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November 4, 2024

43rd Parliament, 1st Session

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Hansard Transcripts

Votes and Proceedings

Orders and Notices

Hansard Transcript 2024-Nov-04 (PDF)

L177 - Mon 4 Nov 2024 / Lun 4 nov 2024

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO

ASSEMBLÉE LÉGISLATIVE DE L’ONTARIO

Monday 4 November 2024 Lundi 4 novembre 2024

Members’ Statements

Brockville General Hospital

Welland Food Drive

Government investments

Public safety

Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day

Remembrance Day

Automotive industry

Women’s employment

Introduction of Visitors

Murray Sinclair

Question Period

Affordable housing

Government accountability

Public safety

Taxation

Labour dispute

Mining industry

Child and family services

Health care

Affordable housing

Domestic violence

Energy policies

Small business

Natural gas leaks

Taxation

Reception

Andy Haydon

Birth of member’s grandchild

Introduction of Visitors

Introduction of Government Bills

Honouring Veterans Act, 2024 / Loi de 2024 visant à honorer les anciens combattants

Introduction of Bills

No Free Ride for Fossil Fuels Act, 2024 / Loi de 2024 visant à empêcher les combustibles fossiles de bénéficier d’un passe-droit

SOFTWAREREVIEWS.COM INC. Act, 2024

Petitions

Child and family services

Tuition

Sexual violence and harassment

Land use planning

Tenant protection

Education funding

Renewable energy

Labour legislation

Ambulance services

Animal protection

Social assistance

Employment standards

Mount Pleasant Group of Cemeteries Act, 2024

Opposition Day

Affordable housing

Orders of the Day

Building Ontario For You Act (Budget Measures), 2024 / Loi de 2024 visant à bâtir l’Ontario pour vous (mesures budgétaires)

The House met at 1015.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Good morning. Let us pray.

Prayers.

Members’ Statements

Brockville General Hospital

Mr. Steve Clark: Speaker, under the new leadership of president and CEO Julie Caffin and board chair James Eastwood, Brockville General Hospital is in good hands.

But today I want to go back 2017 when our cherished community hospital was struggling. Enter Nick Vlacholias as president and CEO and Jim Cooper as board chair. Brockville general’s transformation since then into one of the best hospitals anywhere is remarkable. We’ve opened a new tower and we’re planning on our next redevelopment. Instead of closing programs, we opened a new MRI, and pediatric surgeries have returned thanks to an investment from our government and a partnership with CHEO. The transformation is a testament to the hard work of the board, the volunteers and staff—all made possible by Nick and Jim’s leadership and commitment to communication, staff well-being and patient care.

Nick’s impact goes beyond the Brockville General Hospital. His financial insights helped me make the case to our government to fix the hospital’s funding formula, stabilizing operations at medium-sized hospitals across Ontario.

Earlier this year, Jim’s term as board chair ended and, today, Nick begins a new

chapter in his career at London Health Sciences Centre. The member for Elgin–Middlesex–London is so fortunate to have him.

To the dynamic duo of Nick and Jim, I want to say thank you. Your legacy is stronger for BGH, one that is ready to be there for patients and families for generations to come.

Welland Food Drive

Mr. Jeff Burch: This weekend, the Hope Centre, Open Arms Mission and the Salvation Army hosted their annual food drive in Welland at Club Richelieu. On Saturday, I stopped by to thank the 500 volunteers and community members who came together to help sort donations. They’ve already raised an impressive $32,000 and are hoping to reach $35,000 by the end of month.

According to recent statistics, one in 10 Welland residents accessed a food bank within the last year—30% of those were children. The need in Welland has never been greater due a combination of factors, most notably, the increased cost of living in this province, making life less and less affordable, including the price of rent, utilities and groceries.

Jennifer Sinclair, community engagement coordinator for the Hope Centre in Welland, recently spoke to the media about the crisis, stating, “Our numbers are just skyrocketing. There has been about a 100% increase since last year.”

Local food banks, once a temporary resource, have now become essential for many citizens in Welland and in many places across the province. This government is failing to deliver on the basics, including social service funding that has been frozen for three years. This province needs to step up now to help those struggling with the basics like housing, health care and groceries. We can do better.

Government investments

Mr. Hardeep Singh Grewal: I’m very excited today because I have great news for Bramptonians. Under the leadership of Premier Ford, our government is committed to building the great infrastructure that Ontario needs and the infrastructure that Brampton needs. As a result, we’re proud to announce that William Osler Health System has officially released their request for proposals on the conversion of Peel Memorial Hospital into Brampton’s second full-service hospital.

In partnership with Infrastructure Ontario, this announcement makes it one step closer to start early works in construction and start construction by spring 2025. Under the leadership of Premier Ford, Brampton will never again be left behind. We’ve seen more investment from this government in the past six years than the previous government’s decade in power.

With this Premier at the helm, we’re going to continue to deliver for the residents of Brampton and Ontario, as Ontario recognizes the need to build priority highways faster, reduce gridlock as our province continues to flourish and grow. That’s why our government introduced Bill 212, Reducing Gridlock, Saving You Time Act. That includes the removal of bike lanes in high-traffic areas, reducing gridlock and making it easier for people to commute around this province.

Our work doesn’t end there. We’re also making the largest investment in public transit in Ontario’s history with the Mississauga loop, the Brampton LRT and new subways being built in Toronto. We’re expanding public transit like Ontario has never seen before and we’re saving money. We’re making it more affordable to use public transit with the introduction of One Fare, saving transit riders up to $1,600 a year—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you very much. Appreciate it.

The next member’s statement.

Public safety

Ms. Jennifer K. French: Everyone should be able to count on government to protect our vehicles, but across Ontario, people are experiencing auto theft every day. Car thieves are gaming the system to get new VINs for stolen vehicles at ServiceOntario counters. Other provinces are taking action to protect their VIN registries, but Ontario is leaving criminals a significant loophole. For years, this government has been advised by law enforcement and insurance experts to prevent re-VINing.

Ford’s announcement of more reactive penalties does little to close the loophole and protect the legitimacy of our VIN registry. We need a dedicated strategy for ServiceOntario to investigate VINs to ensure every vehicle on the road is legitimate. That’s the kind of proactive solution that New Democrats bring to table.

Why is this government incapable of being proactive to guard the integrity of Ontario’s VIN database? The PCs could reach for solutions and suggestions, but instead they’re focused on penalties after the crime. This government must reassure drivers that we have a strong system, an audit process and a database that won’t allow criminals to get stolen vehicles into our system and so easily legitimized.

While other jurisdictions are tackling this, Ontario is hiding its head in the glovebox and turning our province into an express lane for VIN fraud. Ontario is becoming a destination for car thieves. We deserve better. We have to get serious about auto theft. I’m calling on this government to get it in gear and protect our VINs.

Remembrance Day

MPP Zee Hamid: Yesterday, I had the honour of attending a touching Remembrance Day ceremony at Haltonville war memorial in the former township of Nassagaweya in my riding of Milton. As we gathered to pay tribute, we reflected on the immense sacrifices made by whose who fought valiantly in the Great Wars and the Korean War.

I’ve attended Remembrance Day events before, both as a private citizen and as a Milton councillor, but attending on behalf of the province of Ontario and placing the wreath was a uniquely emotional experience. This solemn occasion reminds us of the courage and resilience displayed by our service men and women who selflessly dedicated their lives to protect our freedom. Each name inscribed on the memorial stands for a story of bravery, loss and love echoing through generations.

I wanted to dedicate my statement today not just to the men who came from Nassagaweya and sacrificed their lives, but all brave men and women across Ontario and our great nation of Canada, whether they come back home or not. Let us not only remember their courage and sacrifice, but let’s also commit to upholding the values they fought for: peace, democracy and freedom. Today, we honour their legacy by ensuring their stories live on in our hearts and in our actions. Lest we forget.

Remembrance Day

Miss Monique Taylor: Today, I rise to honour our veterans, the men and women who have served, those who have been wounded, those who made the ultimate sacrifice, active service members and all of their families.

Many of us will attend services in our communities. In Hamilton, the inaugural Indigenous Veteran’s Day Service will be held November 8 at The Eagles Among Us monument at Battlefield Park in Stoney Creek. I’m honoured to be attending, as current and past Indigenous sacrifices of this land will be shared and will be reflected on.

On November 10, a parade of Hamilton veterans, garrison units and cadet corps will leave John Foote V.C. armouries and proceed to Veterans’ Place, a cenotaph at Gore Park. It is an honour to be a part of the garrison parade and service, remembering our veterans and peacekeepers. On November 11, we will honour our veterans at the Canadian Legion, Branch 163 in Hamilton Mountain Remembrance Day services.

I am proud of my ongoing commitment to our veterans in our communities. With many veterans returning home, they are faced with many barriers accessing health care, mental health care, stable housing, employment services and programs that help them on their healing journey. We must not lose sight of the importance to protect our veterans as they have protected us and our freedoms.

We are grateful for many veterans and active service members who engage in community service and educate and encourage our future generations. You teach, through your actions, the importance of resilience, of camaraderie and that we must help one another in times of need. Your bravery, courage and sacrifices will always be remembered. Lest we forget.

Remembrance Day

Mr. Ernie Hardeman: Mr. Speaker, today marks the start of Remembrance Week. It is an honour to commemorate the brave men and women who currently serve, have served or have sacrificed their lives for our country. I had the pleasure of attending two Armistice Day dinners over the weekend in Beachville and Woodstock, and I’m always humbled to see the love our veterans have for Canada.

One of the enduring symbols of Remembrance Day is the poppy, immortalized in Canadian Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae’s poem In Flanders Fields, which was written during the First World War. As we wear the poppy on our left lapel, over the heart, it reminds us of the cost of war, but also of the duty of the living to carry the legacy of those who have fallen.

It also shows how Remembrance Day will always be linked to the Great War. When it was first observed in 1919 as Armistice Day, it was to commemorate the armistice agreement between Germany and the Allied powers that went into effect on November 11, 1918, at 11 a.m. In 1931, the Canadian government changed the name to Remembrance Day to emphasize that we should remember the fallen soldiers of all conflicts, including those of the First World War.

On November 11, let us remember those who served, those who sacrificed and those who continue to protect the values that we hold dear by wearing a poppy and donating to the local legion. Lest we forget.

Automotive industry

Mr. Anthony Leardi: Everybody knows about the incredible investments being made in the automotive industry in the province of Ontario. These investments are going to be a boon not only for manufacturers, but also in the mining industry, especially in the area of critical minerals.

But it also means that older manufacturing processes are going to go away and we’re going to have new ones, and that means job disruption. Workers have to adapt. There’s a great union that’s going to help them adapt, and that union is called Unifor. Unifor is helping its members upskill and retrain, teaching them new skills such as battery chemistry, process overview, lean manufacturing, mechanical machinery, electronics, pneumatics and robotics. That’s a great training program for the members of this union, and it’s all made possible in a partnership between Unifor and the government of Ontario, which has provided a grant in the amount of $955,000 to help retrain auto workers.

I want to thank the Premier and I want to thank the Minister of Labour for providing this great program that’s helping men and women in Unifor retrain and build the mighty auto industry in the province of Ontario.

Women’s employment

Ms. Natalie Pierre: Last month, I had the privilege of attending an announcement at the Centre for Skills Development in my riding of Burlington. Alongside the Minister of Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity, we highlighted the Women’s Economic Security Program, which equips women with the training needed to increase workforce participation and achieve financial independence. I witnessed first-hand the incredible partnerships between women-centred organizations, educational institutions and local businesses that make this program possible. This initiative has already empowered thousands of women to start businesses and advance their education and training.

