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May 28, 2024

43rd Parliament, 1st Session

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Hansard Transcripts

vol. A

Hansard Transcripts

vol. B

Votes and Proceedings

Orders and Notices

Hansard Transcript 2024-May-28 vol. A (PDF)

L162A - Tue 28 May 2024 / Mar 28 mai 2024

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO

ASSEMBLÉE LÉGISLATIVE DE L’ONTARIO

Tuesday 28 May 2024 Mardi 28 mai 2024

Orders of the Day

Strengthening Cyber Security and Building Trust in the Public Sector Act, 2024 / Loi de 2024 visant à renforcer la cybersécurité et la confiance dans le secteur public

House sittings

Strengthening Cyber Security and Building Trust in the Public Sector Act, 2024 / Loi de 2024 visant à renforcer la cybersécurité et la confiance dans le secteur public

Members’ Statements

Special Olympics Ontario

Social assistance

George Osei

Club Amical du Nouveau Sudbury

Senior Volunteer Appreciation Week

Health care

Sikh community

Beverage alcohol sales

Anniversary of the 1974 Cambridge flood

Events in Mississauga–Erin Mills

Introduction of Visitors

Legislative pages

ᐃᔑᑭᔑᐍᐏᓇᐣ ᑲᔭᐸᑕᑭᐣ / Use of Indigenous languages

Question Period

ᓄᒪᑫ ᑲᓇᐍᓂᒥᐍᐏᐣ / Long-term care

Mercury poisoning

Government accountability

Taxation

Indigenous rights

Taxation

Workplace safety

School facilities

Taxation

Child care

Beverage alcohol sales

Taxation

Small business

Taxation

Introduction of Visitors

Reports by Committees

Standing Committee on Social Policy

Standing Committee on Public Accounts

Petitions

Laboratory services

Child care

Addiction services

Child care

Social assistance

Hospital services

Laboratory services

Emergency services

Doctor shortage

Road maintenance

Environmental protection

Northern Health Travel Grant

Orders of the Day

Safer Roads and Communities Act, 2024 / Loi de 2024 pour prévoir des routes et des collectivités plus sûres

The House met at 0900.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Good morning. Let us pray.

Prayers.

Orders of the Day

Strengthening Cyber Security and Building Trust in the Public Sector Act, 2024 / Loi de 2024 visant à renforcer la cybersécurité et la confiance dans le secteur public

Mr. McCarthy moved second reading of the following bill:

Bill 194,

An Act to enact the Enhancing Digital Security and Trust Act, 2024 and to make amendments to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act respecting privacy protection measures / Projet de loi 194, Loi édictant la Loi de 2024 visant à renforcer la sécurité et la confiance en matière de numérique et modifiant la

Loi sur l’accès à l’information et la protection de la vie privée en ce qui concerne les mesures de protection de la vie privée.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Would the minister care to lead off the debate?

Hon. Todd J. McCarthy: Through you, Mr. Speaker, good morning to all honourable members of this House. On behalf of the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery, it gives me great pleasure to lead off debate in regard to second reading of a very important and timely piece of legislation, the Strengthening Cyber Security and Building Trust in the Public Sector Act, which if passed—if it passes this House—promises to strengthen digital protections for people in our great province.

I welcome the opportunity to speak about this critical new legislation and I look forward to an informed debate about what it will mean for ministries, public sector organizations and the citizens who elected us to serve them.

I will be sharing my time today with the Minister of Education, the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services and the parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Health.

I also want to take a moment to acknowledge the excellent work of my ministry officials in putting this bill together after many years of consultation and bringing it to the point where we can engage now in a thorough and thoughtful debate in the House. I want to particularly acknowledge and thank my deputy minister, Renu Kulendran; the associate deputy minister, chief digital and data officer, chief privacy archives, digital and data, John Roberts; ADM Melissa Kittmer; ADM, corporate chief information officer, Mohammad Qureshi; chief information security officer, Daniela Spagnolo; and our legal director, Fateh Salim. Thank you to all members of the ministry for making this possible today.

In an era dominated by technology, where our lives are increasingly intertwined with digital platforms and our data is stored in virtual realms, the importance of safeguarding against cyber attacks and protecting personal data cannot be overstated. The pace of digital innovation is accelerating like never before. On a daily basis, new technologies and modernization of services are revolutionizing the way we live and work. These new advancements are not only reshaping but enhancing the lives of individuals globally.

It is important that we harness the benefits of these changes as they have a profound effect on day-to-day life, impacting people of all ages while also safeguarding Ontarians against potential harms. By doing so, we aim to ensure Ontario remains a leader in the digital arena, fostering a future where technology enriches our lives while maintaining the highest standards of safety and security.

The Strengthening Cyber Security and Building Trust in the Public Sector Act, 2024, Bill 194, would, if passed, build a foundation to better protect the personal data entrusted to us by the people of Ontario when interacting with public sector organizations, with additional protections to safeguard the health and safety of Ontario’s children.

The overarching key outcomes of this important legislation, if passed, are as follows: enhancing cyber security by strengthening resilience and maturity within key public sector entities; building a strong foundation for artificial intelligence governance while ensuring its use is transparent, responsible and accountable; improving digital service delivery to provide a consistent, secure and seamless experience when accessing government programs and services; reinforcing data and privacy protections so Ontarians can confidently and safely participate in today’s digital world; and last, but certainly not least, strengthening children’s protections to prevent the misuse of their data, especially in classroom settings.

As a government, it is paramount that we do our part within our jurisdictional powers to ensure the proper safeguards are in place to protect the residents of Ontario. We are steadfast in our commitment to put guardrails in place to better shield Ontarians from potential harms, a key priority guiding all of our work on cyber security and digital trust.

In today’s digital age, we simply—I’ve said this many times before, and I’ll say it again: We simply cannot afford to be off-line in an online world. We live in an era dominated by technology, where our lives are increasingly intertwined with digital platforms. Personal data is stored virtually in the cloud; the importance of safeguarding it against cyber attacks for the people of Ontario can never be overstated.

Trust is the main pillar upon which our digital economy is built. Without trust, people are reluctant to interact with the ever-evolving digital economy, and businesses then hesitate to adopt new technologies moving toward the future. Building and maintaining trust in our digital ecosystem requires a multi-faceted approach involving not only robust cyber security measures but also transparent policies, effective regulation and co-operation among government, people, families, industry and civil society.

As our lives become increasingly reliant on digital technologies, it is paramount that we enhance our safeguards and protections to maintain the trust of Ontarians in our government and our institutions.

We all know how increasingly sophisticated, relentless and frequent cyber attacks have become. According to the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security, cyber attacks are a growing threat to Ontario. The number of cyber incidents in this province has risen from more than 10,000 in 2018 to over 28,000 in 2022. From critical infrastructure to personal data, our digital systems are under constant threat from cyber attacks. These attacks can come from a variety of sources, including malicious hackers, organized cyber criminal groups and even hostile nation states.

The consequences of a cyber attack can be severe, ranging from financial loss and identity theft to the disruption of essential services, and even threats to our national security.

There is no doubt about it, we must lead in protecting people’s personal information online, and that is why we developed Ontario’s first-ever Cyber Security Strategy in 2019. As part of that strategy, we established an all-new cyber security expert panel. The job of that panel is to identify and report on areas where we could grow and improve our efforts. After the expert panel released its report in October 2022, we very rapidly got down to work on implementing the recommendations of the panel. The report pointed to the need for strong governance, education, communication and co-operation.

All of these are areas that we are targeting in this proposed legislation in a multitude of ways in our day-to-day work.

The proposed legislation, if passed, would establish regulation-making authority and empower the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery to lead the cyber security direction for select public sector entities, especially for vulnerable sectors such as hospitals, schools and children’s aid societies. Regulations may include sector-specific requirements and mandatory cyber incident reporting to government. These regulations would be developed through consultations with key government and public sector stakeholders to help these organizations better prepare, respond and recover from cyber threats and attacks.

We are also proposing centralized reporting within government to better respond, deploy and get involved in emergency management of cyber incidents, particularly with those public sector organizations that do not have strong cyber security practices. Not only will this elevate the overall maturity of Ontario’s cyber security regime, but it will lead to long-term cost savings by mitigating the quantity and severity of cyber attacks. On average, a cyber attack costs an organization almost $7 million. Cyber attacks on public institutions are not just attacks on Ontarians’ data, but also their tax dollars that fund and maintain these institutions.

Simply put, cyber security challenges are immense, and we must rise to meet them head on. We must safeguard and limit exposure to cyber threats and attacks for the people and the businesses of our province. If this legislation is passed, it will empower our government to take the serious measures needed to enhance protections across the board, to better protect the personal data entrusted to us from unauthorized use as well as curb the impact when cyber attacks do occur.

Let us shift gears to a core responsibility entrusted to the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery: the transparent, accountable and responsible use of artificial intelligence. This legislation, if passed, would empower my ministry to lead the way by building a strong foundation in AI governance to leverage its tremendous benefits while ensuring it is used safely and responsibly across government and the public sector.

As we embrace transformational and powerful artificial intelligence tools to help us build a better province, we are committed to ensuring that these technologies are used transparently, accountably and responsibly in the public sector. To that end, we are introducing safeguards through proposed legislation that will guide the use of AI in our government and public sector. This legislation will include a clear definition of an artificial intelligence system, aligned with other leading jurisdictions.

This step is crucial to create consistency in how AI is defined and understood across the public sector, supporting our AI-related initiatives across government. We are also proposing to establish strong accountability and transparency requirements.

These measures will require public sector organizations to inform the public whenever they are interacting with AI systems. Additionally, any decisions made by way of artificial intelligence must always have a channel for human, recognizing the potential for bias in AI systems.

The proposed legislation will also create regulation-making authority to ensure the responsible, risk-based use of AI by select public sector organizations. This includes strict adherence to Ontario’s Trustworthy AI Framework. This framework has been developed by my ministry and it aims to protect people from unintentional harms and reduce both liability and reputational risk associated with artificial intelligence technologies.

We understand the importance of co-operation and consultation in this process. Therefore, these regulations will be developed through extensive consultations with government and public sector stakeholders, Indigenous partners, industry leaders and AI experts. These legislative changes are designed to ensure that Ontario remains at the forefront of AI guidance and usage, setting an example for transparent, responsible and accountable implementation of AI technologies.

The immense promise that artificial intelligence holds in putting forward solutions to some of our most pressing challenges cannot be overstated. It can unlock the potential for unprecedented innovation in virtually all industries, and it fosters long-term economic growth across Ontario.

With more than 400 artificial intelligence firms and institutions in our province—the number of which is growing daily, I might add—Ontario truly is at the forefront of an artificial-intelligence-enabled future. Ontario is where global giants and start-ups can grow side by side.

Under the leadership of our government, we have been exploring the use of AI, recognizing the amazing potential of its application in health care, education, crisis response and so much more. While working together with our public and private sector partners at all levels, we will position Ontario as a global leader in the responsible adoption of AI.

AI technology is, of course, evolving very rapidly. In the last year or so, we have seen its adoption and expansion advancing at a blistering pace. Every day, more and more companies of all sizes are building AI systems into their operations to increase efficiency or expand their range of products and services.

While we recognize that the potential of AI is incredible and can impact all in the province in a positive manner, our government is extremely cognizant of the many possible risks that it could pose as it continuously evolves. We are the first province in Canada that is taking initiative to create and implement substantial legislation that protects everyone of all ages in the online world. The AI pieces within this proposed legislation build upon our existing work to responsibly adopt this revolutionary technology.

Our consultations on AI began in 2021 to develop the principles of Ontario’s first trustworthy artificial intelligence framework. At that time, my ministry began by bringing together experts from the tech and AI industries as well as academia to form our AI expert working group, a group to provide advice and recommendations on the development of this proposed AI framework.

Round tables and bilateral meetings have been held with Indigenous groups, industry, civil society and legal organizations on the development of the framework. They play a pivotal role in ensuring we do not lag behind when it comes to AI. We will adopt the best policies and the best practices and invest in the appropriate technologies within government to create efficiencies in the work that we do. The regular advice of these stakeholders and advisers and their recommendations to my ministry have assisted and will continue to help support the development of any future updates to Ontario’s Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence Framework.

Additionally, we will continue to actively engage with our federal partners to advocate for the people of Ontario when it comes to the federal government’s work on cyber security, privacy and AI. This includes the federal government’s Bill C-27. We constantly monitor the progress of federal bills to ensure alignment in areas of common priority and sectors of critical importance for Ontario and how to be nimble as we integrate our future work for the benefit of the province of Ontario and, indeed, all of Canada.

We will waste no time working with our federal counterparts and all of our partners to protect the people of Ontario in terms of their privacy and their online security. This is a top priority for our government.

Our government prides itself on protecting all citizens and consumers in Ontario. My ministry recently introduced the new Better for Consumers, Better for Businesses Act, 2023, and the Building Infrastructure Safely Act, 2024, both of which received unanimous consent in this House. Just yesterday, I tabled legislation that, if passed, will retroactively ban notices of security interest, or NOSIs, on the land registry with respect to consumer goods and services. This legislation, Bill 200, will protect seniors and the most vulnerable from bad actors, predatory practices and, indeed, organized white-collar crime.

These are just a few examples of the great work the various teams across my ministry have done, and I am proud to lead the ministry’s efforts to ensure that our government is providing safeguards for all consumers. Moving forward with this legislation, our goal remains the same: to protect all of our citizens and residents across this great province.

Another enhancement that will be delivered if Bill 194 is passed into legislation focuses on the critical topic of modernizing digital service delivery. In an era of rapid technological advancement and evolving public expectations, it is vital that we continue to evolve in the way our government interacts with citizens and businesses. Our government wants to ensure that we are creating the necessary changes to keep up with the ever-changing digital world, and we have already begun to make changes to help make life easier for the people of Ontario.

Digital technology has transformed nearly every aspect of our lives, revolutionizing the way we work, communicate and access information.

The proposed changes in this legislation include enabling powers for service provider organizations like ServiceOntario to enhance digital service delivery; and allowing online service delivery to be more convenient by offering those who provide consent the ability to benefit from what we call the “tell us once” feature, which includes pre-populated fields and communication preferences so that citizens and residents don’t need to restate their information every time they interact with government.

