 It is now time for oral questions. I recognize the leader of His Majesty's Loyal Opposition. Thank you. Good morning, Speaker. This morning, it was revealed that this government's sweetheart deal with the private Austrian luxury spa at Ontario Place will last for 95 years. A 95-year lease, Speaker, for an enormous swath of public parkland. This government is committing land in a public park, a park owned by the people of Ontario to a private luxury spa until 2118. This government is signing parkland away from our kids and our kids' kids, and there's kids' kids. Speaker, this government entered into this contract on behalf of the people of Ontario, so my question is to the Premier, when will they provide Ontarians with a copy of the contract that now involves more than a billion dollars? On to the government, the Minister of Infrastructure. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I'd love the opportunity to be able to speak about the 43 acres of public park space that we will be creating at Ontario Place for families to finally enjoy. The government is entering into a long-term lease, but, Mr. Speaker, we cannot ignore the fact that they will be providing $500 million worth of capital investment on the site, including 12 acres of land. But I would love to highlight some of the successes through the negotiations that Infrastructure Ontario has had with our tenants. Mr. Speaker, for the first time, we will have our tenants contributing to the repair ongoing maintenance of the public realm space so that we don't make the same mistake that previous governments have made and leave the site into disrepair. Mr. Speaker, we will have wonderful tenants that will be contributing to the annual maintenance of the site to make sure that it is clean, safe, and beautiful for families. It's very interesting, Speaker, because reps from the corporation called it a I'm going to quote them, a standard multi-year commercial lease speaker. 95-year leases are more usual when it's public land being leased to a public institution, but this is park land being leased to a for-profit international corporate conglomerate. If it is a standard lease, then this government should have no problem providing details to the people of Ontario. We're talking $650 million in public subsidies and a 95-year lease. Speaker, back to the Premier. What are the details of this contract? Mr. Speaker, the member of the opposition said it herself, these are standard lease agreements. Mr. Speaker, we are not selling, unlike other waterfront destinations, we are not selling the land. While the land will continue to be an ownership of the people of the province, this is a lease agreement, but Mr. Speaker, our tenants will be contributing $500 million of injection to the site to bring it back to life, and they will also be contributing to annual maintenance and repair costs, which has not happened before, which has led to the position that we are in today, where the site is in disrepair and in need of love and care. Mr. Speaker, our government presented a vision to the people back in 2019, and again, just last week, we will have 43 acres of beautiful public realm space. We will have three wonderful tenants, which include the Science Centre, and we will have lots for families to do on the site. The final supplementary. Public realm speakers? This is a private luxury spa. You have to ask, what are they hiding? What are they hiding, Speaker? This isn't just about Toronto. I've been travelling around the province, and I've heard people from every corner of Ontario express concerns about this government's back row room deals and their lack of transparency. They're alarmed by this government spending as much as $650 million on a subsidy for a private luxury spa and a massive parking lot. Now, now, they're alarmed that this government is committing to a back room 95-year lease with absolutely no details. Government side, come to order. Failed, failed to show Ontarians what value this deal has for the people of this province. They've failed to produce the contracts. They've failed to provide the business case. Speaker, Ontarians deserve to know, and I'm going to go back to the Premier again, when will this government come clean about this back room deal? Minister of Infrastructure. Thank you to the member of the official opposition. I'd love to share what I hear from constituents across this great province, including constituents in Etobicoke, Scarborough and in Toronto. What they tell me is that they do not like the fact that this site is sitting there empty and not enjoyed by families like it was back in the 70s and 80s. They want to bring their families there. They want to bring people that are visiting the city there and they want it to be a place of economic development, a wonderful place for families. Mr. Speaker, beyond the 43 acres of free public realm space, we are also making sure that we have a modern marina for people to enjoy. We are making sure that there are boardwalks, food and beverage, piers and beaches. Mr. Speaker, this site now, with the plans that we showed last week, will have something for everyone to enjoy. Thank you. The next question. Leader of the opposition. Here is another thing that this government is trying to convince Ontarians of. They've put a lot of effort into trying to convince Ontarians that building luxury mansions on expensive sprawl is the solution to our housing crisis. They're even ordering municipalities to create more sprawl on prime farmland and their risking regions drinking water. But the truth is, Speaker, that no one out there is buying it. No one thinks that bulldozing species at risk or adding to municipal servicing costs and driving up property taxes is going to get a single affordable home built. Speaker, my question is to the Premier. How will lower density and more sprawl make housing more affordable to Ontarians? Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Thanks, Speaker. Again, the Leader of the Opposition provides a real head scratching argument on housing. So every time the government brings forward a housing supply action plan, we know exactly what that leader and the NDP are going to do. They're going to vote against it. Then they're going to rail against that there's not enough housing supply. So again, when they use the word sprawl, what does that mean? That means that a young person, a young couple who want to live in the community that they grew up in, that they work in, that they want to raise their family in can't have that opportunity. They also believe that a farm family, dream killers, want to have an opportunity to maybe build a site for their workers on their property. Or maybe, and this is tough for the NDP to understand, maybe sever a lot for their son or daughter to live on the family farm. That's the crux of what the NDP stands up against. What do they also stand up against, Speaker? They stand up to a $700 million investment in homelessness prevention. Supplementary question. You know what we are going to do, Speaker? We're going to vote against legislation that compromises farmland and clean water. And doesn't built rents are reaching all-time highs, Speaker? And corporate landlords are turning record profits? You know who aren't affected? Those who live in cooperative housing, Speaker? Co-op residents don't have to worry about excessive rent increases because co-ops are non-profit. Co-ops are a key solution to solving the affordability crisis for low and moderate income households in this province. The people who are feeling the very real effects of this government's housing crisis. Yet this government's budget offers absolutely nothing to create more affordable co-op homes. Speaker, to the Premier, will he reverse course on his failing housing plan and start investing in cooperative housing to bring some relief to Ontarians who are truly struggling? The minister in this book is in housing. Speaker, I just can't for the life of me understand why this member and her party thinks that Ontarians are going to buy this low to malarkey, right? You know, we continually stand up for homelessness prevention. We responded directly to municipalities who asked us to invest in supportive housing. The only party who stands up daily in this house to speak against supportive housing is the new Democrats. Every single time they stand up against supportive housing. They vote against supportive housing. They vote against non-profit housing. They vote against co-op housing. Every single time we put in an initiative that builds our community housing system, merit styles, and the NDP say no. Do I need to remind the House that we don't refer to each other by name. We refer to each other by our writing name or our ministerial type, leader of the opposition. Start the clock. Final supplementary. Leader of the opposition. Speaker, they're so out of touch. Once again, Speaker, if they show me any respect, I just want them to respect the people of this province and take responsibility at every turn. They do not seem to even understand history, Speaker. The last time a government made investment in co-op housing in this province, it was an NDP government. We helped build 14,000, 15,000 additional homes for construction. And guess what? The Conservatives came in and they cancelled them all. 17,000 affordable places to live, all gone. But let's look at the here and the now. If this government still refuses to build more co-op housing, the least they could do. The least they could do is to bring back real rent control for the people of this province. Speaker, back to the Premier. People need homes they can actually afford to live in. So will he take action by supporting the NDP's motion today to bring back real rent control? Well, fair is in housing. Speaker, when it comes to housing policy, the NDP's styles have no merit. Given the fact that I just asked the House to stop doing that, in the very next response, the minister did it again, I'm going to ask him to withdraw. That's like a holiday. Come to withdraw. Withdraw, Speaker. Restart the clock and the minister can conclude his answer. Speaker, the NDP and the opposition want us to go back to a time where there was no purpose built rental built in Ontario. So what has our policies done? They've protected tenants that are under existing rent control, just like we promised in the 2018 budget. But what's happened to new rental construction? We need more affordable rental supply. What's happened, Speaker? 2021, a 30 year high in purpose built rental construction. 2022, the most rental construction starts in our provinces history. Provinces staying on track with over 5,000 purpose built rental starts already this year. Which is double the last year's total, Speaker. We want to build upon that success. We don't want to go back to the failed policy. But that member and her party continue to talk about it. Thank you. The next question, the member for University Rosedale. Thank you, Speaker. My question is to the Premier. Nikki has lived in a rental home for two years. She pays $1,995 for a 600 square foot basement apartment. Earlier this month, her landlord slapped her with a $200 rent increase and now Nikki can no longer afford to pay the rent. This rent increase, this unaffordable rent increase is allowed because this government's scrapped rent control on new units. As more and more people in Ontario are struggling to pay the rent, what is this government's plan to make rent affordable now? Minister, Minister of Affairs and Housing. You know, again, Speaker, I'm going to again talk about the statistics that the NDP want to rule about. 2021, 30 year high rental construction. 2022, most rental starts in the history of our province. 2023 already. We've seen 5,000 rental starts double what they were last year. These are the stats that our government and our party are going to move forward. The NIMBYism Defence Party are always going to stand against increasing houses. Back to the Premier. It is alarming to learn that Toronto's average rent price has passed the $3,000 a month barrier for the first time ever. Approximately 13.8% up from the previous year. This is shocking. And this massive rent spike is a clear distress signal that our housing affordability crisis is getting worse and the Conservatives plan is not working. The NDP is bringing forward a motion this afternoon to bring in real rent control on all homes to provide immediate financial relief to Ontarian's 1.5 million renter households. My question is to the Premier. Will this government support our motion? The Associate Minister of Housing. Thank you Speaker and I want to thank the member opposite for her question Speaker. It's this government that stands shoulder to shoulder with our tenants across Ontario. We're the only government that have taken decisive measures to strengthen protectors for renters while also putting in place measures for more rental housing. We've heard about the record purpose built rental housing in the early 1990s. Speaker, when we remember when the people of Ontario entrusted the NDP for one term to run this government they had a majority. Order. And what did they do? Let's talk about rental. The rental guideline in 1990 was 4.6% although inflation was significantly lower. 