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April 29, 2025

44th Parliament, 1st Session

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Hansard Transcripts

Votes and Proceedings

Orders and Notices

Hansard Transcript 2025-Apr-29 (PDF)

L005 - Tue 29 Apr 2025 / Mar 29 avr 2025

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO

ASSEMBLÉE LÉGISLATIVE DE L’ONTARIO

Tuesday 29 April 2025 Mardi 29 avril 2025

Estimates

Opposition days

Report, Financial Accountability Officer

Orders of the Day

Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025 / Loi de 2025 pour protéger l’Ontario en libérant son économie

Wearing of pins

Members’ Statements

Sun-Brite Foods Inc.

Health care

Highway tolls

Canada flag lawn signs

Riding of Parkdale–High Park

Ferrero Canada

Community Recognition Awards

End Jew Hatred Day

Mental health and addiction services

Environmental protection

Notice of dissatisfaction

Introduction of Visitors

Attack in Vancouver

Question Period

Automotive industry

Special education

Government accountability

Government accountability

Long-term care

Job creation

International trade

Ontario Disability Support Program

Government accountability

School trustees

Economic development

Highway safety

Government accountability

Public safety

Notice of dissatisfaction

House sittings

Member’s comments

Introduction of Visitors

Reports by Committees

Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs

Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs

Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs

Introduction of Bills

MFIS Holdings and Investments Inc. Act, 2025

Petitions

Social assistance

Cancer treatment

School safety

Taxation

School safety

Services for the developmentally disabled

Social assistance

University funding

Tuition

Health care

School safety

Assistive devices

Taxation

Soins de la vue

Caregivers

Orders of the Day

Throne speech debate / Débat sur le discours du trône

Adjournment Debate

Government accountability

The House met at 0900.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Good morning, everyone.

Prayers.

Estimates

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I beg to inform the House that, pursuant to standing order 62(c), the 2024-25 estimates of the Office of the Assembly; the Office of the Auditor General; the Office of the Chief Electoral Officer; and Ombudsman Ontario, having been approved by the Board of Internal Economy and tabled on April 17, 2025, are deemed to be concurred in.

Opposition days

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Members will be aware that appearing on today’s Orders and Notices paper is a notice of motion for an opposition day scheduled to be debated tomorrow, April 30, 2025. Standing order 45(

a) provides for five opposition day debates in each of the spring and fall meeting periods. However, the timing of the opening of the current session has resulted in an abbreviated spring meeting period. Given that the scheduling of opposition days is prohibited during the last eight sessional days of the meeting period, pursuant to standing order 45(b)(vi), and that opposition days are limited to one per meeting week, pursuant to standing order 45(b)(i), it will only be possible for three opposition days to be scheduled and debated before the House adjourns for the summer.

When faced with similar circumstances in previous Parliaments, the Speaker has determined the allocation of opposition days between the recognized opposition parties on the basis of the membership of the caucuses relative to each other. This is the approach provided by standing order 45(b)(iii), used to determine the distribution of the five opposition days, so it is fair and reasonable to apply the same approach to the distribution of the three total opposition days that may be held during this meeting period.

This formula provides that two opposition days will be allocated to the official opposition, the first of which will occur tomorrow, and one opposition day will be allocated to the third party.

I hope that this provides clarity for members and that it will help avoid any confusion going forward.

I would like to thank the House for its attention.

Report, Financial Accountability Officer

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I beg to inform the House that, during the adjournment, the following document was tabled: a report entitled Ontario’s Labour Market in 2024, from the Office of the Financial Accountability Officer of Ontario.

Orders of the Day

Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025 / Loi de 2025 pour protéger l’Ontario en libérant son économie

Mr. Lecce moved second reading of the following bill:

Bill 5,

An Act to enact the Special Economic Zones Act, 2025, to amend the Endangered Species Act, 2007 and to replace it with the Species Conservation Act, 2025, and to amend various Acts and revoke various regulations in relation to development and to procurement / Projet de loi 5, Loi édictant la Loi de 2025 sur les zones économiques spéciales, modifiant la Loi de 2007 sur les espèces en voie de disparition et la remplaçant par la Loi de 2025 sur la conservation des espèces, puis modifiant diverses lois et abrogeant divers règlements en ce qui concerne le développement et l’approvisionnement.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I recognize the minister.

Hon. Stephen Lecce: Good morning, Madam Speaker. First off, I want to just note that I will share my time with the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade; the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks; and the member for Sault Ste. Marie.

Honourable members, I rise to lead second reading debate for Bill 5, the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act. This is being done in partnership with the solid leadership of the member from Mississauga–Lakeshore, the member from Scarborough Centre, the member from Sault Ste. Marie and of course the associate minister of energy who have been working together to ensure we build a strategic response to the unprecedented challenges and opportunities facing our province.

Ontario is at a crossroads. The global economic landscape has and continues to shift dramatically. Thus, we must act decisively to secure our future for our kids and our grandchildren. We must respond in the face of these unjustified, illegal tariffs imposed by President Trump—tariffs that have upended well-established global trading systems, tariffs that are aimed at weakening our economy, our industries, our workers and our nation. But, Speaker, let us be clear: This government was elected to protect Ontario, and we won’t back down.

We will be relentless in our pursuit of economic sovereignty in defence of our province, of our workers and in a quest for stability and security for all who are blessed to call this province home.

It was a little over a month ago when the Premier turned to this team with the expanded portfolio related to mining and critical minerals, and it has been an absolute privilege and honour to have this role, recognizing the opportunities before us as a nation. So far, one thing is perfectly clear: Harnessing Ontario’s critical mineral wealth is essential to our future prosperity.

I think we acknowledge as parliamentarians that the world is changing, that the alternatives to non-democratic regimes like China, where they corner the market—that they will trample labour rights, ignore environmental standards and infringe on the dignity of the person. Over 50% of the global coal electricity generation on earth comes from China alone. In 2024, they started construction on 94.5 gigawatts of new coal-fired plants. Their dominance in the critical minerals market, albeit their harsh labour and environmental standards, is shocking. According to the World Economic Forum, they’re responsible for around 80% of the world’s rare earth minerals.

But we as Canadians can do something about this. The world is watching our province. We are one of the most mineral-rich regions on earth, and the key resources like nickel, titanium, cobalt and lithium, which are critical for our cellphones and computers, our medical devices, our energy, our electric vehicles and clean economy—the demand for our resources is growing. So we need to seize this opportunity as Canadians, but we have to do so on our own terms—because today, in Ontario, it can take upwards of 15 years to open a mine in the province.

With this barrier in place, why would any investor want to set up shop in our province when they have the ability to realize those investments are going to be tied up in bureaucracy and red tape for over a decade?

In India, the state must give a decision within 90 days on a mining lease application, and they fast-track mining applications in that democracy. In Australia, it can take upwards of six or seven years to open a mine—this is a Commonwealth-comparable democracy—and yet they can do it in roughly half the time. In the European Union, it takes eight to nine years to open a mine. Meanwhile, here in this country, look no further than the provinces of Alberta or Saskatchewan, where they too are seizing this opportunity to build mines faster. Ontario—it seems to be lagging behind. This seems to be a common theme when it comes to the realization of our true economic potential as a nation.

In the Philippines, where mines are now opening within three to six years, the industry is calling on their government to find ways to open them faster, and they have.

In Ontario, we rank number 10 out of 10—dead last—in subnational jurisdictions when it comes to attracting foreign investment in the mining sector. One of the most common contributing factors of this delay is the government bureaucracy that inhibits or that prevents the ability to get to yes on these projects—the process of obtaining necessary permits and approvals from provincial bodies. Under this government—we just sought an election on a mandate to move with speed responsibly but with a credible plan to get these resources out of the ground.

And we’ll take new action, in addition to accelerating our response on resource development vision, to also secure our resources, Canadian resources, from hostile foreign actors, something we currently have no tools in order to act upon.

Speaker, 90% of Canadians support an investment plan to grow the economy, to support our resource sector. According to the Mining Association of Canada, 83% of Canadians say they would like to see more mining projects in Canada, because this is a means to displace the Chinas and the human rights violators of the world. And 80% say we need a stronger mining sector for Canada’s economy to be healthy in the long term. In Ontario alone, public opinion polling is showing that 60% see mining as an industry of the future; 86% in northern Ontario see mining as an essential industry of the future.

The numbers speak for themselves, Madam Speaker. We recognize in this Legislature that we need to step up. The realization of this vision came from the Premier when, earlier this month, we outlined substantial reforms to how we permit in the province, how we get to yes on these critical projects, and the delays that have posed real consequences to the economic potential of Canada and our own national security too.

Right now, mining companies deal with multiple ministries with no coordinated point of contact—it’s like multiple ships passing in the night—and rendering this disjointed system by introducing a “one project, one process” framework that has been at the centre of our economic plan to move at the speed of the market and to seize the opportunity as Canadians.

We’re creating this white-glove concierge service that will work with project proponents and Indigenous communities directly to reduce delays and provide clarity and certainty. This starts with a dedicated mining authorization and permitting delivery team; this is essentially a central lead in the Ministry of Energy and Mines that will now shepherd these permits through the government, including through extensive consultation with Indigenous communities. These teams will create very integrated permitting plans.

It will take the project proposal to all the relevant ministries at the beginning of the permitting process and determine all the necessary permits, create the strategic road map and really help get them streamlined in a sensible and responsible way that moves these projects forward, where we end the needless delay. We’re no longer going to allow these outdated bureaucratic processes to impede our potential as a country.

Not only this, but we’re also implementing clear benchmarks and service standards to hold ourselves accountable. What I mean by that is—as the new guy in this ministry my early observation is, how do we create some rigour and accountability on the public service—and frankly, on elected members and government too—to make decisions in a responsible, timely manner? I think that accountability is necessary in this moment of time of great change in geopolitics. Under the old system, there were no deadlines on government to have any mining applications turned around or submitted, so we’re going to change this.

We made a commitment to do this and we’re following through on this commitment where every permit, every authorization will have a review deadline that must be met. By doing this, we’re seeking to provide clarity to our proponents, to our investors, to our communities, with greater certainty.

Our objective here is actually not to be incrementalists: We’re seeking to reduce the overall review burden for designated mine permitting by at least 50% to provide that acceleration of timelines to global investors and Canadian investors alike so that we can get multi-billion dollar capital in our province, which is positive when it comes to job creation, GDP growth, the capacity of government to build revenues to invest in the social services we depend on in our communities.

That is why it means getting shovels in the ground faster—almost an existential opportunity for Canada given the madness taking hold to the south from what was, throughout my life, the most reliable, enduring trading relationship on earth, which has been totally upended because of President Trump. The question posed to parliamentarians today is: How do we realize our potential as a clean-energy superpower? How do we stand on our own two feet? How are we self-reliant and independent of any nation, any elected President abroad? Thus, we make the case today that we need a plan to move forward with speed and ambition, and a sense of responsibility and balance in how we achieve that too.

We’re looking to really revolutionize how we look at, how we reflect upon a new state when it comes to acceleration. If this legislation is passed, there are 12 large projects—12 large projects—before the government today: mining projects that will unlock billions in economic growth, create hundreds of value-added jobs in this province, often with Indigenous youth leading the way in employment. This is our moment to realize that potential.

Every project before government today will benefit from a 50% reduction, a “one project, one process” framework which I believe has become mainstream amongst the political discourse. It was our party that campaigned on this principle in the last election. We’re elated to see all of the mainstream parties in the national election take on this position.

