 It is now time for oral questions. I recognize the leader of His Majesty's loyal opposition. Good morning, Speaker, and my question is for the Premier. Providing honest testimony under oath is a core principle of justice in this province, and I think that's, and I hope that's something we can all agree on. The Premier told the integrity commissioner that he was, quote, not immediately familiar with Greenbelt speculator Sergio Mancha, because he meets apparently thousands of people, he said. Yet senior political staff were texting each other that the Premier, quote, needs to stop calling this guy. My question to the Premier is, what is the nature of his relationship with Sergio Mancha? And to reply, the Minister needs to present her. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, as we've said on a number of occasions. And as has been both confirmed by both the integrity commissioner and the auditor general, the Premier, of course, did not have knowledge of the lands with respect to the Greenbelt. But at the same time, Mr. Speaker, I've also been very, very clear that I was unhappy with the political involvement, political staff involvement with respect to the official plans. That is why I briefed the Premier on it, and he asked me to repeal the provincial changes to those official plans. We've done that, Mr. Speaker, and we're moving forward to make sure that we can build 1.5 million homes by working with our municipal partners, and we'll get that job done. Supplementary question. Should have been an easy one to answer, I think, Speaker. But, Speaker, it's not just the phone calls. The Premier testified that he was not involved in any way with site selection of Greenbelt removals, his first time viewing them was on November 2nd, 2022. He further testified that he had no recollection of meeting Mr. Mancha and had no recollection of any conversations with him about the Greenbelt. Now we have a new document, Speaker, that seems to contradict the Premier's testimony. It shows he had a meeting with Mr. Mancha and also the then Mayor of Hamilton and the member from Flamborough-Glanbrook on September 20th, 2021, where they all agreed to pursue removing lands from the Greenbelt. So my question is to the Premier again. Can the Premier confirm he met with Mr. Mancha in 2021 to discuss site-specific Greenbelt removals? Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Sorry, Mr. Speaker. It is my understanding that this particular individual has been advocating for the removal of those lands from the Greenbelt for many, many, many years. And has met with every Premier in the entirety that he's held those lands, Speaker. We made the decision, we made a decision with respect to the Greenbelt that was not accepted by the people of the province of Ontario. That is why we reversed that decision at the same time. After reviewing the changes to the official plans that were made by the province, the decision was made that there was too much involvement from political staff in that. And that's why after I was given the opportunity to brief the Premier on that, he asked me to repeal the provincial changes. We're doing it at the same time, Speaker. Our municipalities will have the opportunity to provide additional comment over the next 45 days to some of the changes that they would like to see in those original official plans that they had provided some years ago. We will move forward. We continue to ensure that we can meet our goal of building 1.5 million homes for the people of the province of Ontario. Final supplementary. Speaker, I'm sorry to say it, but it only gets worse. The Premier says he doesn't remember Mr. Mancha. Remember, we just reviewed that. But Mr. Mancha hosted an intimate $1,200 ticket fundraiser for the Conservative Party at his home also on September 20th, 2021, and the Premier was there. In fact, new reporting indicates that the promise to remove Mr. Mancha's land from the Green Belt happened at that very fundraiser. So to the Premier, does the Premier remember Mr. Mancha now? Did he provide assurances he would remove Green Belt lands at a private fundraiser for the Conservative Party? Thank you. Thank you, Speaker. The Premier has been clear. No, he did not. At the same time, that has been also been made clear through the Auditor General's report as well as the Integrity Commissioner's report. At the same time, Mr. Speaker, as I said, this particular gentleman and others who own lands in the Green Belt have been advocating for years to have lands taken out of the Green Belt. They've met with many Premiers, many members of all parties. We made a public policy decision that was not supported by the people. Ultimately, what we're trying to do is build 1.5 million homes for the people of the province of Ontario. We've reversed the Green Belt decision, Mr. Speaker, but let me be also very, very clear. We will not stop on our goal of building 1.5 million homes for the people of the province of Ontario. We will double down. We will work with our municipal friends to ensure that we build those 1.5 million homes. We will hold our municipal partners accountable, and at the same time, we will hold developers and home builders accountable whether you use it or lose it, Mr. Speaker. We're in a crisis, and we will get the job done. The next question, once again, the Leader of the Opposition. So once again, none of this story is adding up, Speaker. So back to the Premier. I'm not the only one who is going to be questioning the discrepancy between the Premier's testimony and the growing mountain of evidence. I would bet that the RCMP's special prosecutor, who's investigating the alleged criminal corruption by this government, is going to be interested too. So I would ask the Premier, would the Premier like to take the opportunity to correct the record? Mr. Secretary of the House. Again, as I've said on a number of occasions, we will assist anybody, the RCMP, or the integrity commissioner, anybody who's doing work on this. At the same time, we are going to continue to move forward on our goal of building 1.5 million homes for the people of the province of Ontario. Look, Speaker, we are in a housing crisis in the province of Ontario ostensibly because the Liberals and NDP put obstacles after obstacle after obstacle in the way of building homes. We became one of the least enviable jurisdictions in order to do business. In fact, industries that had been the pillar of Ontario's economy for decades had said that they could no longer do business in the province of Ontario, Speaker. That all changed in 2018 when we doubled down to ensure that we cut red tape, that we reduced taxes for our small, medium and large job creators. We've reduced taxes for families. Making life more affordable for them. It is the Liberals and the NDP who stand against families, stand against affordability. We're going to do all we can to improve the economy and