I want to thank the member for Ottawa West–Nepean for that excellent presentation.

I’m wondering if she could elaborate again on the derecho and how that impacted our community. I understand that our friends, through this bill, are wanting to be reducing the capacity for environmental assessment, but sometimes, it would seem to me—and I welcome what you think about this—that when we reduce the capacity to properly assist environmental risk, we invite incredible costs down the road. The derecho cost Ontario $875 million—that is the sixth most expensive storm in our history—and our own city $19.5 million. So are we achieving efficiencies in the short run for huger costs down the road? I’m just wondering if you have Ottawa West–Nepean stories about this.

Mr. Speaker, Bill 69 will reduce red tape, optimize office space, improve economic growth and save taxpayers’ money. This is what our government has been doing since 2018. We’re cutting down red tape. We’re cutting down the regulations. We’re creating an environment for businesses to come and invest in Ontario.

As the Premier has said many times, governments do not create jobs; governments create an environment for businesses to come and invest in Ontario. When they invest in Ontario, they will create jobs, and when businesses thrive, Ontarians will thrive.

My question to the member opposite is, why doesn’t the NDP want to reduce red tape?

Thank you, Speaker. It’s always a pleasure to have you in the chair, and it’s good to be here this afternoon.

It’s my pleasure to address this House today to speak about the importance of moving forward with the Reducing Inefficiencies Act, 2023, which was introduced earlier this week by my colleague the honourable Minister of Infrastructure. This bill confirms our government’s commitment made to all Ontarians in the last election, and that was a commitment to enhance fiscal management, practise good governance, save taxpayer dollars and cut red tape—and I did say “red tape.” There’s a reason why that tape is coloured red. It could be orange, it could be green—anyway, it’s called “red tape.” We’re here to eliminate some of that red tape.

Interjection.

Speaker, specifically, this legislation is taking the necessary steps to modernize the previous Ministry of Infrastructure Act, 2011, along with nine other relevant acts.

But the core objective with introducing the Reducing Inefficiencies Act, 2023, addresses the reason we were all sent to this House. I have spoken in this House on many occasions to advocate the belief that we’re all here to serve our community. It makes no difference what office in government or which public service entity we hold; there always has been and only will be one taxpayer.

The fundamental principle of practising fiscal prudence with public funds, cutting red tape and practising good governance is what we need now and what was sorely lacking from the previous Liberal government. That is what the voters in Ontario overwhelmingly elected our government to do—and that’s our job: to fulfill their wishes to get it done. So the question is, where do we start?

As this proposed legislation would modernize government process and oversight, the first phase of this plan would be to improve the management of real estate and enhance fiscal management, specifically with a focus on the entities that primarily hold already-used office space.

Currently, Ontario has one of the largest and most complex real estate portfolios in Canada. Real estate and industry experts have told us that it is the complexity of this portfolio that has been one of the contributing factors towards unnecessary delays, duplication, higher fees, and overwhelming confusion amongst the public.

The Auditor General’s report from 2017, along with other third-party reports, outlined several inefficiencies within the current structure at the time, but it also outlined opportunities for the provincial government of the day to deliver the real estate portfolio in a more efficient and cost-effective method. The Auditor General recommended a more centralized process and decision-making model that, under the authority of the Ministry of Infrastructure, would improve the management of real estate assets owned by the crown. The Auditor General, at the time, understood that by centralizing the management of the real estate portfolio with the Ministry of Infrastructure—which, by the way, has the expertise to manage it—the government can reduce unnecessary administrative burdens and costs and ultimately save the taxpayers money. The framework, which is outlined in this bill and recommended by the Auditor General, would modify the real estate authority of 14 entities and provide the Minister of Infrastructure with control of real estate that was previously under these entities.

For the benefit of my colleagues in the House, I would like to clarify some changes to the Ministry of Infrastructure Act, 2011—in particular, a new section, 11.0.1, that would be added to the act—and how section 22 of the current act would be repealed and replaced with a new section 22 of the act.

