Continuing with the debate on the budgetary policy of this government and specifically Bill 85: Because of inflation and higher interest rates, now is not the time for doubling down on failed policies which we saw in Ontario from 2004 to 2018 and which we see at the federal level.

The proposed budget we have tabled, Speaker, is an opportunity for the other levels of government, federal and municipal, to work with us on priorities that matter most to families and businesses. We have proposed a financial blueprint to address the ongoing housing affordability crisis, and we welcome co-operation and input from municipalities and the federal government. This will enable us to build new homes, invest in green spaces and infrastructure and defer the harmonized sales tax on all new large-scale purpose-built projects.

Speaker, we are building on what we have already done to make Ontario a global manufacturer and to bring investments and jobs back to Ontario. As outlined in the budget speech of the Minister of Finance, our government is proposing a new Ontario-made manufacturing tax credit. This would help local manufacturing companies invest and expand so that their essential products are made right here in Ontario. Our government is following through on our plans to attract electric vehicle supply chain investments to Ontario, thus making Ontario a leading jurisdiction to build the cars of the future. Our government is making these investments because our budget is about investing in people. Ontario’s future is about investing in families and businesses. We are getting it done.

Suffice it to say, Speaker, we are disappointed that the federal government has chosen neither to address nor invest in the Ring of Fire, given the absence of any reference to the Ring of Fire in Tuesday’s federal budget speech. This is a missed opportunity for workers and for families, especially those living in northern Ontario and in Indigenous communities. Our government recognizes the need to grow our electric vehicle and battery supply chains. We want to work with our federal partners to unlock the full economic potential of Ontario’s abundant supply of critical minerals and the Ring of Fire. This does not appear to be a priority for the federal Liberal government, and that is disappointing. However, it is a priority for our Ontario PC government. Our priority is people, and this budget will help families and businesses in Ontario thrive and grow, both today and tomorrow.

What I am most proud of is that our government has a solid fiscal plan to balance Ontario’s budget while allowing for increased spending in health care, infrastructure, education and social services. Our government’s fiscal blueprint will see a smaller-than-forecasted deficit of $2.2 billion this year; for next year, a $1.3-billion deficit; and a return to a balanced budget—a return to balance—with a surplus of $200 million in the following year, 2024-25.

This fiscal prudence and stability, Speaker, provides businesses, credit rating agencies and global investors with the confidence to invest in Ontario, because those partners understand that our government has its fiscal house in order. This fundamental is critical to Ontario’s growth and success.

In contrast, Ontarians understand that the federal Liberal government’s reckless spending is the pathway to disaster. Under the federal government’s budget that was just announced on Tuesday, Canadians will have to shell out $43.9 billion this year alone just paying interest on the record debt of $1.22 trillion—yes, trillion-dollar federal debt, and the interest alone is $43.9 billion in 2023.

The Minister of Finance mentioned during his budget speech, here in this House last week, that there would be no way that a Liberal or NDP government could deliver a fiscally balanced and prudent budget such as this. His statements are corroborated by what we have seen federally with a Liberal government backed by the NDP.

While the federal government is preparing to give raises to the Prime Minister, the federal cabinet ministers and backbench MPs effective April 1, our government is choosing to invest in people. And while the Prime Minister is set to receive a $10,300 annual salary raise effective April 1, our government will temporarily double the Guaranteed Annual Income System, or GAINS payment, for eligible seniors until the end of 2023.

Speaker, while 27 members of the federal cabinet are set to receive a $7,800 increase in their pay this year, our government will expand the GAINS program starting in July 2024, to allow for an additional 100,000 eligible seniors to be added to the program.

While 115 Liberal backbench MPs will receive a $5,100 increase in their pay, our government will invest an additional $202 million each year in supportive housing and homelessness programs in Ontario.

People come first. Our citizens come first with this Ontario government.

When the federal Finance Minister, in her speech earlier this week, stated that the feds would focus on “targeted inflation relief,” I assume that that minister was referring to members of the federal Liberal government and other Liberal elites. In contrast, our Ontario Progressive Conservative government, under the leadership of Premier Ford, is delivering a budget which is for all of the citizens. Speaker, to respond to the opposition that we are not investing in public services, allow me to address how our budget improves public services by making it more convenient and faster for Ontarians to access them.

Our government is investing more in health care to reduce wait-lists and provide better outcomes and to add more family doctors. These investments and improvements will connect Ontarians to more convenient care through their OHIP cards.

In this budget, our government announced it will invest $1 billion over three years so that more people are connected to care in the comfort of their own homes and in their communities.

Our government is providing an additional $425 million over three years for mental health and addictions, including a 5% increase in the base funding of community-based mental health and addictions service providers.

We are funding an additional $80 million over the next three years to further expand enrolment for nursing programs.

Speaker, we’re getting these things done because we’re building Ontario, creating the environment for a prosperous Ontario, and that is how we can afford to both balance the budget in the near future while investing, in a record-setting way, in the essential services our fellow citizens expect to rely upon.

Unlike the federal Liberals, who are blind to the needs and the extreme high costs and demands on their citizens, we are investing in services for our citizens. Our government has presented to the people of Ontario a responsible, transparent and common-sense budget that will support families, will support workers and help businesses to succeed across Ontario.

Our government believes in a strong and resilient Ontario because it is the people of Ontario that make it so. I therefore urge the opposition and, indeed, all members of this House to pass this budget, to confirm and affirm the budgetary policy of this government, because we owe it to our children and our grandchildren to invest responsibly in their future today to ensure we have a prosperous Ontario of tomorrow.