Brantford is a manufacturing powerhouse and one of the most competitive places to do business. That is why global companies continue to invest and grow there.

Ferrero Canada is investing $44 million in Brantford. This sweet project will increase production capacity to help meet the growing demand for one of the world’s most favourite products. It will create 124 well-paying jobs, which is why we invested $1.5 million through our Southwestern Ontario Development Fund. In total, this program has created over 1,300 jobs and attracted over $736 million in investments, with much more in the pipeline.

This is our commitment to the people of Brantford and to families in Ontario.

In fact, we provide Brantford’s small business centre with close to $500,000 every year, and we support their Summer Company and their Starter Company Plus programs with over $85,000 annually to help young entrepreneurs get their businesses off the ground. A further $35,000 was invested this year in Digital Transformation Grants, and that helped local Brantford businesses put their businesses online.

The dream of entrepreneurship is once again within reach of thousands of families in Brantford and all across Ontario.

Our government believes that the mining industry is essential to our province’s economic strength and helps ensure our northern communities’ prosperity. This industry serves a critical role in helping our province deliver on our vision of creating a supply chain for electric vehicles. Because our government has created the right conditions for ongoing investments, mining operations continue to expand while ensuring both sustainability and respect for environmental interests. The communities in the north, local First Nations, and our economy all reap the benefits when mining companies continue to invest and to grow.

Could the Minister of Mines please provide an example of how our government’s leadership and support for the mining industry contributes to positive outcomes for northern communities?

Unfortunately, the previous Liberal government did not value the mining industry and the importance of critical minerals, which delayed economic growth in the north for many years.

Our government continues demonstrating much-needed leadership in our strategies and actions to build relationships with the north and strengthen its economic potential. Our government’s Critical Minerals Strategy creates the right conditions for investment and successes currently being realized in this vital sector.

Could the minister please provide further information about how recent investments by the mining industry benefit all Ontarians, especially those residing in the north?

When we talk about investments in the health care system, we are talking about true dollars. In terms of our most recent budget, in August, which this member opposite chose not to support, we invested an additional $5 billion in our health care system. We have already added 3,500 new hospital beds in the province of Ontario.

We will continue to work with all of our partners in hospitals, in primary care, in public health units.

Let me assure the member opposite and the people of Ontario that our government is making the investments that, bluntly, the Liberal government and the NDP government before did not do.