This government's housing…

This government's housing plan is reckless and irresponsible. The kind of urban sprawl that this proposal would lead to is not what Ontario needs to address the present housing crisis. To add insult to injury, this government claims that the only option available to them is to remove Greenbelt lands. This is not an acceptable plan and the government knows it.

It is unthinkable that the government is not only wanting to create more of this low-density housing that obviously will not solve the housing crisis, but that it intends to do so on lands that are supposed to be conserved for their ecological value, that help filter groundwater that feeds into our river systems, that directly affects the quality of our drinking water. The Greenbelt was created partly to STOP urban sprawl. But this government would remove these lands in order for developers to build luxury homes that are out of reach for regular Ontarians.

Housing in such areas would also be further from any city centres, which would drive up commute costs. Municipalities would also need need costly new infrastructure to ensure these developments have water and power. It is evident that these lands would not lead to the type of affordable housing that Ontario desperately needs.

What Ontario needs is gentle intensification to increase the density of our cities to create communities that are walkable and inclusive, and with public transit that is reliable and convenient. Ontario does not need more of the endless sprawl that we already have. If you travel to any city in the developed world outside of North America, you will find that nobody in their right mind would decide to create the type of unliveable car-centric hell-scapes that Canada has grown to become.

This proposal is simply unacceptable. Do better, Minister Clark.