Residents in Orléans and across Ontario are asking if the convenience of buying a beer at the corner store is really worth $1 billion. The answer, of course, is no. So why the rush?

We have a teacher shortage, Ontario schools need billions in repairs, and this government has cut $1,500 in per-student funding since they were elected in 2018. But there is $1 billion to accelerate corner store beer sales by a year.

Two million Ontarians don’t have a family doctor. Imagine: Not a single person in these combined cities of Ottawa, Windsor, London, Kingston and Guelph have a family doctor, but there is $1 billion to accelerate corner store beer sales by a year.

Instead of cutting education and health care further, perhaps this government will do what they always do, which is just take on more and more debt. Madam Speaker, it’s not what we need.

If this government were to auction off the new liquor licences, it could net nearly $300 million in additional value to taxpayers. This is what the Conservative governments in Alberta and Saskatchewan did, netting a small fortune to fund education and health care.

And since this government is refusing to follow the lead of fiscally conservative governments, I have to ask: Which friend, supporter or crony is going to benefit at the expense of students, teachers, nurses, doctors—at the expense of all of us?

In the end, this government cares little about fiscal responsibility, having increased the debt by over $100 billion under their watch, the largest debt of any subnational jurisdiction in the world. This—

The government has been very busy over the last week defending their latest blunder: the billion-dollar booze boondoggle paid for by Ontario taxpayers. They could have waited for about a year for the deal with the Beer Store to end. Instead, they keep the gravy train chugging along by wasting taxpayer dollars to cancel the deal today.

While small businesses struggle, this government gives money out hand over fist to big-box stores and—

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My question to the Premier: Will he help fix his broken promise today by passing Bill 195, the Cutting Taxes on Small Businesses Act?

Small business owners need help from this government. The CFIB wants Bill 195 passed. The Tourism Industry Association of Ontario wants Bill 195 passed.

The CFIB has said that for every dollar spent at a local small business, 66 cents stays local, versus with multinationals, like some of those benefiting from the billion-dollar booze boondoggle, only 11 cents stays in Ontario.

Bill 195 is not complicated. It cuts the effective tax rate on small businesses in half, from 3.2% to 1.6%, and increases the income threshold for this deduction from $500,000 to $600,000. It will reduce taxes on small business by up to $17,900 a year. It will help them.

Through you, Speaker, to the Premier: What will it be, yes or no, to helping Ontario small businesses by passing Bill 195?

Well, Mr. Speaker, let’s start off with the CFIB and their quote about the alcohol: “Speeding up the process to allow more Ontario small retailers to sell beer and wine is a very positive move for entrepreneurs and consumers.” It’s so positive for the economy that small craft brewers are going to see an increase of $800 million to $1.2 billion more. This is creating over 7,500 new jobs that didn’t exist before—compared to the Liberals, who signed the worst contract I’ve ever seen in business in my entire life.

It’s all about taxation when it comes to their leader, Bonnie Crombie. That’s all they believe in, is taxing. We don’t believe in taxing. We have never increased a tax in six years. We’ve decreased taxes. We’ve given money back to the people. We’ve given over—

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