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October 7, 2009

39th Parliament, 1st Session

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Hansard Transcripts

Votes and Proceedings

Orders and Notices

Hansard Transcripts 2009-Oct-07 (PDF)

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO

ASSEMBLÉE LÉGISLATIVE DE L'ONTARIO

Wednesday 7 October 2009 Mercredi 7 octobre 2009

CORRECTION OF RECORD

ORDERS OF THE DAY

STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

AND SCHOOL BOARD

GOVERNANCE ACT, 2009 /

LOI DE 2009

SUR LE RENDEMENT DES ÉLÈVES

ET LA GOUVERNANCE

DES CONSEILS SCOLAIRES

SPECIAL REPORT, AUDITOR GENERAL

INTRODUCTION OF VISITORS

ORAL QUESTIONS

PREMIER'S RECORD

MINISTER'S RECORD

PREMIER'S RECORD

ELECTRONIC HEALTH INFORMATION

MINISTER'S RECORD

SOINS DE SANTÉ /

HEALTH CARE

TAXATION

MINISTER'S RECORD

ELECTRONIC HEALTH INFORMATION

GOVERNMENT SERVICES

MINISTER'S RECORD

ABORIGINAL CHILDREN'S SERVICES

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

MINISTER'S RECORD

SERVICES FOR THE DISABLED

SKILLED TRADES

DEFERRED VOTES

TIME ALLOCATION

MEMBERS' STATEMENTS

MENTAL HEALTH

EVERGREEN HOME

AND COTTAGE INC.

ONTARIO AGRICULTURE WEEK

JOB SECURITY

CALYPSO PARK /

LE PARC CALYPSO

LONG-TERM CARE

STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

LE DRAPEAU FRANCO-ONTARIEN

TAXATION

INTRODUCTION OF BILLS

CLIMATE CHANGE

AWARENESS ACT, 2009 /

LOI DE 2009 SUR LA SENSIBILISATION AUX CHANGEMENTS CLIMATIQUES

RESIDENTIAL TENANCIES AMENDMENT ACT (RENTAL INSURANCE), 2009 /

LOI DE 2009 MODIFIANT LA

LOI SUR LA LOCATION À USAGE D'HABITATION (ASSURANCE DES LOYERS)

MOTIONS

PRIVATE MEMBERS' PUBLIC BUSINESS

PETITIONS

CHILD CARE

TAXATION

SOCIAL SERVICES FUNDING

TAXATION

DIAGNOSTIC SERVICES

SALE OF DOMESTIC

WINES AND BEERS

TAXATION

TAXATION

CEMETERIES

HOSPITAL FUNDING

TAXATION

TOM LONGBOAT

TAXATION

LUPUS

ORDERS OF THE DAY

INTERPROVINCIAL POLICING

ACT, 2009 /

LOI DE 2009

SUR LES SERVICES POLICIERS

INTERPROVINCIAUX

The House met at 0900.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Good morning. Please remain standing for the Lord's Prayer, followed by a Sikh prayer.

Prayers.

CORRECTION OF RECORD

Hon. George Smitherman: On a point of order: I'd like to correct the record on a matter that was raised in question period yesterday. I alleged that a practice of paying Ministry of Health executives through hospital budgets had begun in the 1991-to-1993 period. I later found this information to be incorrect. I want to apologize to members of the House and to Michael Decter, the deputy minister at the time, who was implicated in this information. I have confirmed that this practice was initiated, as I did say also in question period, later in the 1990s under the Conservative leadership.

Hon. Jim Watson: On a point of order: I, too, wish to correct the record. Yesterday, on the anti-SLAPP legislation, my quote is: "Quebec is looking into it, but has not passed legislation." In fact, in June of this year, they did pass legislation. BC doesn't have legislation. I apologize to the House for that incorrect information.

ORDERS OF THE DAY

STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

AND SCHOOL BOARD

GOVERNANCE ACT, 2009 /

LOI DE 2009

SUR LE RENDEMENT DES ÉLÈVES

ET LA GOUVERNANCE

DES CONSEILS SCOLAIRES

Resuming the debate adjourned on September 30, 2009, on the motion for second reading of Bill 177,

An Act to amend the Education Act with respect to student achievement, school board governance and certain other matters / Projet de loi 177, Loi modifiant la

Loi sur l'éducation en ce qui concerne le rendement des élèves, la gouvernance des conseils scolaires et d'autres questions.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Government House leader?

Hon. Monique M. Smith: I just wanted to note that we will reach 6.5 hours of debate this morning, and we would like the debate to continue beyond that point.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Agreed. Further debate?

Mr. John O'Toole: Well, the debate continues on Bill 177. I think that, if I look at my notes here, this bill was introduced in May of this year. Our critic at the time was, I believe, Ms. Savoline, and currently it's Ms. Witmer. We take advice from our critic.

There are parts of this bill that are certainly the right thing to do in response to the reasons, the motive. It's important to always start with the motive: It was some out-of-control activities, mostly in the Toronto boards. There were audits done, and the government actually took over and ran a couple of the boards because there was some lack of accountability, much like the last few weeks here around the eHealth scandal. There was no accountability; they were spending money like impaired sailors. So they introduced Bill 201.

Anyway, this is very much the same kind of thing, where the school boards are out of control and Bill 177 attempts to bring things back under the direct control of the minister. This is the key: They have expunged any rights or responsibility for trustees–for directors, for that matter. If you look at this bill, it is absolutely a well-crafted piece of command and control. That's what this is. The minister has taken complete authority from everyone.

I'm glad to see there's a change of Speaker; I'm sure the new one is just as tolerant of my occasional flirtations with other issues.

If you want to know a bill—and this particular bill is just one example of many—the devil is in the details. If you look at the purpose clause of this bill, it tells the whole story. It does tell the story. What it does here, and it's interesting—I think it's important, Mr. Speaker, celebrating Agriculture Week here in Ontario; I thought that was a great statement you made yesterday on your riding.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bruce Crozier): You won't gain any favours by saying that.

Mr. John O'Toole: I had breakfast this morning with the agricultural families from the Holland Marsh, and I encourage members who haven't had their breakfast yet to go down and have it, because my speech will go on longer than perhaps it needs to.

The real issue here is that it codifies who does what. The bill sets out by the minister in regulation—this is important, and I hope members are paying attention—the "duties of the chair of the board relating to the chair's conduct of meetings of the board, the chair's relations with the public and the director of education and other matters regarding the chair's leadership role, and the director of education"—these are the professional educators—"is also given new duties regarding his or her supervisory role.

The bill lists duties of the members of the board, including duties regarding their attendance and participation in meetings of the board" and their relationship "with parents, students and supporters of the board and their compliance with the board's code of conduct."

It's going to be sort of like a classroom itself. I guess they're going to take attendance. Maybe they should do that here. In fact, I do it. I'm the whip today, so I take attendance, basically.

"A new process is set out in the bill for dealing with alleged breaches of the code of conduct by members of the board. Various other minor or consequential changes are made regarding the powers and duties of the minister"—they're not quite consequential; I'll get into that—"and of other persons involved in the administration of the education system."

"Command and control" would have been a good name for this bill, because what it does—it's incredible, really. The education Premier has taken over complete control. Now that they haven't got enough money to solve everything by spending money wildly and unaccountably, as they have with eHealth and the OLG—the list goes on; it's sort of out of control, really. But this thing raps the trustees' rights severely on the knuckles. It just takes the ruler with the metal edge down and cracks them on the knuckles. The trustees have been defanged, dethroned and demeaned.

I'm surprised that they aren't—what's his name? Who's the trustee in Toronto that's always in the media? He'll be silenced.

Mr. Ted Arnott: Josh Matlow.

Mr. John O'Toole: Josh Matlow. Josh will be just furious with this, because he won't be able to be out doing press conferences and stirring up the juice of concerned parents and poisoning the atmosphere and various things like that.

I recall when I was elected in 1995, prior to Ms. Wynne, who is now the Minister of Education—I have every confidence that she could become David Caplan's replacement. She's a very capable person. The other one is Peter Fonseca. He is probably the best communicator. He's got that—

Interjection.

Mr. John O'Toole: It's not related directly, but this bill does address the issue of leadership. In that respect, I am very concerned, as we all are, about who is going to replace Mr. Caplan—or is there anyone else who is going to resign?

Hon. Ted McMeekin: We were hoping you'd cross the floor.

Mr. John O'Toole: Mr. McMeekin has had his brushes with, "I shall resign if they don't de-amalgamate," but we won't go there; this is really about 177 and school governance.

The number of members of district school boards—this is important: "The number of members of a district school board, not including members appointed under subsection 188(5), shall be the number of members determined for the board for the purposes of the regular election in 2006." How is the number of trustees determined? Basically, there is a formula for determining it based on assessment, because education used to be primarily—in Toronto for certain—funded from the tax base. There was no provincial money for the Toronto school boards. I hope members know that.

I was a school trustee for a couple of terms, years ago when my five children were in the school system. My wife was a teacher, and one daughter—I have the greatest respect for public education. Everyone here in this House does, I think. Many of the members here are, including Ms. Witmer—I think Mr. Bradley, the Minister of Transportation may have been an educator as well. There's a lot of education leaders, shall we say, in this precinct. Because you say things that are of a critical observation doesn't mean that we're opposed in any way.

I think this bill, as I said here, does attempt to take all control. Here is the

section I was looking for,

section 4:

"Section 11 of the act is amended by adding the following subsection:

"Regulations: responsibilities of boards, etc."

I think Mr. Phillips probably chairs a little committee, a sort of secret committee that sets up these regulations. They consult with the educators; usually the OSSTF is the main consulting body. The unions run the place, technically, and that is kind of another issue. They've joined hands with the Working Families Coalition, and if the government doesn't give them what they want, they walk the picket line, basically, and the children are threatened.

Here it goes: "

(2) The Lieutenant Governor in Council may make regulations governing the roles, responsibilities, powers and duties of boards, directors of education and board members, including chairs of boards."

That little section, just kind of hidden at the top of page 2, tells it all. Let's go over it again. This is under

section 4,

section 11 of that act, adding the section: "The Lieutenant Governor in Council"—now, who's this? That's cabinet; the cabinet shall. The Lieutenant Governor's only role in this is basically to sign them, in the role of the crown itself, a representative of the crown, really—"may make regulations governing the roles, responsibilities, powers and duties of boards, directors of education and board members including chairs of the boards"—who they can talk to, what they can say, what they can do.

They actually do all of the funding now; it's a complete formula. They said they were going to modify the education formula. They haven't. There's still not enough money for special education, there's not enough money for small and rural schools, and there's not enough money for school busing. Mr. Leal from Peterborough knows that.

There's not enough money. Why? Because they've spent $1 billion on eHealth. And is it any better? No, it isn't.

In this bill this morning that we are debating, there are some good things. We are all in support of ministerial responsibility, and in this case, Kathleen Wynne has scored a home run. She's got complete control—complete control. She signs every cheque that pays every trustee.

Look: Education funding is a huge issue. Understand that. Toronto, Ottawa, Hamilton, London—the larger boards are still upset because of the way it's funded. The funding was changed by the government when we were in government. I was never a member of government; I was on the government side of the House, but I was never in cabinet. I've always wondered about that, but anyway—I will probably continue to wonder.

But the issue here really is that they haven't changed it. They haven't changed the education funding model. No, they complained and whined and ground their teeth, but they didn't change it. It's actually a good formula. It needs to be monitored and it needs to be controlled by the minister to make sure that the money, as much as possible, the greatest amount of it should go directly to student support, and I think probably it is. But let's face it: At the beginning and the end of the whole process, this is all about having good, excellent teachers.

