Thank you for the question from the member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke. I recently attended with the Premier the opening of Vale’s Copper Cliff south mine. It was a tremendous event. Vale was extremely happy to see the Premier go underground to celebrate the reopening of this complex.

Vale spent over $900 million to redevelop this mine, and they’re going to spend another $900 million with the Creighton mine to do the very same thing. Now they’re going to spend $1.8 billion to produce copper and nickel and cobalt, minerals that are essential to producing the batteries that are required to decarbonize Ontario’s economy.

This is totally supported by this government and this Premier. We’re very supportive of this. We’re very ecstatic that this is happening in Ontario, under the leadership of this Premier.

Mr. Speaker, our message is simple: We cannot go green without mining, and Ontario is the best place in the world to mine. The time is now to eliminate unnecessary regulatory burdens, improve timelines, increase transparency and improve business certainty.

We built the Kidd Creek mine in three years, and perhaps that was a little too fast, but we’ve got to do better than 15 years to build mines now.

Right now, we’re developing regulations that will help exploration companies find the critical mineral mines of the future and promote innovative, new strategies to recover critical minerals from old mine tailings.

There’s much more to do, but we will never stop driving efficiencies into how the mines are developed, because we know how important it is to Ontario and the globe to mine these critical minerals, to support decarbonizing our economy in Ontario, and to secure the supply chain—again, all efforts that are led by the Premier here in Ontario.

I just want to welcome students from Roland Michener Secondary School from my hometown, South Porcupine, who are visiting today. Welcome.

Speaker, thank you again to the member for the question. The mining industry is driving a major economic shift to EVs, the likes of which we have not seen since the oil boom at the turn of the last century.

BNN reported that the world is going to need to mine five times more copper than we have ever mined in history in the next 30 years, and 20 times more nickel. This will be a monumental effort, but it is also a generational opportunity to reshape our economy and create thousands of new jobs for the next generation.

Yet, the Liberals and NDP seem to be actively chasing away companies and major investments with the terrible taxes and tone-deaf statements like, “We don’t need more roads.” Well, Speaker, I’ve got news for them: Continue down this road and you will destroy not only the jobs and opportunities today, but also the hopes and dreams of the next generation.

It’s long past for the NDP and Liberals in this House to stand with us and tell their buddies in Ottawa to stop taxing the people into poverty and chasing away life-changing business opportunities—

Thank you for the question from our great parliamentary colleague here from Brantford–Brant. He is doing a tremendous job.

This tax proves that they do not care about the people of the north who heat their homes with oil or propane while they make a living mining minerals to keep this province flourishing.

It’s time to learn from our colleagues in north Nova Scotia, who, across all parties, passed a unanimous motion in the Legislature calling on their federal counterparts to vote against the carbon tax hike. It’s disgraceful that the opposition and Liberals in this House do not have the same priorities as their Atlantic colleagues.

Make no mistake, Speaker: This Justin Trudeau tax on everything, supported by the Liberals and NDP members in this House, make it tougher for mining companies to operate. Mining companies in Ontario have had enough. Tell your friends in Ottawa to scrap this tax.

Thanks again very much for the question.

Mr. Speaker, we’re very lucky that Ontario has the minerals to power the EV revolution. We’ve got nickel deposits in Timmins, of course, that are huge. The next round of drilling will, of course, make Canada, Ontario—give us the highest nickel resource globally. Not only do we have nickel in Timmins, but we have nickel in Sudbury and the Ring of Fire.

We don’t want the nickel from Indonesia. The Indonesian nickel is financed by the Chinese. It’s powered by coal, and the tailings go right into the ocean. We don’t want that nickel. We want the nickel from Ontario.

These companies are burdened by the carbon tax.

On top of that, we’ve got rare earths in the Ring of Fire—so we secure the supply chain for our national defence, as well. We’ve got the minerals to secure the supply chain from northern Ontario into southern Ontario.

We have to scrap this tax. The Liberals must scrap this tax.

Thank you for the question from the member from Peterborough–Kawartha.

This starts with exploration, and exploration starts with flying aeromag surveys or perhaps lidar surveys—carbon tax, carbon tax. When they find something, they marshal the drills into the bush, which are pulled in skidders—heavily, heavily fuel dependent; carbon tax. From there, it goes into camps, and it’s then core-and-split. Then it goes to places like Lakefield in Peterborough and in places like Oakville. What are they looking for? Critical minerals that will power the EV revolution. And why do we need the EV revolution? To reduce the carbon footprint.