Again, this is a matter of choice, but it’s also a matter for convenience if selected by those of our fellow citizens and residents who interact with government.

This modernization requires a fundamental rethinking of the way government interacts with the people it serves, placing their needs and experiences at the forefront of service design and delivery. By embracing a holistic, integrated approach, we can streamline processes and provide a seamless, safe and consistent experience across all touch points.

For far too long, previous governments have been lagging when it comes to adopting new technologies and providing efficient and modern service delivery. Ontario is prepared and equipping itself to lead in this space and become a global model for how we can embrace technology for the benefit of all.

One of the key aspects of modernizing digital service delivery is the adoption of user-centric design principles. By engaging directly with the people of Ontario to understand their needs, preferences and pain points, we can create intuitive, user-friendly interfaces that enable a smooth interaction with government services across the board. From applying for permits to accessing social benefits, every interaction should be as simple, intuitive and efficient as ordering a meal or booking a ride.

Finally, modernization is not a one-time event but an ongoing journey, one that demands continuous iteration, adaption and improvement. As technology evolves and societal needs change, so too must our approach to digital service delivery. As we build a better Ontario together, it is vital that no one is left behind. Our government is providing muti-channel options, making services more convenient and accessible whenever and wherever Ontarians choose to obtain those services. The people and businesses of Ontario deserve nothing less, and we will continue to make changes moving forward based on the needs and wants of our citizens and residents.

As one of the top global leaders in the digital space, our Ontario government not only needs to demonstrate that we are taking a positive and responsive approach to preventing cyber attacks and breaches and ensuring that AI is used responsibly, but that we are also taking other measures to protect people by effectively safeguarding their personal data. Our proposed legislation, then, if passed, would further update Ontario’s privacy framework to reflect emerging digital and data issues. It is imperative that the data the people of Ontario entrust to government always remains safe and secure.

As I indicated previously, trust is essential. We need to continue to build up the trust of Ontarians so that we all feel safe participating and we are all able to thrive in today’s vast online world.

As we have seen over the past few years, privacy breaches have been occurring at an alarming rate. These breaches have the ability to impact our most important sectors such as our hospitals and our schools, indeed putting children and the most vulnerable at risk. Our government is therefore working tirelessly to strengthen these safeguards against those breaches and put mechanisms in place to mitigate and minimize their impacts when they do occur.

That is why we are proposing to modernize privacy protections and reduce risks associated with privacy breaches and unauthorized data access, including identity theft. This will be done, we submit, through proposed amendments to FIPPA, the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.

The proposed amendments would establish requirements for privacy breach notifications and mandatory privacy breach statistical reporting to the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario by all FIPPA institutions. This would provide information that is key to mitigating breaches and do better in terms of ensuring personal information is kept safe and secure. Let there be no doubt about it, Speaker and fellow members of this House: Safeguarding data and privacy in today’s increasingly digital world is, and will remain, a top priority for our Ontario government.

The proposed changes reflect a series of consultations with the public, key stakeholders and experts, including the Information and Privacy Commissioner and the Ontario Human Rights Commission, to modernize protections for data in our province. The changes would update our policy landscape to reflect the emerging digital data and privacy issues that deeply impact our citizens and reflect the rapid technology changes we see globally.

Now I would like to speak about the core priority of this landmark legislation, the protection of our province’s future: our children. In this world of ever-changing technological advances, there has been no period of history where children have been subjected to the online world more than right now. We must ensure that children are protected from bad actors online and that their personal data is not being mined or used for harmful practices. That is why this bill also includes targeted updates to improve privacy safeguards and establish information protections for our children, aligning with recommendations from a variety of partners.

The Law Commission of Ontario in 2023 issued recommendations citing the lack of protections for youth, the elderly and other vulnerable communities against risks in the digital landscape. As minister—but more importantly, as a father and as an uncle and a family man—I am beyond proud to have tabled this new act, which, if passed, will be a comprehensive approach to strengthening data protections for children in provincial settings such as schools and children’s aid societies.

Studies indicate that children are accessing the Internet at a younger age more than ever before, and experts agree that children are at greater risk of harms posed by digital platforms. Recent years have seen increasing instances of privacy violations, cyberbullying and other data-related harms. Yes, an expanded online world does provide tremendous benefits for our children, but we must recognize the unique risks that they face—risks that, quite frankly, none of us ever had to face growing up.

We are truly, then, charting new territory in the digital world, and we must do what we can as legislators to place the appropriate safeguards needed to protect them. This is what we owe to our children: never accepting complacency, and putting their best interests first and foremost always. This is the priority of all our Ontario government, and I urge the member of House to adopt it unanimously because it goes above partisan politics.

It is paramount that we do our part, that we do everything that we can in protecting our children and our youth by acting in their best interests for a successful and secure future. We will be proposing to introduce clear rules to strengthen the protection of children’s information to combat the misuse of data created by children and youth engaging with schools and children’s aid societies. We must safeguard children’s information from being stolen or used inappropriately due to cyber incidents.

Based on the consultations, future regulations could include age-appropriate standards for the software programs on devices, such as laptops used by students at school, and strengthening the standards for software procurement by schools to prohibit the usage or selling of student data to third parties for predatory marketing.

Make no mistake about it, our government must and will take decisive action to safeguard children from harm and to ensure that their online experiences are safe, positive and empowering. It is not just about protecting them in the present, but also about safeguarding their future autonomy and agency over their personal data. The health and well-being now and in the future of the children of Ontario depends on meeting the new challenges of this age as we move forward in the ever-changing digital world.

I wish to express my sincere thanks to the various teams across my ministry who helped make this bill a reality. This is a culmination of years of work by resolute Ontarians committed to securing the bright future of our great province, especially for our children. This legislation, if passed, would give Ontario residents and businesses critical peace of mind when interacting with their government and all public sector organizations.

Speaker and fellow members of this House, make no mistake about it: Ontario needs these new digital trust policies to reduce the risk of exposure to cyber attacks on critical infrastructure and government operations, the risk of privacy breaches that threaten individual trust in public services and the risk associated with irresponsible use of artificial intelligence.

As I hope I have made abundantly clear, the time for action is now. Bad actors in the digital world are increasingly sophisticated, persistent and growing in numbers exponentially each and every day. But we have the backs of Ontarians, and we are here to protect our children. We will combat the threats posed by these criminals head on. Together we are taking a government-wide, holistic and responsive approach to strengthening cyber security, keeping sensitive data protected and ensuring adaptability to emerging technologies. We in Ontario are taking the lead and will continue to consult with all partners and make the necessary changes as we move forward in our ever-changing digital world.

Cyber security, digital privacy, protecting children online, artificial intelligence risks and modernizing digital service delivery are interrelated issues that require our urgent attention and concerted action. I have no doubt that together we can build a more secure, resilient and inclusive digital society for generations to come.

Speaker, it has truly been an honour to address the House today with respect to our proposed Bill 194. I appreciate the kind attention of colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and I look forward to listening carefully to all contributors to this important debate. I know that there will be many thought-provoking and thoughtful comments that will be shared among us, and I look forward to a conversation that will result in a very, very effective and forward-thinking bill.

I encourage all here to support the Strengthening Cyber Security and Building Trust in the Public Sector Act, 2024, because it’s the right thing to do in moving the province forward in this digital age.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): I recognize the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services.

Hon. Michael Parsa: I thank my colleague for his remarks.

Speaker, let me start by stating that our government takes the privacy and safety of young Ontarians very seriously, so I’m very pleased to be here today to speak in support of Bill 194, the Strengthening Cyber Security and Building Trust in the Public Sector Act, 2024. I’m grateful to my cabinet colleague the Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery for his comprehensive approach to Bill 194 that works towards making the digital world safer for all Ontarians, especially our most vulnerable and the future of this province: the youth and children.

The proposed legislation would help strengthen privacy protections, including those for children whose personal information is held by children’s aid societies. My ministry has complementary legislative proposals before this house through Bill 188, the Supporting Children’s Futures Act, 2024, that was introduced on April 17.

The work in both pieces of legislation is a result of collaboration and the valued input of children, youth and families with lived experience in the child and youth protection sector. And it’s also done in collaboration with partners like children aid societies and service providers as well as First Nations, Inuit, Métis and urban Indigenous communities from across the province. I would like to acknowledge and express my deepest gratitude for the incredible work that these partners do. Their tireless efforts have a profound and lifelong impact on the outcomes of vulnerable children and youth as they transition from care into adulthood.

Speaker, we are here today because our government will never leave anyone behind, and it is especially important that no child or youth is left behind, that they have every chance to thrive and succeed regardless of their circumstances or history. We have heard from sector partners and communities about the need to implement measures that will better protect the rights of children and youth, that will enhance the quality of out-of-home care services and improve the accountability of service providers.

That’s why we have introduced a broad range of legislative proposals and a suite of regulatory and policy changes in both Bill 188 and Bill 194 that will support the futures of some of the most vulnerable children in our province.

Today, I want to outline for the House how these two bills, if passed, would result in a safer online space for Ontario’s young people. The children and youth services sector supports a wide range of individuals with diverse needs as well as their families and caregivers right across the province. For example, the sector supports those in need of protection, who have experienced or may be at risk of abuse or neglect. It also supports youth who are involved in the youth justice system, including those admitted into custody or detention to help them find their way and engage with their community. The sector empowers children to overcome barriers and reach their goals.

Our ministry’s legislation, Bill 188, would, if passed, modernize and standardize important safeguards throughout the child and youth services sector. This includes stronger enforcement tools to hold licensed out-of-home care operators accountable to keep children and youth safe and healthy. It will create a framework that would enhance privacy protections of those who were formerly involved in the child welfare system. This will be done by further restricting access to records comprised of their personal childhood histories, once regulations are developed.

The proposals would also enable individuals to speak freely about their lived experience and give them more control over what they want to share publicly. These circumstances will be outlined following further consultations with the sector. They would also provide authority to expand the information that individuals working with vulnerable children and youth can be required to provide. This will go beyond formal police record checks such as offence declarations.

The proposals would reinforce the requirement for children’s aid societies and out-of-home care licensees to explain the role of the Ombudsman and how to contact their office to children and youth. Finally, they would clarify that early childhood educators can be subject to an offence for failing to report child protection concerns to a children’s aid society. This would be similar to other professions such as teachers and social workers.

Speaker, this bill is just another step forward in the work of child welfare, but not the final step. We’ll continue to engage and learn from stakeholders, including youth with lived experience and many others, as we work to improve safety, supports and access to resources for children and youth who are served by the child protection system.

Our government wants children to have a healthy, safe and age-appropriate digital experience when engaging with public sector organizations like schools and children’s aid societies. The proposed amendments in Bill 194 would enable the creation of protections that could help prevent inappropriate data practices that affect children and ensure that software applications support the health and well-being of all students. For example, future regulations under this legislation could include age-appropriate standards for software programs on devices like laptops that are used by students every day at school.

These initiatives better protect how children’s personal information is collected and used, and they align with proposed measures that we introduced in the Legislature just six weeks ago.

Taken together, Bill 188 and Bill 194 will strengthen digital and privacy protections for children and youth right across our province. As you can see, this bill is an important element of the government’s ongoing redesign of the child welfare system.

Now I would like to speak to the connection with the proposed work and the broader Child Welfare Redesign Strategy, as it’s key to understanding the context in which Bill 194’s reforms are being proposed. Speaker, my colleagues and members of this House will recall that in July 2020, our ministry introduced the Child Welfare Redesign Strategy. Our government wants children and youth in care and in out-of-home care settings to feel supported and to be set up for success in life. But every child and every youth deserves a safe, loving and stable home, regardless of their circumstances.

Through the comprehensive redesign, our government is introducing new initiatives to improve the quality of out-of-home care.

We commend the many service providers who are de-voting their lives to support vulnerable children and youth. However, sometimes there are gaps, and our proposed changes seek to close these gaps.

Some of these changes have included developing a new framework for what out-of-home care looks like; increasing and enhancing oversight and accountability for out-of-home care; supporting that oversight by adding 20 new positions across the province to support the management, inspection and oversight of out-of-home care for children and youth; and launching the Ready, Set, Go Program, which provides youth in the care of children’s aid societies with the life skills they need, starting at the age of 13, and financial support when they leave care, up to the age of 23, so that they can focus on post-secondary, including the skilled trades, or pursuing employment.

Every child and every youth deserves a fair starting position in life, and our government is delivering that. We hit the ground running by consulting widely in the community with service providers to better serve children and youth.

We did that by increasing the number of responsive inspections; by bolstering customary care arrangements to focus on family-based options like kinship and foster care, to ensure children and youth and families have a strong voice in decisions about their care; improving the quality of child welfare data to establish a baseline of common measures across children’s aid societies that can be reported publicly, as well as developing an outcomes-based performance measurement framework; releasing the children and young persons’ rights resource to help child and youth understand their rights and to use their voice; and of course, connecting youth leaving care with more supports to succeed.

We’ve backed this important work with significant investments of over $1.5 billion in the child welfare system to support Ontario’s 50 children’s aid societies, including 13 Indigenous children’s aid societies. That is a historic amount.

As you can see, the Supporting Children’s Futures Act and the Strengthening Cyber Security and Building Trust in the Public Sector Act are not the first steps that we have taken to improve child welfare, nor are they the last. These new proposals build on the work that the government has undertaken over the past several years and will continue to take in the coming years. Bill 194 is an important step towards achieving stronger data protections for all children. Together, we will continue to strengthen families and communities right across our province.

Madam Speaker, I would like to end by thanking my colleague the Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery and his team for all the great work in putting this bill forward.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): I recognize the Minister of Education.

Hon. Stephen Lecce: I want to build upon the minister’s gratitude to the Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery. Minister McCarthy has been a strong leader in this space, ensuring that we protect our children.

I think we recognize inherently as the adults in the room the necessity to build those safeguards, and that’s why I am grateful to the Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery for bringing forth a program that helps to prevent—at its core, a legislative document that is designed to prevent and avert the types of tragedies we hear about too often in our society.

Madam Speaker, it is recognized that with the advent of AI, with 40% of jobs potentially being disrupted through the changes and disruptions of this technology, we need to really understand and recognize that the train has left the station in this space.

And so how do we protect kids, particularly when it comes to their privacy and data rights, which is a fundamental, sombre responsibility of government?

