Ontario’s Plan to Build
The people of Ontario know how to get things done.
They have dreams and aspirations for themselves, their families and their communities, and they deserve a government that matches their ambition.
But for too long, Ontario was left without a vision for the future of our province, the consequences of which were felt by the people of Ontario.
Tens of thousands of manufacturing jobs left our province, devastating workers and communities.
Workers, among the best and hardest working in the world, worried about falling behind.
Gridlock ground our roads and highways to a halt, costing our economy billions and keeping commuters stuck in traffic, away from their families.
The cost of living climbed until life became more and more unaffordable for many Ontario seniors and families.
Underspending and underinvestment in our health care system over decades left Ontario unprepared for the arrival of COVID-19.
This government has set Ontario on a different path. Under the leadership of Premier Ford, we have always been a government that builds.
And now, I am proud to put forward the next step in Ontario’s Plan to Build.
A plan that will ensure Ontario is the economic engine of Canada, with one of the fastest growing economies in North America.
A plan that will bring tens of thousands of good, well-paying jobs back to Ontario, seizing our opportunity in critical minerals, clean steel and electric vehicles.
A plan that will provide Ontario’s talented workers the skills and supports they need to find jobs.
A plan that will put shovels in the ground on highways, roads, bridges and public transit to fight gridlock and get people to work and home faster.
A plan to invest in hospitals, long-term care and home care to deliver the quality of care that seniors and patients deserve, while keeping our economy open and strong.
A plan to keep costs down and put more money into the pockets of families and seniors so they can invest in themselves, their communities, their families and in their futures.
It’s a plan for better jobs and bigger paycheques.
A plan to build.
Here’s how.Rebuilding Ontario’s Economy
Ontario’s manufacturing sector is key to the economic success of the province.
However, by 2018, the province’s manufacturing employment decreased by a third since its peak in 2004.
Workers, from Timmins to Windsor, have the skills and experience to build a better future for themselves and their families.
They need a government that is ready to join them in building that future.
Our government has a plan to rebuild Ontario’s economy by making this province the workshop of Canada once again.
It starts in the North, where roads to the Ring of Fire will help bring critical minerals to Southern Ontario and prosperity to First Nations and other communities in the Far North.
Critical minerals like nickel and cobalt, combined with clean steel and powered by Ontario’s investments in nuclear energy, will help strengthen our home-grown supply chains for manufacturing electric vehicle (EV) batteries.
The government has secured game-changing investments from major car manufacturers to build EV batteries, and the electric and hybrid vehicles of the future. Made in Ontario, by Ontario workers and sold across North America and the world.
Bringing thousands of new, good-paying jobs to workers in Thunder Bay.
In Windsor.
In Oshawa.
In Alliston.
In every corner of our province.
Because Ontario is more than just a few downtown centres.
Our economy is main streets in communities stretching from Kenora to Cornwall and everywhere in between.
And our government’s plan will help bring prosperity everywhere, for everyone.
By investing nearly $4 billion to give every community in Ontario access to high-speed internet by the end of 2025.
By supporting small businesses, entrepreneurs and investment by cutting red tape, reducing energy costs and encouraging commercialization of intellectual property.
And by ensuring communities across the province have the opportunity to benefit from good jobs working in government and provincial agencies.
Our plan will lead to better jobs for the people of Ontario.
Working for Workers
Ontario workers are second to none. They are some of the most highly educated and hardest working in the world.
But for too long, many Ontario workers had been falling behind with fewer opportunities to develop the skills they need to succeed. Opportunities have been lost and paycheques have not kept up with the rising costs of living.
This is a government that is working for workers. And we have a plan to deliver better protections, bigger paycheques and greater opportunities for workers and their families.
We raised the minimum wage to put more money into the pockets of workers.
We introduced new rights and protections for digital platform workers, while maintaining the flexibility those jobs provide.
We are providing workers with the opportunity to learn new skills that will lead to better jobs.
Helping workers realize their potential in exciting fields including critical minerals, electric vehicles and battery technology.
Through Better Jobs Ontario and the Ontario Jobs Training Tax Credit, workers will have the support they need to help them upgrade their skills and retrain for the jobs of the future.
Through our Skilled Trades Strategy, anyone interested in pursuing a promising career in the trades will now have that opportunity.
And by expanding college degree granting, students can gain the education, experience and skills to enter the workforce faster.
Ontario is working for workers, and we are welcoming all workers.
We have cut red tape so workers from other provinces in high-demand fields, including auto mechanics, engineers and plumbers, can come to Ontario and work.
We have removed barriers for internationally trained immigrants to practise their trade, while investing in the Ontario Bridge Training Program to connect newcomers to in‑demand jobs in their communities.
And we are working with the federal government to bring more highly trained workers and their families to this province.
This government will always stand with the hard-working people of this province.
Our future will be made in Ontario, by Ontario workers.
Building Highways and Key Infrastructure
Highways and hospitals, bridges and broadband, subways and schools. Infrastructure boosts our economy and creates jobs.
But for too long, drivers have been trapped in gridlock. Hospitals were crowded. There were too few long-term care beds. Billions to our economy lost. Opportunities and investments missed.
