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August 17, 2022

43rd Parliament, 1st Session

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Hansard Transcripts

vol. A

Hansard Transcripts

vol. B

Votes and Proceedings

Orders and Notices

Hansard Transcript 2022-Aug-17 vol. A (PDF)

L005A - Wed 17 Aug 2022 / Mer 17 aoû 2022

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO

ASSEMBLÉE LÉGISLATIVE DE L’ONTARIO

Wednesday 17 August 2022 Mercredi 17 août 2022

Resignation of member for Hamilton Centre

Orders of the Day

Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act, 2022 / Loi de 2022 pour des maires forts et pour la construction de logements

Members’ Statements

Broadband infrastructure

Cost of living

Sport and cultural events

Street Haven

Town of Tillsonburg

Privatization of public services

Riding of Etobicoke–Lakeshore

Migrant workers

Town of Wheatley

Government’s agenda

Introduction of Visitors

Question Period

Hospital services

Hospital services

Northern health services

Economic development

Curriculum

Fiscal and economic policy

Social assistance

Land use planning

Social assistance

Home care

Greenhouse gas emissions

Consumer protection

Economic development

Child care

Northern health services

Petitions

Ontario economy

Emergency services

Home care

Entretien hivernal des routes

Ontario economy

Land use planning

Employment supports

Emergency services

Orders of the Day

Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act, 2022 / Loi de 2022 pour des maires forts et pour la construction de logements

The House met at 0900.

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

Prayers.

Resignation of member for Hamilton Centre

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I beg to inform the House that, during the adjournment, a vacancy has occurred in the membership of the House by reason of the resignation of Andrea Horwath as the member for the electoral district of Hamilton Centre, effective August 15, 2022. Accordingly, I have issued my warrant to the Chief Electoral Officer for the issue of a writ for a by-election.

Orders of the Day

Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act, 2022 / Loi de 2022 pour des maires forts et pour la construction de logements

Resuming the debate adjourned on August 11, 2022, on the motion for second reading of the following bill:

Bill 3,

An Act to amend various statutes with respect to special powers and duties of heads of council / Projet de loi 3, Loi modifiant diverses lois en ce qui concerne les pouvoirs et fonctions spéciaux des présidents du conseil.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Further debate?

Mr. Dave Smith: This is the first time, actually, I’ve risen to speak in this Parliament. I want to thank the people of Peterborough–Kawartha for giving me the honour, again, to be their voice, as I have been for the last four years.

One of the challenges that Ontario faces is a growing population over the next 10 years. We’re expected to add more than 2.5 million people, and we have seen over the last two decades really, a lack of housing that has been built and challenges in doing it. There have been a number of changes that have been made by different governments throughout the years to try to address this. And every time a change is made, it seems that someone finds a way to weaponize one of those changes to make it possible to delay.

I’m going to talk specifically about some of the challenges in Peterborough. I’m very close to what happens in Peterborough, coming from the riding there. I don’t necessarily experience the challenges that you see in Toronto or that you see in Ottawa, and the strong-mayors legislation is specifically for these two cities to make some adjustments. But I think that if you take a look at, historically, what my community has been, my community has always been seen as a microcosm of everything that’s happening in Canada.

For more than 40 years, we were a test market for everything. When a company wanted a new product, when they were going to introduce something new, they would introduce it in Peterborough as one of the test markets, because we had that mix of individuals. We had blue-collar workers. We had manufacturing. We had knowledge base. We have a college, a university. We have a great, diverse population. We have a strong arts community—

Ms. Sandy Shaw: The Petes.

Mr. Dave Smith: And we have the Peterborough Petes, absolutely, the greatest junior A hockey team that ever existed, Despite what my colleague from Oshawa says, we have the greatest one. I got off-topic; I love talking about the Petes, or the Lakers.

We’re also the centre of the lacrosse universe in Peterborough as well. And, as everyone knows, I refer to it as God’s country, so how could it be bad? But I digress.

Whenever something was being introduced, it was being introduced in Peterborough, and they took a look at what our market would do and how successful something would be. I think if you take a look at what has happened in Peterborough over the last number of years, it represents what has happened all across Ontario.

In June 2018, when I was first elected, the average home price was $314,000. Last month, it was $760,000. We have a shortage of housing. In 2019, in the city of Peterborough, only five single-family home building permits were issued. The population in Peterborough proper, the city itself, has grown by almost 4,500 people in four years, yet we’ve had just a shade over 1,200 new residences added, whether that be a house, condo, apartment—only 1,200. Our vacancy rate is 1%. Rental rates have increased significantly because we don’t have the inventory. Housing prices have increased significantly because we don’t have the inventory.

Kate Kidd, the former president of the Peterborough–Kawartha area realtors—her term just ended in July—said to me about a year ago that we need an inventory of 1,400 to 1,500 houses for sale at any given time to make sure that we have enough inventory. We had less than 100 this past January. In February, we were averaging about 127 listings. Right now if you go to realtor.ca, there’s a little over 400. We’re still significantly lower than what we should have to have the proper inventory.

There are lot of pressures that have been put on my community, in particular. Yes, I am talking about Peterborough, but Peterborough is that microcosm of everything else that’s going on in Ontario. When the 407 opened all the way to Highway 115, a great addition to the transportation network, what it meant was—those individuals who were being priced out in the GTA, who could not find a home in the GTA—it was easy for them to commute from Peterborough, and we’ve had a number of people come in. There was a time when it made perfect sense to do that.

My colleague from Oakville, who was my seatmate early on in the last session, had talked about home prices in Oakville. Actually, prior to being elected, the house beside me sold to somebody from Oakville. At the time, they had sold a two-bedroom home with a 30-foot lot in Oakville for $1.2 million. They moved to Peterborough. At the time—this is prior to 2018—they bought a five-bedroom home with two bathrooms on a 65-by-130-foot lot that backed on to environmentally protected green space. I’m painting a beautiful picture of it. Who wouldn’t want to live with wildlife right behind your home in the city? They paid $418,000 for it.

So we saw an influx, when the 407 opened, of individuals who were able to sell their property in the GTA for a very large sum—and it’s gone up in the GTA—and move to Peterborough for a significantly lower price and have more home, a better lot and a higher quality of life. That raised the price in Peterborough to what it is today, $760,000 for the average home in Peterborough,

whereas just over four years ago it was just a shade over $300,000—$314,000. That’s a massive jump.

Why am I focusing on that? Peterborough city council has made a number of what I would say are poor decisions around housing. I’ll go back to 2019: five single-family residential home permits issued—five, that’s it. More than 4,000 people moved into the community, 1,200 homes, apartments or condos is all that we’ve added, and the previous council used some of the tools to delay, to not make decisions.

In my old neighbourhood, just around the corner from where my house was, a developer had a piece of property. Originally he wanted to have a single level of commercial and two storeys above that of residential. He was not able to find someone to move into the commercial property because there weren’t enough people in that general vicinity to make it worthwhile for commercial activity to happen. There weren’t enough people. It wasn’t convenient enough for a professional office like a dentist, a lawyer.

There weren’t enough people in the area to put in a retail outlet, a convenience store or a small grocery store, just because of the nature of where it was. But it’s not far from Trent University. It’s a walkable distance to Trent University, and there’s actually a walking trail that goes right to Trent.

That was blocked by council because the developer wanted to change it to a six-storey apartment building, and council said no because of some pushback—not because it didn’t meet the requirements of the community, not because the transportation study wasn’t effective, not because there wasn’t the demand—they were afraid they were going to offend someone and they were going to lose votes. And when you have councils that are doing those types of things, then you’re not serving the needs of your community. That developer took the city to LPAT and won, because the city chose not to send someone to the LPAT hearing to oppose it.

On Sherbrooke Street, another development: 164 homes, 164 apartments to be put in. A few city councillors lobbied to say no to it because they had some pushback from some other individuals in the area. On Lansdowne Street, two developments: The developer originally wanted 14 storeys, came down to 10, and the city came back and said, “No, six is all you could do.” They couldn’t build them then and actually make it work. The city was taken to LPAT by the developer on all of those, and the developers have won. And in each case, the city chose not to have a delegation come because they knew they were going to lose. They were doing it for political reasons, not for the right reasons.

And that’s happening in a community like Peterborough. As I said earlier on in my speech, Peterborough is the microcosm for everything that happens across Ontario. If you want to see what’s going to happen in this province, look at Peterborough, because it will be emulated or replicated in other areas. The cost of housing has gone sky high and councils have continually made decisions to block development—not because it’s the right thing to do, but because they’re concerned about gaining votes or losing votes.

What we have to do is take a look at what is in the best interest of the entire community, what’s in the best interest of the city. We have 2.5 million people coming into Ontario over the next 10 years. We set a record last year in housing starts of just over 100,000—100,000 units built last year, the most that we’ve had in more than 30 years. That will not get us to 2.5 million over 10 years. It will not get us enough bedrooms for the people who are going to be coming into this province. It won’t. And it was a record year.

The problem is we have councils who are saying no to development. “No, we don’t want a house over there.” “No, we don’t want this.” “No, we don’t want that.” And what I find interesting about it and almost hypocritical—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): That word is not appropriate. I’m going to ask the member to withdraw.

Mr. Dave Smith: I withdraw.

What I find most interesting about it is, every single person who is standing up and saying, “We should not be building more houses, we should not be building more apartments, we should not be building more condos,” lives in a house, apartment or condo. Why do they not want others to have that?

We’ve got OREA who has come forward, and they’ve talked for a few years now about the dream of home ownership. I firmly believe that the vast majority of people who live in this province aspire to own their own home. I firmly believe that. And why would we not be doing things, then, that make it easier for those individuals to purchase their first home, to move from that two-bedroom home, when they have three, four or five children, to a home that suits them?

Why are we not doing things so that those individuals, those seniors, who raised their family and they’re now ready to downsize, and they want to sell that four-bedroom or five-bedroom home and go to a two-bedroom condo some place, or move into a nice apartment building someplace, or move out of the city to some place like Peterborough—or God’s country—where you have an opportunity to have a beautiful one- or two-bedroom home by the lake, by the river or out in the county—why are we obstructing that?

The reality is we have a number of councils across all of Ontario that are saying things like, “It’s just this one. There’s a sentiment in the community, there’s a loud group right around this area, who don’t want it. I’m going to have to go with them because they vote for this ward.”

The entire city votes for the mayor, though. Giving the mayor in cities like Ottawa and Toronto, where we know more than a third of those 2.5 million people are going to be moving in in the next 10 years, the ability to advance homes, to advance home ownership, to make more affordable units to live in—giving them that ability is something that is good.

You want to make sure that there are checks and balances in place, though, so the mayor cannot just unilaterally do something, the mayor cannot just unilaterally declare that this is going to happen. There is that check and balance in place where council, with a two-thirds vote, would have the opportunity to veto the mayor’s veto on that. That check and balance is in place.

You can still advocate, as a councillor, for the community that you represent, that small group in the large city that you represent, but the rest of council and the mayor have the opportunity then to look at, what are the needs of the entire city?

There was an expression that was used when I was on the election trail the first time, in 2018. We’ve all heard of NIMBYism: “Not in my backyard.” There was another expression that was given to me and I absolutely love it because I think it’s so very true. It’s called the BANANA group: “Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anyone.” It seems to be that that’s what’s been happening.

