The minister knows this was never about housing, and what we’re asking today is about restoring trust and integrity in government.

Back to the Premier: The discrepancies in these testimonies didn’t stop at the dates of the trip. The former minister said he and the Premier’s staff only saw the greenbelt speculator in the lobby of the hotel. Now it’s reported that they got spa services at the same hotel, at the same time. Of course, we know the member has now left cabinet and caucus in light of these revelations. The Premier has said he can return if he clears his name.

Will the Premier be asking the Integrity Commissioner to get to the bottom of this?

The Integrity Commissioner says evidence suggests someone tipped off Mr. Rehmatullah, but he has been unable to identify who it was.

Does the Premier have reason to believe that any of his ministers or staff may have given advance notice to Mr. Rehmatullah about their plans to remove parcels of land from the greenbelt?

This speculator’s influence wasn’t limited to the greenbelt. His company was identified by the Auditor General as one of the top beneficiaries of this government’s MZOs. We need some transparency here.

The Premier’s former minister paid $4,550 in cash for three flights to Vegas, but no one could provide clear proof just how, when or if the balance for the trip was repaid in full. Rooms at the Wynn Las Vegas apparently go for more than $700 a night.

What steps is the Premier taking to figure out who paid for this trip and when?

To the Premier: Should the people of Ontario accept that government policy was being decided on a massage table in Vegas?

Interjections.

The final supplementary.

To reply, the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

Withdraw.

The member from Mississauga East–Cooksville paid over $4,500 cash for the flights. He said he also paid for the hotels. The member estimates that the Premier’s staff paid him back $1,000 each and showed a deposit of $2,000 on December 20, 2019. But money the member said was for repayment for the trip doesn’t even cover the cost of the flights, and he can’t recall the particulars. Contrary to the former minister’s dates, the staff in question say they paid the minister back in 2020—but then in 2022. One of these staffers say that they actually paid the minister back $2,000—the other, over $1,000. The dates are wrong. The numbers don’t match.

Is this how the Ford government does business?

The member would know the process of how the Integrity Commissioner does his work. Having been one of the only members found guilty of an infraction by the Integrity Commissioner, she would certainly know how that process works.

The person she is talking about is no longer a member of this caucus. That person will have to work with the Integrity Commissioner to ensure that all of the documentation that he requires is made available.

At the same time, we’re going to continue to move forward to ensure that we build 1.5 million homes for people all across the province of Ontario—it’s not just homes for people; it’s homes for students; it’s long-term-care homes. It’s about getting people moving in the province of Ontario. It is why we are building subways. It’s why we are building new roads. It’s why we are opening up our economy. For the first time in years, Ontario is on a prosperous path. Do you know why? Because we’ve done everything opposite to what the Liberals and the NDP did for 15 years. People are coming back to the province, and now it’s our responsibility to do everything for the next generation to have all the same advantages that we had—

Having said that, what we are going to continue to do, and what we have done since day one in this place, is start to untangle the mess that was created by the Liberals and the NDP—a mess that has led to a housing crisis in the province of Ontario. We’re going to remove obstacles. The Minister of Long-Term Care talked about it just yesterday. Under the Liberal watch, 611 long-term-care beds were built across the province of Ontario—611, supported by the NDP. Under this minister’s watch, there are shovels in the ground for 18,000 beds. In fact, there are more long-term-care beds being built in the member for Ottawa South’s riding than there were for the previous 15 years that he was in that government. We’ll continue to get the job done on behalf of all—

Interjections.

I’m going to ask the member to withdraw the unparliamentary comment.

Meegwetch. Through you, Speaker, to the Premier: This government has all the time in the world to collaborate with developers in Las Vegas, but they won’t show these chiefs the basic respect of meeting with them. Three times they have travelled here and the Premier has ignored them.

Last week, they formally invited the Premier to meet with them face to face. They will be waiting for him out front at 12:15 today. The table is set. Will the Premier meet with the Land Defence Alliance chiefs today? Yes or no?

The Premier has encouraged the mining industry to exploit First Nations lands against their will. He has even promised to drive the bulldozer himself.

They are still waiting—he refuses to meet with the five Land Defence Alliance chiefs whose lands and people are at risk.

Speaker, the leaders are here now, today. Will the Premier commit to respecting their rights to their lands, to decide what happens on their land? If there is any other answer, if he is unwilling to meet with them, it just means that he does not care about First Nations.

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker, I’ve heard from the First Nations communities, and they have said there has never been a Premier who has been more accessible, returning phone calls, meeting with them. Never, ever have they had a Premier who reaches out to them, supports them in any way I can. I’m going to continue to support them. I return every single phone call and take every single meeting—ask Regional Chief Hare; he was the one who said that in front of numerous chiefs, and they all agreed. So, sorry to dismiss what you were saying.

My question is for the Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.