The new section, 11.0.1, would provide that a prescribed entity is not entitled to hold or control, or acquire by purchase, ease or otherwise any interest in real property, such as:

—any land, building or structures;

—any interests in land, building or structures;

—any fixtures or interests in fixtures installed, or placed in, or used in or in connection with land, buildings or structures.

The new section 22 of the act would set out new regulation-making powers for the Minister of Infrastructure and for the Lieutenant Governor in Council in connection with the new section 11.0.1 of the act. The minister would be authorized to make regulations prescribing entities for the purpose of the new section 11.0.1 of the act, as well as prescribing exceptions, conditions, limitations or restrictions in connection with the new section.

The Reducing Inefficiencies Act is, in some ways, interconnected with other important bills our government has introduced since being elected to office in 2018. As dis-covered from one of the many findings from the Minister of Red Tape Reduction, moving forward with the Reducing Inefficiencies Act is the right decision and direction for our government to move our province forward.

Speaker, our government has introduced legislation that will build 1.5 million new homes over the next 10 years.

We have introduced legislation that will invest in new infrastructure projects such as highways, bridges, waterways and public transit.

As well, we have introduced legislation that will reduce red tape and high taxes that burdened business and crippled growth in Ontario from 2003 to 2018. During that time period, manufacturing jobs left the province of Ontario in droves. They left because there was a government that was not committed to helping and supporting businesses, particularly manufacturing businesses. They had written off manufacturing as something we don’t need to be a part of here in the province of Ontario—“let’s just focus on service.” Yet nothing could be further from the truth—and today is a witness, as we rebuild our manufacturing sector and are undergoing a manufacturing renaissance in the province of Ontario right now.

This bill, if passed, will be critical in that plan to continue rebuilding Ontario. That is why our government continues to take decisive action to move our province in the right direction. The Reducing Inefficiencies Act, 2023, is one of the solutions that is needed.

I would like to recap for this House similar red tape reduction legislation that has had similar outcomes that this bill will have. Our government has introduced and passed eight red tape reduction bills. We have taken 400 individual actions to reduce Ontario’s total regulatory burden. To date, our red tape reduction efforts have saved businesses and organizations $576 million each and every year in compliance costs. This is helping to make our province a better place to live, work, raise a family, start a business.

When our government took office in 2018, the province of Ontario was not only the most indebted sub-sovereign government in the entire world, thanks to Liberal and NDP overspending, but it also had the most regulations—over 300,000—of any jurisdiction in the world. By comparison, British Columbia has 180,000 regulations. There’s no need for our province to have almost double the number of regulations. BC is a great place to live, work and raise a family—Ontario does not need 300,000. We need to support and encourage businesses to come here and people to live in this great province, so eliminating a lot of these burdensome, duplicative regulations is setting the province on the right path.

As the goal of this bill is to enhance Ontario’s fiscal management, cut red tape and improve good governance, it only makes sense to move forward and pass this bill.

It is also worth noting that this bill will look at how we can reduce the administrative burden on standard infrastructure projects while maintaining our province’s strong environmental and consultative processes.

Our government has and will continue to meet with municipalities, First Nations, local stakeholder groups and subject matter experts to ensure that all proposed changes will be in the best interests of all Ontarians and are consistent with our government’s plan to build.

One identified efficiency this proposed legislation would implement is to formalize an existing mechanism that waives the 30-day waiting period after a successful class environmental assessment has been fully completed and consulted on. This recommendation would allow the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, on a project-specific basis, the authority to alter or waive the 30-day waiting period for class environmental assessment projects.

If you are wondering what a class environmental assessment is, it is defined as a simplified process that sets out requirement for consultation, impact assessment and mitigation for projects such as municipal roads, sewers and drainage.

The government of Ontario and the Minister of the Environment take the beauty of this province and the environment very seriously, and I want to stress and underline, contrary to the messaging of the opposition, that there are no changes to the environmental assessment. This assessment process that we currently have in place is 50 years old. The Minister of the Environment, this morning, mentioned in his speech that he wasn’t even born when this particular assessment process was put into place—probably half of the members in this Legislature weren’t born; I was, but I was young.

