I want to thank the Minister of Infrastructure for her leadership on this issue and for recognizing how important it is that everything that we do in this government dovetails with our plan to build Ontario and make life better for the people who call Ontario home. There are so many entities that she has touched on in this bill, and it actually speaks to the importance of recognizing that government is not one little thing here and another little thing there; it’s a group, a conglomeration, of many ministries and entities, and sometimes it would appear that they’re working at cross-purposes. So by bringing these all together, it makes it much more efficient and keeps us focused on our promise which we made in 2018 to build Ontario and make it open for business.

I’m going to get back to some of that a little later, but first I want to deliver remarks on behalf of the ministry that I am the parliamentary assistant for, the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, which kind of has a half of this bill, but a very important one, and I’ll tell you why.

I’m here almost 20 years—I know, I know; the best-before date has long expired, some might say. But for every one of those 20 years, what I have heard from people in my riding is, “Yak, why does it have to be so” blank “complicated? Why is government always making it more difficult, not less difficult, to get it done?” Isn’t that a phrase that we used in our campaigns—get it done? That’s what this bill is all about.

I am going to read the remarks that I have here and then I’ll get back to some things.

Again, I want to thank Minister Surma.

It is my pleasure to rise in the House to speak to the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks’ proposal for Bill 69, the Reducing Inefficiencies Act (Infrastructure Statute Law Amendments), 2023. With this bill, our government is proposing to continue our efforts to modernize Ontario’s almost 50-year-old environmental assessment process.

Like a house that is 50 years old, while the foundation is still strong, it requires updates to reflect the changes that have occurred over the past five decades, because today our environmental assessment process is too slow and too unnecessarily burdensome and costly. We believe that Ontarians deserve better. We believe that our environmental assessment program should be effective and efficient. It should deliver strong environmental oversight and consultation opportunities, while supporting and building our strong economy. We can accomplish both. We can no longer afford to do things in the older, slower, less efficient way.

Today’s global economy moves at too quickly a rate, and Ontario cannot afford to be left behind. That’s why our government is looking at smarter, more modern ways of doing business. We want to make sure that important public services and infrastructure, including roads and bridges, can get shovels into the ground faster without unnecessary costs and delays.

For the long-term, we are committed to building a strong environmental assessment program that considers the input of local communities and ensures that we focus on projects that have the highest impact on the environment—things that Ontarians expect of us, things that Ontarians deserve from us.

With the Reducing Inefficiencies Act (Infrastructure Statute Law Amendments), 2023, we are proposing to build Ontario and provide appropriate environmental oversight by continuing to modernize Ontario’s environmental assessment program to better serve Ontario now and into the future. We are proposing a sensible, practical change—a change that would provide environmental oversight while reducing delays to get shovels in the ground on projects that matter most to Ontario communities.

But let me be crystal clear: Environmental standards and protections will remain in place and continue to be a top priority for our government as we work to ensure Ontario has good-paying jobs, affordable housing and a strong economy.

I’m pleased to report that our government has already taken steps to modernize the environmental assessment process. We have been taking a phased approach to advance various components. In April 2019, the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks released a discussion paper with broad themes for modernization. Subsequently, the Environmental Assessment Act was amended.

In June 2019, through the More Homes, More Choice Act, 2019, the Environmental Assessment Act was amended to exempt over 350 low-impact projects. In July 2020, the COVID-19 Economic Recovery Act, 2020, further amended the act, allowing for the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks to begin to transform the environmental assessment program by working on implementing regulations and carrying out consultation. And in December 2021, a minor amendment was made to the act to make it clear that a class environmental assessment can be amended to change the projects that can follow that process.

Today’s proposed change to the Environmental Assessment Act marks a small but important step in our journey to modernize Ontario’s environmental assessment program.

So what are we proposing? Today, our government is proposing a change to the Environmental Assessment Act to provide the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks the ability to waive or alter the 30-day review period, allowing projects to begin sooner. The current environmental assessment program requires a 30-day review period between when a class environmental assessment is completed and when the proponent may begin project activities.

To help the members of the Legislature here today, I will give you a brief overview of a class environmental assessment. Class environmental assessments can be developed for classes of undertakings that are similar, routine in nature, they have known potential environmental effects that are predictable and well understood and they can be managed through established impact management methods. The class environmental assessment establishes a planning process for projects that fall within the class of undertakings, such as a municipal class environmental assessment for municipal infrastructure projects or a class environmental assessment for minor electricity transmission facilities. The majority of all class environmental assessments are undertaken by municipalities. A class environmental assessment is a proponent-led self-assessment process.

This means that a project that falls within the class of undertakings in a class environmental assessment is approved as long as the proponent successfully completes the approved planning process in the class environmental assessment. There is no formal Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks approval required for the class environmental assessment project. Let me assure you that any class environmental assessment requires public consultation and a comment period.

