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November 1, 2021

42nd Parliament, 2nd Session

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Hansard Transcripts

Votes and Proceedings

Orders and Notices

Hansard Transcript 2021-Nov-01 (PDF)

L013 - Mon 1 Nov 2021 / Lun 1er nov 2021

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO

ASSEMBLÉE LÉGISLATIVE DE L’ONTARIO

Monday 1 November 2021 Lundi 1 er novembre 2021

Members’ Statements

Injured workers

Land use planning

Treaties recognition

Mackay family

Sikh genocide

COVID-19 treatment

Remembrance Day

Climate change

COVID-19 immunization

Visitors

Sikh genocide

Question Period

Minimum wage

Employment standards

Land use planning

Long-term care

Long-term care

Employment standards

COVID-19 response

Workplace safety

COVID-19 immunization

Pork industry

Optometry services

Student leaders

Treaties recognition

COVID-19 response

Travel industry

Deferred Votes

Carbon Budget Accountability Act, 2021 / Loi de 2021 sur la responsabilité en matière de budget carbone

Introduction of Bills

Support for Adults in Need of Assistance Act, 2021 / Loi de 2021 sur le soutien aux adultes ayant besoin d’assistance

Motions

Committee sittings

Petitions

Optometry services

Highway safety

Optometry services

Tenant protection

Places of religious worship

Optometry services

Optometry services

Optometry services

Optometry services

Optometry services

Mental health services

Treaties recognition

Opposition Day

Affordable housing

Orders of the Day

Working for Workers Act, 2021 / Loi de 2021 visant à oeuvrer pour les travailleurs

The House met at 1015.

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

Prayers.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I wish to acknowledge this land as the traditional gathering place for many Indigenous nations, most recently the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation.

This being the first sitting Monday of the month, I ask everyone to join in the singing of the Canadian national anthem, followed by the royal anthem.

Playing of the national anthem/Écoute de l’hymne national.

Playing of the royal anthem/Écoute de l’hymne royal.

Members’ Statements

Injured workers

Ms. Jill Andrew: Today I rise for every Jana in St. Paul’s who has been unprotected by WSIB; for every injured worker who, like Jana, has spent countless years fighting for benefits—the mental and physical anguish of having to prove one’s injuries and subsequent disabilities over and over again with mountains of proof from doctors, specialists, five neurologists Jana has dealt with at some point, and still being denied benefits.

Jana was injured in March 2014 and by October 2019 still hadn’t received a penny from WSIB. Jana reached the six-year mark in 2020, and even then, WSIB claimed she could work, even though CPP disability thought otherwise. In January 2021, WSIB threatened to cut what little benefits finally trickled if she didn’t attend an in-person assessment, during the heights of the pandemic, when WSIB workers were working from home and most doctor’s appointments had long shifted online. Seven and a half years after being injured at work, Jana is still fighting for scraps and has no answer on the permanency of her benefits.

This government has designed WSIB to protect the employer and not injured workers. This doesn’t only hurt the workers, it hurts the entire family. This Conservative government puts its buddies ahead of working people.

I’m calling on this government to change its ways and redirect unused funds held by WSIB to supporting injured workers like Jana, instead of giving the money back to their buddies and billionaire employers. Speaker, the government needs to say yes to Jana and the near 50% of injured workers living in poverty.

Land use planning

Mr. Toby Barrett: Building on the work of Ontario’s greenbelt approach, I propose we consider a further broadening under what is referred to as the bluebelt. My hometown paper, the Port Dover Maple Leaf, published an

article titled, “Has the Time Now Come to Protect our Bluebelt?” The author, Hannah Harrison, proposes a new concept to protect our Great Lakes fishing heritage and economy. The bluebelt proposal suggests many of the same protections and multi-pronged policy approaches to Great Lakes economies, culture and food systems that we find in Ontario’s greenbelt that deal with agricultural and environmentally sensitive lands subject to urban sprawl and development.

Harrison proposes broadening Ontario’s right-to-farm legislation, the Farming and Food Production Protection Act, to also conserve, protect and encourage development and improvement of Ontario’s fisheries. She also makes the case for zoning modernization to safeguard waterfront access and infrastructure for the marine trades and water-dependent businesses. This approach to zoning helps prevent some types of development, such as residential or commercial that don’t require water access, from encroaching on our waterfronts.

Further to this, I have introduced and debated a piece of proposed legislation titled the Great Lakes Protection and Promotion Act. Coupled with the bluebelt concept, there is potential to open the door for some concrete action on this.

Treaties recognition

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Last week I had the chance to visit and spend time in Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug, which is in Treaty 9 territory. On July 5, 1929, the treaty commissioners came to KI to sign the adhesion to Treaty 9. The elders talked about this time using the phrase “Kikuh kunuhwehnimin,” which means, “I will look after you.” This is what the elders remember from the treaty discussions in 1929. These elders understood the rights that came from the treaty promises, and they knew that they were sacred and to be respected.

“Kikuh kunuhwehnimin”: How do we reconcile the idea with all the boil-water advisories, the poor housing, the poverty, the underfunding of children’s services, the continual high removal of our children by the child welfare system, the high suicide rates and the lack of land base as all of our lands are now part of the crown? This has never been and never will be acceptable. This is not what our ancestors signed a treaty for, to be paupers on our own land. It is not what they agreed to for “as long as the sun shines, the grass grows and the rivers flow.” The time is overdue for the governments of Ontario and Canada to wake up and start living up to their treaty promises. Meegwetch.

Mackay family

Mr. Ernie Hardeman: In late August I was notified of the death of Margaret Mackay at her home in Toronto. She was 102 years old. Margaret was the last surviving grandchild of Rev. Dr. George Leslie Mackay, one of the famous sons of Oxford. George Leslie Mackay is celebrated both here in Ontario and in Taiwan, where he was the first Canadian missionary to that country. He established some of the first churches and schools, including Oxford College, which was supported by funds raised by the people in Oxford county.

