Ontarians expect their government to respect tax dollars, not spend millions on partisan ads. There was a time when the Deputy Premier believed this, as well. It’s outrageous to me that governments spend money on what are, in essence, political pieces. The reality is that Ontarians see right through these Conservative talking points. These ads don’t pass the smell test. Ontarians want the government to respect their tax dollars, not prop up the Conservative Party.

Let me be clear: Not all government advertising is bad. We’re not proposing to stop the government from sharing important information with the public. The millions of dollars on these ads could have been spent on other causes that Ontarians need to know about.

It’s not too late. The Premier and the Conservative caucus can do the right thing. When you support this motion, you will be sending a clear message that you understand there is a clear and distinct difference between the Ontario Conservative Party advertising and Ontario government advertising. You can change course and support this motion.

I urge the Premier to stop wasting taxpayer dollars and start prioritizing the interests of Ontario residents over the Ontario Conservative Party and support this motion.

The next time one of your constituents approaches you, one of those individuals comes to you in your ridings, you look them in the eye and you say, “No, it was far more important for the Ford Conservatives to spend $24 million on vanity ads that only promote their Conservative brand.” It was far more important for you to spend $24 million on vanity ads than help hundreds of thousands of people who are looking to us, as legislators, and to you, as government, to do the right thing.

You can think about them when you stand up and oppose this bill.

I have a petition here titled “Fight the Fees,” and it reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas since 1980, whilst accounting for inflation, the average domestic undergraduate tuition has increased by 215%, and the average domestic graduate tuition by 247%; and

“Whereas upon graduation, 50% of students will have a median debt of around $17,500, which takes an average of 9.5 years to repay; and

“Whereas the average undergraduate tuition for international students has increased by 192% between 2011 and 2021, and in colleges, they pay an average of $14,306 annually compared to the average domestic fee of $3,228; and

“Whereas the government of Ontario made changes to OSAP and student financial assistance in 2018-19, resulting in over a $1-billion cut in assistance to students; and

“Whereas the so-called Student Choice Initiative was defeated in the courts, students need legislation to protect their right to organize and funding for students’ groups;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, support the Canadian Federation of Students–Ontario’s call and petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to commit to (1) free and accessible education for all, (2) grants, not loans, and (3) legislate students’ right to organize.”

I’m proud to affix my signature to it, and I will pass it to the table through Max.