The current environmental assessment process requires a 30-day review period between when a class environmental assessment is completed and when the proponent may begin project activities. This 30-day period provides the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks with the opportunity to require the proponent to undertake a higher level of environmental assessment. For those 30 days, once a project has completed class EA requirements and there are no outstanding issues, the project cannot proceed. For 30 days, permits cannot be issued. The project cannot proceed, and everyone involved just waits until this 30-day period expires. In many cases, this is an unnecessary delay. In many cases, this is an unacceptable delay.

Just imagine a municipality waiting to begin a much-needed infrastructure project, like the building of a bridge or widening of a road critical to the lifeblood of their town. Imagine that municipality being ready and able to start a project at the beginning of August, wanting to get it under way and make progress while the weather is still warm. Then imagine that you are that municipality, and you are being told that, no, you’re going to have to wait 30 days, even though you’ve done an excellent job on your class environmental assessment and the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks has absolutely no reason or plans to require you to undertake a higher level of environmental assessment. You have to wait for no good reason but that you have to wait.

I cannot think of a better example—sorry, let’s say a worse example—of unnecessary red tape. This government, our government, is committed to cutting unnecessary and burdensome red tape which is preventing Ontario’s people and businesses from reaching their full potential. Over the last four years, this government, our government, has reduced the estimated net annual cost of complying with regulations for businesses, not-for-profits, municipalities, colleges and universities, school boards and hospitals by—listen closely now—$576 million. This achievement actually far exceeds the target we set in March 31, 2022, of $400 million. We’re ahead of schedule, and we’re going to stay that way.

But we’re not done. As part of our plan for building Ontario, we are continuing our efforts to reduce red tape, to help create jobs and make it easier to invest and build here in Ontario while ensuring appropriate regulatory oversights remain in place to protect the public, workers and the environment.

Currently, there is no ability for the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks to unilaterally waive the 30-day period, even if there is no intention or plan to intervene. It should be noted that the waiving of the 30-day period has previously occurred to move a road construction project forward more quickly, but to do so required a time-consuming Lieutenant Governor in Council regulation. In August of last year, a Lieutenant Governor in Council regulation exempted Bombardier Inc., in partnership with the city of Mississauga and the region of Peel, from the prohibition on proceeding with the Derry Road East and Alstep Drive road improvements during the 30-day period. This decision allowed Bombardier Inc. to proceed with road construction faster and not miss the construction season timing. How important was that? Construction was to begin in the fall of 2022, with the target completion date of spring of 2023.

If the amendments to the Environmental Assessment Act are made, in the future such an exemption could be provided through a minister’s order, avoiding the need for an LGIC regulation, avoiding the need for unnecessary delays in critical infrastructure projects with no outstanding issues—projects that are needed to keep Ontarians moving.

That is why today, our government is proposing a change to the Environmental Assessment Act to provide the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks with the ability to waive or alter the 30-day review period, allowing those important projects to begin sooner. Class environmental assessment proponents, including municipalities, that have completed the relevant process would directly benefit if their projects are able to get shovels in the ground sooner.

Let me assure you, Speaker, that the changes we are proposing today would not reduce environmental oversight. The Ministry of the Environment, Conservation and Parks remains committed to maintaining oversight for projects that may significantly impact our communities and ecosystems.

I hope I’ve fully explained the amendments this government is proposing here today to the Environmental Assessment Act as part of the proposal for Bill 69, the Reducing Inefficiencies Act (Infrastructure Statute Law Amendments), 2023. I’m asking for the support of all members of the Legislature in helping to pass this bill, a bill that would eliminate unnecessary red tape, a bill that would be welcomed by municipalities and other proponents looking to provide much-needed infrastructure in our province, a bill that will help build Ontario.

That is the information I’m providing today from my ministry, the ministry that I’m the PA to. I’m proud to be here this morning to bring that clarification and that message from my minister, the Honourable David Piccini.

Now, I do have some time left—a fair bit of time, actually—and I do want to comment somewhat on the address of the Minister of Infrastructure this morning, too. I’m going to tidy up these papers a little bit. It’s the first time I’ve ever had papers given to me that are written on both sides and I actually find that a little cumbersome, to be honest with you. My eyes aren’t that good that I can read the page numbers that are really, really small at the bottom. But somehow we got through it, and I hope the message was understood and clear.

Speaking of a clear message—I want to thank the minister this morning for her message explaining why we are bringing forth this legislation. It is so much completely tied in and dovetails with our plan for Ontario. But we can’t make that kind of progress if we aren’t bringing forth the kind of legislation that provides for the vehicle to get it done. She has touched on so many entities that will be impacted and affected, even the changes with real estate and the inefficiencies that exist because government is complicated.

