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November 15, 2017

41st Parliament, 2nd Session

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Hansard Transcripts

Votes and Proceedings

Orders and Notices

Hansard Transcripts 2017-Nov-15 (PDF)

L117 - Wed 15 Nov 2017 / Mer 15 nov 2017

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO

ASSEMBLÉE LÉGISLATIVE DE L’ONTARIO

Wednesday 15 November 2017 Mercredi 15 novembre 2017

Member’s comments

Orders of the Day

Time allocation

Safer Ontario Act, 2017 / Loi de 2017 pour plus de sécurité en Ontario

Introduction of Visitors

Wearing of pins

Legislative pages

Oral Questions

Police officers

Ontario economy

Hospital funding

Hospital funding

Minimum wage

College students

Government’s record / Progrès du gouvernement

Ontario tree seed plant

Labour dispute

Seniors

Public health

Air quality

Small business

Long-term care

Visitors

Notice of reasoned amendment

Deferred Votes

Time allocation

Visitors

Introduction of Visitors

Members’ Statements

Frank Coulter

Children’s mental health services

Salvatore “Sammy” D’Amico

Shine the Light on Woman Abuse Campaign

Winter road maintenance

Hindu Heritage Month

Floyd Crawford

Ava Flieler

Wood frame buildings

Reports by Committees

Standing Committee on Social Policy

Standing Committee on Regulations and Private Bills

Motions

Private members’ public business

Petitions

Wind turbines

Environmental protection

Elevator maintenance

Highway improvement

Pharmacare

School closures

Long-term care

Policing costs

Long-term care

Guide and service animals

Cancer treatment

Orders of the Day

Time allocation

Cannabis, Smoke-Free Ontario and Road Safety Statute Law Amendment Act, 2017 / Loi de 2017 modifiant des lois en ce qui concerne le cannabis, l’Ontario sans fumée et la sécurité routière

Adjournment Debate

Housing policy

The House met at 0900.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Good morning. Please join me in prayer.

Prayers.

Member’s comments

Mr. Ted Arnott: Point of order.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Point of order: the member from Wellington–Halton Hills.

Mr. Ted Arnott: I’m pleased to rise and correct my record.

On October 31, I delivered a statement in the Legislature informing the House that the town of Halton Hills had been recognized as Canada’s most patriotic town because 57,073 Canadian flags were proudly flown in Halton Hills on Canada Day.

I only had limited time for my remarks, and I wish I could have added reference to the enormous contribution of the Halton Hills Chamber of Commerce tourism committee to the success of this wonderful initiative. I also wish I had mentioned Cheryl Cardon for spearheading the concept to completion.

I want to thank Kathleen Dills of the Halton Hills Chamber of Commerce for helping me to correct this oversight.

Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I accept the member’s thanks, but correcting a record—and let’s make sure that we put this on the record—is simply changing something that you said, instead of adding to it.

I would like to remind all members: Correcting the record means something that you actually correct. Thank you.

Orders of the Day

Time allocation

Resuming the debate adjourned on November 14, 2017, on the motion for allocation of time on the following bill:

Bill 166,

An Act to amend or repeal various Acts and to enact three new Acts with respect to the construction of new homes and ticket sales for events / Projet de loi 166, Loi modifiant ou abrogeant diverses lois et édictant trois nouvelles lois en ce qui concerne la construction de logements neufs et la vente de billets d’événements.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Further debate?

Mr. Victor Fedeli: I understand that this is a time allocation motion on Bill 166, the Strengthening Protection for Ontario Consumers Act.

Speaker, we’ve seen this time and time again from this government, where bills that are up for debate are time-allocated. What that means is, they are stopping the debate. They don’t want to hear from elected representatives anymore. They figure, “We’ve had enough. We’ve heard enough from you. We don’t want you to have an opportunity any longer to stand here in the Legislature and debate these important issues.” That’s what time allocation means. It’s a fancy word; it sounds like a fancy expression. It sounds like normal, everyday government business: It’s being time-allocated, so that means everything’s fine.

Well, everything is not fine, Speaker. Time allocation truncates our debate. It cuts off debate. You’re going to notice a little later on today, as a matter of fact, that we’re going to see another bill time-allocated.

In the three minutes and 43 seconds that I have left to speak, I will also refer to Bill 166, the Strengthening Protection for Ontario Consumers Act. We’re going to have a vote, I presume, just after question period, and then this afternoon, Bill 148 is going to be time-allocated. That is the minimum wage bill. We’ve heard from so many groups on that bill as well. The government—they don’t want to hear anything anymore. They want this debate cut off. They don’t believe in the full use of democracy; they believe that the opposition should be silenced.

When I look in this chamber and I read the sign carved into the wall, “Audi alteram partem”—“Hear the other side”—that’s what we’re here for. We are here to bring all aspects of the debate. There will be some good points; there will be some not-so-good points. But, carved into the walls here, 100 years ago, is, “Hear the other side.” That’s what this group does not want to see. They do not want to hear from us because we’ve got the highest electricity rates in North America, and we may interject that in our discussion. They don’t want us to talk about that.

They laugh at that, as a matter of fact, if you can hear the chuckles on the other side. They don’t like the fact that we can disclose these things. Facts do matter. We can continue to disclose things like: We have the highest portions of our tax rate in all of Canada, when it comes to employee wage taxes. These are the things this group doesn’t want to talk about. That’s why they heckle; they don’t want us to be able to stand here and talk to the people of Ontario about things that matter.

Sergio Marchionne, the chairman and CEO of Fiat Chrysler, has told the Premier that she has created the most expensive jurisdiction in all of North America in which to do business, which is why thousands of companies have left Ontario, and many more will. I look at Google, who just announced they’re opening their first-ever data centre in Canada—but where? They’re opening it in Quebec. Why? High energy rates; that’s their reason.

They don’t want us here talking about these types of things. They would rather silence us and not give us the opportunity to debate Bill 166, on strengthening protection—or this afternoon, when they truncate Bill 148, the minimum wage bill. They don’t want us to be able to talk about these things that are important to the people of Ontario. They do not want to hear the other side. They want us to stand here and just be shut off—cut off all debate, all discussion, and just listen to them. Whatever they do is right, and we have no right to speak up and offer any other alternative.

That’s what I find so reprehensible about bringing in time allocation. If it were once or twice in the six years that I’ve been here—but it’s every week; it’s every month; it’s every year. It’s non-stop with these Liberals, and I find that reprehensible. I look forward to voting against this.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Further debate.

Ms. Teresa J. Armstrong: Time allocation is really a tool that’s used by this government to shut down debate. One thing we don’t agree with on this side of the House is shutting down debate and not allowing each member to have a full opportunity to voice their constituents’ concerns and, quite frankly, have insight into bills so this government can take on productive ideas of how to make legislation work better for this province.

There have been many, many times in this House where this government has decided to time-allocate because they have an agenda. There’s an election coming on the horizon, and they want to push as many bills through as they can so that they look like they actually are working for the people of Ontario. That’s not the case, Speaker. That’s not the case.

Now that their backs are up against the wall and in six months or seven months, when there’s an election coming, they have proposed and announced everything under the sun. That’s why we’re doing time allocation: because they want to make sure that they give that impression, that perception, that, “Hey, we have a majority government and we’re so productive and we’ve worked really hard for you and we’re supporting Ontarians.”

That’s not the case. Time-allocating debate isn’t a way to get the job done. Time-allocating debate is a tool to use to shut people down. We don’t agree with it. We will be voting, of course—and many times we have; we have voted against time allocation.

Interjection: Always.

Ms. Teresa J. Armstrong: Always, in some cases. It has always been that way. And I think, again—

Interjection.

Ms. Teresa J. Armstrong: Yes, always voted on time allocation, against it.

The tool that this government uses is outdated, and they need to get on board with what’s really happening in Ontario.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Further debate.

Mr. Todd Smith: I was up early this morning. I had a nice walk downtown, had a good breakfast and a good meeting this morning already, talking about electricity rates in Ontario. I walked back up from downtown to Queen’s Park, and I thought when I came through the doors here at the Legislature today I was going to be talking about a substantive piece of legislation that the government has brought forward that’s going to make the lives of people in Ontario better. Instead, I’m here debating another time allocation motion.

This government has brought in more time allocation motions than any government in the history of governments. It’s remarkable how this government is unable to manage its own legislative schedule. They bring in time allocation motions for every piece of legislation.

So here we are. Bill 166 is the consumer protection bill. I haven’t had the opportunity, as the member for Prince Edward–Hastings, to speak to the substantive portions of this bill that will impact the residents of Prince Edward county and Belleville and Hastings county, because the government is bringing in time allocation. They’re killing debate on this bill. We’re going to send it to committee, sure. I would like to believe, Speaker, that some good things could happen in committee, where the government would listen to some very good ideas and possibly accept some amendments from the opposition parties.

I’m sure the members of the third party have some amendments to pieces of this legislation that they’ll be bringing forward. I know that we will, as members of the official opposition, have amendments that we’ll be bringing forward to strengthen this bill, to make it a better bill for the people of Ontario so that it does actually do what it’s intended to do. Right now, it doesn’t do that. It could be a better bill.

There are five different aspects of this bill. The Ticket Speculation Act is something that I brought to light 18 months ago, I think, in the Legislature. It was an issue that needed to be addressed. The member from Kingston and the Islands, shortly after I brought this issue to light, brought in her own private member’s legislation. At the time, I was critical of some aspects of her bill that weren’t addressing the actual problem in Ontario.

Now it has become a government bill, and the Ministry of the Attorney General is championing this now, finally, after their government changed the Ticket Speculation Act to reward some donors to the Ontario Liberal Party. That’s what started this whole mess a couple of months ago. This was never on the radar of the former Attorney General. I’ve spoken with many stakeholders in this sector. This was not something that was on her radar. This was a change that was made in the Premier’s office in July 2015 that changed the way tickets are sold online here in Ontario. It basically made scalping legal online.

That’s what this change did—not what this bill did—what the change in the act was back in July 2015. Now the government is trying to fix it, because it did make a change that was not for the better. We want to ensure that people, when they have an opportunity to go to a concert or a sporting event, are protected. I understand that that’s the intent of this bill, but the bill could go further.

Interjection.

Mr. Todd Smith: Yes, you can get Belleville Senators tickets through Ticketmaster. You should come down, Minister of Agriculture. I’d be happy to take you to a game sometime. They’re doing quite well so far, even though most of the team is injured right now.

On the Tarion home warranty side, there are so many other amendments or changes to this piece of legislation that could be made to strengthen this bill. I had to laugh, actually, when I saw one of the things that this government is bringing in when it comes to the new home warranties program. We’re pleased to see that the new authorities will have Auditor General oversight. It’s remarkable for me to see this, because this government has done nothing but remove the oversight powers of the Auditor General and the independent officers of the Legislature.

And you know it’s true, whether it’s the electricity sector, the Hydro One sale—boom, the Auditor General can no longer comment on the Hydro One sale. We had all eight independent officers of the Legislature join together to hold an unprecedented news conference saying that this government continues to strip the authority of the independent officers of the Legislature.