1991, 5.4%. And in 1992 when inflation was much lower as today they had it at 6% Speaker. Absolutely not acceptable. This government this year has a rent increase guideline of 2.5%. This is the government with this. The next question, the member for Elgin Middlesex London. My question through you sir is to the Premier. But first I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Premier, the Minister of Economic Development, the Minister of Northern Development and Indigenous Affairs for coming to St. Thomas to make a stark announcement to better Ontario. Speaker, under the previous Liberal government, Ontario's auto manufacturing sector was all but destroyed because of the reckless economic policies they implemented. As far back as 2015 the CEO of Fiat Chrysler warned everyone that the short-sighted and destructive policies of the Liberals and NDP were hurting our auto industry and causing good paying jobs to flee our province. Companies like Volvo, Jaguar Land Rover and Ford were raising concerns so they opted to build assembly plants in the US and Mexico instead of Windsor and Essex. With so much that Ontario has to offer businesses we cannot miss opportunities that will create great jobs and contribute to our province's economic prosperity. Speaker, can the Premier please explain how our government is ensuring that Ontario is an auto industry? Speaker, I want to thank the great work from the NDP, from Elgin and I always say one of the smartest business minds down at Queensborough. So thank you. It took about 16 ministries it took a big chunk of the province right across the board to get this deal done. To make sure that we're competitive with the rest of the world no matter if it's our US friends down south of the border, Asia or South America. We're in a competitive market but we made sure we rolled out the red carpet creating 3,000 jobs. The real amazing story about this is the reciprocal, the spin-off jobs of 30,000 extra jobs. No matter if it's an additional school or a hospital or roads or bridges or a Walmart or a Costco, these are the reciprocal jobs that are coming to St. Thomas. St. Thomas has seen some very tough times when they lost 5,000 jobs now their towns are going to be absolutely booming. That will have spin-off jobs in London and Elgin in the whole region. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Thank you to the Premier once again for this great historic announcement. The investments in Elgin County by Volkswagen into all our local communities in Southwestern Ontario truly marks a new and generational era for all of us. St. Thomas suffered through the closing of the Phil Assembly plant in 2011. It was really tough and Sterling Truck Assembly plant in 2009 resulting in thousands and thousands of jobs gone. This investment made by Volkswagen is truly historic and it sends a clear and definitive message that we are back in business in Southwestern Ontario. I want to make the point that sustainable jobs matter to the people of Ontario and it is the leadership and actions of government that make a difference by creating a government for business to create jobs and succeed. Speaker can the Premier please elaborate on how our government is continuing to support our auto manufacturing sector in our great province. Premier. Well again I want to thank the MPP Mr. Speaker this is historic investment of Volkswagen to build its first overseas facility. 16 million square feet. It is going to be one of the largest facilities in North America one of the largest in the entire world because we created the environment and the conditions for them to come here along with General Motors Ford Toyota, Stalantis and Honda. There is no jurisdiction in North America that have six auto manufacturers right there producing either the batteries or producing the vehicles. Let's remind everyone four and a half years ago when they chased 300,000 jobs out of the province of Liberals and NDP they were gone. GM was closing, Ford was leaving Stalantis was leaving we're an economic powerhouse we're leading the EV revolution everywhere in the world right here in Ontario. Question. Member for Niagara Senator. Thank you Speaker through you to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing there's a housing development in Port Cobra in a city in my riding that was approved in the 1980s and they still haven't broken ground. As a matter of fact the regional planning commissioners of Ontario AMO and the big city mirrors have all pointed out that there are 1.25 million homes in the approval pipeline that are not being built. Planners say if the province could incentivize developers to build what is already approved they'd be 85% of the way to their goal. Will the Minister agree to implement a reasonable time limit on developers and builders whose developments have already been approved yes or no. There's both airs and housing. I'm glad the member opposite talked about Port Cobra and I had a great meeting with the Mayor and representatives from that municipality at the Ontario Good Roads meeting last week. Fantastic they're so aligned with our government's policies on getting shovels in the ground faster. Want to thank them for all of their ideas and suggestions that they gave the ministry during Good Roads but I have to take the opportunity with this member because he and his party continue to vote against our measures which would incentivize the development community to get shovels in the ground faster. Exactly what our government's put forward would do what this member wants and he votes against it so I'm not sure how he rationalizes that back home. Supplementary question. This government has been blaming municipalities in the approval process for the housing crisis. According to AMO's calculations they've taken away 5 billion in infrastructure revenue while at the same time finding municipalities if they don't hire more planners to speed up the approval process. Meanwhile the premier's well connected friends get to bank land and speculate all they want driving up the price of housing and creating red tape. Will this minister stop blaming municipalities do what is fair and implement a sunset clause on approvals so that developers and billers must build housing in a reasonable period of time after they've been approved yes or no. There are states Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Members got it wrong. I'm blaming the NDP for voting against every measure that this government puts forward in these housing supplies. This is the fundamental argument that we have with the NIMBYism defense party over there. The fact is that as a government have an idea that we need to get those