I think we recognize this is the moment to step up as Canadians and to do things differently, because the status quo in this respect seems indefensible when benchmarked against every global democratic, industrialized society that cares about and legally protects environmental responsibility, labour standards and human rights. I don’t compare us to the Chinas of the world; I’m comparing us to the European Union. If they can do it faster, then certainly Ontario can catch up and lead the way.

And so, that’s why we’re here. Part of this bill, led by the Minister of Economic Development and Trade, has been this concept of creating the development of a special economic zone. Minister Fedeli will speak to this at length, but I just want to say that these zones are designed to be geographic areas where strategically important projects and sectors exist, led by these trusted proponents that will now benefit from streamlined requirements and accelerated permitting too.

We have one of the world’s largest untapped critical mineral deposits—we know this as Canadians—and one that will build prosperity in the north, but drive manufacturing in the south, and so all Ontarians benefit from our resource bounty. And so, it’s important that we don’t follow the lead of governments of the past, who made empty promises about unlocking the potential of Ontario; who actually added red tape and delay to get projects completed, while capital fled away from the province into other resource economies. That means that northerners, Canadians, paid the price.

We must learn lessons from the former Liberals, because we look at projects like the Ring of Fire and so many others, where delays and lack of action—a lack of leadership to get any meaningful dialogue with local communities to build the access roads, to build the infrastructure, to enable potential long-term prosperity in that part of the province.

Obviously, we recognize, Madam Speaker, this is a rather historic piece of legislation, given the time we are in, the moment of time we lead in as parliamentarians. And so, in order to realize the world-class deposits of critical minerals, the first special economic zone that the government will invoke will be in the Ring of Fire, as a signal to global markets and Canadians alike that we are serious about the partnership, the collaboration and the growth that can take hold to realize the potential for the benefit of Indigenous and northern communities in northern Ontario.

I’m excited about the use of that power—one that this Legislature may give to government—but it’s essential that we do this in partnership. I want to emphasize this, Madam Speaker, because I think most Canadians recognize that if we want to do big things, nation-building energy projects, we need to do it in partnership and collaboration with Indigenous communities. We recognize that.

There’s a reason why, Madam Speaker, at every transmission project, we have approved in the Ministry of Energy, it’s been fifty-fifty equity partnerships. It’s why, some weeks ago, I stood with the member from Timmins, the minister of economic development for the north, where we announced two large, net-new hydroelectric projects that were led by two Indigenous leaders and chiefs who led the way. We’re just backing them on this project, because we believe in clean, affordable power.

Everything we do is being done in partnership. I want to emphasize that today, and I want to be clear to all Indigenous and First Nations communities and leaders what this bill does not do: It does not, in any way, impede or supersede the obligations to consult and to listen, and to do so meaningfully. We remain firmly committed to consulting with First Nations communities and Indigenous leaders, and we want to be a better partner in this respect.

Just yesterday, at the First Nations Major Projects Coalition conference, Premier Ford emphasized the importance of this relationship, and he explicitly asked First Nations communities to work with him and us as a government when it comes to these types of nation-building, job-creating projects. A strong relationship with Indigenous communities is the cornerstone of our mutual prosperity and is the reason why we were able to build an access road to the gateway of the Ring of Fire: because that partnership, that respect is being delivered.

And it could also mean, Madam Speaker, when it comes to the new, streamlined process and how this benefits all communities on the ground, that communities don’t have to respond to multiple contacts and multiple ministries all on the same project. Under the new process, as I mentioned, we intend to ensure that there are meaningful partnerships delivered at the front end when our project proponents bring forth more mature, comprehensive projects based on meaningful consultation.

We’re emphasizing to the companies, the proponents, “You’ve got to do more work on the front end to ensure that the voices of those communities are captured in the submission to the ministry.” We think it’s important to hear those democratic voices of communities in some of the most remote parts of Ontario. And I will tell you, there’s great work being done with Minister Rickford and our Premier and many others across government, including Minister Pirie, to lead economic growth for the benefit of all Ontarians.

Earlier this year, our government and Aroland First Nation Chief Sonny Gagnon signed a shared prosperity agreement. This is to provide the economic growth to build the infrastructure into northern Ontario, into, as I had mentioned, the Ring of Fire. The lead of this agreement dragged on for, really, two and a half years. A simple invitation to Chief Gagnon from the Premier captured in a productive meeting led to this result. Partnerships can be realized. The case study for this is the access road that was announced just prior to the provincial election. Now, this goes to show what we can do when we work together in the benefit of Canada.

The agreement also provides the Anaconda and Painter Lake roads, which are important connections on the road to the Ring of Fire. It also provides new investments in infrastructure, in energy transmission in the region, because we need more power in the north—81% of energy forecast, which exceeds the provincial average of 75%. So we’re making these commitments and we’re putting money on the table as a meaningful partner to get this done.

This initiative builds upon existing agreements with First Nations partners. I think about Marten Falls and Webequie. I was just with the chief of Marten Falls. It was an honour to stand with him in Thunder Bay with the member from Thunder Bay, where we spoke about the progress being made on the route to the Ring of Fire. It sets the stage for future potential partnership, and we look forward to seeing these relationships grow and to drive meaningful development in the region.

Now, Speaker, we live in an increasingly dark and complex world. I think that it’s fair to say as Canadians much has been upended with the election of President Trump with global trading norms, and our assumption of democratic allies has changed. And so, we live in this volatile geopolitical world where it requires Canada to stand strong and to make sure our resources are protected from geopolitical adversaries who do not share our interests or our democratic, freedom-loving values.

Global demand for critical materials is intensifying and with it the threat to our province and our resources from these foreign actors too. The threat posed by states or entities acting contrary to Canada’s and Ontario’s interests has demonstrably increased.

In fact, in 2021 a report from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, CSIS, specifically noted that Canada’s abundance of natural resources makes us, right here in Ontario, a target for foreign interference: “Canada’s abundance of natural resources, advanced technology, human talent and expertise ... has also made it an attractive target for foreign interference. In addition, certain foreign powers are known to leverage Canada’s multiculturalism for their own benefit....” and it goes on to say that they use deceptive, clandestine threats and practices.

It’s obvious we need to be very aware of the risks and clear-eyed of the threats before us. It means we have to ensure that the immense wealth generated from Ontario’s natural resources benefit Ontarians, not our adversaries and those working against our democratic values. The current legislative framework offers no tools to specifically address the growing threat in the context of mining claims. It’s why under this legislation we’re making critical amendments to the Mining Act to fundamentally protect our province from our resources getting in the hands of hostile foreign authoritarian regimes or entities or state-owned enterprises which are an extension of governments.

And so, we’re creating a new authority. It’s the first principle that will stop bad actors in their tracks. Through these proposed measures, we’ll have the authority to suspend access to the Mining Lands Administration System. We’ll be able to block suspicious transfers of claims or leases. We’ll be able to remove hostile foreign registrants from the system entirely, ensuring that only legitimate, responsible operators can claim and develop mining here in Ontario. If you’re a threat to Ontario our point is simple: You will not get your hands on our minerals, full stop.

Our government has also made an unwavering commitment to protect Ontario’s critical assets, and that extends equally to our energy infrastructure. We recognize as we build out our energy grid—our clean energy grid, our affordable energy grid—we’re going to need to make sure we have those safeguards in place, that risk management in place, when it comes to generation and transmission, and the hundreds of billions of dollars Ontario will expend over the next few decades to build. But when we turn the lights on in the morning from the energy that powers our factories, its security and its reliability are simply non-negotiable.

In a world of cyber attacks, of state-sponsored actors deliberately seeking to deceive people, we must be vigilant about protecting this valuable infrastructure from foreign interference. That includes risks like malware, potential manipulation or the tampering that could cause outages. I think about the threat of extortion, unauthorized surveillance and other actions that could compromise the grid’s reliability. The current tools available to specifically address foreign-state interference and influence in sensitive parts of the energy sector are simply insufficient, which is why we’ve brought these amendments before the House.

Before us, we’re now creating a specific regulation-making authority to limit foreign, state-owned or state-controlled companies from specific jurisdictions from participating in Ontario’s energy sector. Our objective in seeking the authority is clear: To protect our province’s energy sector from a wide range of risks before they become risks to the people we represent. Ensuring the security, reliability and sovereign provincial oversight of our energy grid is a fundamental responsibility of government, and that’s why we’re building upon it.

Madam Speaker, we are in serious times and they demand serious leadership—a clear, comprehensive plan to get on with building to end the needless delay that has put Ontario as a laggard instead of a leader. Yet the juxtaposition of that, with having one of the critical mineral bounties on earth when the United States is literally 100% dependent on the critical minerals, specifically the rare earths, of China in many cases, and yet the Chinese have imposed an export ban on those rare earths to the US, creates an opportunity for Canada.

When Canada has these minerals, has a plan to extract them responsibly and in partnership with local communities, and the European Union and the Asia-Pacific is calling for a reliable—I emphasize “reliable”—ally to step up, this is our moment. How else can we achieve that economic sovereignty, which I believe all parliamentarians support, if not responsibly getting our projects done in a manner that is defensible, that is within a benchmark amongst industrialized democratic societies before us?

The question for us that we’re going to be seized with is: Do we accept the status quo system? Do we believe it is working in a post-Trump world? I would argue that perhaps we needed this motivation for change, because it’s giving Canadians the confidence to look with a sense of ambition, to think about the next generation, to plan for our future, and to invest in the industries, the sectors and the jobs that will give us promise as Canadians. So we’re proud, under our Premier’s leadership, to really focus on enhancing the competitiveness of our province to unleash our potential and to make Ontario a more attractive place to invest, to build, to create jobs and to live.

The essential part of this bill is that by cutting the accumulated red tape, particularly in mining, through the innovative “one project, one process” framework, it empowers us to accelerate the development of critical mineral projects, like the immense untapped potential that exists in the north, for the benefit of the clean economy that we need to drive.

The entire EV chain depends on access to critical minerals, and the question—if we don’t step up, if Canadians don’t assert ourselves as a confident, clean-energy superpower, then we are allowing the likes of China and Russia, human rights and environmental pariahs, to lead the way. Some 80% of solar, 60% of wind, of these technologies, are being made in China when the overwhelming majority of their grid is powered by coal. They’re building a coal plant a week.

At what point do we as Canadians, with one of the cleanest grids on earth, the highest standards of environmental protection, constitutional obligations that protect Indigenous voices and communities—if not us, why would we allow them to win the day?

That’s the question I’m posing to parliamentarians of all parties. Stand with the government and, frankly, decouple the politics. Stand up for our country in this critical moment and work with us as we assert our economic sovereignty, to reimagine a Canada that is strong, that is free, and that is totally independent of any man or woman elected abroad—that we can set our own course as Canadians. It starts with this bill.

It starts, really, with the first bill brought forth before the House to remove all the interprovincial trade barriers, led by the Minister of Economic Development, but it is supported by this second bill brought before this House after our historic re-election as a government: a bill that enables our growth, a bill that will achieve the potential to work faster and smarter and more efficiently, to do the big things as Canadians, to realize our potential as an energy superpower in the world.

So I hope we can count on the members opposite—all members—to stand with us and to embrace our potential as a nation of democracy, of opportunity and economic prosperity.

Thank you so much, Madam Speaker.

The Acting Speaker (MPP Andrea Hazell): I recognize the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade.

