I do, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. I seek unanimous consent that, notwithstanding standing order 100(a)(4), five minutes be allotted to the independent members as a group to speak during private members’ public business today.

I have here with me today in the galleries my incredible team from Treasury Board: my chief of staff, Jenna; Natalie; Ian; Melvin; David; Hamish; Chiara; Mary; Rikin; Catherine; Nuri; Ali; and Christopher. I want to welcome them here to the House.

I’d like to welcome everybody from the Ontario Waterpower Association today. I’m looking forward to talking with them about some of the local small hydro projects near Kingston and also potential hydro projects in other parts of the province, like northern Ontario. I encourage everybody to come to their reception this evening.

I hope all colleagues will join with me and turn their attention to the Speaker’s gallery, where we have Deputy Minister Nancy Matthews and executive assistant Greg Robinson. These are two individuals who have provided close to 60 years of service to the people of the province of Ontario, and in Deputy Minister Matthews’s case, to the city of Toronto as well. They are taking their retirement very, very soon. They have both been absolutely instrumental, not only in making Ontario one of the best places to live, work and invest over the last number of years that they have been here, but in helping guide us through the COVID pandemic.

I hope all members will join with me in thanking them for their incredible service to the people of the province of Ontario.

Applause.

I’ve often said that steelworkers make great leaders. We have a steelworker here today, the vice-president of the Steelworkers’ Toronto Area Council, my good friend Roopchand Doon.

Roop, welcome to Queen’s Park.

In the early days of our first mandate, the Premier laid out our government’s plan to build badly needed transit in the greater Toronto area, and that includes the signature new Ontario Line.

Since those early days, we’ve taken our responsibility to taxpayers very seriously. That’s why our government passed, with no help from that member or the members of the opposition, the Building Transit Faster Act—because we know that time is money.

In addition to being able to deliver value for taxpayers, we also need to have a competitive procurement process, which is why our government decided to break up the procurement for the Ontario Line into three separate packages. As we refined estimates for those packages, they were commercially sensitive, but as soon as those contracts were awarded and have been awarded, they have been publicly posted online with their values. The South Civil has been valued at $6 billion, and a contract for the rolling stock, systems, and operations and maintenance has been valued at $9 billion.

The member opposite wants to talk about—

Members will please take their seats.

To reply, the Minister of Indigenous Affairs.

Interruption.

The member for Ottawa Centre.

I want to thank the honourable member for his question and welcome members from the isolated northern communities.

From the outset, our government has been focused on consensus and relationship-building when it comes to resource projects and legacy infrastructure—in fact, it started a couple of years ago.

I know that Alvin Fiddler is in the galleries here today.

I think back to when the member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke was the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry and we revamped that piece of legislation to reflect consensus. I appreciated that then—the ability for us to sit at a table, build partnerships, friendships, relationships that reflect the need to build out our northern infrastructure and resource projects around consensus.

Many, if not most, of the communities that are represented here today, I’ve had a special opportunity to live in or work in and/or work for, Mr. Speaker, and I can tell you that they all want better infrastructure. They all, for the most part, want road access to improve the health, social and economic opportunities for their communities.

That’s what a provincial government does. We create the platforms for these kinds of resource activities to advance responsibly and safely, at the same time creating new opportunities, real opportunities, for isolated communities, that their members are asking me for every single day—

Remarks in Anishininiimowin.

My question is to the Premier. This government has granted thousands of mining claims on treaty territory and is trying to fast-track dangerous projects against the will of the people who live there, eat the fish and drink the water. Look in the gallery, and you will see leadership and over 80 rights-holders of five First Nations who are here to stand up for their homelands.

Will this government commit today to obtain the consent of First Nations before making any plans for their homelands?

Interjections.

The government says that it respects First Nations, but people here tell me that this government has granted thousands of mining claims in their backyards without prior notice, let alone consent. How does that show respect for the people who have always lived there and cared for their lands?

Will this government commit today to end the antiquated and offensive free-entry staking system?

This government says that it wants prosperity for all Ontarians. But let me be clear, these five First Nations who travelled thousands of kilometres to be here are the ones who have to live with the mess that is left behind after mining. Their children and their grandchildren will have to drink the water downstream from these mines. Will this government promise today to gain their agreement rather than bulldozing over their lands and waters? Better yet, will the Premier meet with these leaders today?

Speaker, all you have to do is look at their expenses from this year and compare them to what’s actually in the budget. It’s not just a difference in reporting; it is a shell game. This government is hiding cuts that are going to eliminate services at a time when people really need them, and that’s not right. They’re cutting funds to the Attorney General, to infrastructure, to transportation, to seniors and accessibility, and to the Solicitor General.

Back to the Premier: What is that going to mean for Ontarians who are waiting for health care, who are at the Landlord and Tenant Board, who are looking for legal aid or seniors’ home care programs?

My question is for the Premier—

Interruption.

This week, Global News revealed that the government is withholding information about the Ontario Line transit project, a public-private partnership which has skyrocketed past the government’s original cost estimates—from $10.9 billion to $19 billion.

Yesterday, the Premier said, “We aren’t hiding anything.” But his officials have redacted documents, so financial disclosure on the Ontario Line is impossible for people from Global News.