What I value is that most governments globally are seized with how to keep up with the rate of change in this space, and here we are in Ontario’s Legislature with legislation brought forth, demonstrating a sense of proactivity and a willingness to move at the speed of change in the market and the economy.

I’m grateful for this, because I was just in the United Kingdom representing Canada at the Canadian ministers of education council in my capacity as Chair. They held their global education forum. The number one issue seized with Ministers of Education in all regions of the world across the Commonwealth and beyond is the question of AI, the issue of academic integrity, of privacy and of online harm and how to create some conditionality around that technology to protect children.

So we understand these threats. We also recognize the strengths in having digital fluency as a graduation requirement. It’s why we have introduced in the curriculum mandatory learning years ago, and then we announced together we would strengthen that learning to help young people better understand AI and understand how to be cautionary users of AI. But with the recognition that we welcome the innovation that’s taking place online. We just simply seek to keep up with it.

When I have spoken to job creators, when we have spoken to parents and when we have spoken to young people, we understand that AI can be an incredibly powerful tool for learning. We can reimagine education through its use, but it will never supplement the necessity of human judgment and intelligence. You cannot replace that, the value of an in-person teacher, but AI can be complementary to it. So we have undertaken a commitment to bring forth safeguards to really clamp down on distractions to protect young people’s ability to learn and stay focused in classrooms.

I know that educators welcome this, school boards have endorsed this legislation, and most particularly leaders in cyber security have acknowledged the leadership of Ontario in the nation for stepping forward. This wouldn’t have been possible unless our government and the Premier was committed to the protection of children. For that, I just express gratitude.

It is the sombre responsibility of governments to protect the most vulnerable, and I am grateful, in partnership with the minister, that we built a program, a legislative document, that sets out a road map that enhances the safety of children and protects our kids learning, playing and interacting online. That is what a responsible government would do.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): I recognize now the parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Health.

Mr. Nolan Quinn: Thank you for the opportunity to be part of the debate on the Strengthening Cyber Security and Building Trust in the Public Sector Act. The proposed legislation is an important step in our government’s efforts to continue strengthening cyber security and privacy measures that will better safeguard our significant investments in key services such as health care.

Under the leadership of Premier Ford, our government is making record investments in our health care system. We are taking bold and innovative action to build a better-connected health care system that is expanding access to key health services and growing our health care workforce for years to come while providing Ontarians with a better health care experience at every stage of life.

In an increasing digital world, digital tools have become vital to people’s health and well-being. Greater access to data will enable better health outcomes. A better health care experience also means connecting people to more digital and online tools that support more convenient care. Strong cyber security and privacy measures are an essential part of the ongoing work to implement new and improved digital health care tools and services.

The Ministry of Health and Ontario Health have been working in close partnership with the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery to improve health care preparedness by improving the sharing of cyber intelligence across the health sector and the broader public sector and helping to strengthen defensive capabilities and system resilience.

We have also introduced, for the first time in Canadian health privacy legislation, administrative penalties into Ontario’s health privacy law, the Personal Health Information Protection Act. This provides the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario with the authority to impose administrative monetary penalties on contraveners of the act, and the regulation will do even more to protect the safety and privacy of Ontarians and the operational security of our health care sector.

Speaker, digital tools are a key part of our government’s commitment to build a health care system that focuses on the needs of patients. These tools save time, improve access to services and help people avoid unnecessary trips to the emergency department. This includes the acceleration of an expanded centralized wait-list program for surgical and diagnostic services, which will help take the guesswork out of the referral process and provide faster access to care for patients.

This includes enhancing Health811, the tool through which Ontarians are able to call or chat online with a registered nurse and find the health care services and information they need in one easy-to-use website. Health811 receives up to 90,000 call or chat requests per month, and 95% of those requests are directed to an adviser or clinical staff member in less than one minute. Through Health811, people will be able to save time and better manage their health care journey by booking appointments with select health care providers no matter where they live and utilizing a symptom assessment tool to understand their health concerns and how to access care.

We’re further supporting more coordinated connected care that will help people transition between health care providers with the goal of making it easier for patients to transition between providers. Expanded remote virtual care programs will also help people across Ontario to avoid emergency department visits and support independent living. These programs help people with chronic and complex conditions connect remotely with a health care provider, increasing their access to care and improving self-management. They also support people who are recovering from surgery and transitioning home from the hospital to manage their conditions at home, where they’d prefer to be.

Our government is also making changes that will enable family doctors and other primary care providers to spend more time with their patients and less time on paperwork by expanding an innovative program focused on AI scribe technology to more than 150 primary care providers. This program safely utilizes artificial intelligence to automatically summarize or transcribe conversations into electronic medical notes, reducing the time and effort required, and physicians can spend more time on patient care and less time on clinical documentation.

AI scribes will only be used during a visit if the patient gives their consent, and the privacy of patient health information will continue to be protected under the Personal Health Information Protection Act.

These tools and services build on the significant progress we’ve made in digital health. Over 300,000 health care providers have access to provincial digital health systems to obtain patient information such as lab results and hospital records from the provincial electronic record system. Digital and data tools are also playing a key role in enabling Ontario health teams to provide more connected and patient-focused care in communities across Ontario. We’ve invested more than $124 million in digital and virtual care projects for Ontario health teams and health service providers, benefiting over 6.1 million Ontarians.

Ontario has also improved the sharing of health records between hospitals and long-term-care homes, with support from St. Joseph’s Healthcare Hamilton. This is saving up to 30 minute of administrative time each time a resident needs to go to the hospital. More than 30,000 digital record transfers have taken place. Over 4,000 providers are also offering online appointment booking across the province. In the last five years, an additional 11,800 health care providers joined the provincial e-services program to send e-referrals, providing people with faster access to care.

We’re also expanding e-services to digitize more referral and consultation forms so they can be conveniently shared electronically in a timely manner to obtain specialist advice. This often eliminates the need for an in-person specialist visit entirely.

We are improving the e-forms platform to use more digital tools that make it convenient for providers to auto-fill and share forms. And the “axe the fax” initiative will replace fax machines over the next few years to speed up diagnosis, referrals and treatment while improving the privacy of patients’ health information. These types of initiatives are aimed at putting patients before paperwork and will free up time for physicians.

Over the last few years, Ontario has become a hub of health innovation and technology. There are many examples of innovative, state-of-the-art care taking place across our health care system. We know that a modern, connected and convenient health system is a digital one and that digital tools are critical to supporting people’s health and well-being.

Our government will continue to work with our partners in digital health to enhance and expand digital services to ensure front-line providers and health care workers have the tools and resources to reduce their administrative burden and enable them to spend more time with patients while also empowering patients to better manage and have more control over their health and providing them with the right care in the right place.

I encourage all members to support Bill 194 and support the security and privacy of our health care system.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): Further debate? If not, we’re going to go to questions.

House sittings

Mr. Trevor Jones: Point of order.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): Sorry. I recognize the deputy House leader for a point of order.

Mr. Trevor Jones: On a point of order, pursuant to standing order 7(e), I wish to inform the House that tonight’s evening meeting has been cancelled.

Strengthening Cyber Security and Building Trust in the Public Sector Act, 2024 / Loi de 2024 visant à renforcer la cybersécurité et la confiance dans le secteur public

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): We’re going to move to questions for the members.

Mr. Sheref Sabawy: Thank you to the minister for this important piece of legislation. I would like to highlight that, in today’s world, with AI coming strongly in place and more tools coming with AI in them, we need to protect the identity of, and data identity, keeping in mind as well that AI is coming and it’s going to be here to help—

Mr. Chris Glover: Point of order, Madam Speaker.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): I’m just going to interrupt. There seems to be some confusion. Does the member for Spadina–Fort York have a point of order?

Mr. Chris Glover: Yes. It’s the question time. I think the member is actually continuing the speaking.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): Does the member have a question? We’re in the questions.

Mr. Sheref Sabawy: Yes, that’s my question, actually.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): Okay. That’s what I understood that to be as well.

We were done with the debate. I was confused about the continuation of the debate, but I said we were moving to questions, and he was the member who stood up for a question. So he’s asking the question.

I will ask the member to conclude their question.

Mr. Sheref Sabawy: Minister, can you highlight how this piece of legislation is striking the balance between the importance of AI as a good tool to use and protecting the data identity and identity of the people?

Hon. Todd J. McCarthy: I thank the member for Mississauga–Erin Mills for the question. Of course, that member was parliamentary assistant to the ministry for some time, even before I had the privilege of being appointed minister, so this piece of legislation is very much something that he has contributed to through his efforts.

Now, the bill was crafted in response to valid concerns raised by Ontarians. We recognize, and all Ontarians recognize, the incredible potential of AI—but its risks. So we begin with trust and, of course, the bill contains the words, “trust in the public sector.” Also,

schedule 1, which contains the comprehensive definition of artificial intelligence, is the Enhancing Digital Security and Trust Act—once again, the word “trust.”

The AI definition that we have come up with in this bill is at

section 1, subsection 1, paragraph (

a) of

schedule 1: “‘artificial intelligence system’ means, (

a) a machine-based system that, for explicit or implicit objectives, infers from the input it receives in order to generate outputs.” That’s the key, and this can include things that influence physical or virtual environments.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): Next question?

Mr. Chris Glover: As part of this government’s privatization agenda, they are bankrupting our schools, our colleges, our hospitals and our universities. Just for example, most of our school boards in this province are facing funding shortfalls and having to make massive cuts next year. Eleven of our 23 universities are running deficits next year. And in consultation about this bill on AI and cyber security, one of the things that public sector agencies consistently said is that when agencies are underfunded, they become vulnerable and they become targets for cyber security attacks.

Will this government acknowledge that they are undermining and jeopardizing the cyber security of the data held by public agencies in this province by their agenda of privatizing our public sector agencies?

Hon. Todd J. McCarthy: I appreciate the question, Speaker. Let me say that, again, the bill is about trust, and it’s about Ontario leading by example. And it’s about leading with the protection of the data of our children in all agencies and government sectors where children have to be protected: hospitals, school boards, children’s aid societies. No parent in the province of Ontario, I submit, should worry about their child’s safety when they’re at school, and this includes digital and online safety.

So we are taking the lead. We have made the investments. We are getting the good advice within the ministry and across the public sector, and so much good advice has been provided. We are building that trust, and we’re getting it done for the children of our province—our future.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): Next question?

Mr. Ric Bresee: This government has made a commitment to improve the way that government services are delivered. As our society and economy transition further into the digital realm, there’s growing expectation that government services follow suit and evolve to meet the demands of the modern world. Our government must recognize and ensure that government services are accessible to all and secure across a variety of delivery platforms. So, Speaker, can the minister please explain how the proposed legislation will enhance the delivery of services in a manner that is both responsive and reliable?

Hon. Todd J. McCarthy: Thank you for the question from the excellent member. Of course, service delivery is about putting the customer first, and we’re all consumers; we’re all customers of the government. And we have to make sure that we have convenience and options, so we’re always developing new service solutions that provide customer service excellence. This includes making sure that the online interactions with government—and we have that; 55 ServiceOntario products, for example, are available online 24/7.

But when people of this province need to want or want to come in in person, we have many different varieties of ServiceOntario, including the mobile units in northern Ontario and in Indigenous communities. We have the retail partnerships with longer extended hours and all-day Saturdays. All of this is about putting the customer first, ensuring convenience and ensuring choice and confidence and trust.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): Next question?

Hon. Todd J. McCarthy: Thank you, Speaker, through you to the member opposite, for the question. This bill leads with protecting children in a digital age, and we have worked with both the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services and the Minister of Education on this.

As the Minister of Education has said, and I completely agree, we prefer co-operation and conversation with all partners in the public and private sectors, rather than litigation. We choose co-operation and conversations over litigation. That’s why this proposed legislation aims to establish data protections for children and minors engaged with public sector organizations. Parents need to be confident that their children are protected. They certainly can be. We worked carefully with not just the Minister of Education and the—

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): Thank you for the response. We’ll move to another question.

Mr. Graham McGregor: I’m very lucky to have a beautiful niece and two beautiful nephews. Olivia is seven. Conor is going to be seven in September; he’s wrapping up lacrosse season and he’s about to start soccer season. And then Shea is going to be three in July, and he actually played his first soccer game. He really likes scoring goals, so we hope that bodes well for him.

Hon. Todd J. McCarthy: I thank the member for Brampton North for his care and concern and his excellent advocacy for his riding, and for being an excellent member of this government.

It begins with the

definitions, and I already touched on the AI definition. I want to finish where I left off with respect to the answer to the question from the member for Mississauga–Erin Mills. The types of outputs in the AI definition include “predictions, content, recommendations or decisions that can influence physical or virtual environments.” That’s

section 1(1)(a).

And then the cyber security definition—these are comprehensive approaches to these key concepts: “‘cyber security’ means the security, continuity, confidentiality, integrity and availability of digital information and the infrastructure housing”—

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): Thank you to the minister. That’s all the time we have.

Second reading debate deemed adjourned.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): We’re going to move to members’ statements.

Members’ Statements

Special Olympics Ontario

Ms. Jess Dixon: This weekend, Waterloo region hosted the spring games of Special Olympics Ontario, and myself and my friend Corey attended the opening ceremonies. Frankly, we were blown away. It was held in Waterloo, originally scheduled prior to the pandemic but rescheduled, and incredibly well organized by Waterloo regional police, with Chief Mark Crowell heading it up for the first time. I was amazed by how organized everything was and the amount of passion and dedication that had gone into it.

We were able to witness the law enforcement torch run and athletes entering the arena to light the torch. The torch run is something that has been going on for years now to support the Special Olympics. It’s a really interesting partnership between police as sort of the community members that bring everything together.

The one thing that everybody kept saying as we watched the athletes come in was people saying that their faces hurt, because they couldn’t stop smiling, and I was one of those. In a time where people are somewhat dour and cynical, it was quite amazing to see a group of athletes who are so incredibly delighted to participate in something that they love and to have that much enthusiasm.

It also marked the retirement of CEO Glenn MacDonell, who has spent 35 years supporting Special Olympics Ontario. The love that these athletes had for him was just incredible to see. So thank you to Mr. MacDonell, thank you to WRPS and thank you to all of the amazing athletes that competed this weekend in Waterloo region.

