Hear, hear.

Bill could not be here today, as he is active with his new job. We know he will be here again soon.

Bill grew up in the riding, in the booming metropolis of Hepworth. He was very active in sports, and I understand he developed his speaking ability while playing third base for various baseball teams in the riding.

Bill was successfully elected in 2011, 2014 and 2018. I was Bill’s campaign manager in 2018. He worked actively for our community during his two terms in opposition, including as critic for long-term care. But it was during his last mandate, when in government, where Bill was able to really deliver so fully for our Grey-Bruce community: three new schools, three daycare facilities, broadband investments throughout the riding, 958 new and upgraded long-term-care beds and, of course, the new hospital being built in Markdale. What a track record. That is getting it done.

These accomplishments would not have happened without Bill’s energy and dedication. You’ve heard of the Energizer bunny; we called him Energizer Billy to acknowledge how hard he worked every day. As members here know, Bill’s friendship and team approach defined how he operated all the time. Oh, and of course, saying over 127,000 words in this chamber in one year and having a drink—the Billy Walker—named after him were also an important part of his legacy.

Bill, thank you for all you’ve done for Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound and who you’ve been throughout your terms of service. You’ve served your community and your province with distinction.

I want to also take a moment to acknowledge Bill Murdoch, who represented Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound from 1990 to 2011. As members know, Bill passed away last week. He was an extraordinary and incredibly active member of the Grey-Bruce community and of this chamber. His name is carved on the walls five times. Bill’s legacy will long be remembered and cherished. Many current members served with Bill and have related fond memories of his work here at Queen’s Park. I know we will have an opportunity to formally remember Bill Murdoch in this House sometime soon, and I know we all look forward to that presentation. Thank you, Bill, for your great work and for being the great person you were.

Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound is a big and beautiful riding. From the southern communities of Hanover and Dundalk up to Tobermory, it is 175 kilometres from end to end. Our biggest centre is Owen Sound, at 21,600 people. It’s where my constituency office is located, which is run by Ontario’s best constituency team: Julie, Lisa and Karen. Thank you so much for your excellent support.

The economic base of the riding is heavily agricultural, with large beef, dairy and cash crop producers throughout. In addition, there’s a solid economic base, with a variety of excellent businesses, including Chapman’s ice cream, in Markdale, and Bruce Power, in our colleague Lisa Thompson’s riding, but with substantial operations in Owen Sound and in my riding. Both of these companies were excellent community stewards during COVID.

Of course, I could not discuss Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound without referring to the significance of the landscape, which we are so fortunate to enjoy. Whether it’s the harbour and islands around Tobermory, the beautiful grotto on Georgian Bay or the rugged beauty of the Beaver Valley, our home is a beautiful and scenic place to live. Please come and visit.

And, of course, we’d love to see you up in Wiarton on Groundhog Day, where you can see and hear Wiarton Willie make the bold prediction about when spring will come. The Premier has been to see Willie, and we sure hope he will be back. Trust me, watching fireworks at 7 a.m. on a cold winter morning is something you will not soon forget.

So why am I here now and what was the journey that got me here? Well, my journey started in grade 3. I was attending John Ross Robertson public school. I enjoyed math, playing the recorder and recess. Then our teacher, Miss Redmond, told us one day that there would be an election for mayor of the grade. So I ran for mayor of grade 3. Who does that? But it was fun. I had a neat slogan: “Want a New Pair of Plyers? Vote Byers for Mayor.” It rhymed very well. There were three candidates: me, another boy and a girl named Janet Cameron. Of course, I didn’t win, as the boys either voted for me or the other fellow, and all the girls voted for Janet. It was my first taste of vote-splitting. But I’d caught the political bug.

Next was four years later and my chance to be a page here in the Ontario Legislature. It was 1972—that’s right, 50 years ago. Now, I know some of you are saying, “Rick, you look so young. Are you sure it wasn’t 30 years ago?” Others are probably saying, “It’s probably more like 70 years.” Anyway, regardless of the time, my interest in being a page came from my parents’ active involvement in our local riding.