So why are we doing this? Why are we modernizing? Because like so many other government policies and processes, the existing assessment is too slow, too costly and too burdensome. We have a problem in this province when people who want to build infrastructure, build homes for people to live in, build condos, high-rises, single detached homes—when they are not able to get shovels in the ground for 10 years from the time they first purchased that land, that is part of the problem. That is going to drive up prices. It’s pretty simple math. Holding multi-million dollar real estate portfolios over many years costs money. It delays building of houses. It makes it more unaffordable. It’s not good.

We need to speed up the process within the constraints of keeping the same environmental assessments in place. Formalizing this ability means that standard municipal projects that occur across the province, like the creation of new municipal roads and stormwater infrastructure, could be ready almost a month earlier than were previously completed before.

Again, I want to emphasize, contrary to some of the messaging from the opposition, that there is no change to the environmental assessment. We are eliminating duplicative and unnecessary regulations, period.

In implementing these proposed changes, we will get more projects built faster, at a lower cost to Ontarians. And who would not want more housing, more transit built quicker and more efficiently? Most importantly, these projects will be completed without compromising any environmental standards and protections that are currently in place.

This is a perfect example of how streamlining the process will save municipalities and taxpayers both time and money for essential projects that are needed and that will help build Ontario. That is our objective. As a government, we have put forward the most bold plan to build infrastructure in this province in decades, and it cuts across different facets of infrastructure. Whether it’s stormwater pond projects, water facilities, public transit, the electrification of the GO line, new subway lines, highways, bridges, it’s all part of the package; it’s not an either/or.

We want to encourage people to take public transit when we can. We want them to take the GO train, the TTC, Oakville Transit, Brampton Transit. But we also recognize that not everybody can always take their kids to soccer practice or go see their friends in the other part of the city on transit. Sometimes they’re going to need to take a car. If they have a car, we want them to go on less congested roads. We want businesses to be able to get products closer to market quicker, sooner, with more efficiency and less traffic. And we would love them to be buying and supporting and driving electric vehicles, which is why our government has been committed to making Ontario a global hub in making electric vehicles right here in this province.

The Speaker will know that in his own region of Halton, in the town of Oakville, Ford of Canada will be retooling their facility in the next couple of years to build electric vehicles. I can tell you that Ford of Canada was very close in considering moving their facility elsewhere and shutting down that facility. Why? Because of the actions of the past Liberal government—high energy costs, high regulations. Our government has come in and worked in collaboration, I might add, with the federal government to be able to support Ford of Canada to stay here for decades to come, to build electric vehicles, to have great, high-paying jobs and build vehicles that are great for the environment.

We would rather build electric vehicles right here in this province than spend money subsidizing millionaires, buying vehicles built in California. That’s the way we work in this government. We want vehicles built here in Canada, here in Ontario, and we’re going to support those businesses and create that environment for them to be built here.

As someone mentioned, as well, we have the critical minerals, and we’re going to need to build the infrastructure to get to those critical minerals over the years so we can create that wealth and prosperity for our province in all regions, especially some of the less developed regions where they need it the most, and we certainly hope the opposition will support us in that.

We’re confident that this bill will be part of the process. It’s not the only bill that’s going to move Ontario forward, but it’s part of the process; it’s part of a package from the government.

Earlier this week, we saw all members from both sides of the House come together like true parliamentarians and do what is best for Ontario.

And what is best for all Ontarians? I believe it is to fulfill our promise to practise good governance and fiscal responsibility, to eliminate duplication and waste, and to move forward with a plan to build Ontario.

I hope that a bill like this is a bill that can be supported by the opposition. I understand that the opposition have a role to oppose; I get that. They have a role to oppose and question what the government is doing. But at the end of the day, if there’s good legislation and the people of Ontario are supportive, come and join us—support us. I think the people of Ontario would be thrilled to see our opposition friends across the aisle here say, “I disagree with the government on some issues, but I’ll tell you, this is some good legislation.”