Social assistance

Mr. Terence Kernaghan: I rise today to speak about punishing and mercenary social assistance rates. Even after the 21.6% Harris cuts of the 1990s, people are far, far worse off now. Most disturbingly, these Conservative cuts carry judgment, creating anger and resentment towards those who simply require our help and assistance.

Conservatives try to strip away our communities’ desire and responsibility to care for the less fortunate. Poisonous words like “handout” deliberately infected common discourse. After 15 long years of Liberal rule, those on social assistance were worse off than during the Harris regime. Many empty, vacuous words were spoken, but Liberals only decided to help those who need it the most at the end of their rule with the Basic Income Pilot project. Instead of actually fixing the well-known problem with funding, they committed to a study.

Premier Ford promised that he would let the study carry out, but it didn’t take long until that promise was broken and it was shut down—shut down because Conservatives didn’t want to see the positive results. They took away hope. How can anyone stabilize their life when they’re consistently struggling and at risk?

Ontarians on social assistance live in deep, deep poverty and their monthly housing bills are often more than what they receive. This is before even attempting to buy food. It’s survival mode for most, if not all.

This government pats itself on the back for indexing people well below the poverty line. Maytree has found that Ontario Works recipients would need $17,000 more per year just to reach the poverty line.

I want to thank the United Way for their Make It Livable campaign to double social assistance rates. I call on the government members to remember our common humanity, think of those in desperate need and double social assistance rates now.

George Osei

Mr. Trevor Jones: Good morning, Speaker.

On May 24 and May 25, Chatham-Kent celebrated a rare and unique ceremony in honour of one of our residents, George Osei, a native of Ghana and proud Ontarian.

In Ghana, the installation of a new chief is marked by a ceremony called an “enstoolment.” This is a significant event in the community. It signifies the transfer of power and authority to a new chief. The ceremony involves playing traditional music, song, dance, a community feast and the wearing of traditional attire. During the ceremony, the new chief is recognized and given symbols of authority, such as a crown and a traditional stool. The event is also a time to celebrate unity and reaffirmation of community values.

George Osei was originally from the town of Atebubu, Ghana, and he can trace his roots back to the region’s royal family. George has been a pillar of Chatham-Kent and has exemplified the virtues of leadership, integrity and dedication to his work and his family, committed to the advancement and the well-being of all people in our multicultural community.

Chatham-Kent has a long history of welcoming those from every corner of the world. Congratulations to George and your family. I thank you for contributing to Chatham-Kent’s rich tapestry as we continue to celebrate the history and traditions of all people who call beautiful Chatham-Kent and Ontario home.

The Acting Speaker (M me Lucille Collard): Thank you. I will just take a moment before we move to the next member’s statement to ask the members in the House just to keep the volume down so we can hear the members speaking. Thank you. I appreciate your orderly behaviour.

And now I move to the member for Sudbury for the next member’s statement.

Club Amical du Nouveau Sudbury

MPP Jamie West: La semaine dernière, j’ai visité le Club Amical du Nouveau Sudbury et j’ai été impressionné par toutes les activités qu’il offre aux personnes âgées de notre communauté. Il offre des jeux, comme les fléchettes, le billard et les cartes. Il planifie des soirées de théâtre, de musique et de danse. Il organise des ateliers, des évènements et des soupers en communauté. Il encourage la vie active avec du yoga, de l’exercice, des journées de golf et plus. Et tout ceci est organisé par des bénévoles.

Le club amical compte 333 membres, et ils ont créé une communauté positive et solidaire. Non seulement est-ce que le club est un espace sécuritaire et amusant pour toutes les personnes âgées, mais c’est aussi une place très spéciale pour ceux qui n’ont pas de famille en ville ou qui sont seuls. Cela les aide à se faire des amis, à remonter le moral et à s’assurer qu’on prend soin d’eux comme communauté.

Vous pouvez ressentir l’engagement du conseil d’administration envers le bien-être des personnes âgées dans la façon dont ils s’expriment—ils sont un groupe attentionné. Tu peux vraiment voir ceci par la manière dont les membres sont impliqués avec le club. Certains font du bénévolat depuis plus de 30 ans.

Pour plus que 40 ans, le club amical offre de nombreux services pour aider à soutenir la communauté francophone âgée à Sudbury. Ils et elles devraient être fiers de leurs réalisations passées et présentes.

Mes amis du club amical, merci beaucoup pour la belle visite et pour tout ce que vous faites pour nos personnes âgées de la communauté.

Senior Volunteer Appreciation Week

Mr. Billy Pang: Speaker, as we are approaching June, we are also approaching the Senior Volunteer Appreciation Week and Seniors Month in Ontario. This is a time dedicated to honouring our seniors.

In 2021, this House passed my Senior Volunteer Appreciation Week Act, establishing the first week of June each year as Senior Volunteer Appreciation Week. I am proud to say that this initiative has since inspired our communities to express their gratitude towards our senior volunteers. It has also encouraged seniors to remain active and involved in community life.

To mark this special week, I will once again be presenting the senior volunteer awards to our cherished senior volunteers in Markham–Unionville. Their efforts have had a profound impact across multiple generations, fostering a spirit of community and continuity. Their selfless sacrifice deserves our utmost respect and recognition.

I sincerely encourage my fellow members to honour our seniors and senior volunteers this June. I am also grateful for the opportunity this legislation has provided to highlight their invaluable contributions.

Health care

Ms. Chandra Pasma: Recently, I attended a seniors’ tea in Ottawa West–Nepean, with over 200 seniors in attendance, and as I made my way around the room chatting with people, I heard the same thing over and over again: “Can you please get the Premier to fix our health care system?”

It was the same at the General Burns community fun day on Saturday as hundreds of residents stopped by my tent. Person after person told me, “Our health care system is broken. What can we do to get the government to actually care?”

But while Ottawa residents are desperate for action, the health minister says that there is no recruitment and retention problem for family doctors; this at a moment when 2.3 million people in Ontario have no family doctor, and every week, my office hears from constituents who are about to lose their family doctor or have already lost their family doctor.

The Premier has also fought in court for two years against your right to know how many nurses and personal support workers we are short in Ontario, saying it would be “economically damaging” to share this information, even as they don’t care how damaging it is to your health.

The government is also paying more to private, for-profit clinics to perform the same surgeries that are being provided for less in our public hospitals, meaning that taxpayer dollars are going to fund profits instead of increasing the number of surgeries, even though our public hospitals have the capacity to do more.

I agree with my constituents. It’s time for the government to stop playing games with our health care system and get to work on fixing it so that you get the health care you deserve.

Sikh community

Mr. Graham McGregor: It’s a pleasure to rise in the House and highlight some good news we had over the weekend in Brampton, particularly for our Sikh community. The Sikh community have been in Canada for over 100 years and they played a vital role in shaping our province and the beautiful city that Brampton is today.

This past weekend, I spent time at Brampton North’s own local gurdwara, the Gurdwara Guru Nanak Mission Centre. The sangat at Guru Nanak Mission Centre has been fundraising for years, with the goal of building a new gurdwara on the site. Countless individuals have given their time, their money and their resources, and on Sunday, we were finally able to announce and put shovels in the ground on the site of a brand new gurdwara, right at Guru Nanak Street and Dixie.

Speaker, a gurdwara is not only a place of worship, but it’s also a community hub where all are welcome, and at any time you can drop by for a free warm meal and be greeted with open arms and blessings. Selfless service, or “seva,” is an important value for the Sikh community, and the construction of the new gurdwara doesn’t just mark a good day for the Sikh community, but a good day for religious freedom in Brampton and all across our country.

I invite all members of this House to come up to Brampton North and learn more about the values of the Sikh community. Join me for the Gurdwara Guru Nanak Mission Centre’s annual Nagar Kirtan parade on June 9. I hope to see you all there.

I’ll end my speech today with the way I ended it on Sunday, Speaker:

Waheguruji Ka Khalsa Waheguruji Ki Fateh.

Beverage alcohol sales

Mr. John Fraser: What is it with this Premier’s obsession with booze? Spending a billion dollars to put beer and wine in corner stores a little more than a year earlier than planned is simply unjustifiable. You have to ask yourself, who benefits? Well, it’s the same people who always do: the wealthy and well-connected insiders and friends and multinational corporations. It’s the Premier’s billion-dollar boozedoggle—a billion dollars to speed this up by a little more than a year.

What’s the rush, Premier? Premier, you could have waited for the contract to end and made a better deal—a deal that would have benefited all Ontarians, not just the wealthy, well-connected and large corporations.

The Premier gave away the store in his billion-dollar boozedoggle, and Ontarians will pay.

I wish the Premier had the same sense of urgency for the 2.3 million Ontarians who don’t have a family doctor, or for fixing our crumbling schools, or for helping children with exceptional needs who aren’t getting the help they need in our schools, or for keeping rural emergency rooms and hospitals open. A billion dollars could have been better spent on the things that matter most to Ontario families.

Anniversary of the 1974 Cambridge flood

Mr. Brian Riddell: May 17, 1974, is a day that many Cambridge residents will never forget. It started as a beautiful sunny day, but Mother Nature had other plans. On that fateful day 50 years ago, a flash flood swept through the city, literally swallowing up all of downtown Galt. I was a teenager at the time, and I remember my friends and I riding our bikes downtown, where we witnessed the most incredible scenes. There were people in canoes and motorboats rescuing people from their homes and from their businesses. There were cars literally floating down the streets.

Fortunately, no deaths resulted from the flood, but it did cause more than $6 million in property damage. That was a lot of money back in the 1970s.

Recently, the people of my riding gathered at the Fire Hall Museum to mark the 50th anniversary of the great flood of 1974. They reminisced about what they saw and what happened on that devastating day.

Speaker, the events of May 17, 1974, were a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many people of Cambridge. I thank the volunteers in my community who have worked hard to preserve the memories of that day.

Events in Mississauga–Erin Mills

Mr. Sheref Sabawy: On May 18, the Canadian Egyptian Heritage Association once again hosted Canada’s largest Egyptian festival, the sixth annual Discover Egypt festival at Celebration Square in Mississauga. Over 28,000 people gathered to enjoy Egyptian music, listen to entertaining performers, eat traditional foods, and celebrate Egyptian culture. The following day, they visited the Egyptian Museum in Mississauga, where visitors had an opportunity to view many of the artifacts and learn about Egyptian history, with a light and sound presentation of the exhibits on display. This was a great weekend for Egyptian Canadians to showcase their food, music, culture and heritage to Canadians.

I look forward to seeing the festival again next year.

And of course, we are all preparing for Egyptian Heritage Month, which is fast approaching in July.

On a related topic, I want to acknowledge the important work of Philopateer Christian College, a school in Mississauga with over 420 students, which has been faithfully serving our Mississauga community for over 25 years. Throughout this time, they have educated more than 10,000 students. We celebrated their silver jubilee last week by watching a lovely performance by their students at the Living Arts Centre and enjoying a gala dinner.

I am happy to have watched and supported their resilience and success over the years. I thank them for their work supporting the Egyptian, Arabic and Coptic communities in Mississauga.

They will soon be opening a second campus in Ottawa, and I wish them well for the next 25 years.

Introduction of Visitors

Hon. Graydon Smith: Always pleased to have former municipal colleagues in the House, and today is a great day to do that. Peter Kelley, who’s the mayor of the township of Muskoka Lakes, is here and former councillor Barb Bridgeman, who’s also a great community champion. I welcome them to Queen’s Park.

Mr. Peter Tabuns: It’s my pleasure to welcome Laura Walton, president of the Ontario Federation of Labour, and Joe Tigani, president of Ontario School Board Council of Unions. Welcome to the Legislature.

Ms. Aislinn Clancy: I’d like to introduce good friends Tracy Burrows Dunford and Nancy Porteous. They’re heat pump champions, and they’re here to celebrate all the heat pump air conditioners we have in the building that are four times more efficient. Thank you, Gordon Drive, for coming and celebrating heat pumps with us today.

Mr. Will Bouma: It’s great to see the galleries full of so many guests today, but I specifically would like to welcome Chief Sherri-Lyn Hill, Councillors Dean Hill and Alaina VanEvery and chief of staff Linda Parker from the Six Nations of the Grand River elected council. Welcome to the Legislature.

Mr. Tom Rakocevic: I’m very proud to welcome again Fikayo Aderoju and his board members from Project Impacting Lives, including Rachel Kasujja, Naimah Raji, Lucky Osunbiyi, Kelly Mgbatogu, Jada McKenzie, Kimberley Okafor, Tofunmi Olowogorioye, Oluwafeyikemi Olusoga, Lorenzo Baitwa, Toni Bodunrin, Chikodili Odinakachukwu and Simi Olomofe. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Hon. Stephen Lecce: I want to welcome the Ontario Association of Parents in Catholic Education. They are celebrating a banner year: 85 years. Congratulations, and welcome to the Legislature of Ontario.

MPP Jamie West: I want to welcome some friends from CUPE. Fred Hahn is here, Yolanda McClean and Janice Folk-Dawson. Janice, as you remember, Speaker, was the former executive vice-president of the Ontario Federation of Labour. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mr. Trevor Jones: It’s my pleasure to welcome our page captain, Paige Armstrong from Chatham-Kent–Leamington, a grade 8 student at St. Ursula Catholic School in Chatham. Paige is supported by her mother, 28-year registered nurse Lora Ann Armstrong, and her brother Richard. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mr. Chris Glover: I’d like to welcome to the House Will Trefiak. He’s a cyber security and privacy consultant. Welcome to your House.

Mrs. Robin Martin: This morning, I have the pleasure of welcoming St. Clement’s School, who is visiting from my riding: their teacher Elizabeth Boyden, Rose Keenan, Covenant Ezechim, Mia Sonia de Pellegrin Overgaard, Tala Abdo, Allison Cheng, Hailey Finkelstein, Cassidy Bryce and Jocelyn Chen.

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Meegwetch, Speaker. I am so honoured to welcome my mom in the House.

Applause.

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: It’s a special day. It’s her birthday today. She’s 79 today.

Singing of Happy Birthday.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): With the agreement of the House, we’ll continue with introduction of visitors. It goes without saying, perhaps.

The Leader of the Opposition.