Hon. Victor Fedeli: Welcome to our guests.

We’re here today to talk about, quite frankly, the Trump tariffs, the threat that we face from south of Ontario and across the border. You have heard this a thousand times because it’s so accurate: It’s unprecedented. This has never happened in our business relationship. Right now, President Trump is tariffing our cars, tariffing our lumber and tariffing our steel—there has always been trouble with tariffing our dairy—and the list goes on and on and on. And based on the comments that we are hearing south of the border, this is not going to end.

I have had two meetings this morning with different groups from around the world, actually, and all they want to talk about is, “What’s going to happen? What do you think is going to happen?” I tell them, “All right. Time-stamp our meeting, because I’m going to tell you where we are today at this particular time, but by the end of the afternoon, it could be very different. We don’t want you out there saying, ‘Well, the province told us X, when now, it’s Y.’” You actually have to, if you can imagine, time-stamp your statements because we know they are going to change.

The auto sector saw some news from President Trump yesterday, Monday, and again this morning, Tuesday—completely different than we heard from President Trump on Friday. So we know that this is going to be turmoil, back and forth, up and down. It is causing instability, and already, we have seen the effects of these unjustified tariffs. Markets in the US have shed trillions of dollars. This has affected their families, their families’ futures. Their pensions in the States—they call it their 401(k)—their 401(k)s are dismantled because of the trauma and the uncertainty brought on by President Trump.

Canada: Of course, our market is also down. It has continued to work its way back up because people acknowledge the stability that is here in Canada, but not by the States—we kind of get splashed. But business and consumer confidence level has plunged, right across the globe. No matter where you go in the world, there is that feeling of uncertainty; you just don’t know what to expect. So as a result, business and consumer confidence that has plunged has caused a chill. Businesses have paused making investment decisions. There is no question that there is a business chill right around the globe.

We know that these tariffs are bad for business and that they are bad for consumers. I can tell you, in our trips throughout the United States all the month of January, we heard from every group—whether it was members of Congress, senators, the chamber of commerce, the associations and the groups—that these tariffs are bad for business, they are bad for people, they are bad for the Americans, but we’ve seen the President push through.

Again, these tariffs are bad for business, but not just in Canada: It’s bad for business around the world. Even as the US businesses, their lawmakers, their families all throughout the United States are speaking up, they’re voicing concerns against these tariffs, they still come. They’re still here. They change every day, every second day, every hour. We cannot be certain either that these tariffs on Canadian goods are going to be temporary, like they were under President Trump 1.0. There is a huge amount of concern in the business world.

We will continue our advocacy. We’re going to continue to call on the US administration to remove the tariffs. We’ve done so all along—all January, all February, all March, all April. We were in Washington on several occasions through the year, last year as well, saying to the government of the United States, “Here is what these tariffs are doing.”

I’ve told the story in this Legislature several times, but when you hear President Trump say, “We don’t need anything from Canada”—just think about that for a second. “We don’t need anything from Canada.” I tell the US trade representative’s office, when I sit there—first of all, in the United States they have one nickel mine, one lithium mine—“Your aerospace sector purchases 80% of all the nickel that they need in aerospace from Ontario.” So 56% of all the nickel that they buy just for their defence sector comes from Ontario.

So when you say, “We don’t need anything from Canada,” quite frankly, that’s sickening to hear. Think about aluminum: pop cans, beer cans, soup cans, engine blocks: Think of that aluminum. So 60% of the aluminum that the United States buys comes from Canada. If they had all of their aluminum factories fired up at 100%, working 24/7, 365, they’d only make 16% of what they need—60% comes from Canada. We can talk about potash, oil, all of these things. So it’s sickening when you hear, “We don’t need anything from Canada.”

We cannot depend on a stable US. We must be prepared to succeed in this era of protectionist policies, this geographical realignment and heightened global economic uncertainty. We just ultimately do not know what President Trump is going to do with his tariffs. Again, we’ve seen how fast he’s changed his mind.

But we do know the end goal. We have worked so hard in Ontario to bring $70 billion worth of goods and services and businesses here to Ontario since we were elected—$70 billion worth of new industries are here. What does President Trump want to do? He wants to take our industries and he wants to take our jobs. We’ve done that work to bring them from around the world here; he wants to pick them up and bring them to the States. He wants our businesses and he wants the jobs that we’ve worked so hard to win over. That’s the reality that we face and that’s what we must be prepared for.

That is why we’re ensuring that Ontario is ready to succeed in this new era. At a time when businesses are desperately seeking certainty, we here in Ontario are going to ensure that they have that, that they have that certainty they’re looking for.

The Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act is one way we will do that. This legislation, if passed, will cut unnecessary red tape and regulatory burdens that stifle new business investment. It will reduce approval times by 50% to get shovels in the ground so that we can unleash the full economic potential of Ontario. It will enable us to designate special economic zones so projects of critical importance to our economies and our economies’ prosperity are rapidly approved.

We can no longer afford to have businesses waiting for up to 10 years to get shovels in the ground. We need to ensure we can build on the progress we have made here in Ontario. We need to fight off this fierce competition for investment from across the globe. Again, we have brought $70 billion worth of businesses here. President Trump wants to take that business and put it in the States. We need to be ready to fight at every turn. In Ontario, our status quo is no longer sustainable. If we don’t make bold changes, Ontario will be completely shut out of the conversation. We will lose our ability to attract investment.

Here’s an interesting twist. We’ve just returned from Japan and South Korea; two weeks before that, Germany. Businesses there are grappling with this unprecedented amount of uncertainty in the global economy. They look to us, first of all, because we’ve been through it as Canada: President Trump started picking on us on day one. He hadn’t spread to the rest of the world until April 2.

These businesses are now feeling it; they’re now feeling what we’ve shared since election day. But what we hear most from all of these countries is, decisions to make strategic investments are paused. They’re going to be paused probably for a year. Again, date stamp and time-stamp are forecast of the business chill lasting certainly this year. There is a chill on business. We know it, we feel it, the numbers show it. But it’s happening because companies just can’t make a clear investment, because they don’t have that understanding of what the political or the economic or the regulatory environment is going to be.

So, we’re seeing it shaped, we’re seeing it changed; they don’t like the uncertainty, they’re pulling back, they’re keeping their cash. We think that will happen for the year.

This is a challenge for us today, for Ontario and for jurisdictions all around the globe, but it is opening a window of opportunity for the people of Ontario. The move to pause their investments in the near term means something: That cash is building up. These companies that are not investing are storing their cash. They’re ready. They’ll have that cash, and that capital is being amassed today on a massive scale—tens and tens and tens of billions of dollars in each country. Eventually, that glut of capital is going to need somewhere to land.

And we need to ensure that Ontario is well-positioned to be the destination of choice for those billions of dollars of capital that are sitting waiting to be invested. We’re revitalizing our province’s competitiveness to secure that investment, and more must be done.

Since we took office, we’ve worked to cut red tape and make it easier for business to invest and expand. We have seen 550 pieces of red tape being cut, but more than that, we have lowered the cost of doing business by $8 billion. Remember when we first got elected and companies were leaving Ontario? We lost 300,000 manufacturing jobs under the Liberal government. We stepped in and looked at what the problem was. The companies told us—especially the auto companies who were leaving. They said to the former Premier, “You have made Ontario the most expensive jurisdiction in North America in which to do business.” Premier Ford said, “That will change today.”

We lowered the cost of WSIB premiums without touching the benefits. We put in an accelerated capital cost, which means businesses can write off the cost of their investments in-year. The WSIB saves the businesses $2.5 billion a year. The accelerated capital cost investments saved $1 billion a year. We lowered industrial and commercial energy rates by 16%—$1.3 billion in savings. The red tape reductions—we didn’t go ahead with the previous government’s new $465-million tax in January of the year after we were elected. That’s a permanent reduction. Add all these things together and all of the other things that we’ve done, and it is $8 billion in savings.

As a result, two things happened. Number one: Businesses—it reinvested that money and hired over one million people since we were put in office. That’s number one. Number two: The province’s revenue rose from $150 billion a year when we were elected to $214 billion a year now. It rose by $64 billion without ever raising a penny of tax. All of that is because a million people were put to work in the province of Ontario because of the business climate that was created—$46 billion in auto investments; $6 billion in life science investment; tens of billions in tech investments; $70 billion worth of investments into the province of Ontario. Those were the good days.

Times have changed. What we did to secure those investments is no longer going to be enough to land investments of that similar magnitude. We need to move faster. We need to give business the certainty that they’re looking for.

That buildup of capital around the world that we’re going to see over this next year will be looking for a home. Businesses will want to deploy that capital urgently. They’ll be looking for jurisdictions where they can get shovels in the ground quickly to make up for the time they’ve lost waiting out the economic uncertainty sparked by President Trump’s tariffs.

We need to make sure Ontario is positioned as the best destination in the world for investments to land. We need to speed up the approval processes for projects that will create good-paying jobs. We need to get rid of all the duplication in the assessments—the regulatory, the approval processes. That has to go. We need to cut red tape so that shovels can get in the ground immediately, and that is what our government is prepared to do.

I’ll go back to that $46 billion in auto that we landed. Volkswagen: $7 billion investment in St. Thomas; 3,000 direct jobs—tens of thousands of indirect. NextStar—we visited NextStar’s $5-billion plant in Windsor recently: 2,500 jobs at the plant; another 2,500 spinoff jobs are directly related to that.

These are the type of investments that this legislation would enable us to land in the current context. The legislation would allow us to designate these projects as projects of critical importance to our province’s economic prosperity, so that we can get shovels in the ground and get those jobs immediately.

We need to ensure that Ontario continues to be seen worldwide as the best destination for companies to invest, expand and create more good-paying jobs. This legislation is the way to do this. This legislation will say to the world, “Come back to Ontario. Use that money that you’ve been stashing because of the uncertain climate and the uncertain times. Put that wealth to work. Put that wealth into factories and companies and plants in Ontario. Put our people here in Ontario to work. We are your stable, reliable, credible, predictable partner.”

The Acting Speaker (MPP Andrea Hazell): I recognize the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks.

Hon. Todd J. McCarthy: It’s indeed an honour to join the debate today to follow the Minister of Energy and Mines and the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade this morning to speak and support Bill 5, the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025.

Madam Speaker, several of the items in the bill are the direct result of the hard work of my dedicated team within the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. They support our government’s commitment to protect Ontario from global economic uncertainty by unleashing our economy while continuing to protect our environment. My colleagues have already done a tremendous job of laying out some of the threats to Ontario’s economy and, indeed, to our future.

We find ourselves in unprecedented times, and we need to act.

I fundamentally reject the idea put forward by some on the other side that we need to make a choice between protecting our environment and growing our economy. Without the conditions in place to protect and grow Ontario’s economy, no government would have the resources to do the things necessary to protect our environment. Now is not the time for business as usual.

That is why, Madam Speaker, our ministry is working hard to modernize environmental approvals, streamline processes and improve supports for businesses. Our efforts are dedicated to upholding our province’s environmental laws, ensuring that strict environmental protections are not an impediment to investment but rather a driver of job creation and economic prosperity for all.

One of the ways we are doing this is by examining how we can accelerate environmental approvals. Ontario’s current system for issuing permits is expensive, slow and complicated, causing unnecessary delays for housing, transit and critical infrastructure. In some cases, simple permits can take two or more years to work their way through the system.

