My question is for the Minister of Transportation. Residents in my riding want to protect the environment, but they feel that a carbon tax is the wrong approach. People tell me all the time that the carbon tax is making life more expensive and is doing nothing to reduce emissions. The United States and Mexico do not have a carbon tax, yet people here in Canada are struggling because of the hardship this tax creates. Ontario is already a leader when it comes to protecting our environment. The carbon tax does nothing to protect our environment. It only makes life more expensive.

Can the minister please explain what actions our government is taking to lower emissions and protect our environment?

From the minister’s response, it’s clear that Ontario is well positioned to take the lead in the EV manufacturing sector. The minister is correct: People want real solutions. The carbon tax is not a solution, it’s just another tax. It’s a tax on your home heating. It’s a tax on the gas you need for your car and it’s a tax on the food you buy. The carbon tax isn’t a plan to protect the environment. It’s just a tax.

Can the minister please elaborate on the actions our government is taking to reduce emissions?

It’s quite remarkable, when the member is asking his question, to hear members of the opposition scoffing that the carbon tax is some made-up thing that has nothing to do with the price of everything.

We are in an affordability crisis, thanks to Justin and Jagmeet. They have been in power for eight years in our country. They’re driving up the cost of everything from coast to coast to coast. The federal Liberals realized this a few weeks back, when they removed the carbon tax from home heating for the folks in Atlantic Canada but have done absolutely nothing, including in yesterday’s fall economic statement on Parliament Hill, for the people of Ontario.

The NDP, at least, have supported us in removing the carbon tax off home heating costs in Ontario. But the Ontario Liberal Party continues to believe that the carbon tax is making life better for the people of Ontario. It’s time to come back to reality and realize the damaging effects the carbon tax—

It has been really interesting watching the NDP turn themselves in knots on this issue. They have supported us on removing the carbon tax from home heating fuel, but they are vehemently, vociferously opposed to our expansion of nuclear power in the province, as an example.

Yesterday, the Ontario Federation of Labour voted unanimously to support our plan to continue to grow—

The member is absolutely right. The carbon tax does absolutely nothing to protect the environment. Every year, under the Prime Minister, Canada’s emissions have continued to rise.

Here in Ontario, we’re taking real action to lower our emissions, especially through our transportation network. Thanks to the Premier and the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade, Ontario will be a world leader in EV manufacturing across the world. In a few years, we are going to see thousands of made–in-Ontario electric cars on our roads, but we’re also expanding EV infrastructure across this province. Recently, we announced $91 million to expand chargers that drive more confidence and alleviate range anxiety across Ontario.

Unlike the Liberals and NDP, we are doing more to support the hard-working people of this province, protect our environment and keep costs low for families.

Thank you, Minister, for that response.

It’s sad to see the federal government backtrack on their own promises. By exempting only heating oil from the carbon tax, the federal government clearly admits that the carbon tax is costing families more than they would receive in rebates. Shockingly, despite this broad recognition of the harm the carbon tax is doing, Ontario is still not being treated fairly.

During this period of ongoing economic uncertainty and anxiety for many families, all governments should be working together to make life more affordable for everyone.

Can the minister please explain how this unfair treatment of Ontarians from the carbon tax is creating financial hardship for everyone?

Thank you very much.

The next question.

Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

My question is to the Premier. Homelessness continues to be a major problem in the region of Waterloo. The number of people experiencing chronic homelessness the region has grown by 129% in 2020, and it’s on track to triple by 2028 unless urgent action is taken. Regional staff reported that any plan to end chronic homelessness must have “a significant investment.” One regional councillor said, “It seems to me we are getting further and further and further into this pit,” because all the government can offer are short-term solutions.

Ontario needs a comprehensive plan to address the crisis, which is rooted in a severe shortage of affordable housing. The existing encampment in the region is already overwhelmed, and planning for a second encampment has commenced. This housing emergency calls for emergency action and emergency funding for real housing, not encampments.

Will the government use some of the $5.4 billion in the unallocated contingency fund to meet this moment?

These vulnerable people in encampments include women who are fleeing gender-based violence. It can take over a year for women to find stable housing after experiencing abuse. This government has yet to call gender-based violence what it is, an epidemic, despite 72 municipalities calling on them to do so. Encampments are not a long-term solution for these women, but that’s exactly how this government is treating them. They may claim otherwise; however, the evidence on the ground is over at Victoria and Weber Streets in Kitchener, where you can clearly see the number of encampments are growing.

This Saturday will mark the beginning of 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence, an annual, international campaign that calls on the elimination of violence against women. Women need shelter. Will this government recognize that, in the interim, at the very least, providing funding for emergency shelters for women fleeing violence is needed right now in Ontario?

Interjections.

That’s absolutely right. The Liberals can call the carbon tax whatever they want to, but at the end of the day, it’s a tax on hard-working families and the people in Ontario. That’s why, when we were first elected, one of the first things we did was eliminate the provincial carbon tax. But under our plan, not only are we building EVs across this province, we’re also undertaking the largest expansion of public transit in the history of this province and this country—and for that, North America. We’re investing a historic $70 billion to build and expand public transit, all in Ontario.

