When Premier Ford announced his government’s plans to privatize surgeries and diagnostics, he promised that Ontarians would never have to pay with their credit card, only their OHIP card. We knew the promises were empty words. When you open the door to profit, care takes a backseat. The reality is that more Ontarians are paying out of their pocket for health care services that are covered under OHIP.

Kate, a small business owner in Toronto, had to pay close to $8,000 for extra tests and eye surgery at a private clinic. She says, “At no time ever was I told that any of this was covered under OHIP. This was not a cosmetic procedure. This was a necessity. I could not function without it.”

Maureen from London was told she would have to wait years unless she paid out of pocket for her surgery. She paid $7,000. She says, “Being a senior on a fixed income, I am still trying to catch up with bills from this surgery.”

Mike’s wife was also told she would have to wait years for her surgery. Get this, when the clinic called to schedule the appointment, it turned out to be the same surgeon that did her first operation in the hospital four years earlier. He now had a private clinic. Mike says, “My wife got the surgery done at the for-profit clinic and it cost $3,000 more than when it was done at the hospital. We have one question: Who is supposed to protect us from such scams?”

The race to the bottom of health care continues under this Ford government. Care should be based on need, not on ability to pay.

My question is for the Minister of Energy. During a period of rising costs and high interest rates, it’s important for all governments to make life more affordable for the people of Ontario. But the Liberal carbon tax is making life more difficult for Ontarians.

I keep hearing from people in my riding of Oakville about how much their gas and grocery bills have increased on a regular basis since the implementation of this tax. They’re concerned about how much more it will cost to feed their families and whether they can continue to take their kids to hockey, baseball or soccer practice. That’s simply unacceptable.

The federal Liberals and their provincial counterparts need to listen to what we’ve been saying from day one and stop the carbon tax.

Speaker, can the minister please explain how the Liberal carbon tax is creating financial hardship for everyone here in the province of Ontario?

The carbon tax is burdening Ontario families that are already struggling to make ends meet. But the Liberals in this Legislature, much like their federal counterparts, want to see this tax hike even higher. Ontario families and businesses need relief, and they need it now.

Unlike the carbon tax queen, Bonnie Crombie, and her minivan caucus, our government is focused on making life more affordable for the people of Ontario. It’s time the federal government do their part to get rid of the carbon tax once and for all.

Speaker, can the minister explain what our government is doing to protect the people of this province from the costly carbon tax?

Thank you to the member opposite for the question. We have invested significantly into primary care. We invested $110 million, and we’ve topped that investment with another $546 million over the next three years to expand to another 600,000 Ontarians to have primary care.

We’ve also expanded the Learn and Stay grant, which pays for tuition, pays for the books and pays for supplies for nurses and other health care workers who work in underserved areas after graduation.

We’re also funding the largest expansion of medical school spots in over a decade, adding 1,212 undergraduate and 1,637 postgraduate seats across Ontario. Speaker, 60% of these spots will be dedicated to family medicine.

We’re building a new medical school at York University, specialized in training family physicians.

We have a plan to rebuild Ontario’s health care, and we won’t stop until everyone receives the care that they need when and where, Speaker.

Speaker, under the Liberals, propped up by the NDP, they cut the amount of residency school spots. We are 1,000 doctors short, combined between the NDP and the Liberals, when they cut their residency school spots by 10% and 50 spots under the Liberals. We will continue to ensure that the people of Ontario have the health care they need, when and where they need it.

Right now, currently, almost 90% of Ontarians have a family care doctor or primary care health team. But we know there’s more that needs to be done, and we will continue doing what needs to be done to ensure that all people of Ontario have the health care they need, whether it’s in the north, east, west or south.

My question is for the Premier. Speaker, the public still remembers the bread price-fixing scandal where grocers reached a secret agreement to inflate the cost of bread for more than 14 years. They said they were sorry, but since then big corporations’ profits continue to reach all-time highs while Ontarians’ monthly budgets get tighter, and shrinkflation means we’re literally getting less for our money.