So in the spring of 1972, in the 29th Parliament, I was here. Bill Davis was Premier, Bob Nixon was Leader of the Opposition, and the cabinet included Bette Stephenson, Darcy McKeough and Frank Miller. It was a thrill. I loved it every day. I even got the seating plan signed by almost all the members. I still have it. The bug was getting more active.

The next step was a chance to work for Michael Wilson in Ottawa, when he was Minister of Finance. I worked on his staff in a tax policy role. It was a tough environment back then, with rising interest rates and challenging inflation—sound familiar? I was involved in four budgets and with many policy areas, including helping structure everybody’s favourite sales tax, the GST. But the lesson that stuck with me from that work was the willingness of a government to make the tough but right decisions, even if the politics were difficult. I saw that first-hand. It had a big impact.

My work with Mike Wilson triggered a career in finance with BMO Capital Markets and then the OMERS pension plan. I worked with governments on financial and infrastructure matters, and I enjoyed and appreciated seeing public policy’s perspective from the viewpoint of a commercial partner and the financial markets.

During this time, we were living in Oakville and raising our family there. And during this time, I ran in three elections: federally in 2000 and 2004, and provincially in 2007. I lost each time. Who does that? I must hold some record for most electoral losses in Oakville. Oh, well. I mention these political losses not to relive the memory of having gone through them, but because they have instilled two lessons which I hope to use to my benefit in my current role as a member.

The first lesson: While losing hurts, it makes finally winning even more cherished. More importantly, though, it motivates you to focus even more on serving your community. As I noted earlier, I will never take for granted the voters of Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound, who gave me this amazing opportunity to serve the community and the province—never.

Secondly, I believe it has made me focus more on the outcomes of government, rather than on the process. When I was asked by the party to be a candidate for this election, the previous losses made me think very hard about whether I should try again. Margot, of course, had the best perspective. She said, “If you don’t run, I won’t listen to you for one second on how good you might have been as a member”—sound advice. My decision to run ultimately focused on my desire to get things done for the community and for the province; in other words, the outcomes of government. That is certainly what I hope will guide my actions in this chamber.

That’s why I was so pleased to hear the major elements of the throne speech, as delivered by the Lieutenant Governor: building our health care system, building an economy with better jobs and bigger paycheques, building Ontario’s roads and transit infrastructure to keep Ontarians moving, building the workforce we need for the jobs of tomorrow, and building more homes that people can afford. These will all be important outcomes and results from our work together here in this chamber. They will deliver important results in our communities and for the province. For me, these goals reinforce why I’m so happy to have made this long journey to the Legislature of Ontario.

As I look at the clock, I see that miracles do happen and that I’m approaching my 20-minute limit. Further, as Jim Flaherty used to say, I’ve gone on for almost as long as it seems. So let me finish with a story that will put in further context how I plan to think about the challenge we will face in this 43rd Parliament. The story is set in Antarctica. You see, when I was leaving OMERS in mid-2015, I was approached by a great organization called the True Patriot Love Foundation about an upcoming expedition. True Patriot Love is a fantastic foundation that raises money to fund programs for injured Canadian veterans and their families. They had organized and run expeditions to various exciting places since their start-up in 2009. In fact, our colleague Peter Bethlenfalvy went on an expedition to the North Pole in 2014. He told me it was an incredible adventure.

True Patriot Love said there was a group of 10 veterans and 20 civilians going to Antarctica to climb Mount Vinson—at 16,050 feet, the highest peak on the continent—and would I like to come? Well, of course, anyone who gets asked that question says yes, right? Well, I did end up saying yes and went on this extraordinary adventure to Antarctica in January 2016.

We flew to Punta Arenas at the southern tip of South America, then took a military transport to Antarctica that landed safely on a glistening ice runway. We camped in the intense white of an Antarctica summer, which is a balmy minus 25 degrees most days, with sunlight 24 hours a day. We moved progressively day by day towards the summit opportunity.

To make it to the actual summit, though, we had to traverse a long, narrow ridge at the top of the mountain. It was about 60 metres long and about two metres wide. We were roped together in teams of five. About halfway along the ridge, our group paused. I had a chance to look around. To my left was 45-degree slope and a beautiful white mountainous scene. I remember thinking to myself, “This is fine. If I were to trip, my team could easily secure me.” All was good.