Now, in this, they’re providing some oversight again, so good for them. But every time the Auditor General comes out with a criticism of this government, what does this government do? They try and undermine the independent officer of the Legislature, the Auditor General. I can speak specifically to the recent fair hydro plan, where the government completely undermined the Financial Accountability Officer and the Auditor General of the Ontario Legislature.

Even when they bring in added oversight responsibilities for the independent officers of the Legislature, they laugh them off as inconsequential, and that’s wrong. It’s also wrong that they’re bringing in time allocation and silencing so many members of the Ontario Legislature who want to speak to this bill.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Further debate?

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: I’m pleased to speak on the time allocation debate on Bill 166. Speaker, as you may know, Bill 166, if passed, would introduce rules to better protect consumers buying travel services, event tickets, and buying and selling real estate, including buying newly built homes. This is a comprehensive piece of legislation proposed by our government, which, if passed, would help to make a real difference to consumers engaging in a range of areas in the marketplace.

Speaker, you and I have heard debate many times in this House and petitions presented by members on issues that they have seen their constituents go through when it comes to deficiencies in our consumer protection legislation. I have often heard members talk about the unscrupulous practices around door-to-door sales. In my community of Ottawa Centre, I myself have heard from many seniors where they were forced to buy furnaces, hot water tanks and these kinds of devices that have a huge impact on them. They end up signing contracts that, frankly speaking, were not in their best interest.

So there was this ask on the part of the government to bring legislation to make sure that there is strong consumer protection.

Similarly, Speaker, when it comes to real estate, we know that probably the biggest purchase any Ontarian makes is when they buy their first home. We need to make sure that that particular sector, that particular industry, has all the safeguards in place that will protect buyers.

Personally, I had the opportunity to work on the issue around tickets for sporting events and concerts. This is an issue which is dominating news headlines right now and something that we have heard about often, that you’ve got tickets that reappear on resale websites for 200%, 300% or 400% more than what the actual face value has been. There has been huge demand by our constituents to regulate that particular marketplace to ensure that there’s appropriate consumer protection.

We have brought, perhaps, the most comprehensive piece of legislation around ticket sales, which is part of Bill 166, that will ensure that we are putting caps on the resale of tickets at 50%; that there are more enhanced transparency requirements when it comes to ensuring that there is all-in pricing on tickets so consumers know exactly what they’re paying; that there is an inventory disclosure so you know how many tickets have gone on sale when something comes into place; and, also, of course, to put a ban on tickets bought by bots or being resold when they are purchased by bots. That’s a comprehensive piece of legislation.

All of these things together in Bill 166 will further strengthen our consumer protection legislation. That is why it is important that we pass this legislation as soon as possible, so that these protections that will benefit everyday Ontarians come into force and come into law as quickly as possible.

That is why I urge all the members to support this time allocation motion, because this is legislation that is going to really ensure that there is stronger consumer protection for Ontarians in the travel sector, in real estate, in event and concert tickets, in building and buying new homes and in door-to-door sales. These are the kinds of things that our constituents want us to work on. It would only, I think, benefit Ontarians if we pass this legislation as soon as possible, so I urge all members to support this motion.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Further debate? Second call: Further debate? Third and final: Further debate?

Seeing none, Mr. Chan has moved government notice of motion 38 relating to the allocation of time on Bill 166,

An Act to amend or repeal various Acts and to enact three new Acts with respect to the construction of new homes and ticket sales for events. Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? I definitely heard a “no.”

All those in favour of the motion, please say “aye.”

All those opposed, please say “nay.”

I believe the ayes have it.

This will be dealt with after question period.

Vote deferred.

Safer Ontario Act, 2017 / Loi de 2017 pour plus de sécurité en Ontario

Madame Lalonde moved second reading of the following bill:

Bill 175,

An Act to implement measures with respect to policing, coroners and forensic laboratories and to enact, amend or repeal certain other statutes and revoke a regulation / Projet de loi 175, Loi mettant en oeuvre des mesures concernant les services policiers, les coroners et les laboratoires médico-légaux et édictant, modifiant ou abrogeant certaines autres lois et abrogeant un règlement.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Madame Lalonde.

Hon. Marie-France Lalonde: It is my honour to begin second reading of the Safer Ontario Act. I will be sharing my time with the Attorney General, who will speak to our proposed changes to police oversight.

First, I would like to acknowledge the presence of some of our officers who are here today and thank them for all the great work that they do every single day keeping our communities safe.

The nature of policing and community safety has changed dramatically since the Police Services Act was first introduced in 1990.

Les problèmes auxquels font aujourd’hui face les services policiers et leurs membres sont beaucoup plus complexes qu’ils l’étaient lorsque la loi a été créée.

This is a pivotal time for law enforcement and community safety and well-being. With the increased complexity of crime, rapid acceleration of technology and increased interactions with vulnerable individuals, we are witnessing substantial new pressures on our police officers and police services. This is exactly why our government is introducing change that will result in the largest transformation of policing in a generation. We know that community safety starts in the community. Our modernization is rooted in a proactive approach that focuses on well-being, because community well-being is the cornerstone of public safety. It is a shared responsibility.

Our government is proud to propose measures that will support the shift to a community-based safety and well-being planning model. We plan to accomplish this through an array of legislative measures that include:

—a new collaborative approach to community safety and well-being, where municipalities take a leadership role. Municipalities would work with police and other community partners to create plans that address local needs and issues;

—introducing a new era of police accountability and oversight, not only for police services but for the police services board who oversee them and set priorities;

—outlining police responsibilities and community safety service delivery. This includes, for the first time, enshrining in legislation the duties that can only be performed by a sworn police officer;

—supporting the sustainability of First Nations policing by enabling First Nations to choose their policing service delivery model, including the option to come under the same legislative framework as the rest of Ontario.

We’re also proposing a number of other legislative changes to build a safer Ontario that include:

—modernizing the Coroners Act to make inquests more accessible and supportive for the families and loved ones involved. This includes mandatory inquests when use of force by a police officer, special constable or other officer is directly linked to the cause of death;

—introducing Ontario’s first Forensic Laboratories Act to accredit forensic labs and set consistently high standards, to ensure that legal processes are not vulnerable to discredited practices and flawed forensic procedures;

—supporting police to respond to missing persons investigations effectively and rapidly while balancing concerns for individual privacy. This was a key recommendation of the inquest into the deaths of seven indigenous youth in Thunder Bay. It also fulfills a commitment our government made in the Long-Term Strategy to End Violence Against Indigenous Women.

The Safer Ontario Act has been more than five years in the making. It has been guided by a comprehensive, province-wide consultation and online survey and is supported by years of research of evidence-based solutions and best practices.

Lorsqu’on les considère en totalité, les mesures proposées moderniseraient notre approche à la sécurité communautaire et supporteraient notre objectif de répondre aux besoins actuels et futurs des services policiers.

J’aimerais maintenant aborder quelques points saillants du projet de loi que notre gouvernement propose.

Let’s talk about community safety and well-being.

Ontario is not a one-size-fits-all province. We are a collection of large urban centres, rural communities and indigenous communities. For example, a community that is vulnerable to human trafficking has a different set of priorities and a different expectation of support from the province than one that is combatting an increase in opioid addiction and overdoses. It would be impossible to build a single model for policing that would be appropriate for a province as vast and diverse as Ontario.

We must shift from a reactive model, which relies too heavily on emergency police response, to a model that is proactive and focused on crime prevention. And it must engage all community partners, including the police. This is the foundation upon which community safety and well-being plans will be built.

In order to be effective, everybody must play a role: the police, who would remain at the heart of community crime and law enforcement initiatives; the crisis worker and health care professional, who have the experience and insight to assist police responding to an emergency 911 call involving a person with mental-health- or addictions-related issues; and other public safety personnel, such as special constables, who also play a strong supporting role in maintaining community safety and who would take some of the ever-increasing pressure off of our police services.

The challenges have been in how to formally bring these groups and others together. It is proposed that municipalities will be mandated to develop and implement community safety and well-being plans. Police services boards would be involved in this planning and would align their own strategic plans with the broader municipal plan.

These plans would identify local risk; implement evidence-based, collaborative strategies to address these risks; and develop and implement preventive programs and strategies to address risk before an emergency response is required.

A wide range of approaches are needed to address the diverse needs of Ontario’s vulnerable populations, including those with mental health concerns and individuals with addiction issues.

By bringing together municipalities, the police, the public, and social services providers such as medical professionals and case workers, those who are in need of help will receive the right response at the right time and by the right service provider. Our ultimate goal is to ensure that vulnerable populations and those in crisis are connected with the resources and services they need—when and where they need them most—by the providers best suited to help them.

This kind of forward-looking planning would help communities bend their cost curves not only for policing but for all emergency services, which is why several Ontario communities—such as Halton, Lanark county and my hometown of Ottawa—have already started to develop community safety and well-being plans.

Now let’s look at our proposal for police accountability. The new Police Services Act proposes significant changes to how municipal police services and the Ontario Provincial Police are governed in order to ensure continued public trust and confidence. If passed, the Safer Ontario Act will establish an Inspector General to independently oversee and monitor police services and police services boards. The Inspector General would have a mandate to ensure the delivery of adequate and effective policing across the province. These changes are essential in making police services and their local police services boards more representative and accountable to the communities they serve.

Establishing an Inspector General will also increase our capacity to monitor, investigate, inspect and audit police services to ensure they are meeting the standards for the delivery of policing as defined in the proposed act. They would also have the powers to inspect police services boards to make sure they are meeting their legislative and regulatory requirements. Finally, they would handle complaints against police services boards, board members and police services with respect to their official functions.

On the advice of the Ontario Human Rights Commissioner, the Inspector General would also ensure that policing is delivered in compliance with the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Ontario Human Rights Code.

Under our proposed legislation, police boards will change in a number of ways in order to strengthen civilian governance and enhance public confidence. We will:

—ensure all municipalities policed by the OPP have access to local OPP police boards;

—allow each municipality to determine the size of its police board based on local needs; the minimum and maximum municipal board sizes would increase to five and nine, respectively;

—require that all board members complete mandatory training, including in areas such as human rights and systemic racism.

We will also expand the list of individuals prohibited from being board members to include former police officers. These officers would be permanently prohibited from serving on the board of their former police service.

We’ll also require each police board to prepare a strategic plan detailing how the board will ensure the delivery of adequate and effective policing to meet local needs.

In addition, Speaker, the Safer Ontario Act introduces changes to the police disciplinary process, such as giving chiefs of police the ability to suspend officers without pay under limited circumstances when not performing their core duties. Suspension without pay is an important interim measure in all other provinces in Canada and a tool that we are now making available to police chiefs in limited circumstances.

We know that in order to keep our communities safe, police officers are often put in difficult situations that require them to make split-second decisions, with lives hanging in the balance. When police officers are carrying out their duties in good faith, they are exposing themselves to an increased risk of liability by the very nature of their duties. When an officer is in one of these situations, whether or not they will continue to be paid should not be a factor in their decision-making process.

That being said, the numbers involved are very small but result in a heavy burden on police budgets and have a substantially negative impact on public trust and confidence in the oversight of police officers.