Our province is currently experiencing a labour shortage in every sector of our economy. Across Ontario, jobs are going unfilled every day, costing our economy billions in lost productivity. One of the most critical areas where we are missing talent is in the skilled trades. With so many job vacancies needing to be filled, people need to be provided with the opportunity to launch into these well-paying and lifelong careers.

To help build a stronger Ontario, our government must do all that we can do to help more people get into the skilled trades.

Can the minister please explain how our government is supporting people in gaining the skills they need to address our province’s overwhelming demand for skilled tradespeople?

When speaking about getting more people into the skilled trades and that the labour shortage is hurting Ontario’s economic potential, our government must focus on implementing solutions that will have a real impact on the future prosperity of our province. We need to remove barriers as well as provide opportunities and pathways to employment in the skilled trades for those who don’t currently have jobs but who want to work.

Can the minister please elaborate on how our government is supporting Ontarians in securing rewarding careers in the skilled trades?

My question is for the Attorney General.

The people of Ontario deserve a justice system that is both accessible and efficient. For years, the people of Ontario relied on outdated procedures that were paper-based, inconvenient and confusing when dealing with our provincial courts of justice. Sadly, updates to technology in this sector were clearly not a priority for the previous Liberal government, and they failed to help Ontarians who need timely access in addressing their legal matters. The people of Ontario need solutions that will replace the methods that were slow, outdated and ineffective.

Can the Attorney General please explain how our government is transforming and modernizing access to justice services?

As a government, we must ensure that our province’s justice system is effective and supports streamlined court operations. It is equally important that current technology is available in courtrooms across our province, in order to overcome long-standing barriers in the justice system. Modernization of these vital services through critical investments is essential to speed up access to services.

Can the Attorney General elaborate on how technological advancements will improve Ontario’s justice services?

Members will please take their seats.

The Minister of Northern Development and Minister of Indigenous Affairs.

Speaker, it couldn’t be further from the truth. Under this Premier’s leadership, we have settled more treaties, more flood claims and more land claims. We have struck an important balance about creating opportunities, addressing issues, to ensure, as the crown, as the government of Ontario, that we balance the interests of other communities who have moved ahead on legacy infrastructure projects, legacy resource projects, fundamentally transforming the economic, social and health landscape of those communities. That opportunity is extended to those leaders. I have a personal relationship with many of them. I’ve known them a long time. I meet with them in my constituency office. Chief Turtle is here today. I spoke with the chief of Neskantaga not long ago about some opportunities in his community. We’re prepared to work with those communities, as we do with every First Nations community, to create opportunities for Indigenous youth—

I want to thank my friend from Richmond Hill for the question.

I am proud to tell everybody here and tell the world about the bold new step, the new era that we’re entering, and our government’s plan to build an accessible and very responsive justice system. We’re building on the great work our government has done, in collaboration with the courts, to transform how people across Ontario access justice. It’s no secret to anybody—after years of being ignored by the previous governments, simply put, we needed to drag this system into the 21st century.

I’m proud to announce that we awarded a $166-million contract to deliver the most significant digital justice system project in the country, if not North America. It’s called the Courts Digital Transformation. It will completely change how people resolve legal matters in the Superior Court and Ontario Court, through the implementation of a faster, modern and more efficient new digital justice system. I’ll explain more in the supplementary.

Through this contract, Thomson Reuters will deliver a new platform that will allow you to:

—file documents quickly and easily online;

—digitally access court case information online—that’s good for transparency;

—pay fees online;

—connect virtually to hearings;

—manage court appearances; and

—receive decisions electronically.

We’re going to make sure that the antiquated system we’ve put up with for decades, the paper-based system, is a thing of the past. It couldn’t be done without our partners in justice—the courts, the users and, of course, the legal associations—and it’s in addition to our justice accelerated strategy, in 2021. In 2022, we put in tens of millions of dollars to transform this system.

We’re not just making change. We’re changing how change is made.

Ma question est pour le premier ministre. La population de l’Ontario—en particulier, du nord de l’Ontario—voit que le gouvernement ignore nos besoins, et ce, en faveur de leurs amis riches. Le gouvernement a dit qu’il était pour faire le ménage. C’est ce qu’il nous a répété pendant la campagne électorale l’an dernier. Mais maintenant, il est impliqué dans un scandale incluant la violation des règles d’éthique. Trois ministres ont démissionné en déshonneur ou se sont faufilés vers la sortie. Le personnel entourant les conservateurs s’en va sous un nuage de soupçons, et ils se cherchent tous des avocats.

Le premier ministre a déclaré que la responsabilité lui incombait. Alors, monsieur le Président, le premier ministre va-t-il enfin nous dire la vérité et expliquer son implication personnelle dans le scandale de la ceinture de verdure?

Speaker, as you know, as I said earlier, the Integrity Commissioner will be reviewing that.