What this legislation does is it gives a tool, then, for those large municipalities of Ottawa and Toronto to advance housing, to advance the provincial priority of making sure that people have an opportunity to buy a home, to rent a home, to rent an apartment, to move into a condo, to get appropriately sized living space.

When I go back to Peterborough again, and using that as the example—$314,000 to $760,000 over the course of four years because there wasn’t enough inventory. The council in Peterborough, many of them were elected on building upward, not building outward. They didn’t want to have urban sprawl. But when those projects came forward to build up, they said no to it because there was pushback on it. We see that in larger cities as well. We see that in Ottawa; we see that in Toronto.

If you don’t have the full suite, if you don’t build everything in each of the different categories that are needed, you put pressures on so many other things. Why would a developer who is going to take 12 years to develop a piece of property—why would they build something that they’re not going to get their money back on? We have to change those timelines.

Again, coming back to Peterborough, there’s a prime example. We had a subdivision that was being built. It took eight years to get the approvals to build that subdivision. They wanted to put in some townhouses in one

section of the subdivision. It took an additional five years to get the approvals for that. And by the time they got those approvals, the added costs that were put on by carrying it for five more years before they could actually develop and sell increased the price. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out if you can get to market in a shorter period of time, your carrying costs are lower. If we’re talking 12 years to get something shovel-ready, there are added costs that are put onto it.

The task force that Minister Clark commissioned to find out about affordable housing, one of the things that they had said was that those additional costs add 22% to the cost of housing. If your base price is $760,000, that’s $165,000 in wasted costs. You gained nothing for it, the builder gains nothing for it, the municipality gains nothing for it and the consumer gains nothing for it. Finding a way to eliminate those additional costs, those unnecessary costs, to stop the weaponization so that the BANANA group has the ability to delay, delay, delay, means it’s going to be better for the people of Ontario.

And I cannot emphasize this enough: 2.5 million people coming into Ontario over the next 10 years. We built 100,000. We had 100,000 new starts last year during COVID, which is fantastic. That will not get us to what we need over the next 10 years—and it was a banner year. It had been more than 30 years since we had done that.

We have to find ways to speed up development where people want to move. We want to make sure that it’s still safe. We want to make sure that every check and balance is put in place, but we have to find ways to accelerate it so that those who dream of home ownership have the opportunity for home ownership.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Questions to the member from Peterborough–Kawartha?

Ms. Sandy Shaw: Thank you to the member. I have to say, there’s probably not a lot we have in common. Peterborough Petes—we could spend some time saying whether it was Bob Gainey, whether it was Chris Pronger. The best Peterborough Pete: That’s something we can talk about.

Mr. Dave Smith: Wayne Gretzky.

Ms. Sandy Shaw: He only played for, like, three days.

Mr. Dave Smith: He still played.

Ms. Sandy Shaw: Three days, and he didn’t cry then.

But, anyway, what I want to say is you’re talking about this bill, but let’s be perfectly clear: This bill does not talk about housing, which is what you talked about. You neglected to talk about the special powers and the significant changes that will be happening to democratically elected city councils without your government doing any consultation. You also shed quite a few tears when it came to concern for the developers’ bottom line, but you didn’t talk at all about the infrastructure costs that are borne by your taxpayers.

Right now, you have an infrastructure deficit in the city of Peterborough. You can tell us how much that is. It will cause residential taxpayers’ rates to go up. In the city of Hamilton, we’re pushing $3 billion in infrastructure deficit costs that are not borne by the cost of development. So could you share some of your empathy for hard-working residential taxpayers in the province of Ontario and in your city of Peterborough?

Mr. Dave Smith: Actually, if you had listened carefully to what I had actually said, 22% of the cost of housing is unnecessary expenses that get added on because of delays—22% of the cost. So when we’re talking about our ratepayers, when we’re talking about taxpayers, when we’re talking about citizens, the people of this great province and those who will be coming into this great province, who want to have home ownership, in Peterborough alone $165,000 is added to the cost of where you live because of added expenses that do not need to be there.

That is $165,000 that we are looking at putting right back into the pocket of that individual. You’re lowering the cost to build. That is an actual realized saving for those individuals who are purchasing their homes.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Minister of Red Tape Reduction.

Hon. Parm Gill: I want to thank my colleague for his passionate speech and for sharing some of the examples and ideas, obviously, from his community and his riding. I think we can all relate to some of the challenges that he shared facing his community. I can tell you that my riding of Milton, Mr. Speaker, which is also one of the fastest-growing communities across our province, especially faces some of the similar challenges. On average, we have about 5,000 people moving into my riding each and every year: a lot of young families, lots of new Canadians and so forth.

Supply of new housing or housing in general is a big concern, probably the number one concern in my community. So, I’m wondering if the member can share some of the provisions in this piece of legislation, how they might be able to help address some of the concerns, not just in his or my riding but right across our great province.

Mr. Dave Smith: Thank you very much for the question. When we take a look at housing itself, one of the biggest challenges that you have is the length of time it takes to develop anything. From concept to shovel in the ground, we’re talking more than a decade. All of the things that we’re doing in this will speed that process up.

When you want to have a subdivision put in, you go through all of the appropriate processes on it. One of the things that happens, though, is there’s opportunities for individuals, for different groups, to object in different ways. We’re streamlining all of that. Instead of it being a waterfall approach where it was, you can object on this; and then once something comes in from that, you object under this; and then once that comes in, you can object under a third—if you think of it from a project management standpoint, it’s more of a scrum or an agile approach. So we’re looking at the critical path instead.

This is a way that we can make things better for people in Ontario. This is a way that we can streamline this. By empowering the mayors in the two cities that we have, they can look at what’s in the best interests of the entire community instead of just that small group.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Toronto–St. Paul’s.

Ms. Jill Andrew: Thank you to the member, the Conservative member, for talking about the Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act. The member spent all of their time talking about building homes, yet the bill does not include anything on housing. In a riding like mine, Toronto–St. Paul’s, where we have 60% or so renters, the government can talk about owning a $750,000 home, but many in St. Paul’s can’t afford that. Many can’t even afford their rent.

So I’m wondering, if this bill is really about housing, why is there no mention of ending exclusionary zoning, why is there no mention of real rent control, why is there no mention of banning above-guideline rent increases? Furthermore, why don’t you talk about what the bill is really about, and that is creating strong mayors that this province and this Premier can control?

Mr. Dave Smith: I appreciate the question, because really what we’re talking about here is empowering the mayors in the city of Ottawa and Toronto so that they can make sure that development happens on key priorities of the province of Ontario, and the key priority right now for the province of Ontario is to make sure that we have housing for the more than 2.5 million people that will be coming in over the next 10 years. As I said in my speech, last year we started 100,000 new units, between houses, apartments and condos.

That was a banner year—a record year—that will not get us to what we need over the next decade. We have to make sure that we have things in place so that cities like Ottawa and Toronto, where the vast majority of individuals will be moving to, have the tools to build what they need to support those people.

If you don’t like the price of rent, the problem is that we don’t have enough rentals. If you don’t like the price of a home, the problem is that we don’t have enough homes. This is something that is going to speed that process up, which lowers the cost and makes it easier for people to have home ownership.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Questions and comments?

Mr. Mike Harris: I will say that I’m proud to be a Conservative here in the Ontario Legislature, because we’re actually getting things done for the people of Ontario. We’re building more homes. We’re building more purpose-built rentals. Maybe we’ll give the member for Peterborough–Kawartha an opportunity to talk a little about the purpose-built rentals that are being built here in the province of Ontario. It’s been over 1,000 over the last year that have been built in Toronto alone. It’s more than we’ve seen, I think, over the last 20 years, the last two decades. So I’ll give the member an opportunity to speak a little bit more about that.

Mr. Dave Smith: Again, this is one of those cases where, when you take a look at supply and demand, if there aren’t enough purpose-built apartments, then the price goes up. If we put things in place that make it too difficult to build apartments, what ends up happening is you build condominiums. Then individual investors will purchase that, and they’ll rent that out. But that’s done at a higher price, and that increases then the price of the rental, because those bills still have to get paid.

If we speed up development, if we make it easier to build a purpose-built apartment building, it lowers the cost of the build. It lowers the cost of the rent, which means that that individual who is looking for a place to rent can move into a place that is going to be at their price point and more suitable for them.

If we obstruct—which is what has happened over the last two decades—prices rise and people get priced out of a home. We want to reverse that trend.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Question?

Miss Monique Taylor: I listened intently to the member from Peterborough, who spoke completely about housing and the housing crisis that we’re all seeing. But the bill itself, the strong-mayors bill, talks nothing about housing. It’s in the title, but as we’ve seen in previous Conservative bills, titles don’t necessarily mean what is actually the purpose. What the bill actually does is empower the mayor with a whole bunch of powers that will probably create more chaos than we’re seeing currently.

The member talked about his community. He talked about the land tribunal, how it went through the process and actually fixed the community’s needs in favour of the developers that he was talking about. Why does he not believe in the process that’s already in front of them, instead of giving mayors powers that are unnecessary?

Mr. Dave Smith: I think, if we take a look back at the last 20 years of what’s been happening in Ontario—actually, we just have to look at the last four years in the city of Peterborough: $314,000 to $760,000 for the average home price. What has been done has not been working. It is incumbent on us as legislators to make sure that we’re looking at the best interests of the people of this great province and put forward legislation like this that’s going to make a positive difference and allow for that development to happen so that all of those individuals who want an apartment, who want a home, who want a condo, have the opportunity to acquire that.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Further debate?

MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam: Thank you very much. Aanii. Boozhoo. Sekoh.

It is an honour to rise today to give my inaugural speech as the new member of provincial Parliament for Toronto Centre.

I want to begin by honouring the long and ongoing Indigenous histories of this land. We owe our gratitude to the Haudenosaunee, the Anishinaabe, the Huron-Wendat, the Métis and, most recently, the Mississaugas of the Credit River for the work they have done and continue to do in taking care of the land and all the water around us.

Congratulations to the Speaker on his re-election to the esteemed post and to all members for their election win. I look forward to getting to know each and every single member and to finding ways to work together for the people of Toronto Centre, your communities and Ontario.

I especially want to honour my predecessor, Suze Morrison, who made history as the first woman of Indigenous ancestry elected to Queen’s Park in Toronto Centre, a bold and diverse community with an appetite for making history—a record this riding lived up to this June when I was elected as the first member of provincial Parliament who uses they/them pronouns.

Speaking of that election, I want to thank my family, friends, the campaign team, volunteers and the Toronto Centre NDP riding association. I did not arrive at Queen’s Park without their tireless help. I will never ever squander their trust and will work hard every single day to re-earn their support.

I also want to thank the best campaign team any candidate could ask for. My gratitude goes out to my campaign managers, Duncan Salvain and Lisa Brody Hoffman, and my core team who filled the campaign office with great spirits, high fives, fist bumps and big hugs. A shout-out to them, because without their hard work I would not be standing on the floor here today. I want to say thank you to Jeff Slater, Emma Beattie, Tyler Johnson, Keaton Kwok, Jed Sears, Vienna O’Shea, Dani Michie, Jocelyn Courneya, Julianna Notten, Ibna Chowdhury, Ben Donato-Woodger and Sasha Kane.

I also want to say thank you to Brian Chang, who is a former NDP federal candidate in the riding. Thank you to all of you from the bottom of my heart.