They are the cornerstone of a strong knowledge-based economy, technically. Whether it's at the elementary, secondary or post-secondary level, they should be commended and supported.

Now, is there enough money all the time? No, there isn't enough money. When the economy goes over the cliff like it is now—330,000 families without a paycheque coming in—there are going to be problems. There are going to be bumps in the road. Bob Rae would still be in government if he had had enough money. You know, he would have just written more cheques, had more debt; taken on another mortgage. But he ran out of money and then the cost of borrowing went up, so he had to implement the social contract, which is why they're out of office. I think we're on the verge of the Dalton McGuinty version of the social contract, and it's tragic.

Now the hospitals are whining continuously—they have every right to whine, because they've cut off the money for recruiting doctors and now they're tampering with the pharmacists, under regulations; it's not even in public. Call your pharmacist and see if they're happy, okay? They're tampering with things that the public aren't quite aware of, and now in education, I think they've jammed the brakes on here, too. There's not enough money for children with special needs.

When there's waste by the trustees, this is where Kathleen Wynne, the Minister of Education, is right: She should bring them back to having some purpose and accountability. That's what this bill does.

So generally, we do support the bill. But why do you say, on one hand, "Oh, the parents are the primary educators" and meet with them and all the glowing compliments and then talk in glowing terms about the trustees and, "What a great relationship," and then just pull all their teeth out with this bill? They've defanged them, I'm telling you. There isn't any reason they'd even go to the meetings now. It's almost like they brought the dentist to become the chair of the board. It's tragic.

There's another

section that I found interesting, because when you read these bills—and after you've been here, some would say too long, you actually start to read the bills, and then you look at what it's actually changing. These are significant changes. Decreasing the number of members on the board: I think there are some tools in there. Maybe if you had smaller boards, you'd have more control over them and wouldn't have so many dissenting voices.

I can only speak for myself here, but when I was first elected I was elected because I was a nosy parent. I still believe that parents are the primary educators, but they have to work in partnership with the other experts, if you will, and disengage from the emotional journey that a parent is on sometimes and deal with the journey of reality and the skill sets or deficiencies their child may have, allowing the educators to apply the right tools and the right measures to achieve the best potential for every individual. That's kind of the goal of education: so every child can reach their maximum potential.

I support that. I look at our five children and my wife, being an educator. I think they're all—of course this is a very objective comment I make—my children are all successful. Well, in my view they are. But all parents should feel that way: proud of their children; I think in most cases most people are.

I think that when you look at this, we need more accountability, and I think even the members of the opposition agree with that. When I talk about accountability, I always like to look at things like the auditor's report. The one we're looking at today is a special report: Ontario's Electronic Health Records Initiative. Now, this is accountability. Let's call in the Auditor General of Ontario and let's call in André Marin, the Ombudsman. Boy oh boy, he sure likes to take the wraps off things. Some would say he strips them off. But he certainly does provide a role of an independent officer of the Legislature, and he's quite diligent in his duties.

But the auditor here, Mr. McCarter—and all parties recognize his professional integrity and independence. Now, I haven't actually read the report, except what has been in the paper, which was leaked. It was probably leaked because probably when the Premier saw it he ran out of the office and dropped some of the papers or something because he was just terrified. The Toronto Star said they spent $1 billion and have improved very little. So that's problematic, but I'm interested. This morning we'll probably hear about it in question period. For those who are just tuning in, question period will all be about this report here, the special report from the auditor. And I think Jim McCarter—

Hon. James J. Bradley: No questions for me?

Mr. John O'Toole: Well, no. I'm thinking I may have questions for the Minister of Transportation, because I am concerned about GO Transit getting to Bowmanville as soon as possible. You know that. That report on the 407 was just filed with you. The minister, I know, will read them. In fact, I'll have to speak to him directly on that sometime later today.

But on this bill, the Ontario Public School Boards' Association clarifies the position on Bill 177. I think this is important—in the very little time I've been given this morning.

Could I get unanimous consent to have an hour? I seek unanimous consent, Mr. Speaker, to have one hour.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bruce Crozier): The member is seeking unanimous consent to speak for an hour. Agreed? I heard a no.

Mr. John O'Toole: Respectfully, Mr. Speaker, I felt I might have slipped one by because some were nodding off a bit.

Anyway, The Ontario Public School Boards' Association has been monitoring the reaction to Bill 177,

An Act to amend the Education Act with respect to student achievement, school board governance and certain other matters, which is currently at the second reading stage in the Ontario Legislature. During the debates a number of views have incorrectly been attributed to the association. This is important to put on the record here: "This communication will clarify OPSBA's position and firmly state our united opposition to proposed changes."

The Ontario Public School Boards' Association's opposition is right here. They're the duly arm's-length, quasi-elected officials; they're against it.

"OPSBA takes issue with:

"—assignment of accountability to boards for student achievement and student well-being without reference to the role of the Ministry of Education, other levels of government and relevant conditions that are outside the control of school boards;

"—the potential, through regulations flowing from Bill 177, for school boards to be taken over and placed under supervision for reasons other than failure to bring in a balanced budget—a significant departure from current provisions."

This is the heavy hand of the minister, and I think it's coming directly from the Premier. I see Premier McGuinty's hands all over this.

When you start to worry, you kind of become defensive. With the shrinking economy and the collapsing confidence in cabinet, I think there's this tightening up, a closing of the ranks. I see this. You can see it, you can feel it, that they're running and trying to hide. You can run but you can't hide.

All the bills now are being time-allocated, which is another symptom of an underlying disease, the crumbling of the structure of a once-strong government. I think the undoing is before us now; it's time allocation.

This bill: The Ontario Public School Boards' Association is opposed to it.

I'm concerned. Now we have resignation of cabinet. We have the auditor's special report. The whole thing is sort of like a ball of yarn coming unravelled, and the cats are now chasing that around the kitchen. They're getting even tangled up in their own wool.

I remain complimentary, but hesitant to support this bill. We need the controls, but I think they are going about it in a very heavy-handed, mean-spirited way. He who was considered the education Premier has now taken the gloves off—that is what this is about—taken complete control. I think if they made Kathleen Wynne the Minister of Education this problem might be solved—could be, or it could be Ms. Dombrowsky, the Minister of Agriculture. Because of the relationship with agriculture and health, it makes sense to me.

We'll wait till later today to see the cabinet shuffle. I hope they maintain the Minister of Transportation in his current duties.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bruce Crozier): Questions and comments?

M me France Gélinas: Well, it was a pleasure to listen to the comments from the member from Durham this morning. Although some of it was on topic, I found the most interesting parts were the parts that were off topic, which doesn't say too much for what we are here to do this morning.

We are here to talk about Bill 177, which is an important bill dealing with board governance. At the core of the issue is the fact that school trustees are elected officials, Just like we are, members of provincial Parliament, they are elected officials. They are there to represent the parents and the children within their own constituencies at the school board. This bill tilts the power very much toward the Minister of Education, which, to me, is problematic.

The member from Durham certainly found some good things about the bill, but he also has shared the same concern that we do: That is the balance of power between two elected officials. What needs to be resolved is what happens if, in doing their duty of representing the parents and the kids that go to school in their own constituency, they come to be at odds with the Minister of Education. With this bill, the Minister of Education would have the big stick. Hers—because right now it's a woman—would be the only word that would count, because she could squash what everybody else had to say.

This imbalance of power is something that brings us a lot of worries and is something that the member from Durham expressed well.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bruce Crozier): Questions and comments? The member for Durham, you have two minutes to respond.

Mr. John O'Toole: I want to thank the member from Nickel Belt, and I think she was fair in her criticism of me as well as the bill. Both of those were fair and appropriate.

I should mention a couple more things. I have regard for the difficulties that are challenging the current government. The Minister of Municipal Affairs, Mr. Watson, spent the last two days in front of the estimates committee being scrutinized and questioned, and I think he has been trying his best to show a strong face and resilience. The Minister of the Environment is involved in a lot of things going on in my riding. I sat with him the other day and I'm concerned. I have concerns about the energy-from-waste facility in my riding, and I know he's paying attention to that.

I have every confidence that the individual ministers are trying their best. But they sometimes don't have the resources to do the job and bring it on time and on budget.

This is what this bill is about. If you look at 177 and the comments that have been made throughout, there are elected trustees duly elected to do the job. Some of them need to be reined in a bit about talking to the press and stirring up trouble, but for the most part they're concerned parents or citizens who have been duly elected. What they need are the tools to do the job, but now that the tight economy has arrived—330,000 families without an income—there aren't quite enough dollars to solve the health problems, the education problems.

Now the big one is full-time daycare—a huge problem in my area. The full-time daycare, 8 to 5, doesn't help agricultural communities or small-town communities. How are you going to get the little tots to the daycare at the school? They don't work weekends; lots of people today work in retail. Then the teachers say they want all full-time teachers, not early childhood educators, to do it. Charles Pascal had it correct. Read his report.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bruce Crozier): Thank you. Further debate? Does any other member wish to speak?

Ms. Wynne has moved second reading of Bill 177. Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry?

All those in favour, say "aye."

All those opposed, say "nay."

In my opinion, the ayes have it. Carried.

Second reading agreed to.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bruce Crozier): Shall the bill be ordered for third reading?

Hon. James J. Bradley: I would ask that the bill be referred to the Standing Committee on Social Policy.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bruce Crozier): So ordered. Orders of the day?

Hon. James J. Bradley: I move for a recess until question period.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bruce Crozier): There's a motion to recess until question period?

Interjections.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bruce Crozier): I think the minister actually has said there will be recess until question period.

This House is in recess until 10:30 of the clock.

The House recessed from 0929 to 1030.

SPECIAL REPORT, AUDITOR GENERAL

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): I beg to inform the House that today I have laid upon the table a special report from the Auditor General of Ontario on eHealth's electronic health records initiative.

INTRODUCTION OF VISITORS

Mrs. Julia Munro: Today in the gallery are representatives from the Holland Marsh Growers' Association, in my riding. I would ask all members to help me welcome them and show their appreciation for the delicious breakfast members of this House were able to enjoy this morning.

Hon. Jim Watson: I'm pleased to recognize, in the gallery, Oliver Nurock, who is visiting us from South Africa. Welcome.

Ms. Cheri DiNovo: I'm delighted to welcome the family of Helen Lee, our wonderful page from Parkdale—High Park. Her dad, Dave Lee, and her uncle, Dan Lee, are in the public gallery. Also, constituents Ted and John Patterson are here for the third time. I'd like to welcome them.

Mr. John O'Toole: I would like to introduce the parents and grandparents of page Ava Doner: her mother, Anita Doner; her dad, Dan Doner; her grandmother, Jean Doner; her grandfather, Howard Doner; friend Olivia Pigden; and other gallery members who are visiting with us today. Welcome, and enjoy the proceedings.

Mr. Bruce Crozier: I'm delighted today to introduce a former staff person of mine, Robyn Gray, in the member's east gallery. She went on to greater rewards and was on ministerial staff. She has now left us because she's preparing to move to Australia with her husband, but we welcome her back this morning for a visit. And I'm buying her lunch as well.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Seated in the Speaker's gallery, from the riding of Elgin—Middlesex—London, I'd like to welcome Steve Buchanan; Steve's wife, Birgitta Buchanan; their son, Angus Buchanan; and Thomas Drouet, an exchange student from France who is saying with the Buchanans. Welcome to Queen's Park.