But under the leadership of Premier Ford, our government is making record capital investments as part of our plan to Build Ontario.
Our historic plan will see over $158 billion invested in highways and key infrastructure over the next 10 years, including $20 billion in 2022–23 alone.
Highways like the Bradford Bypass, a corridor that will ease gridlock on Highway 400 and existing east-west roads and support the rapid growth of Simcoe County and York Region over the next 10 years.
And building Highway 413, which will save drivers up to 30 minutes each way on their commute, giving them back up to five hours per week to spend with friends and family.
Enabling the future widening of Highway 401 in the GTA and Eastern Ontario to improve road safety and make the trip easier for people travelling along the corridor.
Building Highway 7, which will improve travel times between Kitchener and Guelph.
Constructing a new twin bridge on the QEW over the Welland Canal, connecting the City of St. Catharines to the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake, which will carry QEW Toronto-bound traffic and relieve gridlock in the region.
Getting shovels in the ground on the reconstruction of Highway 101 in Timmins, to help make travel easier and faster.
And to help commuters get home to their loved ones faster, our government is continuing our historic expansion of the GO Transit network and other public transit, extending rail lines across the Greater Golden Horseshoe and Southwestern Ontario.
We are advancing work on the Bowmanville GO extension and exploring how to increase the speed and frequency of the London GO.
We have broken ground on the Ontario Line, the centrepiece of the largest subway expansion in Canadian history — a plan that will support more than 16,000 jobs and 620,000 potential riders each and every day.
Our government is connecting the province and getting people and goods moving faster with every kilometre of new road and new rail line, saving the people of Ontario time and money.
Keeping Costs Down
Our government is keeping costs down and putting money back into the pockets of the people of Ontario.
Rising costs hit lower-income families and workers the hardest.
Which is why we are proposing to enhance and expand the Low-income Individuals and Families Tax Credit, providing $300 in additional tax relief, on average, to 1.1 million workers.
We are cutting the gas tax at the pumps for six months to provide relief for families.
We eliminated the cost of licence plate stickers, provided a refund to those eligible who have already paid the cost, saving drivers $120 in Southern Ontario and $60 in Northern Ontario for every car, every year.
And we have eliminated the road tolls that were placed on Highway 412 and Highway 418 by the previous government, to provide relief to drivers in Durham Region.
Everyone should have the opportunity to pursue the Canadian dream of home ownership. This is why our government has introduced legislation that would cut red tape to get more homes built faster.
The most important economic decisions are not made around the boardroom table. They are made around the kitchen table.
Our plan will help Ontario families keep costs down.
A Plan to Stay Open
Ontario’s progress against the COVID-19 pandemic has been hard-fought, and our province has fared well compared to other jurisdictions.
And thanks to the tireless efforts of our health care workers on the front lines and everyday sacrifices by the people of Ontario, our government has cautiously lifted most public health restrictions.
And we have a plan to ensure that our economy stays open.
We are reversing years of underinvestment in our health and long-term care system by building new hospitals and long-term care beds, and recruiting nurses, doctors and personal support workers.
We are planning to invest up to $1 billion more over the next three years into home care, in addition to the almost $550 million we committed last fall, to help seniors and patients live at home with their loved ones, instead of in hospitals or long-term care homes.
And proposing a new Ontario Seniors Care at Home Tax Credit to provide additional support to help cover the costs of medical expenses.
We are making the largest expansion of medical education and training in over 10 years with new medical schools in Brampton and Scarborough.
We are building 30,000 long-term care beds and proposing to provide personal support workers with a permanent raise.
We are training and hiring thousands of nurses and personal support workers, and through our Learn and Stay Grant, helping students work in underserved communities in the region where they studied after graduation.
With 25 million N95 respirators produced in Brockville annually for the province, we are strengthening our supply chains, so Ontario will never again have to rely on other jurisdictions for personal protective equipment and other vital medical supplies.
And we are building up our life sciences sector by securing new investments in next‑generation health technologies, medicines and vaccine manufacturing.
We are strengthening our health care system by building thousands of acute care, critical care and long-term care beds through a historic investment in Ontario hospitals.
Our government is getting shovels in the ground to build and expand hospitals in every corner of the province.
Including major hospital projects in Uxbridge.
Windsor.
Ottawa.
Chatham-Kent.
Brampton.
Scarborough.
And Bracebridge.
This is a plan to build a stronger health care system, provide better quality of care for Ontario patients, and ensure that our economy will stay open.
Ontario’s Plan to Build
Our government is supporting our vision with a fiscal plan that is prudent, responsible and sustainable.
Ontario’s Plan to Build increases spending by an annual average of over five per cent over the next three years, with investments in health care, infrastructure and other critical public services.
This will be accomplished while delivering a credible recovery plan that will eliminate Ontario’s deficit two years earlier than projected in the 2021 Budget.
Our government is building.
More jobs. More highways. More hospitals. More opportunities.
Under the leadership of Premier Ford, our government has put forward a plan.
We have a plan to build.
And we have a plan to get it done.
Original signed by
The Honourable Peter Bethlenfalvy
Ontario’s Minister of Finance