Point of order.

I really want to thank the member from Niagara Centre for your hour lead here. I learned so much. You have a lot of experience to bring to us.

I also want to thank the members on the other side, who—I watched—did stay and paid attention, because we can see that it’s an important bill. We have a lot to learn from one another and respect the experiences that we all bring to this House, so I want to thank you for that.

The dangers here in a bill that has potential to bring in authoritarian rule at a municipal level—these dangers are quite significant. I was wondering if you could just expand a little bit further on your disappointment and my disappointment that we have short-circuited this debate on such an important piece of legislation. We haven’t talked to all of the stakeholders and we haven’t given us, as legislators, adequate time to bring to this House the information that we need.

There has been much speak from the government side about making sure that the strong-mayor program, the bill, is going to be aligned with provincial priorities. Therefore, the mayor of Toronto and the mayor of Ottawa would be acting on behalf of government priorities. And yet, as far as I know, the ministers’ mandate letters have been kept secret, to the point that we need to go to the Supreme Court to find out the contents and the direction from the Premier to the ministers.

So I’m just very curious: How will residents of Toronto, as well as Ottawa, know what the provincial priorities are when the public and members themselves don’t know what is contained in the mandate letters?

I thank the member for the question. I was alive at the time; many voters weren’t. But I appreciate the question. I don’t agree with removing rent controls, no matter who does it. I think rent controls are incredibly important, and they’ve never been more important than right now, because we’re in a housing crisis. It’s a crisis because people can’t afford their rent. If we really want to do something to help keep people from hitting the streets, maybe your government will consider more than a 5% raise to ODSP.

We don’t believe that this is going to do anything for housing. But if the government truly believes that this bill is going to do something to increase housing, especially affordable housing, they should explain that and they should be meeting with housing advocates and explaining to them how that’s going to happen.

I listened to the minister’s press conference the other day. He was asked, over and over again, by journalists. He couldn’t answer the question. You’ve got to have your facts straight if you’re going to put a bill and make a claim like that.

The mandate letters have been kept secret. Yesterday, when we asked for a definition of “provincial priorities” at the ministerial briefing, we got, “Ask the minister.” When the ministry is unclear about what those priorities are—I didn’t hear a clear explanation. I was listening intently to the minister today. I think that’s something we’re sure going to have to ask him over the next few days.

Of course, they only told us we’d be talking about this at 10:45 last night, so it’s a little tough to ask those questions when you’ve got no notice of debate.

On this side of the House, we know that we need homes in this province. As you know, two million people will be moving into the Golden Horseshoe in the next 10 years, and we need approximately 1.5 million homes.

To the member from Niagara Centre: During the 1990s, Bob Rae removed rent control on new builds. Do you remember that? If you do, do you support what Bob Rae did at that time and what we’re doing today to build more rental for this province?

Congratulations to the member on their election to the House.

We’re not; we want to cut red tape. Our version of red tape and the government’s version are quite different. I mentioned, for example, the Ontario Land Tribunal. There’s a whole whack of red tape right there, and municipalities all across Ontario have been asking this government to do something and deal with it. Both developers and councils and citizens want something done about the Ontario Land Tribunal and this government absolutely refuses to deal with that issue. We’re in favour of cutting red tape as long as it’s done responsibly and there is demonstrated need for it. The minister could at least explain how the legislation will result in that happening.

The member from London North Centre.

There’s growth happening all across [inaudible], and most of that growth is anticipated to be happening in Ottawa and in Toronto. For years, we’ve failed to plan for that, even though arguably it could be seen coming. Now, of course, we have a shortage of housing. There’s no disagreement on any side of this House that we need more homes, and that’s homes of all different types.

Why does the opposition oppose giving municipalities the tools they need in order to cut red tape and plan for the efficient building of new housing?

I’d like to thank the member from Niagara Centre for noting that this legislation is part of a broader pattern where we’ve seen the Conservative government interfering in Toronto city council elections in 2018, as well as stepping over London’s successful and widely popular ranked balloting system.

I’d also like to thank the member from Niagara Centre for pointing out that the antithesis to this legislation would be to enhance democracy, to strengthen municipalities with charter cities.

My question is, is this bill yet another attempt to contain, curtail and control democracy as well as other levels of government?

You’re sharing your time with the member for York South–Weston—

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. It is my great honour to stand up in the House for the very first time to be speaking on Bill 3, the Strong Mayors, Building Homes Act. I’d like to start off by acknowledging one of my city hall colleagues previously, the member from Toronto Centre who is also in the chamber. I know we may not agree on many things, we may not have at city hall, but it’s great to be joining you as well.

As I stand in the House for the first time, I want to thank the great people from York South–Weston as they’ve entrusted me to represent them here at Queen’s Park and deliver for our community. Today, across the GTA and the entire province, we are facing a housing crisis, where too many hard-working families are struggling with housing and the rising cost of living. This is no different in my community of York South–Weston.