Mr. Ted Arnott: On a point of order, Mr. Speaker: At 9 o'clock this morning, as the House began its morning sitting, the Minister of Energy and Infrastructure and the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing both rose in this House to confess that they made inaccurate and false statements in question period yesterday. Given the fact that few members—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): I'd just ask the honourable member to withdraw the comment he just made, please.

Interjections.

Mr. Ted Arnott: I said that the statements were false and inaccurate. I withdraw.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): I thank the honourable member for his point of order. As he knows, members are at liberty at any time to rise and correct their own record.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you to the member from Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke.

ORAL QUESTIONS

PREMIER'S RECORD

Mr. Tim Hudak: A question to the Premier: Leaders set the example and the tone for those who follow. You appointed Sarah Kramer at eHealth without a competition, you personally ignored warnings that Kramer lacked experience and you made the choice to listen to Liberal insiders who benefited from sweetheart deals. Weak leaders blame others for their own choices and try to change the channel. Premier, you like to throw bureaucrats and scapegoats under the bus, but weren't they simply following your lead?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: I want to begin by thanking the Auditor General and his team for the report that they released today. As always, they are thorough, helpful and objective. We had specifically asked the auditor to accelerate the timetable of his work. He kindly obliged, and I'm grateful for that effort on his part.

I want to say unequivocally that we welcome the auditor's report, we accept his findings and we commit to adopting every single one of his recommendations.

As you will know, earlier today David Caplan tendered his resignation as Minister of Health. With regret, I have accepted that resignation. I commend David for the work he has done and I look forward to the good work that's going to be done by his successor, Minister Deb Matthews.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Mr. Tim Hudak: Premier, not only do weak leaders blame others for their choices, they also look the other way. This is not simply a problem of sole-source contracts; this is a problem of bid-rigging and ministers on Management Board picking Liberal friends as winners while Ontario families lose. Premier, this is a problem of leadership, and sometimes a leader needs to ask those hard and uncomfortable questions of his ministers and his staff. Why wasn't Premier McGuinty asking the hard questions while untendered contracts were being handed out right under his nose, by his own ministers, to Liberal friends?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: I'm unclear as to why the honourable member persists in referencing friends of the government and pursues his partisan attacks. We now have the benefit of the Auditor's report. The Auditor makes it very clear. He specifically says that "we were aware of the allegations that 'party politics' may have entered into the awarding of contracts and that those awarding the contracts may have obtained a personal benefit from the firms getting the work—but we saw no evidence of this during our work."

I accept the report in its entirety and I would ask the honourable member to do the same.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Final supplementary.

Mr. Tim Hudak: Premier, the Auditor General's report paints a very ugly picture of what goes on behind closed doors in the McGuinty government. For five months, Premier, you stood in this place, you dodged, you deflected, you stonewalled, you delayed freedom-of-information requests, and now we know why. The rot in the McGuinty government goes deeper than just one agency and just one minister. This sure is a different Dalton McGuinty than people elected six years ago. Premier, what are you going to do about your cabinet ministers who approved untendered sweetheart deals at your Management Board of Cabinet?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: We thought that the appropriate thing to do in the circumstances was to allow the auditor to complete his work so that we could get an objective determination of exactly what went on. As I said, it was very helpful in disproving the allegations put forward by the honourable member that somehow there were partisan, there were party politics involved in the selection of contracts. We know now for sure that that is not true. But we didn't just wait. You will know that we made a number of rule changes.

We have ended practices that were in place for decades under governments of all political stripes. We are now requiring that there be a competitive process for contracts with consultants. We are requiring that there be mandatory online training for people who work for the OPS and in our agencies. We are also shortly going to be requiring the posting of expenses for cabinet ministers and senior officials in our agencies and within the OPS. We have taken steps.

MINISTER'S RECORD

Mr. Tim Hudak: A question for the Minister of Energy and Infrastructure in his capacity on the Management Board of Cabinet: Last week you had a convenient case of amnesia when you were asked if you were at the infamous Management Board meeting that approved a $30-million untendered contract to IBM. Minister, you said, "I don't know whether I was at" the "treasury board meeting."

Given the revelation in today's Auditor General's report and a week to look into it, the minister has had a chance to refresh his memory. Minister, I'll ask you very directly: Were you at meetings and did you participate in the untendered-contract binge that benefited Liberal insiders?

Hon. George Smitherman: First and foremost is to say that the matter at hand is not a matter that is covered by the Auditor General's report. The honourable member in this House has repeatedly referred to the company in question as a friendly firm, and I just want to remind everybody that he's talking about the internationally renowned IBM.

I have studied my calendar for that day and I can confirm I was not in attendance at the meeting in question.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Mr. Tim Hudak: Again to the Minister of Energy and Infrastructure: We all know you have a very cozy relationship with the Liberal-friendly Courtyard Group. Your former chief of staff, Karli Farrow, is at Courtyard, and she was handed a few untendered deals herself. The Auditor General's report also makes it clear that the practice of handing out untendered contracts to Liberal friends actually started under your watch as Minister of Health—and this goes to your ability to manage the Ministry of Energy and the Ministry of Infrastructure.

Minister, be very frank: Didn't David Caplan get caught carrying a lot of your dirty laundry? Will the minister take accountability for his own actions and step down from his portfolios in cabinet?

Hon. George Smitherman: I want to say to my honourable friend that, over the course of four and three quarter years, I was privileged to be the Minister of Health in the province of Ontario. I stand alongside my Premier in recognizing that the responsibility on all of us who are in the privileged roles that we have is to abide by the best possible advice that is available, and that includes that which is on offer from the auditor's report. I haven't any doubt whatsoever that there are lessons that I can learn and that we can all learn because of the investigation that has occurred.

In the time that I spent there, I was dedicated to advancing the construction of the infrastructure that could support an electronic health record, and some progress was made in that regard. But first and foremost, Smart Systems for Health was a cesspool that was created on the watch of that party, that was laden with consultants. Through a dedicated effort, we sought to transform it to make sure it was a more effective delivery agent, building the—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you. Final supplementary.

Mr. Tim Hudak: Quite frankly, if there's anything the minister was in favour of advancing, it was career advancement and the bank accounts for his Liberal friends at these Liberal-friendly consultancies.

Minister, your fingerprints are all over this culture of entitlement that saw the handing out of untendered contracts to Liberal friends. You were the Minister of Health when this culture grew exponentially. The minister is a member of the Management Board that green-lighted this untendered-contract spending spree, and your closest advisers are now big winners in this spending bonanza. Minister, shouldn't there have been two resignations this morning?

Hon. George Smitherman: First the honourable member stands in his first question and says, "I want to ask you a direct question. Were you at the meeting?" I said no, but by his third supplementary, he's still relying on the same worn-out, partisan rhetoric that he has been relying on for some time.

How is it that the honourable member—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Stop the clock.

Minister?

Hon. George Smitherman: As I previously said, I wasn't there for the meeting in question, but I think it's very important for the honourable member to recognize that when he asks a question that talks about insiders and the like, we all know that he's part and parcel of these sorts of relationships that go back to the time of a previous government, when the high-paid consultants were actually people that had just previously served. And they didn't go out to private sector corporations; they went to public entities. That was the practice of the party that that member comes from. It has not been the practice of our government—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you. New question.

PREMIER'S RECORD

Ms. Andrea Horwath: My question is to the Premier. For months, Ontarians have slowly learned about the appalling misuse of precious health care dollars, first at eHealth Ontario and then at the Ministry of Health itself, and for months the Premier expressed complete faith in his Minister of Health. My question is this: Why did the Premier wait until last night to accept, finally, that minister's resignation? What's changed?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: As I said a few moments ago, I felt it was appropriate in the circumstances to wait for the work to be completed by the Auditor General. We now all have the benefit of work that is thorough, objective and helpful. On the basis of that report, Minister Caplan tendered his resignation and I accepted that, but I again say to my honourable colleague: We did not wait for the report to take action.

We have ended practices that have been in place for decades, practices often adopted by governments of all political stripes, including Conservative governments and an NDP government. We said that is no longer acceptable. In particular, we have said that if you want to receive a contract as a consultant you must now be part of a competitive process. You cannot get that benefit just through a sole-source manner. We think that's an important step forward for Ontarians.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Ms. Andrea Horwath: For months and months we've seen scandal after scandal unfolding. Money that could have been invested in hospitals or in long-term-care beds was instead diverted into the pockets of well-connected insiders. Is this Premier seriously claiming that he didn't know the facts at all until today? And if he knew the facts, why did he keep defending that minister?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: This honourable colleague as well persists in a line of attack which has now been discredited by the Auditor General. I think that if we're going to accept the auditor's report, we have the responsibility to accept it in its entirety.

Again, I want to repeat a passage from the report. It says: "[W]e were aware of the allegations that 'party politics' may have entered into the awarding of contracts and that those awarding the contracts may have obtained a personal benefit from the firms getting the work—but we saw no evidence of this during our work."

And then a moment ago, the auditor, in his scrum, added the following: "However, we found no evidence to suggest that party politics were at play. As well, we saw no evidence to indicate that those who awarded the contracts obtained a personal benefit from the firms getting the work." I think he's been pretty clear, and I think we have the responsibility, all of us, to accept that.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Final supplementary.

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Well, not only does this Premier turn a blind eye to the lack of work that his minister is doing; he turns a deaf ear to the question. I didn't say anything about who these particular insiders were connected to in any partisan way.

But what we do know is that the people of Ontario put their trust in the Premier to protect their precious health dollars, and here's what they see instead: local hospitals closing while millions are handed out to well-connected insiders; wait times for long-term care doubling while contracts worth millions and millions are handed out without any tendering process; and a government that has grown so arrogant that they've completely forgotten the people who they were elected to represent.

My question is this: Why should anyone believe the Premier's promises of change today when his fingerprints are all over this mess?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: I accept the auditor's finding at the highest level, that we need to do more to bring better oversight to the management of dollars going through the Ministry of Health and, by extension, to its agencies. But I do not accept my honourable colleague's assessment that somehow we have not been moving forward together in health care during the course of the past six years. We're funding 1.69 million new procedures, and as a result we are reducing wait times in a dramatic fashion. Some 907,000 more Ontarians have access to family care.

There are 14 new MRI machines and double the number of MRI hours of operation. We have close to 1,800 more doctors practising in the province of Ontario. We have, so far, 150 more family health teams now caring for 1.9 million Ontarians. We've hired more than 10,000 new nurses. We are building new hospitals in the province of Ontario. We have done much in health care.

ELECTRONIC HEALTH INFORMATION

Ms. Andrea Horwath: My next question is also to the Premier. The Auditor General's report says that one billion precious health care dollars have been virtually flushed down the toilet, and nearly all of it was under the close watch of this Premier. If $1 billion wasn't going to bring electronic health records to Ontario, it could have been used elsewhere. One billion dollars would pay for 11,250 full-time nurses, 34 million home care visits or 24,000 long-term-care beds. How could this Premier allow this to happen?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: It is true that under two governments now there has been significant investment made in establishing our electronic health record system. But I would draw my honourable colleague's attention again to the auditor's report, where he specifically says, "The value of this investment, at least to date, has not been realized," and that is true. Much has been done, but we are not there yet.

We have in place now a strategic plan which is designed to ensure that we get to where we all want to go. I know my honourable colleague is not suggesting that we stop moving ahead with this work. She is not suggesting that there is not a broad consensus in the Western world that it's important to have, as a part of the foundation in your health care system, an electronic health record system.