That’s simply not acceptable. In my view, the days of making proponents wait years for approvals and permits are over. We cannot afford to have projects wait on the sidelines as our competitors keep moving forward in other jurisdictions. We can and will build the Ontario of tomorrow in a way that protects the environment and protects jobs.

That is why as one of my first acts as Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, I asked my ministry to begin reviewing all environmental permissions to identify even more opportunities to speed up the approvals process.

As part of Bill 5, the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act, 2025, our government is proposing a new approach to environmental permitting for activities that impact certain species. The current approach to protecting and conserving species is overly complicated, takes too long to complete and simply is not delivering the outcomes that Ontarians expect.

That is why we are introducing an entirely new approach. The proposed approach would shift nearly all species-related authorizations to a registration-first approach, also known as “permit by rule.” It is a process already used very successfully for many other environmental authorizations, including 95% of authorizations under the current Endangered Species Act, 2007.

If passed, this new approach would set clear expectations and rules for proponents to follow, rules that would focus on activities that are most likely to have a direct impact on species. These rules will be set out in new regulations, should the act be passed, and my ministry would develop those over the coming months in consultation with the public and our Indigenous communities.

Anyone undertaking an activity that impacts certain species will be required to follow those rules. Provided they do, proponents would be able to register and proceed immediately with their activities without waiting as many as two years or more for the ministry to review their application.

Let me be perfectly clear, Madam Speaker: Strong compliance and strong enforcement tools are at the heart of this new, modern system. Clear expectations and rules for proponents to follow will be set in stone, and there will be zero tolerance for bad actors who would dare to harm species.

Our new approach will leverage strong enforcement, including significant fines, potential jail time and even stronger investigative powers and compliance tools for our environmental compliance officers in the field throughout the province. This includes new, stronger powers for our provincial officers that would enable them to inspect project sites without a warrant, to ensure compliance with all aspects of the act.

Coming from a legal background, I recognize that this is an exceptional power that we are granting to our enforcement officers. It is a tool that should never be used lightly, but it is necessary to enable the zero tolerance for offenders that we are putting forward with this bill, an approach that will include spot audits on project sites and give the ability for the ministry to issue orders whenever misconduct is identified on a site.

And in addition to these other compliance tools I’ve just outlined, serious or repeat offenders may also be prosecuted and face tough fines: up to $1 million for a first offence and $2 million for a second offence for each species harmed, and that’s for a corporation. For an individual, it’s $250,000 for a first offence and $500,000 for a second offence with the possibility of jail time.

With these changes that would help get projects moving, if it is passed, we are proposing other measures that will see additional supports for important on-the-ground activities that are already helping to protect species in Ontario. Since 2018, our government has funded 215 projects for species conservation efforts, creating over 2,000 jobs while enhancing or restoring over 44,500 acres of habitat.

While we have seen great results from these investments, we recognize even more can be done to support the important work that experts and community organizations are doing on the ground. That is why, as part of Bill 5, our government is proposing to significantly boost our investments in species conservation and recovery through a revamped Species Conservation Program. The new Species Conservation Program will invest $20 million annually in conservation projects across Ontario. That is a $4.5-million annual increase in funding compared to the old program.

I’m confident that by expanding this program to such a large extent, we can be even more effective at protecting species in Ontario and building on our track record of strong environmental stewardship, preserving the rich biodiversity of our province for future generations.

Finally, Madam Speaker, we are proposing a substantial change to how we administer the Environmental Activity and Sector Registry, the EASR. The EASR is a public, web-based system that allows businesses conducting certain activities to register them with the ministry rather than applying for an environmental approval. It is at the heart of the registration-first model that I spoke about in these remarks.

The EASR is used for activities or sectors that pose minimal risk to the environment and human health when regulated and required to follow specific rules, and to use equipment and processes that are standard to the industry or sector with known environmental impacts. Registrants are required to follow eligibility rules and regulations and are subject to inspections and compliance penalties. Similar processes to protect the environment are found across Canada, the United States and abroad.

Right now, to register, proponents must pay a fee. To further protect our economy and support businesses, we are proposing in this bill to permanently eliminate registration fees for the Environmental Activity and Sector Registry. Businesses in sectors across the economy—including construction, housing, transit, manufacturing, energy, breweries and waste transportation—are expected to realize savings of about $2.6 million annually.

Madam Speaker, I am grateful for this brief opportunity to speak to some of the proposed amendments put forward by the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks with this bill—amendments that will protect Ontario’s economy, that will protect Ontario’s future, and most importantly, will continue to protect Ontario’s environment.

I ask my colleagues in this House to support Bill 5, and I will now hand it over to the member for Sault Ste. Marie and the parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Energy and Mines to conclude our remarks on behalf of the government this morning.

The Acting Speaker (MPP Andrea Hazell): I recognize the member from Sault Ste. Marie.

MPP Chris Scott: It’s an honour to rise for the first time in this House today to speak to Bill 5, the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act. As the member of provincial Parliament for Sault Ste. Marie and parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Energy and Mines, I am proud to highlight how this bill will transform Ontario’s mining sector, strengthen our position as a global leader and make us a critical energy superpower.

Just last week, I had the privilege of joining the Minister of Energy and Mines in Sudbury, where we announced key initiatives that will fundamentally change the way we approach mining and resource development in northern Ontario and across all of Ontario. As we continue to build a stronger, more self-reliant Ontario, this bill is right at the heart of our strategy to unlock our full economic potential and set ourselves up for success in the global economy.

The ministers have already painted a very clear picture of the challenges that we’re facing today. This is a serious problem, and it requires serious solutions. Across northern Ontario, mining is not just an industry, but a fundamental part of our economy, and today’s legislation is a bold step forward. It’s a game-changer.

We need to act. We need to stand up for Ontario’s autonomy, especially with the threats posed by President Trump and US tariffs. We’re not going to back down. We’re here to protect every family, every business, every worker in every sector, because that’s exactly what the people of Ontario elected us to do.

One of the biggest, most exciting pieces of the bill is the “one project, one process” framework. It’s designed to streamline how we approve mining projects in this province. For too long, Ontario has been bogged down by red tape and a tangled web of permits that result in a mine taking up to 17 years to open. This bill, if passed, will fix that. It will cut government review times by at least 50%—I will emphasize again for this House “government review times”—while fully respecting our constitutional duty-to-consult obligations and our upholding the high environmental standards Ontarians expect.

It’s about getting shovels in the ground faster, especially in key areas like the Ring of Fire and all across northern Ontario.

The “one project, one process” approach will bring all the necessary permits and approvals into one clear, coordinated system, a new Integrated Permitting Plan managed by a dedicated team with the Ministry of Energy and Mines. It will mean faster decisions, less red tape and more certainty for companies looking to invest, hire and build right here in Ontario. As the mayor of Greater Sudbury said last week at our announcement, certainty and efficiency around permitting are absolutely key if Ontario wants to lead in the critical minerals space, and that’s exactly what this legislation does.

This legislation will put Ontario at the top of the list for mining investment, which is not only vital for Sudbury but for communities like Sault Ste. Marie where critical minerals are a huge part of our economic potential and our economic future.

Another major part of the bill that I’d like to discuss today, as the minister emphasized last week in Thunder Bay, is the protection of Ontario’s critical minerals and energy infrastructure from foreign interference. As Minister Lecce stated, “In today’s global landscape, Ontario’s natural resources are increasingly at risk from foreign governments and corporations that may not have our best interests at heart.”

Ontario is one of the most mineral-rich regions in the world, home to essential minerals like nickel, cobalt and lithium—minerals that power everything from electric vehicles to energy storage to high-grade medical equipment. Without the right protections in place, these resources could easily end up in the hands of foreign interests. That’s why this bill introduces new tools to remove hostile foreign actors from Ontario’s mining lands administration system, and it also blocks the transfer or lease of mining claims to any foreign entities that threaten our economic sovereignty. It’s simple: Canadian resources need to stay in Canadian hands, to the benefit of Canadians.

This bill isn’t just about faster paperwork, it’s about real opportunities: new jobs, new investment and stronger communities.

Right now, mining in Ontario supports more than 31,000 jobs directly and another—

The Acting Speaker (MPP Andrea Hazell): It is now time for questions.

I recognize the member for Spadina–Fort York.

Mr. Chris Glover: I want to thank the members for their comments this morning.

Bill 5 extends the legal protections for the Therme deal at Ontario Place.

I just want to read the definition of fraud: “Fraud is the wrongful deception intended to result in financial or personal gain.”

The Auditor General reports that Therme, in making the deal, lied about their credentials. They claimed to own and operate six spas in Europe when they actually only operated one. They had taken the name and the logo from the other five.

Did Therme commit fraud against the people of Ontario in securing the deal with Ontario Place?

Hon. Stephen Lecce: I will just note that the overwhelming impetus of the bill before the House is to ask members opposite if they will stand with the government of Ontario amongst the mainstream political parties that ran in the last federal election who campaigned on accelerating resource development.

I appreciate you will want to conflate or avoid the subject matter before the House, but 99% of the statute before you deals with critical minerals. So I’m curious: Will you support our plan to accelerate development and get jobs back to the people of Ontario?

The Acting Speaker (MPP Andrea Hazell): Question?

Hon. Graham McGregor: I note the opportunity that we have in front of us when we think about a trillion dollars—over a trillion dollars that is under the ground of Ontario right now. I think about the hospitals that we can build for that. We just got the second one started in Brampton. I think about the third one that we could get built with that. I think about the schools that we could build. I think about the investments we could make in our communities if we are able to harness that wealth and get those resources out of the ground, but it takes too long.

I’m wondering if the minister could explain to us a little bit how long does it take to open up a mine and start a mine in other jurisdictions, like-minded jurisdictions like Ontario, and how long it takes in our province, and how is this bill going to address that gap and get shovels in the ground and prosperity for our citizens?

Hon. Stephen Lecce: I want to thank the minister for his question, for his leadership involved in this bill—it is worthy of recognition, because this is a team effort and it’s a Team Canada approach to seizing our potential as a country.

It’s not just comparable democracies on earth like the Australians or the European Unions, it’s the New Democrats of BC, who have accepted a premise. It’s the Liberals of Newfoundland and Labrador. It’s the New Democrats in Manitoba, whose Premiers have affirmed their commitment to cut the time it takes to get projects done. There is a growing consensus in the nation to move with a sense of speed, ambition and, yes, balance in what we achieve, because, as the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks so brilliantly articulated, it is not a choice between economic development and environmental protection; we can do both, and that’s the spirit of this bill.

And in answer to the member’s question: It takes too long, which is why we have a plan to cut the timelines by 50%.

The Acting Speaker (MPP Andrea Hazell): Question? I recognize the member for Beaches–East York.

Ms. Mary-Margaret McMahon: Thank you very much, Madam Speaker, and, wow, it’s great to see you in the chair.

The Endangered Species Act is being ripped up—I’m trying to do some yoga breaths over here over that—and you are going to introduce and create this new Species Conservation Act. You’re going to ensure strong compliance and strong enforcement and zero tolerance for offenders.

I would like to know, in full detail, what that looks like, especially if some of the offenders are your friends.

Hon. Stephen Lecce: Well, very briefly, Speaker, what I will note is that the bill brought forth by the government, led by the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, actually initiates an enhancement of the enforcement regime, creating new investigative powers that didn’t exist before. We now have the capacity to send in inspectors without the awareness of the company—warrantless searches. We have the capacity to impose jail time for those that break the law.