George Leslie Mackay brought many skills with him to support the residents where he ministered. He knew basic frontier medicine. He established a rudimentary dentistry practice and some of its first medical clinics. His legacy is still seen in Taiwan today in many ways, from the Mackay Memorial Hospital in Taipei to children’s storybooks.

The Presbyterian Church in Taiwan prepared a tribute to granddaughter Margaret which included the following: “The faith and mission heritage of the Mackay family and others who served alongside them continues in this land for which we will be forever thankful to God. We are also grateful for the bonds of friendship between our nations which they helped to forge and enrich as ambassadors of Christ.”

It’s been almost 150 years since George Leslie Mackay arrived in Taiwan as a missionary. To this day, we continue to promote and foster the international relations that he and his legacy have set in motion.

Sikh genocide

Mr. Gurratan Singh: Before, whenever November would begin, I would always feel angry. I’d feel upset. Why wouldn’t I? Imagine if your government burned your fathers, your brothers and your sons alive in the streets—kerosene poured on heads, tires placed around necks. Imagine if your government raped your daughters, your mothers and your sisters. That is precisely what the Indian government did to Sikhs across India in November 1984.

I was born in 1984, so every year that passes is a reminder to me of how we haven’t done enough. We haven’t done enough for the survivors, who still languish in poverty. We haven’t done enough to fight for justice. We haven’t done enough to remember the countless Sikhs who were killed. That’s why I’m no longer angry; I’m just sad. That’s why I will continue to say “Never forget 1984,” until the world knows about the Sikh genocide and until the Sikh people have the justice that we deserve.

Farmers across India have been protesting the mass privatization of farming at the hands of the Indian government. For over a year now they have been protesting and they have faced everything from freezing nights to blazing days and state violence. That’s why today I stand and I continue to call each and every one of us to stand and support our farmers, because when there are no farmers, there is no food.

COVID-19 treatment

Mr. Rick Nicholls: There continues to be mounting evidence regarding the use of inexpensive, repurposed medicines to treat COVID-19 in the early phases. This is based on numerous clinical trials and population data, which includes the experience of many front-line physicians globally. Recently, doctors from around the world gathered in Rome for an international COVID summit to discuss early outpatient treatment and share that information with the international community. It was determined that the effects of therapeutic nihilism—that is, to not treat the patient early—allows the virus to replicate unimpeded, which will result in a portion of them being hospitalized or even dying.

Sadly, the Ontario science table supports therapeutic nihilism. Hospitals put patients on expensive remdesivir, with no evidence of efficacy. There are, however, reports of liver and kidney damage. In November 2020 the WHO stated that use of this drug was not effective.

There’s an old saying, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” More natural and preventative ways of strengthening your immune system include the use of vitamins C, D, zinc, ivermectin, quercetin and even hydroxychloroquine. So let’s not shame the vaccine-hesitant and therefore create a two-tier society.

“Why,” as one nurse recently asked, “do the protected need to be protected from the unprotected by forcing the unprotected to use a protection that did not protect the protected in the first place?”

Remembrance Day

Mr. Mike Harris: This year marks the 100th anniversary of Canadians wearing poppies to remember the sacrifice of veterans who stood up for our country. Every year on November 11 when I’m in front of the cenotaph, it hits me that my job to represent Kitchener–Conestoga is only possible because of those who were willing to make the ultimate sacrifice. It is these brave men and women who stood up to tyranny and hatred, who have made it possible for us to take our seats in this chamber. This is something that should not be lost on any of us, Mr. Speaker.

I recently joined some volunteers in Wellesley township who, when they learned about this year’s centennial anniversary, started a project to honour the township’s veterans. Beth Schlueter, Karen Pilecki, Wendy Richardson and Barb Nowak have spent the past six months collecting and knitting poppies for display at the Wellesley township offices. With over 2,000 poppies made by people from all over the township and supplies donated by Home Hardware and Jantzi Electric, the poppy project was officially unveiled last Friday. I want to thank all of those who donated time, supplies and money for this display of remembrance in honour of our local veterans.

I’d also like to recognize our Premier and new Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism for introducing legislation to protect the rights of workers to wear a poppy on the job. It is so difficult for me to understand why we need a law like this, Mr. Speaker, but I will be putting my full support behind it to make sure that all Ontarians have the protected right to remember our veterans.

Climate change

Mr. Jamie West: The COP26 UN Climate Change Conference unites the world to accelerate action towards our collective goals of addressing climate change. CNN recently described this as the world’s “last best chance” at tackling climate change, and it’s a good thing that Sudbury has sent one of our best to represent us.

The climate crisis is the greatest threat our world faces, and Sophia Mathur from Sudbury has been inspiring our community since she was seven years old about how to tackle this. Spoiler alert, Speaker: She thinks we should listen to the experts.

Sophia is a friend and she is the epitome of youth leadership. Sophia was the first student outside of Europe to participate in the Fridays For Future student strike movement. She has met with Al Gore and marched with Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg. Sophia has lobbied at Tom Davies Square in Sudbury, Parliament Hill in Ottawa, and right here at Queen’s Park in Toronto. In fact, Sophia is the lead youth plaintiff in the Ecojustice lawsuit against the current Ontario government for weakening Ontario’s 2030 climate targets.

Sophia is one of 25 young environmental activists across the globe to be honoured by Action For Nature as a 2021 International Young Eco-Hero. She is featured in the documentary CitizenKid: Earth Comes First, and she will be one of six youths to be featured in the documentary In Your Hands, with Prince Charles and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Sophia Mathur is inspiring youth and adults across the world with her tenacity. We cannot fail her or any of our children on this issue. Sudbury is extremely proud of 14-year-old Sophia and all of her accomplishments. I join our community in wishing her the best at the climate change conference. And as her representative, I will continue to echo her calls to listen to the experts.

COVID-19 immunization

Mr. Vincent Ke: As Premier Ford has always said, thanks to the people of Ontario, we are seeing fewer coronavirus cases compared to other major urban areas in North America. Speaker, the most important contributor to this great achievement is our higher vaccination rate. However, in Don Valley North, the vaccination rate remains low at about 73% only, compared to the city of Toronto and the province.

