 It is time for oral questions. I recognize the leader of His Majesty's loyal opposition. Thank you. Good morning, Speaker. Today is the national day of housing, and I want to acknowledge the advocacy of the many people and organizations who are taking action today. This question is for the Premier. Ontario's housing crisis has many causes, but I want to focus on three. The first, exclusionary zoning, and the outdated planning rules that actually make it illegal to build homes people can afford in the neighbourhoods they want to live in. Ending exclusionary zoning was a top recommendation of the government's own housing affordability task force. So, Speaker, to the Premier, instead of taking those recommendations, why did he waste a year giving preferential treatment to his green belt speculated friends? Minister of Mr. Affairs and Housing. I figure that's actually incorrect. We have been moving on the recommendations of the task force. The leader of the opposition knows full well. We've also reached out to our municipal partners to ask them to identify which of the task force recommendations we can move on very quickly, Mr. Speaker. We are having a housing forum next week in Toronto with many of our partners so that we can identify, again, further actions that were identified in the task force recommendations. It is our intention to ensure that we move very aggressively. We've also told our municipal partners if growth is not going to be out and if it's going to be within existing boundaries then they should all expect to do their part and we will accept nothing less. So, another question. Another cause of the housing crisis is that lower and middle income households simply cannot afford what the private market is building. A healthy housing system requires public investments in affordable and non-market housing, too. The very types of housing that this conservative government and the Liberals before them abandoned. The NDP is proposing a massive expansion of affordable and non-market housing. We want to double the current supply so people have homes that they can actually afford to live in. So, back to the Premier. When will his government make the necessary investments to build the affordable and non-market homes that this province needs? We're actually doing just that as the Leader of the Opposition will know this House unanimously supported a bill that was brought forward with respect to unleashing additional housing supply. It also included a renewed update on affordable housing which has been very well received by our municipal partners. So, we will continue to make sure that we do that. I will say this, Speaker. The NDP have brought forward a plan that is un-costed that literally cannot happen. We saw yesterday the federal government, a very disappointing federal economic statement when it comes to building housing across the country, Mr. Speaker. But we are going to continue to double down, work with our municipal partners, work with home builders, work with advocates across the system to build a full range of housing, a full range of housing, market housing, affordable housing, sustainable housing, Mr. Speaker, because that is what is needed to build a bigger, better, stronger province of Ontario. The final supplementary. It's not happening. Under this conservative government, housing has never been more expensive in this province. This brings me to the third cause, financialization. By ignoring non-market housing and leaving everything to the private sector, we are seeing housing being treated as a commodity, not as a human right. Under this government, we're seeing more and more rent gouging and unethical evictions. Tenants are being unfairly displaced. We've even heard of a tenant in Toronto, St. Paul's, whose landlord raised their rent by $7,000 a month. Speaker, will the Premier support the NDP's call to bring back real rent control, or does he think that a landlord should have the right to raise a person's rent by $7,000 per month? What's really important is that there is a balance in the system. I want to thank, of course, the Attorney General for ensuring additional resources to the landlord tenant board, Mr. Speaker. We have to build a system that balances the rights of landlords and the rights of tenants. Those who break our laws on either side, of course, should not be protected. But at the same time, what we saw in the province of Ontario is that there was a supply problem, particularly on the rental side, Mr. Speaker. People just were not getting back into the rental construction business. So thanks to the policies of this government, we have seen record high purpose-built rental starts. At the same time, Speaker, we started advocating more than a year ago, and the Minister of Finance put in one of his budgets, that we wanted to remove the HST from purpose-built rentals. Unfortunately, it took the federal government a little over a year to confirm our ability to do that, Speaker, but the results have been spectacular. Partners are getting back into it, and we're very encouraged by what we're seeing across the province. The next question, once again, the Leader of the Opposition. Five years in government, and rents are higher than they've ever been before. They're skyrocketing. Housing is not the only burden on everyday people, though, and that's thanks to these conservatives. This government has failed to deliver any solutions to help people make ends meet. We still don't have real rent control, or $10 a day child care, or relief for students and young people who are struggling under unbearable student debt. The Official Opposition NDP has proposed solution after solution to make life more affordable, but this conservative government has voted against them every single time to the Premier. When will your government implement the solutions that Ontarians are asking for? Mr. Mr. President, there is nobody in this province who believes that the NDP are the guardians of affordability. Literally nobody, Mr. Speaker. This is a party that has voted against every single measure to put more money back in the pockets of the people of the province of Ontario. She talks about tuition, yet she voted against reducing tuition by 10%. She voted against the freeze, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday they were asking questions, asking us to increase tuition fees for students. We're not going to do that. We're going to make sure that we have a vibrant post-secondary education. They voted against removing tolls. They voted against removing the license plate stickers. When the Minister of Finance brought in a tax credit for the lowest income earning Ontarians, virtually eliminating them from the income tax rolls, the NDP voted against that. They voted against the Minister of Education's groundbreaking daycare reforms that saw rates have, Mr. Speaker. We could stand on that. The final supplementary. That's complete factual. Life is more expensive today than it's ever been before under this government's watch. Any Ontarians, the housing crisis is an eviction crisis. For more than 25 years, the Liberals and Conservatives have let landlords raise the rent to whatever they want when a home becomes vacant. This gives unethical landlords a powerful incentive to squeeze out their existing tenants so they can cash in on the backs of renters. Bad faith evictions have skyrocketed under this government. Yet the landlord and tenant board has issued just 13 fines for bad faith evictions in four years. 