The decision to suspend a police officer without pay is something that should not be taken lightly. That is why the proposed legislation allows for this extreme measure to be used only in the most egregious cases. In all cases of suspension without pay, there would be a review process to ensure the fair and equitable treatment of the officer and their family.

Ontario is already one of the safest jurisdictions in North America. Since 2007, Ontario’s crime rate has dropped by 29%; the violent crime rate has gone down by 27%. Ontarians are safer in their homes and on the streets and are less exposed to violent crime.

This doesn’t happen by accident. Excellence in policing plays a major role. That doesn’t change under our proposed legislation. The police will always be at the centre of community safety. When you call 911 and you need a police officer, rest assured that a highly trained police officer will respond to your call.

The model for policing is constantly evolving as criminal activity changes. Changing technology can both restrict and create opportunity for crime. When the current Police Services Act was first introduced, fewer than two in five Canadian households had a home computer, and far fewer had access to the Internet. Today, incidents of cyber crime have increased exponentially with the use of computers and smartphones. Other criminal activities such as identity fraud, child pornography and human trafficking have become more prevalent and more difficult to track.

The relationship between police and marginalized and vulnerable communities has evolved as well. We are asking more of our police services than ever before. A Police Services Act that is over 25 years old can no longer provide a policing framework that can fully respond to new realities in policing. As members of the public, we must finally come to terms with the question: Are we expecting too much of our police? As legislators, we have a responsibility to ensure that policing remains sustainable without compromising public safety.

The new Police Services Act would deliver clarity by defining for the very first time the core duties of police services. In doing so, we will set parameters for using alternative service providers like special constables to provide non-critical services where a threat to public safety does not exist. This will allow our highly trained police officers to focus on core law enforcement responsibilities.

Some would like to frame this as the privatization of policing, Mr. Speaker, and they would be wrong. We are not breaking new ground here. In its current form, the Police Services Act already outlines a number of public safety areas where alternatives to a traditional police officer may be used. This includes forensic support, crisis negotiation and crime analysis.

Furthermore, our proposed legislation prevents for-profit business corporations from delivering police functions, except in highly limited circumstances. This includes highly specialized areas where expertise may not exist within any police service across the province. This addresses a key concern of both police and the public when it comes to identifying alternative service options.

As our government gives communities the flexibility to tailor services to their needs, we’re also taking the necessary steps to ensure a consistent approach to policing across the province.

The proposed legislation will establish consistent education, training and standards for all police services. Ontario’s 3,115 special constables will also be subject to enhanced education and training. The Safer Ontario Act is about ensuring that our highly trained and professional police officers can focus on the important work we need them to do. By finding appropriate alternative service delivery methods, we will help our police officers perform their jobs even more effectively.

Mr. Speaker, I want to talk about sustainability of First Nations policing. Communities want a greater voice in determining how they are policed, and this includes our First Nations communities. The new Police Services Act will introduce a framework that provides First Nations communities with choice in determining a model of policing that fits with their needs. I am proud of the fact that, for the first time, First Nations will be able to choose whether to establish their own police service boards. Those that do not wish to do so will have the ability to continue with their current policing frameworks.

This means that First Nations police service boards will be required to meet the same provincial standards and oversight as those governing other police services in Ontario.

Our government has worked together with indigenous communities, political territorial organizations, and First Nations police services for a long time to bring this transformation forward. These changes will ensure that First Nations receive culturally responsive, sustainable, accountable and equitable policing that has the flexibility to address specific community needs on their own terms.

The proposed legislation will also enable municipalities and their policing partners to manage change more efficiently and more effectively. This includes developing an outcomes-based funding model that will better support all partners involved in reducing crime and building safer and healthier communities.

By increasing collaboration at the local level and across all sectors, this new model will:

—result in a more efficient use of resources;

—reduce unnecessary duplication between services;

—encourage cost reduction in emergency-response expenses; and

—maximize the effectiveness of all community safety and well-being services.

Our government is reviewing existing grant programs to ensure the focus is kept on supporting collaborative partnerships that will include police and other sectors such as health care, social services and education.

Speaker, a new Police Services Act is the largest piece of our government’s public safety legislative package, but it is not the only piece. As the honourable members know, we’re also proposing to introduce Ontario’s first Forensic Laboratories Act, introduce Ontario’s first Missing Persons Act, and update the Coroners Act.

Let’s talk about the Forensic Laboratories Act. There are many forensic laboratories performing forensic services in the province of Ontario. Clients must have confidence in the quality and consistency of testing results. Our government is firmly committed to holding forensic laboratories to a high standard. Nobody wants legal proceedings jeopardized because of discredited tests or other flawed procedures.

If passed, any laboratory that conducts forensic tests that will be used in legal proceedings, or that aid in an investigation that may result in legal proceedings, will have to be accredited. Ontario would be the first province in Canada to have legislation of this kind. This will further cement Ontario’s place as a national leader in the oversight of forensic laboratories.

To become accredited, laboratories must confirm that they have an effective system of quality management, including proficiency testing, internal audits, surveillance visits, and a code of conduct, all in order to competently perform forensic tests. Accreditation would also lead to greater oversight by introducing a system of inspection and compliance for laboratories.

Given the rapid advances in forensic sciences, it is essential that our government creates a path for the future. This proposed legislation would make sure we keep pace with changes in forensic science and research by establishing an advisory panel made up of experts from the fields of law, health, forensic sciences and child protection. This expert panel would make recommendations to ensure forensic laboratories across the province meet advancing standards and oversight requirements, research emerging trends and best practices, and identify potential gaps in future oversight.

Speaker, we all know that swift action is critical when a loved one goes missing. Currently, when there is no evidence that a crime has been committed, police cannot obtain court orders to allow access to the type of essential information or powers that may locate a missing person faster—things like mobile phone records and banking data. This places missing persons at an unnecessary risk. Our police services must be given the tools and supports they need to effectively and rapidly resolve missing person cases.

This is why our government is supporting police across the province when it comes to locating missing persons with Ontario’s first Missing Persons Act. The Missing Persons Act would remove barriers by giving courts the power to grant court orders to police to access personal information and enter premises for the purpose of searching for a missing person. This act will, for example, assist with our efforts to combat human trafficking and locate indigenous women at risk of violence.

We have worked hard to ensure that the appropriate safeguards are embedded into the proposed legislation in order to protect the privacy of missing persons. For example, the act considers persons who may not desire to be found because they are leaving or attempting to leave a violent or abusive situation behind.

I want to talk to you about the updating of the Coroners Act. The Office of the Chief Coroner plays a vital role in keeping Ontario’s communities safe. Recommendations from coroners’ inquests help to prevent a similar death from occurring in the future. This often provides comfort to grieving families who have tragically lost a loved one. Our government is committed to improving the inquest process and making it more accessible to family members who rely on an inquest to answer the question “why?”

Among the changes, our government proposes that inquests be mandatory when use of force by a police officer, special constable or other officer is the direct cause of death. Currently, this is not the case: Inquests in these circumstances are held at the coroner’s discretion, something that the chief coroner himself has asked be changed. This amendment also addresses recommendations from Justice Tulloch’s Independent Police Oversight Review where he called for greater support for family members whose loved one died in a police-related incident.

In conclusion—before I ask my colleague to speak—policing is more than law enforcement. Community safety is a shared responsibility. The Safer Ontario Act lays the foundation for this reality. It represents a generational transformation that is more proactive than reactive. It sets new standards of transparency and accountability.

Cela nous permet d’avoir des services policiers durables partout en Ontario, y compris dans les Premières Nations, pour assurer la sécurité de toute notre collectivité.

This legislation, as I said, is the culmination of over five years of work. I want to thank everyone who has helped make this happen for their hard work and dedication. This is an exceptional example of collaboration between a broad array of officials, stakeholders and everyday Ontarians. I strongly urge all my colleagues in this House to support our legislative package.

Minister Naqvi, our Attorney General, will now speak to our government’s police oversight reforms.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Merci. Attorney General.

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: It’s a great honour for me to speak on Bill 175, the Safer Ontario Act. I would like to thank my colleague the honourable member from Ottawa–Orléans, the Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services, for her tireless work on this very important piece of legislation. As she mentioned in her remarks, this legislation is years in the making. There’s a lot of work—a lot of conversations and consultations—that has gone on and that has resulted in Bill 175.

I’m honoured to rise today to speak about our government’s proposed changes to strengthen policing oversight in Ontario that are part of Bill 175. These proposed changes are a part of the government’s landmark legislation, the Safer Ontario Act, which represents the largest policing transformation that our province has seen in 25 years. These changes, if passed, would help shape what effective policing and police oversight should look like in Ontario.

I want to acknowledge many of our brave police officers who are in the gallery here today. As we know, Speaker, day in and day out, they protect us and our communities in the line of duty. They are sworn to serve us and to protect us, and I want to take this opportunity to thank every single one of them and their families for the great service they provide to us in our great province of Ontario.

I feel very privileged and honoured to have had the opportunity to work with our police officers very closely in developing this legislation, and other work we have done. I want to acknowledge my good friend Bruce Chapman, who is the president of the Police Association of Ontario, for being here and working closely with the government on this legislation and other very important initiatives as well.

In addition to working with our policing community we have also worked very closely with our communities across the province as well, making sure that their points of view and their perspectives are very much part and parcel of the work that we have done that has resulted in Bill 175.

Speaker, you may have heard me say this before: I strongly believe, but I think we all know, that in order for communities to be safe there needs to be trust and respect between the police and the communities they serve. In fact, if you look at the principles of Sir Robert Peel, who is considered to be the father of modern policing, he very clearly said that the police and the community are one and the same; they are a reflection of each other. That is very true to this day.

Therefore, in order for us to have safer communities, in order for us to ensure that we have peace and harmony in our communities, we need to make sure that there’s always trust and respect between our police and the communities because they reflect each other. We need to restore and build up the confidence that people have in the police who serve them. That sense of trust is critical if people are to feel safe in their communities and if police are going to be able to do their jobs effectively.

As members may be aware, there are currently three police oversight bodies in Ontario: the Special Investigations Unit, the Office of the Independent Police Review Director and the Ontario Civilian Police Commission. Taken together, these three agencies are responsible for investigating incidents between the police and citizens while also overseeing police services such as police complaints about officers and the police disciplinary processes.

To ensure that trust in our policing oversight system is maintained and enforced, we are proposing a number of improvements to these bodies. These changes range from minor changes such as changing the names of the bodies to more comprehensive changes like how the way the policing oversight system operates.

Some of the most important modifications we are proposing in Bill 175 include:

—strengthening the obligation of policing officials to comply with oversight investigations and making it a provincial offence for failure to do so;

—eliminating the ability of a police service to investigate public complaints about its own officers;

—equipping police oversight bodies with more tools to tackle racism, including training for employees that promote recognition of and respect for the diverse multicultural character of Ontario;

—authorizing policing oversight bodies to collect personal information, which would include race-based and other demographic data; and

—expanding the Ombudsman’s jurisdiction to all three police oversight bodies.

