Thank you to the minister for the answer.

Umicore’s investment is fabulous news for the auto sector and for the hard-working people of Loyalist township and all of eastern Ontario.

Our government recognizes the massive economic benefits that will stem from Ontario being a global leader in electric vehicle production. That’s why we’ve been laser-focused on securing generational investments like the one from Umicore.

Speaker, will the minister please elaborate on what Umicore’s investment means to our end-to-end EV supply chain?

The supplementary question.

To quote Yogi Berra, “It’s déjà vu all over again.”

The Auditor General and the Integrity Commissioner identified irregularities in the way the greenbelt lands were awarded to developers. Proper processes and regulations were not followed. Public information was restricted, and bid fairness protocols were ignored when they favoured their wealthy insider friends and donors. And now the RCMP has launched a criminal investigation into this $8.2-billion greenbelt scandal.

Now we learn that the government has signed a 95-year lease to allow the building of a luxury exclusive European spa on Ontario Place lands by wealthy connected insiders, with no evidence of due diligence.

My question to the Premier is, with all the similarities between the greenbelt and the Ontario Place projects, how can the people of Ontario believe that this isn’t the exact same game?

Again, my question remains the same: How can the people of Ontario have confidence that the same thing that happened with the greenbelt lands is not happening once again with Ontario Place?

Do you know what I did when I was the Minister of Long-Term Care and that I would do as Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing? I gave preferential treatment to tear down a home that should have been torn down ages ago, but the Liberals and NDP refused to do it.

What we want to do in Pickering is tear down an old, outdated home that still has ward rooms in it and build a brand new long-term-care home. That’s what we’re doing in Pickering. It’s the same MZO that I wanted to do in Port Hope—tear down two old homes that aren’t even sprinklered and replace them with brand new long-term-care homes.

And here you have it, on the floor of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario: The people of Ontario can see quite clearly that they don’t even want to build brand new long-term-care homes for the people of the province of Ontario. They vote against literally everything.

So will I stop doing MZOs to build new long-term-care homes? No, in fact, I’ll go just in the opposite direction. If I can do it better—

Interjections.

We’re going to continue to build brand new long-term-care homes, and I won’t let obstacles stand in the way. So when this Minister of Long-Term Care comes to me and says, “I want to tear down an old home and replace it with a brand new one,” I will say yes.

This is the very same party that held the balance of power for four years in this place—and did they make investments in long-term care? No.

If you want blood on your hands, look in the mirror. You had the option to do something—

Interjections.

Mr. Speaker, I’m actually very pleased to take this specific question.

I would like to reference an article from July 2, 2018, in the Globe and Mail, written by Jeff Gray:

“The previous Ontario government was in the final stages of selecting a private sector bidder to redevelop Ontario Place when it was forced to put the negotiations on hold....

“Sources said the top three submissions included one from Therme, a German spa-and-water park company which would have included a new beach.”

Thank you for asking me this question.

We will do something that they were not capable of doing—and that is bring Ontario Place back to life and make it a place that everyone can enjoy 365 days of the year.

My question is to the Premier. On June 9, this government gave three minister’s zoning orders to Southbridge Care, a for-profit long-term-care facility owned by a real estate investment firm, Yorkville Asset Management. None of these MZOs had been requested by the local municipality. One of the MZOs was for Orchard Villa in Pickering, where 78 seniors died during the COVID-19 pandemic and the military had to be called in to take over. The executives and lobbyists for this particular operator have strong donor and political ties to the Conservative Party.

My question is, did the minister give preferential treatment to Southbridge?

I’m going to tell you what happened. After taking over Southbridge’s Orchard Villa, the military reported that residents had been choking from improper feeding, the presence of cockroaches and rotting food, dehydration, and patients were left in soiled diapers. The Premier said—the Premier, not Wayne Gates. The Premier said, “It was the worst report, the most heart-wrenching report I have ever read in my entire life. Ever.” But this government rewarded Southbridge with three minister’s zoning orders in one day—including Orchard Villa.

Why did the Premier and minister give preferential treatment to Southbridge Care Homes when our seniors were dying and being treated with disrespect every single day in that home?

The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

The supplementary question.

I’m going to caution the members on the use of language, whether it is in their questions or their responses. It’s important that we maintain a high standard of decorum. The people of Ontario expect that.

Interjections.

Start the clock. The next question.