Of course, the enforcer of the law is our court system, which I believe the member would not impugn by any suggestion of a lack of commitment to the enforcement of the rule of law by the justice system. We have confidence in the system, so much so that we’re strengthening the enforcements. We are quadrupling the funding for the species at risk conservation program. We’re demonstrating you can grow a modern economy by protecting the environment.

The Acting Speaker (MPP Andrea Hazell): Question?

MPP Lise Vaugeois: First Nations across the province are deeply alarmed that a bill that profoundly impacts their rights, their lands and the fish and animals that feed their people—that they were not consulted before this bill was introduced. This is especially alarming given the poor record of this government’s consultation with First Nations.

Will you to commit to free, prior and informed consent before approving any project that impacts Indigenous rights?

Hon. Stephen Lecce: I appreciate the question from the member opposite. We are firmly committed to fully respecting our obligations under the Constitution, including the duty to consult.

You will note in the bill, upon your review, that the government intentionally does not, in any way, in spirit or in a literal reform to the statute, amend our commitment or in any way dissuade from the focus on respecting Indigenous partnership.

Everything we have done in our ministry and across our government has been done in partnership. The access road was done in partnership with the chiefs of Marten Falls and Aroland. The generation we’re building in northern Ontario, the large hydro lines coming into your riding, into your region, are done with fifty-fifty partnership and equity with Indigenous communities.

Minister Greg Rickford has been leading this work, but I assure the member the answer is yes, we will fully respect our commitment and our obligations under the Constitution.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): A reminder, we do not refer to ministers by their name.

I recognize the member for Whitby.

Mr. Lorne Coe: Earlier today the Minister of the Environment spoke about modernizing environmental permissions and how essential it is to keeping Ontario competitive.

With this legislation, the government has indicated also that they will continue to work to streamline other environmental approvals. Can the minister please elaborate on how we’re going to modernize other environmental permissions?

Hon. Todd J. McCarthy: Thank you to the great member for Whitby for the question. We do not have to make a choice. When we say it’s no longer business as usual, we do not have to make a choice between protecting our environment and building the Ontario of tomorrow. We are doing both harmoniously.

That is why when it comes to protecting species at risk, while introducing and building upon an already proven track record of “permit by rule”—or registration first, in terms of the approval process—we are also introducing newer and stronger enforcement powers than ever before:

—the ability to go into any site without a warrant to ensure compliance with aspects of the act to protect species and to stop those few bad actors and offenders in their tracks in the process;

—to gather evidence without a warrant and to Prosecute;

—jail time for individuals; and

—up to $2 million for a second offence for corporations.

That is what I call strong law enforcement—

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): It’s 10:15, which means it’s time for members’ statements.

Second reading debate deemed adjourned.

Wearing of pins

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): On a point of order, I recognize the member for Essex.

Mr. Anthony Leardi: Speaker, if you seek it, you will find unanimous consent to allow all members to wear pins in recognition of April being the Canadian Cancer Society’s daffodil campaign.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): The deputy government House leader is seeking unanimous consent for all members to wear pins in recognition of the Canadian Cancer Society’s daffodil campaign. Agreed? Agreed.

Members’ Statements

Sun-Brite Foods Inc.

Mr. Anthony Leardi: Today, I’d like to tell the assembly about a very important person in my riding. His name is Onorio Iacobelli, but most people just call him Henry. Over 50 years ago, Henry was a seamer mechanic: That is the person who works on machines that puts the seal on cans that hold food. One of Henry’s customers was retiring, so he spoke to his wife and together they agreed to offer to buy that business. That was over 50 years ago.

Since then, Henry and his family have grown that business and today, it’s called Sun-Brite Foods Inc. and it employs over 500 people, including in the riding of Essex. Sun-Brite Foods Inc. produces millions and millions of cans of food and is the exclusive supplier of pizza sauce for every single Domino’s restaurant in all of Canada.

I want to thank Henry and his entire family for their remarkable contribution to Essex county, and I want to encourage Henry and everyone like him to continue making a fantastic contribution to Ontario’s incredible agriculture and food industry.

Health care

Ms. Teresa J. Armstrong: Today, I bring Sydney Gesualdi’s voice to the Legislature. She is a 25-year-old woman, lives in the London–Fanshawe riding and operated a full-time small business until July 2023. She was rear-ended at a stoplight. As a result of her injuries, Sydney now lives in chronic pain, forced to use a wheelchair and wear a neck brace. She has been referred to eight doctors at spinal clinics across Ontario, but so far, she has been denied a consultation each time due to wait-lists, heavy caseloads and her condition being outside the scope of practice.

With no diagnosis from an Ontario spinal surgeon, she was forced to travel to Spain to get a proper diagnosis from a specialist. With a diagnosis of craniocervical instability, she still cannot get the health care treatment that she needs. Her efforts to obtain OHIP funding for out-of-country care is close to impossible because the OHIP application requires an assessment from a Canadian surgeon and she’s been denied by every surgeon she has been referred to.

The Ontario health care system has failed her. Her only choice is crowdfunding to pay for her care in New York. This is the reality for many Ontarians trying to navigate the health care system under this current government. Sydney and all Ontarians have the right to health care. I ask the Minister of Health to meet with Sydney to understand the barriers she is facing accessing the health care she needs in this province.

Highway tolls

Mr. Rob Cerjanec: On behalf of Ontario Liberals, I’d like to congratulate Prime Minister Mark Carney and federal Liberals on their election result last night.

We know the Premier and the government have shown they can work well with Liberals in Ottawa. We hope they will extend that same collaborative spirit here and at Queen’s Park by meeting and working with all parties to strengthen our economy, reduce taxes, fix health care, improve education, build homes and create an Ontario all of us can be proud of.

I’d like to discuss an issue that matters to Ajax and Durham region. The provincially owned Highway 407 east is fast and convenient, but it’s also expensive and barely used. Families and businesses in Durham are already stretched: They should not have to choose between high tolls or spending extra time in traffic on local roads or the 401.

With Winchester Road construction in Brooklin and Whitby, congestion across Durham will only get worse if we do not make the 407 east available to all. This public highway from Brock Road in Pickering to Highway 35/115 in Clarington should be used to ease pressure and connect people across Durham and the GTA. It’s not serving that purpose and it’s out of reach for working families and businesses just trying to survive. Councils in Ajax, Whitby, Oshawa and Durham region have already called to remove these tolls.

On behalf of my constituents in Ajax, I’m calling on this government to reach across the aisle, act without delay, remove the tolls and keep Durham region moving.

Canada flag lawn signs

Ms. Natalie Pierre: Over the past few months, I’ve been deeply inspired by the support my riding has shown for both our province and our country. Despite the difficulties we see down south, the message I’m hearing from my constituents is clear: That we do not want to become the 51st state. There is a strong sense of identity and pride, one that is deeply rooted in Canadian values, and it is something that we must continue to protect.

In support of this effort, my constituency office has been delivering Canadian flag lawn signs for constituents who wish to proudly show their commitment to protecting Ontario and the values we share as Canadians. The Canadian flag is more than just a symbol, it’s a beacon of hope, resilience and pride. It’s a visible expression of who we are and what we stand for, and what our veterans fought to protect. These flags, displayed across our community, remind us of the strength we have together.

I’m incredibly honoured to represent the voices of the people of Burlington for another term. Under Premier Ford’s leadership, together we are building a future that reflects the strength of Ontario.

Riding of Parkdale–High Park

MPP Alexa Gilmour: I rise not to speak about wins or losses but about something deeper: the strength of democracy in Parkdale–High Park. In a time when democratic institutions are under pressure around the world, from rising authoritarianism to voter suppression, we showed up. We participated. We made our voices heard.

In fact, 23,000 residents cast early ballots in the advance polls. It’s a testament to the commitment of voters from Parkdale to the Junction, from Roncesvalles to Swansea. With a very full heart, I say to every volunteer that knocked on doors, to every neighbour that drove someone to the polls, scrutineered the ballots late into the night: Thank you.

To the riding associations from every single party, thank you for modelling healthy political engagement, and to each candidate—Edward Fraser, Anna Gorka, Wladyslaw Lizon, Terry Parker, Rimmy Riarh, Lorne Gershuny, Bhutila Karpoche and Karim Bardeesy—thank you for your courage and your public service.

I want to recognize Bhutila Karpoche today—a colleague, a community builder, a fierce advocate—for her years of service to Parkdale–High Park and her tireless efforts in the campaign. I welcome Karim Bardeesy as our new federal representative.

Friends, democracy is not automatic. It is

an act of hope, built vote by vote, voice by voice, and I hope we the elected, at every level, live up to the trust placed in us.

Ferrero Canada

Mr. Will Bouma: It’s my great honour today to extend a warm welcome to distinguished guests from Ferrero Canada to Queen’s Park: Mr. Omar Zausa, president of Ferrero Canada; Mr. Eric Houdet, senior vice-president, Canada industrial and plant director for Brantford; and Ms. Stephanie Cass, vice-president, institutional affairs and corporate communications.

Speaker, today we recognize their outstanding leadership and celebrate Ferrero’s historic $445-million investment in Brantford–Brant. Ferrero is Brantford–Brant’s largest employer and this landmark investment will also create 500 new jobs. Ferrero has chosen Ontario to produce Nutella biscuits for the very first time outside of Europe—a milestone moment for our province. Even more exciting, Ferrero will also debut its new Ferrero Rocher chocolate squares here, marking the company’s first-ever new product launch outside of Europe.

Before I become too distracted by the thought of eating any number of Ferrero’s delicious products, I want to make it clear that I am proud to represent a government that remains laser-focused on ensuring that its manufacturers and food processors can remain globally competitive, especially given the ongoing economic challenges. With Ferrero’s partnership and support, we can ensure that domestic production in Ontario remains strong and vibrant now and into the future.

Thank you again to Ferrero Canada for your confidence in Ontario as the best place in the world to live, to work, to play and to raise a family.

Community Recognition Awards

Mr. Chris Glover: One of my favourite events in Spadina–Fort York is our annual Community Recognition Awards, to recognize people who build and strengthen our community.

I want to give them a shout-out: Kseniya Tsoy, who beautifies our community with vibrant murals; Indigenous artist Monica Decock; business owner Alan Liu, who brings vibrancy to Queen Street West; Tonny Louie, a business owner who has been serving the Chinatown community for decades; Luke Anderson and StopGap, who make ramps that make businesses accessible; disability advocate Rose Finlay; environmental advocate Jasminee Persaud; Rachelle Chevalier, who helps to keep our neighbourhoods clean; the U of T Trash Team, who diverted 200,000 pieces of plastic from Lake Ontario; Barbara Ceccarelli, who welcomes francophone seniors to the GTA; Negar Nasrkhani, who helps to address youth poverty in Toronto; the Asian Toronto Running Club; Isin Unlu, who builds community at the Woodsworth co-op; Nesreen Hajjar of the Liberty Leaders Toastmasters club; Ruby Kooner, who has been organizing the community in the wake of Liberty Village’s coyote attacks; Theresa Kapusta and Jacques Bernier, who help to furnish newcomers’ homes; Tina Guglietti and Barbara McLardy, for their commitment to Evangel Hall Mission’s drop-in centre; and finally, lifetime achievement award winners Chris Fraser, for his 25 years of advocacy with the Liberty Village BIA, and Joan Prowse, for her years dedicated to the Bathurst Quay Neighbourhood Association.