As such, I have initiated the Every Shot Matters vaccination awareness campaign in my riding. Door-hangers were distributed to each household and lawn signs were placed at people’s property and local businesses. Speaker, I’m [inaudible] that after the combined efforts of our last mile strategy, the GO-VAXX mobile vaccination clinic and the Every Shot Matters vaccination campaign, we will catch up with the provincial average and fully protect the people of Ontario and Don Valley North.

Speaker, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all of my team and volunteers who worked tirelessly to make this happen.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you very much. That concludes our members’ statements for this morning.

Visitors

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I am very pleased to inform the House that page Tanvi Soni from the riding of Brampton West is today’s page captain. We have with us today at Queen’s Park her mother, Falguni Soni. Also, we’re joined today by the parents of page Theo Guida from the riding of Toronto–St. Paul’s: his mother, Michelle Sloan, and his father, Danny Guida.

Welcome to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. We’re delighted to have you here.

Sikh genocide

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I have been informed that the member for Brampton East has a point of order.

Mr. Gurratan Singh: Thank you, Speaker. I rise today to call for the unanimous consent of this House for a moment of silence to remember the countless Sikhs killed in the November 1984 Sikh genocide.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Brampton East is seeking the unanimous consent of the House for a moment’s silence to remember the victims of the Sikh genocide. Agreed? Agreed.

Members will please rise.

The House observed a moment’s silence.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you very much. Members will please take their seats.

Question Period

Minimum wage

Ms. Andrea Horwath: My first question this morning is to the Premier. Perhaps he knows this, but the cost of everything is going up and yet wages here in Ontario remain flat. Of course, the leading culprit for keeping wages low in this province is, in fact, the Premier and his government: a low minimum wage and a 1% freeze.

Hon. Lisa MacLeod: That’s unparliamentary.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Order. I apologize to the Leader of the Opposition.

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Thank you, Speaker. Perhaps the member should.

A low minimum wage and 1% wage freeze hurts those workers and, in fact, hurts all workers. It sends a message to the business community to keep wages low. It sends a message that that’s okay. When will this Premier actually show some leadership and help all workers by ripping up Bill 124 and significantly increasing the minimum wage in this province?

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

Hon. Doug Ford: Through you, Mr. Speaker, I stood in this chamber many times talking about the carbon tax, how it would increase the cost of going from point A to point B, increase the cost of groceries, increase the cost of trucking. We made sure we did everything we could that we didn’t see the 10-cents-a-litre gas increase. As a matter of fact, we lowered gas rates by 4.3%. We’re committing to lower it up to 10 cents.

We’re the only party that actually created an environment for people to have a job. Under the NDP and Liberals, they lost 300,000 jobs, so they didn’t have to worry about an increase because they didn’t have a job. They constantly vote no. We vote yes to stirring up the economy, getting things going, getting jobs created. We are a party of yes. They’re a party of no, no, no. We are going to continue on, making sure that this province thrives, prospers and grows.

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

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Speaker, may I remind this Premier that he said no to a $15 minimum wage three years ago? It was one of the first big noes that he said to the workers of this province. As a result, workers have lost out on $5,300 since he said no to them back then.

In fact, here’s what the Premier said about the wage increase in 2019: “the worst bill for the front-line hard-working people this province has ever seen.” He called it a job killer, and he called it that again today.

The Premier, billionaires, the Premier’s buddies never need to worry about putting food on the table or putting a roof over the head of their kids.

How can the Premier justify taking $5,300 away from hard-working folks while bending over backwards for the buddies who seem to do very well by this Premier?

Hon. Doug Ford: Mr. Speaker, I’ll go back to my previous comments: Under the NDP and the Liberals, there were over 300,000 people who didn’t even have a paycheque. There were 307,000 people in 18 months who we created a job for. We created the environment for companies to thrive, prosper and grow, and when they thrive, prosper and grow, so do their employees.

We’re the only government that is pro-affordable housing—making sure that we can have areas that can build homes at an affordable cost. We believe in affordable ownership.

Again, the NDP and Liberals destroyed this province for 15 years. We’ve turned the corner, and we’re going to continue leading North American job creation, economic development. That’s what we believe in. They’re job killers. We’re job creators.

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

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Well, Speaker, no matter how you slice it, the Premier’s 10-cent-an-hour wage increase was an insult to working people in this province. Even a $15 minimum wage today will never replace the $5,300 that this Premier took out of the pockets of everyday working families. And of course, things are even worse now because the cost of everything is going up; absolutely everything is increasing in cost.

The Premier has a choice. The fall economic statement is coming this week. People need and deserve a raise. He has a choice: to give back what he stole, not 10 cents an hour, not even $15—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I’m going to ask the Leader of the Opposition to withdraw.

Ms. Andrea Horwath: I withdraw, Speaker.

He has a chance to give people back what they deserve, what he took away. He has a chance to make sure that a meaningful minimum wage is brought into place in this province. Will he do that on Thursday?

Hon. Doug Ford: Speaker, the NDP and Liberals, for 15 years, drove businesses out of this province. They jacked up the hydro rates, to have the most expensive hydro rates anywhere in the country. People were losing their jobs right, left and centre. Over 300,000 people lost their jobs.

Speaking to owners and presidents of companies small, medium and large—they said that before we took office, this was the worst jurisdiction in North America to do business in. We saw it with GM leaving based on the policies of the NDP and Liberals.

Now GM is doing the fastest build they’ve ever done in the history of General Motors, because we’ve created that environment. They’re going to be employing people—no matter if it’s electric vehicles and manufacturing batteries here.

Again, we’re going to be creating thousands and thousands of jobs, and we need great people to come to this province and be the workforce to build this province—unlike the NDP and the Liberals. They’re job killers.

Employment standards

Ms. Andrea Horwath: My next question is also to the Premier.

The Premier’s Bill 124 also keeps wages down and sends the wrong signal to the business community in this province.