There has been considerable investment made. There has been a lack of oversight. We accept that, we recognize that, and we'll take steps to ensure that it doesn't happen again, But we will continue to move forward with the electronic health record system in Ontario.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Ms. Andrea Horwath: The Auditor General shows, in excruciating detail, the degree to which the McGuinty Liberals put insider consultants ahead of protecting precious health care dollars. The number of consulting contracts ballooned from one to 328, with a 4,000% increase in contract value. Over 40% of staff at eHealth were consultants, and they made up one quarter of senior management positions. High-priced consultants were paid hundreds of dollars an hour to write thank-you notes and edit voicemail greetings. The auditor ties this right back to the Premier's office. How could he and his two ministers have missed all of this?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: One of the recommendations of the auditor that I am most eager to embrace is that we do what we can to upgrade the skill levels of those folks working inside the Ministry of Health, inside the Ontario public service, so that we can have a lesser reliance on consultants.

I am proud to report that, so far, we have reduced our use of consultants government-wide by 34% since 2002-03. When it comes to those folks who are involved in putting in place our electronic health record system, we have reduced our use of consultants by over 40% since the time of the previous government. There continues to be a number of consultants—I would argue, too many—involved in this process. We will work to further reduce those numbers, in keeping with the recommendation of the Auditor General.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Final supplementary.

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Page 36: a 4,000% increase in consulting fees. That's what the auditor's report shows, along with millions in untendered contracts; $700,000 in consultant salaries, on top of which they got all kinds of generous expense accounts; tampering with the bidding process; six years, one billion precious health care dollars out the door in wink-wink, nudge-nudge relationships with insiders.

The Premier is either willingly negligent, has been wilfully negligent on this file, or he is incredibly incompetent. Which is it?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: Again, I think it's really important that we pay some attention to what the auditor had to say, and I want to be specific about our acceptance of responsibility. The auditor, if I might read between the lines, is basically saying that when it comes to the Ministry of Health, it doesn't matter that it's a huge ministry; it doesn't matter that there are 54 separate departments there, employing over 4,000 people; it doesn't matter that they also engage the work of consultants through agencies.

Ultimately, the buck stops with government. I accept that. We assume that responsibility. That is why Minister Caplan, earlier today, tendered his resignation. That's why we've taken steps to this point in time, and we will take more in keeping with the recommendations of the auditor to ensure that we bring greater oversight to all those activities taking place in the far reaches of the—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you. New question.

MINISTER'S RECORD

Mr. Norm Miller: My question is for the Minister of Finance and Chair of the McGuinty Management Board of Cabinet. In the wake of today's damning Auditor General's report, were you in attendance at the Management Board meeting that approved spending taxpayer dollars on untendered contracts for your friends?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: I was in attendance at the August 28 meeting.

You'll note, with respect to the IBM contract, that that's not in the auditor's report. The auditor came forward with an analysis that looked at processes, both at the Ministry of Health—with respect to the administration of contracts going forward. In addition to the steps that our government has taken already with respect to this, we welcome the auditor's recommendations and we will be moving on all of them.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Mr. Norm Miller: Well, to the minister, I didn't mention the auditor's report.

Again, to the Minister of Finance, given that you and your cabinet colleagues are implicated in the untendered contract binge at eHealth, why should Ontarians believe anything you say about putting an end to untendered contracts today?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: I will remind the member opposite that the practices in place both in the ministry and throughout government were in place under all previous governments.

We have taken steps. We are accepting responsibility to deal with the situations. We are going to move on the auditor's recommendations, and we will continue every day to bring the best oversight we can to these very important issues which mean a lot to Ontarians, and continue to make the investments in health care and education that are so important to the future health and vitality of our provincial economy.

SOINS DE SANTÉ /

HEALTH CARE

M me France Gélinas: Ma question est pour le premier ministre. Aujourd'hui, le vérificateur général affirme que les libéraux ont permis de jeter par la fenêtre des centaines de millions de dollars. Son rapport est cinglant. Il parle de mauvaise gestion, de mauvaise supervision. Pendant ce temps-là, pendant que les dépenses injustifiées se produisaient, des salles d'urgence fermaient leurs portes, des hôpitaux fermaient des unités et les soins de santé mentale diminuaient, on mettait à pied 1 200 infirmières, le gouvernement retirait la physio, l'optométrie, la chiropractie et on reportait l'ouverture de nouveaux centres de santé communautaires.

J'aimerais savoir : que faisait le premier ministre pendant ce temps-là? Est-ce qu'il s'est fermé les yeux ou est-ce qu'il jouait l'autruche?

L'hon. Dalton McGuinty: Je remercie ma collègue pour cette question. Ça ne vous surprendra pas que je suis en désaccord avec cette ligne de questions.

Just as one example of the things that we've been able to do through health care, we've opened Canada's first nurse-practitioner-led clinic in Sudbury. Beyond that, we've now committed to opening more in different parts of the province because that experience has been so successful.

We accept responsibility for bringing greater oversight to the affairs of the ministry when it comes to the management of public dollars, but we also accept responsibility for making real progress in delivering better-quality health care in every Ontario community.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

M me France Gélinas: Ce n'est tout à fait pas la question que lui ai posée. On parle de mauvaise gestion, on parle de manque de supervision, on parle du rapport du vérificateur. Peut-être qu'en anglais ça va aller un peu mieux.

It seems that this government's priorities are out of order. They under-resource the programs like long-term care, like home care, like primary care. They cut $20 million from Ontario's smoke-free strategy. They allow money to be handed to well-connected consultants, while Ontarians still don't have electronic health records. We have good examples right here in Ontario, like the Group Health Centre in Sault Ste. Marie or Sick Kids in Toronto. Why is it that this government's best and brightest can't launch a system with $1 billion at its disposal? Why should we believe that next time will be the right time?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: We have, in fact, increased funding in health care by over a third; it may even be approaching 40%. That represents a significant new investment, and we've translated that into significant improvements in the quality of health care available for Ontario families.

Whether you're talking about wait times coming down; whether you're talking about investment in new diagnostics, new kinds of treatments and new drugs and medications; whether you're talking about investments in more nurses and doctors so that more Ontarians have access to better family health care; whether you're talking about opening up new frontiers like nurse-practitioner-led clinics; or whether you're talking about giving more authority to professionals, like our pharmacists and nurses, so they can take on more responsibility to improve quality of care for families, we've done a lot, and we'll continue to do more.

TAXATION

Ms. Leeanna Pendergast: My question this morning is for the Minister of Revenue. I have a question on behalf of my constituents in my riding of Kitchener—Conestoga who work in the scientific, the research and development and the computer services and software sectors. As an MPP in Canada's technology triangle, I know that this sector employs thousands of people. For example, there are Communitech, Open Text and RIM. RIM alone in Waterloo region employs 4,500 people; worldwide, RIM employs 14,000 people. The University of Waterloo provides employment to over 3,000 people in this sector.

The effect the HST will have on these industries continues to be a concern. These sectors and companies create good jobs, and they allow people to provide for their families in Ontario. Minister, what effect is the HST going to have on these vitally important sectors?

Hon. John Wilkinson: I thank my colleague for the question. In the 21st century, the jobs of the future are those jobs that are created by adding value. Under our tax reform, the most comprehensive tax reform in some 40 years, we are encouraging exactly those businesses that add value through innovation.

For example, estimates show that Ontario's professional, scientific and technical services sector will save roughly $455 million each and every year as a result of our tax reform, some $380 million through the input tax credits that will now be part of the harmonized sales tax, another $115 million a year through our corporate tax savings and another $35 million through our capital tax inputs by eliminating the capital tax.

I say to my friend, who is very proud of being from Canada's technology triangle, that these are exactly the types of jobs in the 21st century that we need to have for our children and our grandchildren, and we will reform our tax system—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you. Supplementary?

Ms. Leeanna Pendergast: I acknowledge that there is a great deal of support for this in the business sector and that it will create jobs in Ontario. On September 14, Telus said the HST will mean more investment in the province of Ontario. Bell Canada said the HST will mean accelerating investment in the province. GE Canada says the HST will generate savings and efficiencies in both business and government.

Minister, simply: Will the HST make Ontario more competitive and add more jobs?

Hon. John Wilkinson: It will indeed make Ontario more competitive and allow us to compete on the world stage. On this side of the House, we are for one sales tax. On the other side of the House, they are for two sales taxes. On this side of the House, we believe that money, through the HST, should go to income tax cuts for people and for businesses to help them be more competitive. On the other side of the House, they are opposed to $15 billion worth of income tax relief for the good people of Ontario.

On this side of the House, we believe that we have to modernize our tax system and get it into the 21st century where we compete today. On the other side of the House, they're still for the status quo. The twins of the status quo over there think that we should do nothing.

Our constituents know that the world has changed, and we're doing something about it. We refuse to freeze; we refuse to do nothing. There is something we can do, something we've been called upon to do, and now is exactly the right time to modernize our tax system to make sure that we're generating the jobs that we need to pay for the—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you. New question?

MINISTER'S RECORD

Mr. Robert W. Runciman: My question is to the Minister of Tourism, another member of Management Board of Cabinet. Were you one of the Management Board members who took

part in the untendered-contract spending spree?

Hon. Monique M. Smith: I thank the member for his question. I'm trying to confirm whether or not I was there. My attendance at Management Board is about 90%, so I would say I was most likely there. I'm just trying to confirm that right now.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Mr. Robert W. Runciman: She may be embarrassed by the fact that she's admitting her attendance there.

Knowing what she knows now, if Minister Smith could go back in time, if we could all go back in time to that infamous Management Board meeting, why didn't the minister try to block untendered contracts from going through? Why didn't she stand up, show some courage and tell her colleagues that what they were doing was wrong?

Hon. Monique M. Smith: I'm actually quite proud of my attendance record. I think it's important to participate in all committees that we are assigned to.

I am happy to go back in time with my colleague and look at 1999 to 2003, when $1.5-million sole-source contracts with IBM were awarded by his government. In the spring of 2000, then-Health Minister Witmer awarded a $100,000 sole-source contract to Glen Wright. From the 2002 auditor's report, we know that IT sole-source contracts worth $12.7 million were awarded—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Stop the clock. The member from Sarnia—Lambton will withdraw the comment he just made.

Mr. Robert Bailey: I withdraw.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): If it quieted down on all sides of the House, I would love to continue, honourable member.

New question.

ELECTRONIC HEALTH INFORMATION

M me France Gélinas: Ma question est encore une fois pour le premier ministre. I have listened intently this morning to everything that was said about eHealth. One billion dollars have been wasted and the electronic health record system is nowhere to be seen. Other jurisdictions do have eHealth records; Ontario does not. I would like the Premier to tell me this morning, tell me something, tell me anything that will convince me and other Ontarians that your government can deliver on this. I'm listening.

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: I don't pretend to be an expert in the matter, but I think we can have confidence in the auditor's report. I'm not sure if there's an electronic health records system up and running fully yet in any Canadian province, but we're all seized with the urgency of the matter and the sense of responsibility.

Again, I want to draw my colleague's attention to a statement made by the auditor today when he said, "The value of this investment, at least to date, has not been realized," and he makes a specific recommendation, as I recall, about a strategic plan and moving ahead with that.

We will now rededicate ourselves to not only upskilling people within the public service, to making sure that when we do use consultants, we do so in a way that is entirely appropriate, proper and in keeping with the expectations of Ontarians, but we are absolutely committed and determined to put in place an electronic health record system that will ultimately improve the quality of care that's available for all Ontario families.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

M me France Gélinas: To put in place new rules—I trust the auditor just as much as everybody else. He goes on at length into showing that there were adequate rules, but we spent more time trying to get around them. Your own Ministry of Health went around their own rules by splitting contracts so they wouldn't meet the target. If all we're doing is changing rules, I have no confidence that we'll ever have an electronic health record.