Every member knows that we cannot serve in this House unless our own house is in order. To that effect, I am grateful and blessed to have the remarkable support of my family. My mother takes care of my son every single day. It is her seventh grandchild. Without grandma Mee Ling Wong, I couldn’t do this work. The same goes for grandma Maggie Byckalo, grandpa William Byckalo and grandpa Tak Kwan Wong, who hold us safely in their thoughts and hearts every single day.

To my energetic preschooler and my beloved son: I have already missed too many dinners, weekends and weeknights with you, especially after mama’s municipal ward doubled in size. One day, I hope you will forgive me and understand that I am doing this work for you, your friends, your peers and future generations. Every moment that I am not serving in this House and serving the public, I am committed to you. I pledge to be the best parent I can possibly be.

To my extraordinary wife and best friend, Farrah Khan: I love you. I owe you everything. When I co-founded Asian Canadians for Equal Marriage to promote racial justice, social inclusion and same-sex marriage, I did not think I would personally get married. I wasn’t the marrying type. That all changed with Farrah. Getting married to Farrah in front of our families and community at The 519 community centre was the greatest joy of my life. It is also a very proud moment.

Queer love and queer families are special. Many of us fought for—we fight for the right to be our authentic selves. We overcome homophobia and transphobia every single day. Nothing about queer love is ordinary. We cannot take that for granted. I will rise up again and again in the streets, in the courtrooms, in the boardrooms and in the house and halls of government to defend queer rights, trans rights, women’s rights and all that falls under the umbrella of human rights.

My public service is enabled because of Farrah. Without her tremendous sacrifices, I would not be standing here today. To all the spouses, to all the life partners, to all the co-parents and caregivers out there, we all owe you our debt of thanks.

The past June’s election victory was my fourth. I want to be able to share with you why I am here at Queen’s Park today and why I want to continue to serve our people of Toronto Centre. Like many international downtowns, Toronto Centre is a coin with two sides. The city’s postcard skyline will tell a story of Fortune 500 companies with their North American and international headquarters based here, residential skyscrapers with panoramic views; incubators, accelerators and leading green, tech and innovation companies all on the course to redefine every day as we know it.

Turn that coin, and the other side of Toronto Centre, you see something different. Against the backdrop of luxury condominiums, multi-million dollar heritage homes, five-star hotels and the financial district, there is another story. This is the story of Toronto’s downtown east. The country’s largest social housing project in Regent Park, covering 69 acres, is undergoing transformational revitalization. Its success will be tied to the partnership of three orders of government coming together to champion it.

The other side of the story also reveals a story that is not exclusive to Toronto Centre: poverty, runaway inflation, stalled construction sites, racism, gender discrimination, violence, failing infrastructure, negligent and predatory landlords—not to mention exploitive bosses. Compound that with the housing, health care, mental health and opioid crises, and the social safety net becomes nearly unrepairable if immediate and effective government action is not taken. This is why I am here today. I want to bring meaningful change.

My story in Canada began like so many others. My mother and father uprooted their family when they left their crowded and unsafe social housing apartment in Hong Kong with a couple of hundred dollars in their pocket, a pair of suitcases and their children in tow. Mom and Dad had very little access to education and grew up in extreme poverty watching their parents, my popo and gung gung, struggle to rebuild their lives after nearly four years of the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, during which time all trade and economic activities were strictly regulated by the Japanese authorities who took over factories and banks, and outlawed the Hong Kong dollar.

The Japanese established a military government and puppet councils. They stripped residents of their civil liberties and freedom of movement. Internment camps and prisoner-of-war camps were set up while famine, malnutrition and illness set in. Families, including my own, watched their loved ones starve to death; a tragedy that befell my grandfather’s first wife and two daughters. Hong Kong elders recall many painful stories of torture and rape.

My parents came to Canada like so many other immigrants, hoping to seek out a better life and to plant roots so that the next generation can reach what they could not. This included a safe and affordable home that they can call their own. We moved into Regent Park. In so many ways, it was familiar. We moved into an already crowded apartment with another immigrant family. We lived there with seven people, and we shared one bathroom. My parents still told me we had nothing to complain about; it was still better than what they had in Hong Kong.

My parents were not just working class; they were poor, and every Canadian penny that they earned they earned with sweat and occasional tears. Loneliness and isolation set in, and the joy that can only come from being a part of a large extended family had gone.

My father was a chef. He worked in two of the biggest hotels in Toronto. My mother became a factory worker who worked 12 hours a day making garments for some of Canada’s largest fashion retailers for very little money. They both worked many hours, and as soon as they came home, they continued to work. They worked by creating additional garment pieces in the basement. As children, we learned to fall asleep to the rumbling sounds of old sewing machines and a cranky furnace.

Immigrant families are tight-knit. We cling to each other out of love and necessity. In so many ways, it’s family that actually protects us and gives us a sense of belonging. And what happened next was scary. All of this made things harder when I came out of the closet, when I told my parents I was gay. I was 16 years old, and I felt like a fish out of water. Not being my authentic self was literally killing me. Being gay or transgendered or non-binary are not lifestyle choices; it’s just who some of us are.

Like so many teenagers and young adults coming out for the first time, I was unprepared for what was to happen next. There were no television shows, celebrity role models or influencers to guide the pathway. I was all alone and struggling to find a way out of an unbearable closet.

My parents are the most kind-hearted people I know. They were extremely disappointed that their hard work and personal sacrifices to bring their young family to Canada all seemed in vain when their eldest child came out of the closet. Their dreams for me obtaining a better life over the one that they fled evaporated as soon as I came out. My parents reacted with fear. They were scared for my personal safety and emotional well-being. They feared the judgment of the community and, worse, the religious zealots. They were further outraged that I would bring shame to the family when my dirty little secret became a secret no more.

Despite all my parents’ fears about strangers and community members hurting me because of my sexual orientation or gender identity, they ended up inflicting the most harm on me by rejecting me when I was most vulnerable. My parents kicked me out after I came out to them. They were consumed with confusion, anger and fear that they let their first born go. As one would imagine, a 16-year-old without the protection of a family and a safe home would not be prepared for the life of a big city. I had no money of my own. I had no place to go that was safe.

My high school guidance counsellor eventually got me access to student welfare. It enabled me to rent a room, sharing a small bathroom and an equally small kitchen with other kids going through their own family troubles. It wasn’t easy for me as I desperately tried to make sense of what I needed to do next in order for me to survive and finish high school.

Again, my story is not unique, as millions of kids coming out of the closet around the world can attest. The hardship that I experienced scarred me for life. It’s also the reason why I work so hard so that others may not feel lost as a newcomer to Canada.

The great thing about being a human being is that we can evolve. Our hearts and minds can change. We can do better, and this is exactly what my parents and I did. We put in the emotional labour to rebuild our relationship that was torn apart because of ignorance and bigotry. We moved towards each other in a deep embrace of love, acceptance and forgiveness. We listened to each other actively with our ears and our hearts. Today, my parents are my closest advisers, and they love me unconditionally. Today, they are the best grandparents to my son and amazing parents-in-law to my wife.

They are truly proud of me, and they have become true 2SLGBTQI allies. My parents supported my efforts to legalize same-sex marriage in Canada. Both my parents walked me down the aisle when I married Farrah. They show up to Pride every single year in Toronto to cheer me on annually under the sweltering June sun.

I’ve learned so much from my parents and still do. They are proud Canadians of Chinese heritage, and that is who I am. They taught me to never turn my back on my heritage and my ancestors. My parents remind me to speak up for who cannot. I’m told to use my voice, my intelligence, my heart and my courage to serve the community and my country.

Even before I became an elected official, I first learned that words were important and what we say as lawmakers even more so. Seventeen years ago, I had the privilege of sitting in the House of Commons with then-Senator Nancy Ruth to listen to Prime Minister Stephen Harper deliver what would be an all-party apology for the racist legislation directed exclusively at people of Chinese background, known as the Chinese head tax and the Chinese Exclusion Act. It was an emotional day as I sat with weeping descendants and survivors who paid the punishing head tax that amounted to two years of wages and endured family separation.

At that point in time, I was a president of the Chinese Canadian National Council Toronto Chapter, and activists from across the country had been working for years to obtain the parliamentary apology and the redress that was to come. It was a bittersweet moment when we heard Prime Minister Stephen Harper speak.

It was also an ironic moment for me, in Parliament’s historic railroad room afterwards, knowing that in that room hung a portrait—and as the Prime Minister was delivering and gifting the last spike to the descendants, it was in that room that I was thinking that it was the flow of Chinese immigrants and migrant workers that built the Canadian Pacific railroad that made Confederation possible. And there we were, having to demand our dignity so that we can feel a sense of belonging in this country.

Anti-Asian and anti-Chinese racism continues today. It exists, and it still exists with so many forms of hate. We can draw on the lessons of the past to ensure that we don’t repeat the mistakes made then. This is our collective responsibility.

Before my time as a public office-holder, I was also an entrepreneur, a small business owner. I worked hard planting deep roots in Toronto Centre. In 1999, I became a small business owner on Church Street. I co-founded the Church Wellesley business improvement area. While owning the Church Street business, I continued my love of the arts by creating a contemporary Canadian art gallery in the West Queen West area, also known as the art and design district. Art and literature document our human existence and give us a cultural footprint in time.

I have always blended my activism with my professional work. I am happiest when I’m creating. I want to stand for something that is important and bigger than myself. I wish to be judged not by my success but the success of those around me.

I want my son to know that I did everything I could serving in this House to build a better future for him and his generation. I want him to inherit a country that is more equitable, more prosperous, more green and more just than the one that I came into as a young child. I want my son to be proud of his parents who are queer and out, and that his non-binary mama is courageous enough to use they/them pronouns at Queen’s Park.

I will do everything in my power that I humanly can to ensure that every child has a place of belonging in Ontario. I want children who have cognitive, physical and learning disabilities to be affirmed wherever they are. I want them to feel no shame about their skin colour, their hand-me-down clothing or perhaps coming from a single-parent-led household. I want every little girl to have the same opportunity that her little brother has.

I will be vocal and relentless in supporting vulnerable tenants and residents, and holding bad landlords responsible for failing them. I will do everything in my power, as we all should, to end chronic homelessness in Ontario.

As I conclude my inaugural remarks, I want us to think about how we can roll up our sleeves to work together to address the unrecognized and often ignored mental health and addictions crisis—a crisis wrought with stigma and misunderstanding, a crisis overshadowed by the health care crisis, but just as important and deadly when left unattended and allowed to run rampant.

Citizens of Ontario expect us to work collaboratively to solve the pressing issues of the day, whether it be the health care, cost of living or housing crises. Simple solutions may have worked to resolve simple problems. Those days are over. In the age of pandemics, climate crisis and growing disparity, we must do everything we can to turn the tide.

Speaker, it’s been an honour to address the House, and with my deepest gratitude, I look forward to getting to know all the members and working with you to uplift our communities, every community, every Ontarian.

Merci, meegwetch, Xie Xie, do jeh, Mh goi and thank you.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Questions to the member for Toronto Centre?

Mr. Ross Romano: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, for the opportunity to reply and ask a question to the member for Toronto Centre.

To the member: I want to, first off, congratulate you on your election into this House. I remember my first day so very, very fondly. It’s quite exciting to be able to stand in this House and be able to have your first speech and speak about what motivated you to come here.

I was listening, as you spoke, and I really appreciate all that has motivated you to come to this House. I think that for each one of us, we all have some type of motivation—myself as a child of an immigrant family as well, coming from Italy and having challenges in our community.

