The Minister of Infrastructure has said multiple times that an environmental assessment is under way at Ontario Place, but she failed to mention that the assessment doesn’t include the site of the private Austrian spa because the government weakened the Environmental Assessment Act. The project involves cutting down 850 trees and destroying habitat where beavers, minks, foxes and endangered birds live. It also plans to attract more than 10,000 guests per day without any assessment of how that will impact transit, traffic or infrastructure.

Why is your government sidestepping its requirement for an environmental assessment for the majority of the redevelopment of Ontario Place?

This question is for the Premier.

Yesterday, the Minister of Infrastructure told Ontarians that it was “much more expensive” to repair the Ontario Science Centre than it would be to just tear it all down—much more expensive than tearing it down, refurbishing the pods, building a whole new building, and then moving all of those jobs out of Flemingdon Park and next to the Premier’s new, elite, private spa. But when she was asked how much more expensive, she couldn’t or wouldn’t say.

So, Speaker, I would like to offer the Premier a chance: How much will it cost to remove the Ontario Science Centre from its heritage property in Flemingdon Park?

The minister also referred to a business case for this whole scheme. Considering that there has been exactly zero consultation with local communities, no transparency as to how this whole plan came together, and with this government’s very dubious track record when it comes to land deals, I think it’s on the minister to show her work.

Back to the Premier: When will you show Ontario the evidence that this scheme is actually in the public interest?

Back to the Premier: What role did Conservative-connected developers have in this decision?

Interjections.

To the contrary, we’re working with Neskantaga First Nation, as we are working with First Nations communities across northern Ontario on various resource projects and on various pieces of legacy infrastructure which will enhance the social, health and economic opportunities that are available to their communities.

We take our section 35 responsibilities seriously with respect to the duty to consult. We’ll continue to engage and work with communities to build consensus, to provide an opportunity for a better life for people in Indigenous communities across northern Ontario.

Mr. Speaker, he quotes FPIC here. There’s been a lot of discussion about it; fair enough. It’s not the law of Ontario. However, we have built consensus into the Far North Act. We continue to work with Indigenous communities. It just can’t be that one community wants consent and the others want a project to proceed. That begs us to build consensus. That begs us to work with Neskantaga, Webequie First Nation, Marten Falls, Eabametoong, Kasabonika. Name those communities and I will tell you about people who want opportunities for a better way of life in their communities—including legacy infrastructure: roads, electricity—

Today, I’m excited. We heard the Minister of Economic Development talk about how this is a jurisdiction to grow and invest, and we heard the Premier saying we’re going to build 1.5 million houses.

But my question here is for the Minister of Transportation—because do you know what? We talked about the GTA becoming home to over two million people, because this is the place to grow and raise a wonderful family. We have to make sure we can build the transit to meet that population need. Unfortunately, the reality is that our transit networks are already strained. People are looking forward to greater transit routes that are accessible and convenient, through the proposed Ontario Line, and that will deliver relief to the city’s core and to the people in Etobicoke south.

The reality is that, unfortunately, the Liberals didn’t do anything. Just like they neglected Ontario Place, they neglected our transit line. They did not put any meaningful investments in badly needed transit infrastructure.

I’m wondering if the Minister of Transportation can provide an update on the progress of the Ontario Line.

Interjections.

Ontario is such a wonderful place to grow, and after 15 years of disastrous rule by the Liberals, not investing in anything, it is so important that we are getting shovels in the ground and, at the same time, we’re building the Ontario Line and other major transit networks that will not only benefit the riders of Etobicoke–Lakeshore but will benefit all Ontarians.

Ontario cannot afford to hold back our economy. Now it’s time to build. Now it’s time to move ahead with critical investments in our transit infrastructure needs. We need to continue building highways, roads and transit infrastructure that is needed to keep Ontario moving.

Can the minister please elaborate on our government’s actions to ensure that this critical transit project is delivered?

I really want to thank the member for the question.

Speaker, Ontario is expected to grow by more than two million people by 2031, with approximately a million and a half living in the greater Golden Horseshoe region, including Hamilton.

The federal government has also announced that Canada will increase immigration to about a half a million newcomers by 2025. Ontario takes the brunt and most of the immigrants, because Ontario is a great place to live, to work, to raise a family, and to open a business.

Ontario’s population reached a historic 50 million last year, and it’s our expectation that construction will begin on all of our lands, because we desperately need housing, we desperately need people to come here to work.

We’re getting it done. We’re building the infrastructure. We’re building the hospitals. We’re getting health care in the communities that need it. We will build the housing for all Ontarians.

Do you know what’s great to hear right now? It’s that we are reaching all-time highs in history for purpose-built rentals, something that has never happened before. Why? Because the Liberals, when they were in government for 15 years, chose to ignore the sector. We did not have enough housing for people who needed to rent. We did not have enough housing for people who moved here. But do you know what, Speaker? This government will get it done, under this Premier and this municipal affairs and housing minister.

I’d like to thank the member for his question. Don’t get me wrong; capital projects are absolutely important and needed, especially where there are communities that need schools. However, there’s also no money allocated in the budget for school repairs. Now, I can tell you, speaking as a representative from Toronto, we have many schools that are old, over 100 years old. The school repair backlog in this province is at over $16 billion. We have kids who go to school who need to wear a coat in the winter to learn. We have schools where kids can’t drink the water from the fountains because it has lead. We have kids who go to school and can’t use the washrooms because the door locks are broken. This is the state of many, many schools, and we need the government to invest in repairing the infrastructure so that kids are not learning in crumbling schools.

Speaker, we know that with new development there comes infrastructure costs: roads, transit, water, sewer infrastructure, community centres, fire and police services, as well, and facilities. The member talks about that the cost of infrastructure to build on sprawl is two and a half times more than building homes within urban boundaries. London is going to lose $100 million in development charges because of this bill that the government wants to push through. Can the member speak to how much development charges will be lost in his riding and how municipalities are supposed to make up that income loss?

I’d like to refer it to the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy, please.