input costs down we need to lower the cost. Right now fees and charges in the greater Golden Horseshoe put $119,500 on the cost of housing. We want to reduce those baseline costs to make housing more affordable. The NDP will always speak up and I mean this always. They're always going to stand up for more fees more charges, more taxes on non-profit housing a co-op housing affordable housing, attainable housing every single time you guys haven't seen a tax that you don't like. To make the comments through the chair not directly across the floor of those. The next question, the member for Elgin Middlesex London. My question is the Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Job Creation and I want to start by thanking him through you for his tireless and dogged determination for getting the Volkswagen deal across the line. Well done sir. As we have heard many times in this house before this government got elected our auto and manufacturing sectors were in deep, deep trouble. Hundreds of thousands of auto and manufacturing jobs fled the province thanks to the previous government leaving Ontario unprepared to lead the charge on the future of electric vehicles. That is why we are laser focused on rebuilding the provinces auto and manufacturing sectors by attracting investments all the while creating good, long term sustainable jobs. Last Friday our government announced further details of the historic Volkswagen investment in my riding of Elgin Middlesex London. Speaker, will the Minister provide an update on the Volkswagen deal? Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. It was a thrill to hear Volkswagen announced their $7 billion investment for their first overseas EV battery manufacturing plant right here in Ontario. From our very first meeting in Toronto a year ago this month to the four meetings they had in Queens Park with Premier Ford, we knew that Ontario had everything VW was looking for. As we talked about our EV ecosystem from critical minerals in the north to the manufacturing might in the south, you could see VW being drawn into the Ontario story, clean green electricity, coal free green steel. One of the largest automakers in North America, the only jurisdiction with five auto plants, 700 parts companies, 300 connected and autonomous vehicle companies, 500 tool and die and mold makers. But what they really saw speaker was that we already have the talent to turn the world class award winning production. Supplementary question. Thank you speaker and thank you to the minister for his answer. It's remarkable, it has been remarkable to see the hard work of this government has been paid off once again in the form of attracting the largest EV plant in the history of our promise and I dare say the largest automotive investment in the history of this country called Canada. These investments are building our strong competitiveness which is vital to our success. But beyond that these investments demonstrate that our government continues to create good paying, sustainable jobs now and in the future. Speaker will the minister please elaborate on what the Volkswagen investment means not only the people of my riding of Elgin, Middlesex, London, but to all the people of this great province. Mr. economic development. Speaker what Volkswagen really saw in us was our people. They knew that we can do it here because we produce 65,000 STEM grads every year. We have 24 colleges and universities offering automotive programs. When we met them in Germany last October we showed them Ontario understands cars and manufacturing. We have for a hundred years and by choosing us they would be in the heart of the EV revolution. Speaker we felt encouraged about where we were with the deal when Volkswagen effectively moved into our offices last January and well winning it Speaker there's just no better feeling than that. So thank you Premier Ford. It was the culmination of a lot of work, a lot of shoe leather, a lot of sweat equity by a lot of partners. Speaker Ontario now has 25 billion dollars in new auto investment in two and a half years. The next question the member for London West. Thank you Speaker my question is to the Premier. Speaker a staff report went to London city councillors last week warning that bill 23 will cause a $100 million revenue loss over the next five years likely resulting in property tax increases. City staff caution that bill 23 will reduce parks and green spaces, limit the city's infrastructure and cause needed infrastructure improvements to be deferred. It will make it challenging for London to deliver on its approved target of 47,000 new housing units. Speaker why is this government creating a huge revenue hole for cities like London and making it more difficult to increase housing supply. Mr. Missful Affairs and Housing. You know Speaker in London they've got a great opportunity to chat with them on Thursday at the big city mayors meeting in Kitchener. Mayor Morgan and his council get it. They were one of the first municipalities in Ontario to sign on to our housing pledge. No problem in making that goal of 47,000 housing starts by 2031. Again want to build, provide very respectful comments. The meeting with the big city mayors on Thursday was amazing because we asked for their input. We're looking for their suggestions and their guidance on some of the measures in our housing policy. The only party that really sits on the sidelines are new Democrats who always complain, never give any positive recommendations and again just vote against housing policy just for the sake. We want to build upon the success that Mayor Morgan and his council have in London. We're going to continue to engage with them. Thank you. I don't know why the minister is so dismissive of the hardworking staff who work for the city of London. The staff report also warns that bill 23 will destroy wetlands, woodlands and natural habitats resulting in serious harm and putting species, conservation and our environment at risk. The Upper Thames River Conservation Authority states that bill 23 will open up significant holes in the delivery of our natural hazard roles, rendering them ineffective and will negatively impact the ability to protect people and property from natural hazards. Speaker, why is this government gutting protections for the wetlands that protect cities like London from flooding risk? To respond, the Premier. Well, thank you Mr. Speaker and by no means we're actually increasing the green belt where the green is drawn under our administration but let me just talk about the economic development. We have 445,000 people that landed in Ontario. The fastest growing region