On top of that, the Ontario Line, which both the Liberals and the NDP voted against, will take 28,000 cars off the road every single day. We’re transitioning the GO rail network from diesel to electric trains, and expanding access to two-way, all-day GO across this province. That, too, was not supported by the Liberals—

My question is to the Minister of Energy. Speaker, last week, the government spent two days debating a toothless motion on the carbon tax that will amount to no real action being taken other than a strongly worded letter to the Prime Minister. The motion had no weight and will make not a single change to any policy. So now, Minister, let’s refocus on what we can actually do for Ontarians.

People in my riding of Algoma–Manitoulin struggle daily to pay for necessities. Hydro rates continue to rise across the board, making it harder for people to afford to live and work in our province. When the government came to power, they promised that hydro rates would go down on their watch. They have not.

Speaker, these are the facts, so why is hydro more expensive today than when they took office?

Roslyn Taylor—we’ve spoken about her often—owner of Taylor Sawmill on Manitoulin Island, shared some of her hydro bills with me recently. When she gets her hydro bill the delivery charges are more than double her costs. Here are a couple of examples: usage $1,345, delivery $3,554; usage $1,514, delivery—more than double—$3,587. Here’s one more: usage $1,631 and again the delivery charge, $3,671. The Taylor Sawmill had 25 employees and they’re now reduced to 12 employees.

Minister, instead of sending letters on the carbon tax to another level of government, this is something you can actually address. When is your government going to act on the punishing costs of energy in Ontario?

Boy, that was a long way to get there. Thank you to the member from Algoma–Manitoulin. First of all, let me address the first part. If we don’t take these actions, trying to have motions that encourage the federal government to move on things, we wouldn’t have the HST off home builds, for instance. We wouldn’t have the child care program that we have now in the province of Ontario. By encouraging as a united force here in the Ontario Legislature, we may just get the break that Ontarians are looking for, and that’s the carbon tax off their home heating fuels.

I love this member, but when he was a long-time member of the New Democratic Party, they voted in favour of the carbon taxes that are driving up the price of fuel in his home communities. I’ve met a lot of those people in Algoma–Manitoulin. They drive big trucks. That’s what they drive there, and they are getting killed at the pumps—not because of our party; we’re reducing the price of gasoline. The federal party, the NDP and the Liberals are driving up the cost—

Interjections.

When we became the government of Ontario, we brought forward the comprehensive electricity plan, which reduced the cost of electricity by 15% to 17% every year. It has brought stability to our province. It has brought multi-billion dollar investments to our province.

I was the Minister of Economic Development prior to our Minister of Economic Development doing such a great job in that role, and the biggest thing we were hearing was, “You have to fix the Liberal hydro mess.” And we have done that. As a result, we’re seeing those multi-billion dollar investments in Windsor, in Loyalist township, in St. Thomas, in Algoma—the steelmaking facility is moving to an electric arc furnace because of the stability that we brought to the energy sector.

It’s time for that member to get on board. Join us. We’re getting—

Interjections.

I’m not sure where the member has been. We are actually focused on that—since 2018. We have brought forward a number of bills in this House to do just that.

Now, it is very true that we had to untangle much of the mess that was left behind by the previous Liberal-NDP coalition government in this province which stopped construction in many different areas of the province, in particular the north, Mr. Speaker. I was shocked when the Liberal government at the time said that the north was a wasteland and that nobody should invest in it. You would have thought that the NDP would have used that as an opportunity to bring down the Liberal government, because there could have been no other indication of how little the Liberals cared about the north than that, but the NDP continued to prop them up for an additional number of years, Mr. Speaker.

Having said that, we are opening up the Ring of Fire because we understand how important the north is to Ontario. We’re doing more than that. We’re building long-term care in northern Ontario. We’re building new roads in northern Ontario. The Northland is coming back to northern Ontario because we know that the north is key to the prosperity of all of Ontario.

Meegwetch, Speaker. Sometimes I give my head a shake when the government says Ontario is the best place to live because it’s not like that where I’m from. It all depends on where you live in Ontario.

Over the years I’ve told this House, even two years ago, about people having to live in tents during the winter in Eabametoong, also known as Fort Hope. I also talked about the high numbers of people who live without homes in Sioux Lookout. I guess it takes longer for changes to come up north. Why is that?

And I ask the government: How many of the 1.5 million homes proposed by this government are for the people of Kiiwetinoong?

For the Minister of Health: There is a fundamental principle in emergency medicine that says following any major trauma or accident, patients have a one-hour window in which the right care means the difference between life and death. That hour is called the golden hour—just 60 minutes to save a life.