13 in four years. So to the Premier, is this because the Premier has stacked the board with his party's unqualified friends instead of protecting the rights of tenants? Mr. Speaker, I really appreciate the opportunity to address the question. You know, we've invested in the landlord tenant board. In fact, we've doubled the number of adjudicators, Mr. Speaker. And you know, I miss Teres Natashak because I miss the drive-by smears, Mr. Speaker. They won't name names. They just allude to things, right? They just say, maybe this, maybe that, maybe that they're appointing people. I challenge you to name one person on that landlord tenant board who isn't qualified, Mr. Speaker. So, the chair, this time the final supplement. The fact is, Speaker, that if you're a tenant in Ontario and your rights are threatened... The Minister of Labor, Immigration and Training will come to order. Member for what? Renfrew, Nipissing, Pembroke will come to order. Member for Kitchener, Conestosa will come to order. Wasn't the Member for Sarnia Lampden? I know that. Apologize for the opposition. Start the clock. Leave me the opportunity to floor. Thank you, Speaker. The fact is that if you're a tenant in Ontario and your rights are threatened, this government will not help you. Speaker, the government's rental housing enforcement unit received 16,000 calls last year and only took action on 7% of them. That's 15,000 complaints ignored. The Ontario Ombudsman says the Conservatives... You don't have to just listen to me. The Ombudsman says the Conservatives have stacked the landlord and tenant board with their unqualified political appointees. This government has made it harder for tenants to access justice. The board almost never issues fines for bad faith evictions. And when it does, the fines are way too low. And even then, most of these unethical landlords don't even bother to pay. So Speaker, to the Premier again, I hope he answers, why won't the Premier protect Ontario's tenants? Please take those seats. The Attorney General. When the Liberals were in charge and the NDP were propping them up, Mr. Speaker, they let the landlord-tenant board run into all sorts of disaster. Now we've been cleaning that up. We've been investing money not just in adjudicators, but in systems, Mr. Speaker. And the NDP have voted against every single improvement. So as we continue to improve, as we continue to improve, I want to know if the member opposite will support anything that we bring forward in the next bill, Mr. Speaker. Question, the member for University, Rosdale. Thank you, Speaker. My question is to the Premier. Street Haven is a supportive housing shelter in my riding, and it helps survivors of gender-based and intimate partner violence. Without enough supportive housing, their clients can't leave their emergency shelter and new shelter users have nowhere safe to go. Since mid-June, Street Haven has turned away 600 women due to a lack of supportive and affordable housing. Vulnerable women are being ignored in this province. Street Haven is calling on the government to double investment in supportive housing so they can stop turning women away when they're in need of a home. My question is to the government. Can you say yes to this request? Please take your seats. Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. We've recognized that, and that's why we've boosted funding significantly in the last budget. The member opposite will recall that she voted against that increased funding. But I will say this, Mr. Speaker. It is very true that coming off of the heels of 15 years of liberal government, we saw underfunding in a number of very important priority areas. It is why we have been working so hard to reverse the damage of 15 years, which is literally supported by the NDP more often than not, Speaker. So whether it is on shelters, whether it's on building more homes, transit and transportation, that is all that we have been focused on. First, reversing the damage, and then secondly, making the investments. As I said, when it comes to homelessness and the programs that support it, we've increased funding to historic levels in the province of Ontario. We are burdened right now. Admittedly, Speaker, we are burdened right now by a federal government that has removed itself from funding its responsibilities, and we will work with our municipal partners to try and get the federal government to live up to its responsibilities as well. The supplementary, the member for Windsor West. Thank you, Speaker. I just want to remind the minister you've been in government, majority government for five years. In that time, 50... The member for Windsor West has the floor. Start the clock. Member for Windsor West. Maybe the government should have held their applause because what I was going to say is under your government in the last five years, 55 women have died at the hands of their partners. Two, in Windsor, in the last year. It's time for you to actually do something to save their lives. Windsor women and children fleeing domestic violence and being turned away from shelters due to lack of shelter space and affordable housing to place them in. 31 local non-profits needed more than 26 million last year to repair social housing units in Windsor Essex. They received less than one sixth of that. The condition of these units is deteriorating. 