Speaker, before I go into more detail about these changes, I would like to take a few minutes to speak to you about my appreciation for the work and service that police officers provide to all of Ontario.

Every day, over 26,000 men and women risk their lives to help keep us safe, and their jobs are not to be taken lightly. These men and women often have to make difficult decisions in life or death situations in order to keep our communities safe. It’s thanks to these efforts that Ontario is one of the safest places to live.

Like any profession that serves the public, it is important to ensure that the appropriate checks and balances are in place so that it can continue to maintain the public’s trust because, at the end of the day, if a police officer acts in a way that is inappropriate and unjustly causes a citizen harm, then we must ensure that they are held accountable. To do that, we must have an open and accountable police oversight system.

That is why, last year, the government appointed Justice Michael Tulloch to help us develop a framework for that change. In 2016, Justice Tulloch conducted an independent review of our policing oversight system, specifically looking at ways to improve its transparency and accountability.

This past spring, I had the honour of announcing the release of Justice Tulloch’s report, which outlined a number of recommendations—129, to be exact. These recommendations called on the government to make a number of sweeping changes to improve policing oversight in our province, and that’s exactly what we are proposing here today through Bill 175.

Speaker, I rise to tell you that our government has taken Justice Tulloch’s advice and, as a result, has introduced legislation that will implement 118 of the 119 recommendations directed at the Ministry of the Attorney General.

I just want to be very clear that the 119th recommendation is being partially implemented as well. We are just going a step further and making sure that the full appeal rights are available. So, in essence, we’re implementing all the recommendations that were geared towards the Ministry of the Attorney General in Justice Tulloch’s report.

I should also note that the process of arriving at these recommendations was no small feat. They were based on Justice Tulloch’s consultations, which gathered input from more than 1,500 people from across Ontario. In addition to that, the Ministry of the Attorney General also sought feedback from indigenous communities as well as a wide spectrum of community partners—many of which fought tirelessly for policing oversight reform—including civil rights and community groups; legal and human rights experts; affected families; policing organizations and municipalities.

I would also like to thank those communities that have experienced some of the same tragedies that my community has faced, who provided very important insight throughout this process to bring to light the need for enhanced transparency, enhanced accountability and enhanced independence in the oversight system, all of which has helped shape the changes that are part of Bill 175.

Since we received Justice Tulloch’s recommendations, we have not been waiting to implement some of his most critical recommendations, as we took action right away. In fact, to meet Justice Tulloch’s recommendations on transparency, the Ministry of the Attorney General began posting, on our website, reports from the Special Investigations Unit where a police officer who was a subject of an investigation has not been charged.

These reports include a detailed narrative of the events, a

summary of the investigative progress, reasons for not laying charges against the police officer, and any relevant video, audio or photographic evidence, subject to privacy considerations.

This is critical information that has never been shared with the public before. Most importantly, it gives the people of Ontario a better understanding of why the Special Investigations Unit has not laid charges against an officer in a particular matter.

In addition, we are working to fulfill our commitment to release all past Special Investigations Unit reports from 2005 to 2017 which involve police interaction where a fatality occurred. These additional reports will be posted on our website later this year.

This is just one of the many changes we have begun to make to improve police accountability. I would now like to explain to the members about the other changes that are yet to come and are part of this legislation, all of which will give the Special Investigations Unit greater capability when it comes to adequately holding police officers accountable for their actions.

Under the Safer Ontario Act, we are proposing to revitalize the Special Investigations Unit by expanding its mandate and equipping it with more tools to strengthen its role. For starters, we will be making this organization its own independent agency, separate and apart from the Ministry of the Attorney General.

Under the proposed legislation, the new independent agency, which would be renamed the Ontario Special Investigations Unit, would have an expanded mandate that would not only include the investigation of police officers, but also special constables, special constables of private employers such as the TTC or universities, and volunteer members of a police service. This is a fundamental change, because it means that the men and women who help maintain public order on our transit systems and in universities and colleges would now have to be held to the same high standards of accountability that we set for our police.

The mandate of the new oversight agency could also apply to First Nations police services that help protect the indigenous men, women and children living on-reserve. Currently, there is no independent body that looks into complaints made against a First Nations police service. Under our proposed legislation, First Nations may choose to opt into Ontario’s policing framework, which would then include them under the purview of the Ontario Special Investigations Unit.

The legislation also permits the negotiation of agreements between the Ontario Special Investigations Unit and those First Nations policing services choosing not to opt into the new policing framework that is outlined in the Bill 175.

For too long, Ontario’s policing legislation has failed to respond to the on-reserve realities and needs that indigenous communities have communicated, including systemic abuses of policing powers and unequal justice services. By creating one potential tool to hold officers accountable for their actions, this new legislative reform would help advance access to justice for indigenous people living on-reserve.

In addition to investigating police officers or other officials in incidents involving serious injuries, death or sexual assault, the Ontario Special Investigations Unit will also be able to investigate all incidents involving the discharge of firearms, regardless of whether an injury or death occurs. This is a massive change that will transform policing oversight in our province.

I want the members here today to take a moment and consider what this change will mean for the people of Ontario. What we are proposing to do here is to fundamentally change the way the Ontario Special Investigations Unit operates, as it now would have far greater powers than it has ever had before.

For example, allowing the Ontario Special Investigations Unit to lay charges related to any criminal offence uncovered during the course of an investigation, even if it is not related to a civilian death, serious injury or sexual assault, will go a long way in creating a more accountable oversight system in Ontario and will undoubtedly help rebuild the public’s trust in our policing oversight system.

I would also like to point out that the Safer Ontario Act, if passed, would require the Ontario Special Investigations Unit and the Ontario Policing Complaints Agency to collect information and publish reports for the purpose of evaluating and improving the policing and policing oversight systems in Ontario.

More importantly, the government would now have authority to prescribe specific types of personal information that these two bodies may collect for this purpose, like race-based data, for example. While this may seem like a minor modification, this is, in fact, a significant change that will help the oversight bodies better identify patterns of concern in relation to complaints or investigations within their mandates and will be a powerful tool for the oversight bodies to use in their public reporting.

Another important feature of this bill is our proposal to clarify the Ontario Special Investigations Unit’s mandate to investigate incidents involving former police officers as well as off-duty officers in certain circumstances. This is a critical change that would clarify that any off-duty officer who exercises his or her power as a police officer would fall within the agency’s jurisdiction. Notifying the SIU of an incident is a pivotal piece to ensuring that the oversight system is operating effectively and protecting the people of our province.

Speaker, we have taken the extra step of ensuring there is a duty to notify the SIU, even if there is doubt of whether they should be notified; and if they do not, it would constitute professional misconduct. It could allow the Ontario Special Investigations Unit to lay Criminal Code charges for obstruction of justice. This is a change that is long overdue. This is a change that will have a direct impact on the way policing officials and their employers are held accountable for their actions. Sometimes, the appropriate oversight body may not be notified of an incident involving a civilian because police services are not always certain if an off-duty officer has identified—

Interjections.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): I’d appreciate, since your member is speaking, to take it down a notch. Thanks.

Continue.

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: Thank you, Speaker.

Let me start that sentence from the beginning just so that I can complete that thought. Sometimes the appropriate oversight body may not be notified of an incident involving a civilian because police services are not always certain if an off-duty officer has identified themselves as a police officer.

Our proposed changes would bring clarity to the duty that police services have in these types of circumstances by creating a “when in doubt” rule which stipulates that the Ontario Special Investigations Unit should be notified under any circumstances where it cannot be determined whether or not a policing official was exercising policing powers at the time of an incident. It is my hope that this new rule will help to ensure that any police officer who invokes their powers while off duty would be held accountable just as if they were on duty.

We are also taking bold steps to tackle systemic racism and discrimination. One of the best ways that this can be accomplished is by ensuring that staff at police oversight bodies are able to better understand how racism and inherent bias play a role in the actions of policing officials during their investigations. To do this, Speaker, we are proposing that the directors of the Ontario Special Investigations Unit provide training for all employees at the organization which is focused on recognizing and respecting the diverse, multicultural society that we live in.

This change is especially important for the black community and cultures of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples in Ontario, because at the end of the day we know that despite living in the largest, most diverse province in Canada, we still encounter many different forms of racism such as anti-black racism and discrimination against indigenous peoples. It is my hope that these changes will help staff and oversight bodies recognize the racial disparity in their investigations.

Now, in the event that a policing official is investigated for his or her actions, it is important that the investigators who look into a case are—and are perceived to be—independent and unbiased. That is why part of our reforms includes limiting the number of investigators who are former police officers, as this will help diversify the investigative teams and help ensure investigations are more independent. Under the proposed legislation, there would be authority to limit the number of former police officers who could be assigned to an investigative team at the Ontario Special Investigations Unit.

What, exactly, the number will be capped at has yet to be determined. To ensure that we get this number right, we will be seeking further advice from our partners and would make this decision during the regulation-making process, in the coming months.

In addition, this bill will help to ensure that we have investigators who are well trained to do their jobs by establishing requirements and qualifications for oversight agency investigators. Because while we recognize that former police officers have specialized investigative skills and knowledge, and certainly have expertise on police techniques such as witness interviewing, scene preservation and forensics, we must ensure that the need for investigative expertise in the policing oversight bodies is balanced with the need for complete independence, to maintain fair and unbiased decision-making throughout the investigative process.

Finally, I would also like to bring your attention, Speaker, to a key change we are making to improve the investigative powers of oversight bodies. Currently, during the course of an investigation, police officers are asked to co-operate with investigations into their actions. The proposed legislation will change this by mandating that police officers have a duty to comply. That goes for all policing oversight investigations, including the ones that are completed by the Office of the Independent Police Review Director. In fact, should a policing official fail to comply with either policing oversight body, they could face a penalty of up to $50,000 or imprisonment for up to one year, or both.

These changes should leave no doubt in anyone’s mind that we are serious when it comes to reforming policing oversight in our province and ensuring that police oversight bodies have access to all of the information they need to conduct robust investigations.

Speaker, now I would like to take a moment to talk about some of the key changes we will be making to the Office of the Independent Police Review Director, also known as OIPRD. If our proposed legislation is passed, the agency would be renamed the Ontario Policing Complaints Agency. It would become the sole investigative body of all public complaints, but not just about police officers. Like the Special Investigations Unit, the mandate of this body would also be expanded so that it would also investigate complaints made against special constables and, in some cases, First Nations police that have opted into Ontario’s policing framework.

To help reinforce public confidence in police oversight, we are also proposing to improve the independence of investigations into public complaints about a police officer or a special constable. Currently, most complaints about police officers are referred to their respective police service to resolve, which could make it appear to the public that police are simply investigating themselves. As such, we are proposing that within five years, all professional misconduct investigations will be performed by the new Ontario Policing Complaints Agency in all but the most exceptional circumstances.

If a matter is in the public interest, the agency would have the power to investigate police officers or special constables without having a public complaint filed. I am confident that these changes would go a long way towards growing the public’s confidence in policing oversight in our province.

Before closing, Speaker, I would also like to highlight a few key changes that we are proposing for the Ontario Civilian Police Commission. Under the proposed legislation, this independent tribunal would be dedicated to adjudicating disciplinary matters involving police officers and special constables. As such, we find it fitting to rename this agency the Ontario Policing Discipline Tribunal so that its title more accurately reflects the work it would do.