keep it growing. Well, Speaker, they've replaced that red tape with brown envelopes and USB keys. The Premier also testified that he had no conversations, no conversations about the Gormley Ghost Station area prior to November 4th, 2022. But minutes from a meeting on October 13th, three weeks earlier, Speaker, say, Gormley, decision on areas is with the Premier's office right now and goes on to say, by the way, Speaker, the Premier doesn't understand the lands are in the Oak Ridge's moray. Back to the Premier. Could he clarify his testimony? The minister and the forefathers in the House. As I said yesterday, I actually campaigned online in two elections to have the Gormley lands taken out of the Greenbelt and made available for Wichert Stovall to develop. Of course, the Premier on both occasions when I've advocated for it said absolutely not, has turned me down on both occasions. The Gormley lands were never taken out of the Greenbelt. The Mayor of Stovall, the Mayor of Stovall asked for them to be re-designated as part of the official plan. The region of York pulled that out, Mr. Speaker, and that's where we're at, Speaker. It is so important that we continue to build on our goal of 1.5 million. They're going to stand in the way of all of it. Like, I mean, there's no secret, right? They're against municipal zoning orders that build social housing in their writings. They're against ministerial zoning orders that build long-term care. They're literally against everything that is moving the province forward, Mr. Speaker. They have cornered the market on saying no. We have cornered the market on building a bigger, better, stronger province of Ontario and we'll double down to do it. Mr. Speaker. Those lines were re-designated and the Minister knows that. The Premier testified he was not involved in any way with site selection before November 2nd, 2022. He repeated the same claims to the media just yesterday. But now, we know he was discussing a site-specific removal with Mr. Mancha a year earlier. And we just keep finding more evidence. Meeting notes that say the Premier's office wants this done. That the Premier's office asked for a picture to make sure it's captured. So, to the Premier, does he still expect people to believe that he wasn't involved from the start? The Minister of School Affairs and Housing. Again, both the integrity commissioner and the auditor general have confirmed the same. So, I would suggest to the members opposite if they don't have faith in either of those two officers of parliament, they should table a motion in front of this house to make sure that they have confidence in either of those two officers. Stop the clock. The member for Hamilton Mountain will withdraw her unparliamentary remarks. Which one? Order. Order. We start the clock. The Minister of Missile Affairs and Housing has the floor. I'll conclude by saying this. Today I was joined by the Minister of Finance in Toronto where we announced that the province of Ontario will have a 30% tax on purpose-built rentals. And you know what they're doing there, Mr Speaker? Two towers of rental housing for the people of Toronto, Mr Speaker. That is just the start. We are seeing purpose-built rentals at record levels in this province. Record levels for the past 30 years, they have never hit the targets that they are hitting today. That's what we're going to continue to do. Double down on policies that bring housing to the people of the province of Ontario. Thank you. The next question, once again, the Leader of the Opposition. I guess, Speaker, they just want to drag this all out. An internal document from this week's latest pile of evidence discusses a change to York Region's official plan that would reclassify 29 hectares of Vaughan lands owned by the Milani family and designate it for future development. These lands are also located within the Oak Regis Moraine area. The document includes commentary from Ryan Amato, who reportedly said, and I quote, Speaker, Premier's office wants this done. So this question is to the Premier. Why did his office want this done? What we want done is we want to build more homes for the people of the province of Ontario. Full stop, right? We don't want to drag anything on. We want to build more homes for the people of the province of Ontario. That's why we brought policies to this House to do just that. That's why they have voted against every single one of those measures. When the Minister of Finance brings in a bill to reduce, to eliminate taxes on purpose built rentals, they'll vote against it. When the Minister of Infrastructure brings a bill forward to build transit faster, they vote against it. When we bring a bill that would build homes around transit, transit oriented and when we bring a bill forward to eliminate the lowest income earners from tax rolls, they vote against it. When the Minister brought in a bill to increase ODSP rates and to put it towards inflation, they vote against it. They vote literally against everything. They stand for literally nothing, and that is why that party is so divided and spending more time fighting each other. It's not about who gets government favors just because they're conservative insiders. Last year the former Minister added a special provision to York's official plan just so those specific greenbelt lands could be developed. And remember, those lands were owned by the Milani family. The Milani family and their companies have donated more than $100,000 to the Conservative Party over the last 10 years. So, Speaker, I need to ask to the Premier, what is the going rate for a lucrative land deal in this province? Thank you. An odd question since the member for St Catherine has announced somebody who's here with the Co-op Housing Federation who serves on her electoral district association. I'm sure that person is doing really good work on behalf of the association and also good work for the party. You can have it both ways but what we're doubling down on is this building more homes for the people of the province of Ontario eliminating rent take so that we can get more homes in the ground shovels in the ground, Mr. Speaker eliminating taxes so that we can have more purposeful rentals ensuring that the people of the province of Ontario can share in the exact same dream that millions of people who came to this country have always had the dream of home ownership. Mr. Speaker, we know that the party opposite, they're against immigration Mr. Speaker, they're against building homes Mr. Speaker, they're against working people the member for Sudbury can't get the order, response the miners in his own community time and time again. Our economy would sink, there would be no homes built Mr. Speaker and the people would only rely on government. We want the people to have a question. The member for Bradford Branch. Thank you, Speaker. Minister of Energy. The carbon tax is driving up the cost of