5% are vacant because of their poor condition. Add to that, women's shelters are struggling to recruit and retain staff due to underfunding by the conservative government. The work is complex and requires specialized training, yet provincial funding isn't enough to even pay those workers a living wage. Why is the Premier putting women and children fleeing domestic violence at risk by choosing to underfund shelters and the affordable housing that they need? Minister, please take those seats. I want to respond. There's just so much to unpack on that. We've increased funding. We've increased funding. They have voted against it. We've put more money into our shelter system. They have voted against it. I was just in the member's own region not long ago cutting the ribbon for the very first social housing project in over 30 years in the province of Ontario. That is the type of progress that has to be made across the province of Ontario, but it's more than just that. When we stood up in this place to talk about bail reform, they were absent. When we stand up in this place to put more resources behind all of the programs that will help women and children, they voted against it. What we need to do across the province of Ontario and what we have been focusing on is rebuilding all of the infrastructure that was left by the Liberals and NDP to decay over 15 years. They have nothing to show for it. We've been in office, yes, for five years trying to rebuild a province that they so destroyed that they left bankrupt, Mr. Speaker, and we will not stop. We will get the job done for women, children, and for all Ontario. Order. The opposition will come to order. Order. Order. The opposition will come to order. Government House Leader will come to order. The member for St. Catharines will come to order. Government House Leader will come to order. Minister of Education will come to order. Member for St. Catharines will come to order. Next question. Member for Brantford Branch. Thank you, Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Energy. Over the past few weeks, I've heard from so many of my constituents who are deeply unhappy about the way that the federal government is handling the carbon tax. For years, our Premier and our government have seen that this tax on everything makes life more difficult and is unfair to all Ontarians. That's why we fought the carbon tax all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada. It seems that the federal government has finally recognized how harmful this tax on everything is for ordinary Canadians, and especially when it comes to home heating. However, not all people across this country are being treated fairly, Speaker. Can the Minister please explain how the carbon tax unfairly impacts the people of Ontario? Thank you. To reply, the Minister of Energy. Speaker, it's quite remarkable when the member is asking his question to hear members of the opposition scoffing that the carbon tax is some made-up thing that has nothing to do with the price of everything. We are in an affordability crisis thanks to Justin and Jugmeat, Mr. Speaker. They have been in power for eight years in our country. They're driving up the cost of everything from coast to coast to coast, Mr. Speaker. And the federal government, the federal Liberals realized this a few weeks back when they removed the carbon tax from home heating for the folks in Atlantic Canada but have done absolutely nothing, including in yesterday's fall economic statement on Parliament Hill, for the people of Ontario. The NDP at least have supported us in removing the carbon tax off home heating costs in Ontario. But the Ontario Liberal Party continues to believe that the carbon tax is making life better for the people of Ontario. It's time to come back to reality and realize the damaging effects of carbon tax. Supplementary question. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you, Minister, for that response. It's sad to see the federal government backtrack on their own promises. You've only got 41 seconds. By exempting only heating oil from the carbon tax, the federal government clearly admits that the carbon tax is costing families more than they would receive in rebates. But shockingly, despite this broad recognition of the harm the carbon tax is doing, Ontario is still not being treated fairly. During this period of ongoing economic uncertainty and anxiety for many families, all governments should be working together to make life more affordable for everyone, Speaker. So can the Minister please explain how this unfair treatment of Ontarians from the carbon tax is creating financial hardship for everyone? Thank you. Minister of Energy. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The overwhelming majority of Ontarians don't heat with home heating fuel. They heat with natural gas. Over 70% propane as well. And there are many people across the province that are heating with heat pumps as well, Mr. Speaker. But nobody is getting a break here in Ontario, except for the 2.5% of people who use home heating fuel in Ontario. We need the federal government to realize that the carbon tax is having a negative impact on everybody. It's been really interesting watching the NDP turn themselves in knots into this issue. I mean, they have supported us on removing the carbon tax from home heating fuel, but they are vehemently, vociferously opposed to our expansion of nuclear power in the province, Mr. Speaker, as an example. And yesterday, the Ontario Federation of Labor said, Mr. Speaker, to support our nuclear plan to continue to grow the nuclear power in the province of Ontario. It'll be interesting to see what the member from Toronto, Danforth, has to say about this and whether the NDP will change their tune on their support of nuclear power. Member for Toronto, Senator. Thank you, Speaker. Earlier this year, the Ontario Ombudsman stated in a scathing report that the Landlord Tenant Board was fundamentally failing in its mandate for Ontarians trying to access quality well-functioning online hearings. In addition to the Ombudsman, we've also heard from anti-poverty organisations, tenant and shelter organisations, many who are here today for the national day of housing, advocating to bring back in-person hearings after all it's been three years since the COVID pandemic first appeared. The situation is so bad that not even counter-service, Speaker, is available for any low-income or elderly tenants who don't have computers. When will this government listen to Ontarians and restore in-person hearings and services for Ontarians who actually need them? To apply to the Attorney General. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Ombudsman's reports come up twice actually, and what the Ombudsman's report actually said is that it was a perfect storm of events. There was an election. At the same time, there was antiquated technology that rests on you guys supporting these guys because it was done for years, a global pandemic combined with significant backlog. Now, we are working away at getting the backlog down. We are making sure that people are getting the services that they want. What the NDP want, Mr. Speaker, supported by the Liberals this time, is to go back in time, Mr. Speaker. They're not interested in modernisation and moving things forward. I can tell you though, Mr. Speaker, for those that do need access to the system, that don't have computers, we have provision in place for mobile services for all sorts of things, Mr. Speaker. So we're modernising the system to meet the needs of everyday Ontarians and look forward to answering the second part in the supplementary, Mr. Speaker. A supplementary question. I really love income tenants. That is just not good enough. They clearly do not have access to in-person hearings. Back in my neighbourhood, neighbourhood legal services is a legal aid clinic which represented 584 matters as of last year. This included the prevention of evictions, protection of affordable housing and a very important preceding setting case that involved 200 families at 200 Wellesley who took their landlord to the board seeking a rent reduction for the loss of facilities, compensation for multi-day power outages, water and heat outages, as well as frequent elevator breakdowns and utility blackouts. This was important and without the legal aid support they would not have been able to get there. This is actually absolutely critical, is that legal aid clinics actually help low income tenants in Ontario. Speaker, there is no mention of new legal aid funding in the provincial fall economic statement. My question to the Premier is will he stand up for low income tenants by reinstating the 2019 cut of $133 million from legal aid? The Attorney General. Thank you Mr. Speaker and I won't try and correct the member's math. So far off base Mr. Speaker but what I can tell you this though the 72 legal aid clinics across Ontario are providing excellent service to people that need it. That's in addition to ACTO that's in addition to certificate lawyers across this province who we have announced are receiving 5% each year over 3 years for a total 15% increase Mr. Speaker. So Mr. Speaker people are getting excellent service across Ontario they're getting the resources they need at the independent tribunal and they're getting their issues resolved Mr. Speaker. I look forward to being able to answer more questions if the Marty McFly over there would like to send me more lobballs. The next question the member for Thorne Hill. Thank you Speaker my question is for the Minister of Transportation. Residents in my riding want to protect the environment but they feel that a carbon tax is the wrong approach. They tell me all the time that the carbon tax is making life more expensive and doing nothing to reduce emissions. Speaker the United States and Mexico do not have a carbon tax yet people here in Canada are struggling because of the hardship this tax creates. Ontario is already a leader when it comes to protecting our environment the carbon tax does nothing to protect our environment it only makes life more expensive. Mr. Speaker please explain what actions our government is taking to lower emissions and protect our environment. The Minister of Transportation very much Mr. Speaker the member is absolutely right the carbon tax does absolutely nothing to protect the environment every year under the Prime Minister Canada's emissions have continued to rise. Here in Ontario we're taking real action to lower our emissions especially through our transportation network. Thanks to the Premier and the Minister of Economic Development Job Creation and Trade Ontario will be a world leader in EV manufacturing across the world. In a few years we are going to see thousands of made in Ontario electric cars on our roads but we're also expanding EV infrastructure across this province. Recently we announced $91 million to expand chargers and drive more confidence and alleviate range anxiety across Ontario unlike the Liberals and NDP we are doing more to support the hardworking people of this province to protect our environment and keep cost low for families. Supplementary question Thank you Speaker and thank you for the strong leadership the Minister provides to the people of Ontario from the Minister's response it's clear that Ontario is well positioned to take the lead in the EV manufacturing sector. The Minister is correct people want real solutions the carbon tax is not a solution it's just another tax. It's a tax on your home heating it's a tax on the gas you need for your car and it's a tax on the food that you buy. The carbon tax isn't a plan to protect the environment it's just a tax Speaker can the Minister please elaborate on the actions our government is taking to reduce emissions Minister of transportation Thank you Mr Speaker and that's absolutely right the Liberals can call the carbon tax whatever they want to but at the end of the day it's a tax on hardworking families and the people in Ontario that's why when we were first elected one of the first things we did was eliminate the provincial carbon tax but under our plan Mr Speaker not only are we building EVs in this province we're also undertaking the largest expansion of public transit in the history of this province and this country for that North America we're investing historic 70 billion dollars to build and expand public transit all in Ontario on top of that Mr Speaker the Ontario line which both the Liberals and the NDP voted against will take 28,000 cars off the road Mr Speaker every single day we're transitioning the go rail network from diesel to electric trains and expanding access to two way all day go across this province that too was not supported by the Liberals Thank you very much Next question the member for Waterloo Thank you very much Speaker my question is to the Premier homelessness continues to be a major problem in the region of Waterloo experiencing chronic homelessness in the region has grown by 129% in 2020 and it's on track to triple by 2028 unless urgent action is taken. Regional staff reported and I quote any plan to end chronic homelessness must have a significant investment one regional councillor said it seems to me we are getting further and further and further into this pit because all the government can offer our short term solutions Ontario needs a comprehensive plan to address the crisis rooted in severe shortage of affordable housing. The existing encampment in the region is already overwhelmed and planning for a second encampment has commenced the housing emergency calls for an emergency action and emergency funding for real housing not encampments Will the government use some of the 5.4 billion dollars in the unallocated contingency fund to meet this moment Thank you very much Mr. Speaker look the NDP have a candidate of course in that area who actually supports what does she say she wants to see the current encampments