Currently, disciplinary hearings resulting from public complaints about a police officer are heard by the relevant chief of police or their delegate, and the prosecutor is selected by the chief of police, which is something that I feel is simply unacceptable in this day and age. That is why we are proposing that all hearings resulting from a public complaint be heard by independent adjudicators at the Ontario Policing Discipline Tribunal. In addition, independent counsel at the Ministry of the Attorney General will be able to conduct these hearings if they are in the public interest. These changes would go a long way to making the work of police oversight bodies more independent.

If, after all of these proposed changes, the public still has a concern about a police oversight matter, we would ensure that they have a point of recourse. Currently, the Ontario Ombudsman only has limited jurisdiction over some of the oversight bodies. We are looking to change this by proposing that all three of the police oversight bodies—the Ontario Special Investigations Unit, the Ontario Policing Complaints Agency and the Ontario Policing Discipline Tribunal—become subject to the jurisdiction of the Ontario Ombudsman.

In closing, I just want to say that the changes we are proposing here today will have a profound impact on policing oversight in our province. If implemented, they will transform the way we hold police officers and other policing officials accountable for their actions and ensure that the decisions that are made about their actions are made public at every available opportunity.

If passed, this bill would play an integral role in bridging the gap between police officers and the public by making more information about the work of police officers accessible. The public would have a better understanding of the actions taken by police officers in often life-threatening situations.

We know that these proposed changes are what many in the policing community and advocates have been calling for for years. I’m proud to join my colleague the Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services in proposing these sweeping changes to policing and police oversight, and I urge all members here today to provide their support for this historic bill.

Second reading debate deemed adjourned.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): It being 10:15, this House stands recessed until 10:30 this morning.

The House recessed from 1015 to 1030.

Introduction of Visitors

Mr. Victor Fedeli: I would like to introduce Steven Brown, Peter Brunette and Darcy Wall from the North Bay Police Service, who are here today.

Ms. Cheri DiNovo: I’m delighted to introduce Jared Scratch, from Trinity-St. Paul’s Centre for Faith, Justice and the Arts, who is visiting today.

Hon. Tracy MacCharles: It’s a thrill to introduce Braeson Holland today. Braeson started in my ministry office today and has worked in my constituency office previously. I just want to say a big welcome to Queen’s Park, Braeson.

Mr. Jack MacLaren: It gives me great pleasure to introduce two guests in the gallery over here: Bill Oprel, a candidate for the Trillium Party in Brampton Centre, and John Grant, a candidate for the Trillium Party in Brampton South.

Mr. Taras Natyshak: I’d like to welcome all the members from the Police Association of Ontario here today, including president Bruce Chapman and executive director Stephen Reid; and from my riding, Shawn McCurdy, Jason DeJong and his dad, Harry DeJong.

I’m meeting with Michael Duffy and Jim Glena later on.

I want to welcome them to Queen’s Park.

Mr. James J. Bradley: The page captain today is Javeriar Laskar. His mother, Sabreena Mamtaz, and father, Masudur Laskar, are here in the public gallery.

Also, page captain Iman Kirefu and her parents, Saira and Husein Kirefu, are going to be in the public gallery today.

Finally, page Devon Kisob and his mother, Winnifred Kisob, are in the gallery today.

Welcome to all of them.

Mr. Lorne Coe: I would like to introduce Brad Durst, Colin Goodwin, Tim Morrison and Jamie Bramma from the Durham Regional Police Association; also, Joel Willett, Ariana Chasse and Abdullah Mushtaq from the College Student Alliance. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Ms. Jennifer K. French: I would also like to welcome members of the Durham Regional Police Association: Brad Durst, Colin Goodwin, Randy Henning, Tim Morrison, Keith Aubrey and Jamie Bramma. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: I’d like to welcome some members of the Rohingya community and their friends who are visiting Queen’s Park today from Kitchener. My colleague Daiene Vernile and I had the pleasure of meeting many of them in Kitchener a few weeks ago. Please welcome Mohammed Faisal, Mohammed Rasel, Jannatara Begum, Ruma Ruma, Saifullah Muhammad, Kalima Noor, Abdul Karim, Michael Lublin, Christopher David and Ovais Iqbal. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mrs. Julia Munro: I’d ask all members to help me welcome Erica He and her husband, Eric Love, here to Queen’s Park to witness question period. They’re members of Professional Engineers Ontario.

Ms. Catherine Fife: I’m pleased to welcome students from Pathways to Education from Kitchener: Xalima Ali, Shams Saab, Tasnim Faraah, Tay Dibaba. Tyrone Russell is a staff member, as is Raas Siddiqui. They’re going to be job-shadowing me today. I’m so pleased to welcome you to Queen’s Park.

Hon. Marie-France Lalonde: I would like to welcome the Police Association of Ontario to Queen’s Park for their lobby day today. We are joined by PAO president Bruce Chapman, executive director Stephen Reid, policy and legal counsel Michael Duffy and other members.

On behalf of the Ottawa caucus member, I would also like to welcome Matt Skof, president of the Ottawa Police Association.

Mr. Steve Clark: I want to introduce to you and, through you, to the members of the Legislative Assembly a constituent from my riding of Leeds–Grenville who is here with the College Student Alliance. She’s a student at St. Lawrence College in Brockville: Ariana Chasse. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: I’d like to welcome some people who will be joining us. That’s the grade 5 students from Joshua Creek Public School in Oakville.

Also, from the PAO are Sarah Diamond, Dannielle Goddard, Barry Hughes and Samantha Keenan.

Please welcome them to Queen’s Park.

Ms. Sylvia Jones: I would like to give you a very specific example of what happens when you’ve served for 10 years: My adult son, Dawson Gillies, has joined me in the Legislature today.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Welcome.

The member for London West.

Ms. Peggy Sattler: I’d like to extend a very warm welcome to all the members of the College Student Alliance who have joined us today, in particular the president, Joel Willett, and others.

I would also like to welcome OSSTF vice-president Rob Gascho to Queen’s Park.

Hon. Deborah Matthews: I have three different introductions. First of all, the parents of our page Aditya Deshpande, Sushama and Ameet, are here. Welcome. We’re very proud of your son.

The second thing is, I’d like to welcome guests from Pathways to Education. I am delighted that several of those members are here, including their CEO, Susanne Gillespie.

And let me add to those who have already welcomed the College Student Alliance—a great bunch of students.

Mr. Robert Bailey: To you and, through you, to the members of the Legislature, I would like to introduce representatives from Sarnia–Lambton from the Police Association of Ontario: Miro Soucek, Johann Lewis, Carole Mariuz and Deb Thibert.

Mr. James J. Bradley: I would like to introduce, from the Niagara Parks Police, Chris Gallagher and Lance Dobbin.

Mr. Ross Romano: I would like to welcome some visitors from Sault Ste. Marie today, as well as board and staff members from the Invasive Species Centre, seated in the gallery to the left.

The Invasive Species Centre was formed by collaborative agreement between Ontario and Canada in 2011, and joins us today with their many partners to thank members for their support and efforts in raising awareness about the significant issues of invasive species and how we can work together to protect Ontario from the devastating impacts.

We do have a reception this afternoon at 5 p.m. in room 228-230. I hope to see you all there.

Ms. Sophie Kiwala: It gives me great pleasure to welcome Cam Gough, Sean Bambrick and Graedon Schaule from the Kingston police association.

I would also like to welcome the College Student Alliance from Kingston and the Islands and, of course, Howard Brown.

Mr. Todd Smith: I’d like to welcome members of the Belleville Police Association: Anne Brennan-Walsh, Kosta Brindakis, Paul Fyke, Adam Donaldson and Pat Comeau. We welcome them to Queen’s Park today.

Ms. Cindy Forster: I’d like to introduce the page from Welland, Allan Buri. His grandmother Linda Saxon is here today, somewhere in this packed gallery.

Hon. Mitzie Hunter: I’d like to welcome Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation vice-president Rob Gascho.

Also, I am so pleased to welcome to the Legislative Assembly Susanne Gillespie, who is the president and CEO of Pathways to Education; and Scott Turnbull, the coordinator of government partnerships; as well as all of the high school students who are here today, and Pathways staff, especially the team that has come down from Scarborough Village, in my riding of Scarborough–Guildwood.

Mr. Sam Oosterhoff: Today I would like to welcome to the Legislature Cliff Priest from the Niagara Regional Police Association.

Mr. Yvan Baker: I’d like to welcome a few guests to the Legislature today. I’d like to welcome the family of page Iman Kirefu. Here with us today are her father, Husein Kirefu; her mother, Saira Kirefu; and Aminah Kirefu, her sister and a former page. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Also, I’d like to welcome employees from Cole Engineering: President Mohsen Mortada, vice-president of water infrastructure Jamie Witherspoon, project manager Fady Shweihat, and Christina Cholkan, who is a project manager with Cole Engineering and a constituent of mine in Etobicoke Centre. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mr. Joe Dickson: It’s an honour to introduce David Fischer, father of page Emma Fischer. He will be in the public gallery this morning and, indeed, bumped into me three times in the hallways.

Mrs. Cristina Martins: It gives me great pleasure to introduce—I believe they’ve just arrived—Gino Cucchi and Alicia Vianga from After Breast Cancer from my riding of Davenport.

Hon. Liz Sandals: I’m very pleased to introduce members of the Guelph Police Association that I met with this morning: Matt Jotham, president; Phil Perrins, treasurer; and Allie Johnston, special constable.

I don’t know whether you had a chance to introduce him, Speaker, but Mark Baxter from the Brantford Police Association is also here with us today. Welcome.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Thank you.

Mr. Grant Crack: The best for last. I’d like to welcome Catherina Blair from the village of Maxville in the great riding of Glengarry–Prescott–Russell. Welcome, Catherina.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Thank you. Further introductions?

Thank you for your patience. I would like to acknowledge Mark Baxter from the PAO from the riding of Brant.

I also have with us today a very special guest: The Governor General of Antigua and Barbuda, His Excellency Sir Dr. Rodney Williams, and his wife, Lady Sandra Williams, have joined us all the way from the islands. As well, joining them is Ms. Ann-Marie Layne, consul general of Antigua and Barbuda.

I’m sure that on behalf of the Legislature, we wish all of you a good recovery from the tragic storm that took place. I know the recovery has already started, and we offer you our best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Wearing of pins

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): At this time, it’s time to introduce the member from Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound, who is going to do a point of order.

Mr. Bill Walker: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I seek unanimous consent to wear pins for the Shine the Light on Woman Abuse Campaign, and also offer a reminder to all members that there will be a photo on the main staircase immediately following question period.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound is seeking unanimous consent to wear pins and also for all of us to have our picture taken. Do we agree? Agreed.

Legislative pages

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Now I will ask us to assemble to greet our new set of pages.