This tax is counterproductive. It should be scrapped. The Liberals and their partners, the NDP, have to scrap this tax.

Speaker, I’ve said many times, we are open for consultation. We have an open-door policy. Actually, all of the members in the mining community have the same philosophy. We passed that new Mining Act without changing a word in Ontario’s world-class environmental standards or the duty to consult. We believe in it, and we carry it out.

Speaker, in the last 15 or 20 years, the population in northern Ontario was declining. Why is it declining? Because they didn’t have any focus on mining. One of the last Premiers said, in fact, that the economy of Ontario will not be defined by people digging holes in the ground. But let me tell you, we dig world-class holes in the ground that produce critical minerals, and we have to get the infrastructure into the towns to make sure that people that live in those communities—I’m one of them who lives in that community.

Forty per cent of the workforce, of course, is women. There’s only 14% of women that are employed in the mining sector. When you talk, as we have, with the young women that are employed in that sector and they find how rewarding the communities are, it’s truly uplifting. It’s an incredible experience.

Not that long ago, we were in northern Ontario but on that particular trip we were also in Sudbury, and I told you about the young woman who was from Moosonee, who got her education and was working at 9,600 feet at the Creighton Mine. What did she want to do? She wanted to be a mining engineer. What was she working on? Electric vehicles at 9,600 feet at the Creighton Mine and absolutely loving it—from Moosonee.

That’s the opportunity that exists for women in mining, and ensuring that we maximize the opportunity and exposure of women working in mining.

Report continues in volume B.

Speaker, we believe fully in and have exercised the duty to consult on these projects—fully. The Building More Mines Act was endorsed with royal assent in May of last year. We have finished the regulations, and they will be enacted on April 1. We’re fully committed to the duty to consult, and we’ve filled every obligation that’s required of us. Our relationships with the First Nations people are superb. Mining has done a great job.

What else are they doing with that $3 billion and with the technology? They’re so concerned about the environmental impact that they won’t even discharge water. That’s what miners do. All across Ontario where we mine, the discharge water is cleaner than the intake water. That’s why we support the mining sector in Ontario. That’s why we’re committed to—

It is my pleasure to rise in this House today to speak to the Building a Better Ontario Act. Like the rest of the world, Ontario continues to face economic uncertainty due to high interest rates and global instability. These challenges are putting pressure on Ontario’s families and their finances, as well as the province’s finances.

In these challenging times, we must have a sound plan and execute it. That is exactly what the Building a Better Ontario Act is all about and why our government refuses to slow down our work to rebuild this province. We are stepping up to build a better future for everyone, and we are not doing it by putting additional costs and taxes on families, businesses and municipalities.

The Building a Better Ontario Act, if passed, will support economic growth and build stronger communities for the generations to come. Our plan will continue to support people and businesses in Ontario through targeted investments to build a strong future together.

Thanks to the leadership of this Premier and the Minister of Finance, there’s a lot happening in Ontario to be excited about, but we also know that there is more work to be done.

These last years have highlighted the weakness of global supply chains and the overreliance on others for what we have here in abundance. Take natural resources like critical minerals, for example. The world is racing to secure reliable sources of minerals for the electric vehicle revolution and the technologies of tomorrow. However, nations that do not share our world-class human rights, environmental standards and labour practices have a dangerous stranglehold on the minerals we need. We do not want to build EVs with nickel mined from Indonesia that uses energy from burning coal and dumps the mine waste in the ocean, and we don’t want cobalt from the Congo for obvious human rights issues.

Speaker, I have said it many times: We have what the world needs right here in northern Ontario. We have the minerals, expertise and talent to become the foundation of the growing supply chain for critical minerals and clean technology in North America and beyond. We have an obligation to produce the fuel of the future here in Ontario, because we have the best miners in the world and we have the best environmental standards. That’s why we launched the Critical Minerals Strategy, which includes targeted investments in everything from exploration to innovation.