Ms. Marit Stiles: Thank you, Speaker. Good morning. On behalf of everybody here in the official opposition NDP, I want to welcome everybody who’s here joining us from all across Ontario today for a very historic occasion. I want to particularly recognize all the First Nations leaders, chiefs, elders, young people, dignitaries and, of course, the family of our dear friend and deputy leader, Sol Mamakwa, to the House.

Remarks in Anishininiimowin.

Hon. Graydon Smith: I want to welcome members from the Ontario Forest Industries Association joining us today: Ian Dunn, Mike Martel, Dan Bowes and Rick Groves. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): That concludes our introduction of visitors for this morning.

Legislative pages

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I will now ask our pages to assemble for their introductions.

It is my pleasure to introduce this group of legislative pages: from the riding of Chatham-Kent–Leamington, Paige Armstrong; from the riding of Milton, Archibald Coleman; from the riding of Oakville, Farah Crawford; from Brampton East, Ishan Desai; from the riding of King–Vaughan, Tristan Ehlert; from Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound, James Elder; from Brampton North, Guransh Ghai; from Etobicoke Centre, Joseph Gomes; from Etobicoke–Lakeshore, Farhan Haroon; from Brampton South, Myah Haugh; from Thornhill, Riley Huang; from Kitchener South–Hespeler, Jasnoor Kaur; from Beaches–East York, Hosanna Ledetu; from York–Simcoe, Sophia Mac Sweeney; from Dufferin–Caledon, Grace Milone; from Pickering–Uxbridge, Emily Naassan; from Markham–Stouffville, Westley Tam; from Scarborough Centre, Jessica Wu; from Don Valley West, Victoria Xiong; and from Don Valley North, Ethan Zhu.

Please join me in welcoming this group of legislative pages.

Applause.

ᐃᔑᑭᔑᐍᐏᓇᐣ ᑲᔭᐸᑕᑭᐣ / Use of Indigenous languages

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I’m going to recognize the member for Kiiwetinoong on a point of order.

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Point of order, Speaker: If you seek it, you will find unanimous consent to allow me to speak for 10 minutes regarding the historic significance of recognizing Indigenous languages in this Legislature.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Mr. Mamakwa is seeking the unanimous consent of the House to allow him to speak for 10 minutes regarding the historic significance of recognizing Indigenous languages in the Legislature. Agreed? Agreed.

I recognize the member for Kiiwetinoong.

