Mr. Speaker, my colleague is absolutely right. In fact, last week, we joined farmers, truckers, small businesses owners and workers in urging the federal government to scrap the 23% increase to our carbon tax.

We know it makes life harder for businesses and families across this province. While those businesses and families are struggling, the federal Liberals continue to pursue an increase to the federal carbon tax, and we know there are going to be more of these. But what’s most surprising is that Bonnie Crombie and the provincial Liberals refuse to add their voice in asking the federal government to scrap the carbon tax.

We will always be supporting small business owners, truckers, and farmers in our fight to stand united against this carbon tax.

But let’s listen to the Ontario Trucking Association that says that the carbon tax raises the cost of deliveries by 6%. That doesn’t even take into consideration the cost to truckers as they deliver these goods: $15,000 to $20,000 is what the carbon tax costs a long-haul truck driver in this province. That is $15,000 to $20,000 that could be going towards their families. That’s $15,000 to $20,000 that could be going to them to make life more affordable and easier for themselves.

We continue to call on the federal government and our provincial Liberals to condemn this 23% hike because we need to support the drivers and the people of this province.

Thank you to the member for Ajax for that question. We know that the federal environment minister is completely out of touch with the realities of Canadians and especially Ontarians. We have called on him—I have personally called on him—to come drive on the 427, the 401, the 410 to see for himself the challenges our truckers and drivers are having across this province. But Minister Guilbeault spends more time flying around the world in airplanes, trying to meet with elites across the world, rather than meeting with truckers that are driving every single day on our roads across this province to put food on the shelves, to put groceries on shelves across this province.

They shouldn’t have to worry about the rise in the cost of gas as they do their job. I’ve stated in the House before that $15,000 to $20,000 are the current costs on a long-haul trucker in this province with the current carbon tax today. That’s about to go up by 23% on April 1, and I hope the members opposite join us in calling on the federal government to stop the carbon tax.

As this government has committed to putting more money back into the pockets of families across this province, the federal carbon tax will increase by 23%. That is unacceptable. We’re always looking at ways to make sure we put more money back in your pockets, whether it’s by reducing the gas tax by 10 cents, whether it’s making sure we eliminate the val tag, a $120 savings for a car or truck for families across this province.

We’re going to continue to urge both the Liberals and NDP to call on their federal counterparts and stop the carbon tax on April 1.

Look, this isn’t about truckers. This isn’t about the 407. This is the NDP’s continued opposition to Highway 413. They continue to listen to the protest groups. The people of this province sent a very loud and clear message to that member and the previous Liberal leader and the current Liberal leader, who has actually continued on this campaign to cancel the 413.

Come to Brampton, come to Mississauga and listen to the challenges people are facing on the streets every single day and the gridlock that they are facing. Our government is committed to building $30 billion worth of infrastructure—roads, highways—all across this province and that is exactly what we will do. We’ll continue on our path forward to build Highway 413.

Let’s talk about the changes that we’ve made, whether it was getting rid of the val tags, $125 per car or truck, or the reduction of the gas tax by close to 10 cents a litre. That member has never once supported any of those measures that we have put forward for drivers across this province. Will that member stand up and call her federal counterpart and the Prime Minister and say a 23% increase in the carbon tax is unacceptable and they will not stand for it, and stand with truckers as we oppose that increase in the carbon tax?

This government is proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with our truckers all across this province, Mr. Speaker. Whether it’s about making sure our grocery shelves are stocked, whether it’s our hospitals that get the equipment that they need or the manufacturers that get their parts that they need to build Ontario-made products, this government has always stood with truckers and we have always stood against the carbon tax.

We know that the carbon tax makes life more unaffordable, Mr. Speaker. For a long-haul truck driver, the Ontario Trucking Association estimates the 17.4-cents-per-litre fuel costs at $15,000 to $20,000 per truck every single year, Mr. Speaker. That’s a hard-working truck driver that could spend that $15,000 on their family, on their child, putting them in hockey or extracurriculars, but the failed policies that are supported by Bonnie Crombie and the NDP and the federal minister of—

But, Mr. Speaker, the federal government has not listened to our request to make life more affordable. In fact, they’ve doubled down. Their federal environment minister said he’s not going to invest in any more roads or highways, Mr. Speaker, and that’s absolutely ridiculous. That’s why I invited him to join me to drive on the DVP, to drive on the Gardiner Expressway, the 427 and 410, to see how out of touch they are with the realities of the people that live in the GTA and Ontario and all across Canada. We call on the federal government to drop the carbon tax and to build more roads and highways all across Ontario.

The carbon tax is hurting truckers and their families. These are the same people who keep our shelves stocked. They were the same ones who were driving across this province when nobody else wanted to drive, during the pandemic.

I was speaking to many truckers over the past couple of weeks. The Ontario Trucking Association told me that there’s about a 17.5-cent impact per litre on the truckers. For a long-haul trucker, that equates to about $15,000 to $20,000 a year. That’s $15,000 to $20,000 that that trucker could be spending to support his family, put his kids in hockey.

At a time when we’re facing a cost-of-living crisis, I urge the member of the independent Liberals, in his last couple of days as leader, to call the Prime Minister and tell him to do the right thing and scrap the carbon tax.

Imagine an owner of five trucks, long-haul drivers—the cost of the carbon tax per year is anywhere between $75,000 to $100,000, because of the carbon tax. This is directly relating to an increase in not just grocery costs but everything that gets delivered by these hard-working men and women in our trucking industry.

It’s important that the Liberals and the NDP stand up for truckers and ask the federal government to scrap the carbon tax.