The Premier has to realize the truth: The government has bungled this file. One billion dollars are gone. A lot of people, a lot of them connected to his government, are rich; the people of Ontario are $1 billion poorer for it and we have not much to show for it.

The Auditor General says in his report, "Ineffective oversight and broken rules go together like a horse and carriage." My question is simple: Why should we have any confidence that this government will ever be able to deliver an electronic—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you. Premier?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: I'm not sure it's reasonable for me to expect that I will inspire the confidence, ever, of my colleague opposite, and I'm not sure it's her responsibility to show her confidence for me. But I can say this: We have invested heavily in building an infrastructure. It is there; it is in place.

One of the very legitimate criticisms offered by the Auditor General is that we have yet to put in place the data to ensure that doctors can access, through that new system which is now built—we have yet to put in place the adequate data that will make this system helpful to doctors in the practice of medicine. That is what it ultimately comes down to. We have built the highway infrastructure, so to speak, but we have put an inadequate number of vehicles on the highway, to use the auditor's metaphor, and there's more work to be done.

GOVERNMENT SERVICES

Mr. Lou Rinaldi: My question is to the Minister of Government Services. Minister, the people of Ontario have increasingly high expectations of services they receive from the government. In many cases we expect them to be as good as, or better than, those of the private sector. We want convenient, accessible service delivered by staff who know what they're doing and who go the extra mile. We want results without red tape.

People in rural communities across Ontario want access to expanded services and the convenience of going to one location to fill all their health card, driver's licence and vehicle licensing needs. Can the minister please tell me what the government is doing to improve these services for the people of Ontario?

Hon. Harinder S. Takhar: Let me first of all thank the member from Northumberland—Quinte West for this very important question. This is Customer Service Week, and I want to take this opportunity to thank all the employees in the government who have been involved in providing service to about 13 million people. They handle about 44 million customer interactions throughout the year.

As the member said, it is important for the government to actually be very responsive to the needs of all Ontarians and provide customer service in a better way, the better way that we can find to provide customer service. I will highlight a few of those comments in my supplementary question. We are moving ahead with this.

Let me just say this: In rural Ontario alone, we are expanding health card services from two to 163 southern Ontario centres, and we are also going to provide options so they can get the service in person or they can—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Mr. Lou Rinaldi: As the Premier has said before, it's clear that the Ontario public service is second to none. I'm pleased to hear the minister speak about the many improvements to government services. I'm also glad to hear we are providing rural communities greater access to services, because there is a significant need to do so—which I know from listening to my constituency. In my riding alone, five offices will soon be offering driver's and vehicle licence services and health card services as well. I also understand that close to 95% of all Ontarians will be within 10 kilometres of an integrated ServiceOntario centre.

Will the minister tell us what further improvements my constituents and the people of eastern Ontario can expect?

Hon. Harinder S. Takhar: It is very important for us to provide excellent personal service so that people have easy and open access to all the services that we provide. That's why we are moving ahead with the streamlining and modernizing of our customer service centres in ServiceOntario. Right now the health card is provided in 27 locations. It will be provided in 300 locations, and people can get a driver's licence, a vehicle licence and customer service under one roof as we move forward.

In the southeastern region of Ontario there will be a significant increase in health card services: from the current four locations to almost 60 locations. It will be important to have service outlets in the right locations to meet the demand of our customers and provide them the excellent service that we can provide. The outcome will be improved access and streamlined service across every region of this province, and it will be—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you. New question.

MINISTER'S RECORD

Mrs. Julia Munro: My question is for the Minister of Consumer Services. Could you confirm whether you were in attendance at the Management Board meeting that handed out a massive $30-million untendered contract to your friends at IBM?

Hon. Ted McMeekin: I want to thank the member opposite for the question. Like the Minister of Tourism, I strive to have a very good attendance record as well. Off the top of my head, I don't know that—I wasn't expecting that question—but we'll certainly check that.

I do want to reference some of the history here. I'm proud, as a member of treasury board and Management Board, that our government has moved quickly and knowingly to attempt, where possible, to reduce the number of consultants. There was a reference to the 40% reduction over the previous government. As a matter of history, I do know there's quite a bit of history on the other side when it comes to sole-sourcing. So you might want to check your attendance at various meetings as well.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Mrs. Julia Munro: Again to the minister: Your portfolio is responsible for protecting consumers from unscrupulous businesses. Do you consider Management Board's decision to shovel 30 million taxpayer dollars out the door in an untendered contract to your friends at IBM a good example for Ontario businesses to follow?

Hon. Ted McMeekin: I just want to recall what was referenced not that long ago in response to a question—that the practice of occasional sole-sourcing of contracts is a practice that was used by all three parties and governments in this House over the years. It is a rare occurrence, and it's done invariably when the contract's services that need to be sourced are only capable of being delivered by the person receiving the contract. That was certainly the case with the IBM contract. IBM, as we know, was the only provider that could possibly have our systems interoperative, and it was largely on that basis and with the best advice we could get that the contract was awarded.

ABORIGINAL CHILDREN'S SERVICES

Ms. Andrea Horwath: My question is to the Premier. While squandering $1 billion, the McGuinty government has cut $4.2 million in funding from First Nations child welfare agencies. There is a real crisis facing Ontario's native children and youth, but this government is shamefully reducing the resources that these vulnerable, young children and youth rely on. They are disadvantaged kids, and we all know they are.

Will the Premier heed the urgent letters from First Nations chiefs and community leaders and agree today to a moratorium on any cuts to their child and family services agencies?

Hon. Dalton McGuinty: To the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs.

Hon. Brad Duguid: I thank the leader for asking that question. It's one of the few times that a very important issue like this has been raised.

I can tell you that the former Minister for Children and Youth Services has been working very hard, consulting vigorously with First Nation leaders as we try to resolve what is a very significant challenge. That is ensuring that First Nation leaders and First Nation communities are working in partnership with children's aid societies in ensuring that young people are getting the best possible care they can.

We're working in partnership; we're working together. It is a complex issue. It's a sensitive issue. I appreciate the leader raising it. It's something that does require a great deal of thought and a great deal of further discussion.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Ms. Andrea Horwath: The Minister of Aboriginal Affairs doesn't realize what's happening to these vulnerable and disadvantaged children. Shame on him. While well-connected consultants are cashing in, the budget of Tikinagan Child and Family Services was cut by more than $2.1 million. Payukotayno James and Hudson Bay Family Services suffered a $1-million cut. Weechi-it-te-win Family Services lost $941,522. The Association of Native Child and Family Services Agencies of Ontario has lost its funding entirely and is on the brink of closure.

Will this Premier address the child welfare funding shortfall and ensure that resources serving some of Ontario's most vulnerable children are fully restored?

Hon. Brad Duguid: We realize the importance of working with First Nations communities and investing in those young children, the fastest-growing young population in our province. That's why we're investing $98.5 million in six aboriginal children's aid societies. That's why we're investing $22.6 million in child well-being and prevention initiatives on reserves, jointly funded with the federal government. That's why we have 300 new affordable child care spaces for First Nations through Best Start.

That's why we're investing $15.5 million annually with First Nations, Metis and Inuit through education grants for school boards. That's why we're investing $8.5 million to support Healthy Babies, Healthy Children programs for First Nation infants. That's why we're investing $4.4 million for aboriginal fetal alcohol spectrum disorder and child nutrition programs. I can go on.

We're working in partnership with First Nations communities. We recognize the importance of this issue, and we're—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you. New question.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE

Mr. Wayne Arthurs: My question is for the Minister of Economic Development and Trade. It's undeniable that these are difficult economic times, and Ontario, like many other jurisdictions around the world, is not immune to the negative effects of this global downturn.

We've heard from the minister in this House about the many ways in which the government is working within the borders of this province to create and maintain jobs for the people of Ontario, and I applaud her and her officials for their efforts. However, it seems that these days it's difficult to open a newspaper or read a business report that fails to make mention of the many virtues of the new and emerging markets currently arising around the globe.

In light of this, and the fact that the global economy is becoming increasingly connected, I ask the Minister of Economic Development and Trade: What is your ministry doing to reach out to these emerging markets in order to increase Ontario's profile on an international level and create a stronger economy here at home?

Hon. Sandra Pupatello: I'm very pleased that this member in particular is focused on the world, as Ontario needs to be, because everyone in the Legislature knows that we are an export jurisdiction. It's time to take our message out and around the world.

Over the course of the last several years, we've moved to create 10 international marketing centres. Several of these are in emerging markets. We're pleased to see the kind of take-up we have by these new markets looking at Ontario for a place to invest.

Over the course of the last three years, I've participated in over 20 missions, taking the—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Sorry, Minister. The member from Hamilton East will please come to order.

Hon. Sandra Pupatello: I know the member from Hamilton will be pleased to see that some of our outreach is, in fact, for the benefit of the area of Hamilton.

But this has culminated in over 44 investment projects, representing over 5,400 new jobs here in the province of Ontario. We're not finished, and we have more work to do.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Mr. Wayne Arthurs: Thank you, Minister. It's reassuring to know that the province is working aggressively to promote Ontario's competitive advantages abroad. By the sound of your answer, the efforts of the ministry and the government are having a tangible effect here at home in terms of job creation and capital investment.

In your answer, Minister, you made mention of a number of places that you yourself have travelled to in order to promote Ontario. One of these countries, a country that is currently being described in the media and business reports as a new economic powerhouse, is India. Ontario currently has a strong economic relationship with India. In 2008, two-way trade between Ontario and India was valued at $1.69 billion, or 37% of total Canada-India trade. Ontario's domestic exports to India were $387 million, and our imports for the same period were $1.3 billion.

For this reason, I'm wondering, could the minister please give the House some recent examples of what the ministry and this government is doing to build upon the current economic relationship—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you. Minister?

Hon. Sandra Pupatello: I hope this House will be pleased to note that we have opened an office in New Delhi and we have now staff in Mumbai—key cities in India. It's true that India represents the fourth-largest economy in the world and one that Ontario has to have a strong foothold in.

We're working diligently to meet companies, many large companies, which have the largest percentage of their business outside of India, and we want that to come to Ontario. In particular, just recently, I returned from India, where we promoted the upcoming Premier's mission, which will have a focus on clean technology. Our Premier will lead 30 companies in the clean tech space to not just convince companies in India to partner with our companies, but to look for opportunities for our products to be expanded and exported to India. India is just the start. We have great Ontario companies, and we're bringing our companies to the world.

MINISTER'S RECORD

Ms. Lisa MacLeod: My question is for the Vice-Chair of Management Board and the minister without portfolio. Today's North Bay Nugget says, "Nipissing MPP Monique Smith was among the ministers who signed off on a $30-million untendered contract for eHealth in November 2008. The contract went to IBM and was approved by Smith and six" of the Management Board colleagues.

Will you be able to confess to this House today that you were indeed at that meeting?

Hon. Gerry Phillips: Because it's a question regarding the Management Board, I refer the question to the Chair of the Management Board.

Hon. Dwight Duncan: My colleagues and I on the Management Board—and the Deputy Chair has, I think, a spotless attendance record and likely would have been at that meeting. The contract the member referenced has not been talked about in the auditor's report. I will point out, however, that the auditor does make recommendations with respect to how we administer contracts both in ministries and at the Management Board level. We welcome those recommendations, and we will be acting on them.

