Colleagues, the traffic in Brampton is out of control. Our population has doubled in the last 20 years; our transit, road and highway infrastructure has not.

Highways are a provincial responsibility, and Brampton residents had to watch as the previous Liberal government studied, delayed and ultimately cancelled Brampton’s bypass highway, Highway 413. When our party made the 413 a key platform item in the 2022 election, Brampton responded in a huge way, sending me and my four PC Brampton colleagues to Queen’s Park as part of the majority government. The message was clear: Build the highway; get it done.

Apparently, the federal Liberal environment minister wasn’t listening, and his government wasn’t listening, because they have stepped in and declared a federal impact assessment. This is massive government overreach, for one purpose: to kill the Highway 413. Colleagues, the federal impact assessment is the same study required for a nuclear power plant. The federal government has never declared one for a new provincial highway before the 413. That means highways like the 401, 412, 404 and 418 never had to undergo this impact assessment. And yet, when Brampton wants a new highway, we hear all the excuses come out.

Speaker, I am, and my residents are, so tired of excuses. I have one message to the federal Liberal environment minister: Get on board with Highway 413, or get out of our way.

My question is to the Premier. Speaker, this government decided that the luxury spa act, Bill 154, won’t be going to committee or have any more time in this Legislature, but folks have real concerns. In this bill, the Minister of Infrastructure is being gifted the power to issue minister’s zoning orders. Ontarians see that MZOs are a government gift for their insiders to fast-pass process. MZOs don’t get shovels in the ground faster. They often don’t have community buy-in, but they do make some people stinking rich.

My question is: Now that the Minister of Infrastructure has the power to issue MZOs, who is going to get rich next?

Speaker, we saw preferential treatment and MZOs given out as party favours by the previous Minister of Housing. So, my question to the Premier is, who gets the first MZO from the minister of mega-spas and where did they get to sit at the wedding?