Then I looked down to my right. About 18 inches from my right boot, it was 1,000 feet pretty well straight down. “Yikes,” I said. “Byers, quit being a tourist and take your next step and make sure it’s the best step you can take.” So I did.

Happily, everyone in our group made it to the summit and safely back to camp. A few days later, we took the transport off the ice. What an adventure.

After our celebrations and storytelling though, and coming back safely, I had a chance to reflect on that moment many times: the goal of taking the best next step. I realized that those words can well apply beyond being on a mountain. In fact, it doesn’t matter whether you’re near the summit, at work, with your family or managing your next challenge, the goal should be to make sure you take the best next step.

I believe this thinking can also apply to our role in government. We all know we are facing significant challenges in so many areas. Whether it’s health care, housing, education, the economy or other issues, I believe it’s critical for us to think in terms of taking the next step and making sure it’s the best one we can take. That’s the thinking I hope to bring to my work here in the Legislature, and I know you will hold me to account for that approach.

So, colleagues, thank you for this opportunity to share some thoughts about my journey to this important place and the approach I hope to take. I look forward to working with you all and, together, taking the best next step.

I appreciate the question from the member opposite.

The government is working diligently on building adaptation and resiliency. That’s why we were the first government to launch a climate change impact assessment, something that could have been done under the decade-plus rule of the previous government but wasn’t. We have launched that impact assessment to work with municipalities at a regional level to identify areas of vulnerability and act. That’s why our Minister of Infrastructure has invested historic dollars into rural municipalities, northern municipalities, and is working around the clock with her federal counterparts at making these historic investments.

Also, that member would know very well, coming from the Beaches, the record investment in stormwater and waste water investments under this Premier. In fact, I’ll quote the mayor, who said this was a “significant investment” to benefit and improve the lives of Toronto residents. That member knows that because, in her community, under the previous Liberal government, sewage was discharged in record amounts into Lake Ontario. This Premier is cleaning it up.

Step one is the platitudes that we heard from the previous government. Step two is meaningful action, making investments into municipalities, something this government has done. Thanks to the leadership of this Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, we have record partnerships, historic investments into the municipalities. Thanks to this Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, we’re creating clean, green jobs of the future, making record investments into the electrification of the automobile that’s breathing new life. We’re taking two million cars off the road thanks to partnering with Algoma and Dofasco, and those workers are staying right here in Ontario. You know where they would have gone? Step one for them was leaving the province, under the previous government.

Our government is taking meaningful action, attracting jobs and talent into this province, and we’re building a greener future—

Speaker, all they offer is doom and gloom, driving jobs out of this province. This Premier is building a cleaner, greener future.

They offer doom, gloom and misery. This Premier offers green jobs, opportunities for young boys or girls in the trades, and we’re proud of it.

I rise today for the first time in the House to address a question, and I’d like to raise it to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

While former Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty mused about implementing a strong-mayor system, it is strange to see why current Liberal members now question its value. At the time, Premier McGuinty and the then Liberal cabinet were dismayed at what they saw at Toronto city council. They were concerned about the lack of action taken by city council to cut through red tape on behalf of their constituency.

We must act now and empower mayors so there is no further delay on priority projects. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing inform the House how the strong-mayor legislation will ensure the mayors of the city of Toronto and Ottawa have the tools they need to support Ontario and deliver the results that their communities need?

Strong mayoral powers are needed now more than ever to cut through the red tape and move priority projects forward. Year after year, new studies, reports and commission findings say the same thing: We are falling behind on building homes, and immediate action needs to happen.

My constituents want more home options, from empty nesters looking to downsize to young couples looking to find a home to raise their family. We must build more homes of all kinds. To do that, we must streamline.

Mr. Speaker, what is the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing doing to get more housing built across the 444 municipalities in the province?

East.

I’m going to stray for one second, Madam Speaker, but you’ll see the connection. I know that sometimes the table gets a bit worried that the connections aren’t there. But the connections really are there. We’re connecting the former leader of the NDP, who, until very recently, was a member of this House, who was unsupportive for 10 or 12 or 13 years, as leader of the NDP, particularly in the last four years, of measures that were—transit and transportation: didn’t like it; building homes: didn’t like it. Anti-development—that was the leader. Two weeks after leaving office, running for mayor—well, all just a misunderstanding; people really didn’t understand her.