Across Ontario, workers’ wages are frozen at 1%. With inflation, those stagnant wages mean life is getting harder and people are actually losing ground. The little guy is losing ground in this Premier’s Ontario.

Nurses across our province are literally abandoning their profession because they feel disrespected and devalued by this Premier and his government.

Will the government do the right thing and scrap Bill 124?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To reply, the member for Aurora–Oak Ridges–Richmond Hill and parliamentary assistant.

Mr. Michael Parsa: Speaker, the first point that the honourable member pointed out was the jobs in this province. It’s under the leadership of this Premier that we have jobs created in this province. While the previous government said goodbye to those jobs, supported by the NDP, this Premier said, “We’re not going to give up on those jobs.” We’re going to fight for every single good-paying job for this province of Ontario. We will be there every single day, because as Ontarians, we have the best and the brightest in this province. We’re not going to give up on them. They deserve the best. Under this government and this Premier and our minister, they will always have it.

When it comes to Bill 124, on the second part of the question from the leader across, Bill 124 is designed to protect the very same jobs that the leader is alluding to, those jobs that people are depending on every single day. It’s inaccurate to suggest that Bill 124 caps at 1% because public sector employees will still be able to receive salary increases for seniority, for performance, for increased qualifications, as they do—

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

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Well, Speaker, the low-wage policy of this government is actually hurting everyday families, day in and day out. The cost of living is increasing very significantly this year, by at least 4%, and the last two years up by 2.5%. That is hurting people’s ability to make the bills.

Everything is up. The cost of food is up. The cost of clothing is up. The cost of housing is up. The cost of transportation is up. The cost of gasoline is up. The only thing not increasing in the province of Ontario are people’s wages.

My question is, why does this Premier think that hard-working Ontarians don’t deserve better wages so they can afford the rising cost of living in this province?

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

Hon. Monte McNaughton: I can tell the Leader of the Opposition that everything Premier Ford and our government is doing is driving paycheques up in this province. We’re bringing in historic workplace protections for workers in this province and we’re spreading opportunity to every worker in this province.

I have to remind the member opposite, she voted no. She said no to creating opportunities in the skilled trades. I have to remind the member opposite that these are jobs that are in demand, that in many cases pay six figures. They have defined pensions and benefits, something I thought the NDP would say yes to.

Mr. Speaker, we are going to continue every single day having the backs of workers, continuing to spread opportunity right across this province and build back a better province.

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

Ms. Andrea Horwath: I think everybody knows very well what this government is spreading.

Look, this low-wage policy that this government continues to keep in place in this province is hurting people everywhere: a snowplow operator in Thunder Bay; a food safety inspector in Guelph; registered nurses in Milton, Sarnia and Ottawa; youth counsellors in London; a water systems mechanic in Cambridge; an aircraft maintenance engineer in Sault Ste. Marie; corrections rehabilitation officers in the city of Niagara Falls. Really, everywhere in this province, this government’s low-wage policy is hurting people. It’s making life harder for everyday folks.

Will the Premier tear up Bill 124, give those workers the raise they deserve and signal the right way for the business community to treat workers?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Member for Aurora–Oak Ridges–Richmond Hill.

Mr. Michael Parsa: I thank the member for the question again. What all employees and job creators in this province know is that our government will have their back every step of the way. We’ve done it throughout the pandemic.

Remember when it came to pre-pandemic, Ontario’s economy was booming. We had issues filling those jobs, unfilled because of the policies of this Premier and this government. We will fight for those jobs. We will make sure that every single employee in this province knows that their government has their back.

We have already created supports for our small businesses, making sure that funds are available for them and their employees: the Ontario Small Business Support Grant, for example, which provided $3 billion to over 110,000 small businesses; the grant that provided them with PPE support; funding that supported them to have an online presence for their customers. That’s our government fighting for Ontarians every single day, and we won’t stop. Long after recovery, we’ll make sure Ontario is the best—

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

Land use planning

Ms. Catherine Fife: My question is to the Premier. Over the weekend, the Toronto Star and the National Observer revealed that the main beneficiaries of this government’s proposed Bradford Bypass highway are well-connected landowners with political and donor ties to the PC Party of Ontario.

One of these beneficiaries is the father of the Associate Minister of Transportation, whose golf course had been in the path of the highway. But in the spring, this government quietly rerouted the highway so that it will now destroy homes and the dense forests in the greenbelt instead of the golf course. Mr. Speaker, this reeks.

Why should anyone trust the integrity of this government’s transportation planning decisions when they seem to be driven by the private interests of landowners with ties to the PC Party? The people of this province deserve some honesty and answers from this government.

Hon. Doug Ford: The Bradford Bypass is exactly the type of project this province needs. We want to save people’s travel time, 35 minutes one way. That’s well over an hour two ways. That’s an hour extra they can spend with their families, Mr. Speaker. But they voted no against it, both the NDP and the Liberals. We are spending over $21 billion building roads and bridges and highways across this province, because it’s critical to make sure that people spend more time at home, it is critical to make sure that we get the transportation of goods back and forth as quickly as possible. That will also reduce costs.

But again, Mr. Speaker, the Liberals and NDP are against building roads. They’re against building highways. They vote against it every single time. If it was up to them, they’d vote against a cow pasture. We believe in building infrastructure. We’re a party of building infrastructure, and we’ll get this province moving again.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Supplementary?

Ms. Catherine Fife: No one is buying what this Premier is trying to sell the people of this province. There’s a saying: It’s not what you know; it’s who you know. That certainly is true with this Premier.

This Premier knows that there are less costly and less destructive ways to ease local traffic issues than building a $1.5-billion four- to six-lane highway through the greenbelt, prime farmland—and the Lake Simcoe watershed, no less. He is actually sitting on planning studies that prove this. You know this is the truth. But the Premier doesn’t seem to care, Mr. Speaker, what those studies say. He is against research and evidence. He cares only about his developer buddies, including the well-connected landowners who own nearly 3,000 acres of land along this highway corridor, and they are poised to profit.

They will make a huge amount of money, including the father of the Associate Minister of Transportation.

