My question is to the Premier.

Yesterday, we saw both the Premier and the former Solicitor General—now Deputy Premier—dodge questions about their summons from the Public Order Emergency Commission. In fact, since the summons was issued, we haven’t heard a word from either the Premier or the former Solicitor General. Hiding the problem does not make it go away.

I ask the Premier, will he come clean and commit today to speaking with the commission?

Back to the Premier—

Interjections.

Speaker, the Premier was hiding then, when he let convoy organizers occupy Ottawa and harass residents, and he is hiding now by not testifying at the commission. He cannot hide forever. Will the Premier finally do the right thing, go to Ottawa and testify before the commission?

Mr. Speaker, this is a federal inquiry into the federal government’s use of the federal Emergencies Act. From day one, for Ontario, this was a policing matter; it was not a political matter.

The opposition knows politicians don’t direct the police. Top officials from the OPP, who were running the operation in conjunction with the municipal police agencies and the RCMP, are testifying at the committee.

Again, Mr. Speaker, this is a federal inquiry into the federal government’s decision to use the federal Emergencies Act.

I’m now going to ask our pages to assemble for their introductions.

It is my distinct pleasure as Speaker to welcome this latest group of legislative pages: from the riding of Markham–Stouffville, Malini Ayyappan; from Cambridge, Vanessa Bal; from Huron–Bruce, Rachel Beith; from Dufferin–Caledon, Mitchell Blanden; from London West, Pearl Clarke; from Oakville, Elliott Dixon; from Mississauga Centre, Amy Do Rego-Luis; from Don Valley East, Karma Dorji; from Windsor–Tecumseh, Marshall Dowie; from the riding of Timmins, Jacob Dunkley; from Nickel Belt, Molly Farrell; from Barrie–Springwater–Oro-Medonte, Julien Gingras; from Scarborough Southwest, Julie Harrop; from Kanata–Carleton, Conner Kam; from Toronto–St. Paul’s, Sofia Marra; from Kitchener South–Hespeler, Mae McNamara; from the riding of Orléans, Bridget Osezua; from Ottawa Centre, Gabrielle Ovens; from Stormont–Dundas–South Glengarry, Nolan Stoqua; and from the riding of King–Vaughan, Sahana Suren.

Welcome.

Applause.

Stop the clock.

The House will come to order. We’ve got 58 minutes and 26 seconds to go. We’re just getting started. It’s the second day. I have to be able to hear the member who has the floor.

Start the clock. Supplementary question.

Interjections.

I think the Premier has been very clear. This is obviously a federal inquiry into the federal government’s decision to invoke the federal Emergencies Act. I know the member opposite doesn’t appreciate that, Mr. Speaker, but that is the case.

At the same time, we have been assisting the commission by ensuring that cabinet documents have been provided to the commission and by also ensuring that both the Deputy Minister of Transportation and the Deputy Solicitor General are made available to the commission to assist them as they investigate the federal government’s invocation of the Emergencies Act.

The member herself shows exactly why this is political. It shouldn’t be. It is a policing matter. We have been hearing that consistently throughout the testimony so far and that is why we are assisting the commission in ensuring, as I said, that cabinet documents are made available, that the Deputy Solicitor General has been made available and the Deputy Minister of Transportation. We’ll continue to provide that assistance as required.

We are assisting the commission, Mr. Speaker, as you would expect, by ensuring that the Deputy Minister of Transportation and the Deputy Solicitor General are made available to the commission. We know that the OPP commissioner also will be testifying and, at the same time, cabinet documents with respect to that time period have been turned over to the commission. We will continue to assist the commission as it investigates the federal government’s use of the federal Emergencies Act.

No.

My question is to the Premier. Premier, it’s nice to see you today. I expect an answer to the question I’m about to ask.

Friends, I wonder if you could clear something up: Is the mayor of Windsor a police officer? Yes or no?

Let’s get to the nut of it, Speaker. Lawyers representing this government told a federal court yesterday that “irreparable harm” will be caused if this Premier and that minister testify before the commission. Could the Premier tell us today: What irreparable harm are you talking about?

I didn’t get an answer to my question. I really hope the Premier will rise in his place and answer the people of Ottawa Centre today, because we deserve it.

The question here is, what irreparable harm is this Premier and his lawyers talking about? Because I want to talk about actual irreparable harm. I want to talk about a government that sat on its hands for three weeks while chaos reigned in our city, while residents choked on diesel fumes, while hate groups ran amok with impunity. And I want to talk about a government—it took three weeks for them to tow and fine 39 vehicles, and then they gave those vehicles back to those truck owners without a single fine, despite the fact that this Premier promised $100,000 fines.

Small businesses like the Ottawa Bike Café suffered terribly on Sparks Street, and they are—right now, as I say these words—teetering on bankruptcy. That’s the real harm caused to the people of Ottawa Centre.