This is in the best interests of the people of Ontario. It’s going to get things built quicker, reduce red tape, reduce unnecessary regulation, and help make Ontario—which is well on its way to taking back that title as the economic engine of Canada, which we lost under the Liberal regime of 15 years. Ontario is back. We’re back in business. We’re creating that environment, getting things done, building housing, transportation. There’s a lot to build.

I urge my colleagues from all sides to do what is best for the taxpayers, for the great citizens of Ontario: Support this legislation.

I’d certainly like to thank the Minister of Infrastructure for putting forward this legislation.

I’d like to thank the Speaker for allowing me the opportunity to speak.

I thank the member from Oakville for his comments. I listened intently.

We had the opportunity to travel on the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs, and we heard from many folks and organizations across the province who underscored the importance of housing as a social determinant of health.

Here on the opposition side, we believe in stretching a dollar as far as it goes. We believe in upstream investments, such as the province creating affordable housing, making sure that there’s robust primary care infrastructure, making sure that we have nurse practitioners and family health teams.

My question is specifically about business. I would say that it is bad business—is it not?—to reward somebody who does not deserve it, somebody who has not earned it, somebody whose track record actually means that they are not doing the correct job. When we look at the example of Infrastructure Ontario, we have heard, in the Auditor General’s report, about how ineffective they are. My question is, why is the government cherry-picking only the things that they like out of the Auditor General’s report and not responding to all the things that need to be done?

This bill will directly affect how we protect the environment. It will impact the environmental assessment process.

Frankly, Speaker, this government has a terrible record when it comes to the environment.

If the government is so confident and so willing to push forward the bill to reduce inefficiency and thinks that this bill will actually serve in the interest of Ontarians, then why did the government provide barely any notice, little to no communication, no briefing for the opposition, no public consultation?

What is the government’s plan when it comes to ensuring that the public will have a say in this bill?

With the uncertainty in the world right now and the cost pressures on family budgets, I’m wondering if the member can tell me how this will better the lives of Ontarians.

Questions to the member for Oakville?

Member for Oakville.

Thank you to the member opposite. It was great travelling across the province with you. I got to know you a little better, and I appreciated getting to know you better.

I will disagree with you, though, on what you just mentioned with respect to Infrastructure Ontario. Having had the pleasure of working as a parliamentary assistant in the last Parliament for some time in that ministry, I can assure you that Infrastructure Ontario is a world-class organization—so much so that we had people from all over the world and Europe coming to visit Infrastructure Ontario to learn about all the great things we’re doing. But as you point out, the Auditor General did point out some issues. There’s always room for improvement. Every human being, every government, can always improve things, so there are certainly some things that the Auditor General pointed out, perhaps rightly, that they can improve on. But overall, I can assure you that we have one of the best organizations in the world right here in Toronto.

Part of being a government is that there are bills put before that Parliament and debated on a regular basis—and no one bill is going to solve all the problems of our province; there are so many components to it.

This bill, I think, has some very specific goals, targeting getting building done quicker and more efficiently. If we can do that, I think it will make industry more competitive. I think it will make housing more affordable. It will help municipalities be able to get the facilities they need built quicker, more efficiently. I really believe this is legislation that very well could be supported by the opposition. We’ll have to see how they support this, but I think in the best interest of Ontarians they may well support it.

This is the people’s House. We debate bills and we have the opportunity—we’re on live TV right now, in front of the people of Ontario, so we’re debating and we’re discussing.

The government of Ontario has been very forthright and open with the legislation that we are now proposing to put through.

You did mention some of the issues related to the environment. Well, I will add that it’s our government that increased the renewable content in ethanol gas from 10% to 15%. We’ve added acres to the greenbelt—in fact, it’s the largest expansion in the history of the greenbelt since its inception. Over 2,000 acres are being added to the greenbelt—I don’t hear that from the opposition questions too often. And we are now going to be a global hub for EV vehicles.

We are doing so much more. We have the opportunity to talk and debate today.