Thank you all for building and strengthening our community.

End Jew Hatred Day

Ms. Laura Smith: I want you to imagine this: a small coffee shop targeted, its windows and doors violently smashed, the contents within stolen or trashed, and the perpetrators painting a Star of David in front of the business with a clear intention of hate and to encourage a boycott of that Jewish-owned business. This is not 1933 Nazi Germany. It’s a coffee shop, just a 10-minute walk from this very location of the Legislature. Sadly, I’ve visited countless locations just like it.

The reality is that this has been affecting our community in escalating figures since October 7, becoming normalized, and it’s a sad reminder of the ugliness of anti-Semitism. And it doesn’t just end at that. It has led to violence against the innocent in our schools and on our streets, and twisting our minds and our hearts. But it does not change who we are. The Jewish community will not be intimidated.

And as we stand stronger and more unified, I’m asking everyone to join me today as we recognize End Jew Hatred Day, an international day of pride, action and solidarity to this growing threat. I want to thank Alexandra Smith and Brooke Goldstein for their leadership on this initiative.

Let today be a call to action. It’s our collective responsibility to reject hate and build a province where everyone can live in peace and dignity.

Mental health and addiction services

Mr. Lorne Coe: The Ontario government is helping to create safer communities and supporting people struggling with addiction and mental health issues in Durham region by establishing a new Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment Hub in Whitby. This new hub is part of the province’s plan to support safer communities by investing $550 million to create a total of 28 HART hubs across the province.

Durham Community Health Centre will serve as a lead agency for the new HART hub, in partnership with the region of Durham, the fastest-growing region in the province. Durham region’s HART hub will reflect regional priorities by connecting people with complex needs to comprehensive treatment and preventative services.

Planning efforts to create the HART hub in Whitby are under way, and once opened, its services could include primary care, mental health and addiction services, employment and income supports.

Speaker, our government is helping more people get the treatment and support they need, when and where they need it, by taking the next steps to improve access to mental health and addiction services right in the region of Durham.

Environmental protection

Ms. Aislinn Clancy: This past week, citizens across Kitchener Centre celebrated Earth Day. As we celebrated, we reflected on the earth, our mother. She feeds us. She gives us clean air to breathe and clean water to drink, sustaining all life.

I believe in a world view where we are not dominant but part of an interconnected web; that when we do harm to one part of the living world, we do harm to ourselves; and when we nurture part of the living world, we nurture ourselves. Because in the words of Autumn Peltier, Anishinaabe Indigenous rights advocate, you can’t eat money and you can’t drink oil.

This Earth Day, the city of Kitchener supported neighbourhoods to clean up their local parks. I joined the Eastwood Neighbourhood Association in cleaning up Montgomery Park. Thank you to ENAK for bringing us together, because parks are where we connect with each other, with nature and our own well-being for free.

I also visited the Victoria Hills Neighbourhood Association eco fair featuring initiatives like LoveMyHood projects, Red Raccoon bike tune-ups, AFRO youth waste diversion projects and many others.

Finally, a shout-out to Kai Reimer-Watts and my constituency office staff for organizing a screening of Beyond Crisis at the Kitchener Public Library. Thank you, Eda, Patience and Courtney, for bringing us together to reflect on our relationship with the earth and renew our commitment to action.

As we confront the reality of an unlivable future, may each of us as elected officials make—

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Unfortunately, that’s all the time we have for members’ statements. We’ll be moving on to introduction of visitors.

Notice of dissatisfaction

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Before we get to introduction of visitors—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): First of all, if we could have some calm in the House, please. Thank you.

I beg to inform the House that the late show scheduled for this evening, standing in the name of the member for Ottawa South, is cancelled.

Introduction of Visitors

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I would like to introduce a member in the gallery from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke: the former member from the 38th, 39th, 40th, 41st, 42nd and 43rd Parliaments, Mr. John Yakabuski.

Hon. Todd J. McCarthy: I want to recognize in the gallery today the family of page Grace Krmpotic: her parents Dan and Meghan; two of her siblings, Alex and the younger sister—young Myles isn’t here today; he’s saying hi from home—and her wonderful grandparents Barb and Drago. Welcome, Krmpotic family.

M me France Gélinas: Thank you to all my colleagues for wearing the daffodil from the Canadian Cancer Society.

We have members of the Canadian Cancer Society with us today: the executive vice-president, mission, research and advocacy, Dr. Stuart Edmonds; and we have Kelly Wilson Cull, Stephen Piazza, Helena Sonea, Hillary Buchan-Terrell, Kaela Dainard, as well as volunteers Kirsten Watson and Justin Brown. Welcome to Queen’s Park. They’re making their way in.

Ms. Mary-Margaret McMahon: Good morning, everyone. The member across the way stole my thunder for congratulating powerful page captain Grace Krmpotic here and her beautiful family. It’s always great when beautiful Beaches–East Yorkers are in the House. Welcome.

Hon. Sylvia Jones: In addition to the Canadian Cancer Society volunteers and members already highlighted by the member opposite, I would also like to welcome Daniel Nowoselski and Michael Lebenbaum. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Hon. Kinga Surma: I would like to welcome Justin Brown, who is a constituent of mine, a volunteer for cancer care and also a survivor himself. He’s a long-time friend and has helped me tremendously. Justin, it’s so nice to have you here today.

Ms. Laura Smith: I’d like to welcome Alexandra Smith from the organization #EndJewHatred and CIJA—Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs—president Michelle Stock. We’ll actually be taking pictures on the stairs after the proceedings.

Hon. Kevin Holland: From Thunder Bay, I’d like to welcome Mr. Harold Wilson to the House.

Hon. Victor Fedeli: I’d like to recognize Omar Zausa, president of Ferrero Canada; Eric Houdet, senior vice-president; and Stephanie Cass, vice-president.

Mr. Mike Schreiner: It’s an honour to introduce my good friends Matt Richter and Christi Gardner who are here from Parry Sound–Muskoka. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mr. Anthony Leardi: I want to recognize today page Vivian, who is our page from LaSalle, Ontario, and our captain today. Thank you, page Vivian.

Mr. Adil Shamji: I’d like to welcome members of the Canadian Cancer Society who are here today: notably, Mike Lebenbaum, Daniel Nowoselski, Dr. Stuart Edmonds, Kelly Wilson Cull, Stephen Piazza, Helena Sonea, Hillary Buchan-Terrell, Kaela Dainard, Kirsten Watson, Justin Brown and J. Nadia Headley. Thank you for joining us today.

Attack in Vancouver

Ms. Marit Stiles: Good morning. I seek unanimous consent of the House to observe a moment of silence in memory of the lives lost during the Lapu Lapu Day festival this past weekend, and to show our solidarity with the people of Vancouver and the Filipino community all across Canada.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): The member is seeking the unanimous consent of the House to observe a moment of silence in memory of the lives lost during the Lapu Lapu Day festival this weekend and to show our solidarity with the people of Vancouver and the Filipino community. Agreed? Agreed.

The House observed a moment’s silence.

Question Period

Automotive industry

Ms. Marit Stiles: This question is for the Premier. I’ll start, though, by saying that yesterday, Canadians elected a new government, and I want to congratulate Prime Minister Carney. He has got his work cut out for him, but I think we are all here ready to roll up our sleeves and defend Canada alongside him.

After two back-to-back elections, Ontarians are more than ready for their governments at both levels to get to work fighting Trump’s tariffs and strengthening Ontario and Canada for the future. This weekend, I was very proud to join thousands of Unifor members from all over Ontario at a rally in Windsor for Protect Canadian Jobs. It was a powerful show of solidarity and pride in their work in the auto sector that they built over a hundred years ago in this province.

I want to hear from the Premier about what steps he has taken since the provincial election to prevent Ontario auto jobs from leaving for the United States.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I recognize the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade.

Hon. Victor Fedeli: President Trump’s tariffs have created chaos and uncertainty, not only across North America but around the world, but, yes, to here in North America in our auto sector. Our auto sector supply chain is deeply integrated. Parts cross the border six, seven, eight times before they finally get put in a vehicle, and we’ve seen the damaging effects that these tariffs have had on our industry, not only here in Canada but throughout all of Mexico and all of the United States as well.

We are in constant contact with the auto companies who have operations here in Ontario. We are going to continue to work with them and our labour partners to protect the progress that we have made. We have landed $46 billion in the auto sector. We are not going to let President Trump take our jobs.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Supplementary?

Ms. Marit Stiles: Back to the Premier: Let’s be real here. Donald Trump’s tariffs are going to put a target on our auto sector, and he’s not going to be happy until all those jobs are gone south.

Under this government, Windsor’s unemployment rate is already the highest in the province. I already raised with the Premier a couple of weeks ago that auto workers in Windsor were having to put themselves between company trucks and the border to stop them from shipping the equipment south. That’s happening now.

Well, I met with those workers this past weekend, and they’re wondering how this can be allowed to happen after taxpayer dollars have been used over and over again to subsidize these very same companies, those supply chains, and right now parts makers are up and pulling stakes. They’re heading south. The company trucks are being loaded up. Those companies and those parts cannot be allowed to leave this province. Once they go, they are not coming back. So back to the Premier: What is he going to do about this?

Hon. Victor Fedeli: President Trump is clear: He wants our jobs, and he wants our industry. He’s envious of the progress that we have made over the last four years, attracting $46 billion in auto investments alone, $6 billion in life science, tens of billions in tech. We have worked to rebuild that auto sector that both the Liberals and the NDP have tried to decimate over the last decades. We have worked closely with our industry partners all across the supply chain to ensure we protect the progress that we have made.

Those companies chose Ontario because they know we have everything they need to be successful, to be competitive. We have world-class talent, we have industrial land, we have low-cost clean energy—all the things that these companies have that the United States does not have. That’s the message we continue to bring to the businesses here in Ontario and around the world.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Back to the Leader of the Opposition.

Ms. Marit Stiles: Back to the Premier: I want to be very clear. When those auto jobs are gone, they are not coming back—thousands of good, family-supporting, union jobs on the line. Those workers are not going to go down without a fight.

What is missing, though—and I heard this loud and clear this weekend—is a provincial government that’s willing to stand up and stop these factories from being stripped. In the absence of any kind of government action—I already mentioned it—the workers themselves are putting themselves at risk, taking matters into their own hands, and that’s what they will continue to do. They will continue to block the removal of factory equipment in Windsor and all across this province when all they really want to do is get back to work.

So back to the Premier: Every time equipment is allowed to leave this province, that’s on you. Will you intervene before it’s too late, or are Windsor’s workers on their own?

Hon. Victor Fedeli: You know, it was only a few short years ago, under the Liberal government, propped up by the NDP at the time, where the auto workers and the auto companies said to the Premier, Premier Wynne at the time, “You have created the most expensive jurisdiction in all of North America in which to work.” We turned that around by lowering the cost of doing business by $8 billion every single year without ever raising a tax. We saved the 100,000 auto workers whose jobs were in absolute jeopardy. We not only did that, but we attracted $46 billion in additional investment.

We’re not going to let that investment go anywhere. That was investment that was not supported by the NDP, not supported by the Liberals. We stood up for the auto workers, we saved their jobs and added tens of thousands of jobs in the auto sector.

Special education

Ms. Marit Stiles: We remember that. That’s when the Premier said, “That ship has sailed,” remember? And by the way, it was the union that fought for those jobs and brought those jobs back here in the province of Ontario.