Does the Premier not understand or does he just not care how bad this looks and how it undermines the trust of everything that happens in this place?

Interjections.

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

The Premier to reply.

Hon. Doug Ford: Speaker, the NDP and the Liberals are anti-infrastructure, anti-highways, anti-roads, anti-everything. They sit back on the sidelines and say no to absolutely everything. We believe in getting the province moving forward.

Mr. Speaker, let me tell you, the people who do support it: The people who live up there who travel those roads, they support it; York region, Simcoe county, Bradford, West Gwillimbury and East Gwillimbury. The mayor of Bradford West Gwillimbury, Rob Keffer, said that this is an absolutely essential piece of infrastructure, something that some of these members do not understand because they’ve never gone past north of Bloor, a lot of their members, so they don’t know how everyone else travels—but we’re helping them by building a $29-billion subway system.

The executive director of Holland Marsh Growers’ Association—this is a farm association that uses this road all the time—is representing over 125—

Interjections.

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

We need a few reminders. First of all, when the Speaker stands, your microphone is cut off and you need to sit down. When someone else has the floor, though, I need to be able to hear that person, and when there’s constant heckling from members on the other side, it makes it very difficult for me to follow what’s being said, as you know. If this continues, I’ll start identifying the members by name and calling them to order by name. Thank you.

Please restart the clock. The next question.

Long-term care

Ms. Goldie Ghamari: My question is for the Minister of Long-Term Care. Long-term care is an area that has long been neglected by previous governments. Between 2011 and 2018, the previous government only built 611 net new beds. That is an increase of only 0.8%, while the population of Ontarians aged 75 and older grew by 20%. That is only 611 new beds for 176,211 people.

While I know our government has made a commitment to build 30,000 new long-term-care beds by 2028, can the minister tell this House how much this government has invested into building long-term-care beds since 2018?

Hon. Rod Phillips: Thank you to the member from Carleton for that question and for her work for her constituents. The member is right: The government is committed to fixing long-term care. One of the pillars of that commitment is our commitment to build 30,000 new beds. The member is also right that the previous government, in the last seven years, built 611 net new beds in the last seven years of their government. In Ottawa alone, this government has committed to 625 new beds and 881 redeveloped beds—and that’s just in Ottawa.

The question was how much we have invested: $2.68 billion for those safe, modern beds—those 20,161 new beds, 15,918 existing beds. That means we’re two thirds of our way and we’re not done yet. We’re two thirds of the way done to our commitment to build 30,000 net new beds to protect seniors and give them the kind of homes they deserve.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Supplementary question?

Ms. Goldie Ghamari: In the seven years prior to our government entering office, the previous government did not build a single bed in my riding of Carleton. This is shameful, and my constituents demanded better.

Last Friday, I was pleased to have the Minister of Long-Term Care in my riding to announce the groundbreaking of a brand new building for Extendicare Stittsville. This new home will provide 256 upgraded, modern long-term-care beds for seniors in my riding, and will welcome residents in the fall of 2023. We’re grateful for these investments, and that doesn’t include the investments made in the Osgoode Care Centre in Osgoode, again in my riding of Carleton.

Can the minister tell this House how he will deliver desperately needed long-term-care beds to the rest of the province?

Hon. Rod Phillips: This is the value of the kind of advocacy that the member from Carleton delivers: 256 new beds from nothing. We were there with the member and I thank her for hosting me, along with the member from Ottawa West–Nepean; along with Jim Watson, the mayor of Ottawa, who commended this government for building beds in his community.

We’re not done yet. We’re well on our way to our 30,000-bed goal. That’s why, a few weeks ago, I opened calls again for applications for those who want to develop long-term-care beds: not-for-profits, municipalities, private sector partners. We invited anyone interested in building or redeveloping long-term-care beds to apply through www.ontario.ca/developingltc. We’re committed to working with all our partners, municipalities like Ottawa and others, to build long-term-care beds to help our seniors.

Long-term care

Mr. Terence Kernaghan: Good morning, Speaker. My question is to the Premier. This government’s new long-term care bill does nothing to assist our seniors in long-term care who need our help today. Seniors are cramped in for-profit long-term care homes—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Stop the clock. Government side will come to order.

Please restart the clock.

Mr. Terence Kernaghan: Thank you, Speaker. It’s rather disrespectful that the members would heckle another member when we’re speaking about our respected elders.

Seniors are cramped in private, for-profit long-term care homes that cut corners, neglected our loved ones, and this government does nothing to guarantee seniors will get the care that they deserve. Instead of implementing a standard four hours of care per day, this government told families that they’re going to have to wait three long years before this basic standard is met.

Our precious parents and grandparents desperately need these changes, and yet this government keeps telling them to wait. How can this government tell seniors and families that they have to wait three long years before they will receive four hours of care per day, instead of helping them right now?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Minister of Long-Term Care.

Hon. Rod Phillips: I appreciate the member’s question. And I appreciate it particularly because the NDP, five times in this Legislature—once by the leader and most recently by the member from London–Fanshawe—introduced something called the Time to Care Act, and the Time to Care Act called for four hours of care for nurses and PSWs. This is something that was talked about in 2008, and we are the first government who not only has funded it, but also has put it into legislation.

Mr. Speaker, given that many members—including the Leader of the Opposition and, most recently, the member from London–Fanshawe—introduced acts to add four hours of care legislatively, I would ask the member: What is wrong with saying yes to the four hours of care that you have been calling for for the last seven years?

Interjections.

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

Restart the clock. Supplementary.

Mr. Terence Kernaghan: I am pleased to hear the minister admit that the NDP has been standing up for seniors since 2008. The Time to Care Act has still been something that this government has kicked down the road, with no intention of implementing it until 2025. Instead of standing up for seniors, the Premier would rather dole out taxpayer money to pad the pockets of big corporate buddies who run these for-profit homes. He’s handing out more licences for for-profit long-term care homes, instead of prioritizing getting our seniors the help they deserve today. Standards of care and air conditioning in the hot summer months aren’t even on his radar.

