FROM THE OFFICE OF Todd McCarthy MPP DURHAM

Minister of Finance Peter Bethlenfalvy released Ontario’s 2023 Budget: Building a Strong Ontario. It is a plan that navigates ongoing global economic uncertainty with a responsible, targeted approach to help people and businesses today while laying a strong fiscal foundation for future generations.

“Ontario’s economy remains resilient, but the road ahead continues to be uncertain,” said Minister Bethlenfalvy. “Our government has the right plan to navigate these challenges. We are building Ontario so we can have a strong economy for the future and the infrastructure needed to support growth across the province.”

The government’s plan is taking significant actions to drive growth by lowering costs, getting key infrastructure projects built faster, and attracting more jobs and investment to help businesses, families, and workers. Highlights include:

Advancing Ontario’s Critical Minerals Strategy, which supports better supply chain connections industries, resources and workers in Northern Ontario and manufacturing in Southern Ontario, including Ontario-based electric vehicle (EV) and battery manufacturing.

The government is investing an additional $3 million in 2023–24 and $3 million in 2024–25 in the Ontario Junior Exploration Program to help more companies search for potential mineral deposits and attract further investments in this growing sector.

The government is also continuing work to build the roads to the Ring of Fire. Attracting over $16 bil lion in investments by global automakers and suppliers of EV batteries and battery materials to position Ontario as a global leader on the EV supply chain, even before the mostrecent announcement for a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG to establish an EV battery manufacturing facility in St. Thomas, Ontario.

Continuing to relieve gridlock, create jobs and connect communities by starting construction on key infrastructure projects, including the bridge crossing over the future Bradford Bypass, the next phase of construction for the new Highway 7 between Kitchener and Guelph, continuing work to widen Highway 401 from Pickering through Eastern Ontario, as well as moving ahead with plans to build Highway 413.

Providing $224 million in 2023–24 for a new capital stream of the Skills Development Fund to leverage private-sector expertise and expand training centres, including union training halls to provide more accessible, flexible training opportunities for workers.

Providing an additional $425 million over three years to connect more people to mental health and addictions services, including a five percent increase in the base funding of community-based mental health and addictions services providers funded by the Ministry of Health.

Continuing the 2022 Budget commitment to invest $1 billion over three years to get more people connected to care in the comfort of their own home and community. The government is now accelerating investments to bring funding in 2023–24 up to $569 million, including nearly $300 million to support contract rate increases to stabilize the home and community care workforce. This funding will also expand home care services and improve the quality of care, making it easier and faster for people to connect to care.

“With our thoughtful, transparent approach we have a plan to balance the budget while delivering support to families, workers, and businesses across Ontario. We are taking significant actions to grow Ontario’s economy with the building of highways, transit and infrastructure projects, training workers, and keeping costs down for those Ontario families that need it the most,” said Todd McCarthy, MPP for Durham. “Locally our Government is supporting refurbishments at the Darlington Nuclear Station as well as supporting the Small Modular Reactor (SMR) to deliver, green energy which will be reliable, safe, and affordable.”

The government is also providing an update on Ontario’s economic and fiscal outlook, with a plan that will balance the budget in 2024-25, three years earlier than forecast in the last Budget.