My question is for the Minister of Energy. The inflation and affordability concerns Ontarians are facing right now are a direct result of the federal carbon tax. Individuals and families are paying higher taxes and higher costs for the necessities of life, like food, gas and housing. The carbon tax is not working. It’s adding more financial pressure for Ontarians, and there is no environmental gain. But the carbon tax queen, Bonnie Crombie, and her Liberal caucus are supporting their federal buddies and a failed tax policy that has been proven not to work.

Speaker, can the minister please tell the House how our government is keeping costs down for the people as we all suffer from the Liberals’ incompetence and insensitive economic management?

My question is for the Minister of Energy. At a time when families across Ontario struggle to cover their basic living expenses, the federal carbon tax is an additional burden to their already stretched budgets. Despite the hardship people in Ontario are going through, the Liberals, led by the carbon tax queen, Bonnie Crombie, and the opposition NDP, want to triple this tax by 2030.

Speaker, Ontarians need urgent relief from the negative impacts of this devastating tax. And despite the Liberals’ persistent advocacy for higher taxes, our government understands the need to alleviate financial pressure and deliver real affordability for the people of this province.

Speaker, can the minister please tell the House what actions our government is taking to combat the carbon tax?

On April 1, the federal Liberals, alongside their NDP allies, enacted a staggering 23% carbon tax. That’s crazy. This is unacceptable, Speaker.

This tax hike inflicts further harm on families across Ontario, forcing an additional 17.6 cents per litre to their gas bills. It’s not surprising that Ontarians across this province oppose this unjust measure. But it’s unfortunate that the Liberal and the NDP members in this House care more about playing politics than advocating on behalf of the people they represent.

Speaker, Ontarians need relief. The federal government needs to abolish the carbon tax now. Could the minister please elaborate on how this recent tax hike imposed by the Liberals is adversely affecting Ontarians?

My question is for the Minister of Energy. The Liberal carbon tax is punishing Ontario families. Last year, the federal government decided to exempt one form of home heating fuel, mainly used in Atlantic Canada, from the carbon tax. But they’re hiking the carbon tax on lower-emission natural gas here in Ontario, where the majority of residents now have to pay more to heat their homes. That’s just not right. Residents in my riding of Thornhill tell me they already feel the impact of the carbon tax on their energy bills.

The people of Ontario deserve to be treated fairly. The federal Liberals need to get rid of this carbon tax right now.

Can the minister please explain how they are making home heating and more things expensive and impacting Ontarians?

This is exactly what our government spoke up about—the carbon tax—what we fought tooth and nail. It’s ludicrous that the Liberals think it’s a good idea to raise the carbon tax by a staggering 23% when Ontario families are already struggling with the increased cost of living.

But this is most concerning. This gets so much worse. The federal government and opposition parties want to nearly triple the tax by 2030. That’s simply not acceptable. Can the minister please explain why Ontarians cannot afford the continued tax increase on groceries, transportation and everything else in between?

My question is for the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. There are plenty of countries around this world who have proven you can take climate change seriously without an inflationary carbon tax. Unfortunately, Trudeau’s Liberal government has chosen to implement a carbon tax that punishes the hard-working people of this province by driving up prices across the board. You don’t fight climate change by taxing citizens until they can’t afford to heat their homes, drive their cars and put food on their tables. Just look south of they border, where politicians of all political stripes are vehemently against the idea of a carbon tax.

Speaker, can the minister please highlight how, since we took office, we’ve strengthened our trade relationships with the US, who doesn’t have a carbon tax?

The federal Liberal government always touts how well the US is doing on climate change, but what they don’t mention is that the US does not have a carbon tax that raises the cost of everything.

The Trudeau Liberals continue to hike their carbon tax. All the while, their friend Bonnie Crombie says nothing. If the Liberals listened to the businesses and workers of this province, they would understand that no one supports their carbon tax. In 2019, they told everyone the carbon tax wouldn’t increase, but it’s now costing people an extra 18 cents a litre at the pump while it drives up the prices of everything.

Speaker, we know where the US stands on carbon tax, but can the minister talk about what Ontario’s other trading partners think about the Liberals’ carbon tax?

My question is for the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. From coast to coast, elected officials of all political stripes have been very vocal in calling on our federal government to stop the planned carbon tax hike on April 1. Even the Liberal Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador has come out against the 23% carbon tax hike. And yet, Bonnie Crombie and the Liberals in this House still stand shoulder to shoulder with their federal counterparts in support of the carbon tax.

Unlike them, we’ve knocked on doors. We’ve heard loud and clear from the people of Ontario: They do not support another carbon tax hike. Speaker, can the minister please share what he’s been hearing from businesses and workers when it comes to the Liberals’ planned carbon tax hike?

The message we are hearing from the people of Ontario is loud and clear. It doesn’t matter if it is the minister’s constituents in Nipissing or my constituents in Thornhill; we all want the carbon tax gone. We hear their concerns and that’s why we’ve been so persistent in calling on the federal government to stop their planned carbon tax increase on April 1.

We know what happens when Liberals implement tax hike after tax hike, because the previous Liberal government tested out this same playbook. Speaker, can the minister please remind us of how the previous Liberal government’s agenda of high taxes played out?