I’m excited to announce that our government is investing up to $1.18 million over the next three years in the Centre for Skills Development. This investment will help the Women’s Economic Security Program, with a specific focus on enhanced general carpentry training.

Investing in programs like these breaks down barriers and builds a future where diversity drives progress and innovation. Thanks to this government investment, we are fostering a skilled workforce that can meet the demands of our growing industries, impacting both the current labour force and future generations.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): That concludes our members’ statements for this morning.

Introduction of Visitors

M me France Gélinas: This morning, Conceivable Dreams had a wonderful breakfast. I would like to thank Dr. Garbedian and Dr. Garcia for taking the trip down to come see us.

WeRPN is also at Queen’s Park. They’ll be inviting everybody over for lunch in 228. I’d like to introduce their CEO, Dianne Martin, as well as their president, Angela Corneil, and their past president, Dickon Worsley. Welcome to Queen’s Park, ladies and gentlemen.

Hon. Jill Dunlop: I would like to welcome Marian Knutson, the mother of page Ziggy from my riding of Simcoe North. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mr. Peter Tabuns: I want to extend a welcome to union leaders from Unifor: Dan Valente, Dirk Tolman, Rob Roca, Shane Horn, Doug Carter, Stephanie Cronin, Ryan Coombs and Wally Ewanicke. They’re here to launch a campaign to stop leakage in natural gas pipes in Ontario.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members will please take their seats. Please take your seats. We haven’t got a lot of time.

The member for Beaches–East York.

Ms. Mary-Margaret McMahon: Good morning, everyone. It’s always great to see you in the House.

I’d like to acknowledge today that we have the Turkish consul general, Can Yoldaş, here visiting us, with the president of Federation of Canadian Turkish Associations, Sima Acan; director Ali Demircan; and Gizem Yilmaz. Hoş geldiniz. Welcome.

Applause.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members will please take their seats.

Ms. Mary-Margaret McMahon: We’ll see everyone at the Turkish flag-raising today at 12:15.

I’d like to introduce the powerful people from the awesome Association of Consulting Engineering Companies in Ontario: a beautiful Beaches–East York resident, acrobatic Andrew Hurd; dynamite David O’Sullivan; magnificent Michael De Michele; and jazzy Jason Stahl. Thanks for building Ontario. Welcome to your House.

Hon. Caroline Mulroney: Speaker, I’m pleased to welcome the Honourable Capri Cafaro, the former minority leader of the Ohio Senate, who served in the Ohio General Assembly for 10 years and is now a TV and radio host, both here and in America. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mr. Joel Harden: I have somebody tuning in on live broadcast who is very special to me today. It’s my brother, Adam Davidson-Harden, a public school teacher from Kingston who turns 50 today. Happy birthday, bro, and thank you for all you do for students.

Mr. Stephen Blais: I’d like to welcome representatives from the Registered Practical Nurses Association of Ontario, or WeRPN, to Queen’s Park. I would like to specifically recognize Sharon Hunter, who sits on the board; Hailey Yan, who is a student nurse; and Ruth Baker, who is a registered practical nurse. Thank you for all the hard work that you do to help register practical nurses in our communities. I look forward to having a chat with you later this afternoon.

Ms. Christine Hogarth: It is absolutely a privilege and an honour to introduce Mr. Morley Kells, who was an MPP here in this House; Mr. Doug Holyday, also a former MPP in this House; and one of my staff members, Brad Kells, who does a wonderful job everyday. Gentlemen, it is an honour to follow in your footsteps. Welcome.

Mr. Jeff Burch: I’d like to welcome Emily McIntosh from Women of Ontario Say No and colleagues to Queen’s Park.

Also, I would like to welcome my constituency assistant, Maddison Harris from Welland, to Queen’s Park.

I’d also like to wish my wonderful wife a happy birthday today.

Hon. Todd J. McCarthy: I want to welcome to the House today special guests from the great, beautiful town of Port Perry in my riding of Durham, Johnathan van Bilsen and Donna van Bilsen. Welcome to your House.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I’d like to continue with introduction of visitors, unless there’s an objection.

The member for London North Centre.

Mr. Terence Kernaghan: It’s my honour to welcome individuals from the Association of Consulting Engineering Companies-Ontario: Ghina Annan, Jason Stahl, David Heska, Joshua Battison and Doug DeRabbie. I encourage all members to take in their reception from 5 p.m. in rooms 228 and 230.

Hon. Sylvia Jones: It is my honour to welcome, from Conceivable Dreams, members who will be having meetings and of course their breakfast event today: Zane Colt.

And of course, from WeRPN, I’d like to welcome Dianne Martin, the CEO, Angela Corneil, the president, and WeRPN staff and members. I’m looking forward to your meetings today.

Hon. Natalia Kusendova-Bashta: I too would like to welcome WeRPN—RPNs play a very important role in long-term care—CEO Dianne Martin, as well as a constituent of mine, an RPN, Jennifer McCauley. I look forward to seeing you at the lunch reception this afternoon.

Mr. Joel Harden: I just want to add my brief thanks to Doug DeRabbie and the engineers who are here today; WeRPN who is here today; and the great folks from Unifor who keep us safe in their pipeline industry here in Ontario. We just thank you all for being here. It’s your House.

Mr. Adil Shamji: Good morning, everyone. It gives me immense pleasure to welcome WeRPN to the Legislature today. They represent 60,000 registered practical nurses, and I wanted to extend a very special warm welcome to Dianne Martin, their chief executive officer; as well as Angela Corneil, their president; and all of the many members who are in attendance today who I look forward to engaging with and hearing from as the day progresses. Thank you and welcome.

Mr. Dave Smith: I would like to welcome from the great riding of God’s country, Peterborough–Kawartha, Canadian veteran and UN peacekeeper Corporal Bill Steedman.

Hon. Doug Ford: I do want to acknowledge all our great veterans. I know there’s going to be a great announcement today, so thank you for your service and your ongoing service.

A couple other people: I know the great member from Etobicoke–Lakeshore mentioned it already, but I have to acknowledge two good friends, former MPP Morley Kells—Morley, I don’t know where you are—

Interjections.

Hon. Doug Ford: Oh, there you are. You’re in the lower deck. You got special treatment down there. Good to see you, Morley—a heck of a lacrosse player as well.

And his good pal, Doug Holyday. Doug introduced our family to politics—don’t blame him; blame Bob Rae, because that’s the reason we got into politics.

Not only was Doug Holyday a city councillor in the city of Etobicoke, he became the great mayor of the state of Etobicoke, then went on to be the deputy mayor of the city of Toronto as well—did an incredible job—and then went on to be an MPP. Thank you for your years of public service, Doug.

I don’t know, this guy is still a heck of a hockey player. He still straps on the skates. What are you, about 110 now, Doug? You’re still strapping on—I love the guy. I sat beside him for four years. I love his family. God bless you.

Hon. Peter Bethlenfalvy: Good morning to everyone here. It gives me great honour to introduce three special people who are here in the House today: first off, my wife, Paula Hughes; my sister Carla Bethlenfalvy; and, last but not least, the aforementioned from the fall economic statement, having travelled all the way from Europe—lest you think I’ve a big ego and am immodest—I welcome to the House Peter Bethlenfalvy. Thank you being here today.

Mr. Andrew Dowie: It’s always a privilege when I get to welcome some fellow engineers to the House. Many have been acknowledged already, but I’d like to acknowledge David Heska, Peter Lejcar, Chris Metaxas, David O’Sullivan, Sean Partington, Serge Ristic, Jason Stahl, Jane Wilson, Martino Fanfani, Navan Chawla, Ioana Babus, Stephanie Speroni, David Chamberlain, Andrew Hurd, Laura Lambie and Doug DeRabbie from the Association of Consulting Engineering Companies-Ontario. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

I also want to give a shout out for two residents from Windsor who are here: Sarrah and Mike Fisher. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Hon. Graham McGregor: This afternoon I’ll be tabling a bill; we’ve got a lot of folks here to support it. One of my colleagues will be calling out the organizations, but I want to give a shout out to—we have many active servicepeople and veterans who are here today in the gallery, and I want to make sure we give them a warm round of applause: Shekhar Gothi, Julian Chapman, Rob Francis, Roland Gossage, Phil Ralph, Steven Boychyn, Daryll Cathcart, Curtis Houston, Allan Roy, Aaron Dale, Brian Patterson, André Levesque, Andrew Wilder, Chris Lock, Peter McLaurin, John Featherington, William Law and Russ Dalton.

Thank you very much for your service.

Hon. Michael Parsa: I’m very pleased to introduce today’s page captain, from the great riding of Aurora–Oak Ridges–Richmond Hill: Rishabh Goel. Mr. Speaker, visiting us today are his parents, Vinay and Veenu; his older brother and a former page, right here, Rohan; and his sister Roshni.

Welcome to Queen’s Park. Thank you so much for everything you do in the riding.

Ms. Laura Smith: I want to echo my colleague’s thoughts and extend my sincere gratitude to all the veterans here today.

I also want to thank the organizations supporting veterans and their military families at every stage in their journey, as well as those raising awareness of the contributions the brave men and women in uniform have made over the years.

Today, we are so honoured to welcome Royal Canadian Legion, True Patriot Love, Together We Stand, Canadian Forces Morale and Welfare Services, Toronto Military Family Resource Centre, Vimy Foundation, Historica Canada, Wounded Warriors, Helmets to Hardhats, Coding for Veterans, Commissionaires, the Roland Gossage Foundation, and Boilermakers International.

Thank you for your hard work and for taking the time to be here today. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Applause.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Thornhill, to conclude?

Ms. Laura Smith: I would be remiss if I did not welcome my new executive assistant, Flora Khani, to the Legislature for her first time today.

Welcome to Queen’s Park.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): That concludes our introduction of visitors for this morning.

I want to acknowledge that we are meeting on lands traditionally inhabited by Indigenous peoples. We pay our respects to the many Indigenous nations who gathered here and who continue to gather here, including the Mississaugas of the Credit. Meegwetch.

This being the first sitting Monday of the month, I ask everyone to rise now for the singing of the Canadian national anthem and the royal anthem, which will be led off for us by the member for Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke.

Singing of the national anthem / Chant de l’hymne national.

Singing of the royal anthem / Chant de l’hymne royal.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members may take their seats.

Murray Sinclair

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I recognize the member for Kiiwetinoong on a point of order.

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Meegwetch, Speaker. I’d like to ask for a moment of silence. We just got word that Murray Sinclair, the groundbreaking Indigenous lawyer who had led the inquiries that exposed racial injustice and redefined how Canadians see Indian residential schools, died today. I would like to acknowledge his death by having a moment of silence.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Kiiwetinoong is seeking the unanimous consent of the House for a moment of silence in memory of the Honourable Murray Sinclair. Agreed? Agreed.

Members will please rise.

The House observed a moment’s silence.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members may take their seats.

Question Period

Affordable housing

Ms. Marit Stiles: This question is for the Premier. The fall economic statement showed a pretty bleak outlook for housing in our province. Housing starts are down, and this government is nowhere near being able to meet their own targets. They wasted years chasing schemes, all while more people saw the dream of owning a home slide away or went from eviction to encampment.