anywhere in North America we're seeing unprecedented growth. The reason we're seeing unprecedented growth we've created that environment and the climate for companies to invest and every single day my Minister of Economic Development gives me a list three pages long guess what Mr. Speaker we need homes for them to live in. It's very simple economics folks that the NDP don't understand it's business sense it's called supply and demand. When there's a greater demand and not the supply prices go up we're going to create the supply we're going to make sure we build the 1.5 million homes for newcomers and people that are here that need a home that's what we're going to do. Next question, the member for beaches east York. Thank you Mr. Speaker and good morning everyone. My question is for the Premier. We are in a housing affordability crisis in this province we all know that. Our major urban centres have an entire generation of young people and essential workers who are unable to find rental housing that they can afford. Enter 8 Dawes Road a plot of land in the centre of my beautiful riding of beaches east York with Metrolinx. It was recently sold to a housing developer great more housing just steps from the Danforth Gold train station and TTC subway at main exactly where new apartment buildings should be encouraged and yet that Metrolinx land deal contained zero requirements for delivering any on-site affordable housing units. My question is why doesn't this government require that Metrolinx include minimum affordable housing requirements in their property sales and why wasn't this done for the Danforth Gold station site at 8 Dawes Road. To reply Minister of infrastructure. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker and thank you to the member for the question I appreciate the members question very much because it was this government that led the way in terms of tying housing with transit construction. We are expanding the subway system by 50% in the City of Toronto in York Region and we want to bring housing opportunities with it which led to the creation of the transit oriented communities program which we are now very much focusing on the transit stations at Ontario line young north. We will be providing housing opportunities but also affordable attainable housing models as well and we are working with local communities to learn from them what other community benefit what other community needs exist within that particular area we are working very well with the City of Toronto we are progressing on all of our stations and we will continue to work in partnership with Metrolinx. Thank you very much for that answer but obviously 8 Dawes Road fell through the cracks because nothing had happened there and in front of me now I have the report for the Ontario Housing Affordability Task Force the Task Force is comprised of industry leaders and experts they consulted with stakeholders including municipalities and advocacy groups to develop the report in Appendix C government surplus land the following point is made all future government land sales whether commercial or residential should have an affordable housing component of at least 20% in your own report my question to the Premier is what is the point what is the point of creating reports if you do not take the sound advice of experts and will take a bolder and guzzier approach to affordable housing by requiring 20% of newly built units to be affordable and if you need a backbone I'm happy to give you an injection Thank you very much Mr. Speaker I would like to ask the member opposite who sat on City Council for many years why the city didn't lead the way in building a TOC program it was this government that led the way in terms of tying housing to transit development opportunities across the City of Toronto and young north and Mr. Speaker we are making great progress we are building more housing including attainable and affordable housing opportunities along our subway line but we're not stopping there Mr. Speaker we are doing a very thorough analysis of all of our GO stations within the Greater Toronto Hamilton area we announced East Harper for example as well as Mimico Mimico actually was a station that the former previous government spoke about but never got done Mr. Speaker this is the government in action and we will build housing and community benefits that come along with it The next question the member for Bradford Brandt Thank you Speaker my question is for the Associate Minister of Housing many communities across our province have too many individuals and families experiencing housing instability the factors contributing to homelessness and poverty are complex and need to be addressed with comprehensive innovative long term strategies that help our most vulnerable in my writing of Bradford Brandt we have a number of incredible resources and supports for those who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness I am incredibly proud of the work that these agencies undertake to deliver in providing help for individuals families and indigenous communities but there is more that should be done and can be done for them Speaker can the Associate Minister please explain how our governments investments into local programs will support housing and homelessness prevention services in my community of Bradford Brandt Thank you The Associate Minister of Housing Thank you Speaker and I want to thank the member from Bradford Brandt for the tireless work that he does and for this important question our government is committed to providing the resources they need to combat homelessness and poverty we are investing an additional 1.8 million dollars into that community bringing the total amount of provincial funding to almost 7 million dollars a nearly 34% increase this money will be used to fund the homelessness prevention program and the indigenous supportive housing program which will provide substantial support to those who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness our government recognises the critical relationship between housing supply and homelessness and that's why we're working to ensure that all Ontarians have access to affordable housing and safe housing no matter where they live we're working with the 29 largest and fastest growing municipalities to increase housing density around major transit stations areas and priority growth areas in downtown the supplementary question thank you speaker the shortage of housing supply impacts all of Ontarians no matter their background or their budget under the previous liberal government the shortage of affordable housing worsened and community