What are the fake excuses this government is hiding behind today?

We know for a fact that the commission has made clear, with several pieces of evidence, that the province chose not to get involved at early critical stages of the convoy protest. It’s like they forgot the city of Ottawa was in the province of Ontario. And after what people back home have been through, this Premier and that minister owe it to us to come to Ottawa and testify.

Here’s an offer, Speaker, through you to the government: I’ve got a nice little hybrid vehicle here. I leave on Thursday to go back to Ottawa. Do you need a drive, Premier? Do you need a drive, Minister? I’ll take you there myself. The ride is a serious offer.

Obviously, a tremendous amount of resources were provided to the city of Ottawa and continue to be. But the current commission of inquiry is specific to the federal government’s use of the federal Emergencies Act. By the terms of that legislation, of course, the federal government had to invoke this commission of inquiry.

Now, we are assisting the commission in its work by ensuring that the Deputy Minister of Transportation is made available to the commission, by ensuring that the Deputy Solicitor General is made available to the commission. At the same time, certain cabinet documents have been requested. We’re assisting the commission by providing those documents to them. We’ll continue to work with and assist the commission as it does its work.

At the same time, I’m heartened to know that the member opposite has a green vehicle. He’s very lucky, because of all of the work that the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade has been doing to ensure that green vehicles are the future in the province of Ontario. And because of the work of the Minister of Energy, we can now charge up those green vehicles at the ONroutes between Ottawa and Toronto. We couldn’t do that before, could we? We couldn’t do that before because they didn’t exist. So congratulations to the member opposite.

We’ll continue to work on behalf of the people of the province of Ontario. But really, specifically to the commission, we’ll continue to assist them because it’s important that we do so.

What we’re trying to do and what the commission is trying to do is get to the bottom of the fact of whether the Emergencies Act was required. By law, the federal government has to invoke this commission of inquiry. They have asked us for certain cabinet documents—and we’re assisting the commission in ensuring that that happens. It is a policing matter, as the Premier has said. It shouldn’t be a political matter, like the opposition is trying to make it. That is why we have offered and are ensuring that the Deputy Minister of Transportation is available to ask the questions—as the member for Ottawa Centre has highlighted. We’re also making the Deputy Solicitor General available.

We’ll continue to assist the commission as it does its work to investigate the federal government’s use of the federal Emergencies Act.

That is why, of course, we are assisting the commission in its work, by ensuring that the Deputy Minister of Transportation is available, that the Deputy Solicitor General is available, and by ensuring that cabinet documents relevant to the commission’s inquiry are also made available.

We continue to assist the commission of inquiry as it does its work in assessing whether the federal government’s invocation of the federal Emergencies Act was required at the time.

To the government House leader: There was absolutely nothing funny about what happened in Ottawa or in Windsor, so I suggest that you stop making light of the situation and cracking jokes.

My question is to the Premier. The federal Public Order Emergency Commission has requested to interview the Premier and Minister Jones regarding the use of the federal Emergencies Act.

In my riding, the Ambassador Bridge, North America’s largest international crossing, was completely blocked by convoy supporters. Billions of dollars of goods were unable to cross into Canada or the United States, which caused auto and manufacturing plants to close, and thousands of workers were laid off. Cross-border workers, including nurses, were unable to access their jobs. Many small businesses in the area were forced to close and lost significant business due to the disruption. The people in my riding deserve complete transparency from this government.

Just the other day, the Premier said he stands shoulder to shoulder with the Prime Minister in support of using the Emergencies Act. Why doesn’t he stand shoulder to shoulder with him at the commission and actually answer their questions?

Why do the Premier and Minister Jones continue to refuse to appear at the federal commission?

For six days, my community was in crisis due to the blockade at the Ambassador Bridge. Residents in Sandwich Town were unable to access other parts of our city. Some were afraid to even leave their homes. Truck drivers trying to move goods back and forth across the border were stuck on the road for days without food or access to washrooms. The impact lasted far beyond the blockade.

The Premier and former Solicitor General are dodging requests to be interviewed by the commission and are committed to fighting a summons to appear.

Speaker, the Premier has long said that the buck stops with him, and yet he won’t appear at the commission to answer questions about his decisions.

What are Premier Ford and Minister Jones hiding, and why won’t they testify to ensure that something like this never again happens in my community or in Ottawa or in Fort Erie or anywhere else in this province?

My question is for the Associate Minister of Housing.

Speaker, as you know, Ontario’s housing supply is in crisis. Skyrocketing demand has far outpaced the construction of new supply, making the Canadian dream of home ownership far out of reach for many Ontarians. And with Ontario’s population projected to grow by millions in the coming years, the demand will only increase.

Many of my constituents in Mississauga Centre—from hard-working young professionals to young families, students, new Ontarians, and seniors looking to downsize—are finding themselves priced out of the market and unable to find housing options that meet their needs.