In instances cited in the report itself, he points out challenges and he points out that we followed the rules at Management Board. The rules themselves need clarification to ensure greater accountability and greater transparency.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Ms. Lisa MacLeod: Again to the Vice-Chair of Management Board, he might be the minister without portfolio, but he is not the minister without sin in this case. The North Bay Nugget, I repeat, from today, says, "Nipissing MPP Monique Smith was among the ministers who signed off on the $30-million untendered contract for eHealth in November 2008. The contract went to IBM and was approved by Smith and six colleagues on the Management Board of Cabinet."

Interjections.

Ms. Lisa MacLeod: The interjection by the Minister of Tourism suggests that her own North Bay Nugget is always wrong. Perhaps, given this—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Stop the clock.

Please continue.

Ms. Lisa MacLeod: Given that a quarter of the cabinet of Mr. McGuinty were accomplices in the bonanza of untendered contracts at eHealth, minister without portfolio, don't you agree that Dalton McGuinty lacks any credibility?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: My colleagues and I in Management Board, indeed in government, have taken a number of steps to ensure greater accountability and greater transparency in all matters related to tendering and contracts.

In the auditor's report, he identified a serious issue with respect to the rules around tendering. He has made a number of recommendations. We will move on those recommendations. All of my colleagues and I have worked hard to provide for greater transparency and accountability. I believe the recommendations the auditor has brought forward achieve that. I would remind the member opposite that other governments have done this. For instance, there was a $1.5-million sole-source contract to IBM under their party; a $100,000 sole-source contract to Glen Wright. We have a long list of these, and we'll continue to review them. We're delighted to have the opportunity to make—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you. New question.

SERVICES FOR THE DISABLED

Ms. Cheri DiNovo: My question is for the Minister of Community and Social Services. My question is on behalf of my constituent Teddy Paterson, who was born with cerebral palsy. He's up in the Speaker's gallery with his father. I first introduced Teddy on May 15, 2008, and again on March 4, 2009. Today, after hearing of $1 billion in wasteful health care spending, the Patersons are here again asking why they cannot get the necessary basic support for Teddy.

Why does the minister continue to ignore the plight of Teddy Paterson?

Hon. Madeleine Meilleur: I want to thank the member for her question. As she knows, I cannot talk here in the House about specific cases. The only thing I can say is that this government is very sensitive to the needs of those with special needs and we have been investing since we have been in power. We have been increasing that budget every year. But do we have enough to satisfy every person in need in Ontario? No, we don't, but this government continues to work to make sure that we will be able to meet the requirements of all those in need, including the gentleman in the gallery.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Supplementary?

Ms. Cheri DiNovo: Here are the facts: $1 billion wasted, Liberal insiders rewarded, and people like the Patersons continue to wait for support. In Toronto alone, 580 families who would otherwise qualify for funding are waiting endlessly for assistance and receiving absolutely nothing. The reality is that some families receive very limited funds while others, like the Patersons, receive absolutely nothing. In the past, Madame Meilleur has said that she cannot get personally involved in this case. If the minister can't help the Patersons, who can?

Hon. Madeleine Meilleur: The member should know that the minister doesn't get involved in specific cases, but when they have concerns, they come to me and then I refer them to the staff, who work very closely with them. So staff are working closely with the Paterson family, but there is more need than there is money in the budget.

Every year we are increasing the budget. We will continue to do so. For instance, since last July, social assistance increased by 17%. This government plans in advance. The downturn of the economy is very damaging for a lot of people we serve, but we will continue to do our utmost to make sure that we continue to increase the budget and get help to this gentleman in the gallery.

SKILLED TRADES

Mr. Eric Hoskins: There is no doubt that Ontario is facing some very challenging economic times right now, but we cannot lose sight of the future. Ontario's competitive advantage depends on having the skills and talent necessary to compete in today's global marketplace. It is imperative that we make the necessary investments today to ensure that Ontario emerges from this downturn stronger than before.

A key element to this is the skilled trades. The importance that sector plays in Ontario's economic future cannot be underestimated. These are the women and men who are building the Ontario of tomorrow. Numerous reports and studies point to a skilled trades shortage in the near future. A study by the Conference Board of Canada finds that by 2020 Canada could be short one million skilled workers due to declining birth rates and an aging population.

My question is for the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities. What are you doing to ensure that Ontario has a steady supply of skilled labour for the years to come?

Hon. John Milloy: I thank the member for the question. I'm very proud to say that we're a government that has increased the number of apprentices in the province by 60,000 since we took office. In our first term, we set a target of increasing the number of registrations by 25%; we've met that and we have further targets this term that we're meeting.

At the same time, we're building on the success of apprenticeship programs through the expansion of capacity at our colleges and training centres—

Hon. Jim Watson: Like where?

Hon. John Milloy: Such as Algonquin College, as the member references.

We've also taken a look at the apprenticeship system as a whole. A few years ago, my predecessor, now the Attorney General, commissioned an expert report by Tim Armstrong, a noted expert in the field. Mr. Armstrong came back with a recommendation to establish a college of trades. As a result of that, we asked Kevin Whitaker, the head of the Ontario Labour Relations Board, to consult and come forward with a report, which he brought forward this spring, that formed the basis of—

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Thank you. Supplementary?

Mr. Eric Hoskins: When I talk with young people in St. Paul's about their plans following high school, I'm always amazed at the number of students who are not considering a career in the skilled trades. I believe we need to do more to reach out to young people to demonstrate the merits of this career path.

I also hear from young people about the barriers they face when considering an apprenticeship. I understand that at times it can be difficult to find an employer willing to take them on. During their training, some apprentices face obstacles in completing their training, such as language, academic and cultural barriers.

I'm also aware of the long-standing issue of ratios. We have heard many different opinions on this over the last couple of years, including calls for a depoliticized process that will allow professionals within their trade to make such decisions.

The minister referenced the college of trades. With all that is currently facing the skilled trades system, could you elaborate on how this college will address the issues I have outlined and others?

Hon. John Milloy: As I mentioned in my first answer, we have legislation before this Legislature to establish this college of trades. If passed, it would create a self-regulatory college similar to the college of physicians or the college of teachers, which would have as its number one aim promoting apprenticeships among young people, making sure that more people are coming into the skilled trades and receiving proper training.

At the same time, it would also provide a level playing field for all those interested to come forward and deal with a variety of issues that are facing the apprenticeship system today, such as ratios. The honourable member mentioned compulsory certification; that is another. The absence of women in the skilled trades is a huge challenge; so we have to have more women. We have to be more welcoming to new Canadians who come forward.

The college of trades would have all this within its mandate and serve as a point of reference for all those involved to come forward and come out with meaningful solutions and policies in a self-regulatory fashion.

DEFERRED VOTES

TIME ALLOCATION

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): We have a deferred vote on government notice of motion 140, on allocation of time on Bill 183,

An Act to revise and modernize the law related to apprenticeship training and trades qualifications and to establish the Ontario College of Trades.

Call in the members. This will be a five-minute bell.

The division bells rang from 1136 to 1141.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Ms. Smith has moved government notice of motion number 140. All those in favour will rise one at a time and be recorded by the Clerk.

Ayes

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): All those opposed?

Nays

The Clerk of the Assembly (Ms. Deborah Deller): The ayes are 57; the nays are 24.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): I declare the motion carried.

Motion agreed to.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): There being no further business, this House stands recessed until 3 p.m.

The House recessed from 1145 to 1500.

MEMBERS' STATEMENTS

MENTAL HEALTH

Ms. Sylvia Jones: I'm pleased to rise today to acknowledge this national mental health week.

As a member of the Select Committee on Mental Health and Addictions, spearheaded by my colleague Christine Elliott, I had the opportunity this summer to listen to families and practitioners from across the province who are concerned about the level of mental health services available in Ontario.

I learned much during this summer during our presentations. Mental health is not just a health issue. It affects our housing, justice, children and youth, and aboriginal affairs ministries, to name a few.

As harmful as the mental illness itself is, the stigma and discrimination that comes along with it has its own challenges. We must remember: Mental illness is just that—an illness. It deserves to be treated just like diabetes or cancer.

It was important for our committee to have the opportunity to hear from individuals and families who know what it is like living with a mental illness every day. For that, I thank them for taking the opportunity to teach us about what we can do to improve mental illness services across Ontario.

I'm looking forward to continuing to work toward completing the final report so that we can move forward in assisting all Ontarians dealing with mental illness.

EVERGREEN HOME

AND COTTAGE INC.

Mr. Rick Johnson: It gives me great pleasure to rise and speak about a great family success story in my riding. In March of this year, I had the pleasure of attending the Lindsay and District Chamber of Commerce's Evening of Excellence. That evening, Randy Burke of Evergreen Home and Cottage/EverGreen Power Solutions received the Friend of Youth award for their continued support of local youth through the OYAP program and regular assistance with local high school co-op placements.

Both the construction and electrical divisions of this growing company maintain their maximum ratios of apprentices on staff, participating in the training of tomorrow's tradespeople. His company is a case study of local innovation spurred by supportive government programs.

Along with his son, Tim Burke, they have recently approached school boards across the province with his plan to put 10-kilowatt solar panel generators on the roofs of schools. Students will be able to monitor their school's electrical generation, and schools will be able to earn approximately $10,000 annually through the feed-in tariff rates. Evergreen is proposing to provide green energy solutions while allowing individual schools to each earn extra money for school programs.

Born out of the soils of the Green Energy Act and the green schools initiative, this initiative will reap dividends that will build on our government's commitment to create the most rewarding scholastic and green environment for our province's children.

In the shift from the old dirty energy to green renewable technology, I hope you will all join me in celebrating an example of the great projects we can look forward to in my riding of Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock and across the province.

ONTARIO AGRICULTURE WEEK

Mr. John O'Toole: Agriculture week is a time to celebrate. You should know as well, Mr. Speaker, that the celebration last night with the Greenbelt Diversity program entertainment and, earlier this morning, the Holland Marsh Vegetables—Treasure Them breakfast provided this morning are just two examples of how we all support agriculture.

In my community, we celebrate the diversity and bounty of the Ontario harvest—of course, part of Thanksgiving as well.

I want to thank Bert for his long-time commitment to agriculture when he was here; the member from Perth, I think it was.

Ms. Sylvia Jones: Bert Johnson.

Mr. John O'Toole: Bert Johnson, yes.

Ontario farmers contribute billions each year to the economy, with farmers' markets alone having an economic impact of $1.9 billion per year.

The diversity of agriculture can be seen in my own riding of Durham, where farmers produce everything from fruit and vegetables to meat, milk, eggs and Christmas trees.

I would like to pay tribute to Durham Farm Fresh Marketing Association, a 2009 winner in the regional awards for innovation and excellence. Close to 20 farm locations were honoured at a farmers' forum and feast organized as a benefit for the St. Francis of Assisi church in Newcastle last weekend.

In north Durham, the corn maze at the farm of Steve and Lisa Cooper, in Zephyr, was recently the subject of a feature on Breakfast Television.

Congratulations to Kirk Kemp, president of Algoma Orchards, for their new, state-of-the-art apple processing and storage facility, with a country market. Algoma recently won a Greater Oshawa Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Award.

Whether it's agri-food, agri-tourism or agribusiness, Durham region farmers are leaders. As we celebrate Thanksgiving, let's all recognize and support the farmers of Ontario, who put food on our table. And Happy Thanksgiving to all.