utilities as it is driving up the cost of everything. People across our province are struggling and life is more unaffordable today because of the imposition of the federal carbon tax. Sadly, many individuals and families are worried about how to pay for home heating and are forced to make the opposition come to order. Businesses and organizations are also feeling the same pressure from the carbon tax. They worry about their financial future and the ability to continue to provide goods and services to the people in their communities. Speaker, can the minister please explain the financial impact the carbon tax increases are having on the people of Ontario. Thank you. To reply, the Minister of Energy. Thanks, Speaker. I think the one thing I would agree on is that there's an affordability crisis across Canada right now and it's because of the carbon tax and what did the federal liberal government do last week? They carved out their staple policy, the carbon tax but only in Atlantic Canada, off home heating oil which affects 2.5% of Ontario residents. Over 70% are using natural gas. The carbon tax is adding $300 on a natural gas bill. It's adding $250 on main users bills across the province. We've been doing everything we can on this side of the House to make sure that life is more affordable. Just yesterday, the Minister of Finance and the Premier announcing that we are extending the gasoline rebate to $0.10 a litre until mid next year. While we're doing that the feds are continuing to drive up the cost of gasoline by $0.14 a litre this year with the carbon tax and plans over the next number of years. We're working closely with the federal government let us help you get this right. Reduce the carbon tax Mr. Speaker. Thank you. It's clear from the Minister's response that our government has always been a steadfast opponent of the federal carbon tax. However, the negative impact of the carbon tax cannot be overstated. I've received emails from calls from constituents sharing how the price of gas and food has dramatically increased creating daily hardships. Drivers are forced to pay more at the pumps because of the carbon tax. And while our government has showed much needed leadership and reduced the gasoline tax sadly, the federal government has not. Instead, they increased fuel and gasoline costs by $0.14 forcing individuals, families and businesses to pay more all because of the carbon tax. Can the Minister please explain what action needs to be taken to respond to the negative impact that the federal carbon tax is having on the people of Ontario? Thank you. Minister of Energy. Thanks again to the member opposite for the question. It's obviously impacting the price of everything that we buy. From gasoline at the pumps to our home heating fuels it's costing more because of the federal carbon tax. And as we heard earlier this week from Governor of the Bank of Canada it's also having a massive impact on inflation as well. The member opposite from the Liberal Party knows exactly what happened when bad energy policy is presented. His party was reduced to a minivan party on not just one election but two elections. I'm concerned for the Federal Liberal Party under Justin Trudeau that they're heading down this same bumpy road that they're going to be reduced to a minibus party if they don't do the right thing. Help us help you and reduce the carbon tax on everything. Ottawa South will come to order. Next question the member for Scarborough Southwest. Thank you very much Speaker. As reported by the Trillium today, last year the former Minister of Municipal Affairs approved amendments to Peele's official plan that would allow the development of a golf course located inside the Greenbelt Fingers in Caledon. The beneficiaries of this change include Michael Rice and members of the Digasperus family. The Auditor General found that the Ministry gave Mr. Rice and the Digasperus family preferential treatment when their lands were removed from the Greenbelt last year. So Speaker, my question is did they also receive preferential treatment when the former Minister approved these changes to Peele's official plan? The Premier. I just want to inform the NDP where the public's mind is. The public's mind is about the high mortgage rates that people are losing their houses because of mortgage rates. They're concerned about the high gas prices and that's why yesterday's government was massive deducting 10 cents per liter off each liter of gas. And I know you don't believe in driving cars I know you guys don't. You don't believe in building roads and highways and bridges. We know that because you vote against it every single time. They believe in getting rid of the tolls on the 412 and 418 but you don't believe in building any roads and highways as I said but you also don't believe in building hospitals because you vote against us on every single issue. My friends in the mining by the way I'm heading up the Sudbury to do another robocall to tell the people of Sudbury their own member doesn't support the mining industry. I'll remind the House to make their comments through the chair and that when the speaker rises you sit. Start the clock. Supplementary question. Speaker you know what people are thinking across this province? How they're going to keep a roof over their head? And they want transparency and accountability from this premier and this government. Speaker this change to Peele's official plan was requested by Quinto Annabelle who is the premier's hand-picked LCBO vice chair and major PC donor. Mr. Annabelle along with Michael de Gasparis were also involved in Vaughan working families whose illegal ad campaign against teachers triggered an RCMP investigation just two years ago and Michael Rice had hired another friend of the premier Nico Fidani-Diker to lobby in support of projects in Caledon and Peele. Mr. Fidani-Diker attended the premier's daughter's wedding reception just last year. So speaker the question is did the premier or any of his staff direct ministries officials concerning this change to Peele's official plan? Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker unless the NDP didn't notice we pulled that back. I apologize to the province we're moving forward but Mr. Speaker that member that member that just spoke Mr. Speaker from Scarborough maybe she should focus on Scarborough she voted against the brand new hospital we're building for Scarborough she voted against the subway that people have been waiting for decades so she voted against the long-term care we're putting out in Scarborough maybe she should get her priorities straight and focus on what people are concerned about right now and that's pocket book issues. Order. The next question the member for Burlington. My question is for the minister of economic development job creation and trade. The carbon tax imposed by the federal government is negatively impacting the people and businesses of Ontario. The carbon tax raises the price on everything especially for businesses and manufacturers who have no choice but to either take a financial hit or pass the costs on to consumers. Our government understands that lowering taxes actually increases revenue creates jobs and boosts the economy. Unfortunately the independent liberals and opposition NDP are working against affordability. They continue to support the carbon tax and vote against measures our government has implemented to help businesses start and grow. Speaker, Minister please share his views on how the carbon tax impacts Ontario's businesses. Minister of economic development job creation and trade. When we speak to companies all across the globe we are so excited by what Ontario has to offer. It's our educated workforce it's our low business costs it's our innovative ecosystem all of this and so much more but the one concern they all bring up because they don't understand this is this federal carbon tax we look at our neighbors in the U.S. $460 billion in two-way trade and they ask us what the heck is this carbon tax that you have. They want to think twice about investing and expanding in Ontario. Simply put this carbon tax has stifled our growth across our economy every business in every sector has seen their costs grow up because of this terrible carbon tax. Speaker our message to the federal government is very simple. Get rid of this tax. Supplementary question Thank you Speaker The minister is absolutely right Ontario can boast about the many successes we've witnessed in our province due to lowering the cost of doing business. A carbon tax never creates jobs and never provides more affordability. Its only purpose is to punish Ontario families and businesses. Only one member from the Liberal Caucus understood the negative impacts of the carbon tax and joined us in fighting to lower prices for all Ontarians. It's time for the rest of the Liberal members who are still saying no to our motion to remove the carbon tax, to do the right thing, to do it now and to vote to scrap it. Speaker can the minister please elaborate on how our economy can thrive without the need for a harmful, costly and unfair carbon tax. Minister Rickanoff's development to our creation trade. Our government has proved that you can fight for the environment while keeping costs low. We've reduced the cost of doing business by $8 billion a year and that has brought $27 billion worth of EV business here in Ontario in three years. Those investments are to provide our end-to-end electric vehicle supply chain. So we are going to be producing every component of clean emissions free EVs right here in Ontario. We are at the centre of the environmental progress here in Ontario. Unfortunately the federal government has taken the opposite approach. Their crushing carbon tax is making everything more expensive while doing absolutely nothing to fight climate change. We want them to scrap that tax but we don't. Thank you my questions to the Premier. For weeks on this side of the house we have demanded that the government fire Mr. Phil Verser CEO of Metrolinx because of his many failures under his watch but this gentleman earns a million dollars a year speaker and he's just had his contract renewed for three years. But yesterday we learned that the government has removed Janet Ecker, a former Tory cabinet minister from the Metrolinx and reports suggest that it was due to a column she wrote that criticised the quote, chaotic decision making process that led to the Greenbelt fiasco. Speaker to the Premier what message is he trying to send is it that the Premier can excuse gross incompetence with Mr. Verser but criticism will not be tolerated. To reply the Minister of Transportation Thank you very much Mr. Speaker we have one of the largest transit expansion plans in the history of this province and also in North America $70 billion over the next 10 years Mr. Speaker and let the record show that the members opposite have voted against each and every single one of those investments whether it's building the Ontario line. We have one of the largest transit expansion plans in North America building the Ontario line which will take 400,000 people every single day they voted against that whether it's the Scarborough subway extension which for years under the previous Liberal government was talked about with no action under the leadership of this Premier we have shoveled in the ground Mr. Speaker we are going to continue to do whatever we can to build transit across this province. Thank you Mr. Speaker I heard what my friend just said about a refresh at Metrolinx let's be clear the refresh was restricted to one board member and that one board member on September 26 wrote an op-ed criticizing this government's internal culture and then she was removed from the Metrolinx board but Mr. Verster he still has his job he makes a million dollars a year while he's presiding over failure and we have serious transit issues in Ontario we actually have a $500 million whole in operating funding across transit agencies in Ontario fares are going up and services getting worse so will this government get serious about the transit system we have not the systems they want to exist someday the buses and trains and streetcars we have and make sure that they get the $500 million that they need they fire Mr. Verster right now and insist we get the transit system back on track to take their seats the minister of transportation can report Mr. Speaker the members opposite in the official opposition have done nothing to support transit in this province when we came for with record and historic investments opposition come to order systems across this province during the pandemic the members opposite voted against that Mr. Speaker when we put forward these historic investments to build and continue to maintain these transit projects across the province the members opposite have voted against that whether it be the Ontario line for the people of Toronto the Scarborough subway extension the the Hazel McCallion Line LRT in Mississauga and in Brampton or Mr. Speaker the New Extensions the Finch West LRT the members opposite every single time when given the chance to stand up to build a world-class transit system across this province have always stood in the way of progress Mr. Speaker we will not take any lessons from the official opposition on how to build transit we're going to continue to move forward on a 70 billion dollar plan over the next 10 years to make Thank you very much the next question the member for Don Valley West Thank you Speaker we know from the sound work of the Auditor General and the Integrity Commissioner on the 8.3 billion dollar green belt scandal that this government has been meddling in land development processes to benefit their friends the government is now under criminal investigation by the RCMP for