Can the minister elaborate on what steps our government’s newly proposed housing supply action plan will take to ensure that our province is able to achieve our goal of building 1.5 million homes over the next 10 years?

The supplementary question.

Interjections.

Response?

Response? The government House leader.

I thank the minister for that response, and I also thank him for recently visiting Mississauga and sitting down with stakeholders on this topic. Speaker, as the minister mentioned, the proposed changes will make alterations to current municipal fees levied on new developments and construction of new housing units across the province. I understand that for every month that approvals are delayed, it can add anywhere from $2,600 to $3,300 onto the cost of building a single-family home or condominium unit in the greater Toronto area, including in Mississauga. Furthermore, many municipalities have increased fees, which are ultimately passed on to the new homebuyer.

Can the minister let us know how this legislation will address this very problem?

Again, I want to thank my honourable colleague for that follow-up question. Speaker, at a time when Ontarians are facing a rising cost of living, we recognize the need to keep costs down for all Ontarians. It’s a concerning trend to see municipal fees and charges levied on new and affordable housing skyrocket by up to 36%. Without considering the impact fee increases have upon tenants and future homeowners, housing prices will rise and affordability will worsen.

Our proposal, if passed, will reduce the cost of residential development by freezing, reducing and slowing future growth of municipal charges. Speaker, as I’ve said before, our government will not shy away from bold and decisive action, under the leadership of this Premier, to streamline municipal approval processes and reduce costs for Ontarians entering the housing market. Like we’ve said time and time again, the previous government let down the people of this province. We will not.

My question is to the Premier. In 2017, the Premier of the province was asked to testify at a very high-profile inquiry in Sudbury. Premier Wynne could have invoked parliamentary privilege to avoid testifying, but she did not. I will quote what she said: “I will testify and I will go along with the process and do what I can to clarify.”

Premiers have waived privilege before. Why won’t Premier Ford?

To the Premier, why won’t he follow the lead of Premier Harris, be accountable, testify before the commission and tell his story?

My question is to the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. Earlier this month, the minister was in Germany and Austria to continue meeting with and attracting investment in the automotive and EV sector. As being someone myself who worked in the auto industry for 31 years at Ford, we can all agree that Ontario should continue to focus on its manufacturing capabilities and ensure that there are plenty of jobs for families across the province.

Speaker, will the minister provide us with an update on his recent trade mission to Germany and Austria?

Speaker, will the minister shed some light on how Germany and Austria feel about investing in Ontario, and what they see our competitive edge to be here in Ontario?

My question is to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. I’m joined today by Susan De Rosa, a tenant whose purpose-built rental is set to be demolished and replaced by a condo. I have been working with Susan and her neighbours at 145 St. George to ensure that if the city approves the development, she and her friends and her neighbours still get the right to return to their homes at the same rent once the condo is complete. But this government is looking at scrapping the rules that give tenants the right to return to their homes at an affordable price, which threatens thousands of affordable private market rental units across our city.

Minister, can you ensure that renters who are evicted can return to their rent-controlled apartment once building is complete?

The supplementary question.

Well, Speaker, I think in the member’s example, the former Premier herself was the subject of the inquiry, right? So it is certainly a big difference. Having said that, we, of course, are going to continue to work with the commission. We have provided cabinet documents for the commission, as has been required. We’re going to continue to assist them by ensuring that not only the commissioner of the OPP but the Deputy Solicitor General are made available to the commission and the Deputy Minister of Transportation is made available.

Look, the difference, again, is that this is a federal commission of inquiry into the federal government’s decision to invoke the federal Emergencies Act for the first time, Mr. Speaker. As you would expect, the commission has asked for assistance in that, and we are providing that assistance in the capacity that I’ve mentioned on numerous occasions in the House.

The mission to Germany and Austria was an opportunity to build on the $16 billion in transformative EV and auto investments that were brought to Ontario in the last 22 months. With all of the turmoil surrounding Europe, these countries are feeling increased pressures on their supply chains. This is what we heard from them. Their dependence on materials from Russia and China has caused them to rethink about hitting a reset button. They now know that Ontario has everything they need.

We have the critical minerals. We have the refining capability necessary to make EV batteries and all of the components. And as the number two auto jurisdiction in all of North America, they know we have a proven ecosystem of reliable partners. We have the skilled trades, 65,000 annual STEM grads, public health care, 94% clean energy—something they’re not going to find in the US. Our message was clear: If you’re into EVs, you need to be in Ontario.

But, Speaker, we then outlined how EVs and batteries that are made in the US are not green. They are made by burning coal. When you buy an EV, you expect the vehicle to be a green vehicle with a green battery and green steel. So our message was very, very simple: You need to make your EV products in Ontario, and we’re here and open for business.