Time and time again, we see this Premier choose what’s best for his buddies, firing up the gravy train instead of doing what’s best for our parents and grandparents. Our Legislature should unequivocally state that people are more important than profit and seniors deserve an excellent quality of life. Why is the Premier prioritizing helping his buddies in the private long-term care sector over improving the lives of our loved ones in care?

Hon. Rod Phillips: I thank the member for his question. Just to correct the record, 2008 was when the previous Liberal government, which was later supported by your party, first heard about long-term care. When this was brought forward in 2020 in this Legislature, this side of the House supported it, but now we’re turning it into a reality.

The member from London North Centre mentioned, “What is the impediment to doing it right now?” Well, Mr. Speaker, it’s staffing. We need to hire 27,000 new staff. That’s why in London North Centre alone—the member’s riding—we’re adding $3.6 million this year and $22 million by the end of year four. We’re upgrading 160 homes at the Mount Hope Centre and 160 homes at Southbridge in London. So we’re answering the member’s question. We’re answering with legislation, we’re answering with dollars and we’re answering with a commitment to our seniors.

Employment standards

Mr. John Fraser: My question is for the Premier. In the summer of 2018, the Premier launched an attack on Ontario’s workers. He took away paid sick days, eliminated equal pay for equal work and other workplace protections, and he cut the increase to the minimum wage to $15 an hour. It was hard to watch, on this side, the government benches’ daily standing ovations, cheering on the Premier as he stuck it to minimum-wage families, families that live paycheque to paycheque. It has cost each worker about $6,200 so far—more if you’re working two jobs. And this Premier says, “I’m for the little guy.”

Speaker, through you: Does the Premier have a shred of remorse, and will he apologize for robbing these families of a fair wage?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I’m going to ask the member to withdraw.

Mr. John Fraser: I withdraw.

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

To reply, the Minister of Labour.

Hon. Monte McNaughton: Everything we’re doing as a government is to ensure that workers across the province have more opportunities that lead to bigger paycheques. We’ve recently just introduced the Working for Workers Act to address issues in workplaces across the province that the former Liberal government neglected.

In fact, we’re bringing in the toughest legislation and protections for workers hired by temp help agencies and recruiters, to crack down on those lawbreakers. We’re ensuring that there are washroom facilities for those essential workers like truck drivers and food delivery workers and couriers. We are going to recognize, for the first time, foreign credentials—these newcomers coming to Ontario—so they can earn bigger paycheques, so they can fill in-demand jobs across this province.

Mr. Speaker, I’ll respond more in the supplemental.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Supplementary question?

Mr. John Fraser: With all due respect, the Premier was like a one-man wrecking ball when he came here, so don’t expect to have credit for building something you knocked down to the ground.

The pandemic has hit minimum wage workers harder than anyone else—the same people the Premier likes to call heroes: grocery store clerks, cashiers, gas station attendants, cooks and cleaners. The people who make our everyday lives easier, the Premier made their lives harder. And it has cost them at least $6,200 so far, more if families have two incomes. That extra money was important to those families. Too many of them live paycheque to paycheque.

What did it mean? Less money for rent, or to put food on the table, or pay for a prescription; less money for a child’s clothes or maybe a school trip. Speaker, through you: Will the Premier apologize today for taking that family’s opportunity away from them by not allowing their wages to increase?

Hon. Monte McNaughton: Thank you, again. Everything we’re doing is about having policies that lead to bigger paycheques and more workplace protections to spread opportunities to workers across the province.

Let’s talk about the former Liberal government record. When it comes to the skilled trades, they brought in a system full of red tape that led to a 40% decrease in apprenticeship registrations. These are well-paying jobs that are in demand. In fact, I think of construction over the next number of years. We are going to be short 100,000 workers. In fact, Mr. Speaker, these jobs pay six figures, in many cases, with defined pensions and benefits. These are the opportunities that we want every worker in the province to take

part in. I would ask the opposition to start saying yes to these good jobs. Let’s be on the side of workers and support our legislation.

COVID-19 response

Ms. Christine Hogarth: Across Ontario, more and more young people are rolling up their sleeves to get vaccinated against COVID-19. It’s what led Ontario to have one of the highest youth-under-20 immunization rates in the country, and we thank those young people for doing their part. We know that measures we have put in place, coupled with the high vaccination rates, are working.

This government recently announced an update to the PCR testing in our schools. Through you, Speaker, can the Minister of Education share with our parents and guardians how PCR testing will be expanded in all our Ontario schools?

Hon. Stephen Lecce: I want to thank the member for Etobicoke–Lakeshore for this important question. In the member’s own community of Toronto and likewise in Ottawa, working with some of the best hospitals in this province, we have been able to provide access to roughly 900 schools, to date, with a take-home PCR test. But we know there’s more to do, especially as we prepare for the winter, which is why we took the decision last week, with the full support of the Chief Medical Officer of Health, to expand access to take-home PCR tests for all students in the province of Ontario.

In fact, all symptomatic students this November will be able to access a take-home test and a kit to bring home, making it more convenient and more accessible, reducing the barriers and increasing access to testing for all families in Ontario.

We are also ensuring that close contacts of asymptomatic students and staff also now have access to this important expansion. We are the only province in the nation to offer this to families, because we are committed, under the Premier’s leadership, to make life a bit easier for parents who have faced such hardship through the pandemic. We will do whatever it takes to keep kids safe, keep our staff safe and get us through the worst of this pandemic.

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

Ms. Christine Hogarth: Thank you, Minister, for that answer. Take-home PCR tests will make life much easier for moms and dads and grandparents out there.

Mr. Speaker, the minister has been clear: Our commitment is to continue to keep schools open and safe.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): It works both ways. I need to be able to hear the government member when they’re asking a question, without heckling.

I apologize for interrupting. Member for Etobicoke–Lakeshore, you have the floor.

Ms. Christine Hogarth: When you see the smiles on the young people’s faces knowing they’re going to school to see their friends, it brings joy to all our hearts.