The legislation that we’re putting through in reducing inefficiencies is going to have no negative impact on the environment whatsoever—period, full stop.

You did mention what are we doing in a positive way for the environment, that we don’t often hear in the media and in the House: the largest investment in transit in Canadian history. People forget about that.

I talked about Infrastructure Ontario being a global leader in P3s and infrastructure development, which we should be very proud of. That’s one thing I think Canadians and Ontarians need to do more—show the world what we’re doing.

Ontario has over 90% emissions-free electricity, most of which—or a lot of that, a very high component—comes from nuclear. I’m not sure where the opposition NDP stands on that; I think there might be some division in the party, because I don’t hear them talking too much about that.

We’ve got great programs in place. We’re going to continue on this path to build Ontario and make it a great place to work, live and raise a family.

I thank the member from Oakville for his terrific remarks.

You mentioned 50 years and what an extraordinarily long time that is—some folks here not born yet. I can tell everyone that I was born—I was 13 years old 50 years ago. You can do the math. In fact, 50 years ago, I had just finished being a page the year before, so there you go. In fact, 50 years ago, the Toronto Maple Leafs had just won the cup six years earlier—wow.

The environmental track record of this government has been mentioned. I’ve got to say, I’m very proud of what we are doing, whether it’s the biggest transit investment in the history of the province, whether it’s over 90% of our electricity production being clean, whether it’s what we’re doing in the steel industry, cleaning that up—and on and on it goes.

I want to ask the member, consistent with those measures and the upgrading of the environmental assessment process, how will this help achieve our goals for Ontario?

My friend from Oakville said on several occasions that there’s no impact to environmental assessments.

I just want to direct his attention and hear some comments about schedule 1, where this bill actually allows the environmental minister to waive the 30-day waiting period that’s currently required following the end of the class EA assessment.

I’m wondering, am I not reading the legislation correctly, member? Is there not a significant change that would allow some—

I appreciate this government’s goal to reduce red tape. If a regulation is unnecessarily burdensome, then we should consider amending or removing it. For example, I am supportive of changes that allow businesses to submit information to the government digitally when possible.

But I have to say that I and others on this side of the House still have a lot to learn about the goals and outcomes the government hopes to achieve through this bill.

I was very confused upon reading schedule 2, because while this bill purports to reduce red tape, it may in fact actually add to it. As it stands, Ontario’s crown corporations are able to manage their own real estate. Often, they rent space in an office building, as many small and medium-sized organizations do. But if this new legislation is enacted, these crown corporations will have their real estate authority stripped from them and placed in the hands of the mega Ministry of Infrastructure.

For example, today the EQAO can decide for itself, within its approved budget, where its couple of dozen employees will work. If they needed help with that decision, I expect the Ministry of Infrastructure staff would be happy to offer advice; instead, now the ministry will decide. So if I understand correctly, the EQAO will have to go to the ministry to say that their lease is up for renewal, and a decision will have to be made by the minister whether the lease is renewed or they will need to relocate. It seems to me this could in fact add layers to this decision. For example, an employee in the ministry will consider the issue and go to their superior, who will go to their superior, who will go to the deputy minister. Because of possible bottlenecking, this decision could actually take longer than it does today, and if there is a bottleneck with approvals and decision-making, I can envision a scenario where the deputy minister will have to hire a contractor who may even end up making the same decision the EQAO would have in the first place. Instead, this decision will have taken longer, will have cost the taxpayers more money, and will have been done with less transparency.

This government does have a clear track record of making decisions without consultation and without being transparent with the voters of Ontario about their rationale—for example, the strong-mayors legislation; reducing conservation authorities’ ability to protect the environment; invoking the “notwithstanding” clause; and, of course, opening up the greenbelt after saying that they wouldn’t.

When I say here today that my constituents have become skeptical about decisions like this one that come from this government, I hope the government will listen and be more transparent about the rationale for this bill. The only explanation provided is that it stems from an Auditor General report. The member from Oakville could not say if the Auditor General had been consulted in advance of this legislation being developed.