remain Mr. Speaker until she said until further housing arrangements can be made but then she went on to vote against 2000 units of housing in the very area where the encampments actually are and then voted against thousands of dollars that were set aside for affordable housing in the very same area Mr. Speaker so I would ask the member opposite when this particular NDP candidate loses the by-election and she returns to council if she might actually vote in favour of the thousands of housing projects currently voting against which includes affordable housing to the 2000s of dollars Shambles state of affairs when a government has the money to address an emergency housing crisis and chooses not to Speaker these vulnerable people in encampments include women who are fleeing gender-based violence it can take over a year for women to find stable housing after experiencing abuse this government has yet to call what it is an epidemic despite 72 municipalities calling on them to do so encampments are not a long-term solution for these women but that's exactly how this government is treating them they may claim otherwise however the evidence on the ground is over at Victoria and Weber street in Kitchener where you can clearly see the number of encampments are growing this Saturday will mark the beginning of 16 days of activism against gender-based violence an annual international campaign that calls on the elimination of violence against women women need shelter will this government recognize that in the interim at the very least providing funding for emergency shelters for women fleeing violence is needed right now in Ontario Mr. Speaker that's why we increased the level of funding for those programs to its highest level ever to its highest level ever you know who voted against that that member voted against that you know who has voted against every single measure that we have done to improve the lives of the people the province of Ontario it has been the member opposite they have a candidate literally a candidate running in a by-election now who would rather see encampments than affordable housing in her community Mr. Speaker the NDP would rather convene a round table or something as opposed to doing something about it Mr. Speaker that is the problem of the NDP they want to talk but when it comes to doing something about anything they sit down their hands and do nothing Mr. Speaker this government has put record levels of support record levels of infrastructure work and they continue to do that untangling the mess that they left behind Mr. Speaker the next question the member for Agoma Manitoula thank you speaker my question is to the minister of energy last week the government spent two days debating a toothless motion on the carbon tax that will amount to no real action being taken other than a strong worded letter to the prime minister the motion had no weight will make not a single change to any policy so now minister let's refocus on what we can actually do we can do for Ontarians people in my right of Agoma Manitoula struggle daily to pay for necessities hydro rates continue to rise across the board making it harder for people to afford to live and work in our province when the government came to power they promised that hydro rates would go down on their watch they have not speaker these are the facts so why is hydro more expensive today than when they took office minister of energy boy that was a long way to get there thank you to the member from Agoma Manitoula you know first of all let me address the first part if we don't take these actions trying to have motions encourage the federal government to move on things we wouldn't have the HSE off home built for instance we wouldn't have the child care program that we have now in the province of Ontario by encouraging as a united force here in the Ontario legislature we may just get the break that Ontarians are looking for and that's the carbon tax off of their home heating fuels and I love this member but when he was a long time member of the new democratic party they voted in favour of carbon taxes Mr. Speaker that are driving up the price of fuel in his home communities I've met a lot of those people up in Agoma Manitoula they drive big trucks Mr. Speaker that's what they drive there and they are getting killed at the pumps not because of our party we're reducing the price of gasoline the federal party the NDP and the Liberals are driving up the cost of the minister of energy focus minister this is hydro anyway speaker the high energy costs are a burden on individuals and businesses in northern Ontario and it's not just the price of the usage that is affecting people in my writing right now delivery charges are skyrocketing in rural and northern communities Roslyn Taylor we've spoken about her often owner of Taylor sawmill on Manitoula and Allen Sherrod some of her hydro bills with me recently the delivery charges are more than double the cost here's a couple of examples usage 1,345 delivery 3,554 usage 1,514 delivery more than double 3,587 and here's one more usage 1,631 and again the delivery charges 3,671 speaker the Taylor sawmill had 25 employees and they're now reduced to 12 employees minister instead of sending letters on the carbon tax to another level of government this is something you can actually address when is your government going to act on the punishing costs of energy in Ontario and the response minister of energy Mr. Speaker it's unbelievable that this member sat next to me whenever on the opposition benches in the fair hydro plan as we called it at the time the unfair hydro plan was driving up the cost of electricity in this province by 9% 11% 12% when we became the government of Ontario we brought forward the comprehensive electricity plan which reduced the cost of electricity by 15% to 17% every year Mr. Speaker it has brought stability to our province it has brought multi billion dollar investments to our province Mr. Speaker I was the minister of economic development prior to our minister of economic development doing such a great job on that role and the biggest thing we were hearing was you have to fix the liberal hydro mass and we have done that Mr. Speaker and as a result we're seeing those multi billion dollar investments in Windsor in Loyolas Township in St. Thomas in Algoma Mr. Speaker the steel making facility is moving to an electric arc furnace because of the stability that we brought to the energy sector it's time for that member to get on board join us the member for Hamilton Mountain will come to order start the clock the next question thank you Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker my question is for the minister