Thank you to my great colleague from Kitchener–Conestoga for his question. Yes, I’m happy to talk about Bill 97. Obviously, we have a lot of renters in our riding, so it’s protecting the renters there as well in rural Ontario but also, as I alluded to in my remarks—the proposed PPS—giving the flexibility. As the member from Kitchener–Conestoga knows, what works in downtown Toronto—no offence to my colleagues in downtown Toronto—will not work in Elmira or Milverton or Listowel, in our respective areas. Giving those municipalities the flexibility to decide settlement areas and settlement boundaries, again—and reducing duplication, Speaker, because what I hear and I’m sure all of my colleagues in government hear from our builders and others, even from municipalities, is the amount of duplication in the planning process and the site-control planning process, for example. We’re ensuring we reduce that so we get more homes built faster in all parts of Ontario.

It’s an honour to rise here today and take some time to recognize the many important investments and changes that our government is making to build Ontario. I’d also like to say, Speaker, that I’ll be sharing my time with my great colleague from Markham–Thornhill as well.

All of us here today and all Ontarians can be proud that Ontario is seen as a leader and as a role model not only by other Canadian provinces but jurisdictions around the world. This reality reflects just how hard our government is working to make sure Ontario is a world-class place to live, work and play. Having said that, Speaker, our work is far from finished, and indeed we are just getting started.

With the federal government announcing a plan that would see half a million new immigrants to Canada each year by 2025, it’s imperative that we create an environment here in Ontario that is welcoming to new Canadians and provides opportunity to prosper. Just a few weeks ago, Speaker, Ontario’s Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, alongside the federal Minister of Immigration, announced Ontario will be doubling the number of economic immigrants it accepts to 18,000 people by the year 2025. In this budget, Speaker, we’re also investing an additional $25 million over three years to ensure that as we welcome more people to our province, especially skilled workers, we provide the supports they need. All of this is to say that, while our government has taken important steps already to promote new jobs and promote innovation in a variety of sectors, there’s much more to be done to build an Ontario that can fill the dreams of hundreds of thousands of new Canadians that will call Ontario home in the years to come.

It’s not easy to pick up your life and move across the world to a different country, but our government has taken action every step of the way to ensure every new Canadian who looks to call Ontario home is supported and has opportunities to succeed. We’re building a strong Ontario in order to welcome new Ontarians who will help us build an even stronger Ontario in the years to come.

So let’s take a trip and look at exactly how our plan put forward in the Building a Strong Ontario Act will address current priorities and support the dreams of all those who will come to call our province home. While many newcomers to our province will likely fly into Toronto Pearson International Airport, they might soon decide they want a quieter lifestyle outside of the big city of Toronto or the GTA—no offence to my GTA colleagues in the place today. They might look to places like St. Marys or Palmerston, each unique in their own ways but with a growing immigrant population. They may even decide to call these rural communities their new home.

Well, that’s good news, because, as our government has outlined in our plan to build a strong Ontario, this plan benefits all communities across the province of Ontario. This budget highlights supports for all Ontarians looking to start a family, grow in their chosen trade or profession and play an active role in their community. In communities like mine, our government’s investments in the Dual Credit Program to expand the veterinary training and rural infrastructure will help build a strong Ontario.

Speaker, our government has overseen the licensing of over 13,000 internationally trained nurses, with over 3,100 soon to receive their licence to practise in Ontario. Beyond that, we have taken significant steps to expand training and employment opportunities for health care workers right across the province. The Ontario Learn and Stay Grant: Our government is targeting up to 2,500 post-secondary students in nursing, medical laboratory technologists and paramedic programs aimed at reinforcing our health care capacity in under-served communities in rural and northern Ontario, benefiting Perth–Wellington directly as well.

To ease the pressures faced by nurses and other health care workers on the front lines, our government is more than doubling our previous investment by allocating an additional $100.8 million over the next three years to expand and accelerate the rollout of undergraduate and post-graduate seats at Ontario medical schools. We’re also investing an additional $33 million over three years to add 100 undergrad seats beginning in 2023—this year, Speaker—as well as 154 post-graduate medical training seats to prioritize Ontario residents trained at home and abroad beginning in 2024 and going forward.

We’re taking steps to further alleviate pressures on our health care system by investing an additional $3.3 million over the next three years to expand access to the Dual Credit Program and health-care-related courses. Our government is investing in supporting an additional 1,400 secondary school students across Ontario to get their career started in health care. So not only does our government have a plan to license and integrate internationally trained health care workers into our hospitals and long-term-care spaces in Perth–Wellington and right across the province, but our plan protects and expands the capacity of our health care system now and well into the future.