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: ᒥᑵᐨ ᑲᐦᑭᓇ ᐅᒪ ᑲᔭᔦᐠ

ᒪᐘᐨ ᓂᒥᓄᐍᐣᑕᐣ ᐁᐸᐦᑭᓂᑯᔭᐣ ᒋᐊᓂᔑᓂᓃᒧᔭᐣ ᐅᒪ ᑭᐦᒋᐘᑲᐦᐃᑲᓂᐣᐠ

ᐅᑵᓄᐘᐠ ᑫᔭᔭᒥᐦᐃᑕᒪᐘᑿ ᐍᑎ ᑮᐍᑎᓅᐣᐠ ᑲᐏᐣᒋᓭᐘᐨ ᐱᒼᐸᐦᑐᐏᓂᐣᐠ

ᑲᐏᓃᐣ ᐅᑰ ᐁᐦᑕ ᐃᑵᓅᐘᐠ ᑮᐍᑎᓅᐣᐠ ᐱᒼᐸᐦᑐᐏᓂᐣᐠ ᑲᐏᐣᒋᓭᐘᐨ

ᑲᐦᑭᓇ ᐊᓂᔑᓂᓄᐘᐠ ᒥᓯᐍ ᐅᒫᑲᒥᐠ ᐅᐣᑕᕒᐃᐅ

ᑭᑭᑫᐣᑖᒥᐣ ᐁᔮᐠ ᐊᓂᔑᓂᓃᒧᐏᐣ ᐊᔑᔾ ᐁᓂᐘᓂᒋᑲᑌᐠ

ᒥᔒᐣ ᐅᐦᑭᑑᑕᐣ ᐁᐦᐊ ᐅᑭᒪᐏᐣ ᐁᑲ ᒋᔭᐸᒋᒋᑲᑌᐠ ᐊᓂᔑᓂᓂᒧᐏᐣ

ᐅᑵᓄᐘᐣ ᐃᓑᑯᓄᑲᒥᑰᐣ ᑲᑭᐏᔑᐦᑐᐘᐨ

ᒥᔒᐣ ᐊᔭᐘᐠ ᐆᒪ ᑲᑭ ᒪᓀᓂᒥᐣᑢ ᐁᐏᐍᒥᐦᑎᑯᔑᒧᐘᐨ

ᒥᔒᐣ ᐆᒪ ᐊᔭᐘᐠ ᐁᑮ ᑲᓯᓂᐣᑤ ᐆᒪ ᓲᐸᐣ ᐁᔭᐸᑎᓯᓂᐨ ᐁᐊᓂᔑᓂᓃᒧᐘᐨ

ᒥᔒᐣ ᑲᔦ ᐊᔭᐘᐠ ᐆᒪ ᑲᑭᒫᓀᓂᒥᐣᑢ ᐁᐸᐦᑭᑌᐏᐣᑢ ᐁᑭᐦᒋᐊᓄᐦᑭᐦᐃᐣᑢ ᐁᔭᓂᔑᓂᓃᒧᓇᓄᐘᐣᐠ

ᓂᒥᓄᐍᐣᑕᐣ ᑕᓑ ᐆᐅᐦᐍ ᑲᑭᔑᑲᐠ ᐅᐍ ᑲᔭᔭᒥᔭᐣ

ᑫᑲᐟ ᐅᑯ ᓂᑎᓂᒪᐣᒋᐦᐅ ᐁᐘᓂᑑᑕᒫᐣ ᐁᒪᒪᓂᔭᐣ ᓂᑎᓀᑕᐣ ᐅᐦᐅᐍ ᒣᑿᐨ ᑲᑲᑭᑎᔭᐣ

ᒥᑵᐨ ᓂᑎᓈᐠ ᑲᐦᑭᓈ ᑭᓇᐚ ᐆᒪ ᑲᔭᐱᔦᐠ ᐍᑎ ᑲᐃᔑᔭᐱᔦᐠ ᐁᒁ ᒥᓈ ᐆᒪ ᑲᐃᔑᔭᐱᔦᐠ

ᒥᑵᐨ ᑲᐦᑭᓈ ᑭᑎᓂᓈᐚ ᐅᐍ ᑳᐃᔑᐏᒋᑳᐸᐏᑕᐏᔑᔦᐠ

ᒫᐘᐨ ᑭᐦᒋᓀᑕᑿᐣ ᐅᐦᐅᐍ ᑲᑐᑕᒪᐣᐠ

ᐅᑵᓄᐘᐠ ᑲᔦ ᐊᓂᔑᓂᓄᐘᐠ ᑲᑲᓇᐘᐳᐚᐨ ᒫᐘᐨ ᑭᐦᒋᓀᐣᑖᑿᐣ

ᐅᑿᓄᐘᐠ ᑲᔦ ᐊᔭᐘᐠ ᑲᑭ ᐱᒧᑐᐘᐨ ᓂᑎᔑᑭᔑᐍᐏᓂᓈᐣ

ᒥᑵᓄᐘᐠ ᓂᑫᓃᐣ ᑭᔮᐸᐨ ᑲᐅᐣᒋ ᐊᓂᔑᓂᓃᒧᔭᐣ

ᐊᐍ ᑲᔦ ᓂᒪᒪ ᑲᔭᐱᐨ ᓂᑭᒫᒪᒋᐏᓂᐠ ᐁᐹᐸᒥᔭᔭᐣᐠ ᐸᑿᒋᔭᐦᐃᐣᐠ

ᒥᔭᐍᑎ ᑭᔭᐱᐨ ᑲᐅᐣᒋ ᐊᓂᔑᓂᓃᒧᔭᐣ ᐊᐦᐊᐍᑎ

ᐁᑿ ᑲᑭᓈ ᐅᑵᓄᐘᐠ ᑷᑕᑭᔭᐠ ᐆᐢᑳᑎᓴᐠ ᐊᐘᔑᔕᐠ ᑭᑐᓯᓯᒥᓇᓇᐠ ᐊᒥᑵᓄᐘᐠ ᑫᐏᓇᐚ

ᒋᔭᓂ ᑭᐦᑫᓇᑕᒧᐘᐨ ᒋᔭᓃᑭᐦᑫᑕᒧᐘᐨ ᒋᓂᐦᑖ ᐊᓂᔑᓈᐯᒧᐘᐨ

ᑫᑭᓈᐘ ᑲ ᐊᐣᑐᑕᒣᐠ ᐆᒪ ᒥᓯᐍᑳᒥᐠ

ᑭᐦᑭᓅᐦᐊᒪᐏᐠ ᒋᓂᐦᑖ ᐊᓂᔑᓂᓃᒧᐘᐨ ᒋᓂᑕ ᐊᓂᔑᓇᐯᒧᐘᐨ ᑭᑕᔭᓄᐚ

ᐊᔕᔾ ᑫᑳᐟ ᑭᑢᓯᔭᐦᑭ ᓂᑫᓂᐣ ᐆᒪ ᑲᑭᒪᑕᐱᔭᐣ ᐁᐏᑕᐱᒥᓇᑯᐠ ᐆᒪ

ᓂᔑᐱᒧᑲᓇᑲ ᐅᑖᓇᐠ ᑭᐦᒋᓇᒣᑯᓯᐱᐣᐠ ᓂᑭᔕ

ᐅᐍᔖᓑ ᓂᑭ ᓇ ᐯᔑᐠ ᑭᒉᐦᐋ ᐅᐍ ᓂᑭᓈ

ᐅᐍ ᐁᐏᐦᑐᑕᒪᐣ ᐁᐏᐊᓄᔑᓂᓂᒧᔭᐣ ᐆᒪ ᑭᐦᒋᐘᑲᐦᐃᑲᓂᐠ

ᐊᐦᐸᐣ ᑲᒫᒋᐊᔭᒥᐦᐊᐠ ᑭᓂᓯᑐᑕᐏᐣ ᐊᔕᔾ ᐁᓂᐘᓂᐦᑐᔭᐣ ᑭᑎᔑᑭᔑᐍᐏᐣ

ᐁᓂᑯᐠ ᐊᐦᐸᐣ ᑲᑭᒪᒐᔭᒼᐸᐣ

ᒥᐍ ᐁᐦᑐᒋᑫᒪᑲᑭᐣ ᐅᑵᓄᐘᐣ ᑐᐦᑲᓇᐣ ᑭᐦᒋᐘᑲᐦᐃᑲᓇᐣ ᐁᑲ

ᐁᓂᐘᓂᐦᑐᔭᐣ ᓂᑫᓂᐣ ᑲᑭᓇᓄᐦᑭᔭᐣ ᑭᑢᓱ ᐁᓂᐘᓂᐦᑐᔭᐣ ᓂᑭᓂᐢᑐᐦᑖᐠ

ᓂᑭᓂᐢᑐᐦᑖᐠ ᐃᐍ ᐁᐘᓂᐦᑖᐘᐠ

ᒥᑵᐨ ᔖᓑ ᓂᑎᓀᐣᑕᐣ ᐊᐦᐸᐣ ᐅᐍ ᑲᐸᑭᑎᓂᑯᔺᐣ ᑭᔭᒼ ᐅᑯ ᒋᔭᓂᔑᓂᓃᒧᔭᐣ ᐅᐦᐅᒪ

ᒫᐘᐨ ᓂᒥᓄᐍᑕᐣ

ᑫᑭᔐᑊ ᑲᐘᓂᓑᑲᔭᐣ ᐅᒪᒥᓇ ᐁᐅᐣᒋ ᐱᒪᓯᓇᐦᐊᒪᑯᔭᐣ

ᐊᐦᐊ ᐅᑵᓄᐘᐠ ᓇᒣᑯᓯᐱᐃᓂᓃᐘᐠ ᑲᑭᑯᑢᓱᐘᐨ ᑲᑭ ᑭᐸᑿᐦᐘᑢᐸᐣ ᐆᒪ ᒣᑿᐨ 2008

ᒥᐍ ᐅᐍ ᑲᑭᔑᑲᓂᐠ ᐁᑭ ᓴᑭᒋᐦᐃᑢᐸᐣ ᐅᐍ ᑲᑭᔑᑲᓂᐠ ᒣᔾ 28

ᐯᔑᐠ ᐁᑎ ᐊᐱ ᐅᑭᒪᐦᑲᓇᐠ ᐅᓇᐦᔓᐍᐏᓂᓄᐘᐠ ᐆᒪ ᐱᑯ ᐊᐳᐘᐠ ᓂᐘᐸᒪᐠ ᐅᑯ

ᒥᐅᐍ ᑲᑭᔑᑲᓂᐠ ᐁᔭᐚᐨ ᐅᑕᐦᑭᒧᐚ ᐁᑲ ᐁᒥᑲᑕᒧᐘᐨ ᐅᑕᐦᑭᒧᐚ

ᐊᒥᐍ ᑲᐃᓀᐣᑕᒪᐣ ᐁᑿ ᑲᔦ ᒪᐘᐨ ᓂᒥᓄᐍᐣᑕᐣ ᐊᐦᐊ ᓂᒪᒪ ᐆᒪ ᑲᔭᐨ

ᐅᐍ ᑲᑎᐱᓑᑲᐣᐠ

ᐁᑿ ᑲᔦ ᓂᑐᐣᒋ ᒥᑲᐏᐣᑕᐚ ᓂᑕᑕ ᐊᔭᑐᐠ ᐅᓇᒋᑕᐣ ᐅᐍᑲᔭᓂᐠ ᐅᓇᒋᑕᐣ

ᐅᐦᐅᐍ ᔕᓑ ᑲᔦ ᓀᑲᐃᑭᐟ ᓂᑫᓂᐣ ᓂᑎᔑᐸᐦᑯᓭᐣᑖᐣ ᐅᒪ ᑲᑐᑕᒪᐣᐠ ᐆᒪ ᐅᐣᑕᕒᐃᐅ ᑲᐸᑭᑎᓂᑲᑌᐠ

ᐊᐣᔑᓂᓃᒧᐏᐣ ᑲᐸᑭᑎᓂᑲᑌᐠ ᐃᐍ ᓂᑎᓀᐣᑕᐣ ᑯᑕᑭᔭᐣ ᑭᐦᒋᐅᑭᒪᐏᑲᒥᑯᐣ ᐍᑎ ᒥᓯᐍᑲᒥᐠ

ᐆᒪ ᑲᓇᑕ

ᑫᐏᓇᐘ ᐅᐍᓂ ᐊᐦᐸᐣ ᒋᑐᑕᒧᐘᐨ

ᑫᐏᓇᐘ ᐃᐍᑎ ᐊᑕᐚ ᑲᔭᐳᐘᐨ ᑭᐦᒋᐅᑭᒪᐏᑲᒧᐠ ᑫᐏᓇᐘ ᒋᔭᐣᑕᒋᑫᐚᐨ

ᐊᒥᐍ ᐁᐃᔑᓇᑿᐠ ᐁᒪᒪᐤ ᑲᐸᐏᓇᓄᐘᐣᐠ ᐁᐏᑕᓄᐦᑭᒥᑐᓇᓂᐘᐣᐠ ᐁᑲ ᒋᐘᓂᐦᑐᔮᐣᐠ ᐃᓀᓄᐘᐣ

ᓂᑎᔑᓂᔑᐍᐏᓂᓇᐣ

ᒫᐘᐨ ᑭᒋᓀᐣᑕᑿᐣ ᑫᑯᐣ ᐃᐦᐃᐍ

ᐅᐍᑕᓑ ᓂᑲᐃᐦᑭᐟ ᒥᓇ ᑲᔭᓂᔑᓂᒧᔭᐣ ᐊᒥᒪ ᐁᐅᒋᓭᐠ ᓂᑕᓂᔑᓂᓃᐘᑎᓱᐏᓇᐣ

ᐅᐍ ᑲᔭᓂᔑᓂᓃᒧᔭᐣ ᐊᒥᒪ ᑲᐸᐸᒥᔭᔭᐣᐠ ᐊᐦᑭᑲᐣᐠ ᒥᐍ ᐁᐅᐣᒋ ᒥᓄᔭᔭᐣᐠ ᐃᐦᐃᐍ ᐊᐦᑭᑲᐣᐠ

ᒪᐘᐨ ᐅᑯ ᑭᐦᒋᓀᑕᑿᐣ ᐅᐦᐅᐍ ᐊᐸᐣ ᒪᓑᑲᐏᓯᐏᐣ ᐊᐸᐣ ᐊᓂᔑᓂᓄᐘᐠ ᐊᐦᐸᐣ ᐁᓂᒪᒪᐤ ᑲᐸᐏᐘᐨ

ᒥᐍ ᒋᔭᓂ ᐸᓯᑷᔭᐣᐠ ᐅᓴᒼ ᐊᔕᐃ ᑭᓄᐍᓑ ᑭᑿᑿᑕᐦᐃᑯᒥᐣ ᐃᑵᓄᐘᐣ ᐅᑭᒪᐏᓇᐣ

ᐅᑭᒪᐠ ᐏᑕᓄᐦᑭᒥᔑᔭᐣᐠ ᐏᑕᓄᑭᒧᐍᐣ ᐏᑕᓄᑭᒧᐍᔪᐠ ᐊᒥᐍ ᐁᐃᑭᑐᔭᐣ

ᐆᒪ ᒥᔑᐣ ᐊᓂᔑᓂᓄᐘᐠ ᐅᑕᓇᐠ ᑭᑭᑐᐘᐠ ᐁᑲ ᐏᐦᑳ ᐊᓂᔑᓈᐯᒧᐏᐣ ᒋᔭᒥᓇᓄᐘᐣᐠ ᐅᒪ ᑭᐦᒋᐘᑲᐦᐃᑲᓂᐠ

ᐁᐦᐊ ᐯᔑᐠ ᑭᑭᑐᐸᐣ ᑊᕒᐊᐣᐠ ᐱᕒᑎ ᐁᑭᓇᑲᓄᐸᐣ ᐅᒐᓑᑯᓂᒥᐣᐠ ᐁᐅᐣᒋᓭᐨ

ᑲᐏᓂᐣ ᐏᐦᑲ ᑭᑭᑐᐸᐣ ᒋᔭᓂᔑᓂᒧᓇᓄᐘᐣᐠ ᐅᒪ ᐘᑲᐦᐃᑲᓂᐠ

ᓄᐣᑯᒼ ᑕᓑ ᑲᑭᔑᑲᐠ ᐸᐦᑲᐣ ᐃᔑᓭ

ᐊᐦᐸᐣ ᓴᑫᐣ ᐁᐸᑭᑎᓂᑲᑌᐠ ᐅᐍ ᐃᔑᑭᔑᐍᐏᐣ

ᒥᐍ ᒪᐘᐨ ᐅᑯ ᒥᑵᐨ ᑲᐦᑭᓇ ᓂᑎᓇᐠ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐠ

ᒥᑵᐨ ᑲᐦᑭᓇ ᓂᑎᓇᐠ ᐅᐢᑲᑎᓴᐠ

ᐍᒥᑎᑯᔑᐘᐠ ᑲᔦ ᐆᒪ ᑲᔭᐳᐘᐨ ᐅᑭᒪᐠ ᐃᐦᑵᐘᐠ ᐅᓑᑭᓂᑯᐘᐠ

ᒥᑵᐨ ᑲᐱᔕᔦᐠ ᐆᒪ ᑲᐱᓇᒋᑕᒣᐠ

ᐊᐦᐃ ᒥᐦᐃᒫ ᐁᐅᐣᒋ ᐅᐣᑎᓇᒪᐣᐠ ᒪᓑᑲᐏᓯᐏᐣ ᐅᐍ ᑭᔭᐸᐨ ᑲᐱᒪᐦᐃᐍᔭᐣᐠ ᐅᒪ ᐊᐦᑭᐣᐠ ᐃᐍ ᐁᐅᒋᓭᐠ ᐃᒪ ᓂᑎᔑᑭᔑᐍᐏᓇᐣ

ᐁᑿ ᑲᔦ ᓂᐘᐦᑯᒥᓇᐣ ᑲᐘᐦᑯᒪᔭᐣᐠ ᐱᒪᑎᓱᐏᓇᐣ ᑲᔭᒪᐣᐠ

ᐁᑿ ᐅᒪ ᐊᐦᑭᐣᐠ ᑲᔭᔭᐣᐠ ᒥᐱᑯ ᐁᐅᐣᒋᓭᐠ ᐅᐦᐅᐍ ᐃᔑᑭᔑᐍᐏᐣ

ᐃᐦᐃᐍ ᑲᔦ ᒋᒥᓄ ᐱᒪᑎᓯᔭᐣᐠ

ᒋᒥᓄ ᐏᑕᓄᐦᑭᒥᑎᔭᐣᐠ ᐅᒪ ᑲᐦᑭᓇ ᑲᔭᔦᐠ ᒪᐘᐨ ᑭᐦᒋᓀᑕᑿᐣ

ᐁᑿ ᒪᐘᐨ ᐅᑯ ᓂᐦᑭᒋᓂᑕᐣ ᑲᐸᑭᑎᓂᔑᔦᐠ ᒋᔭᓂᔑᓂᓃᒧᔭᐣ ᒫᐘᐨ ᓂᓇᓇᐦᑯᒼ

ᒪᐘᐨ ᓂᑭᐦᒋᓀᑕᐣ ᓂᑌᐦᐃᐣᐠ ᐁᑿ ᐆᒪ ᓂᑎᐯᓂᒪᑲᓇᐠ ᓂᐘᑯᒪᑲᓇᐠ ᑲᐦᑭᓇ ᐁᔭᐳᐘᐨ

ᑲᐏᐣ ᐃᑯ ᓇᐣᑕ ᓂᑭᔑᓂᐦᑲᑕᓯᐣ ᐁᓑᑲᒼ ᐊᐦᑯ ᐁᔭᔭᐣ ᐁᒧᔑᐦᐃᑯᔭᐣ ᐅᐍ ᑲᐃᔑᓭᐠ

ᒥᐍ ᐱᓇᒪ ᒥᓂᑯᐠ ᑕᐘᐨ ᑫᔭᔭᒥᔭᐣ ᐁᑿ ᒥᓇᐘ ᓂᑲᐃᑭᐟ

ᑭᐦᒋ ᒥᑵᐨ ᒥᑵᐨ ᑲᐃᔑ ᓇᑐᑕᐏᔑᔦᐠ ᑲᐃᔑ ᐸᑭᑎᓂᑯᔭᐣ ᒋᔭᔭᒥᔭᐣ ᐅᐍ ᒣᑿᐨ ᑲᑭᔑᑲᐠ

ᑭᐦᒋᑭᔑᑳ ᐅᐦᐅᐍ

ᑭᐦᒋ ᒥᑵᐨ

Applause.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Meegwetch.

Question Period

ᓄᒪᑫ ᑲᓇᐍᓂᒥᐍᐏᐣ / Long-term care

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: ᒥᑵᐨ

ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐠ ᑲᐃᔑ ᑲᓇᐍᓂᒥᐣᑢ ᑲᓇᐍᓂᒧᐍᐏᐣ ᐍᑎ ᐘᐘᓇᐘᑲᐣᐠ ᐍᑎ ᑲᔦ ᑭᐍᑎᓅᐠ ᑲᐏᓂᐣ ᑿᔭᐠ ᒋᓭᓂᐠ ᑲᑲᓄᐍᓂᒥᐣᑢ ᐃᒪ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐏᑲᒥᑯᐣᐠ ᐁᑳ ᑌᐻ ᐁᒥᔑᓇᑎᐦᑭᐣ ᐁᑕᑿᒋᓇᑐᑭᐣ ᐅᑯ ᐃᑵᓄᐘᐣ ᑲᔦ ᑲᐃᔑᑲᓇᐍᓂᒥᑢ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐠ ᐍᑎ ᐘᐘᓇᐘᑲᐣᐠ

ᒥᔭᐦᐸᐣ ᐊᑯᓯᐏᑲᒥᑯᐣᐠ ᐁᐃᔑᓂᔕᐏᐣᑢ ᐁᑿ ᐊᐸᐣ ᐁᐏᐣᑕᒥᓭᑭᐣ ᐃᑵᓄᐘᐣ ᒪᓑᑭᑭᐏᑲᒥᑯᐣ ᐃᒪ ᑫᑭᔭᐘᐸᐣ ᐃᒪ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐏᑲᒥᑯᐣᐠ

ᐊᓇᐦᐱ ᐚᐦᐍ ᐅᐣᑕᕒᐃᐅ ᑫᑭ ᓇᓇᑲᑕᐍᓂᒪᐸᐣ ᐃᐍᓄᐘᐣ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐣ ᐍᑎ ᑮᐍᑎᓅᐠ ᐁᑿ ᒋᑭᔭᑭᐸᐣ ᑫᐃᔑ ᑲᓇᐍᓂᒥᐣᑢ ᐃᒪ ᐁᑿ ᒥᓇ ᒋᐸᑭᑎᓇᑲᓄᐏᐨ ᔓᓂᔭᐣ ᐃᐍ ᒋᑲᓇᐍᓂᒪᑲᓄᐘᐨ ᐃᒪ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐏᑲᒥᑯᐣᐠ ?

Applause.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To reply, the Minister of Long-Term Care.

Hon. Stan Cho: Some things are bigger than politics, and I believe that’s one of those moments this morning. Meegwetch to the honourable member for that question.

Speaker, what’s bigger than politics also is making sure that we take care of those who took care of us. I’m also honoured to see that the member’s mother is here. Happy birthday to her.

Interjections.

Hon. Stan Cho: Yes. I can see how important his mother is to the member and, Speaker, certainly there’s no difference in my life. My mother is a senior now. We have to take care of them. There’s a moral obligation to do that.

While we have a larger capital plan to build and redevelop 58,000 new spaces in Ontario. We understand there are unique challenges when it comes to rural and northern areas, particularly when it comes to Indigenous communities. That’s why our government has specific programs catered towards Indigenous communities.

I was just in Temiskaming Shores to announce 128 new spaces, predominantly for the Indigenous communities there, part of a larger plan of 18 projects associated with First Nations; 997 new and 221 upgraded beds. We’re going to continue to work with that member to make sure we address the needs in Sioux Lookout.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary question.

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: ᒥᑵᐨ

ᐅᐦᐅᐍ ᑲᔭᓂᒧᑕᒪᐣ ᐍᑎ ᐘᐘᓇᐘᑲᐣᐠ ᑲᑲᐯᔑᐘᐨ ᑮᐍᑎᓅᐠ ᑲᑲᐯᔑᐘᐨ ᐊᒥᐍ ᑲᔭᓂᒧᑕᒪᐣ

ᐁᑿ ᐍᑎ ᑲᑲᐯᔑᐘᐨ ᐊᓂᔑᓂᓄᐘᐠ ᐍᑎ ᐍᒥᑎᑯᔑᐘᐠ ᑲᔦ ᐍᑎ ᐘᐘᓇᐘᑲᐣᐠ ᑭᒪᒪᓯᓇᐦᐃᑫᐘᐠ ᐅᑭᒪᐣ ᐊᔕᐃ ᐁᓇᐣᑕᐍᐣᑕᒧᐘᐨ ᐃᐍᓂᓂ ᒋᑭ ᐅᔓ ᒋᒋᑲᑌᓂᑭᐸᐣ ᐃᐍᓂ ᑲᑮ ᐃᔑ ᐸᑯᓭᓂᒪᑲᓄᐘᐸᐣ ᒍᔑᒋᑲᑌᐠ ᐃᐦᐃᐍ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐏᑲᒥᑯᐠ

ᐅᐍᔕᓑ ᑲᐃᑭᑐᔭᐣ ᒪᐘᐨ ᐃᑯ ᐁᐦᐱᐅᐘᐨ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐠ ᒥᔭᔕᑕᐘᐨ ᐁᓂᐦᑕᒥᓭᑭᐣ ᐅᑵᓄᐘᐣ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐤ ᐏᒋᐦᐍᐏᐣ

ᐆᒪ ᓇᐣᑕ 2018 ᑲᑭᔭᐦᑭᐘᐣᐠ ᓂᔁᓯᒥᑕᓇ ᑭᑢᓯᔕᑊ ᓂᐯᐏᓇᐣ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐅ ᓂᐯᐏᓇᐣ ᑿᐃᐣ ᒪᔑ ᒍᔑᒋᑲᑌᑭᐣ ᐃᑵᓄᐘᐣ ᐆᒪ ᑲᑭ ᓇᑕᐍᒋᑲᑌᐸᓃᐣ ᐅᒪ 2025.

