In this tumultuous world, our message to India was clear. The fundamentals in Ontario have not changed; our value proposition has not changed. In Mumbai, we met with Piramal pharmaceuticals, who produce ingredients for cancer, eye and kidney disease treatments in the member’s riding. They invested $4.7 million to modernize their plant in Newmarket–Aurora. We joined CSM Technologies to announce their brand new Toronto office—150 brand new tech workers. This comes on the heels of other announcements from XLScout and BSIT, both who are opening tech facilities in Toronto, creating hundreds of new jobs.

Speaker, companies from across the globe are choosing Ontario to invest and expand.

Unlike the Liberals’ high-tax, high-cost regime, we will continue to create the conditions to attract more companies and bring even more good-paying jobs to our families.

Last week, we wrapped up another successful trade mission to Singapore, Vietnam and back to South Korea. We met with leading companies in the region who are excited to learn more about the endless opportunities Ontario has to offer, but we also announced the opening of a new trade and investment office in Singapore next year. This will be our province’s first office in the ASEAN region.

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is home to 10 countries in Southeast Asia, more than 600 million people and significant economic opportunities. With our new office, we will have a gateway to some of the world’s strongest and most diversified economies, so that we can continue to secure more investments that create more good-paying jobs and add to the 700,000 workers we have already seen here in Ontario.

With our new office in Singapore, we’ll now have a gateway to the ASEAN region, along with access to companies looking for a Canadian foothold. We’re now making sure that companies in all corners of the globe know there is no better place than Ontario to invest and grow.

The mission to Germany and Austria was an opportunity to build on the $16 billion in transformative EV and auto investments that were brought to Ontario in the last 22 months. With all of the turmoil surrounding Europe, these countries are feeling increased pressures on their supply chains. This is what we heard from them. Their dependence on materials from Russia and China has caused them to rethink about hitting a reset button. They now know that Ontario has everything they need.

We have the critical minerals. We have the refining capability necessary to make EV batteries and all of the components. And as the number two auto jurisdiction in all of North America, they know we have a proven ecosystem of reliable partners. We have the skilled trades, 65,000 annual STEM grads, public health care, 94% clean energy—something they’re not going to find in the US. Our message was clear: If you’re into EVs, you need to be in Ontario.

But, Speaker, we then outlined how EVs and batteries that are made in the US are not green. They are made by burning coal. When you buy an EV, you expect the vehicle to be a green vehicle with a green battery and green steel. So our message was very, very simple: You need to make your EV products in Ontario, and we’re here and open for business.

Here’s what we heard from the EV sector in Japan and South Korea: They told us that in this world filled with turmoil, they view Ontario as a sea of calm—a stable, a reliable, a trusted jurisdiction. They also said Ontario is viewed as a safe place—safe for their employees, safe for their families. They know that Ontario has everything they need for success: a full EV value chain. That includes critical minerals and refining, resources traditionally they rely on from China and Russia; 94% clean energy, very different from making a battery in Kentucky, where there is 6% clean energy. We have skilled trades, 65,000 STEM grads, AI and quantum computing, and public health—end to end, everything an EV company needs to be successful. That’s the reputation Ontario now has around the world.

This mission was an opportunity to re-engage with trusted partners in South Korea and Japan. It was great to meet with LG Energy Solution in Korea to personally thank them for their $5-billion investment in Windsor. In fact, we were in Windsor last week and saw the massive site, as their 4.5-million-square-foot building is under way. Thousands are working there during construction, and 2,500 men and women will go to work there for the very first time at that plant.

We also used the opportunity to engage with a number of other Korean suppliers for the historic LG investment in Japan. We met with Toyota and Honda where we personally thanked Honda for their $1.4-billion investment in Alliston.

We’re continuing to build on the $16 billion of Ontario auto investments in the last 20 months, and now even more companies know that if they’re in the EV business, they need to be in Ontario.