My question is for the Minister of Finance. When meeting with local businesses in my riding of Thornhill, they consistently tell me about how the federal carbon tax is so detrimental to our local economy and making their businesses more expensive to operate.

Our government is very clear that local businesses are essential and serve a vital role in driving our province’s economic prosperity. Local businesses in all communities need to feel supported, not penalized. It’s not fair or right that our businesses are being punished because of this regressive tax forced on them by the federal Liberal government. Can the minister please explain how a carbon tax negatively impacts our local businesses?

When it comes to the negative impact of the carbon tax, everyone shares the same message of concern. From the governor of the Bank of Canada to the parliamentary budget officers, academics, economists, business leaders and even Premiers of all political stripes agree that the carbon tax is making life more challenging and unaffordable for everyone. The carbon tax is also increasing prices and is creating unfavourable conditions that weaken our competitive economic advantage. Local businesses are struggling and this regressive tax is only making their work more difficult.

During this time of economic uncertainty and affordability concerns, Ontarians should not be taxed more. Can the parliamentary assistant please explain how our government is supporting Ontario businesses and families?

My question is for the Minister of Transportation. Residents in my riding want to protect the environment, but they feel that a carbon tax is the wrong approach. People tell me all the time that the carbon tax is making life more expensive and is doing nothing to reduce emissions. The United States and Mexico do not have a carbon tax, yet people here in Canada are struggling because of the hardship this tax creates. Ontario is already a leader when it comes to protecting our environment. The carbon tax does nothing to protect our environment. It only makes life more expensive.

Can the minister please explain what actions our government is taking to lower emissions and protect our environment?

From the minister’s response, it’s clear that Ontario is well positioned to take the lead in the EV manufacturing sector. The minister is correct: People want real solutions. The carbon tax is not a solution, it’s just another tax. It’s a tax on your home heating. It’s a tax on the gas you need for your car and it’s a tax on the food you buy. The carbon tax isn’t a plan to protect the environment. It’s just a tax.

Can the minister please elaborate on the actions our government is taking to reduce emissions?

My question is for the Minister of Finance. The carbon tax hurts our economy and raises the price on everything, from filling up our cars to heating our homes in the winter. Putting a carbon tax that raises the price of gasoline hurts our businesses and negatively impacts our economy. It hurts our farmers, entrepreneurs, businesses, families and individuals.

A month ago, the Bank of Canada reported that the federal carbon tax was responsible for a mere 0.15% increase in inflation, but now the figures have changed. The governor of the Bank of Canada now says that the correct impact of the carbon tax is actually four times higher.

Speaker, can the minister please explain how this regressive tax creates economic hardship for all Ontarians?

The last thing that Ontarians need is another tax. Unfortunately, the carbon tax is just that. It’s another tax that essential drives up the prices of everything. We know that the carbon tax is doing nothing more than making life more expensive for people in our province and across this country. We need all members of the Legislature to fight for Ontario’s interests and call on the federal government to treat Ontario with respect when it comes to providing an exemption for the carbon tax.

Speaker, can the parliamentary assistant please elaborate on how the federal government’s carbon pricing policy negatively impacts all Ontarians?

My question is for the Minister of Finance. When meeting with local businesses in my riding of Thornhill, I’ve heard time and time again of the pressures the federal carbon tax is putting on our economy and especially on our local commerce.

Starting and growing a business is hard work. All businesses play a vital rote in our province’s economy. While the opposition Liberals and the NDP have no problem with a regressive carbon tax, it’s not fair or right that our businesses are being punished.

Speaker, can the minister please explain what impact a carbon tax has on our economy and our businesses?

My question is to the Minister of Energy. Unlike the opposition Liberals and NDP, our government has always known that the carbon tax is driving up energy prices across this province. That’s why our Premier and our government took our fight against this useless and regressive tax all the way to the Supreme Court. As we head into the winter, I’m glad to see that the federal government is starting to understand the harmful effects of the carbon tax, but they did not go far enough.

Speaker, can the minister please explain why the federal government would only pause the carbon tax on home heating oil, which is more emitting and used by only 2.5% of Ontarians, instead of natural gas, which is less emitting and used by, let’s say, 70%?

As we head into the winter, home heating costs are top of mind for our families in my community. They’re looking for us to put in place policies that are going to reduce costs, not increase them.

Speaker, can the minister please explain what our government is going to do, and keep doing, to keep costs down for families across Ontario?

Thank you for my friend’s answer across the way, but I’m looking for some specifics. The MNRF is working towards creating a framework to regulate and enable the permanent geologic storage of carbon, also known as carbon sequestration, while also maintaining public safety and safeguarding the environment. We’re proposing an amendment to the Oil, Gas and Salt Resources Act as a first step of a phased approach towards addressing barriers to the permanent geological storage of carbon in this province.

My question to the member on the other side is: By removing the red tape barriers we inherited from the opposition, our government is introducing new tools to capture and store carbon to protect our environment. Does the member opposite support our efforts to reduce emissions in Ontario and support industries to meet their emission targets?