.



See also: A 2017 letter from the UDI to the Federal government offered a series of recommendations, including density targets around transit stations/corridors and for the adoption of TODs (Transit Oriented Developments). – CRD Watch Homepage

Liberal Housing Minister ‘wining and dining’ B.C.’s biggest real estate CEOs ⋆ The Breach

Real estate industry hopes Liberal government steps up its game – The Globe and Mail

Who’s who of Vancouver real estate attended Mark Carney fundraiser – theBreaker