The Integrity Commissioner also did say this: “In fact, I have found that the Premier’s office staff were not providing such direction.” He went on further to say, “I accept the purpose of the decision to remove lands from the greenbelt was to address the housing crisis.”

This member in the north should know just how important it is that we address the housing crisis. She, of course, was part of a coalition with the Liberals that said that the north was just a wasteland, that nobody should make investments in the north. They stood by the Liberals when they made that claim. This member from the north stood by the Liberals when they made that claim.

Here’s what we’re doing: We’re restoring the North-lander, because that’s what is important to people in the north. We’re opening up the economy of the north.

I visited Kenora to ground-break on a new long-term-care home in a housing project there. I got delayed because they were blasting, because they were making new roads in Kenora.

That is what we are doing when it comes to the north—we’re getting the job done for all Ontarians, including your constituents.

We’re talking about bringing long-term-care homes to the north. We’re talking about building homes in northern Ontario. We’re talking about bringing jobs and prosperity back to northern Ontario.

In fact, when we changed the Mining Act to help benefit the people of northern Ontario, the member for Sudbury, whose riding is so dependent on mining jobs, voted against it. But we shouldn’t be surprised, because they supported the Liberals when they called the north a wasteland; they supported the Liberals, who brought in carbon taxes, which directly impact the people of the north.

To the people of the north, I say very directly: We’ll get the job done for you. The NDP and Liberals have always failed you; we will not.

Il y a encore tellement de questions auxquelles ce premier ministre et ce gouvernement refusent de répondre entourant le scandale de 2,8 milliards—pas des millions, des milliards—de dollars.

Encore, au premier ministre : comment ces spéculateurs ont-ils su donner à votre bureau de l’information sur les terrains à retirer de la ceinture de verdure avant même que cette possibilité soit rendue publique? Qui leur a donné la puce à l’oreille?

My question is for the Minister of Transportation. Traffic congestion and gridlock on highways lead to delays and frustration. For people who live, work or travel through the western part of the GTA, Highway 413 will make a significant difference and have a huge impact on the quality of their lives. The hard-working people across Peel region know that Highway 413 will make travel more convenient and will help to prepare for the massive population growth expected in the next 30 years. It is clear that this project is essential not only for the people living in Peel region, but it is also necessary for the overall prosperity of Ontario.

Can the minister please explain how our government’s investment in critical highway infrastructure projects, like the 413, will benefit the people of Ontario?

The reality is that we need critical infrastructure such as Highway 413 to continue attracting investments here in Ontario. The people of Peel region are tired of the voices of “no” and the people who continually oppose this project. They expect our government to deliver on building Highway 413 in order to keep up with the GTA’s population growth and business needs.

Can the minister please elaborate on how Highway 413 will contribute to supporting our province’s economy and growth?

The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

Start the clock. I recognize the member for her supplementary question.

To respond, the Premier.

The House will come to order.

Interjections.

Interjections.

I am going to remind members to refer to each other by their ministerial title or the riding the member represents.

Start the clock. The next question.

Again, it is worth noting that the changes we had anticipated making to the greenbelt that are no longer happening are not costing taxpayers a cent—unlike the Liberals, who cost the taxpayers billions of dollars. And what did the Liberals accomplish with the billions of dollars that they cost? Nothing. Their big accomplishment was that 300,000 jobs fled the province of Ontario. They called the north a wasteland. They said that Ontario should transition to a service economy and forget manufacturing. That is the legacy of the Liberal Party.

It was a Progressive Conservative government that actually brought in the Ministry of the Environment.

It was a Progressive Conservative government that protected the Oak Ridges moraine.

We’ll take no lessons from a party that opened up the greenbelt 17 different times. In fact, what are we doing? We’re protecting the greenbelt. We’re codifying it in legislation. We’re adding 9,400 acres to it—the largest increase in lands ever. And we’ll—

Interjections.

My question is to the new Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. Congratulations. I look forward to working together with you.

The greenbelt scandal has left an $8.3-billion stain on this government, resulting in the resignation of ministers and senior staff. And while the decision has been reversed, I seriously worry about the environment under this government’s leadership, and so do Ontarians. Notably, the previous Minister of the Environment was absent from the discourse of the greenbelt sale, at least publicly, when the destruction of the greenbelt would directly affect Ontario’s environment.

Why wasn’t the ministry an active participant in the Greenbelt Task Force, and how will this minister be involved in the development of upcoming legislation that will return the greenbelt lands to their protected status?

At the end of August, the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks quietly released a report called the Provincial Climate Change Impact Assessment; the previous minister had no press conferences about it, and this government has yet to say a word. Maybe it’s because the findings are so damning. Ontario is not doing enough on infrastructure or for Ontarians to protect us from the future; your Financial Accountability Officer even told you that.

Does the new minister believe that there’s a climate crisis, and how will she utilize the recommendations from the climate change impact assessment report to influence—