Our plan, the NDP’s Homes Ontario plan, would realize the human right to housing, at least doubling the supply of permanently affordable housing. Will the government support this important step in getting government back in the business of building housing again?

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members will please take their seats.

To reply, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

Hon. Paul Calandra: I appreciate the opportunity to rise. Let me just categorically say that, absolutely not, we will not be supporting the motion that was brought forward by the Leader of the Opposition today.

Let me just say this, Mr. Speaker, it is motions like that, it is policies like that, that motivated me to get into office in the first place. Let me tell you, the moment that the government thinks that a socialist party thinks that they can do a better job of building homes than the private sector, that is when we are in trouble, because we have seen this before. The Premier talked about how the Bob Rae government got him into politics. For millions and millions of Ontarians it was that government that began the process of people re-evaluating the dream of home ownership.

Since we have come into office, we have done everything possible to remove the obstacles that were put in the way by the Liberals and the NDP. Before the interest rate hikes, we were building homes at a record pace in the province of Ontario, and we will do that again.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary question.

Ms. Marit Stiles: I think the minister needs to go back to the history books and learn a little bit about the history of governments for many generations building homes and housing for people in this province.

This government promised to build 1.5 million homes by 2031. But every year since they made that promise, they have failed to meet their own targets. The government will miss their housing target again this year—40,000 not being built. That’s on top of the 20,000 homes that they didn’t build last year. That’s based on their own reporting that shows the trend for the next few years just going down and down. Every year, this government is falling farther and farther behind, and Ontarians pay the price for that.

Does the Premier, again, have a plan to meet his own targets, or is he abandoning them altogether?

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members will please take their seats.

Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

Hon. Paul Calandra: Again, the Leader of the Opposition doesn’t know what she is speaking about. Governments do not build homes. Governments have never built homes. The private sector has built homes. Generations of Canadians and Ontarians have come to this province and have helped us build communities for the people of the province of Ontario.

Now, here’s where we disagree, and here’s where we disagree constantly with them: For the opposition—the Liberal and the NDP opposition—they’re happiest when people rely solely on government, when the people have to go to them to rely on homes. When they rely on government, that’s when Liberals and NDP are happiest.

When I am most happy, when we are most happy, is when we’ve put the resources in place that allow people to realize their dream. That is why we’re removing obstacles. That is why when we were removing the obstacles, we had the highest starts in history. It wasn’t until the high-inflation policies of the federal Liberal government that we saw that stop and start to change. We’ll double down, remove obstacles and get the job done.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Final supplementary?

Ms. Marit Stiles: Where are they? Where are the homes? What you’re doing is not working. The people of Ontario know it. Waiting for interest rates to fall is not a plan. Hoping the market is going to magically adjust itself isn’t going to get housing built. The Premier needs to do his job.

Update zoning rules today. Allow the fourplexes in all neighbourhoods. Increase density near transit like you planned and then you scrapped that bill. These measures alone would unlock the potential to build millions of new affordable homes all across this province.

Will the Premier scrap the schemes and focus on reversing his government’s absolutely disastrous record on housing?

Hon. Paul Calandra: There you have it, Mr. Speaker, in that response. There you have it, right? Interest rates don’t matter? Tell that to the thousands, the millions, of people who, because of the high-inflation, high-spending policies of the federal Liberal and Conservative socialist government, were priced out of their ability to buy their home. Think of the thousands of homes and shovels that are not in the ground because of the high-inflation policies of the federal NDP government, which made interest rates so high in such a short period of time they could no longer afford to get shovels in the ground.

Contrast that to what we were doing: We were removing obstacles. We removed obstacles. We made it cheaper to get shovels in the ground, we made it more affordable for that to happen. You know what happened? More homes were being built in the province of Ontario than at any time in our history—single-detached homes, purpose-built rentals.

We’re going to double down, remove the obstacles and set aside a federal government that doesn’t care about housing, an opposition that doesn’t care about housing, and we’ll deliver 1.5 million homes.

Government accountability

Ms. Marit Stiles: I want to go back to the Premier again. We know one of the reasons why this Premier has so utterly failed to get housing built is because they were too busy carving up the greenbelt for their speculator friends.

One of the key staffers involved in that scandal and scheme, Ryan Amato, is back in the news today for his continued refusal to disclose emails and records from his personal accounts related to his communication with lobbyists. Everything points to the use of personal emails to get around FOI requests. Amato even infamously asked in a handwritten note, “Is this FOI-able?”

Can the Premier shed some light on what exactly is in these emails and why his staff were using personal emails to talk to lobbyists?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The parliamentary assistant and member for Brantford–Brant.

Mr. Will Bouma: I thank the member for the question. The Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing is committed to its obligations under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and the Archives and Recordkeeping Act. We have zero tolerance for any wrongdoing and expect anyone involved in the decision-making about the greenbelt lands to have followed the letter of the law.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Opposition side, come to order.

Mr. Will Bouma: We will continue to pursue every avenue available to request that any relevant records be turned over in accordance with the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and the Archives and Recordkeeping Act.

We’ll say it again: We’ll do this.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Supplementary question?

Ms. Marit Stiles: Just look how far back in the benches they have to go to find somebody to read that statement.

Here’s why this matters—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Government side will come to order. Order. Stop the clock.

Having sat in the back row myself for many years, I always thought every seat in here is a good seat. And it’s not helpful to point out where members sit in the House.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Order. I think we can start again. Start the clock.

Ms. Marit Stiles: Wow, that really hit a nerve; I see that, Speaker.

But look, this is why this matters: This staffer was using—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Order. Member for Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke, come to order.

Ms. Marit Stiles: My goodness. I know they don’t like talking about this, but my goodness.

This staffer was using his personal emails to communicate with lobbyists about greenbelt lands in order to avoid FOI requests. It is part of a pattern of disregarding the rules to carve up the greenbelt, to increase speculator profits, to give away ministerial zoning orders in brown envelopes to insiders.

So to the Premier again: Is this standard operating procedure in your government to avoid the law and shield bad actors from accountability?

Mr. Will Bouma: I appreciate the question. I don’t feel sorry for the Leader of the Opposition if she’s offended by my presence here in the House, but I am pleased to take my seat here and to be the parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, serving in the Office of the Premier.

Speaker, as we have said and will continue to say, our government has answered this question a number of times for the Leader of the Opposition, and we will continue to do so. If the Leader of the Opposition has any additional information or any information whatsoever that she would like to provide to the commissioner, I encourage her to do so.

As for our government, we will fully co-operate. If there is a staffer in this government that has or had done something wrong, we will root it out, and we will get that taken care of. We are here for the people of Ontario.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Final supplementary?

Ms. Marit Stiles: I appreciate the challenge that the Premier and his government are faced with. It is hard to hold your staff to account, to get them to follow the rules, when the Premier himself won’t comply with them. For over a year, he has fought to keep his own records from public view, including phone calls and other communications that point to his own role in the greenbelt scheme.

What will it take for the Premier to start to follow information and privacy laws and disclose his own records and those of his staff? Is it going to be the RCMP criminal investigation? What is it going to take for this government to start actually being honest and accountable to the people of Ontario?

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members will please take their seats.

Again, to reply, the member for Brantford–Brant and parliamentary assistant.

Mr. Will Bouma: Thank you for the question. I will say again that the Premier’s office and the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing are committed to its obligations under the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and the Archives and Recordkeeping Act. We have zero tolerance for any wrongdoing and expect anyone involved in the decision-making process about the greenbelt lands to have followed the letter of the law. We will continue to pursue every avenue available to request that any relevant records be turned over in accordance with the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act and the Archives and Recordkeeping Act.

Speaker, we’ve answered this question many times. We will answer it again if the Leader of the Opposition wishes to say that. But while they’re busy trying to distract the people of Ontario about what’s going on, we are building the province of Ontario. We are building the hospitals. We are building the schools. We are building the highways that the people of Ontario need in order to get on with their daily lives.

Public safety

Ms. Jennifer K. French: My question is to the Premier. We learned last week that while the government was appointing an associate minister responsible for auto thefts, there was a car theft ring operating within ServiceOntario—right under the Premier’s nose. These public employees weren’t smashing in windows or picking locks; they were registering fraudulent VINs to stolen vehicles for resale. These fraudulent VINs are running rampant, and the government has failed to implement any preventative measures—all of their ideas are after the crime.

The police want a VIN verification system. Other provinces have already implemented a VIN verification system. What is stopping this government from taking real action to protect the VIN registry?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery and Procurement.

Hon. Todd J. McCarthy: I appreciate the question from the member for Oshawa. As all members of this House know, auto fraud is a serious criminal matter, and at ServiceOntario, we take co-operation with law enforcement very seriously. That’s why we have procedures in place, training in place, upgrades in place to make sure that auto fraud is detected and that those responsible are apprehended and prosecuted.

In fact, it was through ServiceOntario procedures that there was internal detection and that those responsible were identified, apprehended and are being prosecuted. That’s working with law enforcement to make sure that this unacceptable criminal activity is eradicated, and I’m very proud of our dedicated ServiceOntario employees across Ontario who are here serving the people of Ontario, standing up against crime.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary: the member for Humber River–Black Creek.

Mr. Tom Rakocevic: Police and experts are looking for preventative measures, but let’s be perfectly clear: None of the measures that the government has proposed to stop car thefts would have actually prevented the crimes. A helicopter won’t be able to see a fraudulent VIN number. And once you’ve arrested the car thieves and their accomplices, the cars are already long gone.

But there’s one obvious solution that the government seems unwilling to try to stop car thieves in their tracks: a VIN verification program that has already been implemented in other provinces.

So what’s stopping the government from taking action now to maintain the integrity of Ontario’s VIN registry?

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members will please take their seats.

To reply, the Associate Minister of Auto Theft and Bail Reform.

Hon. Graham McGregor: The member talked about Project Thoroughbred, which was led by the Toronto police. What they failed to mention was that was an investigation funded by this government through the CISO that they voted against. We’ve put more police on our streets—almost 2,100. It used to be 1,400 under their government supporting the Liberals.

We’ve got helicopters on the way, something that police have told us they need to hold offenders accountable, to catch dangerous criminals, avoid car chases.

The members opposite talk a big game. They vote against all these measures. But when we have police leadership in those benches, every single member stands up. The difference is, when the police leave, the PC Party continues to stand up for hard-working police. We’ll never apologize for that.

We’ll keep calling for bail reform and common-sense reform to keep criminals behind bars. We invite the NDP to join us.

Taxation

Mr. Brian Saunderson: My question is for the Minister of Finance.

The hard-working men and women across this great province are feeling the pressure of rising costs on their personal finances.

We all know that the Trudeau-Crombie carbon tax is driving up prices for day-to-day necessities. Families are being forced to pay more for everything from grocery bills to home heating and fuel for their cars.

People in my riding of Simcoe–Grey and across the province need financial relief. Ontarians want to see real cost-cutting measures that will make their lives easier. Speaker, through you: Can the minister tell the House what our government is doing to help Ontarians who need support right now?

Hon. Peter Bethlenfalvy: My thanks to the member for Simcoe–Grey for that great question. Thank you, member.

Let’s remind everyone that the Liberals supported the carbon tax. They supported it here in this House. They support it up the 401. And they continue to champion higher costs. In fact, the member opposite’s leader there supports increased taxes, increased fees, and thinks that putting money into people’s pockets is a bad thing.

I would ask this House: Putting money back into the hard-working people of Ontario’s pockets—is that a good thing or a bad thing?

Interjections: Good thing.