potential wrongdoing related to these development changes Speaker the public new and opposition members new from the beginning that the green belt changes and municipal boundary changes smelled bad similarly Mr. Speaker changes to Toronto's midtown and focus plan smelled bad too the midtown plan for Toronto developed in with extensive consultation was thrown out by this government without any consultation with the city or its residents my question to the premier given the government's track record of political interference in land development can the premier assure the people of Don Valley West and Toronto that there was no political meddling in the decision to overturn the midtown and focus plan yes or no to apply the minister of municipal affairs and housing we are we are working with the city of Toronto actually very closely with respect to their official plan we're also working with them on a host of other issues speaker issues that frankly have been brought on by the members federal party a federal party that refuses to pay for its share of services in the city of Toronto Mr. Speaker we have shelters that are bursting at the seams because of the policies of the federal liberal government now this finance minister and this premier have stepped up to the play and are providing funding to the city of Toronto federal government has yet to match that funding as they should be doing we are working very closely with the city of Toronto as they said on its official plan we are working very closely with them minister of finance is leading a team to ensure that we can address some of the challenges that they are being that they are faced ostensibly because of policies of the federal liberal government Mr. Speaker so if the member wants to be helpful she can call 1-800-JUSTEN and we can get to see the light and so that we get the supplementary question thank you speaker once again we get empty rhetoric spend doctoring and pointing to our federal partners instead of serious response to a serious question about this government's ethics and decisions my community had a plan in place to ensure thoughtful deliberate density but now the proposed developments in my community have big signs from the TDSB school board warning future residents that their children will be unable to go to school in their own communities that's not responsible development it's not good for community building and it's not good for safety city staff, residents and elected officials did not ask for this change to the official midtown plan in fact quite the opposite they continue to be shocked and outraged by the irresponsible development taking place in my community and I will ask the premier through you who advised him to overturn the midtown and focus plan eliminating height restrictions and increasing the underlying value of the real estate and are they the same people who stand to profit from these changes minister missful affairs and housing there you have it from the liberals right there not in my backyard that is what 15 years of liberal government brought to the province of Ontario the members own question is against building homes in her community and that is why we are in a housing crisis when you put their nimbyism on top of their nimbyism the radicalness of the NDP with the inability of the liberals to ever accomplish anything you have a housing crisis but you know what we're doing we're untangling the mess but mr. speaker it's even more than that it's high interest rates why because of policies of the liberals we had a liberal cabinet minister on tv the other day say the only reason that there's tax relief on the carbon tax in atlantic canada is because liberal members there said something about it mr. speaker so why don't the liberals here and the liberal MPs in Ontario say something about it do something to bring more affordability the house will come to order so we can continue questioning the member for brantford prant would like to place his question if his colleagues order the opposition will come to order start the clock the member for brantford brant Mr. Speaker I appreciate that my question is for the minister of natural resources and forestry the carbon tax is hurting our farmers hurting our families and hurting our businesses the carbon tax raises the price of everything especially for our businesses who have no choice but to either absorb the loss or pass on the cost to their customers the massive cost of the carbon tax is unsustainable for the people of Ontario speaker the carbon taxes effects are widespread including negative impacts to industries in the natural resources sector any barrier that creates delays and financial hardships in the sector negatively impacts Ontario's growth and economic prosperity speaker can the minister please explain how the carbon tax has impacted the natural resources forestry and wood sectors here in Ontario thank you the minister of natural resources and forestry thank you very much speaker and thank you to the member for the question it's an important question because the carbon tax does impact lumber it does impact the forestry sector I just got a letter the other day speaker from the president of the Ontario forest industries association and here's what they said the next scheduled increase of the federal carbon tax on April 1st will have significantly damaging impacts on our sector fuel cost impact every stage of the supply chain within the economy and have compounding negative effects on industry competitors let's think about that let's think about the contractor getting in his truck to drive to the forest to do his work paying carbon tax let's think about the equipment used to take down a tree let's think about the trucks that take the logs out of the bush more carbon tax let's think of the milling process more carbon tax let's think of getting the lumber to market more carbon tax Mr. Speaker this tax has got to go we've got to scrap the tax it's in the cost of every new home in Ontario one more question speaker you know what the worst part about the carbon tax is is that it's only going to get worse the federal government liberals and opposition NDP want to nearly triple this regressive tax by 2030 this means fuel prices will increase creating a chain reaction of rising costs throughout the economy for example the price to move and process lumber will go up this will cause the price of transporting 2x4s to the store also to increase Ontario companies especially those in rural remote and northern communities are already struggling every single day to stay competitive and viable due to many fiscal pressures in this time of economic and affordability uncertainty let's not tax Ontarians more speaker can the minister please share further details regarding how the carbon tax negatively impacts Ontario's natural resources sector and our entire economy thank you Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry I have the chance to talk about the forestry sector but let's look at the aggregate sector too something that is needed to build Ontario and look at the different ministries down the line here that need aggregates to get their projects done and every single load of those aggregates subjected to carbon tax the minister of health wants to build new hospitals, carbon tax the minister of long term care wants to build new homes, carbon tax the minister of transportation wants to build new roads, carbon tax infrastructure has myriad pros and cons he wants to build more carbon tax Mr. Speaker the resources that we need to build Ontario are subject to a carbon tax that has got to stop we have got to strap this tax the members opposite know it they've heard this message time and time again from Ontario Order the next question the member for university rose dill thank you speaker my question is to the premier for nearly two years now the government has refused to give Toronto the green light to move ahead with inclusionary zoning which would require developers to build some affordable homes in new big developments so this feels like a double standard we've got the government letting lobbyists quickly rewrite official plans to benefit their speculator friends but at the same time this government is dragging its heels on making sure developers do their part to solve the affordable housing crisis for the premier when will this government stop blocking Toronto's inclusionary zoning law and allow the construction of much needed affordable homes the minister Mr. Affairs in housing well speaker we're working very closely with the City of Toronto on its official plan but you know we just heard from the member from Don Valley who doesn't want to build homes in her community the member for university rose dill who is in agreement with us that more lands needed to be opened up with respect to building more homes I'm delighted to hear that she's unlike her leader and her party that she agrees with us that we need to build more homes and we need to do it in a different fashion I was actually just in the member's community announcing two towers of rental housing Mr. Speaker I think over 600 units of purpose built rental housing you know why that's getting done I'm glad you asked Mr. Speaker the reason speaker that that is getting done is because this premier fought tooth and nail with the federal government to remove the HST from purpose built rentals and you know what that means that means thousands of dollars in savings per unit which is unleashing purpose built rental housing like never before where at the highest starts in over 30 years because of the policies of this government that that member continuously votes against so for another question thank you my question is back to the premier Toronto has been waiting nearly three years for the government to approve the 59 home supportive housing project at 175 Cumber Avenue in Wellardale and now as they wait for the approval of these already constructed homes they currently sit empty in a warehouse in the city of Toronto is spending a million dollars a year paying for that warehouse to keep them in storage and at the same time this project at 175 Cumber is facing opposition from a conservative donor who is building luxury homes across the street so you say yes to luxury homes when it comes to supportive housing crickets when will this government give the green light to build these supportive housing homes in Wellardale so that we can house people who have no home at all Minister of Missful Affairs and Housing you can't make the stuff up from these guys right this is the same member and a party that yesterday was railing against the MZOs that are building socialized housing in their community right there's five I think there's six MZOs that we gave to build affordable housing in their community and the members opposite don't want it to happen now all of a sudden they want it to happen so what is it you actually want housing or you don't want housing right they're so busy fighting with each other they have no idea what it is that they're asking for the Liberals have no idea the member for Don Valley doesn't want to build housing this member wants to build it sometimes but maybe not all the time Mr. Speaker the only party that the people of the province of Ontario can rely upon to get the job done is the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario 400 supply assets right housing at its highest level in 30 years housing starts at their highest level in over 15 years Mr. Speaker the people of the province of Ontario a Progressive Conservative Government will give them a bigger better stronger Ontario the next question the member for Canada Carlton thank you speaker there are more than there are more than 100,000 children living in poverty in Ontario there are more than 12,000 Ontario children on a surgery waitlist in Ontario there are more than 60,000 children on the Ontario autism program waitlist for therapy and services in Ontario but just a fraction of 8.3 billion dollars these children could be helped but it's not just the green belt now this government has decided to spend $650 million on a parking garage for a privately owned exclusive spa my question to the premier can you possibly explain how this government's priorities are so skewed towards privileged insiders and friends instead of Ontario's children the minister of municipal affairs this is a member who sat in Ottawa and voted in favour of a carbon tax and who does the carbon tax hurt well we've heard for experts now that it is hurting every single Canadian right every single Canadian we've heard the skyrocketing food prices why because of a carbon tax the member voted in favour of Mr. Speaker she's sitting in a caucus where they accomplished literally nothing did they build hospitals in Ottawa no Mr. Speaker did they build transit or transportation in Ottawa no Mr. Speaker did they build long term care no Mr. Speaker the members own riding we are building more long term care then they built in the entire province of Ontario Mr. Speaker that is the record of this it's a great opportunity to the member opposite do us a favour call your former colleagues in Ottawa the ones who are sitting on their hands along with Paul Caucus here and ask them to do what the Atlantic Canadian Liberal MPs did demand that the carbon tax be removed because if they do that we'll get progress it's not just us fighting for the people of Ontario it's continuing to be very noisy in here so I'm going to start calling out members by name if they are interjecting start the clock the supplementary question the minister's answers completely ignores the hundreds of thousands of children in need in Ontario Mr. Speaker the children of Ontario deserve a government acting in their best interests the green belt scandal the criminal investigation the Ontario Place