Our plan also includes cutting red tape that has been holding back our sector for years. It is simply unacceptable that it takes 15 to 17 years to permit a mine. That’s why our government passed the Building More Mines Act, and the regulations are set to come into force on April 1. This act ensures that the ministry can operate at the pace of business, because we know that governments do not build mines; companies do. The act improves our system without sacrificing our world-class environmental protections or how we consult with Indigenous communities. I’m very proud of that fact, Speaker. This is just one more thing our government is doing to ensure that we are prepared to capitalize on the critical minerals opportunity we have in northern Ontario.

Our government’s Critical Minerals Strategy is building an integrated supply chain for clean technologies by connecting mineral producers in northern Ontario with the manufacturing might of the south. But the made-in-Ontario supply chain starts with mining, and mining starts with exploration. That’s why we are investing $35 million in the Ontario Junior Exploration Program to help junior companies find the mines of the future.

But our investments don’t stop with exploration. We are investing in the downstream industries like processing, to ensure that we will fill the supply chains. That’s why we launched the Critical Minerals Innovation Fund: to help solve modern mining and supply chain challenges and leverage Ontario’s highly educated and experienced workforce.

Through the Building a Better Ontario Act, we are investing an additional $15 million over three years to fund the support, research, development and commercialization of technologies, processes and solutions for critical minerals. This fund is open to companies and open to partnerships between companies and Indigenous communities, academics or non-profit organizations.

This program is the direct result of conversations we have had with industry leaders and will support the rest of our government’s infrastructure initiatives. Just listen to what Trevor Walker of Frontier Lithium had to say about our $15 million investment: “This investment underscores the importance of research, development and technology commercialization and reinforces the collaborative efforts between government, industry and academia and building and maintaining a strong critical minerals sector in Ontario.”

When we invest in mining, we are investing in an industry that is leading the charge towards a cleaner, brighter and more sustainable future. We have seen fantastic examples of companies leveraging these investments to change what we think is possible, like Carbonix, an Indigenous-owned company, partnering with Trent University, who are turning mining waste into crucially in-demand graphite components of EV batteries. The president and CEO of Carbonix, Paul Pede, said that thanks to our government’s increased support, “Carbonix is now partnering with SGS Lakefield to develop a critical minerals processing demonstration plant at their facility in Lakefield, Ontario.” He said, “Carbonix will use this facility to process high-sulphur petroleum coke, sourced from refineries in Ontario, into battery-grade graphite materials for Ontario battery manufacturers.”

Mark Selby, CEO of Canada Nickel, said, “Ontario’s commitment to invest in the Critical Minerals Innovation Fund in budget 2024 is the latest in a series of strategic moves to strengthen the province’s economy and its position as the world’s leading mining jurisdiction.”

He is correct. Our plan and targeted investments are driving up the growth, and we are seeing and building critical links in our supply chain, from mining to manufacturing.

Mr. Selby goes on to say, “The opportunities for growth and innovation in critical minerals are unlimited, and Canada Nickel Co. is proud to be at the forefront of this exciting new chapter for Ontario’s economy.”

Canada Nickel has already leveraged this program in the past to research and develop groundbreaking zero-carbon-footprint processing techniques that they plan to use in two world-class processing facilities. The facilities are planned to be built in the great riding of Timmins and will support our EV supply chain and clean steel processing capacity, and create good-paying jobs in the north.

Processing was overlooked and forgotten by previous governments, but it is one of the most crucial links in a stable supply chain. Our government understands this. Processing adds value to the product by refining the ore into the materials needed for manufacturing modern technologies. That’s why our investments are ensuring we are building the processing capacity in Ontario while creating jobs, adding value to our exports and building a strong made-in-Ontario supply chain.

Wyloo Metals is leveraging the program to research how to reprocess and store tailings materials underground to backfill mine workings to future reduce potential service impacts on their projects in the Ring of Fire. There are too many other projects to name, but they all highlight not only the collaborative work being done across Ontario but also the innovation and brilliance of our people.

Speaking of the Ring of Fire, we are making historic progress, thanks to our government’s investment of $1 billion in the region and the strong partnerships with Webequie First Nation and Marten Falls First Nation. For the first time ever, three First Nations-led environmental assessments are under way for the roads to the Ring of Fire. But we also know we cannot wait for the EAs to be complete to start thinking about the next steps. We must be prepared and act with urgency. That’s why, at PDAC earlier this year, I signed a community development agreement with Marten Falls First Nation and Webequie First Nation. This agreement is the next major step in building the corridor to prosperity, connecting the communities to the highway network and mining opportunities in the Ring of Fire.