supports were lacking communities like my writing were unfortunately overlooked by the previous liberal government and my constituents are rightly concerned about the impact that their inactions have had on this serious situation Ontarians deserve a government that is focused on tackling the supply crisis and providing a comprehensive approach to increase the supply of supportive and affordable housing for the most vulnerable speaker can the associate minister please explain how our government is continuing to make progress in supporting communities to ensure that resources are available for those who need it most thank you We're working hard. We're committed to providing municipalities with the tools that they require to do so speaker since I was a associate minister I've been meeting people in many communities talking to Great Members and the consensus is clear unlike the previous liberal government who neglected neglected communities like Brantford Brant, we recognize that every community in Ontario deserves the same opportunity to grow and to prosper. Speaker, under the leadership of this Premier and this Minister, our government is investing billions of dollars into transit and infrastructure as we accelerate the construction of new homes in all parts of the province. And Speaker, we're going to get it done. Thank you. The next question. Remember for Ottawa West and Appian. Thank you, Speaker. Since coming to power, this government has cut education funding in Ontario by $1,200 per student in real terms. And thanks to this underfunding, school boards are currently scrambling to plan cuts. Teachers and education workers are burning out, and a growing number of classrooms have unqualified educators present. Kids are going without vital supports. In the midst of this crisis, the Premier thinks that increasing funding for education by only 0.8% is sufficient when the government's own projection for inflation this year is 3.6%. Why does the Premier believe developers and highways should get billions, but kids should get cuts? Minister of Education. On the contrary, we believe students should get back to basics, which is why we brought forth the plan to strengthen foundational skills in reading, writing and math. Thank you, Mr Speaker. We increased staffing by 2,000 additional focus educators with respect to literacy, promotion and math. We hired 8,000 additional workers since we started in 2018. This year, like every year, we're increasing funding over $690 million, an increase in funding that's going to help kids get back on track. This morning, we announced over $20 million additional funds to combat violence that's happening in and around our schools, a 37% increase in focus on youth to help school boards with respect to after-school mentorship, leadership and career development programming and free camps for high-need communities. We just launched an agreement with the Pinball-Clemens Foundation. We launched another agreement with Respect Group that's been shelved in Kennedy for my child player, all of which the funds are for TDSB and school boards across Ontario to combat violence and keep children safe in schools across the province. The minister can get one of his new math coaches to teach him about inflation. It's really going to blow his mind. Speaker, the crisis in education is creating a downward spiral where impossible working conditions are burning out teachers and education workers who are leaving the profession, making the working conditions even worse for those who remain. We now have 40,000 teachers in Ontario who are registered with the college but not teaching in one of our schools. Meanwhile, the number of unqualified teachers in classrooms is growing. How does the Premier think this is going to help kids catch up? We brought forth legislation to accelerate the approval and certification of new educators in Ontario. Unfortunately, members opposite have confirmed that they will oppose legislation to improve schools and better focus them on student achievement in Ontario classrooms. We've also hired 8,000 more staff opposed by the NDP. We just announced a $560 million increase in funding opposed by the NDP. We increased 2,000 front-line educators just last Sunday. That too is opposed by the NDP. The constant in this legislature is opposition by the NDP for progress, for change and desperately needed reform to improve publicly funded schools. The member for Newmarket Aurora. Thank you, Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Environment, Conservation and Parks. My constituents of Newmarket Aurora as well as many individuals and families across our province hold a deep affection for Ontario's provincial parks. Despite the challenges of the past few years, Ontario parks have remained a cherished destination for Ontarians seeking to escape an unwind surrounded by the natural beauty of our great province. The number of population rates to Ontario parks have reached unprecedented levels and this trend shows no sign of slowing. Unfortunately, for those living in more urban areas, it can be challenging for individuals and families to access these parks for much needed day in nature. Speaker, what measures is our government taking to expand recreational opportunities for all Ontarians? Thank you, Speaker. I appreciate the question from the member opposite and I appreciate her advocacy for increased recreational opportunities for Ontarians. Speaker, I was proud to stand on Earth Day alongside the NDP for Pickering Oxbridge who's been a strong champion for the outdoors and the environment to announce. To announce Ontario's first ever urban provincial park, this is also the first provincial park the province of Ontario is announcing in over 40 years. Ontarians in the GTHA, we know, don't always have equal access to Ontario's green spaces unlike those living in other areas of the province. That's why our government is working hard to bring more opportunities for all Ontarians to enjoy the great outdoor. As the trail capital of Ontario, Oxbridge is an ideal location speaker and I thank the many partners who will elaborate on the supplementary who joined us. Thank you very much. The supplementary question. And thank you to the minister for that great answer and for your work because I was so excited to see that on Saturday. The creation of the first urban provincial park in Oxbridge is a monumental achievement particularly for those residing in the Greater Toronto area. With more and more individuals and families attending our provincial parks, it is necessary that our government respond and expand opportunities for access. Not only do Ontario parks serve a