This question is for the Minister of Education. A new report from Community Living Ontario confirms what we’ve been hearing from parents and educators and advocates for so many years. Your education system is failing students with disabilities. We are hearing stories of unfair seclusion, exclusion and restraints being used in Ontario schools. Many students are being sent home or told to stay home because the school couldn’t meet their needs.

When is this minister going to reverse the years of underfunding that his own government has overseen and ensure that students with special needs receive the same level of education as their peers?

Hon. Paul Calandra: I appreciate the question from the Leader of the Opposition.

Look, Madam Speaker, let me just say this: I can tell the Leader of the Opposition through you that the government is spending record amounts in special education, but I don’t think that really matters to a parent whose child hasn’t been treated in a fashion that makes the child feel safe, or the parent feel that their child is being respected.

I am going to be meeting with the authors of the report. I’m going to be meeting with parents, as have the previous ministers before me who have continuously increased funding. But I know we share the same concern to ensure that all students, but especially the most vulnerable students, have all the tools that they need to succeed, and more importantly as well, that the teachers who are in the system have the resources and the training that they need to provide these students with the absolute highest level of education and care. That brings some confidence in the education system on their behalf.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Back to the Leader of the Opposition.

Ms. Marit Stiles: Thank you, Speaker, but I would remind the minister that his own government has cut per-student funding by $1,500 per student under this government. So maybe he needs to look at that again.

You should know that every school board in the province is running a deficit in special education. They’re spending more than they’re getting from this government. Not only has the government failed to provide guidance for schools on these issues—seclusion, restraints, exclusion—but there’s also no provincial data being tracked. Instead, school boards are creating and implementing their own policies. Students with disabilities, some of them as young as five or six years old, are being physically restrained and separated from their peers.

Will the minister stop abdicating responsibility and take the necessary action so that children with special needs are safe at school and get the same education as every other student?

Hon. Paul Calandra: I think it will maybe surprise the Leader of the Opposition to know that I agree. We have to modify or change the way school boards react and behave. I certainly agree with her. The Ministry of Education needs to ensure that there’s a more unified level of response from our school boards. Perhaps we’ve given too much autonomy to school boards, and they are making decisions that are not always in the best interests of students, parents and teachers.

I think last week we made our first steps into ensuring that accountability returns to our school boards. As I have said countless times, and as the ministers before me have said, we will stop at nothing to ensure that students, parents and teachers have the resources that they need to give our students the best possibility of success.

Let me be extraordinarily clear to school boards out there: When it comes to how we treat children with special needs in our system, they should always put the needs of the child first. They should ensure that the teachers have the resources to do that and that parents will have the utmost confidence. If our boards aren’t going to do it, I agree with the Leader of the Opposition: I’ll do it for them, and this government will get it done.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Back to the Leader of the Opposition.

Ms. Marit Stiles: I will say to the minister that, really, at the end of the day, the most important thing he could do to start is to put that $1,500 per student back because there’s no way that boards can meet the needs of these kids without that funding. That’s an enormous cut across all of our education system that was implemented by this government.

You’ve got to read this report, Speaker, to truly understand the extent of this. It’s about police being called in on a six-year-old Black student with disabilities. She was cuffed at the wrists and ankles and held down on the ground by police—a six-year-old. It’s about an autistic grade 1 student who was repeatedly locked into a padded room without his parents being notified. I will remind you that Landyn Ferris died last just last year in a very similar situation, while he was sleeping unsupervised in his school’s sensory room.

I want to ask the minister again: Restore the funding as a starting point, and then let’s talk about what you can do to actually meet the needs of our kids with disabilities.

Hon. Paul Calandra: Obviously, funding isn’t necessarily the issue here because we have record levels of funding in the school system. In fact, that’s a hallmark of this government. We’ve increased funding to education.

Ultimately, I don’t think parents care what the minister says with respect to the record levels of funding when you hear instances where children with special needs aren’t being treated with respect and that their parents can’t have the confidence that their kids are safe in their schools.

I don’t blame teachers. Obviously, boards have not given the resources that are required to ensure that teachers have the training and that students are treated with the respect, dignity and care that is required under all circumstances.

So I will be again abundantly clear to school boards out there: We give you record levels of funding. There is an expectation that that funding is used to ensure that students, parents and teachers have the resources that they need for success. If they can’t do it on their own, I will step in, and we will do it for them. We will not fail on this.

Government accountability

Mr. John Fraser: My question will be for the Premier, but first of all, I just want to acknowledge that most of us are pretty tired this morning—late night. I want to say thank you to every person who put their name on a ballot across this country, across this province, whatever party they’re in. We all know what people do when they do that, and I think showing them a sign of appreciation is the right thing to do. I know we already have. I look forward to working with the new members of Parliament, as we all do. Again, thanks.

Let’s get down to business. What exactly did the Premier mean when he said he was going to double- and triple-check that his backroom deal for Ontario Place passed the smell test?

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Response? I recognize the Minister of Infrastructure.

Hon. Kinga Surma: We’ve been clear in this House, as we were clear the very following day through a statement released by Infrastructure Ontario, that there was a sound financial test that occurred; that it was audited by a third party, Ernst and Young; and that our review of audited financial statements had occurred.

I don’t know why the member opposite just can’t understand the facts. He can’t understand the AG report or the IG report that simply said that it was a competitive process.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Supplementary?

Mr. John Fraser: A pretty quick turnaround, double- and triple-checking in less than 24 hours. That’s pretty darn good.

Look, I know the Premier will understand this because we had similar jobs. When I was growing up, I was a fishmonger. I loved that job—I really did. I used to get off and I’d get on the bus at night, and every once in a while, I’d get a strange look from somebody. I never made anything of it.

Then, one night, I’m walking home, and there’s a cat following me. Then I realized sometimes, you’re so covered in the stench and the smell of something, you can’t smell it.

Speaker, back through you to the Premier: Does he think that $2.2 billion and a 95-year lease to a foreign company with literally no money and no experience doesn’t stink?

Hon. Kinga Surma: I would challenge the member opposite to talk about the 2018 procurement that the Liberals led when he was in cabinet. I would challenge the member, and I would challenge the media to maybe inquire about that because the truth is, Therme was a top contender in that process. The process was very much the same.

But you know what? It’s okay. The Liberal Party stunk then, and it still stinks now. That’s why nobody supported you in the last election, and—

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I’m going to ask the minister to withdraw.

Hon. Kinga Surma: The member opposite did say that it was a stinky situation, so I’m just simply referring to that stinky situation that existed when the member opposite was in cabinet in the Liberal Party.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I’m going to ask the minister to withdraw.

Hon. Kinga Surma: I withdraw, Madam Speaker.

The truth is, the Liberals ignored the site. They left it to fall apart—disrepair—and now it’s coming to life. It is under construction. In a number of years, all Ontarians will have a wonderful place to visit with their families, and we will all be proud of that.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Back to the leader of the third party.

Mr. John Fraser: No real money, no real experience—sounds like a good deal to me.

We all know the stakes—the Auditor General, the Integrity Commissioner, the New York Times, public servants—and Speaker, I know there are government caucus members that can smell it too.

So back to the Premier: Therme didn’t get a deal for Ontario Place, they won a prize. We all know that this deal stinks to high heaven. Will the Premier do the right thing—what he did with MZOs and the greenbelt and urban boundaries—and reverse this deal with Therme?

Hon. Kinga Surma: The AG clearly said publicly that there was no interference from the Premier’s office. The IG report that was made public in January of this year had no reason to even pursue an investigation, in my name as minister.

That member is speaking out of tone. It is misconduct, and I would just like to raise that with the Speaker and the Clerk today.

Government accountability

Mr. John Fraser: I appreciate the minister taking the high road.

Speaker, I thought that’s what I would hear, and it was evident last week when the government introduced Bill 5. It’s the playbook for a backroom deal. It’s the playbook for Ontario Place: Trusted partners—

Hon. Kinga Surma: Point of privilege.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I apologize. I want to state that you cannot make a point of privilege during question period.

I will go back to the leader of the third party for questions.

Mr. John Fraser: Trusted partners, special economic zones, unfettered ministerial power and avoiding accountability—and then putting it in legislation. That’s pretty special.

So, Speaker, through you: Does the Premier really believe that introducing Bill 5 will take the stench out of his $2.2-billion backroom deal for Ontario Place, or any other backroom deal that’s being cooked up right now?

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I recognize the Minister of Infrastructure.

Hon. Kinga Surma: Madam Speaker, as a point of privilege, the member is wilfully misleading this House. We have an AG report and an IG report that stated the opposite—

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I would ask the minister to withdraw.

Hon. Kinga Surma: I will withdraw.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Response?

Hon. Kinga Surma: Madam Speaker, the member opposite is stating things that are contrary to what the AG report said, to what the IG—the Integrity Commissioner—stated this year.

The point is, we are redeveloping Ontario Place. We are turning it into a place that everyone can enjoy. The Liberals left it abandoned for a many number of years, and this government is finally getting it done and making it a wonderful place for families to enjoy.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Supplementary?

Mr. John Fraser: In Bill 5, the government is going to create special economic zones, and actually, Ontario Place is identified as one of them. So let’s just be honest with each other: They’re going to be special scandal zones. Just like we saw with Ontario Place, there will be no transparency and no accountability—just like the greenbelt, just like urban boundaries, just like MZOs.

Does the Premier really believe, Speaker, that introducing legislation will make his $2.2-billion backroom deal for Ontario Place legitimate?

Hon. Kinga Surma: Madam Speaker, I am in complete dismay. The member opposite is choosing to ignore the AG report, the AG’s comments. The member opposite is choosing to ignore the decision made by the Integrity Commissioner. But that’s okay; that’s his conduct. He will have to speak to his conduct.

What I will say: In an economic crisis, in a housing crisis and in an affordability crisis, this is what he’s raising, instead of working alongside government—and now a new federal government—to make sure that we protect Canada, Ontario, our jobs and our economy here? That is exactly the focus of this government while removing interprovincial barriers, making sure our workers are retrained while we invest in infrastructure, and the member opposite is not participating in any of that.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Back to the leader of the third party.

Mr. John Fraser: Well, Speaker, you can’t just read the stuff you like. You’ve got to read all of it.

So we know there was a $2.2-billion backroom deal for Ontario Place and an $8.3-billion backroom deal that happened for the greenbelt. It’s the same kind of thing. It happened with urban boundaries. It happened with MZOs. It’s kind of like MZOs 2.0. It’s a pattern with this Premier and this government.

So, once again, back to the Premier: Does he really expect Ontarians to believe that Bill 5 won’t lead to more backroom deals like Ontario Place, the greenbelt, urban boundaries, MZOs?

Hon. Kinga Surma: What I will say this bill will lead to is finally investing in our economy, bringing jobs and prosperity to Ontario, to Canada.

The purpose of this bill is to make sure that we continue building infrastructure. The purpose of this bill is to make sure that we finally unlock the prosperity of the north in northern communities.

Now, it’s fine that they’re not interested in any of that, which is why they are sitting on the opposite side of the House with very little support from Ontarians, but the Premier will continue to lead this nation, lead this province and defend us, protect us and protect our jobs, right here in Ontario.

Long-term care

MPP Jamie West: My question is for the Premier. Last week, my colleague from Nickel Belt and I shared shocking concerns concerning Extendicare Countryside with the Minister of Long-Term Care. A few of them are listed here: frequent falls and fractures, preventable infections, medication errors, residents not being fed, residents put back into soiled clothing.