Hon. Peter Bethlenfalvy: Thank you.

Putting your hand in someone’s pocket and taking money out—is that a good thing or a bad thing?

Interjections: Bad thing.

Hon. Peter Bethlenfalvy: So the difference between our party and theirs—good thing on this side, bad thing on that side.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I’ll remind the members to make their comments through the Chair.

Supplementary question?

Mr. Brian Saunderson: Thank you to the minister for that response.

I know the residents in Simcoe–Grey are happy to see initiatives that will keep more money in their pockets. This tax rebate is welcome news for families in Ontario that have been burdened with the high costs of the federal carbon tax and interest rates.

Speaker, the Liberals do not agree with our approach. They would rather saddle Ontarians with more fees and add new taxes.

Our government is leading by example and by respecting the taxpayers. But we know more needs to be done to keep costs low and make life more affordable for Ontarians.

Can the minister tell the House what other steps our government has taken to provide relief for Ontario families and businesses?

Hon. Peter Bethlenfalvy: Once again, thanks to the great member for Simcoe–Grey for that question.

The leader of the Liberal Party over there—she thinks this is a gimmick.

Do people think that putting $200 back into the vast majority of families who need this money—back into their pockets—is a gimmick?

This is the party that supported the carbon tax. This is a party that increased fees. They increased taxes.

Let’s just go back in time a little bit. Who put on the tolls in Durham on the 412, 418? It was that party. Who raised the wine tax and the beer tax? It was that party. Who increased driver’s licence fees? It was that party.

Let me remind the House which party has taken the tolls off the 412, 418. Which party?

Interjections: This party.

Hon. Peter Bethlenfalvy: Who cut the wine tax? This party?

Interjections: This party.

Hon. Peter Bethlenfalvy: Who took the fees—the driver’s licence stickers off the hard-working people and put money in their pockets? It was this party.

We’ll never tire working for the people of—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Once again, I’ll remind the members to make their comments through the Chair.

The next question.

Labour dispute

MPP Jamie West: My question is for the Premier.

Last week, the member for Oshawa and I asked about the 600 government engineers who have been without a collective agreement for over 22 months. The Professional Engineers Government of Ontario workers design, plan and oversee $85 billion in public infrastructure projects. They also provide vital services for water, air quality, mine safety, and much more.

My question: Has the Conservative government locked out their unionized employees?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The President of the Treasury Board to reply.

Hon. Caroline Mulroney: As I said last week, the government’s goal is to negotiate fair and reasonable collective agreements for Ontario’s dedicated public servants. We want to make sure that they’re in line with legislative requirements and that they support our long-term fiscal sustainability.

We have been at the negotiating table for months with PEGO, and our latest offer recognizes the important role that PEGO employees play. That said, it would be inappropriate to comment any further, as the matter is before the Ontario Labour Relations Board.

But let me be clear: We have provided a fair offer to the PEGO employees, and we look forward to seeing them at the table again.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Supplementary question?

MPP Jamie West: My question is for the Premier again.

For workers that have been without a contract for more than a year, the PEGO workers have been more than reasonable. They’re paid substantially less than their private sector counterparts. They haven’t had a labour dispute in 35 years. They’ve tried to bargain for almost two years; meanwhile, the government has only showed up to bargain for 30 days over that time, and the last time was three months ago.

When these workers withdrew their engineering services on the Bradford Bypass and Highway 413, the Conservative government apparently had informed the workers that they can only return to work when the government tells them. Is this what public sector professionals can expect from the Conservative government: bargaining in bad faith and being unlawfully locked out?

Hon. Caroline Mulroney: Let me be very clear: Since July of last year, the government has held numerous bargaining sessions with PEGO and their bargaining team in an effort to reach a fair deal at the table. In fact, our last time at the bargaining table was on October 18 of this year.

The government respects PEGO’s rights and remains committed to reaching a fair and reasonable deal at the table.

Mining industry

Mr. Rudy Cuzzetto: My question is for the Minister of Mines.

Ontario has a rich mining history, especially gold mining, which has long provided jobs and economic strength for our communities. Gold is more than a mineral in Ontario; it represents opportunity, innovation and prosperity, especially in our northern regions.

With gold prices remaining high, the demand for Ontario’s natural resources continues to grow. We know that opening more gold mines here in Ontario would mean more jobs, more investments and more support for local businesses. Can the minister please explain how the government, industry and First Nations can come together to support the growth of gold mining across Ontario?

Hon. George Pirie: Thank you very much for that question. How appropriate to be talking about gold today when the price of gold is over C$3,800 an ounce. For a guy who represents Timmins, a gold-mining community, this is music to my ears.

It was a real pleasure for me to open two gold mines this summer—one was Côté Lake mine, just south of Gogama, and the other was the Greenstone mine. The Greenstone mine, like all mines, is a very special place. It’s designed with sustainability in mind—designed so that the footprint is as small as it possibly can be. It’s designed to improve the water quality in the environment. As you know, it’s in the Longlac and Geraldton area—old gold-mining towns—so it’s reprocessing tailings and it’s cleaning the environment.

It’s in support of the five First Nations communities that are in that area that this project got built. Jobs were created, and it happens because we’re working together. Industry—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you very much.

The supplementary question.

Mr. Rudy Cuzzetto: Gold mining is one of Ontario’s biggest opportunities to drive economic growth and support local communities. The mining industry doesn’t just create jobs; it builds careers and livelihoods, especially for people in northern Ontario and nearby Indigenous communities. Gold-mining projects bring life to our northern towns and provide lasting infrastructure and investment. The Greenstone gold mine is a prime example of how we can make this happen, creating hundreds of jobs and generating real, local benefits.

As other provinces ramp up their mining industry, Ontario must stay competitive. We need to keep supporting these projects to ensure long-term prosperity in our communities. Can the Associate Minister of Mines please share what more Ontario can do to strengthen gold mining and secure a brighter future for northern Ontario?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Associate Minister of Mines.

Hon. Stephen Crawford: Thank you to the great member from my neighbouring riding of Mississauga–Lakeshore for the question.

Gold mining has a critical role for the province by fuelling northern Ontario’s economy and generating prosperity for Indigenous communities. That’s why the opening of the Greenstone gold mine was truly remarkable. This $1.6-billion project not only strengthens Ontario’s mining portfolio but also brings long-term benefits to Indigenous communities through partnerships and career paths. Today, the mine supports 500 local jobs and has created over 800 jobs in the region.

I was lucky enough to join a tour of the state-of-the-art operation and see what is possible when Indigenous communities and mining companies have lasting partnerships. I was thoroughly impressed with the incredible facility and the dedication to safety and sustainability. Environmental sustainability was at the forefront of the mine’s development.

This project demonstrates that Ontario continues to be a leader in mining, driving investments that benefit not only the sector but also the various communities that rely on it. It’s all happening right here in Ontario.

Child and family services

Miss Monique Taylor: My question is for the Premier. A memo prepared last fall for the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services told you that children with complex needs are being placed in hotels, Airbnbs and even in CAS offices due to a lack of suitable placements in the community. Your government has had this report for over a year, and yet you continue to let the crisis grow. In that year, children have been displaced and some have died.

What are you doing to make sure that not one more child is put in these dangerous conditions?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To reply, the Minister of Community, Children and Social Services.

Hon. Michael Parsa: I thank the honourable member for the important question. As I said from day one, our government prioritizes the safety and well-being of children and youth in this province, which is why, when it comes to support for children’s aid societies across the province, we are investing $1.7 billion to make sure every child, every youth, has the supports they need to succeed and thrive.

That $1.7 billion includes a $14-million increase this year in child protection services. That is on top of the $76.3-million increase last year to support societies for the Ready, Set, Go Program that we initiated to make sure every child, every youth, is set up for success. We went one step further: To make sure no child and youth in this province is left behind, we increased our base funding by $36.5 million.

Let me make it very clear to every child, every youth in this province: We will never, ever, ever waver from our commitment to protecting you and making sure you succeed and thrive.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary question.

Miss Monique Taylor: The only action that this government has done is to punish the service providers who they have underfunded. That is what this government has continued to do, and our kids are suffering each and every day for it.

It shouldn’t be so complicated. An audit is not going to make one child safer tonight, and it will not put a permanent roof over the head of even one child. So the real question is: What is this government going to do to protect vulnerable children today and stop leaving these kids behind?

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members will please take their seats.

The Minister of Community, Children and Social Services.

Hon. Michael Parsa: Again, I’ll let the House know: While we increased investments for children’s aid societies across this province by nearly $129 million over 10 years, the number of children and youth across the province has decreased by 30% in that time period.

When I say we take that seriously, we absolutely will look at making sure children and youth are protected. When a child is placed in an unlicensed provider where they experienced abuse and were exposed to illicit drugs, yes, we’re going to review to make sure that they’re protected. When a youth is placed in an unlicensed home that failed fire safety requirements, yes, we’re going to protect them. When a society uses funding for mortgage and capital improvements, yes, we’re going to step in.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Hamilton Mountain will come to order.

Hon. Michael Parsa: As I’ve said before and I’ll say it again: When it comes to the future of this province, the children and youth, we will never ever, ever, ever waver from our commitment with or without the support of the NDP—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Stop the clock. Members will please take their seats.

Miss Monique Taylor: I don’t know how that paycheque makes you eat your soul like that.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Hamilton Mountain will come to order.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Order.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Minister of Children, Community and Social Services will come to order.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Hamilton Mountain will come to order.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The government side will come to order.

We still have a ways to go. Start the clock. The next question.

Health care

Mr. Adil Shamji: For the Premier, who has 32,000 people in his riding without a family doctor: Yesterday, the Premier posted about an interactive map showing all the new places you can buy booze one year early. All it took was a billion dollars. Everyone knows this was a last-ditch attempt to increase the Premier’s popularity before calling an early election.

But it made me think: If you live in Ontario and don’t happen to drink, it’s as if this government has done nothing for you. It may be slightly easier to find booze, but when it comes to finding a family doctor, it’s harder than ever. A million more people don’t have a family doctor now than in 2018. There are another 2.5 million people without a family doctor right now, and that number will skyrocket to 4.4 million by 2026.

Twice this year, the Premier has come out with an interactive booze map, but it’s still no easier to find a family doctor. Mr. Speaker, a simple question: Why does this Premier think it’s more important to advertise booze than health care?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To reply, the Deputy Premier and Minister of Health.

Hon. Sylvia Jones: When I look at what we’ve been able to accomplish under Premier Ford, where we now have two new medical schools that are going to start in the province of Ontario—Northern Ontario School of Medicine—the number of seats that are available are almost doubling.

I have to remind the member opposite of a 2015 article: “Ontario Cuts 50 Medical Residency Places, Critics Warn of Doctor Shortage.” The OMA calls the elimination of 50 first-year residency spaces “irresponsible and unacceptable.” I will put our record up against the previous Liberal government any day of the week.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Order.

The supplementary question.

Mr. Adil Shamji: I thought I’d get an answer like that, so I have a report of my own. This is a map of the top 10 Conservative ridings with the most people that don’t have a family doctor.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Order.

Mr. Adil Shamji: When the members opposite hear their riding, I ask that they please stand up and take a bow: The member from Brampton West who has 27,500 people in his riding without a family doctor. The member from Scarborough–Rouge Park who has 28,000; the member from Kenora–Rainy River—29,000 people without a family doctor; the member from Brampton East with 30,000; the members for Chatham-Kent–Leamington and Nepean—31,000 a piece; the member from Etobicoke North, also the Premier of Ontario, who has—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Stop the clock. The member will take his seat.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing will come to order. The member for Ottawa South will come to order.