When I look around the room and I see each one of us here, we all have challenges and we all have things that have motivated us to be able to come here and serve.

It was very good to hear your story. I enjoyed seeing you in the hallway this morning, actually, as we were coming in and saying hello, and I look forward to being able to work together with you.

I know that as we enter into this House, sometimes when we put on our jerseys, things get a little bit more difficult. But I hope you’ll join me in wearing a jersey that we can speak to the member for Peterborough–Kawartha and remind him that the Soo Greyhounds are really the only place for Wayne Gretzky to be recognized as the best player for that organization. So I hope you’ll join me in that regard.

MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam: It was really nice to see you as well this morning. I find that sometimes our best conversations are the ones that happen most spontaneously. So I look forward to many of those encounters, when we can sit down and really focus on fixing the issues that are facing Ontarians. This is the work that I want to do. I think it’s incredibly important that each and every single one of us tries to look at what we can do best for our communities. I know that public service comes with a lot of sacrifice. I’m very aware that the work sometimes can feel daunting and overwhelming.

With respect to the jerseys, I’ve seen the mayor of Toronto don other jerseys when we’ve lost or perhaps we’ve taken on opportunities to champion the teams in the sports fields that we love, and we should do that. I welcome those moments when we can build friendship across every political line.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Questions?

Mr. Michael Mantha: As with many members who rise for their first opportunity to address this House for their inaugural speeches, I enjoy being here. I enjoy the fact that they take that opportunity to talk about themselves, to talk about their riding, where they came from and what got them here.

I really enjoyed you expressing and showing your vulnerability because that takes courage. It shows a human aspect of things that we want to see changed in here.

I remember in 2011, when I was first elected, there were many of us members who were in here who said, “Holy jeez, we’ve got to change decorum in here.” That will change decorum in here—putting that vulnerability and making yourself relatable to constituents. You carry yourself with a lot of weight, and you show presence in this House, and I think that will work well for you, and I look forward to being in this House with you many, many times when you’re going to be putting questions to this government and holding them accountable.

My question to you is, what more can your constituents expect from you? I know why I’m here. I’m here because the people of Algoma–Manitoulin want me here and elect me here, and I respond to them. What do you offer, and what can your constituents expect from you going forward?

MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam: Thank you very much for the question.

I think the most important task for us as parliamentarians here is to bring the voices of the community we represent into the House. So when I rise, oftentimes I will share a story—and I want to be able to share their stories as often as I can—it’s largely because they don’t get to stand here at the podium and they don’t get a microphone. So I want to carry their stories. I want to share their priorities and their family priorities so that we can all listen to them, just as much as I will be actively listening to you, Mr. Speaker, and to all members as they share their stories from their communities.

The other thing that I think Toronto Centre residents can expect from me is that they’ll have a champion. I know that sometimes our fights will be difficult. I totally get that; I came from a place where we had some fights every now and then. But I also came from a house in a lower form of government where we were able to work collaboratively together, where we found ways to work together, and that’s what the residents of Toronto Centre expect. They expect us to be able to find ways of co-operation and to address the issues that matter most to them.

Right now, what matters most to them are health care, education, mental health and addictions recovery services. That’s what I’ll be championing, along with affordable housing.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Questions?

M me Dawn Gallagher Murphy: Congratulations to the member on their election. That inaugural speech was truly amazing, so thank you. My question to you is, what prompted the member to stay and live in Toronto Centre? What is it that you love so much about Toronto Centre that you remain in this area?

MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam: Thank you very much. That might be my favourite question of the day. Talking about Toronto Centre brings me a lot of joy. It’s obviously the downtown of Toronto, and Toronto is a city of three million people; we continue to grow. But living in a downtown and actually raising a family is really one of the most exciting things, whether it’s access to the parks and the ravines or being able to just step out and spontaneously find a concert. You get to walk on Toronto’s longest and oldest main street, Yonge Street, which becomes almost a little bit of a calling card for Toronto, Ontario, because everybody knows it.

It’s a place where we get to see all of the community members out, and Toronto as a city—Toronto Centre in particular—is a microcosm. Our friend, our colleague, talked about the microcosm that exists in Peterborough; we have residents from around the world who call Toronto Centre home. They speak over 180 different languages. It truly is the most culturally dynamic multicultural city in the world.

I think many people can recognize that not only is Toronto a major employment hub—and there are probably many members who have family members who come to Toronto Centre to work. They become my residents during the daytime, especially during an employment cluster, even if they don’t necessarily vote for myself or the local representatives. But it actually is a place that brings us together, and I really am proud to be a downtown resident raising a family in Toronto Centre.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Questions?

Ms. Jill Andrew: It is my deepest honour to be able to congratulate my friend and colleague Kristyn Wong-Tam, on their successful campaign, their successful campaign team and their beautiful family. I think what I want to say in this moment to Kristyn—sorry; to the member for Toronto Centre—is a big thank you. I know that they have single-handedly encouraged and motivated and inspired several of us—myself, NDP federal candidate Brian Chang and many of us across the GTA—to get into politics. I also sit here in this chair because of the member’s support and encouragement.

I’d like you to express how important representation is in this House. We walk through these halls, we look on the walls and we don’t see ourselves. How important is it that you are here, and what will that do for future generations to be here too?

MPP Kristyn Wong-Tam: Thank you to the member from Toronto–St. Paul’s for that question. Representation does matter, and I think most of us recognize this in our hearts. But it matters to the kids of Ontario, to the kids in Canada. Let me tell you that when I was first elected to city council, I made history there. I don’t talk about it a lot, but it was done: I was the first out lesbian elected to city council.

I received mail and phone calls from people from around Toronto—kids, young adults, family members and parents—who thanked me for just standing up, being present and being counted, because it gave them and their families an opportunity to see someone who looked like them, who stood for their values, to be in that house.

We have an opportunity to serve in this House. I will not take this privilege lightly, because I know that what I do is going to be analyzed under a microscope; I am very aware that my presence here is very unusual. But I also want to say to all the kids out there, and to all the young adults out there, and to all the queer families—and this includes parents who are taking care of queer kids—that there’s no chair you can’t sit in. Whether it’s the councillor’s chair, the mayor’s chair, the Premier’s chair, or the Prime Minister’s chair, these are places that we all belong.

We didn’t get here lightly, and it was not without struggle, and so I stand on the shoulders of those who came before me, who took to the streets, to the courts, to win our civic rights so that we can be free to be who we are today. It’s those giants, their shoulders, that I stand on. Thank you very much.

The Acting Speaker (Ms. Goldie Ghamari): Further debate?

Mr. John Vanthof: I wasn’t planning on speaking this morning, but the opportunity has arisen, and this is actually the first time that I’ve been able to speak since being re-elected by the good people of Timiskaming–Cochrane. I, as everyone else here, would like to thank the people who worked to help me get elected, but I would also like to thank the candidates who ran against me, and the people who helped them, because democracy doesn’t just take people from one side to work; it takes people from all sides to work. In Timiskaming–Cochrane, there was a record number of candidates this year.

We had eight candidates, and I’m going to say some people were confused because we’re used to, you know, three, four—but more choice.

I have to go on the record, Speaker: I was vehemently opposed to some of their positions, extremely vehemently opposed to some of their positions, but not to them as people. And I would like to be on the record as saying, in Timiskaming–Cochrane, we have a long tradition of being able to be vehemently opposed to one thing and being able to work together on another thing. By and large, we maintained that tradition, and I think it’s very important that we all do that.

I’ve said to a few people when I came back that we all have—and, to the new members, from all sides, you will have days in this place you wonder why you won and why you ran. I have also had those days, and I’ve had days when I’ve said, “Why would I run again?” I never knew how much I relished the opportunity to be able to speak on behalf of the people of Timiskaming–Cochrane until this election, when I almost didn’t get that opportunity again.

It didn’t come that close, but it came much closer than we were used to, and that’s not a bad thing—it isn’t—because it’s really important that you listen to people’s voices, that you listen to people who you are philosophically opposed to, and you explain to them why—what your position is, what their position is. I would like to make sure that the people of Timiskaming–Cochrane know that, regardless of their individual positions and individual issues, my office door is open. It always will be open, and we will work very hard for them on the issues that we can agree on.

That’s why I’m here, it’s always been why I’m here.

There are many days—I had no childhood dream of ever becoming a public official. All I ever wanted to do was be a farmer, and that’s the first thing I thought of on election night: “I might have to go back to that quicker than I thought.” So I thought, “It’s lucky I kept the farm.” I actually kept a large part of our farm for my kids, in case they ever wanted to come back. It’s near and dear to our family, but on election night, I was thinking I might have to come back. But having said that, on that night, when the results were over, I’ve never felt so honoured to be able to have this opportunity.

I think we all feel this: How many people have the opportunity to speak in this House and, in large part, say what they believe in a safe space?

Immigrants, no matter where they come from, have a drive. The drive isn’t just colour or creed; it’s family. It’s pride in where you came from but also pride in where you’re going to. And except for the First Nations, we’re all immigrants. It’s just the degree of how long ago our families came. My kids won’t remember the liver and the headcheese; I do. We all work very hard so our kids don’t have to remember the bad things. Some people might love liver; I don’t. We all work very hard so our kids don’t have to face the same issues that we did.

It’s a balancing act, because we also want our kids or our friends to keep the good things from our histories, because that’s what also makes Ontario and Canada very strong.

Speaker, you come from a much different background than I come from. The member who just spoke comes from a much different background than either of us come from. Yet the fact that we’re all here and we can all express, I would hope, in this place, without fear and without fear of retribution is incredible. The reason that we’re all here is to be able to do that so that others who don’t have the ability to speak without retribution can see themselves in us and so that they can approach us and tell us what their issues are so that we can help them overcome those issues. That’s one of the reasons we’re all here.

And the member from Sault Ste. Marie, I appreciate his comments too, because in every one of our lives, I am sure, there is a moment that you go, “Whoa, that’s not cool, and I don’t want that to happen to anyone else.” We have all had that, and so have I.

But actually, what we’re here to talk about is the Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act. I have listened to most of the debate on this bill, and the government is focusing on an issue, housing, but it isn’t actually addressed in the bill. So if the answer to housing is changing the power of two mayors in Canada, it’s pretty simplistic.

I was a councillor in a very small township for a long time, and we had incredible frustrations with the length of time for planning. Some of the planning issues—there are just not enough planners. Changing the powers of two mayors isn’t going to change that.

One of the issues we heard at the AMO conference is that building permits are given and developers sit on them—they sit on them. Maybe if we put an expiration date on building permits—and I’m not saying it’s just that; this is just one issue—so that if you, the developer, get a building permit, you can’t just sit on it until the price goes up high enough so you can make a bit more money. And that’s not evil; that’s private business. I’ve been in private business my whole life, but you don’t need to change the power of two mayors to do that. There’s all kinds of things you can do.

I listened very intently to the member from Peterborough. He’s a great speaker. We were elected—I think you were elected after I was. But anyway, great speaker. I actually agree with a few things with the member from Peterborough—not a lot, but a few. We get along. But he spoke very eloquently about how this was going to change, and how the schedules were going to change. There’s absolutely none of that in this bill—nothing. Nothing. This bill is about changing the power structure of the mayors for two cities.

One thing he did say which was very interesting, I thought, was that the purpose of this bill was so the municipalities would align more with the will or the wishes of the province of Ontario. That’s really what this bill is about.