From Simcoe North, Abigale Goneau; from Mississauga South, Adam Muinuddin; from London North Centre, Aditya Deshpande; from Oakville, Alisha Ahmed; from Welland, Allan Buri; from Davenport, Amely Su; from Parkdale–High Park, Andrew Stevenson; from Kitchener–Conestoga, Davis Gates; from Mississauga–Streetsville, Devon Kisob; from Ajax–Pickering, Emma Fischer; from Hamilton East–Stoney Creek, Erion Keka; from Etobicoke Centre, Iman Kirefu; from Guelph, Isabelle Funk; from Toronto Centre, Javeriar Laskar; from Scarborough Centre, Katrina Yee; from Oak Ridges–Markham, Natalie Conrad; from Willowdale, Olivia McCormick; from Burlington, Sean Reynolds; from Halton, Vathmie Widyalankara; from Bramalea–Gore–Malton, Zunairah Gangat.

These are our pages for this session.

Applause.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): It is therefore time for question period.

Oral Questions

Police officers

Ms. Sylvia Jones: My question is for the Premier. Last year, this Legislature unanimously passed Supporting Ontario’s First Responders Act, which recognized the increased risk of serious disability that our police officers across Ontario face. Yet in Bill 175, the same government is attempting to gut the employment rights of disabled police officers.

This bill overrides police collective agreements that protect members from discrimination and limits the human rights of disabled police officers.

Section 115 gives police employers a fast-track to firing disabled police officers regardless of whether their disability is temporary or permanent, without regard to how serious it is.

How does attacking disabled police officers build stronger and safer communities?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Mr. Speaker, I know that the minister is going to want to comment in the supplementary, but please let me add my voice to all of those who have welcomed police officers here to the Legislature today, and just say that we have worked in partnership with first responders, with police officers in particular, to make sure that we do everything we can to create the safest Ontario possible.

I want to acknowledge the work of police officers and the organizations that have worked with us. We value their advice, but more than that, we value their service to the people of Ontario every single day.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Be seated, please.

Supplementary?

Ms. Sylvia Jones: It was a very specific question:

section 115.

In 2015, London Police Service revealed that mental health calls account for 15% of their entire budget. Windsor police report they respond to eight mental health crisis calls a day. This is a common story in our cities and towns across Ontario.

Ontario’s police have become the de facto front-line mental health workers, but they don’t have the resources necessary. Why does this government fail to provide police with the means necessary to deal with mental health issues in our communities?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Labour.

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Speaker, I’ll tell you, one of the best things I’ve ever worked on in this House is when we came together for our first responders and we got unanimous support to do much better on PTSD for first responders: to bring in presumptive legislation to make sure that the people who are on the front line, who go and do the jobs that we don’t want to do, who deal with the situations that we sometimes prefer not to deal with—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): My resolve is the same as yesterday. You will signal to me when it happens.

Carry on.

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Bruce Chapman of the PAO, police officers, firefighters, corrections and paramedics came forward and said, “We need better coverage for post-traumatic stress disorder for our members.” We delivered on that. I am proud of that legislation. We should all be proud of that legislation.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Final supplementary.

Ms. Sylvia Jones: We are. That’s why we passed it unanimously.

The Liberals are also underfunding our court system. It’s another slap in the face to police officers and the justice system. It means more stayed cases and more dangerous criminals, free to roam our streets.

Since the landmark Supreme Court Jordan decision, more than 200 criminal cases have been tossed out across Canada. Earlier this year, it was reported that over 70 have occurred here in Ontario.

It’s completely unacceptable that charged criminals are walking free. We need individuals who have been charged to actually go through the justice system. Can the Liberals explain to the police here today why they’ve underfunded our court system?

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Speaker, to the Attorney General.

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: I appreciate the member asking a very important question. Since the Jordan decision came by the Supreme Court of Canada last summer, we have been working very actively to ensure that we make our justice system faster and fairer—

Ms. Sylvia Jones: And 70 cases have been tossed.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Dufferin–Caledon, come to order. That may indeed get us to warnings, but I’ll check.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Do you have a complaint, member from Renfrew?

Mr. John Yakabuski: No, no.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): No? Good.

Carry on.

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: Speaker, in order to make our justice system faster and fairer, in response to the decision by the Supreme Court of Canada, last December we announced an investment of $25 million per year in our justice system, hiring more new judges, more crowns, more defence attorneys, more staff to make sure that we make our system effective.

But we have not stopped there. We are making structural changes in our system as well, both here in the province by changing our bail policy, but also working along with the federal government.

Ontario economy

Mr. Victor Fedeli: My question is for the Premier. The fall economic statement presented yesterday in this House is nothing more than a pre-election—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Stop the clock. The Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport will come to order. The next one gets us to warnings.

Finish, please.

Mr. Victor Fedeli: This is a pre-election house of cards. As we dig deeper into the numbers, it’s clear that the Auditor General and the Financial Accountability Officer are absolutely correct not to believe them.

By the government’s own admission, the economy will underperform many private sector forecasts for 2017, which had growth at 3% or higher. Despite the government’s narrative, it doesn’t line up with the fact that growth is slowing as we speak. Yet they’re still predicting a $10-billion revenue increase this year. None of that adds up.

To the Premier: Why do they continue to thumb their nose at the Legislature’s independent experts, who say that the budget is not balanced?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Here are the facts that we are dealing with in Ontario.

Our economy has grown faster than all G7 countries over the past three years, and 800,000 net new jobs have been created since the recession.

Our unemployment rate is at a 16-year low, and it has been below the national average for 31 straight months.

We’ve beaten our deficit targets eight years in a row, and our debt-to-GDP ratio is projected to fall from around 40% to 37.8%.

The fact is that Ontario is doing very well. We are leading economic growth in this country.

What the member opposite fails to acknowledge is that there is more to be done, which is why our plan to raise the minimum wage, to ensure equal pay for equal work—those are the pillars of a fair society that apparently the member opposite is not interested in supporting.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Be seated, please.

Supplementary.

Mr. Victor Fedeli: Back to the Premier: Well, again, none of that is agreed to by the Auditor General or the Financial Accountability Officer. By almost every metric, this government has underperformed since the 2017 budget. Revenues are up only $115 million—nowhere close to their forecast—yet expenses are up $215 million since the budget. Personal income tax and health premium revenue is down $1.8 billion since the budget, yet they still say that revenue will increase by $10 billion this year.

We have rosy, glowing predictions from the government, but in reality the numbers just aren’t there. The truth does not fit with their narrative.

Why does it always take the Auditor General, the Financial Accountability Officer or the OPP to get to the truth in this government?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: The reality is that corporate revenue is up. The fact is that our economic growth is leading the country.

Yesterday, this party across the floor promised that they would roll back the $15 minimum wage. They would kick the increase to $15 over a four-year phase-in—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Your decision is made. We’re in warnings.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: They would kick the increase to $15 an hour down to a four-year phase-in, which is tantamount to denying that increase. It is tantamount to not allowing people to catch up. The fact is that, although the province is doing well, not everyone in the province—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke and the member from Leeds–Grenville are warned. If you don’t get the message, I’ll give it to you.

Final supplementary.

Mr. Victor Fedeli: Back to the Premier: The experts have been clear that the government has been using one-time revenue to fluff up their budget numbers.

Money from the Hydro One sale? That’s over now. From land transfer tax? The housing market is cooling. From federal transfers? That fluctuates every year.

Now, without these massive, one-time revenues, the government still says annual revenue growth will be 4% over the next four years, but the Financial Accountability Officer says it will average just 3%. It doesn’t sound like much, but those are billions of dollars apart. None of what they’re saying adds up whatsoever.

Speaker, if the independent legislative experts don’t believe this government’s numbers, why should any Ontario families?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Finance.

Hon. Charles Sousa: The member opposite maybe didn’t read this fall economic statement, because we revised our numbers from 2.3% real GDP to 2.8% real GDP, which is lower than independent economists predict for the continuing growth of our economy and for the province of Ontario. In fact, HST has gone up, showing consumer confidence. Business investment is going up, showing business confidence, Mr. Speaker. Our accumulated deficit over the past 25 years is lower today than it has ever been, and our debt-to-GDP is improving.

The member opposite is making reference, but he is not acknowledging that the independent economists, the independent review and the investors are showing confidence in our province because we are winning and we are supporting opportunity at the same time, creating fairness so that every individual in this province does get a fair wage and businesses get their fair share. We are all improving our economy and we are working together, Mr. Speaker.

Hospital funding

Ms. Andrea Horwath: My question is for the Premier. Yesterday, the Premier and her Liberal government followed the NDP’s lead and agreed to our motion to address the hospital overcrowding and hallway medicine in Brampton. The Premier voted to provide William Osler Health System, which operates Brampton Civic Hospital and Peel Memorial health centre, $30.2 million to address urgent overcrowding issues.

My question is, will the Premier tell us when exactly the money is going to flow to those facilities?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: We were happy to support the motion of the member opposite because we were already there. We’re already making those investments, Mr. Speaker. We had already taken action. I appreciate the leader of the third party coming along and recognizing that what we were doing was what needed to be done: $41 million already invested over the last couple of years. We are expanding the beds. We are making further investments in the William Osler health centre.

We understand that there is more to be done, and the fact that the leader of the third party understands that as well is a good thing. We can move ahead together.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Brampton Civic Hospital, I might remind this Premier, has two operating rooms that have never even been used, not because there aren’t any patients that need them but because, on the day that it opened, Brampton Civic Hospital was already underfunded by this Premier and her Liberal government. The Liberals never provided the funding for those two ORs, leaving people to wait longer for the care that they need.

Now that the Premier has finally taken some responsibility for the mess that she has helped create in Brampton, can she tell us when those two ORs are actually going to be opened and operating, Speaker?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Health and Long-Term Care.

Hon. Eric Hoskins: We added $10 million to the operating budget of William Osler hospital this year and $41 million over the past two years.

I had the honour and the opportunity last week—I was at Peel Memorial, the wellness centre, the urgent care centre that the Premier opened up earlier this year, and I was proud to announce with the community there, with the mayor of Brampton, with many councillors, with the political leadership and the health care leadership, our commitment to fund phase 2 of that wellness centre of Peel Memorial where we will be adding well in excess of 100 beds and all the necessary supportive care to support those patients, those in-patients.

They will be patients who require support on rehabilitation, patients who require complex continuing care. That was an important announcement.

On top of that, I was able to announce 37 new beds immediately for Brampton Civic Hospital that will be available and active this calendar year.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Final supplementary?

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Notwithstanding what the health minister says, it was just weeks ago that the ask for $30.2 million came from Brampton Civic Hospital, Speaker. That hospital has already been forced to call code gridlock—this year, from January to April, they called code gridlock eight times. To the tune of about 62 days in those four months, that hospital was in code gridlock.

The hospital needs this money immediately to help families with loved ones receiving their medical care currently in public hallways, with no dignity, with no privacy, with no confidentiality. I don’t think anybody in this Legislature would like to see their loved ones getting treatment in hallways in their hospitals.

My question is this: Will the Premier guarantee that this urgent funding that was asked for a couple of weeks ago, that the Liberals voted for just yesterday afternoon—will she guarantee that that urgent funding will reach the hospital immediately?