vital role in supporting scientific research and protecting our province's biodiversity, they also provide recreational activities, tourism and so much more. Speaker, can the minister please elaborate on plans for the proposed park and how it will benefit Ontario? Minister of the Environment. Thank you Speaker and thanks again to the member for that question. It's yet another example of how we're building a stronger Ontario and I want to thank all the partners who joined us on Earth Day for that announcement who we've been working for years with to make Saturday possible. I'd like to thank Mayor Barton first and foremost from the town of Oxbridge. He's been a champion working alongside our member. I'd like to thank regional chair John Henry. I'd like to thank John Mackenzie from the TRCA, Rob Baldwin from the Lake Simcoe Conservation Authority. The chair of our protected areas working group Peter Kendall who is there. Nature Conservancy of Canada, Shad Foundation, Earth Rangers, local high school students who are there. Speaker, this is what partnership looks like and in closing a special thank you to John Mackenzie. You know John, whose legacy land donation helped make this possible. Speaker, it's important to note that legacy landowners like John, we've enabled them to protect these areas for generations to come thanks to the Greenlands Conservation Partner Program which this minister increased for a historic 14 million dollars in funding in the budget. It's one of the reasons we've protected four times that of the previous government since the last election Speaker and we're going to continue protecting these crown jewels for generations to come. The next question, Member for Hamilton Mountain. Thank you Speaker. My question is for the Premier. A constituent named Cathy contacted my office after she was placed in a stock closet while receiving cancer treatment at a hospital in Hamilton. Before this she was in the hallway awaiting discharge which didn't happen. Cathy does not blame the staff because she knows they have no choice. She is upset because this has become a solution in Ontario under this government. Speaker, why does the Premier find it acceptable to funnel money into the private sector while our public healthcare system is under such strain that cancer patients are being treated in closets? Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. I hope the member office has shared with Cathy the 50 plus investments that we are making through the infrastructure Ontario Ministry to either build, expand or renovate 50 different hospital builds including in Niagara region. We talk about the need for ensuring that healthcare services are available in community services. How do we do that, Speaker? We make sure that we have facilities that are exceptional so that the services continue to be provided and we make investments on the health human resources side which of course we are also doing with historic investments working with the Minister of Colleges and University the largest increase in nursing students and health human resources historically in Ontario. Thank you. The supplementary question. Back to the Premier. This Premier promised to end hallway medicine in 2018 but we're in 2023 and the crisis in our hospital has gone from bad to worse. Cathy told me she received decent care but the ward was extremely busy and staff told her they needed the bed. She was spent more than 24 hours in a makeshift bed which she said was dark, unsanitary and had no call bell. This is not normal and it is bizarre to watch this government applaud themselves while our health care system crumbles. The solution isn't complicated, Speaker. Will this government prioritize funding of our public health care system or will they continue to divert public dollars into personal profits? We have and we will continue to with the investments of over 50 different capital builds including in the members own riding in the Hamilton redevelopment of the Hamilton Health Sciences Corporation. That is in planning now. These investments are going to make sure that for generations to come we have hospital facilities that are available that are completely state of the art because we have incredible health care staff who have incredible opportunities to serve the people of their communities and now we are making the investments on the capital side over 50 new investments. The next question is for the new market Aurora. Thank you, Speaker. And my question is for the Minister of Red Tape Reduction. Businesses across Ontario including those in my community are not immune to the effects of ongoing supply chain disruptions, inflation and increased interest rates. Because these global challenges have local impacts our government must continue to take bold action to help support our businesses during this period of uncertainty. That means eliminating over regulation that imposes red tape barriers and burdens. Making action to reduce red tape supports our small businesses through direct cost savings which in turn fuels job creation and growth. Speaker, can the Minister please explain what actions our government is taking to help businesses remain competitive? Minister for Red Tape Reduction. Thank you Mr. Speaker. I want to thank my colleague, the member from new market Aurora and for hard work on behalf of our constituents Mr. Speaker. I don't think I need to remind Ontario it's about the disasters legacy of the previous Liberal government supported by the NDP of course that helped drive over 300,000 jobs out of the provinces and businesses that were leaving Mr. Speaker. Thankfully to the efforts of this government Mr. Speaker we are changing all of that. It's our efforts through 10 different pieces of legislation Mr. Speaker. We have helped reduce the cost for businesses to do business in annually about 700 million dollars. Mr. Speaker it's no secret why over 85,000 new businesses were registered in the province of Ontario last year alone Mr. Speaker. Businesses are taking notice right around the world. They are making the investments in our province. We are creating the conditions for them to thrive which ultimately helps our province thrive in every single resident in the province Mr. Speaker. The supplementary question. Mr. Speaker and I'd like to thank the Minister for Visiting My Riding of New Market Aurora this past Friday where we had a very fruitful round table and during this recent visit with our local small business leaders the Minister of Red Tape Reduction and I heard about the problems that they are facing because of outdated redundant and ineffective regulations. Their message to our government