Interjection: Priorities.

Mr. John Vanthof: Priorities—that’s what this bill is about. But that’s not necessarily housing, either. That’s not necessarily housing, because the bill does not focus on housing. The speeches do, no doubt—absolutely no doubt. Every speech, the focus is on housing. But the bill, except for the “building homes” in the

short title, those two words, doesn’t focus on housing at all.

And something for members who haven’t been here very long: What you have to look at in legislation—look at the legislation itself, not just the talking points that your party gives you. Look at what could happen to that legislation over the years, because we’re making legislation not for the next two weeks. What your government is doing isn’t just for the next four years. That legislation also impacts—

Interjections.

Mr. John Vanthof: I agree with that—impacts what’s going to happen in the future. So changing the democratic process won’t just impact the talking points about housing.

The Acting Speaker (Ms. Goldie Ghamari): I’d like to remind the member to make his comments through the Chair.

Mr. John Vanthof: I apologize. I apologize. See, I’m used to herding cattle, and you have to kind of look all over to find the cows. But in deference to you, Speaker, I apologize.

But what you always have to look at with legislation is look at the legislation, not at the talking points. And the legislation itself—very well, I am not disparaging the government. I’m saying that the focus might be housing. I have no way of knowing that. But the speeches do not equal what the bill says, and that’s the biggest problem with this. Changing the mayoral—

The Acting Speaker (Ms. Goldie Ghamari): Thank you very much. I have to interrupt the member because it is now time for members’ statements.

Second reading debate deemed adjourned.

Members’ Statements

Broadband infrastructure

Mr. Lorne Coe: The government is bringing high-speed Internet access to hundreds of homes and businesses in the town of Whitby, marking another milestone to help connect every corner of the province by the end of 2025. The province has signed agreements with eight Internet service providers to bring access to as many as 339 municipalities across the province. Now, these service providers are part of Ontario’s historic investment of nearly $4 billion to bring access to reliable high-speed Internet across the province.

What’s clear is that the government has a plan to build Ontario’s future with shovels in the ground for highways, hospitals, housing and high-speed Internet infrastructure. Without a doubt, Speaker, Ontario’s high-speed Internet initiatives will help ensure that every home and business in every community can participate in today’s economy.

Cost of living

Ms. Jill Andrew: Yesterday was my first stop on our ice cream tour across Toronto–St. Paul’s. We hung out in one of my favourite neighbourhoods, the Winona and Vaughan neighbourhood. We went to Cy Townsend Park. Today, we’re going to be at Marian Engel Park, in our Melita Avenue neighbourhood.

It was all fun with the kids. The kids—of course you’ve got to love the innocence of children; they were not bothered. But I tell you, the adults at the park hanging out with me, the parents, the post-secondary age young adults, their concern was all about affordability. I spoke to a 23-year-old university student literally with tears in her eyes. She feels that there is no moral value, no character left in the province, in this House, because she feels that the government is not listening to her—and many people’s—concerns around affordable housing.

She, like many of the parents, simply wants to be able to make ends meet, wants to be able to have a better future and wants to be able to live in St. Paul’s and stay a while.

What’s happening now is we’re being besieged by demovictions, by renovictions, by skyrocketing rent increases that folks just simply cannot afford. Even No Frills, on Alberta, where I go grocery shopping as well, too, is becoming more expensive for too many of us. So we really want the government to hear from St. Paul’s.

Affordability is a crisis, and you’ve got to—

The Acting Speaker (Ms. Goldie Ghamari): That’s all the time. Thank you.

Members’ statements?

Sport and cultural events

Mr. Hardeep Singh Grewal: Being my first time rising in this House, I would like to congratulate all members on their election to this House. I would also like to thank my constituents for their support and for electing me as their MPP for the great riding of Brampton East.

Speaker, just a few short weeks ago, Jessy Sahota and Neil Nijjer represented Canada at the World Police and Fire Games for heavyweight wrestling hosted in the Netherlands. Jessy Sahota returned home with first-place gold, and Brampton East’s very own Neil Nijjer returned home with silver. I would like to congratulate these two individuals for making our province and country extremely proud and for becoming exemplary role models for our youth to come.

I would also like to add that this past weekend has been a very eventful week for the residents of Brampton, with various sports and cultural events taking place across the city. Speaker, I would like to congratulate the United Brothers Field Hockey Academy for the success of the Toronto field hockey cup and commend them on their continued efforts on promoting the game of field hockey throughout the region.

Finally, Speaker, I would also like to extend my best wishes to the Pakistani and Indian community and all those celebrating on an extremely happy 75th Independence Day.

Street Haven

Ms. Jessica Bell: I had the pleasure of meeting the hard-working staff and board members at Street Haven at their Roxborough site this summer. Street Haven is one of Canada’s oldest women’s shelters. The shelter provides temporary housing, food and treatment for mental health and addiction to about 1,500 women a year.

These are high-risk people, people who are homeless, people who’ve just been released from prison or hospital, people who are deeply traumatized. They need help. And it’s the staff at Street Haven that step up to help them each and every day.

But here’s the problem: Street Haven also needs our help, because they’re seeing a big increase in the need for their services. And there has been a big rise in homelessness, in addiction and in people facing very complex issues and very tough life circumstances.

Yet government funding for Street Haven’s work is being cut by this government. Funding to help people manage their addictions is being cut, and funding to manage the home and provide housing to people in need is also being cut. Street Haven is operating at a deficit. Their hard-working staff—when I met them—are exhausted and underpaid, and the need just keeps growing.

I am asking this government—the Minister of Health, the Solicitor General and the Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions—to meet with Street Haven and understand what they do, and commit to providing support to them and other vitally important supportive housing services and treatment programs so Ontarians can get the help they need.

Town of Tillsonburg

Mr. Ernie Hardeman: I rise today to recognize a significant milestone for the town of Tillsonburg in my riding of Oxford. Many of you may have heard of Tillsonburg in the famous song by Stompin’ Tom, but today is about the 150th anniversary of the incorporation of the town. It was the residents who pushed for the incorporation of their community. There was a population of about a thousand at the time, and several businesses were established. Tillsonburg was booming.

Oxford South’s MPP, Adam Oliver, was the area’s representative here in the Legislature on March 2, 1872, when the Lieutenant Governor gave royal assent to his bill to incorporate the Town of Tillsonburg.

Edwin Tillson was elected as the town’s first mayor. On March 22, council held its first meeting. One hundred fifty years later to the day, on March 2, the town’s current mayor, Stephen Molnar, and town council hosted a cake-cutting to mark the anniversary. Though it wasn’t an official council meeting, it was the official start of the celebrations. Events wrapped up on July 1 with a community birthday party.

Tillsonburg has a rich history and is still a booming town in south Oxford. With all it has to offer, it’s no wonder the town has been listed as one of the top 100 places to visit in Canada.

I am proud to recognize this historic moment in my riding, and I wish all those in Tillsonburg a very happy birthday.

Privatization of public services

Mr. Wayne Gates: As a Canadian, I’m proud to call this country home, and our universal health care system is one of the main reasons. Because of great Canadians like Tommy Douglas, residents use their OHIP card for health care—not their credit card.

But this government seems determined to destroy that system by underfunding it. Ignore and underfund our health care system, watch it buckle under the pressure of COVID, and then say the only solution is to find innovative approaches to fix the mess they created.

Unfortunately, those innovative approaches are really just new ways to give health care services to private corporations, whose main focus is to make more and more profit. But there are more problems with this approach. It’s been proven time and time again that it costs us more.

The Toronto Star reported yesterday that temp nursing agencies are skyrocketing health care costs. In fact, they’re paying as much as $110 an hour to temp agencies. Front-line health care workers like our great nurses at ONA have said this is already a form of privatization. Toronto’s Sunnybrook Hospital has spent $8.2 million this year on temp agencies.

We literally can’t afford to continue down this road. Not only will the quality of our health care suffer; costs will become unsustainable. We must stop all forms of privatization, invest in our public system, repeal Bill 124 and start reminding the world why it’s so great to be a Canadian: It’s our publicly funded health care.

Riding of Etobicoke–Lakeshore

Ms. Christine Hogarth: It’s a privilege to have the opportunity to rise in this Legislature as the re-elected MPP for Etobicoke–Lakeshore. I want to extend a big thank you to the people in Etobicoke–Lakeshore for your trust in me, and the team of countless volunteers for your hard work and dedication. I would not be here without you. I also want to extend a thank you to my constituency staff for your years of service for the people of south Etobicoke, because we all know we can’t do these jobs alone.

Over the past four years, we have accomplished so much for the people of Etobicoke–Lakeshore: securing over $1 billion for the redevelopment of the Queensway Health Centre, adding over 150 new beds, and another $1 billion for St. Joseph’s Health Centre, adding over 100 new beds; securing over $100 million to refurbish and build new schools, like St. Elizabeth, St. Leo’s, Bishop Allen and St. Marguerite d’Youville, and those who drive up Islington can see the shovels in the ground for the new Holy Angels school.

We announced a new long-term-care home that will provide 256 new beds; new transit projects, such as the Kipling Transit Hub, the Mimico GO station, and for the growing population of Humber Bay Shores, finally the long-awaited Park Lawn GO.

Over the summer, I have been busy attending many events in person and I see the Etobicoke spirit everywhere I go. It was great to attend the grilled cheese festival hosted by the Lakeshore BIA, and I’m pleased to announce that our government is investing $60,000 through the Ontario Reconnect Festival and Event Program so we can look forward to a bigger challenge next year.

I look forward to a productive term and will continue to get it done for the people of Etobicoke–Lakeshore.

Migrant workers

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Haldimand–Norfolk.

Ms. Bobbi Ann Brady: Thank you, Speaker. I want to first congratulate you on being elected to the Speaker’s chair. Given your track record, I know we are in very good hands.

On a sombre note, I’d like to express my deepest sympathies to the family of former MPP Bill Murdoch, a member I have fond memories of from my early days as a staffer here at Queen’s Park.

Speaker, each year, 20,000 seasonal agricultural workers arrive in Ontario to work on farms and in greenhouses. Roughly 5,000 come to Haldimand–Norfolk, where they play a vital role in ensuring fresh, safe food makes it to our tables. These workers, mainly from Mexico and the Caribbean, leave their families behind to plant, cultivate, harvest and pack. The money is lucrative, and they are very quick to admit they are well-respected on the farm and across the community.

This past weekend, migrant workers gathered at the Simcoe soccer pitch for the annual Farms of Norfolk Football Association Tournament, hosted by the Norfolk Seasonal Agricultural Worker Community Committee in conjunction with the local legal clinic. The tournament developed after workers expressed they wanted additional community engagement. This year, nine teams competed, and it was serious business with a tremendous display of athleticism. These men and women are in great shape, considering their days are physical.

Many farms in my neck of the woods are not complete unless they have a practice field, and even after a long day’s work, it’s common to drive by a farm and see a practice or a scrimmage breaking out.

Sunday morning, farm families were on the sidelines cheering on their team. It was just one of those events that left you feeling good. I invite you all to next year’s tournament to witness this significant event and to meet the workers who make our agricultural industry here in Ontario viable.

Town of Wheatley

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Chatham-Kent–Leamington.

