Thank you to the member from Carleton. A similar question to my other colleague’s: This bill takes existing costs not being paid by the consumer after the OEB decision and places them on the backs of consumers. So it takes costs that are not being paid now by consumers and puts it on the backs of consumers into the future. How is that possibly making life more affordable for folks when you’re taking costs that they are not paying now and placing them directly on the backs of those consumers?

Through you to the Premier: While housing starts fell 7% in Ontario, in British Columbia, where that government actually implemented many of the Ontario housing task force recommendations, housing starts rose 11%. This province ignored the advice of their own experts, then took over $3 billion in development revenue away from municipalities with Bill 23. Many of them are now facing double-digit tax increases. This Premier broke his promise to return lost revenue and make municipalities whole. Homeowners are now paying for this government’s broken promise.

When will this government follow the advice of its own task force, stop stealing revenue from Ontario cities and start treating municipalities as true partners in—

Speaker, through you: In a recent op-ed, AMO’s executive director stated, “Provincial-municipal financial arrangements are not working for communities, businesses, industries, property taxpayers and the homeless.... With Bill 23 constraints on development charges, municipalities are turning to their only available options. They are hiking property taxes and user fees to increase revenue, or cutting services, to fund essential infrastructure investments.”

Speaker, 24 municipalities have now failed to qualify for this government’s failed Building Faster Fund, because this Premier and minister can’t seem to figure out that a municipality is responsible for issuing approvals, not putting shovels in the ground. When will this government end this incompetence and return this lost revenue to our municipal partners, as they promised?