was very clear. Businesses expect our government to leave no stone unturned when it comes to cutting red tape and attracting new investments that will help to create more good paying jobs and strengthen our economy. While our government continues to get it done it is obvious that continuing to eliminate red tape and keeping costs low is crucial to maintaining Ontario's competitive advantage. Question. Speaker can the Minister please share how our government is making it easier for businesses to invest and grow in Ontario. Minister of Red Tape Reduction. Mr. Speaker I want to thank my honourable colleague for that important question once again and I want to thank her for organising a wonderful round table with her local businesses last Friday and had an opportunity to hear first hand about some of the challenges and feedback in terms of how we can continue to make our province competitive Mr. Speaker. One of the things that I really enjoy in my role as the Minister of Responsible Red Tape Reduction is meeting with businesses, meeting with individuals and hearing first hand about the challenges that they are facing and how our government can continue to help them and help their business be competitive around the province Mr. Speaker. And it's part of the reason and that's how we have informed our 10 different pieces of legislation that we have introduced to help the regulatory burden on Ontarians Mr. Speaker. We recognise there's a lot more work to do and we will continue to work hard each and every day Mr. Speaker to make sure that every Ontarian, every single business in the province has the opportunity to succeed and compete. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Health Minister. As our provincial health system continues to face severe staffing shortages and patient nursing record wait time, whether in emergency room or for surgery, yet more than a dozen nurses are being laid off at Stevenson Memorial Hospital. Can the Minister of Health explain what led this hospital to have to lay off 13 nurses? The Minister of Health. So I'm going to put a couple of facts on the table before I answer that question in particular. First of all, in Canada, Ontario has the lowest wait times for surgeries. We lead Canada in Ontario. That is in no small part because of the excellent work that our clinicians and our hospitals have been able to do dealing with the pandemic backlog. We've done that. We also understand that there is more work to do in terms of ensuring that we even do better for the people of Ontario, which is why through Bill 60 we have allowed an expansion in the community and surgical area. And the member opposite would know very well that there are hundreds of community surgical and diagnostic organisations that are already operating in the province of Ontario and we are expanding that in Bill 60 because we understand that people want access to care as close to their community as possible. The supplementary question. While most healthcare setting are desperate to hire nurses, Stevenson Memorial Hospital is laying off nurses because they are facing a deficit, because the government does not fund them enough. We all know where those nurses will end up. They'll end up working for big for-profit corporations who will be receiving hundreds of millions of dollars from this conservative government directing money away from public healthcare to private for-profit. Will this government allocate the funds to Stevenson Memorial Hospital so it can keep their nurses that the patients so need and deserve? So, we've spoken many times about our government launching the largest health human resource recruiting and training initiatives in Ontario's history. Some of that, of course, is embedded in Bill 60 with an as-of-right proposal that will ensure that if you are a practising clinician, doctor, nurse in other Canadian jurisdictions, you will be able to immediately come to Ontario and start practising without having to wait. An opportunity for people who wish to move their family or are already here in Ontario, that opportunity to start work immediately. We, of course, also have through the work of the Minister of Colleges and University, our Learn and State program which has ensured the largest number of students applying for those nursing spots because they want the opportunity to train, to live, to work in their community. That recruitment continues and we will ensure that we train the appropriate health human resources. We're doing the capital investments. We're getting it done. Thank you. Next question. Thank you. The member for Brampton North. Thank you. Thank you, Speaker. My question is for the President of the Treasury Board and Emergency Management. I want to talk a little bit about a community he knows well, the community of Brampton, Ontario. Now, we know that Brampton is a community that is simply tired of waiting. We're tired of waiting whether it's in the hospital waiting room after 15 years of neglect where they close hospitals under the previous Liberal government. We're tired of waiting in traffic where progressive politicians have continually voted against bypass highways for our city in favour of downtown Toronto environmental interests. But, Speaker, when this government got elected, the residents of Brampton have a reason to wait no longer. We have help on the way. Can the President of the Treasury Board please tell the residents what we're doing to get it done for Brampton families? Mr. Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to thank the member for Brampton North for all of his great work in Advocacy for the City of Brampton. Mr. Speaker, let's look at this government's record under the leadership of Premier Ford for the City of Brampton. The member's opposite voted against a new hospital for the city. The second, the largest healthcare investment that the City of Brampton will be getting. The member's opposite voted against a new medical school for the City of Brampton. The member's opposite voted against a new highway, the Highway 413, that will be made for the residents of the City of Brampton, and for the Peel region, Mr. Speaker. Every step of the way, this government has brought significant investments to the people in Brampton, to the City of Brampton. We've brought billions of dollars in economic development, a new Stalantis plant that is going to be built. And Brampton's opposite voted against that. We will continue, Mr. Speaker, to build Brampton into the great city it is, and we're truly grateful to have new members from the member of Brampton North. Please do inform the House that we have a special guest with us in the chamber.