Mr. Trevor Jones: Speaker, as this is my first opportunity to make formal remarks in this House, I want to congratulate you and thank you for your continued service to all members in the province of Ontario. I also want to offer my sincere gratitude to the residents of beautiful Chatham-Kent–Leamington for placing their trust in me. I assure them that I’ll serve them and all of Ontario with honour and dignity.

Today I want to highlight a special community in my riding whose residents have demonstrated a unique strength, courage, and resilience in the face of adversity. Wheatley is located on the shores of Lake Erie in southwestern Ontario and is home to approximately 3,000 people. It’s known as the freshwater fishing capital of the world and is home to the iconic Omstead Foods, a pioneering fishery and processer of fresh foods.

Wheatley is the current headquarters of Hike Metal Products, a successful ship-building company whose projects included world-class research and law enforcement vessels, as well as the large, specialized catamarans that tour Niagara Falls. Wheatley is home to many of my dear friends, like Jeff Bowman, the owner of Bowman Feed and Supply, whose family have delivered exceptional local products and exceptional customer service since 1952.

On August 26, 2021, a suspected hydrogen sulphide gas leak that was being monitored by officials in the downtown core suddenly indicated dangerous concentrations of the volatile gas. While emergency personnel worked to quickly evacuate the area, a massive explosion occurred. The blast actually injured 20 people and severely damaged businesses and homes in the area. The heroic actions of our local firefighters certainly prevented further injury and loss of life. For nearly a year, businesses have been shuttered, families displaced, and the heart of the town centre interrupted. Yet Wheatley remains positive, hopeful, patient and eager to rebuild.

Wheatley was the first community I campaigned in and the first community I visited after winning the election in June. The residents of Wheatley are an inspiration to us all. In the face of adversity here and elsewhere, I strive to be Wheatley strong.

Government’s agenda

Mr. Graham McGregor: The member for Brampton North here—first day.

It is an honour to rise in this House on behalf of my constituents in Brampton North, and I am humbled by their trust in me to be our voice for our community at Queen’s Park.

Mr. Speaker, please allow me to speak on behalf of my community when I say that Brampton North is simply tired of waiting. We’re tired of waiting in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Highway 410, Bovaird Drive and Sandalwood Parkway. We’re tired of waiting at the Brampton Civic waiting room, where our incredible health care workers strive to keep up with the demands of our growing and aging population.

And quite frankly, we’re tired of the committees and the studies and the working groups. We demand action. We demand a government that gets it done. That is exactly what our Premier and our government are here to do.

We’re getting it done by building a new Peel Memorial Hospital with a full-fledged 24/7 emergency room.

We’re getting it done by building Highway 413, cutting commute times and bringing economic opportunity to our region.

We’re getting it done with the TMU medical school where, for the first time ever, Brampton students will become medical students and eventually become Brampton doctors.

Mr. Speaker, we will get it done for Brampton North.

Introduction of Visitors

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

Mr. Will Bouma: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. It’s a pleasure to see you in the chair this morning.

I would like to welcome my long-suffering wife, Joni Bouma, to the House for the first time in this government; my daughter and former page Ella Bouma; and a special guest, our family friend Tessa Overduin, who, as you can see, is looking forward to the Immersive King Tut later today and going to the ROM and seeing the mummies there.

M me France Gélinas: I’m pleased to introduce Angela Preocanin, the first vice-president of the Ontario Nurses’ Association, as well as Nour Alideeb from the ONA. Welcome to Queen’s Park, ladies.

Mr. Matthew Rae: It’s great to rise today and introduce Kyle Reaburn, a public affairs specialist for SE Health, and a good, long-time friend from the great riding of Guelph.

Mr. Tom Rakocevic: I’m proud to welcome Society of United Professionals president Michelle Johnston. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Ms. Andrea Khanjin: I would like to invite our page back—Pania Ghaneian, who’s from the riding of Barrie–Innisfil. Welcome today.

Ms. Lise Vaugeois: I would like to welcome Brandon Machado, who is sitting in the members’ gallery today. Brandon is a member of the Ontario NDP Persons Living with Disabilities Committee and a resident of the great riding of York South–Weston. Welcome, Brandon.

Mr. Deepak Anand: I’d like to welcome members from Mississauga–Malton: Numiara Naseer, Shehryaar Naseer, Shanzay Naseer, Mujtaba Naseer, Murtaza Naseer, Shahid Mughal, Nurguss Mughal, Iqra Mughal, Humzah Mughal, Ahmed Mughal, Faizan Mughal, Ejaz Ahmed, Nafisa Farzana, Aman Ahmed, Zainab Ahmed and Mahdiya Ahmed.

I want to say thank you to the parents for bringing their children to Queen’s Park as they’re having their summer vacation.

M me France Gélinas: Point of order, Speaker.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Nickel Belt has a point of order.

M me France Gélinas: Thank you, Speaker. I seek unanimous consent to move a motion to allow an emergency debate on the health care crisis this afternoon during orders of the day.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Nickel Belt is seeking the unanimous consent of the House to move a motion to allow an emergency debate on the health care crisis this afternoon during orders of the day. Agreed? I heard a no.

Question Period

Hospital services

Mr. Peter Tabuns: My question is to the Premier. Records from Ontario Health show 1,400 people died while waiting for surgery last year. That’s a 43% increase compared to pre-pandemic years and a 30% increase over just a year before. When lives hang in the balance, why is the Premier refusing to invest in recruiting, retaining and respecting health care workers?

Hon. Doug Ford: I want to thank the opposition for the question. The facts are, with recruiting and retaining, we added 14,500 new nurses. That’s on top of the 10,500 health care workers, which included nurses and PSWs.

We invested over $40 billion in 52 projects that were neglected under your government. Under their government, propped up by the Liberals and NDP, they fired 1,600 nurses.

I’ll tell you, Mr. Speaker, the opposition voted against historic funding, which went from $61 billion when we came into office in 2018 up to over $75 billion. That’s an over $14-billion increase. They voted no, against it, for the historic funding. They voted no, against the people of Ontario. They voted no, against the health care system. That’s their solution.

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

Mr. Peter Tabuns: Reality doesn’t reflect what the Premier is talking about. The Toronto Star has obtained a letter painting a picture of the staffing crisis at St. Joe’s in Toronto: a shutdown of ambulatory care due to a lack of nurses; hallway medicine; no functional resuscitation area; and a small, sick child in an unstaffed area.

The staffing crisis is costing people their lives. Why is this government planning to spend money on privatization that will bleed even more staff from our hospitals?

Hon. Doug Ford: It’s funny you mention St. Joe’s. I had a great conversation with Dr. Rutledge this morning regarding that. He is giving me the confidence that we’re going to move forward.

And by the way, the backlogged surgeries? We put $300 million into backlogged surgeries to make sure we get caught up, and we’re doing exactly that.

We’re building a new medical school that’s going to create more doctors in the system—as we did last year: Over 720 new doctors are coming into the system, Mr. Speaker. We are investing in health care like no other government in the history of this country.

But the opposition? Their answer is the status quo, the status quo that destroyed this health care system under 15 years of their rule, the NDP and the Liberals, that crumbled the health care system. We’re fixing the health care system. We’re putting in historic funding. We’re making sure that we put through processes that are going to make sure that people aren’t in emergency rooms for hours on top of hours. We’re fixing the health care system, the same system that they destroyed for 15 years, Mr. Speaker.

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

Mr. Peter Tabuns: Again to the Premier: Canadian studies show that for-profit hospitals had 19% higher costs and a 2% higher death rate compared to non-profit hospitals. Canadian medical experts attribute this difference to profit-seeking, higher costs for administration and bigger executive bonuses.

We have a hospital staffing crisis. Privatization would siphon staff out of our hospitals and send them to a for-profit system. Why is this government planning to spend money on privatization that would make the hospital staffing crisis even worse?

Hon. Doug Ford: Mr. Speaker, no one in this province, as long as our government is here, will have to pay with their credit card. They will be paying with their OHIP card, not their credit card—OHIP.

Mr. Speaker, we added 3,500 beds, and with a historic $40-billion investment, with 52 regions around Ontario that are either getting a new hospital or a new addition, we’re adding another 3,000 beds.

We’re working with the College of Nurses, working with the College of Physicians and Surgeons as well to make sure we speed up the process. As we saw, over 720 internationally trained nurses are now coming into the system. We need a lot more. We’re going to continue asking the College of Nurses to speed up the process to bring all these qualified nurses right here to Ontario.

Mr. Speaker, we are fixing a broken system we inherited and will continue to have a thriving system moving forward.

Hospital services

Ms. Chandra Pasma: Beds don’t equal surgeries, Speaker. A bed without a nurse is just furniture.

At the Ottawa Hospital, we’re seeing the many serious consequences of not having enough nurses. Patients are waiting days to be admitted even though beds are available because there’s no nurse to staff the bed. Surgeries are being cancelled even as patients are entering the operating room because there’s no nurse. And recently, a patient who showed up for chemo was sent home without it because there was no nurse to administer it.

Will the government act swiftly to fill these nursing shortages so that every patient in Ontario gets the care they need?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To reply, once again, the Premier.

Hon. Doug Ford: Thank you for that question. And by the way, I spoke to Cam Love. What a great CEO—probably one of the best in the province. He assured me as well that they’re going to make sure that they have the proper staffing.

How we’re helping the hospitals across the province is the Learn and Stay program—that we’re going to pay for the tuition of the nurses. We’re going to make sure that they’re taken care of—any expenses they have—as long as they serve in underserved areas.

With Ottawa—I’ve got to tell you, I think the world of Cam Love. He drives an efficient hospital. But, again, as he said, and every other CEO that are feeding us information to help the system—every one of them said the same thing: You can’t stay with the status quo under the Liberals and the NDP that destroyed the system for 15 years, Mr. Speaker. We’re going to continue investing into the hospitals, into nurses.

And, again, I just want to remind people of the numbers: We added 14,500 nurses since 2018. Those are staggering numbers.

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

Ms. Chandra Pasma: It feels like there are two realities here, Speaker: the one the government is living in and the one that my constituents and our hard-working health care workers live in.

The Ottawa Hospital is short more than 500 nurses, and this government’s actions to date are a drop in the bucket compared to the scale of the crisis. There are nurses in Ottawa who are working 16-hour shifts, 12 out of 14 days, just to fill nursing shortages. Just imagine trying to provide good care while working that many hours, not to mention the risk of mistakes. No wonder nurses are leaving the profession.

Will the government repeal Bill 124 and address working conditions so that we keep nurses instead of driving them away?

Hon. Doug Ford: As you propped up the Liberals and you fired 1,600 nurses, we actually recognized the nurses and gave them a 7.6% increase, a $5,000 thank-you bonus for doing an incredible job. We’re investing another $342 million to add 5,000 more nurses to the system. We’re adding 8,000 personal support workers. We’re investing $57 million to hire 225 nurses to the long-term-care sector that are desperately needed.

Mr. Speaker, we’re going to continue to invest in health care. We’re going to continue making sure that as long as our government’s here, people are going to be using their OHIP card instead of their credit card. But guess what? We can’t do the same, status quo. The status quo has been broken. We’re going to fix it. We’re going to deliver health care in a different fashion through the sector’s advice—not through our government’s advice—through the experts’ advice: the docs, the nurses, anyone involved in taking care of the great health care system that we do have in Ontario.

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

Final supplementary?

Ms. Chandra Pasma: Well, now I know that the government lives in an alternate reality because I have never fired a nurse or propped up the Liberals in my life.

