I’d like to welcome to the House today a member of the other branch of government, my brother, the Honourable Mr. Justice John Raymond McCarthy.

I thank the member for Humber River–Black Creek for the question. Our government understands that the purchase of a home, particularly a first home, is one of the most important transactions that any of our citizens can engage in in their entire lives. That is why we work closely in my ministry with two of the 12 administrative authorities that are devoted to consumer protection when it comes to new home purchases. That’s the Home Construction Regulatory Authority and Tarion.

Tarion provides deposit protection so that consumers can get their deposits back, despite the illegal activities of some home builders. We continue to work closely with Tarion to ensure that Ontarians get the very best protections when they’re spending their hard-earned money in our great province.

Contrary to years of weak consumer protection by the former Liberal government, we have beefed up protections for consumers with Ontario’s new home warranty protection program.

The system works. The Home Construction Regulatory Authority acted on this matter, in particular Mariman Homes—and let’s call that out, because it’s a public matter. HCRA suspended the licence of that organization on December 5, 2023, citing in the proposal that what occurred there was illegal, or without proper authorization, building and selling. Reinstatement of that licence is contingent on proof to HCRA that there has been compliance with legal obligations with the capability of fulfilling obligations to consumers by June 30, 2024. The system works.