Hon. Eric Hoskins: I am so happy that the NDP yesterday, along with the rest of the Legislature, unanimously supported and endorsed our investments in Brampton Civic Hospital—41 million new dollars in the last two years; 37 new beds announced just last week that will be active this calendar year—and a brand new phase 2 at Peel Memorial Hospital with well in excess of 100 beds, an investment worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

I have to say that I’m gratified, particularly given their record of closing, during their tenure as government, 9,600 acute care beds; 13% of all the mental health beds in the hospitals—323 beds; 24% of all the acute hospital beds in the province. And they decreased hospital funding and they decreased health funding in their last year of government.

Hospital funding

Ms. Andrea Horwath: My next question is also for the Premier. Peel Memorial is dealing with a $19.2-million budget shortfall. When it opened, administrators said that they needed a $50-million operating budget increase because it was projected that the urgent care centre would see 50% more patients than it was originally funded for. Well, Speaker, the Premier flatly said no and instead only provided $31 million, falling far short of what was required to run a facility that is in such demand.

Now, less than a year later and under intense political pressure to act, the Liberals have finally agreed to make up the shortfall. When will Peel Memorial actually see that money?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Health and Long-Term Care.

Hon. Eric Hoskins: Mr. Speaker, I’m still trying to figure out—they ask for a solution, and we provide a solution. Remember the former Humber River site at Finch, where we provided a solution of more than 150 beds to relieve some of the pressure on six GTA hospitals? They were against that. Then last week, we announced phase 2 of Peel Memorial, to great—there was tremendous support in that room, at every level: the health care providers; the political leadership; the mayor of Brampton; many councillors were there. It was exciting to be part of that announcement, where we’re going to be adding well over 100 beds to Peel Memorial itself, in addition to the 37 beds at Brampton Civic.

I’m still trying to understand: We offer solutions, we implement solutions, and they still aren’t happy. They ask for us to make these investments; we make these investments. I’m not sure what they want us to do, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary.

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Here’s what I’m trying to figure out: Yesterday morning, this health minister accused myself and the NDP of fear-mongering when it comes to Brampton Civic Hospital, and by 6 o’clock they were voting for our motion. I guess they had their spin doctors take a look at their activity.

It took months and months of relentless pressure from the NDP, months of sharing horror story after horror story after horror story of what families have been dealing with at Brampton Civic Hospital, tireless advocacy from the Brampton mayor and dedicated activists from that community before this Premier actually woke up to the serious overcrowding issues at Brampton Civic Hospital.

Why will this Premier only act when she and her Liberal colleagues are under political threat? Why?

Hon. Eric Hoskins: Mr. Speaker, here’s where I draw the line: when the leader of the third party says—and anybody can check Hansard—that dozens and dozens of hospitals in this province are in ruins. I draw the line when she says that patients are in emergency rooms stacked up like cords of wood. When she uses that terminology, I have to draw the line. When she creates a narrative to suggest that every single long-term-care home in this province is unsafe and the residents there are unsafe, I draw the line.

Mr. Speaker, I work hard every single day, as does this Premier, as does this government, to provide the highest-quality health care, which independent third parties recognize that we have. I have to draw the line when she disparages our health care system.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Stop the clock. Be seated, please.

Final supplementary.

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Well, Speaker, I draw the line when 4,352 patients in one year are receiving their medical care in a hospital in a public hallway, with no dignity and, yes, lined up like sardines, like cords of wood—because that’s how they feel.

This health minister and this Premier need to listen to the families in Ontario who have told their horror stories. All he has to do is look at the Hansard to find those horror stories—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Stop the clock.

The member may finish.

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Look, families in Brampton deserve better health care. They deserve health care that they can count on. I’m glad that this Liberal government has finally followed our lead and agreed to invest in this community, but I want to remind the Liberal government that there are people in London, in Sudbury, in Peterborough, in Toronto, in Hamilton, in every corner of this province who are also suffering the consequences of decades of Conservative—

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Thank you.

Minister?

Hon. Eric Hoskins: With great respect, Mr. Speaker, we’re not talking about somebody’s broken elbow. We’re talking about one of the best health care systems in the entire world. We’re talking about—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The Minister of Agriculture is not helpful.

You can finish your answer.

Hon. Eric Hoskins: We’re talking about thousands upon thousands of exceptionally talented and hard-working health care professionals across this province who are doing their best in a health care system that is ranked among the best in the world. The Auditor General speaks of our cancer care as the best in the world in terms of outcomes. We have among the lowest stroke mortality in the world. We have among the shortest wait times in the OECD for almost every operation and procedure. We have among the lowest wait times in our ERs across the entire country, Mr. Speaker.

Minimum wage

Mr. John Yakabuski: My question is to the Minister of Labour. For months now we’ve heard from individuals and small businesses about the negative impact Bill 148 will have on jobs and the economy due to the Liberals’ rushed implementation of a $15 minimum wage. To make matters worse, the long-promised relief in the fall economic statement yesterday was nothing more than an exercise in Liberal political spin rather than the real relief small businesses need to keep everyone on their payroll.

The Canadian Centre for Economic Analysis says the number of jobs at risk would decrease by three quarters if the minimum wage is gradually increased to $15 over five years instead of the next 14 months. A slightly slower rollout of the $15 minimum wage would get employees their pay raise and save their jobs and the businesses they work for.

Speaker, will the minister move beyond his crass political calculations, put in a more phased-in implementation date and save the workers’ jobs?

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Speaker, we’ve spent the past two and a half years in dialogue with the people of Ontario. They came forward. They came forward with ideas to change the Employment Standards Act and they came forward with ideas to change the Labour Relations Act.

One thing became very, very clear: About a third of the people in the province of Ontario currently make less than $15 an hour. Half of those people are between the ages of 25 and 64. They’re trying to raise families. They’re trying to buy groceries. They’re trying to buy shoes for their kids. They’re trying to pay their rent. We on this side of the House think it’s time for those people to have an increase in their pay. We do not believe that anybody in this province should work 35 or 40 hours a week, sometimes at two or three jobs, and not be able to afford the basics in Ontario.

We disagree wholeheartedly with the Conservative Party. We disagree with Patrick Brown. If you’re going to deny this increase—

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Thank you.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Be seated, please.

I also remind the minister that we use either titles or ridings.

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: I apologize, Speaker.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Thank you. Supplementary.

Mr. John Yakabuski: Back to the minister: A job not lost means a worker can still put food on his family’s table. The tens of thousands of people who will lose their jobs just because the minister wants to use the minimum wage for crass political gain will be denied any income.

To quote the minister from earlier this year, “When you dig down a little deeper into the issue, though, you realize it’s got ramifications that go beyond that first initial political appeal. There is actually an awful lot of economic forces at play.”

As recently as May, he knew that the right thing to do was not play politics with the province’s minimum wage, but I guess re-election comes before anything else for the Liberal Party of Ontario. Speaker, I ask the minister again, will he save workers’ jobs by implementing a reasonable timetable to a $15 minimum wage?

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: I will answer the honourable member’s question again and say that hard-working Ontarians deserve to be paid a decent wage. It’s that simple. That’s what we support on this side of the House.

Speaker, we went out and we talked to economists. Economists came back to us, and they told us that the right thing to do is exactly what we’re doing. People who earn at the lower end of the income scale spend their money. When they get their paycheque, they spend it that day. They spend it that week. They put it back into small business. They go to the Shoppers Drug Marts. They go to the Sobeys. It cycles through the economy. This isn’t money that’s taken offshore; this is money that goes right back into the local economy.

It’s time, I would hope, that all parties in this Legislature would stand up for all Ontarians, Speaker. We’ve been counted on this issue: January 1, $14 an hour; January 1, 2019, $15 an hour. It’s the right thing to do. They should be supporting this.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Hamilton Mountain is warned.

New question.

College students

Ms. Peggy Sattler: My question is to the Premier. Today college students will be demonstrating at Queen’s Park for a tuition refund, and yesterday a class action lawsuit was launched on behalf of the 500,000 Ontario college students whose classes were cancelled because of the strike. The lawsuit seeks to recover damages related to tuition as well as meal plans and residence fees when students are not getting what they paid for.

Speaker, this Liberal government’s failure to fund the college system appropriately and its failure to lead during this labour dispute has created a hot mess. If the class action lawsuit is successful, there will be almost nothing left for the announced hardship fund when students are reimbursed for lost tuition and fees.

What kind of reimbursement does this government plan to offer to students who have to pay to repeat courses, who are unable to get the placement hours they need to graduate, who have to turn down jobs they had lined up? How will their financial losses be compensated?

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Be seated, please.

Premier?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Development.

Hon. Deborah Matthews: Thank you to the member for her question.

We are joined today by several members of the College Student Alliance. This is the voice of students. They’ve done an outstanding job in bringing the voice of students to this strike situation. Students are caught in the middle of this. They are talking to individual students at their colleges and have brought those stories of hardship forward.

It is thanks to the members of the College Student Alliance and other student groups that we have required that colleges set aside the net savings of the strike and return that money to students. We’re consulting with students about how best to do that.

We acknowledge that students are the ones who are paying the price for this strike. We acknowledge that. We have tremendous respect for the student leaders who are here today. I can assure you that the Premier, myself and our government are focused on getting students back in the classroom, where they deserve to be.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary.

Ms. Peggy Sattler: Again to the Premier: Many of the representatives of the College Student Alliance who are here today were also at Queen’s Park for the November 2 launch of the action plan on student mental health. The plan was developed through an unprecedented collaboration across the post-secondary sector because of this Liberal government’s failure to deal with the crisis in student mental health, with rates that have more than doubled over the last five years.

As this strike drags on with no end in sight, we are hearing alarming stories of even more students being diagnosed with depression and anxiety. These students feel despair as they watch their futures slip away. They worry how they will ever manage the increased debt they will have to take on to complete their programs.

What specific plans has this government put in place to support the thousands of college students who are suffering and whose mental health has been compromised because of this strike?

Hon. Deborah Matthews: There is no question that the number-one issue that I hear about when I travel to colleges and universities is mental health. Whether I’m talking to students, whether I’m talking to faculty or whether I’m talking to administration, everybody is saying the same thing: that the demand for mental health services has increased tremendously. That’s exactly why we have increased funding for mental health services on campus from $9 million a year to $15 million a year. We’re focused on improving the quality of mental health care and mental health services on our campuses.

Again, it’s the voice of the students that is the most compelling. When students from the College Student Alliance and other student groups have said that we need to do a better job supporting students, we have been there to answer that call.

Government’s record / Progrès du gouvernement

Mr. Shafiq Qaadri: My question is to the Minister of Finance. All Ontarians, I think, can be encouraged by yesterday’s release of the fall economic statement, which demonstrates that our government is working to create fairness and opportunity during this period of rapid economic change.

It’s also clear that our path to balance is on track. Most importantly, unlike the approach of other parties, this is not being achieved by slashing and burning the services that people depend on, and it’s being supported by a thriving economy.

As you will know, Speaker, businesses have created more than 800,000 net new jobs since the 2008 recession, and 300,000 jobs are expected by 2020. Real GDP is now forecast to grow at a healthy 2.8%, a very substantial increase from the previous budget projection.

