This past Saturday, I had the honour of serving as a judge at the Newmarket Lions Club Effective Speaking Contest. The Lions Club is a network of community-minded volunteers who continue to live up to their motto, “We serve.” The effective speaking contest is the largest bilingual contest of its kind in Canada. The goal is to promote competitive speaking to stimulate independent thinking among students.

I was asked to judge speakers in the French portion of the contest—junior, grades 4 to 6, and intermediate, grades 7 to 9. Students delivered a prepared speech, followed by intermediate students presenting an impromptu speech. Topics ranged from the importance of teaching history to animal companionship, to the impromptu speeches on who they admire most and the impacts of social media. Criteria for assessment included subject selection and organization of material, how the student kept the interest of the crowd, the delivery of that speech etc.

Congratulations to the intermediate French speaker, Riley, and the junior French speaker, Romy, for their outstanding speeches, earning first-place accolades. They will go on to compete in the regional contest and perhaps to the provincial contest this May.

Congratulations to all the volunteers.

My question is for the Minister of Finance. The carbon tax drives up the price of everything from filling up our cars to heating our homes in the winter. It hurts our economy and punishes the hard-working people and businesses of our province.

At a time of high interest rates and high cost of living, Ontarians need more financial relief, not another tax. While our government has been speaking up against this punitive tax since day one, the opposition NDP and independent Liberals continue to ignore its harmful impacts. Ontarians deserve better from their elected officials.

Speaker, can the minister tell this House what our government is doing to protect Ontario families and businesses from the high cost the Liberal carbon tax has on gas?

Thank you to the minister for that response.

Speaker, we hear it from everyone: The carbon tax is simply not worth the cost. Across Ontario, households are struggling to make ends meet, and businesses continue to face economic uncertainty due to ongoing global supply chain challenges. They need support, not a tax that will cause unnecessary harm.

We know that the independent Liberals refuse to stand up for their constituents and call on their federal counterparts to end the carbon tax. Our government will continue to lead by example and fight the carbon tax, while keeping costs down for Ontarians.

Speaker, can the minister please explain how our government is supporting Ontario businesses and families?