I would like to welcome the students of Georges Vanier Catholic School, who will be visiting. They’re from my riding of Brampton Centre.

Welcome to Queen’s Park.

My question is for the Premier.

Auto insurance rates continue to climb in Ontario.

In Brampton, it has been reported that auto insurance premiums are up by 37% since 2021, meaning Bramptonians pay the highest auto insurance rates in all of North America.

This government keeps giving auto insurance companies the green light to put their hands deep into the pockets of drivers.

Premier, please tell the people of Brampton why they deserve to pay the highest auto insurance rates in North America.

Being a Brampton boy, born and raised, being born in Peel Memorial Hospital and raised in our community, one of the frustrations we have in my community is that we always feel like our decisions are being made by somebody else. It felt like the powers that be in downtown Toronto decided they wanted to give everybody else a bypass highway, but when it came time for Brampton to go and get our own bypass highway, we were cast aside by the previous government.

Now, under this Premier’s leadership, we are investing in Highway 413, which is finally giving Brampton its own bypass highway—the downtown Toronto environmentalist critics be damned.

I know the member for Durham also had some of these decisions that didn’t really reflect his own local priorities around tolling on Highways 412 and 418. Just like in my community where drivers were getting shafted by downtown Toronto decisions that didn’t reflect the community, his area was getting shafted as well. I wonder if the member could talk about—I see in the budget a commitment around keeping those tolls away—

Earlier today, I asked a question of the Minister of Finance—actually, the Premier, but it was answered by the Minister of Finance—around auto insurance and the fact that rates in Brampton had gone up by 37% in the last two years. When I was looking at that report, I had noticed that, actually, number three in all of Ontario, the third city in terms of the highest rate of increase, at almost 20%, was Mississauga.

So my question is for my friend the member of Mississauga–Lakeshore. I know he cares deeply about his constituents. How does he feel about the fact that auto insurance companies have jacked up their rate almost 20% in his area, and do you believe that the government could be doing more to bring this under control?