My question is for the Minister of Energy. People in my riding of Lambton–Kent–Middlesex and across the province are facing hard times. As this federal carbon tax continues to drive up the cost of living, families cannot afford ever-rising grocery and gas prices. My constituents, who rely on their cars for their primary form of transportation, are being punished with high fuel costs driven by this punitive tax. They need relief.

The governor of the Bank of Canada has stated that the carbon tax contributes 15% each year upwards on inflation and that scrapping this tax altogether would lower inflation. It is clear to every Ontarian that this carbon tax is not helping them, it’s not delivering the environmental gains the Liberals claim it would and it’s costing all of us.

Can the minister please explain how, unlike the Liberals, our government is achieving our energy objectives without introducing a costly carbon tax?

Our province boasts one of the cleanest electricity systems in the world. However, rather than bolstering our energy endeavours, the federal government prioritizes taking money from families by forcing them to pay a carbon tax. Their provincial buddies, led by the carbon tax queen, Bonnie Crombie, continue to prop up this failed tax policy.

It’s time for the Liberals to face reality and acknowledge that this tax only hurts the hard-working people of this province. My constituents in Lambton–Kent–Middlesex and all other Ontarians want to see the end of this carbon tax today.

Speaker, can the minister please tell the House how the government is fortifying Ontario’s economy through our clean energy advantage without the use of a carbon tax?

I’m delighted to talk about our energy initiatives and how they’re also helping the environment and keeping costs low in our province so we can see record investment in Ontario of the types that we have been seeing, multi-billion-dollar investments.

Now we’re announcing the development of new, clean, affordable, reliable energy generation, like our nuclear facilities in the clean energy capital in the Durham region, the first small modular reactor in the western world; refurbishing the Pickering nuclear generating stations; continuing with refurbishment at Darlington and at Bruce, building out new nuclear power at Bruce, as well; and new clean energy storage, the largest procurement in Canadian history, just happened a couple of weeks back. We’re not going to go back to the Liberal ways of providing energy to our province where electricity prices triple under their watch.

Now, I heard the leader of the Green Party this morning saying he wanted to go back to the ways of the Green Energy Act—

Interjections.

Thank you to the minister for his response. Our government knows that we can build a growing economy, produce clean energy and make the transition to Ontario-built EVs without jeopardizing affordability for people in this province.

Unfortunately, the federal government is unwilling to listen to provincial leaders and Canadians on this topic. Speaker, when Bonnie Crombie was a federal leader, she was one of the first to support the carbon tax. Now, as the Ontario Liberal leader, she continues to side with her federal buddies on this punitive and regressive carbon tax.

The last thing people need right now is another expense on their bills. Ontarians cannot afford the carbon tax, and they cannot afford the carbon tax queen, Bonnie Crombie. Can the minister please explain how the Liberal taxes are killing businesses and draining Ontario families’ household budgets?