The agreement will support shovel-ready infrastructure projects like new training facilities that will create more local jobs and upskill individuals to prepare them for meaningful careers. It supports recreational facilities that will be important community gathering spaces for the increasing number of youths that will be able to stay in their communities. Most importantly, the agreement is designed to improve the well-being and readiness of First Nations partners to participate fully in future economic development, including building roads and mineral development. We have also agreed to work together to make decisions on construction, ownership and governance of the proposed road network so we can improve project timelines.

Speaker, this is one of the most important projects of our lifetime, and the people of Marten Falls First Nation and Webequie First Nation have waited far too long. Under the leadership of this Premier, we have made more progress on the Ring of Fire than any other government ever has, and we will continue to realize this opportunity because we know the benefits it will bring.

I am honoured to be associated with Chief Bruce and Chief Cornelius. They have a strong vision for building stronger communities. That is a vision our government shares.

Our government’s commitment to a strong mining sector is evident in the Building a Better Ontario Act. We will continue to seek out ways to sharpen our competitive advantage and bring prosperity to Ontario. Mining is a pillar of our economy and will only grow in importance. I am proud to be a part of a government that not only recognizes that, but puts a priority on it, because the future will be fuelled by mining. It is our obligation to our children and our grandchildren that we realize these opportunities.

When Ontario comes together, the people of this province can accomplish remarkable things. Working together, we can overcome any challenge. Thanks to the leadership of this government, we will continue to build Ontario into the place that we all know it can be. This is a future I know we all want. This budget, if passed, will help us build a better Ontario together.

Thank you to the member from Brantford–Brant for the question. During the PDAC mining conference this year, I signed a community development agreement with the chiefs of Marten Falls First Nation and Webequie First Nation. This agreement is part of our $1-billion investment to build a corridor to prosperity that will connect First Nations partners to the road network and bring growth and prosperity to the region. It will support shovel-ready infrastructure projects that will improve the well-being and readiness of First Nations partners, getting us one step closer to building the roads to the Ring of Fire.

I want to commend Chief Bruce and Chief Cornelius for their vision and commitment to building stronger communities and thank them for their dedication to moving these projects forward. I look forward to strengthening our partnership as we take the next steps together. I am honoured to be associated with these two leaders.

Working together, we will create an unprecedented era of prosperity that will secure a better future for the next generations. That is what these projects are all about. I know the community development agreement we reached will help us to work together to prepare for a future that is connected by roads and a future that unlocks the area for mining that the previous governments neglected. We are getting it done.

Thank you to the member from Sault Ste. Marie for the question. Speaker, I’ve said many times that we have what the world needs right now to fuel the EV revolution right here in northern Ontario, especially in Timmins.

Under Premier Ford’s leadership, the critical minerals investment strategy was announced, backed by $45 million in innovation and exploration investments. These investments were not supported by the NDP.

It’s clear our efforts are working. I recently joined Canada Nickel’s announcement that they are looking at Timmins, to build two new mineral processing facilities here in Timmins. Our $500,000 Critical Minerals Innovation Fund investment helped Canada Nickel research and develop innovative processing techniques that will be used at these facilities to produce clean nickel and clean steel.

Thanks to our government’s sound strategy and investments, we are securing major investments from battery plants in the south to processing plants in the north—

Speaker, these facilities will bring more jobs, increase Ontario’s processing capacity, and make Timmins a pillar of the supply chain we are building to fuel the EV revolution. One facility is going to be the largest nickel processing centre in North America, while the other will be the largest stainless steel and alloy production facility in all of Canada.

When asked why he chose Timmins, CEO Mark Selby said, “You’d be very hard-pressed to find anywhere else in the world that has the unique combination of advantages we can find right here in Timmins.” I couldn’t agree more. But these projects aren’t just about a better future for Timmins. They’ll create a better future for everybody in Ontario, especially Indigenous communities. Canada Nickel has been working with First Nations from the start, and Chief Bruce Archibald of TTN proudly voiced his continued support for these superb projects.

We have the opportunity of a lifetime in our province, and thanks to Canada Nickel, we are turning opportunities into realities, proving again that there’s no better place to invest and to do business than right here in Ontario.