Speaker, something just doesn’t smell right in Ontario’s grocery stores. Can the Premier tell Ontarians what he’s doing to hold big corporations accountable and put a stop to price gouging?

It’s time to stop cozying up to powerful billionaires and start taking a much closer look at their business practices. Speaker, what is the Premier doing to investigate price gouging and make sure Ontarians aren’t getting ripped off on groceries?

Our government is making the investments that Ontarians need to ensure that there are options for home care in Ontario. After years of neglect by previous governments—the Liberal government propped up by the NDP, which that member was a member of the party—we are investing over $1 billion in home care, and in this year’s budget, we’ve added another $2 billion to our home care over the next three years. Our landmark investment in home care will ensure that those who choose to stay in their home will be able to stay longer with the care they need.

Speaker, as we announced this year in our budget, we are also expanding our primary care. We are investing $543 million over the next three years to ensure that over 600,000 Ontarians get the care they need when they need it.

We’ll continue to invest in our hospitals by committing close to $1 billion to ensure that they have the tools they need to supply convenient care close to home.

Strong home and community care is part of the government’s plan for connected and convenient care. That is why we passed the Convenient Care at Home Act, to streamline the home care system. In partnership with hospitals, primary care and Ontario health teams, Ontario is expanding and improving access to home and community care. We’re investing $2 billion over the next three years in home care. That is on top of $1 billion over three years in the 2023 budget. We are taking bold and innovative action to ensure Ontarians can connect to the care they need, where they need it and when they need it.

My question is to the Premier. Amir Remtulla, who was the chief of staff to the late Mayor Ford, is also a registered lobbyist for the Therme Group. Ontarians and accountability watchdogs widely suspect that this government’s Ontario Place plot is just another insider deal. Amir Remtulla has been an insider for so long that he appears on the registry of the Premier’s family furniture. And don’t forget that he also lobbied this government for the De Gasperis greenbelt grab.

So on behalf of everyone wondering—yes or no, simple answer—did lobbying by Amir Remtulla help convince the Premier to subsidize the destruction of Ontario Place with hundreds of millions of dollars of taxpayers’ money?

But as a former Toronto city councillor, I want to ask the Premier a question which I know he knows the answer to. When I look at Therme’s Ontario Place plan, I cannot get over that the business model is flawed—something we’ve seen before. It reminds me of another bad plan about reckless development on the waterfront.

When Amir Remtulla worked for then-Mayor Ford, there was a nonsensical plan to build a downtown casino at Ontario Place. Building a downtown mega casino was championed by the mayor and his brother—now the Premier.

Once Ontario Place is rezoned for commercial and entertainment uses, there is little that anyone can do to stop them from flipping the land lease for another use, perhaps a casino operator.

What does this government really hope to see happen at Ontario Place when Therme’s spa deal falls apart?

I just wanted to correct the record: Earlier today, in question period, I used the number 2.2 million Ontarians that don’t have a family physician. The number is actually 2.3 million.

My question is for the Minister of Indigenous Affairs and Northern Development. The carbon tax is exacerbating financial strain for all Ontarians. Communities across northern Ontario continue to face heightened economic challenges, notably at the gas pumps as a result of this punitive tax. The cost of transporting goods is already much higher in northern Ontario and these costs are being passed on to the consumer.

But, Speaker, the federal Liberals are not listening. In fact, they just increased the carbon tax last month by 23%, with plans to hike the tax an additional six times by 2030. That’s simply unacceptable.

Speaker, could the minister provide further details about how the carbon tax adversely impacts residents in northern Ontario?

Thank you to the minister and to the wonderful PA for the presentation. I know this budget is very fiscally responsible and has so many things to offer for Ontarians.

I’m going to stick with one specific area. It has been said many times before December but I will say it again: Ontario is home to some of the world’s best and brightest doctors and medical professionals. I know this government, not a long time ago, opened the door for foreign-trained nurses for the first time in history.

Through you, Speaker, I ask the member from Oakville and PA to please tell us what our 2024 budget does to continue to provide the people of Ontario with the medical professionals they need in order to receive the quality of care that they deserve.