The member for Don Valley East has the floor legitimately to pose his question. I need to be able to hear him.

Mr. Adil Shamji: As I was saying—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Just a second, I’m going to wait until the House calms down before I recognize the member again.

Start the clock. The member for Don Valley East has the floor.

Mr. Adil Shamji: As I was saying: the member from Etobicoke North, also the Premier of Ontario, with 32,000 people without a family doctor; the member from Elgin–Middlesex–London, 38,000; the member from Bay of Quinte, 39,000; and, at number one, we have the member from Etobicoke Centre, with 40,000 people in her riding without a family doctor.

Mr. Speaker, why won’t the Premier let his own members fight for their own constituents’ most basic health care needs?

Hon. Sylvia Jones: The fact that the member opposite is ignoring the inconvenient truth that they were the ones who cut residency seats in the province of Ontario. Our government—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Order.

Hon. Sylvia Jones: —brand new expanded medical school in Scarborough, brand new medical school in the city of Brampton, a school in Vaughan that will be specifically focused on training family physicians.

As I say, I look at the investments that we have made with our medical schools, with the college of nurses, with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario to make sure that people who want to practise in the province of Ontario have that opportunity. We are removing those barriers. We are expanding the health care system and the residency positions in the province of Ontario, because we understand that as we have more people in the province of Ontario and as our population ages, we have to plan, unlike the previous Liberal government.

Affordable housing

Ms. Effie J. Triantafilopoulos: My question is to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. People across Ontario want to see more homes built, and they need affordable options, but high interest rates from the federal government are slowing things down. High interest rates are making it harder to finance projects.

And then there’s the Trudeau-Crombie carbon tax. It adds extra costs to every single stage of building new homes. The people who want to buy these homes end up paying more. Builders are telling us they can’t afford to start new projects because the federal government makes things more expensive.

Our government has taken action. We’re cutting red tape, helping builders and reducing costs where we can, but these extra barriers from Ottawa are holding Ontario back. Speaker, can the minister please tell us what more can be done to get homes built for Ontarians?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The parliamentary assistant and member for Perth–Wellington.

Mr. Matthew Rae: As my great colleague mentioned, the federal Liberal-NDP spooky coalition in Ottawa’s disastrous tax-and-spend policies are seriously impacting the pace of new home construction in Ontario. That is why—

Interjections.

Mr. Matthew Rae: They already laugh, Speaker, because they don’t want to hear the truth.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Opposition, come to order.

Mr. Matthew Rae: We are here to stand and deliver the truth and to stand with our home builders. That’s why, under the leadership of Premier Ford, we’ve been calling on the federal government to reduce interest rates, and that’s why we have redoubled our efforts to reduce red tape and streamline approvals, so when interest rates fall—like the opposition poll numbers—we’ll be ready to get more shovels in the ground.

We removed the full 8% of the provincial HST on purpose-built rental housing. We provided discounts and exemptions on development charges for affordable units. We introduced common-sense changes to make it easier to build garden, laneway and basement suites. We introduced a new provincial planning statement to make it easier to build more housing near major transit stations. And we invested $3 billion in—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you.

The supplementary question.

Ms. Effie J. Triantafilopoulos: Speaker, thank you to the parliamentary assistant for his answer.

People across Ontario need more housing options. They need homes they can afford. But high interest rates from the federal government continue to make it tough to start new projects. And with the Trudeau-Crombie carbon tax, the costs keep piling up. Home builders are telling us they want to help, but they face so many barriers and red tape from the federal government.

Our government needs to continue making changes to make building easier. Our government has cut red tape and helped people get started, but more action is needed. Speaker, can the parliamentary assistant please explain how our government supports families and builders who want to add new homes, like basement apartments and laneway houses?

Mr. Matthew Rae: Our government knows that to solve the housing crisis, we need to be constructing more homes of every kind, including accessory residential units, or ARUs, like basement apartments, laneway houses and second-storey apartments.

That’s why, earlier this fall, the minister announced that our government is moving forward with new common-sense regulatory changes that would reduce or eliminate zoning barriers that currently impede the construction of these types of housing. By making changes to address things like angular planes and maximum lot coverages—our changes will help make it easier for homeowners and home builders to build these much-needed units.

The construction of ARUs helps drive down rental costs by increasing the rental supply while also providing families with more flexibility—to make it easier to build laneway houses and garden suites for elderly family members.

Earlier, the member from Davenport said, “Where are the homes?” Those ARUs are in the city of Stratford. They’re getting built because of our government’s changes to ensure we get more homes built so people—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you very much.

The next question.

Domestic violence

Mr. Joel Harden: My question is for the Premier.

For folks tuning in and folks in the House—I’m just going to warn people that my question is about gender-based violence.

People in Ottawa have been mourning the loss of Brkti Berhe, a 36-year-old mother who was stabbed to death in a local park in the south end of our city, in broad daylight, in front of her children. This heinous act was committed by a man known to Brkti. She was helping her auntie end a violent, troubled relationship with this man, and for that she was targeted and killed. The Ottawa police have labelled this heinous act a femicide—the second our city has had in two months.

Speaker, no one should die for helping a loved one leave a violent home.

Victim services experts are telling me that this tragedy, sadly, could have been avoided. Will the government commit to working with those experts so this never happens again?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Minister of Children, Community and Social Services.

Hon. Michael Parsa: Our government has been very clear: We want to make sure that all the victims and all their families and all the survivors have access to the supports they need, which is why we are working with our municipal partners, with the federal government, to make sure that those supports are accessible, so that every single person in their communities is working with—whether it’s the victim services, whether it’s the local service providers, which is why we announced Ontario-STANDS, Ontario’s action plan to end gender-based violence in all forms in this province.

We backed that up by substantial investments—$1.4 billion over three years—to make sure our community partners and members have access to those supports.

Mr. Speaker, we’re also working with the federal government. We’ve signed on to the National Action Plan to End Gender-Based Violence, which provides an additional $162 million so that every survivor, every victim has the supports they need in their communities across the province.

No woman or girl in this province should ever have to live with the fear of persecution or violence in our communities.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Supplementary question?

Mr. Joel Harden: I thank the member for his response.

I want to return to the incident I’m raising this morning. Brkti was trying to help her auntie leave a violent relationship. But that courageous act of bystander intervention—it can’t be based on individuals alone. It needs public support. Brkti needed culturally appropriate public services and languages and capacity available that would work to keep her auntie, herself and her children safe—and we have failed that family set.

People need help to leave these relationships, and when that help is needed, it has to be prompt, culturally appropriate and well funded.

There used to be a fund in this province that would help people—up to an amount of $20,000—to find legal help, to move, and to get out of violent homes. That fund no longer exists.

Women’s shelters and support workers for those shelters—I believe they deserve to be funded just as much as our hospitals, because they are critical in keeping us safe.

To stop the femicides and to honour Brkti today, will the government commit to making sure those funds get to the front line so no one, as the minister just said, ever has to worry about leaving a violent home?

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members will please take their seats.

The Associate Minister of Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity.

Hon. Charmaine A. Williams: As my colleague said, we will never, ever waver in making sure we are investing in the organizations, in programs that support women and ensure—keeping women safe. A total of $1.4 billion is invested, through our government, to these organizations.

We’ve increased the funding to the Assaulted Women’s Helpline, and I’m going to say that number on camera so that every woman has this number. It’s 1-866-863-0511.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Order.

Hon. Charmaine A. Williams: Now, the members opposite might scoff and laugh at these concrete strategies that we are doing to help keep women safe, but we’re going to continue to invest, as well as programs that are culturally sensitive and help women regardless of where they come from, like the Women’s Economic Security Program. I announced $26.7 million across Ontario so that women can get wraparound supports and all of the resources needed so that they can help rebuild their lives free of violence permanently. We are going to continue to do this work, because we know that women are the future and women are the heart of a community, of a family and of Ontario.

Energy policies

Mr. Mike Schreiner: My question is for the Premier. In BC, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Nova Scotia, cash-strapped municipalities are allowed to charge private utilities like Enbridge a fee for the use of public land for their fossil gas infrastructure, but not in Ontario. As a result, local taxpayers are being forced to subsidize Enbridge while property taxes go up, services are cut, and municipalities don’t have the financial resources they need to address the housing and homelessness crisis, but a multi-billion-dollar company with a $19-million CEO gets a free ride.

The member from Kitchener and I plan to introduce a bill to get rid of this hidden subsidy. Will the Premier join us in putting people’s needs ahead of giant gas companies like Enbridge by saying yes to allowing municipalities to charge gas utilities fair fees for the use of public land?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Associate Minister of Energy-Intensive Industries.

Hon. Sam Oosterhoff: I want to thank the member opposite for his question, but I want to be very clear to the members who are in this House and all those who are watching today: The member’s underlying ideology that defines this legislation he has brought forward is one that was characterized by the Liberals’ Green Energy Act.

What did we see as a result of the Green Energy Act? We saw a 300% increase in electricity rates here in the province of Ontario. We saw a massive increase because of the ideology that said, “No, we need taxation instead of technology. We need to punish families. We need to punish job creators, instead of incentivizing them to reduce emissions while growing our economy.”

We have a different approach, Speaker. Through our Affordable Energy Act that was tabled last week by Minister Stephen Lecce, we’re seeing that we’re taking an all-hands-on-deck approach to energy affordability, efficiency and sustainability. We’re never going to back away from that promise, because it’s for the seniors, the job creators and the families in our ridings who want affordable, reliable, clean energy that we will continue to make investments to support every family in the province of Ontario.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary question.

Mr. Mike Schreiner: This is the exact rationale the government used when they took the unprecedented step of overturning an independent OEB decision for the first time in Ontario history, which would have protected consumers. Then the Narwhal revealed that in private government emails that government members were more concerned about corporate profits for Enbridge than they were in saving people money.

In Edmonton, home of the Oilers, city council there charges a fee for the use of public land for fossil gas infrastructure, collecting over $60 million for people in Edmonton to spend on the things they need, but we can’t do that in Ontario. If it’s good enough for Alberta, why isn’t it good enough for Ontario? I think a company that earned $1.3 billion in profits last quarter can afford to pay their fair share. I give the government an opportunity to say yes for standing up for people and saying no to a free ride for giant corporations.

Hon. Sam Oosterhoff: My parents have a large farmhouse. They spend between $800 and $1,200 a month in the winter months heating that farmhouse because it is on home heating oil. The reality is that they want to have natural gas. It would be far more affordable, and it would reduce emissions.

That’s why our government has brought forward the Natural Gas Expansion Program: in response to calls from municipalities to be able to move those heavier, more intensive fuels off the market, to be able to replace them with cleaner-burning natural gas.

But it’s not just natural gas; we’re taking an all-of-the-above approach. We’re ignoring the ideology that drove up hydro rates by 300% under the former Liberal government, supported by the NDP, and we’re saying that affordability is our bottom line as a province and as a government. We’re committed to ensuring that in rural Ontario, in urban Ontario, every single person in this province has access to clean, reliable, affordable energy, so that they are being supported to make investments and that they don’t have to worry about heating and eating.

To support the legislation that the member opposite brought forward would be harmful for the economic security of our province—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you very much.

The next question.