of energy I continue to hear concerns from many of my constituents in Carleton that the federal Liberals are leaving them out in the cold this winter by refusing to cause the carbon tax we know that the carbon tax is not good for the people of Ontario thanks to the confirmation from the bank of Canada and the parliamentary budget officer we now know that the disastrous carbon tax is raising the price of everything by driving up inflation the cumulative effect of even more tax increases creates greater hardships for many Ontario households that are already struggling Speaker through you can the minister please share how the federal carbon tax impacts the affordability of daily living for all Ontarians thank you Mr. Speaker and thanks to the member from Carleton she's a great advocate for the people particularly in the riding of Carleton and she's helping with the affordability crisis that Justin and Jagmeet have created in our province and across our country Mr. Speaker we're bringing forward changes here every day to make life more affordable whether it's ending the carbon tax which we did back in 2018 and fought it all the way to the Supreme Court removing 10 cents a liter on the price of gasoline Mr. Speaker bringing our electricity prices under control through the comprehensive electricity plan Ontario electricity rebates all the fees that we're returning to people to try and make life more affordable but the members of the Ontario Liberal caucus continue to stand up and say that the people of Ontario are better off now than they were because of the carbon tax it's unbelievable it's shocking that we hear those kinds of statements made Mr. Speaker when it's obvious to everyone including the federal liberals there's going to be a negative impact on the lives of the people of Canada and the people here in Ontario and the supplementary question thank you Mr. Speaker and through you thank you to the minister for that excellent response the people of Ontario deserve financial relief when it comes to the cost of home heating our government has called on the federal government to pause the collection of HSD on home heating and to scrap the disastrous carbon tax altogether it's truly disheartening that members rather than supporting good policies that will help the people in our province and will help to reduce emissions Speaker through you can the minister please explain what actions our government is taking to bring much needed financial relief to the people of Carlton and Ontario that will protect the environment thank you Minister of Energy Speaker the member knows that there is no pathway to net zero without nuclear we know that our caucus knows that federal government is actually supporting us on our nuclear projects that we have across Ontario that was evidence yesterday in their fall economic statement by including nuclear in their green bond program for the first time ever and we support that Mr. Speaker just this week on Monday I was in Saskatchewan with minister Duncan their energy minister there responsible for SAS power entering into a new agreement with SAS power and Laurentis Energy and OPG to deploy small modular reactors of course we're leading the way here in Ontario not just in Canada but around the world on our small modular reactor program that's reliable affordable emissions free power that we're going to be able to send all around the world and Saskatchewan as well Mr. Speaker the NDP are twisting themselves in knots again I'm curious to see what they do now that the Ontario Federation of Labor has fully supported our decision to build out our nuclear fleet here in Ontario which is world leading thank you speaker question to the premier there is a severe housing crisis in the north we've never seen it before there are encampments encampments in our park and that's not for camping several homeless people come to the north from the south thinking they will get more services it's completely different while your government is dealing with your corruption scandals we are facing a hard winter in the north Mr. Premier when will the government stop wasting Ontario's time and we'll finally build the 1.5 homes that we desperately need I'm not sure where the member has been we are actually focused on that since 2018 we have brought for a number of bills in this house to do just that now it is very true we had to untangle much of the mess that was left behind by the previous Liberal NDP coalition government in this province which stopped construction in many different areas of the province in particular the north Mr. Speaker I was shocked when the Liberal government at the time said that the north was a wasteland that nobody should invest in you would have thought that the NDP would have used that as an opportunity to bring down a Liberal government because there could have been no other indication of how little the Liberals cared about the north than that but the NDP continued to prop them up for an additional number of years Mr. Speaker now having said that we are opening up the ring of fire because we understand how important the north is to Ontario we are doing more than that we are building new roads we are building new roads in Northern Ontario the north land is coming back to Northern Ontario because we know that the north is key to the prosperity of all of Ontario Mr. Speaker the member for Kiwet Miigwech Speaker sometimes I give my head a shake when government says Ontario is the best place to live because you know it's not like that where I'm from but it all depends on where you live in Ontario I think in the last you know over the years I've told the South even two years ago about people having to live in tents during the winter in Yad Matung also known as Fort Hope I also talked about the high numbers of people the high numbers of people who live without homes in Sulicote I guess it takes longer for changes to come up north and I ask the government how many of the 1.5 million homes proposed by this government are for the people of Kiwet Miigwech Mr. Speaker as we consider our options with indigenous leadership for on reserve housing particularly in areas where there's incredible growth opportunities Mr. Speaker economic and resource opportunities we do recognize the urgent need for adequate housing to meet the basic needs for many First Nations that's why in the last budget we invested in an additional $202 million annually in the province's homeless prevention program and importantly to the members question the indigenous supportive housing program it brings Ontario's total yearly investment in these programs to close to $700 million experiencing or at risk for homelessness as they migrate into cities across