The minister outlined a cautious reopening plan that, according to medical experts, is working. Through you, Mr. Speaker, to the Minister of Education: What additional steps is the government taking to ensure our little ones remain safe and schools remain open as we look ahead to prepare for the year?

Hon. Stephen Lecce: Indeed, the government has, through the last year, invested over $600 million in air ventilation improvements—the deployment of 70,000 HEPA units, to make sure our classrooms are safer than they’ve been in the past.

But we’re taking nothing for granted. It’s why we’ve expanded access to take-home PCR tests to all children and access to all staff. We also have made a decision to adopt a test-to-stay model, supported by the Chief Medical Officer of Health, that is designed to reduce absenteeism, to help encourage kids to stay in school, to avoid the closures that can happen as a result of the Delta-driven fourth wave. Now, we know that 99.9% of our schools remain open, but to ensure we remain cautious and guard against this virus, we’ve adopted this model that tests students frequently over a two-week period, using rapid antigen tests, to keep them in school.

We’ve also elevated the testing requirements on unvaccinated staff, adopting two negative tests—now it will be three, effective November 10. We’re doing everything possible, under our Premier’s leadership, to keep our schools open and keep them safe.

Workplace safety

Mrs. Jennifer (Jennie) Stevens: My question is to the Premier. Premier, last week my colleague from Niagara Falls held a press conference with the newly formed Occupational Disease Reform Alliance. This alliance is composed of advocates from every corner of this province who have lost loved ones to workplace cancers and illness. They came together to this government. They will be ignored no longer. They came together to demand justice and proper compensation for their loved ones whose lives were cut short for no other reason than that they went to work.

Premier, this group is sick of hearing you say you have no power to give justice to their loved ones. On Friday, they listed four demands of this government, demands which require legislation. The ball is clearly and firmly in your court.

We are asking you here today to answer them clearly: Will you acknowledge and legislate their demands? It’s easy: yes or no?

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

Hon. Monte McNaughton: I truly do thank the member opposite for this very important question. Mr. Speaker, let me begin by saying to all workers across the province who have faced illnesses on the job that our hearts and thoughts are with you.

We continue to strengthen health and safety in this province. In fact, I think we all could agree in this House that every single worker deserves to come home safely after a hard day’s work.

I had the opportunity this morning to actually call Dr. Demers, who is leading some excellent work around occupational disease. I’m proud to say to Dr. Demers that he has our full commitment to continue doing his great work. In fact, I called him this morning to let him know that we’re going to fund his program with over $6 million over the next five years, to better improve health and safety in workplaces.

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

Mrs. Jennifer (Jennie) Stevens: I’m not sure if that was a yes.

The group that came together last week demanding justice contained advocates from Sarnia, Dryden, Peterborough, Kitchener-Waterloo and many, many more. They have come together to say they will be ignored no longer.

What’s more, we know there are further areas of Ontario where workers were exposed to chemicals, causing cancers, and we will tell their stories as well. This now includes the former GM site in St. Catharines. Loved ones dying because of the chemicals they were exposed to at work has happened across Ontario, and these workers demand the compensation that was promised to them.

That includes their families: people like Jean from Sarnia, who has been fighting for justice for her husband, Bud, for 20 long years, who continues dealing with the WSIB in her quest to get justice for Bud.

Premier, will you stand in this House today and say clearly that Jean and all the other families affected by workplace cancer will get the compensation and justice they deserve, by listening to the ODRA and presenting legislation right now?

Hon. Monte McNaughton: Thank you again to the member opposite. The health and safety of every single worker in this province is our government’s number one priority. Occupational diseases are just as serious as physical illnesses, and as I said in my first answer, every worker deserves to come home safely after a hard day’s work. It’s one of the reasons why we want to continue to strengthen the WSIB system. The member opposite will know that it was just only a decade ago that that agency was on the brink of bankruptcy.

Mr. Speaker, I’m proud to say that we built back a stronger system that’s going to be there for generations of workers to come. We’ve reformed the system to ensure that only safe employers receive reductions in premiums. This allows those employers to bring in new health and safety protocols and programs to give workers wages and to hire more workers across the province.

We’re going to continue to have the backs of workers every single day.

COVID-19 immunization

Mr. Rick Nicholls: My question is to the Minister of Health.

What is the ministry’s position on PPE and masking of care workers in order to control transmission of COVID-19 in a hospital setting? Are these reasonable and effective measures to keep patients safe?

Hon. Christine Elliott: Thank you very much to the member for the question.

There are numerous ways that one can keep oneself safe. One is vaccination. Vaccination is the single best way to protect yourself, protect your loved ones, protect your community, protect everyone around you. That’s why we are urging everyone to be vaccinated, and the vast majority of people are, including workers in health care.

There are other steps that need to be taken. Use of PPE is obviously very important. Masking is very important. Social distancing is important. Ventilation is important. There are many steps that need to be taken to protect people from COVID-19, not just one single thing. A number of different issues taken together are protecting Ontario patients and residents.

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

Mr. Rick Nicholls: Thank you for that response, Minister. I appreciate it.

If PPE and masking of staff are both reasonable and effective measures to keep patients safe, then the government’s vaccination policies against unvaccinated health care workers are clearly unconstitutional under the current circumstances, because the government obviously has alternative effective measures available to keep everyone safe—both the vaccinated and unvaccinated alike.

If unvaccinated health care workers have the option to stay on the job, keeping patients safe by masking and wearing PPE, how can you possibly justify not going with this reasonable accommodation that will cause minimal impairment of charter rights and avert the foreseeably catastrophic hospital staff shortages that will follow from the government’s current policy?

Hon. Christine Elliott: As I indicated in my first response, the single most important thing anyone can do is be vaccinated twice. That is what all of the organizations around the world have said. The World Health Organization, the FDA, NACI, Health Canada—all of those organizations have indicated that is the most important thing.

There are, of course, other steps that need to be taken, with masking and PPE. Even for those hospital workers who are yet unvaccinated—and again, we’re urging everyone to be vaccinated, and the vast majority of health care workers are—they still need to be tested on a regular basis before they can come in to work.