Kimberley Blanchette told me, “Kenneth, my 88-year-old dad, has been at Extendicare Countryside since May. He has had nothing but infections. Every single day, I see the neglect and abuse of my dad.”

Speaker, residents pay nearly $3,000 a month for care. Last year, Extendicare posted a profit of over $16 million. My question is, why isn’t the Premier insistent that the money goes into senior care and not into shareholders’ pockets?

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I recognize the Minister of Long-Term Care.

Hon. Natalia Kusendova-Bashta: Good morning. I thank the member for that question. The member, as well as the member for Nickel Belt and I have had numerous discussions on the topic, and I’m really glad to update this House this morning.

Of course, there is a cease-of-admission order that is in place, and this order will not be lifted until we are confident that the home has met our standards and can keep compliance going forward. Ministry inspectors have had a strong and ongoing presence in the home, and I can tell you that they have spent over 700 inspector hours in the home, making sure that things are going in the right direction.

I’ve also had the opportunity to have conversations with Dr. Michael Guerriere, who is the CEO of Extendicare, and he has reassured me that the amount of agency hours is going down and they have increased their recruitment and retention efforts.

So we will continue monitoring the situation very closely, to ensure that our residents and our long-term-care homes are safe and they have the care that they deserve.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Supplementary? I recognize the member for Nickel Belt.

M me France Gélinas: Extendicare Countryside is responsible for the care of hundreds of elderly people in my riding, yet families tell us that the basics—going to the bathroom, feeding, bathing, getting dressed—are not being done, never mind post-surgical wounds not being addressed. Whistle-blowers tell me that the workload they are assigned is absolutely impossible to do, no matter how hard they work.

How will the government make sure that the millions of dollars they give to Extendicare Countryside goes to care and not to profit?

Hon. Natalia Kusendova-Bashta: We will continue to monitor the situation very closely and will not lift the cease-of-admission order until we are fully satisfied that things are proceeding in the right direction, that residents are receiving the proper care.

I am proud to be a member of this government, which is continuously investing historic amounts of dollars into long-term care. We’re building long-term care across the province of Ontario. This past week I broke ground on a new Muslim long-term-care home. This is unprecedented investment. We are also leading the country in our four hours of direct care per resident per day, which we are very close to achieving.

I am very proud of the investments that we are making. This home is on a path to achieve compliance, but until that compliance is met, we will not be lifting that cease-of-admission order.

Job creation

Ms. Stephanie Bowman: Last week, the FAO issued their 2024 labour market report, and it’s not good news: 608,000 workers in this province are unemployed. They’re feeling the pain of this government’s failure to deliver jobs.

Despite this government’s boasting on billboards, the numbers tell a different story. Unemployment is up, from 5.6% to 7% in one year under this Conservative government. We have the worst Ontario unemployment rate on record under this Conservative government: 44% of young people in Toronto were employed in 2024, down from 48% a year earlier under this Conservative government.

My question to the Premier: When will he stop boasting and start focusing on actually creating jobs for the people of Ontario?

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I recognize the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade.

Hon. Victor Fedeli: President Trump’s tariffs are causing chaos and uncertainty all across the global economy. There are going to be challenging times for businesses and for workers, but our government will be there to support them every step of the way.

Since we took office, we’ve ensured that the business environment in Ontario promotes investment and job creation. We have numbers too: One million jobs have been created under this government. And despite tumultuous times we still saw businesses add 39,000 jobs in January and 17,000 jobs in February.

We’re going to do everything that it takes to ensure that Ontario remains the best destination for businesses to invest, expand and create more and more and more good-paying jobs.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Supplementary?

Ms. Stephanie Bowman: Well, there they go again, deflecting and boasting instead of focusing.

In 2018, Doug Ford guaranteed he would create 300,000 manufacturing jobs; he’s only delivered about one tenth of that. His guarantee failed.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I will remind the member to use the title and not the person’s name.

Ms. Stephanie Bowman: Thank you, Speaker.

The Premier boasts about helping Ontario business, but under his watch public sector job growth outpaced that of the private sector by three to one. No win for business there.

An unemployed construction worker visited my office last week saying he wants work not welfare. Some 27,000 construction workers like him lost their jobs in the last two years. This Premier is failing him and them. While he and the government boast about their record, 608,000 workers who lost their jobs know what this government really needs to do.

To the Premier: When will he start protecting jobs and not losing them?

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I recognize the member for Mississauga–Erin Mills.

Mr. Sheref Sabawy: Despite tariffs from Trump, which are only hurting our businesses and workers, our priority is keeping businesses open and our people employed. In response to these potential layoffs, Ontario is taking immediate action to support affected workers.

That includes $3 million in the Automotive Industries Association of Canada to prepare over 200 workers for the auto sector and over $1.5 billion in the Skills Development Fund, aiming to train over one million workers across Ontario, a vital initiative for developing a skilled, competitive workforce that meets the demands of the ever-changing global economy. An additional $2-billion rebate through the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board, WSIB, which will be provided to safe employers in the spring, helping to keep costs down for businesses.

In addition to this investment, Madam Speaker, we are raising the minimum wage.

International trade

MPP Chris Scott: It’s a pleasure to rise for the first time to ask a question to the Honourable Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, a fellow northern colleague and absolute champion.

President Trump’s tariffs have created a cloud of uncertainty over the global economy. They have forced Ontario businesses to recalibrate their supply chains and look to other reliable jurisdictions for trade. Every year, Ontario alone does nearly $500 billion in two-way trade with the United States. While they are our largest trading partner, Ontario also has several strategic economic partners across the globe.

I understand the minister has just returned from Japan and South Korea, two countries we have long-standing trading relationships with. Speaker, can the minister please explain why Ontario is embarking on trade missions to Asia and Europe, and how these missions benefit our economy?

Hon. Victor Fedeli: Our mission to Asia was part of our government’s plan to accelerate Ontario’s trade diversification strategy. This plan didn’t begin after President Trump’s tariffs; it’s something we’ve been working on for the last seven years. Last year, Japan was Ontario’s number one source of inward foreign direct investment. Two-way trade with Japan is up 21% since we took office. Two-way trade with South Korea has nearly doubled since we took office.

Whether it was in auto, in life science, AI, manufacturing—all of these companies that we continue to meet with—our message is very, very clear: In these uncertain times, Ontario is the partner who is reliable, predictable, dependable. We are the partner you’re looking for.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Supplementary?

MPP Chris Scott: Now more than ever, Ontario needs to work with reliable trading partners. We can’t be certain what will happen with these tariffs. We’ve seen just how quickly the President of the United States can change his mind. We’re going to continue our advocacy to the United States, pushing them to remove these harmful barriers and tariffs.

But at the same time, we need to focus on bolstering our economy by cutting red tape, boosting interprovincial trade, unlocking new trade partnerships and getting more Ontario products to markets around the world. We need to work closely with our businesses who are directly affected by these tariffs and with the ones who are struggling to plan for the years ahead.

The minister met with a number of businesses over the course of his mission in Asia, we just heard. Speaker, can the minister share what he was hearing from these companies and how it benefits businesses here in Ontario?

Hon. Victor Fedeli: Speaker, the uncertainty created by Trump’s tariffs is top of mind for businesses right across the entire world. These tariffs have put a chill on businesses, not only here, but abroad. Now this does present a significant challenge for Ontario and the world, but there is a window of opportunity in all of this, Speaker.

There will be a glut of capital over the next year as businesses hold off on making important investment decisions. That capital will be amassed and will eventually need a home. Companies who want to invest, they will want to invest it fast, which is why we’re already doing the groundwork to ensure that that capital lands here in Ontario. That is why you’re seeing such an ambitious legislative agenda from our government. It’s to ensure that Ontario is the choice destination for that capital.

Ontario Disability Support Program

MPP Lise Vaugeois: My question is to the Premier. People with disabilities continue to live under tremendous strain, with those on the Ontario Disability Support Program living far below the poverty line, struggling to meet their basic needs for shelter, food and transportation. The federal government’s Canada Disability Benefit does not go as far as promised, but it is a start, and it is meant to be in addition to the meagre provincial supports available through ODSP.

Will the government commit to not clawing back the Canada Disability Benefit from ODSP recipients?

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Response? I recognize the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services.

Hon. Michael Parsa: I thank my honourable colleague for the question.

Madam Speaker, we have been very clear from the beginning: Our intent is to make life more affordable for all Ontarians, including those on social assistance, which is why we pushed and worked with the community on the delivery of this program.

But it’s imperative that any support that is provided complements the already existing supports, which is why, during my meeting with my federal counterpart, members of other provinces and territories joined me in requesting that the federal government make amendments to the Canada tax act to make sure that these supports come with fewer barriers and fewer burdens as possible. It’s why we asked the federal government to treat all those receiving ODSP as automatic recipients.

On this side of the House—and I’m hoping that my colleagues across the aisle will support us in making sure that life becomes more affordable for Ontarians—we will never stop fighting for them.

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): I recognize the member for Thunder Bay–Superior North.

MPP Lise Vaugeois: I think a simple, “Yes, we will not claw back,” would actually answer the question.

The struggle to survive from day to day too often leads people to suicide. It is easier to get an assisted death in Ontario than it is to get support to survive, and that is shameful. An extra $200 a month will not bring people up to the poverty line, but it will help.

Will the Premier do the right thing and join the other six provinces that have already committed to not clawing back the Canada Disability Benefit?

Hon. Michael Parsa: Madam Speaker, I’m not sure what part of the answer my honourable colleague misunderstood when I said we have fought from day one to make life more affordable for Ontarians. I know that they struggle with answers sometimes.

It’s why we increased the Ontario Disability Support Program by nearly 17% in just over two years, the largest increases in the program’s history in decades. It didn’t come from the NDP; it didn’t come from the Liberals. It came from this government. It’s why we increased the earned income threshold from $200 to $1,000, so those that are able and are willing to work can get a job without it affecting their benefits up to $1,000.

We have been very clear: We will support any initiative that makes life more affordable for Ontarians. That includes those on social assistance, which is why, once again, I’m asking my colleague to join me in asking the federal government to amend the Income Tax Act and make the recipients automatic and make ODSP recipients automatic in this support.

Government accountability

Mr. Ted Hsu: Speaker, Bill 5 hands out too much unchecked discretionary power to these ministers. After seven years in power, they say they still need more ways to pick who can get a pass on rules and regulations—more ways to pick which historical sites, waste dumps or green spaces suddenly don’t matter.

With all the trouble they’ve gotten into from pet projects over these last seven years, how can we trust that this government’s decisions will be for the good of the people instead of about who buys a ticket to get access to the minister’s ear?

The Speaker (Hon. Donna Skelly): Response? I recognize the member for Sault Ste. Marie.

MPP Chris Scott: I want to be crystal clear in the House today: Our government is committed to meaningful, free, prior and informed consent, and we are fully committed to our duty-to-consult obligations. This legislation in no way impedes that, guys.

The bottom line is, it can’t take 17 years to open up a mine in this province anymore because the world has changed. In the EU, mines are opening up within eight or nine years. In Western Australia, mines are opening up in six or seven years. Ontario is 10 out of 10 in subnational jurisdictions when it comes to attracting mining investments. It’s time for a change.

The former Liberals sat on their palms and made empty promises when it came to develo