ᐊᐦᑎ ᐏᐣᑕᐣ ᐅᑭᒪ ᐊᓇᐦᐱ ᑫᑭᐅᔑᒋᑲᑌᑿᐸᐣ ᐅᑵᓄᐘᐣ ᐘᐘᓇᐘᑿᐣᐠ ᓂᐯᐏᓇᐣ ᐊᔕᐃ ᓂᑯᑢᓱ ᐊᐦᑭ ᐊᐘᔑᒣ ᐁᐱᒥᓭᐠ ?

Hon. Stan Cho: The first thing I’ll offer to the member opposite—I know this is a hugely important issue to that member; it is to me as well. Come to my office and we can go through the process together and the challenges that are facing the allocation of 76 that are outstanding.

While we work on the challenge of Sioux Lookout, we have produced results when it comes to the Indigenous communities through long-term care. I look to Niagara Falls, 32 new spaces; Toronto Centre, 128 new spaces. As I said: 18 projects, 997 new spaces, 221 redeveloped spaces specifically for First Nations.

I want to go back to Temiskaming Shores, when I was there, talking about Indigenous services delivered in native languages with culturally appropriate care. This is hugely important to me. I come from a culturally diverse background. I understand the importance of that in your life. Our seniors deserve to live out their golden years understanding and speaking the language that they spoke, eating the foods that they’re accustomed to. This is hugely important to the Premier and to this government.

Speaker, I commit to work with that member to make sure that we get this done for Sioux Lookout. Please come to my office and we’ll continue this journey along the path to building those 76 new spaces.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The final supplementary.

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: ᐅᐦᐅᒪ ᑲᑭᔑᑲᐠ ᑭᐦᑭᑫᐣᑕᓇᐘ ᐆᒪ ᓂᒪᒪ ᑮᓴ ᐁᔭᐨ

ᑐᐦᑲᐣ ᑷᑕᑭᔭᐠ ᑭᐦᒋᑵᐘᐠ ᑷᑕᑭᔭᐠ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐠ ᐱᐦᐅᐘᐠ ᓂᔁᓱ ᐊᐦᑭ ᓂᐯᐏᓇᐣ ᐁᐱᑐᐘᐨ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐠ ᑲᔑᑲᐯᔑᐘᐨ ᑲᐏᓂᐣ ᒋᐏᒋᐦᐃᑯᐘᐨ

ᑲᐏᓂᐣ ᑕᑅᑌᓭᓯᓄᐣ ᐘᐦᐊᐍ ᐅᑭᒪᐏᐣ ᒋᑭᐊᔑᑕᒪᑫᐸᐣ ᐅᑵᓄᐘᐣ ᒋᑭᐅᔑᒋᑲᑌᑭᐸᐣ ᐅᑵᓂᐘᐣ ᑭᒉᐦᐊᐏᑲᒥᑯᐣ ᐃᐍᑎ ᐘᐘᓇᐘᑲᐣᐠ ᑮᐍᑎᓅᐠ ᐁᑲ ᐊᔕᔾ ᐍᓴ ᑭᓄᐍᓑ ᐱᐦᐅᐘᐠ

ᐊᓇᐦᐱ ᐘᐦᐍ ᐅᑭᒪᐏᐣ ᑲᑭᑭᑐᐦᐸᐣ ᐆᒪ 2018 ᑲᔭᐦᑭᐘᐠ ᐃᐍ ᒍᔑᒋᑲᑌᐠ ᐅᑵᓄᐘᐣ ᓂᔁᓯᒥᑕᓇ ᓂᑯᑢᓯᔕᑊ ᓂᐯᐏᓇᐣ ᑭᒉᐦᐊ ᓂᐯᐏᓇᐣ ᐍᑎ ᐘᐘᓇᐘᑲᐣᐠ ᐊᓇᐱ ?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To reply, the Premier.

Hon. Doug Ford: Folks wondered what I was saying to you, Sol—and sorry for using your first name, but this is a different situation. I had you in my office yesterday, told you how proud I am of you, how you’re blazing a new trail. No one’s ever done this, what you’re doing today. I just want to tell you how proud I am of you, how proud everyone here in the Legislature is and how proud everyone in the First Nations is.

I appreciate your passion in Sioux Lookout. I went up to Sioux Lookout—you remember I went up there? And I committed that I’m going to build that long-term-care home. I’m committing today, in the public: We will be building those beds. We’ll be building a home for Sioux Lookout.

Mercury poisoning

Ms. Marit Stiles: It is indeed a historic day here in the Legislature. I want to use this opportunity to raise another issue of great concern to so many people across this province. This question is for the Minister of the Environment.

Yesterday, the opposition deputy leader, the member from Kiiwetinoong, and I asked this government questions about the ongoing mercury poisoning of the people of Grassy Narrows First Nation. The Minister of the Environment answered that there was going to be a meeting today to discuss the findings. So my question is, can the minister share details with this House on the scope of that meeting?

Hon. Andrea Khanjin: As I mentioned yesterday about the meeting taking place today, one of the things that we also need to reflect upon is the fact that the first order of business for this government, one of our first acts when we formed government in 2018, was to correct a wrong. That wrong was the issue that is in question today.

One of our first acts back in 2018 was to index the mercury benefit payments for people who had not seen increases for inflation in as many as 30 years. We’re committed to continuing to correct that wrong, and as a result, the people saw their monthly payment amounts more than double beginning in November 2018, in addition to the retroactive payments.

We know that there is no quick fix or no quick solution, and many of these issues are historic, complex and multi-jurisdictional. There is a lot of work that needs to be done, but we’re dedicated to achieving progress on these issues.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary question.

Ms. Marit Stiles: Well, Speaker, I just want to point out it has been decades—decades—since the first mercury was dumped downriver of Grassy Narrows. Now, generations have been left to experience the devastating effects of mercury poisoning. They want answers, and they deserve them. The people of Ontario want action on their behalf.

I’m going to ask the minister more specifically: Will the Premier be in attendance at that meeting today? Will the minister? What other members of cabinet will be at that meeting and how long do the people of Grassy Narrows have to wait?

Hon. Andrea Khanjin: We take the challenges faced the by the people of Grassy Narrows and Wabaseemoong very seriously. We want to achieve real progress in developing solutions that will lead to improved outcomes and create prosperity, health and strong communities for the people who live there.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The final supplementary.

Ms. Marit Stiles: I would have hoped to hear from the minister that the Premier, that the ministers, that somebody else from cabinet was going to be attending that meeting. I mean, meeting after meeting after meeting—come on. People are being poisoned. Children, elders are being poisoned.

I’ve got to tell you, Speaker, if this was happening anywhere else in the province of Ontario, that kids were being poisoned by the fish they eat, the water they drink, this government, I would hope, would do something.

It has come to my attention that none of the ministers, since 2018, have even set foot in Grassy Narrows. I want to know when this minister or somebody else from this government is going to go to Grassy Narrows, is going to treat this issue with the urgency that it demands and stop the poisoning of the people of Grassy Narrows.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Members will please take their seats.

Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks.

Hon. Andrea Khanjin: The member raises a point about the inactions that were taken by previous governments, and that’s what I did mention, that our first order of business of this government was to correct the historic wrong. Our first order of business was to ensure that we do take action on a progressive path forward, including the necessary supports and benefits and ensuring that they are marked to inflation and the necessary supports are there. Secondary to this is working with Indigenous communities, the expert panels, as has been the plan all along, to remain committed to ensure that there is a significant path forward. This week proves a few commitments that we have on a path forward.

But, Speaker, as I mentioned, this is a very complex issue. It has been a historic issue. It’s multi-jurisdictional. But know that this government will continue to correct a wrong and have a path forward.

Government accountability

Ms. Marit Stiles: It should have been an easy answer: “We’re going to stop the poisoning of the people of Grassy Narrows.”

But anyway, this question is for the Premier. Yesterday, the NDP revealed that the Premier’s chief of staff, Patrick Sackville, was routinely using his personal email account to do government business. This matters because Mr. Sackville told the Integrity Commissioner under oath that he does not conduct government business on personal email.

Well, today, Global News is reporting that Mr. Sackville was using his personal email as recently as late 2023—that’s after the greenbelt scandal broke—and that means that Mr. Sackville not only gave false testimony under oath to the Integrity Commissioner about using his personal email, but he then doubled down and kept using it, knowing perfectly well that it was wrong.

So my question to the Premier is, when is he going to demand his chief of staff’s resignation for giving false testimony?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To respond, the government House leader.

Hon. Paul Calandra: I appreciate the question. As I said yesterday, if the leader of the NDP has any additional information that she would like to share with the Integrity Commissioner, I invite her to do so. I have full confidence in the Integrity Commissioner’s ability to continue any investigation that he needs to do.

At the same time, we’re going to continue to work on the priorities of the people of the province of Ontario: growing the economy, building homes, building schools, reinvesting in health care, transit and transportation—all of the priorities that the people of the province of Ontario elected us to focus on back in not only 2018 but in 2022. We’ll continue to focus on those priorities because building a bigger, better, stronger, safer province of Ontario is exactly what we’ve been focused on, and we will not be strayed from that mission.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary question.

Ms. Marit Stiles: First of all, let me inform the minister that—don’t worry—we have already sent all those documents over to the commissioners, and there will be justice for you one day.

On October 17, 2022, Ryan Amato sent Mr. Sackville a list of criteria for removing lands from the greenbelt on behalf of all of their insider friends, and that was sent to his personal email. The email was dated 10 days before the date that Mr. Sackville told the Integrity Commissioner, again, under oath, that he was first briefed on the greenbelt removal criteria. He also said, under oath, that he had no knowledge of this email and that he had no idea how Ryan Amato obtained his personal email account.

Well, let me shed some light on that, because now we know that Mr. Sackville routinely uses his personal accounts for government business, contrary to what he told the Integrity Commissioner, again, under oath.

So my question, and perhaps the Premier will get up and answer it this time—I want to know: Has the Premier spoken to his chief of staff about the consequences of giving misinformation to the Integrity Commissioner?

Hon. Paul Calandra: Again, if the Leader of the Opposition has additional information and she says she has provided additional information to the Integrity Commissioner, then I have full confidence in the Integrity Commissioner to undertake his review.

At the same time, we are going to continue to do what is important for the people of the province of Ontario.

We inherited a government back in 2018, supported by the NDP every step of the way; an economy that was faltering; a manufacturing sector that had been—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Hamilton Mountain, come to order.

Hon. Paul Calandra: —energy crisis; schools where kids were discovering as opposed to learning math; 600 schools had been closed. And every step of the way, the NDP supported them. The NDP were so prolific in supporting the Liberals that they also negotiated a 400% increase in child care rates. That’s the success of the NDP.

What are we doing? We have a plan to continue to rebuild the economy. It is about rebuilding infrastructure, rebuilding hospitals, schools, roads, bridges, and we’re—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The next question.

Taxation

MPP Zee Hamid: My question is for the Minister of Energy.

I’m proud to be standing here today in this Legislature to bring forward the concerns of my constituents in Milton.

Speaker, due to the impact of the rising Liberal carbon tax, Milton residents are facing unaffordable gas, groceries—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member will take his seat. Please take your seat.

We had 15 minutes of respectful dialogue in this Legislature this morning. Let’s see if we can keep that up.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Order. Order.

The government side, come to order.

I apologize to the member for Milton for having to interrupt him. He can place his question.

MPP Zee Hamid: Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

At a time when the cost of living continues to rise, the federal government decided to take more money out of people’s pockets by hiking this tax by 23% last month. Ontarians do not deserve this punitive tax.

Unlike the Liberals, our government is powering Ontario’s growth with clean, affordable and reliable energy.

Speaker, can the minister please tell this House why the carbon tax does not, cannot and will not bring us the energy efficiency that our government is achieving through our clean energy program?

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Stop the clock.

Restart the clock. Minister of Energy.

Hon. Todd Smith: A day of firsts here—congratulations to the member from Milton on his first question in question period.

Again, I want to congratulate my good friend from Kiiwetinoong, as well, for his words this morning in Oji-Cree. To me, he’s known as “kitchi-animohsh”—if the interpreter is still there. That means “the big dog.” We love the member from Kiiwetinoong.

Speaker, we can do this. We can have the energy that we need in our province for our growing economy without having this punitive tax that the member for Milton is talking about. And we’re actually doing it.

There are a lot of firsts in this province. We’re building the first new nuclear small modular reactor at Darlington right now. We’re building the first large nuclear in the province in over 30 years. That’s going to be happening out at Bruce. We’re building a beautiful transmission line. Wataynikaneyap Power is here. We see the wonderful people—Margaret is here from Watay Power, and I’m going to talk a little bit more about some of the things we’re doing in northern Ontario in my—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you.

The supplementary question.

MPP Zee Hamid: Thank you to the minister for his response. It is encouraging to see our government’s progress in meeting Ontario’s growing energy demand. More importantly, we’re getting it done without imposing a costly carbon tax.

Families in Milton and across Ontario are looking to enjoy summer months without having to pay more for food, fuel and other necessities. We’re asking the federal government to show some compassion and not burden Ontarians with another costly carbon tax hike.

Speaker, can the minister please explain how our government is supporting businesses, families and workers in Ontario as we fight the carbon tax?

Hon. Todd Smith: Thanks again to the great new member from Milton. Well, we’re not imposing a tax—not a carbon tax, not any tax. We’re actually reducing the cost of living in the province with things like One Fare in the transit system, cutting taxes, cutting fees, toll roads. They’re all gone. And we’re building the infrastructure that we need to support our growing economy.

One of my favourite events since becoming the Minister of Energy was with the member from Kiiwetinoong and the folks from Wataynikaneyap Power in northwestern Ontario and Kezia, actually, in her home community of Kingfisher Lake First Nation, when I was there with the member and we linked that community to our green, emissions-free electricity grid that we have in Ontario so they can prosper in places like Kingfisher Lake, North Caribou Lake First Nation, Wunnumin First Nation. I actually look forward to joining the folks from Watay next month when we celebrate the completion of that product, linking 16 First Nations communities to our clean provincial grid.

