I have the honour of welcoming 13 members of the Men’s Probus Club of Newmarket from my riding, who have come to visit Queen’s Park today: William McTavish, Paul Bath, Richard Biggs, David Brisley, Grant Campbell, Art Darnbrough, William Docherty, David Elms, Richard Furlong, Brian Keddy, Peter Vanderploeg, John Vanderwielen and Warren MacRobie. Welcome to your House.

Thank you to the great member from Newmarket–Aurora for the question. Speaker, I’ve taken part in round tables with entrepreneurs and small business owners across this province, and I can say with certainty that the concerns they’ve expressed about the federal carbon tax are deeply troubling. It’s disappointing to see that the recent federal budget did not take meaningful action to address all of these concerns. Instead, the Liberals have added additional taxes, which only compounded the challenges these small businesses are facing. I’ve heard time and time again that small business owners feel abandoned by the federal government and the Ontario Liberals and NDP, who have refused to stand up for them to their friends in Ottawa.

Speaker, I know Bonnie Crombie and the Liberals have never seen a tax hike they didn’t like, but we’re not standing down. It’s time for Ottawa to scrap the tax.