I’d like to welcome two constituents all the way from the great riding of Timmins: my great friends Mr. Tom Faught, who serves on the board of the Timmins Chamber of Commerce, and Mr. Kraymr Grenke, who is vice-chair of Timmins and District Hospital, a member of the Timmins Police Services Board, a board member of the Timmins Economic Development Corp. and a board member for the Timmins Chamber of Commerce. Welcome to your House.

Thank you to the member from Brantford–Brant for this very important question.

Speaker, a U of T study shows that creating one new mine creates an over-$300-million increase in Ontario’s GDP and creates approximately 2,000 jobs. That’s why we want more mines. But the carbon tax is threatening these opportunities to grow our economy.

The NDP and the Liberals support this disastrous tax. They support hiking up fuel costs for the exploration companies in my riding that are working out in the bush, searching for new mines. They support hurting small businesses in Timmins by making it more expensive to get the drills turning and ship the core samples to the labs around Ontario. They support making it more expensive for large mining companies to reinvest their opportunities and extend mining opportunities in their own ridings.

Speaker, we need the opposition to join us in telling their friends in Ottawa to axe this tax.

I’ve said it many times: There’s no electric vehicle revolution without mining.

I was encouraged this past year when the feds followed our lead by creating their own critical minerals strategy to support the homegrown electric vehicle supply chain. But they can’t have it both ways. You can’t put a tax that will raise the costs of our minerals at a time when we are competing globally. Yet, they’re imposing a tax that ensures that every part and process required to make electric vehicles is more expensive, especially our critical minerals. You heard it right, Speaker; the members opposite support the federal carbon tax that burdens the people and industries required to build EVs. It’s shameful that they support a tax that makes life more unaffordable for families and makes job-creating industries less competitive.

It’s time to axe this tax.

Thank you to the member from Brantford–Brant for the question. Thanks to our government, the opportunities for the Ontario mining industry have never been better than they are right now. This is the result of our plan to make Ontario the leading mining jurisdiction in Canada. We have made strategic investments like the $35 million in the Ontario Junior Exploration Program and $5 million in the Critical Minerals Innovation Fund. We have passed the Building More Mines Act to cut through red tape to ensure that government operates at the pace of business. The response from industry has been overwhelmingly positive, and we are just getting started.

Even though we all know how important mining is for the economy, the NDP voted no to every investment and every red tape initiative we have done to support this sector. It’s a shameful record, Speaker.

We know we can’t do this without strong industry partners like the Ontario Mining Association. I invite all members to join the Meet the Miners reception with the OMA at 5 p.m. today at the Sheraton Hotel. I encourage everyone, including the opposition, to come and learn about the sector—which is a sector they clearly have lost faith in.

The future of our economy is evolving right now, but none of it can happen without mining. Everyone needs to vote yes to mining.

Thank you to the member for the question.

Bill 71 was passed last week to increase the efficiency of the mining industry in Ontario. This is imperative if we want to remain a globally competitive jurisdiction. The opposition voted no to this bill even though they know that the minerals in EVs are getting sourced from China, Russia and the Congo—places that do not share our world-class social, environmental and governance standards.

Speaker, instead of supporting a made-in-Ontario supply chain for critical minerals that will create jobs, reduce the reliance on nations like these, and strengthen our economy, the opposition said no. I guess they are satisfied with things the way they are right now; on this side of the House, we are not. That is why we are doing everything in our power to seize the generational opportunity that is the global need for critical minerals.

Our government—

Speaker, in my riding of Timmins, after 33 years of the party of no, the people had enough. They had enough of the lack of action and the neglect to the mining sector, which is essential to northern communities like Timmins.

Thankfully, our government, under Premier Ford’s leadership, is prioritizing sectors that are important to the north by investing through our Critical Minerals Strategy. We invested $35 million in our Ontario Junior Exploration Program to find the mines of the future, but of course, the NDP voted no. The NDP voted against incentives that helped Ontario regain the top spot in Canada for exploration investments in 2022, totalling $989 million.

It is irresponsible that NDP members from northern ridings and mining hubs are voting against exploration investments and against Bill 71, but we have come to expect that from the party of no. They are neglecting the livelihoods of their constituents—

It is always a pleasure to stand in this House to represent the good people of my riding, Timmins.