scandal the MZO scandal it all serves the best interests of select insiders how many RCMP criminal investigations how many scandals how many betrayals before this government starts governing for the people of Ontario instead of governing for the rich and privileged friends Minister children community and social services Mr. Speaker the members of the Liberal Caucus the last to talk about when they are facing multiple investigations and charges so I would just point that out when it comes to support for children and youth and families across this province Mr. Speaker it's been this government it's been this premier we just recently announced a $330 million pediatric support thanks to the minister of health Mr. Speaker we increased funding no student is left hungry in our schools Mr. Speaker we increased we doubled the Ontario Autism program funding by $300 million and further increased it by 10% again this year Mr. Speaker why? because none of these were done by the previous Liberal government and the NDP when they had the opportunity the balance of power didn't stop the member for Kitchener Conestoga will come to order the member for Renfrew Nipissing Pembroke will come to order start the clock the member for Mississauga Aaron Mills thank you Mr. Speaker it was surprising and unexpected to hear a federal cabinet minister state that the provinces that are looking for relief from the carbon tax should elect more Liberal MPs I could hardly believe it this is unheard of in fact it was a shocking admission by the federal government about the lack of respect for the concerns of the people of Ontario and other provinces across our country the reality is that we can see the negative impact that the carbon tax is having on the coast of everyday essential items that people need while Ontario is struggling to cope with the high coasts politics is not the answer to address affordability issues Speaker can the minister please share what our government is doing to continue to reduce costs for all Ontarians Thank you very much to the member for the question just yesterday the premier was out talking about the fact that we are extending the gas tax rebate by 10 cents a liter we know that the federal carbon tax is driving that up by 14 cents a liter every year our government is the one that removed license plate sticker fees saving motorists all across the province a significant amount of money every year Mr. Speaker and that's something that the federal government can't get their hands on so that was a tangible thing that's in the pockets of the people of Ontario the Ontario electricity rebate which was announced a couple of weeks ago is reducing the cost of electricity for customers all across the province by 15 to 17 percent Mr. Speaker that's farmers that's small businesses and homeowners Mr. Speaker we also have the the CER which reduces the cost of electricity for our industrial customers Mr. Speaker was very disheartening on Thursday last week when the prime minister came out and announced a carve out from the carbon tax for only Atlantic Canadians Mr. Speaker that's a much your question Thank you Mr. Speaker I share the minister's views that the federal government has to create a confusion and unfortunately showing division clearly this approach works against the best interest of Ontarians further the independent liberals and opposition NDP are out of touch when it comes to understanding the hardships facing the people of Ontario because of the carbon tax the people of Ontario are struggling with the rising cost of food fuel and everyday essential items because of this aggressive carbon tax our government has a stronger record of successful measures that can make life more affordable it's time for the federal government to reconsider this approach and act in the best interest of all Ontarians by eliminating the carbon tax Speaker can the minister please explain how the mental carbon tax is affecting the people of Ontario Minister of Energy cabinet ministers and members of provincial parliament from the progressive conservative caucus again this morning about the impact that the federal carbon tax is having on aggregates the impact it's having on the forestry sector the impact it's having on the agriculture sector on economic development in spite of all the harm that that federal carbon tax is doing to residents in Ontario we're continuing to see our economy thrive Mr. Speaker because we have cut taxes we've created an environment in Ontario for multi-billion dollars of new investment in the electric vehicle sector in the EV battery sector green steel making Mr. Speaker we have a great track record on reducing emissions and reducing the cost of business and putting Ontario back on the map Mr. Speaker but the federal government has to come to the table and realize that they're not just hurting Atlantic Canadians that they're hurting Canadians from coast to coast to coast Mr. Speaker that includes here in Ontario it's time to scrap the time the next question the member for Windsor West Thank you Speaker my questions to the Premier New Democrats know that dental care is health care all Ontarians should have access to timely dental care with their OHIP card not a credit card Heather who lives in Windsor was told there was a year long wait list for her to see a dentist through the Ontario seniors dental program after seven months she received a call to tell her she no longer qualified for the program because she makes too much money Heather makes $90 over the 22,200 income limit for seniors a situation many seniors in my riding and across the province are experiencing Speaker one mother conservatives prioritize seniors health care and increase the income limit for the seniors dental care program the Deputy Premier and Minister of Health Thank you I appreciate the question from the member opposite because there is no doubt that while Ontario is leading Canada and providing coverage for our individuals most in need whether that is through dental care programs in our school programs through our public health units more needs to be done it is exactly why in the last fall economic statement we made an additional investment of $17 million we'll continue to make sure that those investments ensure that patients and individuals like your constituent and across Ontario get access but there is no doubt as the federal government tinkers with what they are going to do with the dental plan federally and giving that uncertainty leads to frankly confusion within the provincial territorial conversations as we manage a program that we have done very well in the past and we need to have a federal partner who understands where we are going so that we can match Supplementary question While the Minister of Health deflects to the federal government food bank usage here in Ontario has increased homelessness has increased opioid overdoses have increased ER closures