The Auditor General did indeed recommend that Infrastructure Ontario work with ministries and agencies on how to more efficiently use their real estate. She did not recommend this heavy-handed approach of seizing real estate powers.

I am keen to hear more about how this bill will reduce red tape, what the financial business case for this bill is, and what actual dollars and efficiencies the government hopes to achieve.

I will also be looking to learn more about whether or not they did consult the crown corporations affected and the relevant public sector unions that may also be affected, to see if this really is the best course of action. Perhaps this is an opportunity to move these organizations to locations that are lower-cost, but it may not help them fulfill their mandate.

Speaker, I also have requested a briefing from the Minister of Infrastructure. I’m happy to say that I’ve been told I will be meeting with him next week, and I look forward to learning more about this legislation.

I don’t really see this legislation as being about red tape. It seems to have a different rationale, and I do hope we get transparency on that.

Thank you very much. It can be done.

The following are the titles of the bills to which Her Honour did assent:

An Act respecting the adjustment of the boundary between the City of St. Thomas and the Municipality of Central Elgin / Loi concernant la modification des limites territoriales entre la cité de St. Thomas et la municipalité de Central Elgin.

An Act to revive Sapore Di Calabria Inc.

An Act to revive 1748317 Ontario Inc.

An Act to revive 933834 Ontario Limited.

An Act to revive Maizal Tortilleria Inc.

An Act to revive 2103890 Ontario Limited.

An Act to revive Woodstock Moose Lodge No. 1141 (Holdings) Limited.

To the member opposite: I think we’re reading the same thing but maybe looking at it differently. But in the end, there is no change to the environmental assessment program—zero, period, full stop.

Good afternoon, everyone. I will be sharing my time with my dynamite colleague MPP Bowman.

The government has big ambitions to cut red tape—and I do like the colour red, to the member of Oakville. What I am scared of is the green tape they might cut along the way.

I am open to hearing about Bill 69. I agree that we should modernize the environmental assessments process, because as we’ve heard umpteen times, it hasn’t been updated in 50 years. What I am not sure of is if waiving the 30-day assessment period between when comments are given during the environmental assessment and when it can proceed is the way to do so.

Limiting the ability to extend comment periods may jeopardize meaningful consultation on projects. Short consultation periods may unfairly affect environmental groups that do not have enough full-time staff to compile research and responses. Believe me, these environmental groups have been scrambling to keep up with what’s happening with this government lately. We have already seen the government suspend these 30-day periods to fast-track its projects, and it seems the bill, if passed, will turn that pattern into law. These periods allow for a thriving and healthy democracy, where Ontarians can have a say on various projects. We must allow for more input from the public, not less, and have ample time to digest the comments made and, if needed, action them to ensure our beautiful environment is protected.

Let’s imagine a scenario where an Ontario environmental expert submits an important suggestion on the last day of the comment period. The government would have no obligation to understand or action the useful advice given.

This all comes after the government has already eliminated the role of our vital conservation authorities in building regulation with Bill 23.

Why doesn’t the government want to utilize the skill set and knowledge of these experts? They continue to give themselves more power and authority, spreading their resources too thinly and creating a system where things fall through the cracks without the tape to keep it in place.

This bill does seem small and administrative; however, it could have potentially damaging effects. It’s a slippery slope for environmental protections, and I must assess and evaluate Bill 69 knowing the government’s track record on maintaining and strengthening said environmental protections.

Similar to Bill 23, Bill 69 is proposing the removal of the need for expertise in place to protect Ontarians from future disasters and financial burdens. Advice and consultation is essential in being proactive to combat emergency preparedness and climate adaptation.

We saw the role of conservation authorities dwindled down by Bill 23.

Conservation authorities were created following the disaster of Hurricane Hazel. This tragedy embarks a memory of Ontario’s past that should not be forgotten. In 1954, over 1,000 homes were destroyed or seriously damaged. The flooding of these homes built on flood plains contributed to the death of 81 Ontarians. As a result, conservation authorities were designated duties to protect and regulate land for the safety of communities. They were one piece of a larger puzzle to protect the ecosystem and environment we have and love in this province.