I’ll be sharing my time with the two parliamentary assistants to the Minister of Finance: the member for Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound and the member for Oakville. I look forward to hearing more from them about our great budget.

Thank you very much for that question. In an article in Wawatay News, MPP Sol Mamakwa stated, “I think TKG is an example of what working together can look like. We can prosper together on some of the spinoffs happening in the work in northern Ontario.”

John Glover, the CEO of Minodahmun Development LP: “It’s all about three First Nations who have shared territory coming together to create a business that benefits all three communities. We’re very involved in the mining sector and the heavy construction sector.”

We couldn’t agree more, Mr. Speaker, and that is why we’re so disappointed the NDP and the Liberals did not support our bill. This is exactly what the Building More Mines Act is about: It’s about government working more efficiently so mining companies can create lasting partnerships with Indigenous communities and economic development for entire regions in the north.

I want to thank the member from Brantford–Brant for the question.

The people of Ontario, including the great riding of Timmins, a mining community, voted in a historic PC majority because they wanted action. They know we have a generational opportunity to build the supply chain from mining critical minerals in the north to manufacturing electrical vehicles in the south, but we can’t take 15 years to build a mine if we’re going to get it done. The NDP and the Liberals think it’s acceptable to take 15 years to build a mine, but I’ll tell you who won’t accept these timelines. It’s not acceptable for our government or for mining companies, and it’s not acceptable for the people living in northern NDP ridings who rely on this sector to put food on their tables.

The members opposite had a chance to support their constituents by voting in favour of the Building More Mines Act, but they chose to vote no.

The Building More Mines Act is all about keeping pace with business so we can build a supply chain that connects critical minerals in the north with manufacturing in the south. The EV revolution has already begun, and this bill will ensure Ontario continues to lead the charge—but the opposition still voted no; I’m not surprised, because they also voted no to our Critical Minerals Strategy investments, include $35 million for exploration to find the mines of the future and $5 million to solve the supply chain challenges through innovation.

Speaker, the people of Ontario, especially in the north, will always be supported by this government, despite the party of no.

Our government, under the leadership of this Premier, will secure the critical minerals we need to realize this opportunity of a lifetime.

Again, I’ll repeat: There isn’t a single thing in the proposed legislation that’s different than the current legislation.

I will tell you that the largest number of individuals who are employed by the mining industry are Indigenous people—11%. They fully participate in the mining industry.

Where we in fact have situations like Cote Lake that took 15 years, they were fully supported by the Indigenous communities. They were waiting for those permits. What did we see after that? We see a company and a mine that is spending $2 billion, they’re employing 1,600 people, and the Indigenous people who are supporting that are extremely, extremely happy with the development that they participate within fully.

We also know that the Indigenous communities that support development are thriving.

Take a look at TTN. Take a look at Chief Bruce Archibald and his older sister RoseAnne. Before they were fully committed to development, the unemployment rate in TTN was 85%, and now, Chief Archibald tells us that, in fact, it’s less than the national number. They fully support development.

This is how it works. The prospector on the ground looks for minerals. They might find something. Then they have to get involved with a junior exploration company. Junior exploration companies are the entrepreneurs. They’re the true risk-takers. For them to take risks, they must have certainty about their investment—and that’s what this does. Can you imagine a situation where you’re asking someone to put money into the ground and they have no reasonable opportunity to get a return on that money for 15 years—not possible, not going to happen. The junior exploration companies will see that there is an opportunity to attract—and that’s what happens. The larger companies that, in fact, have the financial ability to raise the capital invest with the junior companies. So that’s how this works. But they need certainty in relation to the regulations and what it takes to permit the mines.

Once again, I’ll say we’re fully committed to the duty to consult. That hasn’t changed. There isn’t a word in the proposed legislation that changes that fact. This government is committed to the duty to consult, and we will carry out that duty.

The proposed bill does not touch anything in relation to the duty to consult. Section 2 does not change a word—the proposed legislation is the same as the current legislation, full stop. This bill is all about making mining more efficient and more effective so, in fact, we get things done in a reasonable fashion at the speed of business. It does not impact the duty to consult. It does not impact on environmental regulation. It’s a very simple bill that recognizes that 15 years is simply too long to build a mine, especially when we’re talking about critical minerals.