JOB SECURITY

Mr. Paul Miller: At noon today, former Nortel workers from across this province came to Queen's Park in a mass protest rally. Many may join us later on this afternoon in the Legislature. These workers are at very serious risk of losing their pensions, severance pay and benefits as Canadian companies like Nortel go into bankruptcy. Their message to each MPP in this Legislature is that workers who helped build successful companies are being discriminated against, cheated out of what is owed to them and now face financial ruin. This is not something to be fobbed off to the federal government.

We all want to ensure secure retirement with dignity for the many workers who built this province, a province that should be protecting the severance, pensions and benefits of every Ontario worker.

The Liberal government has the opportunity to address these serious issues right now. It should move Bill 6, the Employment Standards Amendment Act (Wage Security), 2007, immediately to public consultations and they should immediately reverse the damaging clause in the spring budget that absolved the government of its historic responsibility to backstop the pension benefits guarantee fund.

It's time that the government stood up for Ontario's emerging seniors. They have the time to become even more politically active, and this government should be very concerned if it doesn't move to protect them now.

CALYPSO PARK /

LE PARC CALYPSO

Mr. Jean-Marc Lalonde: Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending an event site tour of the Calypso theme water park in the village of Limoges in my riding. During the event, Mr. Guy Drouin, president and CEO of Le Groupe Village Vacances Valcartier, presented the full scope of this magnificent water park. When completed, the 450-acre water park will be the largest in Canada and will create over 500 new jobs.

On s'attend à ce que ce projet générera des retombées économiques de 750 $ millions sur une période de 10 ans pour la région de la capitale nationale et de l'est ontarien. Ce parc aidera à attirer de jeunes familles à la région.

With the official opening

schedule for June 7, 2010, the park is now 80% completed. Calypso is the outcome of a $45-million investment. The McGuinty government, through the rural economic development fund, provided $2 million for this project. I would like to thank the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs for supporting this project and to acknowledge the very hard work of Mr. Drouin, the Calypso team and the mayors of Prescott and Russell.

LONG-TERM CARE

Mr. John Yakabuski: It's a pleasure to rise and deliver a statement this afternoon in the House. First of all, I want to congratulate the Honourable Deb Matthews on her appointment as the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care today. But I want to caution her not to get caught up in all of the photo ops that she may be asked to participate in in the next few days and not to forget about our people in the long-term-care homes. There is a looming crisis that this government had been ignoring for some time in the long-term-care sector.

The fact is that our government, when we were in power, redeveloped 20,000 long-term-care beds, which went a long way to alleviating the crisis that was going on at that time that we were left with when we came into office. As of right now, this government is doing very little to deal with what we have.

The problem is that we have alternative-level-of-care patients in hospitals who would be better served if they were in long-term-care homes, but this government is not doing enough to redevelop and develop new beds in long-term-care homes so that we can take the pressure off our hospital system and have these people in the proper kind of facility that is designed for their needs. We've got the people in hospitals, tying up acute care beds, when really we should have them in long-term-care homes.

It is a fact that this government has been ignoring that issue since 2003, since it became elected, and this is becoming more and more of a crisis every day. I say to the new Minister of Health: Get it done; it's an important thing for this province.

STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT

Mrs. Maria Van Bommel: I rise today to speak about the government's commitment to help Ontario's youngest students get the education they need to succeed. This September, elementary students in my riding of Lambton—Kent—Middlesex returned to smaller class sizes, better access to specialized teachers and more resources aimed at improving student achievement.

In 2003 our government made a commitment that every primary class would have no more than 23 students and 90% of primary classrooms would have 20 students or fewer. Today, 100% of the primary classes in Lambton—Kent—Middlesex and Ontario have 23 students or fewer, while 90.3% have 20 or fewer.

Smaller class sizes mean more one-on-one attention with teachers and a chance to engage students at a very young age. It also provides the recourse for students to master fundamentals such as reading, writing and mathematics before they have a chance to fall behind. I was going to say "arithmetic"; that ages me a little bit.

Our government believes that no child should get lost in the crowd. That's why we're investing $5 billion more now than we did five years ago—and we're seeing the results. Class sizes are down, test results are up and more students are graduating. We are proud of what we have accomplished but realize there's still more to do. I promise my constituents that I will continue to work with the school boards of my riding to ensure that public education in Ontario and Lambton—Kent—Middlesex is the best it can be.

LE DRAPEAU FRANCO-ONTARIEN

M. Phil McNeely: Le 25 septembre 2009, j'ai eu le privilège d'assister à la cérémonie du lever du drapeau franco-ontarien à l'hôtel de ville d'Ottawa. Ce vibrant symbole a été hissé pour la première fois à l'Université Laurentienne le 25 septembre 1975, il y a donc 34 ans. Il a été créé dans le but d'inspirer la communauté francophone et de nourrir un sentiment d'amitié et de fraternité renouvelé.

Ses deux symboles sont la fleur de lis, qui traduit notre appartenance à la francophonie internationale, et la fleur de trille, qui nous identifie en même temps comme Ontariens et Ontariennes à part entière.

Cette année, le gouvernement a adopté une nouvelle définition de la population francophone afin de la rendre plus inclusive. Nous avons maintenant le choix d'inclure le drapeau franco-ontarien sur nos plaques d'immatriculation.

Au fil du temps, le drapeau franco-ontarien est devenu plus qu'un simple symbole; il est un emblème sous lequel peuvent s'unir les francophones de toutes les communautés. Il symbolise le patrimoine francophone et l'harmonie entre les deux nations fondatrices de notre province.

J'invite tous les membres à célébrer l'anniversaire de notre drapeau franco-ontarien et notre précieux patrimoine.

TAXATION

Mr. Bob Delaney: As products go through what is called the supply chain, Ontario's coming single sales tax will enable companies to save their buyers money by getting rid of between 2% and 5% of total costs, which is embedded sales tax that ultimately you, the buyer, end up paying for. If there were only five steps between when the raw materials came together and the time you bought the product, this embedded PST could vary between 19% and 38% of your purchase price. All Ontario wants you to pay is 8%. Only the half-the-story parties want Ontarians to keep paying an extra 10% to 30% of their purchase price in tax.

The $1,000 in tax-free transitional payments that every family will receive in three instalments between 2010 and 2011 will pay the taxes on some $12,000 worth of purchases that are not now taxed. The annual tax-free sales tax credit will pay the taxes on $3,120 of purchases per person on things that are not subject to the PST but will be subject to the harmonized sales tax.

All this money will stay in the wallets of Ontario taxpayers, and that's why Ontario's harmonized sales tax will help people save more of their money.

INTRODUCTION OF BILLS

CLIMATE CHANGE

AWARENESS ACT, 2009 /

LOI DE 2009 SUR LA SENSIBILISATION AUX CHANGEMENTS CLIMATIQUES

Mr. McNeely moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill 208,

An Act to increase awareness of climate change / Projet de loi 208, Loi visant à augmenter la sensibilisation aux changements climatiques.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? Carried.

First reading agreed to.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): The member for a short statement.

Mr. Phil McNeely: This bill intends to name April 21 of every year, the day before Earth Day, Climate Change Awareness Day. It mandates that the Ontario government, through the Ministry of the Environment and the Ministry of Education, provide students in our schools with an annual report card and parameters which are indicators of climate change. These indicators include the lowest level of Arctic ice cover for the year, the population of polar bears in Ontario and the greenhouse gas production of our province and our country.

Our youth understand climate change and the need to take action. This annual day of climate change awareness and the report card will help our youth to lead us on this issue of climate change.

RESIDENTIAL TENANCIES AMENDMENT ACT (RENTAL INSURANCE), 2009 /

LOI DE 2009 MODIFIANT LA

LOI SUR LA LOCATION À USAGE D'HABITATION (ASSURANCE DES LOYERS)

Mr. Prue moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill 209,

An Act to amend the Residential Tenancies Act, 2006 with respect to landlords' obligation to provide rental insurance / Projet de loi 209, Loi modifiant la Loi de 2006 sur la location à usage d'habitation à l'égard de l'obligation des locateurs de souscrire une assurance des loyers.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? Carried.

First reading agreed to.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): The member for a short statement.

Mr. Michael Prue: This bill amends the Residential Tendencies Act, 2006, by creating an obligation for every landlord to obtain and maintain insurance for every residential complex containing five or more rental units and to obtain and maintain insurance for the tenants' personal property within each rental unit. The insurance premiums for each individual unit are added to the rent of the tenant, thereby creating an insurable interest. A tenant may be exempt from paying the insurance premiums as part of his or her rent if proof of alternative insurance coverage is provided to the landlord in the prescribed form.

MOTIONS

PRIVATE MEMBERS' PUBLIC BUSINESS

Hon. Brad Duguid: I seek unanimous consent to put forward a motion without notice regarding private members' public business.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Agreed? Agreed.

Hon. Brad Duguid: That, notwithstanding standing order 98(g), notice for ballot item 38 be waived.

The Speaker (Hon. Steve Peters): Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? Carried.

Motion agreed to.

PETITIONS

CHILD CARE

Mr. John O'Toole: I'm pleased to present a petition from the riding of Durham which reads as follows:

"Whereas the Minister of Community and Social Services, Madeleine Meilleur, has decided that grandparents caring for their grandchildren no longer qualify for temporary care assistance; and

"Whereas the removal of the temporary care assistance could mean that children will be forced into foster care; and

"Whereas the temporary care assistance amounted to $231 per month, much less than a foster family would receive to look after the same children if they were forced into foster care;

"We, the undersigned, petition the" McGuinty government and the "Legislative Assembly of Ontario to immediately reverse the decision to remove temporary care assistance for grandparents looking after their grandchildren."

I'm pleased, as a grandparent, to sign and endorse this petition on behalf of my constituents of the riding of Durham and present it to Kingsong.

TAXATION

Mr. Michael Prue: I have a petition that reads as follows:

"Whereas the McGuinty government's March 26, 2009, budget introduced a harmonized sales tax to be implemented on July 1, 2010; and

"Whereas the harmonization will have a deleterious effect on all Ontarians, merging the GST and the PST to a regressive 13%; and

"Whereas new home buyers will be forced to spend 6% more on any property above $500,000; and

"Whereas additional taxes will be levied on properties between $400,000 and $500,000 on a sliding scale; and

"Whereas rentals of commercial property will now be taxable for the first time; and

"Whereas legal fees, appraisals, commissions, home inspections, moving costs and other services associated with purchases of property are now subject to HST;

"We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

"We demand that the McGuinty government not implement the harmonized sales tax, particularly where it relates to the sale of property and especially at this time of economic slowdown and recession."

It is signed by a number of real estate agents in the city of Toronto. I'm in agreement and would affix my signature thereto.

SOCIAL SERVICES FUNDING

Mr. Bob Delaney: I have a petition addressed to the Ontario Legislative Assembly. I especially would like to thank Vicky Lowrey and Sandra Chiodo, both of Mississauga, for having collected the signatures. It reads as follows:

"Whereas the population in Peel has tripled from 400,000 residents to 1.2 million between 1980 to present. Human services funding has not kept pace with that growth. Peel receives only one third the per capita social service funding of other Ontario communities; and

"Whereas residents of Peel cannot obtain social services in a timely fashion. Long waiting lists exist for many Peel region service providers. The child poverty level in Peel has grown from 14% to 20% between 2001 and 2006, and youth violence is rising; and

"Whereas Ontario's Places to Grow legislation predicts substantial future growth, further challenging our already stretched service providers to respond to population growth;

"We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

"That the province of Ontario allocate social services funding on the basis of population size, population growth, relevant social indicators and special geographic conditions;

"That the province provide adequate growth funding for social services in Peel region; and

"That Ontario develop, in consultation with high-growth stakeholders, a human services strategy for high-growth regions to complement Ontario's award-winning Places to Grow strategy."