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services. As a mother of four, I know that a balanced diet and proper nutrition are important for our children; it is important for their development. Good, nutritious food helps our children’s mental and physical health and is a foundation of academic success. That is why it is unacceptable to hear that some children in Ontario will go to school hungry.

Our government must show leadership and do all that we can to set up Ontario’s next generation for success by ensuring that they have access to nutritious meals and snacks during their school day.

Can the minister please explain what actions our government is taking to promote healthy food access for children across Ontario?

I thank my colleague for the follow-up. Mr. Speaker, our government believes that no student should go to school hungry. That’s why we’ve partnered with organizations—including the Arrell Family Foundation, the Breakfast Club of Canada, the Schad Foundation, and the Grocery Foundation—to improve these programs. The $1.67 million already raised by partners, alongside our government’s $5-million investment, shows how public and private entities can come together to make a meaningful impact on the lives of Ontario students. I’m grateful for the generous support, and I encourage all Ontarians to get involved and support the success of our students. Together, we can provide a strong foundation for their academic achievement and overall well-being in the province—because, again, they’re 100% of our future, and we need to continue to invest in them.

The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

What we will continue to do is to provide MZOs when it helps move the province of Ontario forward—MZOs for long-term care, MZOs to build hospitals, MZOs to build supportive housing in the city of Toronto.

Will I stop issuing MZOs when it supports the priorities of the province of Ontario, when it helps people in the province of Ontario, when it helps job creation, when it gives people their first home? No. I won’t stop doing that. Will I continue to issue MZOs when it means an old long-term-care home can be torn down and replaced by a brand new one? No. I’ll continue to do that.

They want to stand in the way of all of that; I won’t.

In fact, some of their own members have asked me for MZOs in their own ridings, so that we can get long-term-care homes, so that we can get socialized housing in their homes.

So I say to the member very clearly, for the caucus members around you: I will continue to issue it when it is in the best interests of the people of the province of Ontario.

What you’re hearing from the opposition is continued frustration that what we are doing is using the tools that we have to help build a stronger economy, to help restore confidence in industries that had lost it. This is a party that worked with the Liberals to drive out manufacturing. We lost 300,000 manufacturing jobs. The Liberals and the NDP said that we should transition our economy to a service economy.

What we’re doing is building a better, stronger Ontario—$27 billion in investment; over 700,000 people have the dignity of a job. And I will do whatever I can, along with this caucus, to support that.

My question is to the Minister of Natural Resources. The Espanola Domtar mill is set to idle its operations, starting next month, for an indefinite period of time. The impending stoppage has caused a lot of concern and frustration for people across the town of Espanola, Manitoulin and the North Shore area. Arrangements have been made to help employees with the transition and to safely idle the mill’s operations. However, there are still many unanswered questions about the fibre that has been unused and left at roadside.

To the minister: What is the government’s plan to ensure that this fibre does not simply rot and go to waste?

Forestry is vital in the Algoma area, and this minister needs to show leadership during this difficult time.

Minister, who will pick up the bill for the unused fibre, and how will these forestry companies be compensated for work that has already been done?

When we heard that the Domtar mill was idling, we took action right away, reaching out to community officials and having conversations with them about how this could affect them; reaching out to the company to say, “How can we keep this conversation going, and what can we do to facilitate the re-energization of this mill in the future?”

Mr. Speaker, we remain very concerned about the businesses that are attached to this mill—not just the 450 jobs at the mill, but the secondary and tertiary companies that supply the mill and the forestry sector all throughout Ontario. We have taken action when we heard this news. We will continue to work with all parties involved to make sure we get the very, very best outcome, not only for Espanola but for the entire forestry sector. We will continue to work with all these parties as closely as we can every single day.

We have a fantastic forestry sector here in Ontario, and we are extremely proud of it. We’ll continue to make sure that that forestry sector remains strong.

As I said in the original answer, we continue to work with all sectors of our forestry partners that are affected by the closure of this mill, and that includes the operators that the member has spoken about.

We continue to make investments in the forestry sector. Our $20-million forest biomass program is an unprecedented investment to drive the sector forward. Our Forest Sector Investment and Innovation Program, $10 million—again, to drive the industry forward. We want a strong industry so all the players in the industry have a chance to succeed, and we continue to make those investments. We continue to work with everyone involved.

Last week, I actually joined the member on a call with members from Espanola and the community there to talk about what we can do to assist. So we’re there; we’re helping; we’re making sure the forestry sector in Ontario continues to succeed.