A balanced budget allows for more money to invest in things that matter to everyone in Ontario: schools, hospitals, roads, bridges and more.

To the minister: Est-ce que vous pouvez élaborer sur le travail et les mesures que notre gouvernement fait?

Hon. Charles Sousa: Thank you for the question from the member from Etobicoke North. Our government is delivering a balanced budget. We’ve beaten our fiscal targets for the eighth year in a row. Net debt to GDP has improved to 37.3%. Our strengthening investments continue to attract private and foreign direct investment.

The numbers show that our policies are working. Real GDP growth is above projections. In fact, over the last three years, Ontario’s real GDP growth exceeds that of all G7 countries. Our businesses have created over 800,000 net new jobs, as indicated, bringing our unemployment rate below the national average for 31 straight months. We’ve managed growth in program spending, making Ontario the leanest government in Canada.

Mr. Speaker, Ontario has come out of the recession stronger but we know there is more to do. We want to ensure everyone in Ontario benefits from our strong economy. That’s why we’re taking steps to support workers and their families to create more fairness and opportunity for all hard-working Ontarians.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary.

Mr. Shafiq Qaadri: Thank you, Minister. I think it’s clear that our growing economy, together with a balanced budget, is creating more and more opportunities for businesses and individuals across Ontario.

On the ground in my own riding of Etobicoke North, this is reflected, for example, by the $400-million expansion of Etobicoke General Hospital which, I would respectfully remind the House, is also part of the William Osler system.

We know, Speaker, that policies which build our people up are what matter most to Ontarians. That’s why I’m proud to stand with a party that’s increasing the minimum wage to $15 an hour, coming up shortly. We know that hard-working people are struggling to put food on their tables and they cannot wait for years for this pay increase.

We know that students—over 200,000 of them—will be benefiting from free tuition.

And Speaker, as a doctor, I have to support OHIP+, the greatest expansion of pharmacare in a generation, as was mentioned.

Speaker, we know our historical investments to infrastructure—$190 billion over 13 years—will spur economic growth. Can the minister please detail more of these initiatives?

Hon. Charles Sousa: Thank you again for the question. We’re building a stronger, fairer Ontario. We’re designating another $155 million in supports for our seniors strategy, so our seniors can live independent, healthy and active lives. We’re helping to build more competitiveness in our business environment by providing another $500 million in new initiatives for small business. We’re cutting WSIB costs and reducing red tape further.

It includes more incentives to businesses to hire young people—$124 million over three years—as well as new grants to encourage employers to hire apprentices, up to $19,000 per apprentice. Mr. Speaker, we’re creating the third pillar to our post-secondary education system to support our indigenous institutes. We’ve also announced $5 million in extra dollars for the north through our Ontario Municipal Partnership Fund. This is our balanced approach to create fairness and opportunity for the people of Ontario.

Ontario tree seed plant

Mr. Jim Wilson: My question is to the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry. Mr. Speaker, the government has unilaterally decided to close the Ontario Tree Seed Plant in Angus without any consultation. It was only after the government announced the closure that the ministry held a public meeting and then another meeting between stakeholders and the deputy minister. Those working in the industry urged the government to delay the closure for three years to five years to allow them time to transition. Despite this advice, the ministry is going ahead with their closure dates in nine months’ time.

The minister is on record stating that the government will work with its partners to ensure a smooth transition, and yet tree growers and others in the industry say the closure date does not give them enough time. In fact, plans to sell Ontario’s irreplaceable and priceless seed inventories are already under way.

Mr. Speaker, there seems to be a disconnect here. Will the minister commit to working with these growers and other experts to find a solution that won’t destroy yet another thriving industry in the province of Ontario?

Hon. Kathryn McGarry: We continue to work with Rob Keen from Forests Ontario as well as all the partners around the Ontario Tree Seed Plant. We have continued to consult, not just in my ministry office, but they met recently with my ministry team in our offices.

We did not start consultation until we had been able to have a discussion with the employees. It was not appropriate to bring a public consultation ahead of time where the employees knew that there may be some changes down the way.

Speaker, we continue to move towards a more efficient and modern seed archive. During this transition, we’ll be encouraging new market opportunities for Ontario’s nurseries to provide native seeds to grow trees for the industry, as well as the public. I want to let you know that there will be significant savings to Ontario taxpayers through reduced operating and capital costs as we transition to the new way of doing things.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary.

Mr. Jim Wilson: Back to the minister: The minister is assuming that the private sector will be able to take over immediately. That means the private sector, in nine months, has to build infrastructure, acquire an array of specialized equipment, hire and train technical staff to run the facility, all with a price tag of over $1 million.

Growers in my riding tell me this simply isn’t possible. These growers are the largest suppliers to tree planting programs across southern Ontario and they are calling the ministry’s plan both unreasonable and irresponsible.

In Leeds–Grenville, On October 13, the Ontario Tree Seed Coalition submitted a transition proposal that they’ve yet to receive a response to. Growers and the coalition are asking the government to accept the transition proposal and immediately establish a stakeholder group to work alongside ministry officials.

Minister, you talked about significant savings to the taxpayers. With the billions of dollars you guys do in scandals, this thing is costing you $1 million a year. It’s an irreplaceable, priceless collection of seeds. Some of these plants are extinct. Why are you trying to destroy that?

Hon. Kathryn McGarry: I’d just like to point out to the member opposite that it was his party that, in 1996, opened our province’s provincial nursery program for privatization and put the Ontario Tree Seed Plant in this position in the first place.

We have had two recent public meetings in that community to talk about all options going forward. All options continue to be on the table to make sure that we are moving from a facility it makes no sense to continue to operate as it’s such a large one. We will be transitioning new market opportunities for Ontario’s nurseries.

As I said, all options continue to be on the table. We do continue to consult. We’ve had two recent public meetings. We are developing new policies like the new seed zone policy and creating a modern seed archive that will continue to make sure that we can continue to provide the seeds for Ontario’s forests moving forward.

Labour dispute

Ms. Cheri DiNovo: My question is for the Premier. Workers who sort produce for the Ippolito company at the Ontario Food Terminal have been on strike for the last nine days. They do the back-breaking work that starts at 2 a.m. to distribute produce to our local grocery stores and restaurants. They make less than other workers at the terminal. They don’t have sick days. They don’t have job security. What they’re seeking is simply a fair first contract—a situation, sadly, all too common, where employers drag out this process, hoping to rattle newly unionized workplaces.

New Democrats proposed first-contract arbitration that would help ensure that negotiations don’t drag out and become strikes or lockouts. Sadly, the Liberal government voted that down.

Will the Premier stand up today with the Ippolito workers and support first-contract arbitration for all workers in this province?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Labour.

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: I thank the honourable member for her question and for the concern about the dispute that is taking place. What we try to do at the Ministry of Labour, obviously, is to promote a very stable and a very constructive labour relations regime and have productive workplaces in the province of Ontario. What we do, Speaker, is we enforce the labour legislation. Some of that will be changing, should this House support Bill 148. There are regulations and programs that will follow that.

In Ontario, we’ve got an excellent record of dispute resolution. About 98% of all agreements in the province are reached without strikes, and they’re reached without lockouts. When the two parties approach the table in a meaningful and significant way, we know that the best agreements are those reached at the table. I will expand on that in the supplementary.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Cheri DiNovo: Back to the Premier: The majority of those workers on strike are Tibetan. I know them to be hard-working, incredible assets who both live and work in my riding of Parkdale–High Park.

Ippolito Produce is a multinational company with sales of more than $130 million each year. Last year, Ippolito Produce received $1.7 million from this Liberal government to retain more than “250 good jobs.” The Liberal government is subsidizing bad labour practices.

What about these workers? Even when Bill 148 passes, they will not be guaranteed a first contract. I repeat: Will the Premier today stand up with the Ippolito workers and support first-contract arbitration for all workers in this province?

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Be seated, please. Thank you.

Minister?

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Speaker, it doesn’t matter to us at the Ministry of Labour where somebody comes from. People come to this province from all four corners of the world, and they get treated, under the Labour Relations Act, the Employment Standards Act—they get equity. That’s why they move here in the first place. The fact that these folks happen to be from a certain country doesn’t apply in this matter.

Ninety-eight per cent of all agreements are reached without a lockout, without a strike. We’ve got some of the best mediators, the best arbitrators in the country. They’ve been working on this file. The excellent staff at the Ministry of Labour are active on this file; they’re monitoring it.

Bargaining by its nature is tough. We know the best agreements are those that are reached by the parties at the negotiating table.

Seniors

Mrs. Cristina Martins: My question is for the Minister of Seniors Affairs. Minister, last week you were at the Sackville Hill Seniors Recreation Centre in Hamilton to announce our government’s new action plan for seniors. There are over two million seniors in Ontario—a number that will more than double in the next 25 years—and many who also live in my riding of Davenport. With this bold new plan, our government will help seniors live independent, healthy and active, safe and socially connected lives.

It involves collaboration across our government, with 10 ministries offering new programs and services that support seniors. I know that for many seniors this new plan focuses on what they care about most, including supports to live independently, increased opportunities to contribute to their communities, and remaining socially connected with their peers. There’s also a significant investment in long-term care.

Will the Minister of Seniors Affairs inform the House about this new action plan for seniors?

Hon. Dipika Damerla: I’m delighted to answer this question. I want to begin by thanking the member from Davenport for the question. The member has been a tireless supporter for seniors in her riding, and I want to thank her for her exemplary advocacy on behalf of seniors.

Mr. Speaker, last week I was pleased to stand with our Premier and the Minister of Health to launch our Aging with Confidence action plan for seniors. The plan invests in services that Ontario seniors have told us they want—investments like the $15 million in naturally occurring retirement communities, investments like the $7 million in age-friendly communities, and investments like the once-in-a-generation announcement of 30,000 new long-term-care beds.

Ontario seniors have told us they want to live their best lives, no matter what their age, and that is what this—

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Thank you. Supplementary?

Mrs. Cristina Martins: I want to thank the minister for her work. I’m pleased to hear that we are making investments that will provide seniors with the supports they need to age independently and with confidence.

This past Friday, I was at the First Portuguese Canadian Cultural Centre in my riding of Davenport, where I had the opportunity to share our Aging with Confidence plan with the very active and very engaged seniors there. They were pleased to see, as I am proud to see, that our government has listened to seniors directly to ensure our action plan reflects their needs.

Minister, I’m also aware that with last week’s announcement, our government launched a new one-stop website for seniors so they can learn about the new programs and services that are available to them.

Could the Minister of Seniors Affairs explain to this House about this new one-stop website for seniors in Ontario?

Hon. Dipika Damerla: I want to thank the member for taking the time to make sure that her constituents know about our plan. The member is absolutely right: As part of our action plan, we are launching a new one-stop website, ontario.ca/agingwell.

Mr. Speaker, our research shows that 70% of Ontario seniors go online every single day, and this website recognizes that fact and will be a one-stop shop for every single seniors program across our government—programs like the new engagement through the arts program, programs like our new Active for Life program, programs like the new consumer protection program for seniors t