Those are just a couple of examples of how we can do this without—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you. The next question.

Indigenous rights

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Speaker, the Red River Métis, Inuit and Ontario First Nations are calling on Ontario to retract its 2017 identification of the “six new historic Métis communities” in the Ontario region. There was never any consultation with First Nations to recognize these new communities in areas across Ontario where Métis never existed.

Will the minister explain why his ministry refuses to share evidence with First Nations about these so-called Métis communities?

Hon. Greg Rickford: I want to congratulate the member on an extraordinary and historic day. Way to go, Sol.

I have met with the Chiefs of Ontario as well as a number of Indigenous leaders, chiefs from across the province. I’m seized of this matter. There have been many discussions, and my ministry as well as a couple of other ministries are gathering information to provide for those chiefs at an appropriate time. Some of the elements of this matter are before the courts, Mr. Speaker, but we will continue to ensure that the interests from

section 35 rights and so forth of First Nations people in this province are preserved and protected.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary question.

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Speaker, the Ontario Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada have said Ontario must consult First Nations about Ontario’s attempt to create new historic so-called Métis communities on First Nations lands.

This government needs to consider their evidence. When will Ontario stop providing misinformation to proponents about consultation owed in First Nations territories to these Métis communities when there isn’t any evidence they existed historically?

Hon. Greg Rickford: As a matter of substance, this government has not recognized additional Métis communities, and there has been some historic basis in law for the recognition of the existing ones. That said, we will continue to work with the First Nations leadership, particularly some that are here today, who are addressing matters of potential new Métis organizations, and we will continue to support, preserve and protect the

section 35 and any other rights as well as a robust consultation process with First Nations leadership on any issues or opportunities related to this important question.

Taxation

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The next question, the member for Brampton North.

Mr. Andrew Dowie: This is awkward.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Windsor–Tecumseh.

Mr. Andrew Dowie: Thank you, Speaker. I actually would love to be the member for Brampton North—such a great community—but truly my heart is with the people of Windsor–Tecumseh.

My question is for the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. There is fierce competition from across the globe to land job-creating investments. When the Liberals were in charge, Ontario wasn’t even on the short list of places companies would consider investing and expanding in. My community of Windsor–Tecumseh was ground zero for the economic loss that resulted from that.

By reversing the Liberals’ high tax policies, we’ve made sure Ontario is top of mind for global companies who are looking for their next destination to expand in. And Windsor-Essex has renewed hope for the future.

But the federal government’s carbon tax threatens the progress that we’ve made. It’s as if they want to take us back to the days of the previous Liberal government where workers and businesses had to flee our province.

Speaker, can the minister please highlight how by scrapping the carbon tax, the Liberals can follow our lead and create the conditions for economic growth?

Hon. Victor Fedeli: Speaker, we just returned from a successful mission to Korea and Japan. I must say that we met with leading global companies who were intrigued by Ontario’s success story.

In our auto sector, we went from zero to $43 billion in new EV investments in just four years. We added over 700,000 jobs since we took office, including 25,000 just last month alone. None of that would have been possible if we hadn’t reversed the Liberals’ high tax policies that chased 300,000 manufacturing jobs out of the province.

We’ve reduced the annual cost of doing business by $8 billion every year, creating the conditions for businesses to succeed in these good-paying jobs.

Speaker, we’ve shown the Liberals the way: Lowering taxes is the way to new investments in job growth. We need them to listen and scrap the carbon tax.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary.

Mr. Andrew Dowie: There’s truly never a good time to hike taxes. But with the rising cost of living and high interest rates, the Liberals have picked the worst time to continue to hike their carbon tax.

Our government has taken action to lower costs for hard-working people of this province while the Liberals continue to move in the opposite direction. It seems that every time our government moves to put a dollar back in the pockets of the people who earned it, the federal government announces a new tax hike to try to take it away. Their tax-and-spend ways are rooted in the Liberal belief that the government knows how to spend money better than the workers who earned it.

Speaker, can the minister please explain why we believe the hard-working people of this province should not be penalized with a Liberal carbon tax?

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Don Valley West will come to order. The member for Niagara West will come to order.

The Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade.

Hon. Victor Fedeli: Speaker, in the first four months of this year, Ontario has added 80,000 good-paying jobs. These are jobs that are being created in every sector in every region of our province. We want these hard-working men and women who are fulfilling these jobs to keep more of what they earn. And that’s why we’ve acted to put more money back in the pockets of these people by cutting the gas tax, introducing the One Fare program, removing the licence plate renewal fees and so much more.

But unfortunately, Speaker, the Liberals are moving in the opposite direction by continuing with their carbon tax. We need the Liberals to listen to us. We’ve shown them the way that lower taxes is creating this economic prosperity. We want them to listen to us and listen to the hard-working people of Ontario and scrap the carbon tax today.

Workplace safety

Mr. Peter Tabuns: Speaker, through you to the Premier: Every year, workers in Ontario are hospitalized because of heat stress. Some of them die.

Last year, you carried out a consultation on new heat stress regulations and you didn’t increase protection for any workers. This year promises to be another summer of climate-driven record heat. You can increase protection for workers right now. Will you do it?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.

Hon. David Piccini: Speaker,

section 43 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act ensures that any worker in Ontario who feels that they’re subject to unsafe working conditions has the right to reject work.

We’re working across Ontario to ensure record investments to build the infrastructure of tomorrow. We’ve got working-class men and women on the job working to build a better, stronger future for Ontario, and they’re protected by robust protections in the Occupational Health and Safety Act, I would add, that has been strengthened under this Premier and the leadership of this government.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary question? The member for Sudbury.

MPP Jamie West: My question is for the Premier. Speaker, the dangers of heat stress at work are real. Without meaningful legislation, Ontario’s workers will continue to face the threat of heat-related injuries, sickness and even death.

Everyone deserves to be safe in the workplace. Everyone deserves to come home safe from work when the day is done. The growing threat to human health and worker safety posed by climate change must be taken seriously. We need more than work refusals.

My question, Speaker: Will the Premier begin this crucial health and safety work by better recognizing heat stress under the Occupational Health and Safety Act?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development.

Hon. David Piccini: Again, Speaker, we’ve got strong protections in the Occupational Health and Safety Act, and we work with our prevention council. We work with labour groups across Ontario. There’s also an element of common sense. We’re going to continue making the investments to support a growing Ontario.

We’ve got countless men and women in building trades who, I would add, are now supporting this government because of the record protections, because of the steps we’re taking to bring women onto job sites, removing barriers for women and for racialized communities. We’re going to keep doing that, keep strengthening the Occupational Health and Safety Act, continue to strengthen protections under the Employment Standards Act and ensure Ontario is a competitive province that is booming once again with record housing, record transit and record investments in hospitals and schools, all of which are going to ensure a growing working middle class.

School facilities

Ms. Mary-Margaret McMahon: Good morning, everyone. The Ministry of Education asked the Toronto District School Board to submit business cases for schools that urgently need a renovation or a rebuild. The priority was for shovel-ready schools. The criteria included accommodation pressures, school consolidation, facility condition, and access to French-language schools.

Nowhere in the list of criteria do we see the requirement for the school to be in a Conservative riding, but alas, that seems to be the main stipulation for success. Speaker, my question to the Premier—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Stop the clock. The member will take her seat.

The member for Beaches–East York has the right to ask a question, and I need to be able to hear what she is saying. And I’ll need to hear the reply from the minister, if there’s a minister who’s going to reply.

I apologize to the member for Beaches–East York. Please start the clock again. She has the floor.

Ms. Mary-Margaret McMahon: Thank you, Speaker. My question to the Premier: What was your actual criteria for choosing a school in Etobicoke as a capital priorities project when other schools were higher up on the list with more dire needs?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To respond, the Premier.

Hon. Doug Ford: Well, let’s answer the question straight up. Under your government, no schools were built. As a matter of fact, 600 schools were closed.

We have a growing population in Etobicoke. Kids are in portables. They need a place to go to school.

I know they cut funding under education under the Liberal government. I know they cut 600 schools. I know they fired teachers, as opposed to what we’re doing. We’re investing over $16 billion into building new schools over the next 10 years.

Since Etobicoke was ignored for 20 years under their government—they aren’t being ignored anymore. They’re going to be treated fairly, like the rest of the province.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Ottawa South, come to order.

I’ll remind the members to make their comments through the Chair.

The supplementary question.

Ms. Mary-Margaret McMahon: Speaker, here’s the TDSB list of capital priority projects:

(1) Kapapamahchakwew, Wandering Spirit School—a step forward for truth and reconciliation—in Toronto–Danforth;

(2) St. Margaret’s Public School desperately needs a rebuild, with a long-term care already partnering with them, in Scarborough–Guildwood;

(3) Secord Public School, the largest and oldest portapack system, waiting for a rebuild since the Premier and I were at city hall together, in my riding, Beaches–East York;

(4) Etobicoke Centre Elementary—say no more—fourth on the list, but with the golden ticket of having a Conservative MPP to trump all other criteria.

My question to the Premier: Whether it’s hospitals, long-term cares or schools, why does the gravy train only stop in Conservative ridings?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To reply, the Minister of Education.

Hon. Stephen Lecce: Mr. Speaker, it’s just flabbergasting to hear this question from the Liberal Party. Honest to God, are you a revisionist that just came down to Earth? After cutting funding for capital, closing 600 schools, having the worst EQAO standards in Ontario history, you are lecturing this Premier on academic success and building anything?

In Scarborough on Friday, in the NDP riding of Doly Begum, I stood with our Scarborough colleagues to announce a new French elementary school for the people of Scarborough. It happened to be an NDP riding, but we don’t care because we’re investing in what matters to families.

I’ve been in TDSB. I was in London with the member just sitting across—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Talk to me, and conclude your answer.

Hon. Stephen Lecce: Through you, Mr. Speaker, I was in [ inaudible ] the member across from me, who actually attended a capital funding announcement in her riding, if you can believe it.

Mr. Speaker, we’re committed to building—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you. Stop the clock.

I’ll remind members that they need to make their comments through the Chair.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Order.

The next question. Start the clock.

Taxation

Mr. Steve Pinsonneault: My question is for the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. The Liberal carbon tax harms hard-working individuals, businesses and farmers. People in my riding of Lambton–Kent–Middlesex and across the province rely on Ontario farmers to grow high-quality and healthy food for them and their families. But the federal Liberals, supported by the Liberal members sitting here in this House, continue to disrespect farmers through their unfair tax schemes.

Under the leadership of Premier Ford, our government is supporting men and women who are producing food for our growing population. It is time that all governments do the same. Speaker, can the minister please tell the House why farmers in Ontario want to see the carbon tax scrapped immediately?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To respond—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Stop the clock.

Restart the clock. Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

Hon. Lisa M. Thompson: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and welcome to the member from Lambton–Kent–Middlesex. I knew from day one he would see you here in this House.

To answer his question, ladies and gentlemen, the fact of the matter is, as we heard yesterday from the president of the Grain Farmers of Ontario, they are being stressed. The emotional toll of Liberal ideology is really becoming palatable. Last week, the Ontario Federation of Agriculture actually just released results of a survey that said what worries farmers most across Ontario—from Essex to Cornwall to Atikokan, they are worried about tax burden.

Speaker, I stand in this House every day proudly representing farmers across this province. But I stand in front of you today for the first time to say I’m worried. The corn is barely popping out of the ground, and I’m hearing across the province farmers worrying about the cost of drying that corn this fall. The cost is going through the roof, especially since the Liberal ideology saw the carbon tax increase 23% April 1. It’s a travesty.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The supplementary question.

Mr. Steve Pinsonneault: Thank you to the minister for that response. It is disappointing that the federal Liberals seem to be more interested in taxing our farmers than helping them.

Ontario’s agriculture and food industry contributes over $48 billion in our province’s GDP and economy, representing more than 800,000 jobs. It’s essential that our vital sector continues to grow and produce more food for our growing population and export markets. We cannot let the Liberals and their carbon tax continue to add unnecessary costs that reduce competitive advantage at our global level. They need to finally start listening and show our farmers some support instead of trying to tax them out of the province.

Speaker, can the minister explain how our government is supporting Ontario farmers as they fight against this carbon tax?

Hon. Lisa M. Thompson: Absolutely. Again, as farmers worry about the affordability and worry about affording drying their grain corn later this fall, it’s our government in Ontario that’s listening and standing up programs that are addressing how we can assist farmers and for our associated food and beverage industries to continue to grow.

I was so very proud when I joined the member from Lambton–Kent–Middlesex just last week, when we celebrated a provincial investment of $2.4 million into Parkhill Meats. We’re bringing processing close to the farmers. And that huge crowd that was there that included farmers that are going to benefit were celebrating our government, under the leadership of Premier Ford.

Furthermore, we have introduced a $25-million Agri-Tech Innovation Initiative. We also have a Biosecurity Enhancement Initiative. We also have a program to enable farmers to grow future opportunities. Again, we are standing up programs that are resonating and assisting farmers to offset the ridiculous pressure that is coming from Liberal—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you very much.

The next question.

Child care

Ms. Teresa J. Armstrong: My question is to the Premier. Later today, I will be debating my PMB, Bill 191, Childcare and Early Years Workforce Strategy Advisory Committee Act. The bill seeks—

Interjections.

Ms. Teresa J. Armstrong: Yes. It’s a very important day for the child care workforce in this Legislature.

The bill seeks to address workforce issues impacting child care in Ontario, mainly the staffing shortages operators have been reporting. Families deserve to have affordable child care that they can rely on. Early childhood workers deserve jobs that they can turn into careers, and operators deserve a funding model that secures a future for child care.

My question is to the Premier. Will this government commit supporting my bill so Ontario families can access the child care in this province that they need?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Minister of Education.

Hon. Stephen Lecce: So, the question is, will the Progressive Conservative government support an NDP plan that will preclude 30% of the market and 70,000 families outside of the program? The answer is no. We can confirm it’s a total no. We will absolutely not support a program for which you will have literally made the problem that defines your question, of wait-lists, profoundly worse.

To the Speaker: The members opposite want the government to sig