northern Ontario for example and support community organizations that will deliver supportive housing for indigenous peoples and their families next question the member for Don Valley East thank you Mr. Speaker for the Minister of Health there's a fundamental principle in emergency medicine that says following any major trauma patients have a one hour window in which the right care means the difference between life and death that hour is called the golden hour just 60 minutes to save a life yet under this government's watch millions of Ontarians are being denied and robbed of their golden hour by the Premier and the Minister of Health under their watch we've seen 9-1-1 calls go unanswered ambulances dispatched too late rampant and unpredictable closures nearly 900 in 2022 and almost 500 by last August and it's only getting worse while the RCMP has rightly launched a criminal investigation into the Premier's green belt misconduct we are watching yet another scandal unfold in this government's mismanagement of health care when will this government do more than lip service and take a single concrete step to reopen shuttered emergency departments across this province can you member for Eglinton Lawrence and Parliamentary Assistant to Minister of Health thank you very much Mr. Speaker and thank you to Member Opposite for the question I love to talk about all the great things that our government is doing to improve health care in Ontario last year health care spending in Ontario increased by over $2.7 billion and that was just last year and that was just the increase and this government has increased spending on health care $16 billion since we came to office to be clear our government has on average increased health sector spending in Ontario by 6.1% per year on average a much better record than the former Liberal government our government knows the status quo is not working that's why we are taking initiatives why we are innovating why we brought in our community and surgical diagnostic clinics which are expanding to we're getting it done so the people of Ontario can get the health care that they deserve any questions these things have done anything to keep ERs closed and have ignored entirely the root causes of what we're facing because right now patients cannot get access to primary care they can't get access to family doctors and family health teams and when they try and get out to nurse practitioners many of them are many of them can only be accessed by paying $400 mandatory subscription fees without doing things like dropping the appeal of bill 124 and putting in the work to retain health care workers with proper wages benefits and mental health supports this means regulating temporary nursing agencies it means investing the billions of dollars this government is instead stashing away in contingency funds and we cannot afford to fail on this in September three teens were stabbed at a house party in the middle of the night rushed to the nearest emergency department and it was closed and in the last month there was a 10 day period where the emergency department was open for only 10 hours what does the minister of health say to the people of Ontario who live with the anxiety of not having an emergency room open in their times of crisis Deputy Premier and Minister of Health Thank you Speaker what I will say to the people of Ontario is that we have your backs we are expanding primary care the number of seats available for nurses for PSW for physicians in the province of Ontario we have programs in place that ensure that if you would like to practice in Ontario you can do that with new legislation with respectfully you voted against that says if you have a license anywhere in Canada you can come to Ontario and immediately start practicing while you await your Ontario licensure we have directed the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario the College of Nurses of Ontario to quickly assess, expedite and ultimately review and when appropriate license internationally educated and trained physicians and nurses we have done Thank you I will remind the members to make their comments and the members for Brantford Grant Thank you Speaker my question is for the Minister of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs this week Ontario pork farmers visited Queen's Park showcasing information about their quality products pork farmers contribute to making Ontario a world class exporter for growing international markets and to my friends who are pork producers thank you for feeding Ontario for feeding the world while their contribution to our province economy is significant and important the carbon tax is putting home grown pork at a competitive disadvantage this regressive tax not only places a heavy economic burden on pork farmers it also impacts the global standing of the agricultural sector Speaker can the Minister please explain how the carbon tax is impacting the agricultural sector's contributions to Ontario's economy to apply the Minister of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs Thank you very much Mr Speaker and thanks to the member opposite for the question I know the farmers in Brant County truly appreciate his genuine advocacy on their behalf and I hope everyone in this House took a meeting with our representatives of Ontario pork this past week because if you did I'm sure that you would hear loud and clear the support of the removal of carbon tax from propane and natural gas used on farm and this is imperative that we move forward and come together and collectively support their ask because the reality is the carbon tax imposed upon us by the federal liberal government is doing nothing but driving the cost of production through the roof and I'm sure if you had proper consultations with Ontario pork you would hear specific examples to your home areas for instance and here in Bruce we heard about a farmer who saw his propane bill go up 21% solely because of the federal liberal carbon tax that he wrote his ability to invest in biosecurity that he wrote his opportunities and ability to invest in new technology supplementary question remember for Brantford Grant thank you speaker and minister thank you so much for that response the carbon tax only serves to harm farmers and limit their potential to grow Ontario's agriculture and food industry since the introduction of the carbon tax production cost for our farmers greenhouse growers and food processors have risen substantially the delivery of every single consumer good in our province particularly fresh and processed food is being affected by one of the most economically harmful taxes our province has ever seen the carbon tax harms hardworking