Recently I chatted with a young university student named Ben, who grew up in the riding and continues to live there with his family, friends and neighbours. He loves the area, but is frustrated and anxious about whether he can ever move out after he graduates this year and eventually own his own home in our community. Ben isn’t alone. This is something I’ve heard time and time again from young people and young families in my riding.

The reality is that our population is growing rapidly, with over a third of growth over the next decade expected to happen in our province’s two most populous cities, Toronto and Ottawa. Unfortunately, Mr. Speaker, housing construction is not keeping pace with the rapid growth of our province and these communities, after years of inaction. There is just not enough supply of homes to meet the growing demand, which is pushing the dream of home ownership too far out of reach and making affordable rentals harder to find for so many hard-working families.

It shouldn’t be this way. Ontarians from all walks of life should be able to work hard, save up and eventually own a home when the time is right. We understand that with inflation driving up the cost of living even higher, Ontarians need their government to be all hands on deck and implementing new, bold solutions. It is critical that we continue to build on our bold vision for the future and for the province to keep costs down and ensure Ontario communities continue to be the best place in the world to live, work and raise a family.

That is exactly what we are going to do. It starts with building more housing supply that everyday people—young families, renters, newcomers and seniors like those in diverse communities such as York South–Weston—can afford and access. Because no matter where you go, people are looking for housing that meets their needs and their budget.

I am proud of the progress that our government has been able to accomplish under the leadership of the Premier and Minister Clark. I welcome the good news that our government’s policies have helped get shovels in the ground for more than 100,000 homes in the last year alone, which is record-setting over the last 30 years.

I know there is still more work that needs to be done to deliver on our commitment to build 1.5 million new homes in our province. However, unlike my opposition colleagues, who say no to housing and the policies our government has put forward, our government is supporting our municipal partners, improving planning policies and cutting red tape to say yes to building more homes faster for everyone.

As a former Toronto city councillor, I know first-hand how it takes way too long to get things built and how frustrating long, drawn-out processes and red tape can be. For example, in Toronto’s northwest community, getting necessary permits, studies and zoning changes to potentially build thousands of new homes can take years, even to be able to get shovels in the ground. There are too many hands in the pot, with too many layers of bureaucracy, studies, permits that are delaying and driving up the cost of housing, construction and other critical infrastructure projects being built across our city.

There are too many delays, whether it’s responding to meeting requests, communications and points of clarification—which is a very much on-the-ground experience that I have seen, being a city councillor—and too many silos and layers that make it challenging for the development community to navigate and move their projects forward.

The people of my community and communities across Ontario, especially in Toronto and Ottawa, are tired of the countless studies and bureaucracy. Change can be slow and challenging at city hall. That is why they need and deserve action now, which is why we are introducing this critical piece of legislation to empower our municipal partners to get it done.

The new strong-mayor system will support better and faster decision-making at a local level and ensure Ontario’s two biggest cities are equipped with the powers they need to cut through red tape and get shovels in the ground. As I’ve mentioned, as a former city councillor in the city of Toronto, I know these municipalities can benefit from these changes presented in Bill 3. The new legislation will help drive up housing supply and speed up local planning approvals, driving policy changes and enabling mayors to build the right team to get the job done and develop budgets to make it happen.

Unlike the federal and provincial elections, where constituents directly vote for their local representative, municipal electors are also able to vote directly for the mayor whose vision, priorities and commitments best align with their values and what they would like to see for the future of their city and community. Although the mayor receives the direct endorsement of the people from across the city, they are stuck with one vote, similar to the rest of the council. The mayor should have more influence over the direction and the future of the city, over one individual city councillor.

However, that does not take away from the importance of city council as a whole, and we are empowering that through this bill. We are setting the bar higher for mayors and making it easier for them to deliver results based on the vision that they were elected to execute for their communities, and better hold them accountable for the decisions they make.

The legislation we are enabling the mayor to direct city staff to develop and bring forward proposals for city council consideration—sorry.

Interjection: Are you okay?

Can we stop the clock?

The Minister of Multiculturalism and Citizenship.

Yes.

We are setting the bar higher for mayors and making it easier for them to deliver results based on the vision they were elected to execute on for their communities and to better hold them accountable for the decisions they make. This legislation will enable the mayor to direct city staff to develop and bring forward proposals for council consideration that advance provincial priorities such as building more housing, transit and transit-oriented communities.

Mr. Speaker, again, we understand that there is no silver bullet to solve the housing crisis that has been decades in the making in this great province, but this bill is yet another step in the right direction and part of our long-term plan to build all kinds of homes, address the missing middle and help all Ontarians find a home that meets their needs.

Our government is about finding solutions and putting these solutions into action. There is no more time to waste. That is what our communities expect of us as elected officials. I am proud to be part of a government that is tirelessly working for the people and putting these ideas into action.

By building faster, adding more housing supply and making municipalities more accountable we can bring the dream of home ownership closer to reality for all people, including the very diverse communities and new immigrants from around our province who call Ontario home for the very first time, and give them a better life.

Together, let’s build more homes that people can afford. Let’s get it done.

Report continues in volume B.

Point of order.