Connectivity is an important part of ensuring high-quality care for all those who need it. We all know too well the devastating impact that mental health crises are having in our communities across Ontario, and I’m sure that every one of us in this place today knows someone in their life who has struggled with mental health issues. It’s not an issue that is exclusive to one group of people. The unfortunate reality is that mental health struggles have taken root in each and every one of our communities. That’s why our government is providing an additional $425 million over three years—in addition to our $3.8-billion commitment in previous budgets—to address mental health and addiction supports.

Community-based mental health and addiction services provide crucial supports, ensuring a swift delivery of care to those who need it and where they need it most. To that end, Speaker, our government recognizes that those who struggle with mental health and addictions are often some of the most vulnerable in our communities. That’s why we’re also investing an additional $202 million each year in the Homelessness Prevention Program and the Indigenous Supportive Housing Program.

More than just a roof over their head, the supportive housing initiatives our government is establishing are directly integrated with mental health and addiction supports, job training and providing a springboard for vulnerable Ontarians to recover. This approach is supported by experts, municipalities and other stakeholders. In addition to reducing costs in other sectors, supportive housing provides people in Ontario with an opportunity to live happier, healthier and fulfilling lives.

In rural Ontario, part of what makes us a healthy, happy and fulfilling place to live is our agricultural roots in our communities. For generations, we have taken pride in the fact that many of us make a living growing our crops and raising livestock, not only for our own communities, our cities in the province of Ontario, but across the world.

The people of Perth–Wellington and across rural Ontario know just how complex and integrated our agri-food sector is, and while our farmers themselves play a central role, they also rely on food scientists, transport workers, engineers and veterinarians, to just name a few.

With that in mind, this budget is addressing the pressing issues faced by our agriculture sector, including improving access to veterinary care for our livestock farmers. Speaker, our government is investing $14.7 million over two years to launch a collaborative doctor of veterinary medicine program at the University of Guelph, of which I am a proud alum, and Lakehead University—a crucial step in the right direction to protecting and expanding our agriculture sector in southwestern Ontario and right across the province.

Veterinarians play an important role in our agricultural sector. Speaker, at the most basic level, vets are there to make sure farmers can be confident in raising healthy livestock by diagnosing and treating diseases and disorders and advising farmers on hygiene and general strategies for their animals. At a broad level, vets are stewards of the food safety and security standards we have here in Ontario and that we expect and are so proud of.

To this point, I was encouraged to hear some of our agriculture stakeholders’ comments surrounding these important investments. For example, Peggy, president of the OFA—many in this place know her—and these are her comments: “Limited veterinary capacity leaves people, animals and ultimately our food system at risk and this multi-faceted approach will help maintain healthy, safe and sustainable food protection.”

Speaker, another quote which I found encouraging: Jack Chaffe, Beef Farmers of Ontario, president and also a constituent of mine, “The commitments included in the 2023 Ontario budget to improve access to veterinarian education and service capacity come as welcomed news to BFO and Ontario beef farmers, particularly those in underserviced regions of the province.”

Speaker, by engaging the University of Guelph with this initiative, our government is expanding our partnerships with an institution already well recognized around the world. In my community and communities across Ontario, the Ontario Agricultural College at the University of Guelph is a recognized and trusted source of capable workers for the agricultural sector, and I can tell you our communities are so happy to see further investment in this industry.

At the same time, Speaker, our government is looking out for our farmers and farm families that work on the front lines, feeding our communities and protecting our food safety and security. We’re especially aware of the evolving role advanced technologies play in large- and small-scale agricultural operations.

We owe it to our family operators, those who choose to invest in Ontario’s agriculture sector to ensure we have reliable, high-speed Internet across the province, including in rural communities such as mine in southwestern Ontario. That’s why our government is taking concrete action through an investment of nearly $4 billion to ensure every community—urban, rural and remote—has access to high-speed Internet by the end of 2025. Just to frame this closer to my home in my riding: The residents of southwestern Ontario can expect to see more than $63 million invested through our government going directly to support more homes, businesses and farms across our region through the Southwestern Integrated Fibre Technology, or SWIFT, initiative.

Speaker, for those who already live here and for those who dream of starting a life here, our plan is to build a strong Ontario that shows our government is taking the right actions at the right time.

Having said that, let’s pass this budget. Let’s build a brighter future for a strong Ontario for our grandparents, parents, my generation and for generations to come in Ontario. Let’s get it done.