Small business

Ms. Natalie Pierre: My question is for the Associate Minister of Small Business. Young entrepreneurs and small businesses are the backbone of Ontario’s economy, driving innovation, job creation and growth. Yet these emerging business owners often face numerous and unique challenges from accessing capital to navigating complex regulations.

In addition to these hurdles, the Trudeau-Crombie carbon tax hurts their ability to grow and to compete. The Trudeau-Crombie carbon tax burdens small businesses with increased costs for transportation, heating and operations, making it even harder for young entrepreneurs to succeed.

Can the associate minister please outline what supports our government is providing to help young entrepreneurs and newly established small businesses thrive?

Hon. Nina Tangri: Thank you to the great member from Burlington for the question and the work that she is doing to support young entrepreneurs in her riding. Launching a business can be the start of an exciting journey for many young entrepreneurs that have so much trouble accessing the financing and the mentorship that they need to succeed.

That’s why it was great to join the member from Burlington, alongside the member from Oakville North–Burlington, to announce our government’s investment of $2 million to Futurpreneur Canada, a non-profit organization dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship. Through this partnership, young innovators receive crucial supports, from financing options to mentorship programs designed to make their vision a reality. In addition, we’re committed to reducing barriers like high costs and regulatory hurdles, making it easier for small businesses to thrive in Ontario.

Unlike the opposing provincial Liberals, who continue to support the devastating carbon tax that drives up costs, we’re focused on practical solutions that empower the next generation of business leaders.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary question.

Ms. Natalie Pierre: Thank you, Minister, for that response. It’s encouraging to hear how our government is making meaningful investments that secure Ontario’s place as the best place to do business anywhere in the world.

Young entrepreneurs and new small business owners have an important role to play in Ontario’s economy. These individuals often bring fresh ideas and new technologies that can transform industries and help build the communities they’re in. That’s why our government must ensure young entrepreneurs and new small business owners have access to the tools they need to thrive in today’s economy.

Can the associate minister tell the House why it is critical that we continue supporting emerging business leaders, and how their contributions shape a prosperous future for Ontario?

Hon. Nina Tangri: Thank you again to the member for the question. The president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, the CFIB, stated that the federal Liberals have ignored the troubling trend of business closures. For several months now, more businesses have been exiting than entering the Canadian economy, which underscores the need to support young entrepreneurs, who are essential to our economic success.

That is why in Ontario, our government is focused on providing young entrepreneurs and new small business owners with the resources and supports they need, by investing in organizations like Futurpreneur Canada to ensure their long-term success. By fostering an environment where new businesses can thrive, we’re investing in a prosperous future for Ontario, one led by the passion and ingenuity of these emerging leaders. We will always have the backs of Ontario’s young entrepreneurs, because we know that when they thrive, Ontario thrives.

Natural gas leaks

Mr. Peter Tabuns: My question is to the Premier. Unifor is launching a campaign to stop the leaks in our natural gas system here in Ontario. Unifor leaders are here with us today to push this cause. Enbridge is not acting to prevent or stop those leaks. Leaking gas means higher gas bills. We all know what that means: It means risks to people’s lives, including the lives of Enbridge workers; it means a hotter world; and it can mean, in worst-case situations, explosions.

Will the Premier bring in regulations to require Enbridge to actually stop the leaks and prevent new ones?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.

Hon. David Piccini: Thank you for the question from the member opposite. When it comes to protecting workers, this Premier is open for any suggestions. We’ve shown multiple times, through multiple pieces of legislation, that we won’t stop taking action when it comes from recommendations from prevention council, when it comes to working with our union partners or when it comes from suggestions from the members opposite. We’ve seen it in the last Working for Workers bill where we worked together to protect workers. We’ll always keep an open door when it comes to taking measures, and I’m happy to work with Enbridge to do just that.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Supplementary question: the member for Niagara Falls.

MPP Wayne Gates: Back to the Premier: Unifor’s members are skilled workers. They know how to fix the leaks and how to prevent them from happening. And yet, Enbridge continues to contract out repair work and continues to ignore leaks for weeks. This is obviously a public safety issue.

Enbridge is using unskilled workers, cutting overnight and evening emergency services. This Conservative government likes to talk about how they support skilled, unionized workers. Will this government support these skilled, unionized gas workers, who are here today up in the balcony, and require Enbridge to use its own workers to fix and prevent leaks before there is a real emergency in Ontario involving gas, before somebody dies?

Hon. David Piccini: Again, thank you for the question from the member opposite. I look forward to working with Unifor to address these issues. I’m happy to meet with the members of Unifor who are here today.

I appreciate the question from the member opposite. I do like that he’s focused on skills. It’s regrettable that he’s voted against our Skills Development Fund multiple times, something we’ve used to elevate competencies in both the compulsory and voluntary trades. And he’s voted against the climate that has attracted millions of jobs for Unifor workers in places like Windsor, Brampton and others that are retooling—investments this government is making to support these unionized workers.

They know that when we attract these world-class investments, their members are at work working hard. It’s a shame that party opposite voted against that and continues to stand against those investments that are in the best interests of those unionized workers.

Taxation

Mr. Lorne Coe: My question is for the Minister of Rural Affairs. The Trudeau-Crombie carbon tax is disproportionately impacting families and businesses in rural Ontario. People in rural and remote communities have to travel longer distances and rely on their vehicles more heavily for work. They should not be punished with higher costs for fuel.

But since the implementation of this tax, businesses in rural Ontario are struggling to absorb the increased expenses. The added financial strain only makes it harder for these businesses to compete, innovate and thrive. The federal government needs to respect rural communities and abolish the tax today.

Can the minister tell the House why families and business sectors of rural Ontario cannot afford a carbon tax?

Hon. Lisa M. Thompson: I wanted to share with everyone that the member from Whitby has got it absolutely right: The carbon tax is disproportionately affecting families and businesses in rural Ontario.

You know what’s interesting? Just this past weekend, Prime Minister Trudeau attended one of the best opening weekends of the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair—was it ever busy. But I can tell you, honestly, when country came to the city and the Prime Minister was right in the thick of it all, he was less than warmly welcomed. I would dare say the queen of the carbon tax would be even less, because she doesn’t know what it’s like to live in rural Ontario—because small businesses are paying almost 40% of the total sum of carbon tax. What are they getting in return? A pittance.

It’s making their cost of business go through the roof, and they don’t have any other choice than to pass it over to the consumers in small-town, rural Ontario.

This is an absolute disaster that both the Prime Minister—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you very much.

Supplementary question?

Mr. Lorne Coe: It’s great to see that, unlike the carbon tax queen, Bonnie Crombie, and her Liberal colleagues, our government is making good on our promises to keep costs low and fight this job-killing tax.

We know that rural Ontario is bearing the burden of rising costs driven by the Trudeau-Crombie carbon tax. That’s why we must continue to advocate on their behalf and ensure that their voices are being heard. Unlike the Liberals, our government cannot leave rural Ontario behind.

Can the minister share how our government is supporting rural Ontario in the face of this tax grab?

Hon. Lisa M. Thompson: I think it’s important to recognize that we have a Liberal Party and an NDP that are very urban centric, and they don’t even begin to understand what it takes to do business and to raise families in small communities in rural Ontario. That is absolutely a travesty. Thank goodness, through the leadership of Premier Ford and our entire government, we are actually listening, we understand and, quite frankly, we live it every day.

That’s why we’re bringing forward programs that are making a difference. We’ve extended the reduction in the gas tax by 5.7 cents through to the end of next June 2025, and we also are making sure that people have money left in their pockets, with the $200 per person and child that families and households will be receiving early next year.

We’re the government that gets it. We have a plan to build Ontario.

Whereas carbon tax Crombie and Trudeau desire to use it as a cash grab, we are going to stand up on behalf of Ontarians and say scrap the tax.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): That concludes our question period for this morning.

Reception

Hon. Graham McGregor: I just want to invite members—a lot of the veteran organizations that are here today, we’re doing a little reception in room 247. Members of all parties are welcome. I hope to see you guys there.

Andy Haydon

Mr. Stephen Blais: I’d like to ask for the House to take a moment of silence in honour of Andy Haydon. Andy Haydon was a reeve and the first mayor of the city of Nepean, and he chaired the regional municipality of Ottawa-Carleton from 1978 to 1991. Last week, Andy died at the age of 91 years old.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Orléans is seeking the unanimous consent of the House for a moment’s silence right now in memory of Andy Haydon. Agreed? Agreed.

Members will please rise.

The House observed a moment’s silence.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members may take their seats.

Birth of member’s grandchild

Miss Monique Taylor: I would like to take a moment to welcome my beautiful brand new granddaughter, who was born on Thursday. Her name is Aspen Cooper, and the family is thrilled to have a new addition.

Applause.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): There being no further business this morning, this House stands in recess until 1 p.m.

The House recessed from 1200 to 1300.

Introduction of Visitors

Hon. Graham McGregor: My dad is here. Give it up for Duncan McGregor.

Introduction of Government Bills

Honouring Veterans Act, 2024 / Loi de 2024 visant à honorer les anciens combattants

Mr. McGregor, on behalf of Mr. Michael D. Ford, moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill 218,

An Act to amend various Acts with respect to honouring military veterans / Projet de loi 218, Loi modifiant diverses lois en ce qui concerne les hommages rendus aux anciens combattants militaires.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? Carried.

First reading agreed to.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Would the associate minister care to briefly explain his bill?

Hon. Graham McGregor: This bill proposes amendments to the Remembrance Week Act, 2016, the Soldiers’ Aid Commission Act, 2020, the Building Opportunities in the Skilled Trades Act, 2021, and the Fair Access to Regulated Professions and Compulsory Trades Act, 2006.

If passed, this legislation would help honour and recognize veterans, add an additional mandate object for the Soldiers’ Aid Commission, and support career pathways for veterans and military families.

Introduction of Bills

No Free Ride for Fossil Fuels Act, 2024 / Loi de 2024 visant à empêcher les combustibles fossiles de bénéficier d’un passe-droit

Ms. Clancy moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill 219,

An Act to amend the Municipal Act, 2001 and the City of Toronto Act, 2006 with respect to fees and charges imposed on gas services and activities / Projet de loi 219, Loi modifiant la Loi de 2001 sur les municipalités et la Loi de 2006 sur la cité de Toronto en ce qui concerne les droits et les redevances fixés au

titre de services et d’activités en matière de gaz.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? Carried.

First reading agreed to.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Would the member for Kitchener Centre like to briefly explain her bill?

Ms. Aislinn Clancy: Yes. Municipalities across Ontario charge an easement fee to many services, much like telecommunications. This is not allowable to oil and gas companies, giving Enbridge and other gas providers a monopoly and a subsidy that is robbing municipalities of funds that they could be using to improve their communities.

By allowing municipalities to charge for easement of public land, much like it does for everything else, it would remove the subsidy from an oil and gas company that is profiting in the billions so this money could go to municipalities and save the property tax ratepayers of Ontario the double-digit increases that they’re seeing today. It’s happening in provinces all across Canada and it’s being requested by municipalities across Ontario.

SOFTWAREREVIEWS.COM INC. Act, 2024

Mr. Kernaghan moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill Pr46,

An Act to revive SOFTWAREREVIEWS.COM INC.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? Carried.

First reading agreed to.

Petitions

Child and family services

Mr. Terence Kernaghan: The petition I would like to read into the record is entitled “Protect Children and Youth in Care: Cuts Hurt Kids.”