Interjection.

But what we understand now is, we’ve got to get it done.

Again, I stray a bit far, because the member for Hamilton East, of course, Madam Speaker—and it will come around, I promise you—has a magnificent track record in his community; it goes without saying. The member for Hamilton East is a community builder. He helps build that community. And I will say—I know he will forgive me—there were a lot of people who probably said before the last election, “Conservatives will never elect a member for Hamilton East.” I know they said that.

Interjections.

Could I seek unanimous consent now to speak for an extra hour, Madam Speaker? I’ve only got 22 minutes. So I’ll do it right now.

I seek unanimous consent to extend my remarks by another 60 minutes.

I think that highlights why we can’t support the motion—because it’s not about being heard, because they shot down an opportunity to be heard. It’s not about the government being heard. It’s not about the people being heard. It’s only about what they want.

So, given that the NDP don’t want people to be heard, it makes this whole amendment to the motion irrelevant. Given that they don’t want to be heard, I move the adjournment of the debate.

It’s not often that a House leader has an entire party vote against him and is happy about it—because they did what always happens with Conservative parties: They lifted me up so that we can continue the hard work for the people of the province of Ontario, and again, I thank them for it. We couldn’t get any of this done if we didn’t work together as a team.

As I look across the vast expanse of Conservatives on this side of the House, on that side of the House, where used to sit NDP now sit Conservatives—that’s a majority caucus on that side of the House, over there, and they want to be heard on the budget. They’ve been talking about the great budget that was presented, as I talked about, by the Minister of Finance before the last election.

We’re not going to delay making things better for the people of the province of Ontario—because they wanted to shut down me, they wanted to shut down all of you. We said no. And we came in massive numbers, just like the people of the province of Ontario did on June 2—and in return, a strong, stable Conservative majority government for the province of Ontario. Why did they do that? Because they knew that progress could not be stopped. They said, “There is no way we are going to stop the progress that is made.”

A budget that includes transit and transportation initiatives—we talked about this earlier. When we allowed the NDP-Liberal coalition that almost destroyed the province of Ontario for so many years, they couldn’t come up with a subway. We heard it over and over and over again. I talked about this when I was a federal member. I announced the Sheppard subway and the Scarborough subway four different times, and by the last time, it was like—“Holy mackerel. We’re not coming back out until you guys figure out what you want to do.” And in the first year of our mandate, what did we get done? We got a subway in Toronto. We got a subway into York region. And let me tell you, Madam Speaker—where are the member for Richmond Hill and the minister from Aurora–Oak Ridges–Richmond Hill? These two drove the York subway extension, and it’s for them. They said, “We need a subway in York region,” and they fought for it. For so long, Liberal politicians failed. But we got it done. We’re getting it done.

For those colleagues who really were so instrumental in saying, “Get out there and talk about the things that are important. Don’t let them shut you down,” I referenced earlier in debate—for some of you who were so intense in reading your files, I wanted to refresh you on how the former leader of the NDP now wants us to pass our budget. Her slogan for mayor of Hamilton is “Get It Done.” Andrea Horwath, the former leader of the NDP, now running for the mayor of Hamilton, supports everything we’re doing.

Look at my Mississauga caucus that was returned to the House—Mississauga–Streetsville, Mississauga Centre, Mississauga–Erin Mills, Mississauga East–Cooksville, Mississauga–Lakeshore, Mississauga–Malton. Are you telling me there are Conservatives in all of Mississauga yet again? Is that what you’re saying to me? Why are there Conservatives in all of Mississauga? Because you’re getting it done.

We talked about the member for Hamilton East, but let’s talk about the member for York South–Weston. When was the last time a Conservative held the seat in York South–Weston? I think it was 75, 76 years ago. They all said, “It’s not going to happen,” but we got it done.

There’s just so much. Where does it end?

There was a very good member in this House—I enjoyed working with him. I’m going to be honest. He was a member for a very, very long time. He is a good, decent man—the member for Timmins, Gilles Bisson. Everybody said, “You’re not going to beat Gilles Bisson.” He’s a good guy. Don’t get me wrong; he accomplished a lot in his time in office. Everybody said, “You can’t do it. You’re not going to win the north. It’s not going to happen for Conservatives.” Well, guess what? George is here.