I have a simple question: Why won’t this government disclose the financial costs of the Ontario Line?

It wasn’t that long ago that companies were fleeing Ontario. Speaker, 300,000 manufacturing jobs were lost, and our economic future was teetering.

Thankfully, the government of Premier Ford was elected and declared Ontario open for business. Taxes were lowered, energy rates were lowered, and the burden of red tape was reduced. This brought companies pouring back to Ontario.

Now, with budget 2023, there is even more great news for Ontario manufacturers: the Ontario Made Manufacturing Investment Tax Credit. If passed, it will provide companies with a 10% tax credit, up to $2 million a year, on investments in buildings, equipment and machinery.

Those companies will innovate, become competitive, and create even more great jobs for our families.

Thank you. The supplementary question.

Solicitor General.

Things are bad in our jails and have gotten much worse at Vanier Centre for Women and Hamilton-Wentworth Detention Centre. Because the Solicitor General is not honouring the original contracts with the Elizabeth Fry Society, it has had devastating consequences. Instead of having program support when dealing with sexual assault or human trafficking, women and gender-diverse inmates are handed crossword puzzles to deal with their trauma because there’s nothing else—not even pencil crayons anymore. Women used to have support while incarcerated that followed them into the community, and now they get a crossword.

My question is, will you negotiate a contract with Elizabeth Fry, and will you stop your ugly attack on women and recommit programs’ funding?

Mr. Speaker, we’ve been clear. As soon as contracts are awarded, the values of those contracts are posted. They’re publicly available for anyone—for taxpayers and Global News—to examine as they wish.

What I know is, that member opposite and the Leader of the Opposition will do anything to make sure that we don’t build transit in the greater Toronto area. We’ve put out the largest transit expansion plan anywhere in North America, and that party voted against it. We brought forward measures to accelerate the delivery of transit, because we knew we had to address the transit deficit that was left by the previous Liberal government, who could not get transit built in the city of Toronto. We brought that forward. And what did they do? They all voted against it. It’s clear that this is why they are in opposition—because not only are they against transit; they’re against building it faster. It’s clear that they don’t even know how to get it—

I would tell the Premier and the minister, if she will respond to the second question I have here, that you can’t have financial disclosure in the dark.

This is what we know: We know the southern portion of the Ontario Line, as the government has currently proposed, is going to cost nearly a billion dollars per kilometre—nearly a billion dollars. But the Spadina subway extension that was completed in 2017 cost $384 million per kilometre. So what has happened? We can’t simply blame the pandemic, because an April 2020 report reported that subway costs had doubled under this government.

What I see, sadly, at Metrolinx and Infrastructure Ontario are a lot of public-private partnership consultants—former staff members of this government who seem to be enriching themselves at the expense of the Ontario public.

So I ask the Premier, are you going to rein in these private consultants, these P3 financiers, and get our subway costs under control?

My question is for the Premier.

We have seen a scary trend in Hamilton of not-for-profit service providers closing their doors due to budget constraints.

The Hamilton branch of the Elizabeth Fry Society is the latest organization to announce their closure. One volunteer said, “This is very distressing and sad news. The services provided by EFry are so amazing and it is sad to think of all of these women who now have no support as they go through court systems and try to get back on their feet.”

What’s happening in Hamilton is a clear example of the direct consequences of this budget, and it’s obvious who is getting left behind.

Can the Premier explain, where are the supports in this budget for programs like Elizabeth Fry in Hamilton?

I want to thank the member for the question.

Let me be clear: There have been no changes to the funding for our community safety order programs. We continue to support women who are at risk of reoffending.

The John Howard Society is delivering those services in Hamilton, Niagara and the Brantford region.

Our ministry continues to work closely with community service providers across the province in the delivery of community service support and programs.

Mr. Speaker, I’ll be clear again: We support the women who are at risk of reoffending. This is a priority.

The services will be conducted in this region by the John Howard Society.

I said it in my first reply: There have been no changes to the funding for our community safety order programs.

The Elizabeth Fry Society was not the successful applicant to deliver the community services there; it was the John Howard Society.

And I want to say it again: We will continue to support women who are at risk of reoffending.

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade.

My riding of Carleton is home to a number of manufacturers that continue to make investments in cutting-edge technology to stay ahead of the global competition—manufacturers like LTR Industries, which I visited with the minister; Fortran Steel; and Marathon Underground, which is Canada’s leading specialty underground contractor, located in the great community of Greely. These manufacturers are the lifeblood of communities not just in Carleton but across the province. But these investments are both expensive and risky, and we know that business owners know that success is not always guaranteed.

Through you: Will the minister please explain how our government continues creating the conditions for manufacturing businesses in Carleton and across the province to grow and succeed?

The minister noted that the government’s plan is working. Ontario has more jobs than ever, and the string of landmark investments is reverberating around the world. That’s right; the world is taking notice. We cannot let this momentum slow down, as investors look to safe and reliable jurisdictions like Ontario to set up shop and expand their businesses.

Mr. Speaker, through you: Will the minister elaborate on the plan to build Ontario’s economy and how this is benefiting the province’s manufacturers?