The content of this petition talks about this government’s dismal track record: how it has failed children and youth in care, how there are so few adults to speak on behalf of young people, how they closed the Provincial Advocate for Children and Youth, how that was such a step backward, and how children are being placed in for-profit, unlicensed homes with underpaid staff. We know that they’re now being placed in offices, hotels, you name it.

This calls upon the government to do the right thing, look after kids in care and restore the Office of the Provincial Advocate for Children and Youth and properly fund non-profit care placements for children and youth in care.

I fully support this petition, will affix my signature and deliver it with page Samika to the Clerks.

Tuition

Ms. Chandra Pasma: I’m pleased to be able to rise today to table a petition that has been signed by hundreds of post-secondary students, including Tahmeed Hasan from Carleton University in Ottawa.

These students note that post-secondary education has become very unaffordable in this province due to the fact that government funding is at the lowest level of all Canadian provinces, and that because we have an affordability crisis, students are not able to afford their post-secondary education, even though it’s incredibly important for the job market that students have this education. They are calling on the government to invest in grants, not student loans, so that every student can afford to have a good education in Ontario.

I wholeheartedly endorse this petition, will add my name to it and send it to the table with page Nikki.

Sexual violence and harassment

Ms. Peggy Sattler: November being woman abuse prevention and awareness month, I’m very pleased to present this petition entitled “Pass the Safe Night Out Act.” It was signed by many residents of London, and it acknowledges the epidemic that we are seeing of sexual violence, gender-based violence in Ontario.

It recognizes that there is no legal requirement for people who are serving liquor, who hold liquor licences to be trained in recognizing and safely intervening in instances of sexual harassment and violence. It notes the high incidence of sexual violence that servers in many licensed establishments experience and it calls on the Legislative Assembly to pass the Safe Night Out Act, a private member’s bill that I introduced that would require mandatory training for bartenders, servers, supervisors and security guards in licensed establishments in Ontario.

I fully support this petition, affix my signature and will send it to the table with page Keerthana.

Land use planning

Mr. Chris Glover: This petition is entitled “No Dump Trucks in Liberty Village.” It is addressed to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.

It points out that the Toronto Region Board of Trade estimates that traffic congestion in the greater Toronto area costs $11 billion annually. Liberty Village is home to 10,000 residents and another 600 businesses that employ 11,000 individuals. It’s a community that’s adjacent to the Exhibition grounds—which hosts major events like the CNE and the Indy.

Last summer, some residents were stuck in congestion and it took two hours to travel 900 metres in Liberty Village.

The upcoming Ontario Line construction is going to require Metrolinx to take 300 to 400 dump trucks daily out of the area of Liberty Village from 2025 to 2029, and they’re talking about possibly running it on the one road that goes through Liberty Village.

I fully support this petition. I will affix my signature and pass it to page Sophie to take to the table.

Tenant protection

Ms. Jessica Bell: This is a petition entitled “It’s Time for a Moratorium on Demovictions.”

In my riding, in many ridings downtown, many large purpose-built rentals, 10 to 20 storeys in height, are being slated for demolishment, to be replaced with condos. This is where our affordable housing is—where our affordable private market housing is located.

We and these petition signers are calling for a moratorium on the demolition of these purpose-built rentals so we can come up with a plan to build the new housing that we need, but also protect the affordable, private market rentals that we have.

I support this petition, and I’ll be giving it to page Samika.

Education funding

MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam: It’s always an honour to rise and speak in this House on behalf of the good people of Toronto Centre.

I’d like to present this petition. It’s to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, and it is from the Elementary Teachers of Toronto. They’re calling on this House to stop the cuts and to invest in the schools so that the students get the education that they deserve. They call on this government to specifically reduce any further cuts to the schools. They have noted that the school funding for students is the lowest in the country—and certainly, Ontario has been lagging behind.

They call on this government to reduce the class sizes, to invest in mental health supports, to make sure that the schools are safe and they are no longer neglected. They call on this government to reverse funding cuts to the schools, to fix the inadequate funding formula, to ensure that the schools have all the funding that they need, especially since the lingering effects of the pandemic are still in front of us.

I affix my signature to this petition and return it to the centre table with page Jasper.

Renewable energy

MPP Jamie West: I want to thank Elizabeth Carswell for this petition. It’s entitled “Transform Ontario’s Energy Sector.”

It talks about how 2023 was the hottest year on record, and how we had the most severe wildfire season on record as well.

They explain that methane, which is a natural gas, is a very potent greenhouse gas.

I don’t know how to summarize this, so I’m just going to read this one sentence: “The conclusion of the Ontario Energy Board regarding Enbridge’s plan for a multi-billion-dollar methane gas grid expansion ’is not responsive to the energy transition and increases the risk of stranded or underutilized assets’.”

What they’re asking for is to pause the expansion of the methane-fired electricity generation, wind down their use to just the standby peaker plants so we don’t have brownouts, and to invest in renewable sources—including lifting the moratorium on offshore wind power—to meet our energy needs.

I think this is a very important petition. I support it. I’ll affix my signature, and I’ll provide it to page June for the table.

Labour legislation

MPP Jamie West: This is a petition that’s very important to me: “Pass Anti-Scab Labour Legislation.” It talks about how the worker’s responsibility or their only real negotiating chip is to withdraw their labour, and how without anti-scab labour legislation, it undermines that worker’s collective power and actually prolongs labour disputes.

We know that 98% of contracts are negotiated without any labour dispute. The government loves to say that on a regular basis, when I ask them about supporting anti-scab legislation.

Recognizing that if we had fair anti-scab legislation like they do in Quebec, for example, we would have shorter labour disputes—this is something that already is happening in British Columbia and Quebec.

The ask is to basically bring in anti-scab legislation, like we already have at the federal level and we have in other provinces, and to support labour legislation, like my bill on anti-scab labour, Ontario NDP Bill 90, the Anti-Scab Labour Act, 2023.

I obviously support this petition. I’ll affix my signature and provide it to the table with page Samika.

Ambulance services

MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam: I rise to present this petition. It’s entitled “Stop Billing Recipients of OW and ODSP for Ambulance Transportation.” It’s entitled to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.

We know that ambulance fees for those who are on OW, ODSP and who are GAINS recipients are waived under the Ontario Works Act, the Ontario Disability Support Program Act as well as the Family Benefits Act. Yet every time these recipients on social assistance are transported to the hospital, they still immediately get a bill.

This petition calls on the government to develop a mechanism similar to the easy-to-use Fair Pass transit discount pass so that they no longer have to then go back to recover their costs for the bills that they cannot afford and pay for. It reduces red tape, and I think that the government will, overall, find it to be a much more efficient way of delivering the program.

I affix my signature to this petition and return it to the table with page Marie-David.

Animal protection

Ms. Peggy Sattler: I am pleased to present a petition on behalf of many Londoners who are really outraged at the province’s decision to bring back licences for trial and training areas. These are penned dog hunting facilities that were phased out in 1997.

This government has decided to renew licences, to open up licences for new train and trial areas. People believe that this is an inhumane and unethical practice and have signed this petition to call on the Legislative Assembly to halt all plans to issue new licences to operate train and trial areas in Ontario.

I fully support this petition, affix my signature and will send it to the table with page Jakob.

Social assistance

MPP Jamie West: This petition is entitled a petition “To Raise Social Assistance Rates.” Basically, what it talks about is that our social assistance for OW and ODSP, Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program, are way below Canada’s official Market Basket Measure poverty line.

As we all know, with the affordability crisis, it’s simply not enough to make ends meet. An individual on OW, for example, makes $733; an individual on ODSP makes $1,368. I don’t know where you would find a place to rent for that, let alone provide food and other services.

As well, the petition says that there was an open letter that was sent to the Premier and to two cabinet ministers that was signed by over 230 organizations that recommended that social assistance rates for Ontario Works and ODSP, the Ontario Disability Support Program, would be doubled.

Even the small increase that was made, the 5% increase, still leaves people on ODSP below the poverty line, so their heads are still underwater, and OW has remained frozen for all this time, even during alarming inflation. During COVID, for example, CERB was brought forward. The basic income was seen as $2,000 per month, which is far above—more than double—what OW is. So what they’re asking for is for the doubling of social assistance rates for OW and ODSP, and recognizing, for OW, that that wouldn’t even bring it to the $2,000 of the CERB program.

I support this petition. I think this is one of the reasons that we’re having growth of encampments all across Ontario, because when people can’t afford food and rent, they become evicted and unhoused and unable to get back on their feet. I think it’s important that we address this at the root causes, with a hand up for people to get back on their feet.

I’ll provide my signature, and my friend Jasper will bring it to the table for me.

Employment standards

Ms. Peggy Sattler: I’m very pleased to present a petition in support of the Stay Home If You Are Sick Act. The petition highlights the overwhelming and very compelling public health evidence to show the importance of paid sick days in preventing the spread of infectious disease, promoting better health care screening by workers and reducing overall costs within our health care system.

It notes that there are 60% of workers in this province, the majority of workers in this province, who do not have access to paid sick days. They can’t afford to stay home if they are sick or if they have a sick child because it could mean losing their pay, not being able to make the rent, not being able to afford the groceries.

The petition also highlights the fact that low-wage and precarious, racialized workers are the most likely to not have access to paid sick days.

It calls on the government to provide all Ontario workers with 10 annual employer-paid days of personal emergency leave so that people can stay home when they are sick, as well as 14 days of paid leave in the case of an infectious disease emergency like COVID.

Mount Pleasant Group of Cemeteries Act, 2024

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I beg to inform the House that the clerk has received a submission related to Bill Pr55,

An Act respecting Mount Pleasant Group of Cemeteries. Pursuant to standing order 93(a), the submission stands referred to the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs.

Opposition Day

Affordable housing

Ms. Marit Stiles: It’s a pleasure today to rise and move the following motion:

Whereas everyone has the right to an affordable home; and

Whereas the private market alone has not been able to build the affordable housing Ontario needs; and

Whereas any solution to the housing affordability crisis must include public, non-profit and co-op housing options; and

Whereas the government can fast-track building approvals and provide funding, low-interest loans and public land to spur housing construction in the private, public and non-profit sectors; and

Whereas successive Liberal and Conservative governments abandoned the publicly supported building programs which have provided affordable housing to Ontarians for decades, leaving a significant gap in supply; and

Whereas public building programs provide good unionized jobs for Ontario’s tradespeople;

Therefore, in the opinion of this House, the Ontario government should establish a new public agency, Homes Ontario, to finance and oversee the construction of affordable and non-market homes.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Ms. Stiles has moved opposition day number 2. I look to the Leader of the Opposition to lead off the debate.

I recognize the leader of His Majesty’s loyal opposition.

Ms. Marit Stiles: Before I start, I did want to give a nod—some of them have left now, but the public galleries have been filled with students over the last few minutes. It’s wonderful to see so many young people here because this motion is about building homes for families in Ontario today, but also the homes of the future for future Ontario families.

Sometimes, when students, young people, come in here to see democracy in action, it may seem like a reach. It’s something a little outside of what they’re used to seeing and hearing about. But these issues we’re discussing today are very, very important to, again, families today and in the future.

In 2022, the Premier made a bold statement: “1.5 million new homes by 2031,” he said. More than two years later, here’s an update from the government’s own fall economic statement that was released just last week: Housing starts are expected to fall below prediction every single year from now until 2027.

This government was elected to solve the housing crisis, and they have failed. They’re lowering annual targets and they’re loosening

definitions of what a new home is rather than doing the one thing that they were elected to do—build homes.