I support this petition; I'm pleased to affix my signature and to ask page Elizabeth to carry it for me.

TAXATION

Mrs. Julia Munro: "To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

"Whereas the McGuinty government's plan to 'harmonize' the PST and the GST will result in Ontario taxpayers paying 8% more for a multitude of products and services; and

"Whereas the 8% tax increase will increase the cost of services such as housing and real estate services, gasoline, hydro bills, home heating fuel, Internet and cable bills, haircuts, gym memberships, legal services, construction and renovations, car repairs, plumbing and electrical services, landscaping services, leisure activities, hotel rooms, veterinary services for the family pet and even funeral services; and

"Whereas Ontario taxpayers cannot afford this tax grab—particularly in the middle of a recession;

"We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to direct the government of Ontario to abandon the sales tax increase announced in the 2009 budget."

As I am in agreement, I have affixed my signature, and give it to page Kingsong.

DIAGNOSTIC SERVICES

M me France Gélinas: I'm glad to present this petition from the people of Nickel Belt, who are asking for a PET scanner for northeastern Ontario. It reads as follows:

"Whereas the Ontario government is making ... PET scanning a publicly insured ... service available to cancer and cardiac patients ...; and

"Whereas, by October 2009, insured PET scans will be performed in Ottawa, London, Toronto, Hamilton and Thunder Bay; and

"Whereas the city of Greater Sudbury is a hub for health care in northeastern Ontario, with the Sudbury Regional Hospital, its regional cancer program and the Northern Ontario School of Medicine;

"We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to make PET scans available through the Sudbury Regional Hospital, thereby serving and providing equitable access to the citizens of northeastern Ontario."

This brings to 2,000 the number of people who have signed. I support them, will affix my signature and send it to the table with page Jacquelyn.

SALE OF DOMESTIC

WINES AND BEERS

Mr. Khalil Ramal: I'm pleased to stand up and read a petition that was given by the Ontario Korean Businessmen's Association. It reads:

"To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

"Whereas the province of Ontario restricts the sale of beer and wine to the LCBO, the Beer Store and a few winery retail stores; and

"Whereas other provinces ... have been selling beer and wine in local convenience stores for many years without any harm to the well-being of the public; and

"Whereas it is desirable to promote the sale of beer and wine in a convenient manner consistent with a contemporary society; and

"Whereas it is essential to support local convenience stores for the survival of small businesses; and

"Whereas it is obvious from the current market trends that the sales of wine and beer in convenience stores is not a question of 'if' but 'when';

"We, the undersigned, hereby petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to amend the Liquor Control Act to permit the sale of beer and wine in local convenience stores to the public throughout the province and to do it now."

TAXATION

Mr. Gerry Martiniuk: I have a petition provided to me by Royal LePage Crown Realty Services Inc. and Gadsby's Clothing Co. Inc. which reads:

"Whereas Dalton McGuinty said he wouldn't raise taxes in the 2003 election, but in 2004 he brought in the health tax, the largest tax hike in Ontario's history, but he still cuts health care services and nurses; and

"Whereas Dalton McGuinty will increase taxes yet again on Canada Day 2010, with his new 13% combined GST, at a time when families and businesses can least afford it; and

"Whereas Dalton McGuinty's new 13% combined GST will increase the cost of goods and services that families and businesses buy every day, such as: coffee ... gas at the pumps, home heating oil and electricity, postage stamps, haircuts, dry cleaning, home renovations, veterinary care, arena ice and soccer field rentals, Internet fees, theatre admissions, funerals, courier fees, fast food sold for $4, bus fares, golf green fees, gym fees, snowplowing, bicycles, taxi fares, train fares, domestic air travel, accountant services and real estate commissions;

"We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly ... as follows:

"That the Dalton McGuinty government wake up to Ontario's current economic reality and stop raising taxes, once and for all, on Ontario's hard-working families and businesses."

As I agree with the contents, I affix my signature thereto.

TAXATION

Mr. Paul Miller: "Whereas Ontario has lost 171,000 jobs since October and over 300,000 manufacturing and resource sector jobs since 2004; and

"Whereas many families are facing the threat of layoffs or reduced hours; and

"Whereas, rather than introducing a plan to sustain jobs and put Ontario's economy back on track, Dalton McGuinty and his government chose to slap an 8% tax on everyday purchases while giving profitable corporations a $2-billion income tax cut;

"Be it resolved that the undersigned call on the Legislature to cancel the scheduled implementation of sales tax harmonization."

I will affix my name to this, and I agree with this.

CEMETERIES

Mr. Jeff Leal: I have a petition today on Bill 149, the Inactive Cemeteries Protection Act.

"To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

"Whereas Ontario's cemeteries are an important part of our cultural heritage, and Ontario's inactive cemeteries are constantly at risk of closure and removal; and

"Ontario's cemeteries are an irreplaceable part of the province's cultural heritage;

"We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

"The government must pass Bill 149, the Inactive Cemeteries Protection Act, 2009, to prohibit the relocation of inactive cemeteries in the province of Ontario."

I agree with this petition and will affix my signature to it and give it to page Jacob.

HOSPITAL FUNDING

Mr. Gerry Martiniuk: I have a petition to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario which reads:

"Whereas Cambridge Memorial Hospital and other hospitals in the Waterloo region are experiencing substantial increased demands due to population growth; and

"Whereas the McGuinty government's freeze on new long-term-care facilities has resulted in additional long-term-care patients in our hospitals; and

"Whereas the McGuinty government's cuts to hospital funding have resulted in a dangerous environment for patients and staff in Cambridge and across Ontario;

"We, the undersigned, hereby petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

"That the McGuinty government meet its obligations to introduce a population-needs-based funding formula for hospitals, as has been done in other Canadian provinces."

As I agree with the contents, I affix my name thereto.

TAXATION

Mr. Peter Tabuns: "Whereas Ontario has lost 171,000 jobs since October and over 300,000 manufacturing and resource sector jobs since 2004; and

"Whereas many families are facing the threat of layoffs or reduced hours; and

"Whereas, rather than introducing a plan to sustain jobs and put Ontario's economy back on track, Dalton McGuinty and his government have slapped an 8% tax on a variety of our purchases and have given profitable corporations a $2-billion income tax cut;

"Be it resolved that the undersigned call on the Legislature to cancel the scheduled implementation of sales tax harmonization."

I agree with this and affix my name.

TOM LONGBOAT

Mr. Jim Brownell: I have a petition signed by a number of constituents from Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry. It reads as follows:

"To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

"Whereas Tom Longboat is Canada's greatest long-distance runner; and

"Whereas Tom Longboat is a great role model for all Canadians;

"We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to pass the Tom Longboat Day Act into law so that we can honour this remarkable athlete and courageous Canadian, who is a great role model for all Canadians."

As I agree with this petition, I shall sign it and send it to the clerks' table.

TAXATION

Mr. John Yakabuski: I have a petition for the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.

"Whereas residents in Renfrew—Nipissing—Pembroke do not want the McGuinty Liberals' new sales tax, which will raise the cost of goods and services they use every day; and

"Whereas the McGuinty Liberals' new sales tax of 13% will cause everyone to pay more for gasoline for their cars, hydro, heat, telephone, cable and Internet services for their homes, and will be applied to home sales over $400,000; and

"Whereas the McGuinty Liberals' new sales tax of 13% will cause everyone to pay more for meals under $4, haircuts, funeral services, gym memberships, newspapers, and lawyer and accountant fees; and

"Whereas the McGuinty Liberals' new sales tax grab will affect everyone in the province: seniors, students, families and low-income Ontarians;

"We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

"That the McGuinty Liberal government not increase taxes for Ontario families."

I support this petition and I affix my name to it.

LUPUS

Mr. Kim Craitor: I'm pleased to read the following petition to the House. It reads as follows:

"To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

"Whereas systemic lupus erythematosus is under-recognized as a global health problem by the public, health professionals and governments, driving the need for greater awareness; and

"Whereas medical research on lupus and efforts to develop safer and more effective therapies for the disease are underfunded in comparison with diseases of comparable magnitude and severity; and

"Whereas no new safe and effective drugs for lupus have been introduced in more than 40 years. Current drugs for lupus are very toxic and can cause other life-threatening health problems that can be worse than the primary disease;

"We, the undersigned, hereby petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to assist financially with media campaigns to bring about knowledge of lupus and the signs and symptoms of this disease to all citizens of Ontario.

"We further petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to provide funding for research currently being undertaken in lupus clinics throughout Ontario."

I'm pleased to sign my signature in support of this petition.

ORDERS OF THE DAY

INTERPROVINCIAL POLICING

ACT, 2009 /

LOI DE 2009

SUR LES SERVICES POLICIERS

INTERPROVINCIAUX

Resuming the debate adjourned on October 1, 2009, on the motion for second reading of Bill 203,

An Act to allow for better cross-border policing co-operation with other Canadian provinces and territories and to make consequential amendments to the Police Services Act / Projet de loi 203, Loi visant à permettre une meilleure coopération avec les autres provinces et les territoires du Canada en ce qui concerne les services policiers transfrontaliers et à apporter des modifications corrélatives à la

Loi sur les services policiers.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bruce Crozier): Further debate?

Mr. Garfield Dunlop: I'm happy to be able to stand today and speak as the leadoff speaker on second reading on Bill 203,

An Act to allow for better cross-border policing co-operation with other Canadian provinces and territories and to make consequential amendments to the Police Services Act. In the end, after we have committee hearings and we hear the voices and the concerns of our policing partners and people who would like to comment on this legislation, I suspect our party will be supporting this legislation.

As you may recall, the bill is modelled on the Cross-Border Policing Act, which was adopted in 2003 by both the criminal and civil sections of the Uniform Law Conference of Canada. The idea of having cross-border, interprovincial-type policing has been around, I guess, for some time. For some reason it has become a priority to the government to bring forward the bill at this time.

I can tell you, I have worked with the policing community a lot. As you know, the OPP general headquarters is in my riding, the riding of Simcoe North. I talk many times with OPP officers and commissioned officers, and I can tell you, as many times as I've talked to them, I don't think I've had anyone raise this cross-border policing as an issue, so I am assuming that it's sort of a housekeeping piece of legislation. Maybe it's my ignorance. Maybe I simply don't understand that there's something more important.

I do know a number of police officers who travel throughout Canada with the Ontario Provincial Police on different files. I know one officer in particular—I can't mention her name and I won't mention the kind of case she's working on, but she's certainly someone who has been all through the Maritimes and the western provinces as well. I don't think the issue of cross-border policing has been a high priority to her or colleagues.

However, we will listen to the comments, both here in second reading debate and when we get to the floor of the committee room. We'll see that as well and we'll get to hear the concerns.

My understanding, if we do the follow-up, following back on this, Ontario and Quebec recently—I guess it was on September 11—signed a resolution "committing the two provinces to introducing reciprocal legislation that will allow for seamless policing across their borders. If passed, the legislation would establish the mechanism whereby the two provinces can grant police officer status to a police officer from each others' jurisdiction who is required to enter their provinces to perform police duties. It will also address issues of police oversight, discipline and indemnification for civil liability.

"Ontario and Quebec have been working together for a number of years"—apparently—"to develop reciprocal cross-border policing legislation. The proposed legislation would enable police officers from other provinces and territories in Canada to be appointed as police officers in Ontario and Quebec."

I took this out of a news release that was sent out by the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services on September 11. I believe it was right after the yearly caucus meeting that our caucus here in Ontario has with the Q