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

Withdraw.

Okay, where do we begin? The Ontario Energy Board, an independent, arm’s-length regulator mandated to protect the interests of energy customers, released a landmark decision telling Enbridge Gas to stop subsidizing its plans to expand infrastructure for methane-heavy natural gas by charging buyers of new homes for connections. I agree with this decision. It should have been done and dusted after the board made that bold and brave choice—a forward-thinking choice, I might add.

Well, here is the problem: This government has an obsession with fossil fuels and heating up the planet. They just love it. This decision got them really heated, so to speak.

Enter Bill 165: Not only is it poor environmental and energy policy; it overrides the sound decision from a regulatory body. Why not just stay out of it? Do you think you know it all? Obviously.

The government’s insistence on pushing forward with methane-heavy natural gas expansion, despite its detrimental effects on global warming, is deeply troubling. What side of history does this government want to be on?

Trust me when I say that future generations will look back on these decisions with astonishment and disdain, in seeing that their government knowingly put their futures at stake.

The climate crisis is here and now. Wake up, dinosaurs.

With this bill, the government is attempting to overrule the Ontario Energy Board—

With this bill, the government—

Interjections.

With this bill, the government is attempting to overrule the Ontario Energy Board, an independent regulator mandated to safeguard the interests of energy consumers in order to appease Enbridge Gas. Here we have the Ontario government taking an unprecedented step, overruling an Ontario Energy Board decision designed to protect homeowners and ratepayers in order to benefit a fossil fuel giant. Come on.

The Minister of Energy told reporters this legislation was needed because the board’s decision was “rushed” and “irrational.” Whoa.

Do you want to talk about rushed and irrational decisions? Everything this government has done is rushed and irrational. Let me remind you. The greenbelt: rushed, irrational, reversed and revoked, not to mention now under a criminal investigation by the RCMP. The “notwithstanding” clause: rushed, irrational, reversed and revoked. Bill 124: rushed, irrational, reversed and revoked. Severing farmland: rushed—

I could go on, but I only have 10 minutes.

According to the minister, “This was a wrong decision that was made without proper consultation.” Hmm. Let’s see about that.

Thanks to the Narwhal for reporting on this and the quote I will now read:

“The Ontario Energy Board’s year-long decision-making process involved tens of thousands of pages of documents analyzed in public hearings and dozens of interviews with experts across the energy industry. It also heard from stakeholders such as the Federation of Rental-housing Providers of Ontario and the Building Owners and Managers Association. The board considered the perspective of the province’s Independent Electricity System Operator, including its policy on decarbonization and the energy transition.” That sounds like a heck of a lot of consultation to me.

Why don’t we ramp up heat pumps? The Minister of Energy actually told us that he even has one in his own home. How great is that? A leader. The minister actually believes in renewable energy for himself and yet axes that opportunity for others. Ontario has the lowest per capita rate of heat pumps, sitting at just 2% of households using a heat pump as its primary source.

Under the Canada Greener Homes Grant, Ontario residents are eligible for a rebate for a heat pump and a home energy audit. While the rebate has slowly helped Ontarians make the switch, the program is set to end in March, with no commitment from this government and no support for future incentives. Will the government continue providing the rebate and promote heat pumps, or ramp up natural gas production to continue to dirty the province’s once 94% emissions-free electricity grid? If it’s good enough for the Minister of Energy’s house, I’m sure it’s good enough for all the people of Ontario.

Why is the government so opposed to addressing the climate crisis and implementing more renewable energy sources?

A little history lesson for all of you: Back in 2018, when the Conservatives took office, what did they do? They killed the Green Energy Act and spent over $230 million to cancel 758 green energy projects in wind and solar energy. Most of these initiatives were already in the building process, and the government axed them.

The government continues to move away from the biggest economic opportunity of the century: green jobs and green energy. It is the future. Look at the rest of the world. We are missing out on a global opportunity. This government continues to drive in reverse—cancelled, reversed and revoked.

At the end of the day, you want to trust your government to create forward-thinking, smart, fair policy decisions. The people of Ontario are losing confidence in this government, because they continue to revoke, reverse and override.

Bill 165 will make energy bills more expensive for ratepayers, will work to destroy Ontario’s chances at reaching our emission targets to combat the climate emergency, and will force us to lose out and fall behind in the global green economy.

Withdraw.