Last week, the Auditor General’s office confirmed that they are investigating minister’s zoning orders.

MZOs create a two-tier planning system where favoured developers can skip the planning rules that apply to everyone else.

A couple of years ago, in this House, the member for Waterloo asked the Premier about a large number of MZOs that went to his friend Shakir Rehmatullah, who has received more MZOs than any other landowner.

The Integrity Commissioner is now investigating whether MZOs are being improperly issued to favoured developers, overruling responsible municipal planning.

Will the Premier stop overruling critical wetland and farmland protections to benefit his friends?

Without building a single new home or business, an MZO increases the value of a property instantly by generating enormous speculative profits for the owner.

The NDP looked at every MZO this government has issued—more than 100—and in most cases, we were able to find a personal, political or donor tie to the Premier or the PC Party.

Does the Premier finally understand why Ontarians have lost trust in this government?

Thank you to my great minister.

These additional investments made by our government will help to expand access to nutritious food for students across our province.

However, the reality is that there are children in our communities, including those in my riding of Richmond Hill, who are at risk of going to school hungry every day.

Access to nutritious food helps students to be more alert and ready to learn, and helps to improve their overall physical health and well-being.

Our government’s investments will go a long way in helping to provide students with nutritious food at school.

Can the minister please explain how our government is working with all levels of government, community agencies and partners in support of student nutrition programs?

I thank my colleague for the question. I’d be more than happy to tell her why. I’ve done it many times, and I’ll do it again—because the program wasn’t working for the people of this province. Mr. Speaker, 25% of the children and youth who were on the registry were receiving services before. Today, over 40,000 families are receiving supports and services. That’s why.

That party supported a failed program under the previous government. The families told them that.

We started from scratch. We worked with those with lived experience—experts, clinicians—to put a program that was put together by the community for the community. We went with more than that—we doubled the funding, to $600 million. And we didn’t stop there. This year, I announced that we further increased the funding of the Ontario Autism Program by an additional 10%.

We’re doing what they couldn’t do for the people of this province.

We’ve developed a program that was put together by the community for the community. The programs that she won’t list—I will do for her. These are programs that families across the province are accessing every day, as soon as they register on AccessOAP—foundational family services; caregiver-mediated early years programs; the entry to school program; urgent response service. Before, they had access to one service. Today they have multiple streams that they can access—every single family—as soon as they register for AccessOAP.

Once again, Mr. Speaker, the opposition always will come in here and they’ll talk to you about what their questions represent—but they held the balance of power. You’ve been here longer than any one of us. You know the process of Parliament. They could have held the previous government to account and said, “We will no longer support you if you do not double the Ontario Autism Program.” But they failed the people of this province. We’re not going to—

Interjections.

The member from Thornhill is absolutely correct; the previous Liberal government refused to find solutions to gridlock or build any public transit. They sat by and did nothing.

But thanks to the advocacy of the member for Thornhill and other members in Toronto, we’re not going to stick to the status quo. That’s why we’re building long-overdue projects like the Ontario Line.

The Ontario Line will take 400,000 people off the road every single day. The Ontario Line will reduce crowding on the TTC in some of the busiest stations and keep people moving across this province.

Unlike the previous Liberal government in the 15 years, we’re going to continue to invest in the infrastructure that we need to keep people moving in this province.

As I was in the north last week talking with forestry companies about the previous question, I was also there to make a very important announcement—an announcement of $20.5 million further investment in helping us fight wildland fires in Ontario, an investment that looks to the future and recognizes that we may have some challenging fire seasons ahead of us, so we need more technology like aerial drones that can help us with detection and suppression; supporting attraction and retention of forest firefighters; also, making sure that they have a good mental health program attached to that position.

Mr. Speaker, we continue to make investments to ensure that communities, people and infrastructure in Ontario remain safe—and again, $20.5 million will help advance that. And this is in addition to the over 90% increase that we’ve included in base budgeting since we took office in 2018. We are—

Also, as I mentioned, the historic $20-million investment in the forest biomass program and the streams within it—we had an application process open until the end of September. It’s all full up—because innovation in the forestry sector is here in Ontario. We are driving this sector forward, and it will prosper here in this province.

Thank you. The supplementary question.

Order.

Interjections.

Start the clock.

The next question. The member for Thornhill.