have increased cold reds and cold blacks for paramedics has increased under your government not the federal government your responsibility Heather's income is well below the poverty line yet the conservatives think she earns too much and doesn't deserve dental care Francis Hart had a similar experience with the seniors dental program Francis hadn't seen a dentist for years because he couldn't afford to in July after waiting months for an appointment through the government's program Francis had to have all of his upper teeth removed he was sold to come back in a few months for dentures when he returned he was told he no longer qualified for the program the government basically said tough luck to get a dental care or live in even deeper poverty by earning less so my question is when will the premier stop treating dental care as a luxury that seniors must try to save up for or go without Minister of Health 17 million dollar investment that was a result of the fall economic statement of course the NDP opposite voted against I'm going to give you some very specific examples of what that investment purchased because frankly if you have not seen it in your own community you should make the effort to I have that investment supports new and renovated dental clinics and the procurement of additional mobile dental buses including in Windsor to connect more seniors to the care they need closer to home as I said we will continue to make those investments I just wish that the member opposite and the NDP party would start to support those investments and work together in the meantime we'll get the job done the next question the member for Carlton thank you Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker my question is to the Minister of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs since the introduction of the carbon tax production costs for farmers like Graham Green of Abbey Hill Farms in Richmond Greenhouse growers like Devin and Ben Allen of Suntech Greenhouse in Manatech and food processors all across the province 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 hard working individuals businesses and farmers it provides absolutely no value other than taking money from families the carbon tax increases the cost of transporting inputs like seed fertilizer and packaging that drives up the cost of delivering fruits and vegetables to market can the minister please explain what impact this harmful and regressive tax is having on our agricultural sector Minister of Agriculture Food and Rural Affairs thank you very much Mr. Speaker and I appreciate the question very much because it allows me in this House to stand up and speak on behalf of Ontario farmers they've told me over the last couple of weeks that cost of production this year alone have jumped 20 to 30% and that relates into horrendous prices at the grocery store and you know a farmer told me once that he can manage fluctuations in quantity prices he can adapt to changing weather conditions but what worries him and keeps him up at night is bad ideology and let me tell you very clearly there's no worse ideology than the liberal carbon tax because we need to face the facts right now the tax is at a rate of $65 per ton under the liberal federal government in six short years they want to see that rate increase to $170 per ton we can't afford life for the federal government now in their carbon tax God help us all if that liberal federal government is allowed to continue we need to scrap that tax thank you thank you speaker the reality is that under the carbon tax system farmers, processors and grocers are forced to raise their prices because of this harmful and regressive tax in 2022 alone Ontario's greenhouse growers were assessed and forced to pay an additional $12 million under the federal carbon tax regime this resulted in attacks of approximately $3,400 per acre on fresh fruits and vegetables this is unacceptable and simply not fair unlike the independent liberals in opposition NDP who are content in hurting our farmers by supporting this regressive carbon tax we believe that Ontario grown food must remain on the shelves without interruption speaker through you can the minister please explain why our food producers are being punished with a carbon tax thank you minister of agriculture food and rural affairs thank you very much speaker and I agree with the member opposite farmers throughout Ontario are being punished by a ridiculous liberal ideology that is driving this carbon tax to increase the cost of production and ultimately the cost of everything and it is unsustainable and you know what's really worrisome for me is that ideology is being sustained because just last week liberal leaning senators absolutely gutted C-234 that was a bill that would see farmers exempted for heating barns and drying grains and oil seeds that would have saved hundreds of millions of dollars across this province and Canada and quite frankly with that gutting of C-234 cost of productions are going to continue to rise ladies and gentlemen do the honourable thing join our government and stand up against bad liberal ideology that's doing nothing but drive up the cost of living through the chair the next question the member for Niagara Falls thank you speaker my question is to the premier today is the first day of November where people across the world raise awareness of health issues affecting men such as prostate cancer in 2022 close to 25,000 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer and close to 5,000 lost their lives that's our dads our brothers, our uncles and our grandparents early prevention and detection saves lives 100% of the men live 5 years with early detection but this government voted down my motion to expand PSA testing for prostate cancer which is critical to early detection it's been nearly a year since the conservatives voted down my motion since then 4,600 men have died 8 provinces, 3 territories and 9 in 10 Canadians support increased government health care spending on the test early detection why are the conservatives ignoring the recommendations of doctors experts and patients with prostate cancer by refusing to cover the PSA test as men die every single day thank you I know this is an issue that is very important to the member opposite as it is to all of us in this chamber we will continue to follow that clinical guidance but I do agree that early detection is so important which is why I was so proud to be able to stand earlier this week and announce that mammograms for women 40 to 50 are going to be available for South Africa truly is all about early detection and empowering individuals to make decisions based on their health we will continue to work with clinical advice and experts to make sure that as we move forward those types of decisions when they are appropriate will be announced thank you that concludes our question period for the this morning