Yet, under this government’s watch, millions of Ontarians are being denied and robbed of their golden hour by the Premier and the Minister of Health. Under their watch, we’ve seen 911 calls go unanswered, ambulances dispatched too late, rampant and unpredictable closures of emergency departments—nearly 900 in 2022 and almost 500 by last August, and it’s only getting worse.

While the RCMP has rightly launched a criminal investigation into the Premier’s greenbelt misconduct, we are watching yet another scandal unfold in this government’s mismanagement of health care. When will this government do more than lip service and take a single concrete step to reopen shuttered emergency departments across this province?

As we consider our options with Indigenous leadership for on-reserve housing, particularly in areas where there’s incredible growth opportunities, economic and resource opportunities, we do recognize the urgent need for adequate housing to meet the basic needs for many First Nations. That’s why, in the last budget, we invested an additional $202 million annually in the province’s Homelessness Prevention Program and, importantly, to the member’s question, the Indigenous Supportive Housing Program. It brings Ontario’s total yearly investment in these programs to close to $700 million.

This additional funding, Mr. Speaker, will help those experiencing or at risk for homelessness as they migrate into cities across northern Ontario, for example, and support community organizations that will deliver supportive housing in our communities for Indigenous peoples and their families.

Stop the clock.

Members will please take their seats.

Interjection.

Start the clock.

The next question.

Thanks to the member from Carleton. She’s a great advocate for the people of the Ottawa region, and particularly in the riding of Carleton. She’s helping with the affordability crisis that Justin and Jagmeet have created in our province and across our country.

We’re bringing forward changes here every day to make life more affordable, whether it’s ending the carbon tax, which we did back in 2018—and fought it all the way to the Supreme Court; removing 10 cents a litre on the price of gasoline; bringing our electricity prices under control through the comprehensive electricity plan and the Ontario electricity rebates; all the fees that we’re returning to people to try to make life more affordable.

The members of the Ontario Liberal caucus continue to stand up and say that the people of Ontario are better off now than they were because of the carbon tax. It’s unbelievable. It’s shocking that we hear those kinds of statements made, when it’s obvious to everyone, including the federal Liberals, that the carbon tax is having a negative impact on the lives of the people of Canada and the people here in Ontario.

Just this week, on Monday, I was in Saskatchewan with Minister Duncan, their energy minister there responsible for SaskPower, entering into a new agreement with SaskPower and Laurentis Energy and OPG to deploy small modular reactors. Of course, we’re leading the way here in Ontario, not just in Canada, but around the world, on our small modular reactor program. That’s reliable, affordable, emissions-free power that we’re going to be able to send all around the world and to Saskatchewan as well, Mr. Speaker.

The NDP are twisting themselves in knots again. I’m curious to see what they do now that the Ontario Federation of Labour has fully supported our decision to build out our nuclear fleet here in Ontario, which is world-leading.

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Energy. I continue to hear concerns from many of my constituents in Carleton that the federal Liberals are leaving them out in the cold this winter by refusing to pause the carbon tax. We know that the carbon tax is not good for the people of Ontario.

Thanks to the confirmation from the Bank of Canada and the Parliamentary Budget Officer, we now know that the disastrous carbon tax is raising the price of everything by driving up inflation. The cumulative effect of even more tax increases creates greater hardships for many Ontario households that are already struggling.

Speaker, through you: Can the minister please share how the federal carbon tax impacts the affordability of daily living for all Ontarians?

It’s truly disheartening that members of the opposition parties are playing politics rather than supporting good policies that will help the people in our province and will help to reduce emissions.

Speaker, through you: Can the minister please explain what actions our government is taking to bring much-needed financial relief to the people of Carleton and Ontario and that will protect the environment?

Ma question est pour le premier ministre.

Nous sommes en crise sévère du logement dans le Nord. C’est du jamais-vu. À Timmins, des camps avec des tentes dans nos parcs : ce n’est sûrement pas pour du camping. Environ 70 % des sans-abris à Timmins viennent du Sud. Ils viennent dans le Nord, pensant accéder à plus de services avec moins d’attente, mais c’est tout le contraire.

Pendant que votre gouvernement essuie les dégâts de vos scandales de corruption, un hiver rude s’installe dans le Nord. Monsieur le Premier Ministre, quand est-ce que le gouvernement va arrêter de perdre le temps des Ontariens et va finalement construire le 1,5 million de maisons dont nous avons désespérément besoin?

Member for Eglinton–Lawrence and parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Health.

The next question.

The Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

What I will say to the people of Ontario is that we have your backs. We are expanding primary care in the province of Ontario. We are expanding the number of seats available for nurses, for PSWs, for physicians in the province of Ontario.

We have programs in place that ensure that, if you would like to practise in Ontario, you can do that with new legislation—which, respectfully, you voted against—that says if you have a licence anywhere in Canada, you can come to Ontario and immediately start practising while you await your Ontario licence.

We have directed the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario and the College of Nurses of Ontario to quickly assess, expedite and ultimately review and, when appropriate, license internationally educated and trained physicians and nurses. We have done—