I remember visiting Osgoode Care Centre in that member’s riding and listening to the seniors, the operators, the hard-working front-line health care workers, and they’re saying the same thing: that cost has gone up a lot, and that’s affecting how they give care to our seniors.

Let’s give another example. In Barrie, the municipality has informed me that it must create a 13% contingency fund due to rising costs. In Sault Ste. Marie, building costs have gone up by $20 million in just four years. It’s in every corner of this province that we are seeing costs explode, thanks to this Liberal carbon tax, which is about to go up again in a time of high inflation and such economic uncertainty. It’s why our government introduced the construction funding subsidy: to help the sector, under the leadership of the great former Minister of Long-Term Care.

But, Speaker, we call on the Liberals who are here in this Legislature to call their federal counterparts and say, “This is not the right thing to do. This is not fair on the backs of seniors.” Our seniors took care of us; we need to take care of them. Let’s get rid of this unfair tax.

It’s not just one tax either, is it, Speaker? It is a tax on the tax. The HST is taken on top of the carbon tax. They’re literally taxing a tax. This is a tax on a tax that is a tax on business, on consumers and on care for our most vulnerable seniors in long-term care. It is a tax on everyone. It is a tax that is unfair.

Once again, we call on the Liberals to do the reasonable thing: Call the Prime Minister and tell him this is not a fair tax on our seniors. Let’s get rid of this tax.