individuals hardworking businesses and hardworking farmers it provides no value other than taking money from families speaker could the minister please provide an update on the status of C-234 in the senate and what action must be taken by the federal government to provide support to our farmers thank you if anyone was watching last evening they would have seen that C-234 has been stalled in the senate and that's an absolute shame because ladies and gentlemen the harvest in Ontario is winding down this year we've missed an entire season of helping farmers realize a reduction in the cost of production you know we also talking about greenhouses like the member opposite mentioned we have seen the cost of energy go up for a particular greenhouse in Ontario by $150,000 I'm going to repeat that carbon tax has caused one greenhouse grower to pay an additional $150,000 this year alone how is anyone ever supposed to be able to carry that again it's eroding his ability to be competitive you know ladies and gentlemen over 70% of all vegetables and produce growing in Ontario thank you very much the next question for humble river thank you premier my question is to the premier there are countless residents in the city paying unaffordable market rent and hanging on by a thread residents like Rahima who is living with a disability and spent 26 years on a waitlist for affordable housing this government is only really interested in market rate homes which will leave so many without real housing options will the government support the NDP plan for real rent control and build $250,000 new affordable rental homes or will they stick with their failing policies for real rents and more people left unhoused on their watch Minister Mitchell I think we've been pretty clear that we will not support the NDP plan we actually voted against that plan it was a plan that was severely over underestimated the costs that advocates across the sector said it would be unaffordable and would lead to the bankruptcy of the province so what we're doing instead we've updated the definition of affordability and unanimous support from all parties in this house which has been very well received by our municipal partners one would wonder why again a progressive Conservative government had to come to the table to improve housing in the province of Ontario should have been done a long time ago but we started to untangle the mess and the burden that were put in place by the Liberals and the NDP who just like to talk about housing they don't actually like to accomplish anything but the policies that we have brought in have just built rentals to their highest level in over 15 years that is such good news for people who are looking for rental housing and I'm proud to say that it continues on that trajectory Mr. Speaker Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the Premier a while ago I came across a young man sleeping on the street he needed medical attention because of a mental health issue and also because he'd been beaten up I called shelter services but there were no beds available the City of Toronto was reporting at 320 people a day called shelter services with no beds available because the lack of shelter and medical care has caused the number of people dying on the streets to double from 100 to 200 per year under this government the City of Toronto has developed a housing plan with a target of 65,000 new rent controlled homes with $7 billion from the provincial government will this government continue to let this crisis worsen or will they help fund Mayor Chow's plan Minister Mitchell actually stepped in when the federal government wouldn't step in if you ask municipal partners across the GTA what the biggest challenge they have right now it is asylum seekers who have come to this province and do not have the space and the fact that the federal government has literally abandoned them Mr. Speaker now this Premier and this government stepped up to the play and provided additional funding for all of our partners in the GTA in fact in yesterday's feds if I'm not mistaken the federal liberal governments decided to provide more to support the media than they did to support asylum seekers and shelters in Toronto Mr. Speaker that is the priority of the federal liberal government so I say to the member opposite if you're really concerned about this issue this is an opportunity you didn't do it here call your friends in Ottawa who hold the balance of power and say the status quo in Ottawa is not working tell them to vote against the feds take down this federal liberal government so that we can get a government that actually cares about the people of the province over here once again I will remind the members to make the comments through the chair the next question member for Chatham Kent thank you my question is for the associate minister of small business small businesses across Chatham Kent Leamington and throughout our rural and northern communities continue to share their concerns about the appeal of impact of the federal carbon tax small family run furniture stores like Gabriel Maine West and DeVos are suffering as are the sawmills and contractors who are seeing higher costs from materials like lumber Speaker this unfair tax has been presented to us between absorbing the costs themselves or passing them on to customers like you and I unlike the opposition our government clearly recognises that rural and resource based businesses must remain viable for communities to thrive Speaker can the minister please explain how the carbon tax is impacting rural businesses and our entrepreneurs the associate minister for small business thank you speaker and I appreciate Ken Leamington for his important question Speaker small businesses in rural Ontario play a vital role as a source of employment within their communities these businesses provide valuable job opportunities helping to stimulate economic growth and support the livelihoods of individuals and families rural entrepreneurs face unique challenges already and having the carbon tax drive up the price of obtaining and delivering goods only compounds the issues they already have that's why our government has been tirelessly working to alleviate the financial burden imposed on small businesses even as the federal government persists in escalating the carbon tax year after year after year unlike the liberals and the NDP we won't be silent as the federal government punishes our farmers our workers our businesses and our families this premier this caucus have been clear from day one we call on the federal government our businesses our economy our families scrap the carbon tax now concludes our question period for this morning