Interjections.

We heard that before. The member for Sault Ste. Marie said, “Conservatives are never going to win Sault Ste. Marie,” but we got that one done even before the last election.

Then, in North Bay, they said you couldn’t do that, but we still maintain North Bay,

In Thunder Bay—“You’re never going win a seat in Thunder Bay. It’s not going to happen.” But did it happen? It happened.

It’s all about getting things done. That’s why we don’t want to delay the budget. Why would we want to delay the budget, a budget that returned so many Conservatives?

Let’s think for a second, for the new colleagues, about what it was like in this place before the last election. I’m going to share a little story, Madam Speaker, through you, to the colleagues who are new. You will remember, because you’re a veteran of the place, how time after time after time we would talk about things that were important to Brampton. We would talk about things that were important to Brampton, and they said, “Well, you don’t know what you’re talking about. You guys don’t understand the people of Brampton.” We would talk about transit: “You don’t get them.” We would talk about a highway: “They don’t want a highway.” We would talk about health care: “They don’t need health care.” They said, we are going to take them—and actually, the leader of the federal NDP, his brother was one of the members who was in that area. The deputy leader of the NDP was also there. And do you know what?

Help me—Brampton Centre is a Conservative. Is it Brampton East—

Interjection.

Interjections.

I know what all colleagues are thinking. They’re thinking it can’t get any better than that. “Holy mackerel. Does it get any better than that?” I think, yes, it does get better than that, because there were two ridings—Essex and Windsor–Tecumseh. Windsor–Tecumseh—94 years between Conservative—

Interjections.

Perhaps colleagues can help me. Is there a Conservative in Windsor–Tecumseh?

People will remember the former member for Essex. He did a good job for the job that he had to do. I actually like him. He’s a decent guy, but it’s tough to find a more negative take on our—a good guy. He’s a very positive guy—but it’s hard to find a more negative take on the things that we were accomplishing as government. But guess what? Is the member for Essex a Conservative, colleagues? Yes—right there.

Glengarry–Prescott–Russell—“Conservatives don’t win in francophone ridings. That doesn’t happen.” Is the member for Glengarry–Prescott–Russell here? Is he a Conservative? Yes, he is—right there, colleagues.

Across the board, that is what Conservatives do—they get things done.

The NDP bring a motion to the floor of this House, colleagues, and what do they want to do? They want to delay, and how—think about this: We want to continue debate. You all convinced me we’ve got to continue debate and we won’t be silenced. But who was silenced this afternoon? Who didn’t even stand and vote? It was the opposition NDP. They didn’t even have the temerity to get out of their seats on the last vote and be heard by the people of the province of Ontario. It really proves, colleagues, that it’s all about games. That’s all they care about.

Well, we care about getting things done for the people of the province of Ontario.

We want to reform health care in the province of Ontario. That’s why we’re not going to delay. That’s why we’re not going to go for an amendment to a motion—colleagues, you know we brought forward a motion because we want to pass the budget, which the people of the province of Ontario massively approved in an election. We said we won’t delay it. We also brought to this floor a piece of legislation that will help improve health care for millions of people in the province of Ontario. They want us to delay it. They want us to delay any changes—like somehow it makes it better to delay. Well, that’s what they did.

We saw what NDP policies were—you remember this. When they did have the one chance to govern, they almost bankrupted us—an $11-billion deficit in 1995. They closed down—well, colleagues, what did they do? They actually fired nurses, laid off doctors. They then did something called a Rae Day—they made you take 10 days off without getting paid. They closed floors of hospitals, shuttered floors of hospitals—but don’t worry, because then they got together in a room, created a song and sang a song at a piano, “We’re all in this together,” and that was supposed to make everything better, but it didn’t. It took a Mike Harris government to put Ontario back on track—and we got it done.

Madam Speaker, I think it is very clear why we want to continue working for the people of the province of Ontario; why we aren’t going to play the games of the opposition; why I, as the House leader, am going to take the advice of my colleagues and use all of the tools at my disposal to make sure that these two important pieces of legislation pass quickly. Because of that and because I want to get these bills done and passed, I move the adjournment of the House.