Last week, I had the chance to sit down with nurses from ONA Local 83 and they told me that every day they go to work feeling scared. They wonder, who will I not get to today, and what will the consequences be? It is only a matter of time until the consequences for someone are deadly. This is an unfair burden to put on our hard-working health care heroes and terrifying to patients across Ontario.

Will this government finally listen to nurses and implement the solutions they are calling for, starting with repeal of Bill 124?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The government House leader.

Hon. Paul Calandra: The member is quite correct: There has been a great burden on health care providers for a long time in the province of Ontario. I know the member referenced the fact that she wasn’t here, but the reality is that the NDP and the Liberals did work together for many years, and the changes that they refused to make put us in a very difficult situation.

Now, the Premier, of course, highlighted many of the investments that we’re making, but it didn’t just start recently. We started with the transition to Ontario health teams because a lot of people told us the quality of care that they were getting is good if they could get into the system. So we started the transition to Ontario health teams. We brought on new nurses. We brought on more medical professionals, a medical school in Brampton, a medical school in Scarborough, so that we could educate more doctors right here in the province of Ontario, keep them here, working in communities across the province.

We had a low ICU capacity. The Premier said that had to be changed, so we’ve increased ICU capacity across the province of Ontario. We’re educating more nurses. We’re fixing long-term care. It is about building an integrated system that works for all of the people in the province of Ontario, and that’s exactly what we’re doing.

Northern health services

M me France Gélinas: Ma question est pour la ministre de la Santé.

Minister, in July, you received a letter informing you of the closure of the Gogama nursing station on September 1. Gogama is a small, isolated community. Residents rely on the nursing station as their only access to health care. September 1 is fast approaching. Can the minister reassure the people of Gogama that they will not find themselves without any health care services at the end of the month?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To reply, the government House leader.

Hon. Paul Calandra: I think it’s very clear that the government has continued to invest. The member raises a very, very important point, something that the Premier, the Minister of Health and, in fact, we in long-term care have been talking about right from the beginning: that discrepancy between urban and rural and remote communities. How do we attract medical professionals into all parts of the province of Ontario? That is something that we’ve focused on. That is something that the Minister of Colleges and Universities has also focused on.

The Premier mentioned how we are starting to ensure that tuitions and those loans that our nurses take will be covered if they serve in those areas that are underserviced.

The member knows full well, Mr. Speaker, that it is our responsibility—the responsibility of the government of Ontario and all parliamentarians—to make sure that everybody has access to the top-notch quality health care service that they pay for through their taxes. We will continue to ensure that all parts of this province have the best, highest quality of care regardless of whether they’re north, south, east, west, remote or urban.

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

M me France Gélinas: There are health agencies in Timmins right now that are willing and able to sponsor the Gogama nursing station. They have a nurse practitioner available and they have a supporting physician. Will the minister make sure that a new agreement is signed ASAP so that the good people of Gogama and area do not end up without any access to care come September 1? The agreement needs to be signed now.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Premier.

Hon. Doug Ford: Thank goodness for the people of Timmins. They have a great representative, George Pirie. The other person was a no-show, but thank goodness for George. He’s going to have a loud voice for Timmins and he’s going to make sure that everyone in that region is going to be taken care of.

But this is a broader conversation we need. All Premiers across the provinces and territories all have a common voice, and the common voice is: This is not going to be sustainable—making sure that the feds pay their fair share. You know something? They’re paying 22%. We’re asking for 35%. It will not be sustainable without the federal government stepping up to the plate, making sure that they give us our fair amount to sustain the health care system. This isn’t unique to Ontario. I talk to the Premiers every single day. They’re facing the same problems. They’re facing the same problems down in the US.

But we need the federal government to give us our fair share of funding for health care across this country.

Economic development

Mr. Rick Byers: My question is for the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. Under the previous Liberal government, rural communities like mine were left behind and neglected when it came to investments that would support our local economy. Time and again, we saw the previous government make announcements that would be supporting investments only in and around the GTA. That’s why I am here to continue to advocate for my constituents and the abilities they have to lead our province.

On that note, I am proud that Grey-Bruce continues to lead the way in female apprenticeships. For the past five years, we’ve had more female students going into the skilled trades than the rest of the province, by a significant margin.

Speaker, what is the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade doing to help support economic growth in my riding? What is the government doing to tap into the amazing workforce potential we have in our community?

Hon. Victor Fedeli: Our government listened to businesses, like those in that riding, and we learned about the support that they needed and all those regional challenges that they had after a decade of Liberal neglect. That’s why we launched the $100-million Regional Development Program to attract investments to southwestern Ontario, southeastern Ontario and rural Ontario. We knew that this would benefit those many communities who could expect to see growth, job creation and economic opportunities for years to come.

To date, those very businesses have invested $716 million into Ontario and created 1,200 jobs in their own communities. We are demonstrating that small towns in Ontario can sustain and attract those businesses. We’re bringing back that lifeblood to these rural communities, all after the Liberals chased those businesses out of the country.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Supplementary.

Mr. Rick Byers: Thank you, Minister.

Speaker, for 42 years under a Progressive Conservative government, Ontario became a manufacturing powerhouse, able to compete with any jurisdiction. Yet, under the previous Liberal government, jobs began to leave when high taxes, red tape and out-of-control electricity prices made Ontario one of the least competitive jurisdictions in North America. The result: 300,000 people lost their jobs when Liberal policies forced manufacturing right out of Ontario.

With growing instability in Asia as China attempts to destabilize the region, businesses now more than ever are seeking strong, stable partners when it comes to manufacturing operations. Now is the opportunity for Ontario to regain our rightful spot as a manufacturing powerhouse. We must be taking every and all necessary actions to get this done.

What is the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade doing to bring back manufacturing jobs to Ontario and to my riding?

Hon. Victor Fedeli: Last week, along with the Premier, we buzzed on over to Dundalk, Ontario. There, Greenlid announced a $14.8-million investment to build a 60,000-square-foot manufacturing plant. This project will bring all of Greenlid’s production back from China, right here to Ontario.

Our province is supporting Greenlid’s project with a $500,000 investment through our Regional Development Program. This is a made-in-Ontario success story. Greenlid produces compostable products like cups and lids and bowls. Their products are found in 14,000 stores across the continent, and they’re made here in Ontario. This is just one of the thousands of examples of products that are made in Ontario, and manufacturing that’s coming back to rural Ontario.

But we won’t stop there. We’re going to continue to fix that Liberal mess and bring the jobs back to where we need them most.

Curriculum

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Meegwetch, Speaker. Remarks in Oji-Cree.

My question is to the Minister of Education. We learned recently that Ministry of Education staff were directed to remove parts of the new curriculum that show students the connections between Indigenous and Western science. Can the minister let us know why he directed his staff to remove these links to Indigenous science content from the elementary curriculum?

Hon. Stephen Lecce: I want to thank the member opposite for the question. On the contrary, In fact, we have enhanced the mandatory learning within the science curriculum in every single grade when compared to 2017 under the former Liberal government. Every single grade in the science curriculum now has enhanced mandatory learning as part of our commitment to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and our commitments to Indigenous, First Nation and Inuit peoples.

Part of the first response of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission actually called us to complete what the Liberals did not do. In the social science curriculum, we will have mandatory learning in this province from grades 4 to 6, but not grades 1 through 3. I enjoin the Minister of Indigenous Affairs, on behalf of the Premier of the government, to actually fix that gap. And, for the first time this coming September, 2023, students in Ontario will learn—from grade 1 right through 8—about residential schools and what the Premier called “the dark chapter” in Canadian history. We know there is more to do, and I am open to his feedback and his leadership to get this right.

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

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Speaker, reconciliation is not something that you say differently from what the First Nations are saying. That’s not reconciliation. I say that because Mattawa council spokesperson Chief Wayne Moonias stated that Ontario must stop regressing in their relationship with First Nations. Ontario should be working with First Nations educators to add Indigenous science to the curriculum, not remove it in secret.

Minister, why are you not responding to First Nation education organizations? I want to work with you to develop this framework.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Minister of Indigenous Affairs.

Hon. Greg Rickford: It gives us an opportunity to talk about the hard work that the Minister of Education and my ministry have done to ensure a couple of important things: first of all, that Indigenous students are armed with the fundamentals of a good education that includes science, technology, engineering and mathematics. That’s embedded in their curriculum, and we support the Indigenous-led education authorities across this province to that end.

Further, Mr. Speaker, as the minister spoke about that: Since the last curriculum update in 2007, no government has taken the steps, by comparison, that we have to ensure a strengthened Indigenous learning opportunity. For far too long, many of us in this House learned about our history with words like “colonization,” “war” and “conquer.” Today, we are talking about reconcili-action, ensuring that our students come home and talk to their parents about some of the darkest chapters of our history and, at the same time, ensuring Indigenous students across this province have a fair shot at a great education and a prosperous community to live in.

Fiscal and economic policy

Mr. Hardeep Singh Grewal: From gas to groceries, rising prices continue to impact Ontario workers and Ontario families. Food prices have gone up by almost 10% from a year ago and rent prices are also rising. In Brampton, Regeneration Outreach Community’s local food bank is seeing a rise in families coming through the door at a time when donations are typically lower. There are nearly 400 families coming to them for groceries—a number that has doubled in the last two years. With Canada’s inflation rate reaching a nearly 40-year high, households across the country are facing increasing pressures to make ends meet.

According to Food Banks Canada, one in five people report going hungry, meaning some households are foregoing buying groceries in order to pay other bills, including rent, hydro and fuel.

What is the Minister of Finance doing to help provide financial support and relief for the people of my riding and all other Ontarians?

Hon. Peter Bethlenfalvy: Congratulations and welcome to the member from Brampton East.

For too long, Ontario had a government that never met a fee increase or a tax that they didn’t like. Cap-and-trade tax schemes, licence sticker fee increases, road tolls in Durham—they loved those. But our government knows the best way to support the people of Ontario is to put more money back into their pockets, not out of their pockets. That’s why we signed a deal to bring down the cost of child care and enhanced our Child Care Tax Credit to make it even more affordable for families.

We have enhanced the LIFT tax credit to deliver an average of $430 in relief in 2022 for low-income workers and families and we will raise the minimum wage to $15.50 per hour on October 1. We will never stop investing in our workers, our seniors and our families.

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

Mr. Hardeep Singh Grewal: Thank you, Minister. The increasing price of gas is driving up the cost of everything from food to groceries and services. In Peel region, and in particular Brampton, my constituents are struggling to deal with these increased costs. Interest rates are climbing, putting further pressure on household budgets. The people of this province want to build a stronger Ontario, but you cannot build for the future if you’re worried about bills for today.

Under the previous Liberal governments, we saw the price of housing skyrocket. We saw carbon tax schemes devastate our economy and drive up the cost of everything. We saw red tape strangle opportunity for Ontario businesses and Ontario workers. How is this government rebuilding Ontario’s economy and keeping costs down for families?

Hon. Peter Bethlenfalvy: Geopolitical tensions continue to shake the global economy, but Ontario has every advantage to lead. With a skilled workforce, critical minerals and the manufacturing capacity, Ontario is becoming a global leader in electric and hybrid vehicle manufacturing.