I get back to my riding, where people say, “Why do things have to be so complicated?” And that’s exactly what they are. But from the time that Premier Ford was running in the 2018 provincial election—he was not the Premier yet, of course—he made it clear that we’re going to make life in Ontario less complicated. Because we are in a worldwide battle, a worldwide battle to bring jobs and businesses and manufacturing back to Ontario.

You have to remember—and for those of us who were here, like myself, years ago, we saw the devastation that was brought to Ontario by the previous Liberal government in our manufacturing sector. I know my friend from Essex understands it as well as anybody because that’s one of the areas in the province where manufacturing is such a key component of their Ontario. We saw literally the hollowing out of our sector because the Liberals had no interest in getting a board in the game of real life in the world we live in today. So while other jurisdictions were taking our jobs away, they sat there kind of dumbfounded and thought that somehow the tooth fairy would come along, they would have a tooth and a wish under the pillow and everything would be fine in Ontario. But it didn’t happen. It just didn’t happen.

We saw 300,000 jobs—remember: These are the well-paying jobs in Ontario. The manufacturing jobs are the ones where people say, “Boy, I hope I can get a job at factory XYZ or whatever, because that’s a job that is going to provide me with a good living to raise my family and have a good retirement when I’m done, and be a good part of the middle class.” But those jobs were disappearing, and do you know what happens when those jobs disappear? So do the people. The people who wanted those jobs and could be benefited by those jobs start to find other places to live and work and raise a family, because you’ve got to go where the jobs are. So we’re sending a message out to the world today: Come on home. Come on home to Ontario, where you belong and where you always did belong, because we are now building the Ontario that works for you. That is what were doing here in Ontario, and I’m so proud to part of this team that is laser-focused.

There are many, many things that you have to do in government. Some of them are the mundane things of just operating the business as usual, making sure that people have the necessary supports that are important in a society such as ours. They’re kind of the day-to-day things. We’ve got to make sure that the Treasury Board can cut the cheques and pay the bills and all of those kinds of things. But if you’re really, truly going to face the future, you better be looking into that looking glass and getting an idea of what the future is going to look like so you’re actually in the game when the future arrives, because tomorrow is just a day away. Tomorrow is just a day away, and if you want to live in yesterday, then tomorrow is going to pass you by. That’s not going to happen in Ontario under our leadership.

The minister talked about the things that we’re doing to support families, and I just wrote a few of them down here. The gas tax cut: You know, the folks on the other side didn’t like that. They didn’t think we should be doing that, but on June 2, Ontario thought we should be doing that. Because we took our budget—Minister Bethlenfalvy brought forth the budget last year, and we took it to the people, and the people gave it a resounding—not just a pass; it was an honours pass. They didn’t just re-elect us; they re-elected us with a higher number of seats than before, one of the biggest Conservative seat totals in history. And the opposition, on the other hand, lost seats. They lost seats because they wanted to campaign on yesterday. Premier Ford campaigned on tomorrow.

We saw what was happening across the country with the federal government and their punitive carbon tax. It is hurting every single family across the province. And we said, “We’ve got to do something that will help them.” So we’re cutting the gas tax, but at the same time we are making historic investments in infrastructure, hospitals, schools. What did I hear the Premier say yesterday? There’s $50 billion in hospital projects on schedule in this province, approved and ready to go—$50 billion in hospital projects in this province. And do you know what you need to build hospitals?

I have a petition to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.

“Whereas our government was elected on a promise to the people of Ontario to rebuild the economy after the devastating impact” of the COVID-19 pandemic; and

“Whereas the creation of new jobs, new opportunities and bigger paycheques will enable Ontario workers to bring home more money for their families and to their communities; and

“Whereas the Progressive Conservative government is seizing on opportunities in industries and fields that the Liberals and the NDP gave up on; and

“Whereas we are investing $1 billion for critical mineral infrastructure, such as all-season roads to the Ring of Fire and the implementation of our very first Critical Minerals Strategy; and

“Whereas through the hard work and good policies building an environment for economic growth we have attracted more than $12 billion in new investment in electric and hybrid vehicles, including Canada’s first full-scale electric vehicle battery plant in Windsor; and

“Whereas our plan for driving economic growth includes building an end-to-end supply chain for electric and hybrid vehicles from mining to processing to manufacturing, all of which will happen right here in Ontario; and

“Whereas our government has delivered an estimated $8.9 billion in cost savings and supports for Ontario employers, especially small businesses, who are the backbone of our economy; and

“Whereas the province has created more than 500,000 new jobs since 2018, 500,000 new paycheques and opportunities for families in every corner of the province;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

“To urge all members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to continue to build on this progress and rebuild Ontario’s economy.”

I support the petition, affix my name and send it down with page Noella.