I worry about the ramifications of Bill 69 now, knowing that the government so readily removed the expertise of conservation authorities in the building process.

By introducing Bill 69, we are taking away protective measures in place for our constituents. I cannot sit back and watch, yet again, the advice of the experts with extensive knowledge on how to protect us be ignored by this government. How are we going to strive to protect our homes and our environment if we continue to take shortcuts? Think about your residents. Without consultation advice from environmental experts, our government will only contribute to the ongoing risks and harm towards the environment.

We know from the Insurance Bureau of Canada that insurance claims from severe weather have more than quadrupled over the past 15 years and that 10% of homes in Canada are now uninsurable relative to flood protection.

Building in certain areas without sufficient environmental consultation will cost the government and Ontarians in the long run.

Bill 69 may speed up the process of getting things built, but we may lose something critical along the way.

At this point, I would like more information about Bill 69—so much that earlier this week, my office contacted the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks for a briefing. Unfortunately, the ministry told me they were unable to accommodate a briefing at this time. If they are unable to accommodate a briefing at this time, how will they be able to make comments on environmental assessments within the current additional 30 days? I worry about them managing their workload. Thankfully, the Ministry of Infrastructure has agreed to do a briefing.

At this point, in 2023, the risk is too high to eliminate any tools we need to protect the environment and the people of Ontario from emergencies. We may be cutting red tape, but at what cost? Building sustainably with proper care and consideration of our environment protections is the right and fiscally responsible thing to do.

I’m handing over my time to my colleague.

Thank you very much to the member from St. Catharines—a beautiful riding—for that very vital and important question about trust with this government on the environmental front.

On my first day here, basically, we had the beautiful throne speech, and climate change was not mentioned once. As my Irish nana would say, start as you mean to go on. That’s how we started here with trust on the environmental front. And then we have gone to—lucky me, because most of these wild bills have come to my committee—Bill 23, Bill 6, Bill 39. We have the destruction of the conservation authorities. We have the destruction of the Toronto Green Standard, which the Premier actually voted in support of when he was working with me at Toronto city hall back in the day. And with the destruction of the Toronto Green Standard, we also lose green standards from other municipalities. Many members here would have great green standards in their own municipalities. We’ve lost that across Ontario. So, essentially, we’re not starting as we mean to go on.

There’s a huge lack of trust with this government on the environmental front amongst many Ontarians and many in this chamber. It’s unfortunate.

There are many examples right across Ontario of how and why we need that 30-day period and we need to listen to experts.

I think this has been the problem with some of these bills and what the government hopes to accomplish.

I would say this with all due respect: We are not the sharpest knives in the drawer; we are not the experts in every single area of expertise. That is why we rely on experts such as the conservation authorities. They have institutional knowledge. They have a wealth of history, a long history in protecting Ontario from flooding and other natural disasters. So it is up to the government to listen to experts and then formulate proper legislation that respects Ontarians, that respects the environment.

Mr. Speaker, the members opposite keep talking about the environmental assessment. This bill clearly states, and the Minister of Infrastructure has covered in her speech, that the environmental process is not being compromised, and the proposed legislative amendments are minor and will not have any impact on the existing class environmental assessments or environmental protection.

What this bill will instead do, as I said, is, it will reduce red tape, it will optimize office space and improve economic growth, and it will have tangible savings for the government in the mid-term and the long term and will save taxpayers money.

Why are the members opposite against building infrastructure that the people of Ontario need and deserve?

Again, returning to my friends from the Liberal caucus: I think it is worth thinking about the context of the last four years. We’ve been asking this question about environmental assessments and the importance of them. We’re seeing that schedule 1 of this particular bill gets rid of that 30-day waiting period, and I’m wondering if you have any examples from your own communities about when having that 30-day waiting period could actually add some value—in seeing that moving ahead with something may not be in the public’s best interest.

Now we’ll have questions to the members who just made their presentation together.