Mr. Speaker, in uncertain times you need a plan. We know the opposition’s plan: more regulations, more red tape, higher taxes and higher fees. This government has cut red tape and business taxes to bring investment and good jobs back to Ontario. We got rid of the cap-and-trade tax and cut the gas taxes and fuel taxes to give families and businesses relief at the pumps. We have removed the tolls the Liberal government placed on Highways 412 and 418 to give drivers relief. Our government’s plan will build a stronger Ontario and put more money back in the pockets of the hard-working people of this province.

Social assistance

Ms. Lise Vaugeois: My question is to the Premier. Next month, the government will increase ODSP funding by a mere 5%, or $58 per month, to just over $1,200 a month. Meanwhile, Ontario Works recipients will receive no increase, with the government expecting them to live on $733 per month. Think about that: $733 a month. When pressed last week, the Minister of Finance refused to say whether he could live on such meagre rates. It is clear that the government members know it is not possible to survive with any dignity on these rates, but they choose to legislate people into poverty anyway. Will this government do the right thing, change course today and double the rates for OW and ODSP?

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

Hon. Merrilee Fullerton: Thank you to the member opposite for the question. The Premier has stated that we will support those in need, and our government is taking meaningful steps forward in this very way. That’s why we’re implementing the largest increase to ODSP in decades. Ontario is one of the only provinces aligning ODSP payments to inflation. By aligning ODSP rates to inflation, we will help meet the future needs of individuals facing additional financial pressure. And that’s not all. We also brought in the LIFT and CARE tax credits to support individuals with low incomes and we brought in dental care to low-income seniors.

Supporting our most vulnerable requires all levels of government to come together to achieve real change. We are working with our municipal partners to reform social assistance to focus on people over paperwork. We’re also working with our federal partners to help them deliver on the Canadian disability benefit.

I will continue to work with Minister McNaughton to make sure that we allow people to become job-ready and get people into the workforce as needed.

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

Ms. Lise Vaugeois: That sounds wonderful, except that people need the money now to survive. And as if the situation could not get any worse, we learned this morning of serious issues with the government’s contracting out of ODSP mail sorting to a for-profit company. This company, Nimble, has created problems in the ODSP mailroom that have led to delays or suspensions of ODSP recipients’ files, meaning people aren’t able to access the supports they need for medication, diabetic supplies and wheelchairs. This is right now; this is not something in some distant future.

It’s also important to note that the civil service already has a mailroom. Why are we contracting out to another private organization to sort the mail which they are bungling, and then people aren’t getting the resources that they need. The question is, will the government stop the contracting out of ODSP’s mail sorting today?

Hon. Merrilee Fullerton: Thank you for the question, to the member opposite. We know that Ontario Works was always intended to be a temporary measure. But we are looking, as a government, at how do we get people into the workforce who can work and how do we support those who cannot work. That’s exactly why we’ve created the program that we have done.

We’re bringing back the central administration into government so that there are more people being able to provide the services at the front line to people who need the job training, the job connections, the network that’s going to allow them to become productive members of society in meaningful, purposeful work. That’s why the work that I’m doing with Minister McNaughton is so important: to create people over paperwork.

You mentioned very important aspects of efficiencies. We are a person-centred, efficient and responsive transformation process. That’s what we’re doing: creating a person at the centre of everything we do, to allow people to be job-ready and part of our economy, as we help those who cannot work.

Land use planning

Ms. Bobbi Ann Brady: My question is for the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, who I’d like to congratulate on being appointed once again. The farmers of my riding tell me they appreciate your attentiveness and your willingness to meet with them.

In my riding of Haldimand–Norfolk, it is proposed that a city of 40,000 be built upon 42 acres of farmland. This farm and woodland serve as a buffer zone around the Nanticoke industrial park near Port Dover. The Ontario Federation of Agriculture warns Ontario is losing in excess of 319 acres of productive farmland each day to development. This is unsustainable. With the announcement to expand powers for mayors, with the ultimate goal to accelerate housing development, Speaker, my question is, what is the ministry doing to protect agricultural lands from developers?

Hon. Lisa M. Thompson: I appreciate the question very much, and I do appreciate how hard the member opposite works on behalf of our agricultural communities in her riding.

With that said, we are all working very, very hard to ensure that we have food security that people can trust across this province, across Canada and throughout North America. And with that spirit, we are working on innovation and opportunities to increase yield right here at home so that good-quality food is available to Ontarians when they need it, at the right price. We’re looking to introduce a food strategy plan later this fall that will speak to the importance of secure supply chains so that we can ensure that we’re increasing our yields right here at home and intensifying our production so that we can maximize the opportunities that we have in our lands across this province.

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

Ms. Bobbi Ann Brady: Speaker, this city of 40,000 is a bad idea. Not only would the city be on farmland but it’s also in a provincially significant employment zone as it is adjacent to one of Ontario’s largest oil-refining and steelmaking greenfield complexes. There was nary a mention of agriculture in last Tuesday’s speech from the throne; it did stress, however, the need for an additional 1.5 million homes and the fact more people are arriving in the province. This makes most of us in rural Ontario nervous as we see developers eyeing up productive lands.

In other jurisdictions, Alberta for example, they have a provincial agricultural land commission to ensure land is preserved for the future. If we want one thing grown here at home, it must be our food. Speaker, I’m wondering if the ministry is willing to establish such a committee to preserve the lands that feed us.

Hon. Lisa M. Thompson: The member opposite knows I’m willing to speak with and meet with farmers anywhere, anytime across Ontario, because this is so, so important. And I’m pleased to share with her that just this past couple of days at the Association of Municipalities of Ontario we had wonderful deputations where we have met with municipalities, because they understand and appreciate the importance of food security.

We’re going to have a balanced approach. Minister Clark has a very good path forward in terms of making sure that we are addressing the housing needs—affordable, attainable housing needs that we have across this province. We’ll be balancing it with the importance of food security and enabling our farmers to be the best across Canada.

Certainly, that’s something that I can pick up in terms of a conversation and follow up with the minister in Alberta to better understand what they have and see if it’s appropriate here, in the spirit of making sure that we have the balanced approach to making sure we are achieving our goal to meet housing needs, all the while ensuring that we have food security right here close to home.

Social assistance

Ms. Andrea Khanjin: During the last election, the Premier was very clear: He promised to increase ODSP rates. Can the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services confirm here today that, in fact, we will be helping the most vulnerable and we will be increasing the ODSP rates?

Hon. Merrilee Fullerton: Thank you for the question. Our government is supporting those who need it most, addressing this current period of economic uncertainty and preparing for future ones. That’s why we’re making the largest increase to ODSP rates in decades. We understand that, due to global factors, inflation is rising. That’s why, in our 2022 budget, we are aligning ODSP rates with inflation so that when the cost of living increases during times of high inflation, rates will too.

It is important to our government that the people of Ontario are able to pay for life’s essentials, especially our most vulnerable.

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

Ms. Andrea Khanjin: Thank you to the minister for that answer, and she knows that it’s really only part of the equation. While it’s a very welcome announcement for the most vulnerable who will be receiving an increase, the minister will know that inflation continues to rise and affect not only Ontarians but everyone in Canada.

Higher interest rates, carbon taxes which are leading to higher fuel costs, which lead to higher costs at the grocery store, are wreaking havoc on the budgets of the most vulnerable. Can the minister highlight what actions she will be taking to ensure that those who rely on ODSP can expect more stable consistency on fiscal outcomes, and will the minister confirm that she will be considering making inflation part of the equation with respect to how we govern ODSP rates and how we pay them out in this province?

Hon. Merrilee Fullerton: Thank you again for the question. It really is an honour to stand here in the House and speak to this historic investment in social assistance that ties into our work to modernize social assistance to better support the people who rely on it.

Our investment to align ODSP with inflation means that annual spending to meet inflation will occur, and that’s on top of regular annual funding like the $8.9 billion in payments issued in 2021-22. This is more money in the pockets of people who need it most to spend on the essentials of life.

Upon passage of the budget, the increase of ODSP rates and their alignment with inflation would be implemented for September, with recipients receiving the new rates from then on. Thank you for the question.

Home care

Miss Monique Taylor: My question is for the Premier. Last week, a heartbreaking story of a mom and her daughter was published in the Hamilton Spectator. Nicole is the mother to 10-year-old Alexa, who has a rare neurodegenerative condition and is receiving palliative care at home. Nicole has had to perform complex, specialized care that neither she nor her husband are trained for because they can’t get the hours of care that they need to care for Alexa. Instead of spending time with their daughter, they’re filling the gaps of this broken home care system.

Can the Premier explain why a child who needs, and is eligible, for 24/7 care is not eligible and able to get it?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To respond, the government House leader.

Hon. Paul Calandra: I do understand what the member is saying. Obviously, we all want to ensure that we have better outcomes for all people, including her constituent. That is why—we really started back in 2018—we recognized that not only the home care system but palliative care, and in fact the greater health system, was facing some severe challenges.

That is why we made that move to Ontario health teams. It was so important in beginning the transition of our health care system. It then led to the Connecting People to Home and Community Care Act, which was passed in the last Parliament, which has also led to further investments in home care.

We understand how important home care is, not only to those who need it, but in ensuring that the health care system is in good shape, whether it’s alternate-level-of-care, which occupies some of our hospital beds, or whether it’s seniors having access to quality care. We are making significant investments.

As you will know, Mr. Speaker, the members will have the opportunity soon. The throne speech highlighted a $1-billion investment to improve home care across the province as we modernize the system so that people are not left behind by a system that should have been upgraded many—

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

The supplementary question.

Miss Monique Taylor: Back to the Premier: The government’s failure to act on the health care crisis is being felt across the board, including home care. Parents are taking on specialized medical care which they are not trained for in order to keep their child at home and safe. Nicole should be spending this valuable time with her daughter just as her mom, not as her nurse.

Families like Nicole’s are being expected to just deal with it and figure it out on their own because they don’t have a choice. This is completely unacceptable.

When will this government properly invest in our health care system so families can expect to receive the promised necessary hours of care that their family members need?

Hon. Paul Calandra: Again, Mr. Speaker, the transition really started right from the beginning, right? In 2018—in fact, before, when the Premier talked about ending hallway health care. We knew that if we were going to end hallway health care, we had to make investments in long-term care, we had to make investments in home care.

But the member is absolutely right. Obviously when people need care, they should have access to that care, and that is why we are making significant investments in home care. As I said, the member will have an opportunity very shortly to support that $1-billion investment that we’re making so that her constituent—all of us. How many of us in our riding have heard the exact same challenge—people having to do more?

While we’re always prepared to do more, it is our responsibility as parliamentarians and as the government to ensure that we have the best possible system available. That is why we are moving so quickly, whether it’s on home care, the transition to Ontario health teams and putting the money behind the policies that we’re bringing forward so that constituents like yours can have a better future, and all Ontarians can share in that better future.

Greenhouse gas emissions

Mr. Vincent Ke: My question is to the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. Speaker, the Minister of the Environment has been talking a lot about green steel. I wonder if the minister can tell this House, what is green steel and what is the electric arc furnace? How will this change the way steel is produced in both Hamilton and Sault St. Marie, and what impact will this have on jobs and economic growth in both of these municipalities?

Hon. David Piccini: Rising for the first time, I would just like to thank the hard-working men and women, the incredible people of Northumberland–Peterborough South who have elected me.

Speaker, under the leadership of Premier Ford and our government, we’ve become a leader in clean, green steel. With our government’s significant investments, Ontario’s manufacturing sector is breathing new life. Why does this matter? Because in Ontario, it’s not through punishing taxes on hard-working families that we’