From where I’m standing, Speaker, what’s clear as day is that housing is just not a priority for this government, if it ever was.

Housing is at the heart of everything. For New Democrats, housing is a fundamental human right. A roof over a person’s head gives security. A bed to return to at night offers comfort after a hard day’s work. A home is not just four walls and a roof, it’s a safe space from which people can start to build a rooted life.

But right now, everywhere I go—from Toronto to Thunder Bay from Windsor to Timmins—Speaker, I hear the same stories over and over again. People are feeling stuck and insecure with the rising costs of housing: skyrocketing rents, unstable housing situations, high mortgage rates, years-long wait-lists for affordable public homes—this is the housing reality in Ontario right now, and we’ve all seen it.

We have young people across our province, well into their twenties, still living at home with their parents because rents are just way too high to move out—boy, do I know that story. The rent for a one-bedroom apartment in most parts of Ontario, be it in Toronto or London or Windsor or Sudbury, is more than $2,000 right now. Young people are stuck, waiting to kick-start their independent adult lives.

We also have young families with newborns living in crammed spaces because, despite working full-time jobs—often multiple jobs—despite working harder than they’ve ever worked before, they just can’t save up for a down payment.

Let me tell you about a young couple that I met recently when I was in Belleville. They were expecting their first child. They have been saving every single dollar, hoping that maybe they could buy a home, start a new

chapter of their lives. But they told me they can’t even afford more than the one-bedroom rental apartment that they have right now—they can’t even look for a two-bedroom rental, let alone buy a house. The dream of home ownership is being pushed further and further away for people across this province, and people are losing hope.

So let’s also talk, for a moment, about homelessness and the proliferation of encampments everywhere in Ontario. People living out of tents in parks and public spaces—that has become the new normal, and not just in big cities like Toronto or Hamilton, but everywhere, in communities of all sizes. And according to the government’s own numbers, a quarter of a million people right now in the province of Ontario are homeless. I’m going to pause for a second to just let that sink in for everybody, the enormity of that number—a quarter of a million people.

I want to thank The Trillium for the freedom-of-information request they put in, because according to the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing’s own numbers, the province’s shelter system is 97% full and Ontario needs tens of thousands of new supportive housing units.

The solution to the problem of homelessness and encampments is housing. It is building more affordable housing. That is what is going to solve homelessness and encampments, Speaker. And that’s exactly why we’re putting forward this motion today, because our motion is about launching Homes Ontario, the largest home-building program in Ontario’s history. Our plan is going to provide the public housing we need to tackle homelessness, but it goes further to providing permanently affordable housing for young people, for seniors, for newcomers—anyone who is currently getting left behind from today’s skyrocketing and unreachable housing costs.

Homes Ontario is a bold plan, and it is exactly what Ontario needs right now. It’s going to make housing affordable. It’s going to make it accessible. It’s going to make it available for everyone now and for generations to come. And with this program, with Homes Ontario, we will get the government back in the business of building homes and make housing construction easier, faster and more affordable. Our plan is going to ensure that at least 30% of new homes built in Ontario are non-market—that means permanently affordable and protected from speculation.

Here’s how we’re going to do it: We’re going to start by legalizing fourplexes and four-storey multiplexes in every neighbourhood. We’re going to increase density around transit, creating stronger, more affordable, better-connected communities.

But we won’t stop there. Homes Ontario will double the supply of permanently affordable housing, including non-profit, co-op and supportive housing, by providing funding, low-cost financing and public land for non-profit and co-op housing providers. We’ll build homes for people, not just profits.

We’re going to unlock public lands, making them available for affordable housing projects, and establish a revolving fund to finance construction. That fund is going to ensure that as homes are built and rented, the revenue is reinvested to keep building more.

This isn’t just an abstract policy idea. The members opposite, they like to pretend it is, but it’s really a return to what Ontario used to do, and do so well. Back in the early 1990s, we were building thousands and thousands of affordable units every year. If we hadn’t stopped, Toronto alone would have 150,000 more affordable units today—just about, by the way, the number that we’re short. Imagine how different things would be if we had continued along that road.

We’ll also protect renters by bringing back real rent control, stopping unethical evictions and ensuring families can stay at their homes without the fear of sudden, unfair rent hikes—so many people living on the brink of losing their homes, living with that anxiety every single day. The government members know this, and the answer is simple: Bring back rent control.

We have a dream for Ontario where no one has to choose between paying rent or saving for the future; an Ontario where young people can afford to stay and build their lives right here. With Homes Ontario, housing won’t be a luxury, it will be a fundamental human right. The private market alone will not fix the housing crisis; Homes Ontario will.

I want to add, Speaker, that this housing plan isn’t just about bricks and mortar. We’re talking about building places where families can flourish, where children can grow up with a sense of stability, and where communities can grow stronger and more connected.

As I said earlier, when we build homes, we’re not just creating shelter, we are creating opportunity. We’re giving people the foundation to build their lives and their futures. That’s what a home represents, right? Dignity; stability; a fair shot at a good life.

That used to be the promise of Ontario, but not anymore. After six years of this government, what do we have? We have housing starts down, expert advice ignored, six years wasted. The only thing this government has achieved is encampments and rising homelessness in every single community in Ontario. No wonder people are feeling stuck. No wonder they’re losing hope.

Homes Ontario is about bringing that hope back. It’s a real, bold, visionary and, yes, ambitious plan to solve the province’s generational housing crisis. We know that Ontario can be so much more, and Homes Ontario is the NDP’s commitment to living up to people’s big dreams for our beautiful province.

If the government is serious about fixing the housing crisis, they will pass our motion today so we can put shovels in the ground and start investing in the communities where people want to live, work and raise their families.

The Acting Speaker (Ms. Patrice Barnes): Further debate?

Ms. Jessica Bell: I’m proud to be rising today to speak about our motion to move forward with establishing an agency called Homes Ontario that is responsible for overseeing the construction of affordable housing and non-market housing in Ontario.

The Conservatives have had six and a half years to fix the housing crisis and they have failed. It has never been more expensive to rent a home in Ontario. It has never been more expensive. It’s also never been more expensive to buy a home in Ontario. It takes upwards of two decades now to save up enough money for a down payment. That’s a barrier that many people can’t meet. They can’t make it work. And they’re leaving this province or they’re stuck paying astronomically high prices for rent because the dream of home ownership, under this Conservative government, is no longer a reality for them. I think that’s a shame.

What we’re also seeing with this government is a practice of blaming everybody else but themselves when it comes to fixing the housing crisis and identifying the problems that caused this housing crisis in the first place. It is deeply worrying when I see this government, when I see the Premier blame poor people for the housing crisis, blaming people who live in encampments and are just trying to survive the week or the month—blaming them, instead of looking at the policies that you have passed—and also have failed to pass—that have put these people in this very difficult situation in the first place. It’s tough to watch.

The Homes Ontario plan is a plan that is committed to building and overseeing the construction of 250,000 affordable and non-market homes in towns and cities across Ontario so that we can meaningfully and practically address the housing affordability crisis. This is a plan that will provide affordable housing and supportive housing for people who have no home at all. It is also a plan where we are building more affordable rentals for low-, moderate- and middle-income people who cannot afford to live in our province today. It is a mix.

We look at what other provinces and cities and countries have done to build non-market housing and we will apply those measures that they have taken here in Ontario. The best example that we can think of and that we can demonstrate right now is what’s happening with the BC NDP government and their commitment to build non-market housing. Let’s just take that and apply it here.

Homes Ontario will provide land, financing, grants and fast-track approvals so that the private sector, the non-profit sector and municipalities can build affordable housing as quickly as possible. That is the goal. It is part of our overall plan to tackle the housing affordability crisis and the housing supply crisis.

In addition to building non-market housing, an Ontario NDP government will move forward with the zoning changes that are needed to spur the construction of 1.5 million homes. This government has promised the world and delivered very little when it comes to building even for-profit homes. Even your own standards you have failed to meet.

We are calling for easing of density requirements so we can build more apartments near transit stations, as well as allowing fourplexes as of right in towns and cities across Ontario.

In addition, an NDP government will move forward with real rent control so that we no longer have situations where people are living in a home and they get evicted by a new corporate landlord who wants to jack up the rent. We need strong rent control on all properties, including new homes, so that we can stabilize rent prices for the 1.7 million people and households who rent in Ontario. It is absolutely critical.

One thing that this government fails to do, which we will do, is to clamp down on investor-led speculation so first-time homebuyers can have that shot at buying their first home at a price they can afford so that we can increase home ownership rates in Ontario. First-time homebuyers have been ignored by this government. They have not been important. It is time that they are given greater priority.

I’m proud to be here to support the Homes Ontario plan and I urge this government to vote for it as well.

The Acting Speaker (Ms. Patrice Barnes): Further debate?

Ms. Chandra Pasma: I’m very happy today to rise on this motion put forward by the leader of the official opposition calling for investments in not-for-profit and non-market-based housing, because it’s incredibly needed in my riding of Ottawa West–Nepean.

On Saturday I joined the residents of Aspen Towers. Once again, these are hundreds of tenants who are being renovicted by their landlord, who sent out notices three days after he purchased the building because he wants to be able to jack up the rent on new tenants.

And speaking with these tenants—one of them is already working two jobs to stay housed and she said: What is she supposed to do, work around the clock in order to have housing? Another woman, an elderly woman in her seventies, said that if she’s renovicted, she will have to live in her car. She will never be able to afford another apartment in Ottawa.

A few weeks ago, the member for Ottawa Centre and I visited the new Cornerstone shelter for women and non-binary individuals in my riding. Moving from Ottawa Centre to Ottawa West–Nepean, they were able to add significantly more shelter spaces, but the sad thing is, Speaker, that they are full and they could take more residents if they had more space.

It’s not the only shelter that’s been created recently in Ottawa West–Nepean. We also have the transitional housing on Corkstown Road. And yet, despite all these new shelter spaces, hotel rooms across Ottawa are full of families with children who have nowhere else to go, and that is the utter failure of this government.

I also speak to families, to parents, as I door-knock across the riding, who tell me they don’t believe their children will ever be able to afford to move out. My husband is already preparing for our future with three kids living in the basement. But again, that’s a complete failure of this government to invest in and support the strategies that would actually build the kinds of housing that we need in Ontario, the kinds of housing that people can actually afford. And we have the solutions.

I was also at Andy Andras co-op a few weeks ago. They were incredibly proud that they paid off their mortgage, but they were telling me about the work that they’ve done supporting one another, and they would be very happy to expand that kind of housing, but they need the funding to do it.

And that’s what our proposal today would do: It would provide those investments through an agency called Homes Ontario so that everybody in the province of Ontario could have a place to call home that they can afford.

I hope the government will support this motion today.

The Acting Speaker (Ms. Patrice Barnes): Further debate?

Mr. Chris Glover: It’s an honour to rise in the House today to talk about the NDP’s Homes Ontario plan.

We know how to solve the homelessness crisis, and right now, it is an absolute crisis in this province. There are 234,000 people who are homeless. They’re in tent encampments in every community across this province. There are young people who are giving up. There are 50,000 people leaving this province every year and many young people are stuck in their parents’ basement because they cannot afford to rent, let alone buy a home. But we know how to solve it.

And the biggest barrier to all of this is this conservative ideology that everything should be run by a private, for-profit corporation. We saw that when they sold the 407 for $3 billion, and now they want to buy it back for $35 billi