Just to touch quickly on the forest fire piece, even though you may not see it in the budget, there theoretically is almost an unlimited amount that is used to fight forest fires. There’s a floor that is set by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, and then that is added on throughout the year as necessary.

I did want to touch a little bit on the One Fare program. The One Fare program is available in Waterloo region. It’s fantastic. You can use it with the GRT to then connect to GO train networks to then come to Toronto and other places in the GTA. So it’s great that we have that in the region, and I was hoping that maybe the member from Kitchener Centre, my next-door neighbour, would maybe like to elaborate on a little bit more about what she’d like to see in regard to the LRT. I know that’s something that has been challenging to talk about on both sides, and just get her thoughts a little bit more on what phase 2 could look like.

My question is for the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry.

Speaker, last week, when I was in my riding of Hastings–Lennox and Addington, I heard from so many constituents about how the federal Liberal carbon tax is simply making their lives unaffordable. Ontarians are already coping with high interest rates and a rising cost of living, and the last thing they need is another tax hike. With last week’s hike, the Liberal carbon tax is now forcing Ontarians to pay 17.6 cents on every litre of gas. That’s hundreds of dollars a year for an average household.

Unlike the Liberals and the NDP members across the aisle, who are still refusing to admit that the carbon tax costs all of us, our government will always speak up on behalf of Ontarians. The federal government needs to scrap this tax now.

Will the minister please tell this House how our government is keeping costs down for Ontarians while the members opposite continue to remain silent?

It’s just not fair to punish the hard-working people in our province with this carbon tax. Life has only become more challenging for individuals and families in both rural and northern Ontario, who end up relying exclusively on their vehicles for transportation. They are being hit hardest at the gas pumps and at the grocery stores. And what’s worse is that Bonnie Crombie, the queen of the carbon tax, and her Liberal cohort, want to keep on increasing your gas prices and bring back the cap-and-trade system. They’re just like the federal Liberals, who take every opportunity to add more costs to Ontarians’ bills. They’ve never met a tax they wouldn’t raise.

Can the minister please explain what our government is doing to make life more affordable for the people of rural and northern Ontario and all across this province?