But that is important—you raised the issue about people leaving the profession if they’re not vaccinated. That is why the Premier has written a letter to the hospitals and other health care organizations across the province, to understand what their concerns are about losing staff. In British Columbia, as the member may know, they’ve had to cancel some of their surgeries because they have 4,000 people who are going to be leaving, who are not vaccinated. This is a very important consideration, one that we’re—

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

Pork industry

Ms. Goldie Ghamari: Mr. Speaker, the detection of African swine fever in the Dominican Republic and Haiti is emphasizing the importance of tightening the pork industry’s biosecurity and preparedness efforts.

As the members of this chamber are aware, Ontario’s pork sector employs 58,000 Ontarians, exports over $700 million annually, and is responsible for $2.8 billion of Canada’s GDP. A disruption to Ontario’s pork value chain is likely to have a large impact on the industry.

Can the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs explain the steps that this government is taking in response to African swine fever?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The member for Haldimand–Norfolk, the parliamentary assistant.

Mr. Toby Barrett: I thank the member from Carleton for that question.

The recent detection of African swine fever in the Caribbean and the devastating impact it has had in both Europe and Asia is a good reminder to tighten protections all along the pork industry value chain. African swine fever is not a threat to food safety or human health, but it is a severe viral disease that affects pigs.

Our government has announced the investment of nearly $3 million in new initiatives to support the provincial pork sector’s prevention, planning and disease preparedness. This initiative will provide cost-share funding that will support biosecurity improvements and emergency preparedness.

Speaker, our government is taking an active leadership role in working to prevent the spread of African swine fever within our borders and supporting, as was mentioned, the 58,000 hard-working people in the sector.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Supplementary question?

Ms. Goldie Ghamari: I understand that part of last week’s announcement also included changes to the invasive species list which falls under the Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry regarding wild pigs and designating them as an invasive species. I understand that if established here in Ontario, it could adversely affect the broader agriculture industry and our environment as well.

While other jurisdictions have struggled with the effects of feral hogs, Ontario thankfully has not experienced the devastating effects of these animals. Can the Minister of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry explain why Ontario is taking action now if wild pigs are not currently a threat to Ontario?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To reply, the member for Kitchener–Conestoga and parliamentary assistant.

Mr. Mike Harris: Thank you to the member for Carleton for a very important question. While wild pigs are not native to Ontario, they are known to cause wide-scale devastation to wildlife and ecosystems, and can cause negative impacts to Ontario’s agriculture sector. To avoid this here in Ontario, the government took action and added these pigs along with 12 other species to the list of invasive species to make sure they do not have a chance to become a widespread issue across our province. I was pleased to see stakeholders, such as the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters and the Invasive Species Centre, come out in strong support of this policy change.

Mr. Speaker, we are saying yes to protecting Ontario’s biodiversity and delicate ecosystems by adding wild pigs to the invasive species list.

Optometry services

Ms. Bhutila Karpoche: My question is to the Premier. We are now entering the third month without access to eye care for seniors and children. Many of my constituents in Parkdale–High Park cannot access desperately needed eye care, like Steffen’s 13-year-old child who can’t read the blackboard at school and Dan’s nine-year-old stepchild who can’t read anything either and is falling behind. Parents like Steffen and Dan want to know how many pennies does the Premier need to pinch before he will prioritize their children’s vision and academic success?

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

Hon. Christine Elliott: Thank you to the member for the question. I understand the concern of many parents. They’re concerned about their child’s eye care, as well as many seniors who are worried about any vision problems they have that are not being dealt with. However, the decision to step away from the table was done by the Ontario Association of Optometrists, not by the government.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Opposition, come to order.

Hon. Christine Elliott: The government of Ontario will continue to fund OHIP services, eye care services, for both children and seniors, and we are ready to go back to the table to discuss this with the optometrists.

We’ve already made a payment of $39 million into their accounts to cover past losses because, as the member will know, their agreement expired in 2011 and nothing was done by the previous Liberal government to remedy that. We are prepared to do that. We understand that optometrists have issues to discuss, but we need them to come back to the table. We are prepared to go back into mediation, and we really hope that the optometrists will do the same so we can—

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

Interjection.

Member for Hamilton Mountain, come to order.

Supplementary question.

Ms. Bhutila Karpoche: Back to the minister: Another constituent of mine, Gene, was recently diagnosed with glaucoma. Without access to regular appointments with his optometrist, Gene’s vision will be permanently damaged and he may lose his vision altogether.

Speaker, Gene’s vision is worth funding. Eye care is health care, and yet this government is sitting idle while children and seniors go without care. Will the minister do her job and negotiate a fair deal with the optometrists?

Hon. Christine Elliott: I certainly agree with the member that eye care is an essential service. It is something that needs to be funded, and the optometrists have a duty to continue to provide care. If they choose to not provide care to certain people, they still have a responsibility that the College of Optometrists has indicated they must deal with, and we are ready to sit down at the table with them. In addition to the $39-million payment we’ve already made, we’ve also offered to increase their services by 8.48%, retroactive to April 1, and immediately establish a working committee to deal with the overhead issues that optometrists have also mentioned.

We want to reach a deal with them that is fair to them and is fair to the taxpayers of Ontario, but we can’t do it alone. The government can’t do it alone. We need the optometrists to come back to the table. That’s the only way we can reach a deal. We are ready, willing and able to come back to the table, and we ask the optometrists to please do the same.

Student leaders

Ms. Kathleen O. Wynne: Speaker, my question is for the Premier. In 1948, the government of Ontario, a Progressive Conservative government, established the Ontario Educational Leadership Centre. For more than 70 years, OELC—under a couple of different names, including Ontario Athletic Leadership Camp—has nurtured Ontario’s young leaders, ordinary kids from across the province. More than 100,000 young boys and girls were chosen by their schools to develop skills in athletics, music, outdoor education and problem-solving.

Indeed, in 1969, a 16-year-old from Richmond Hill High School was chosen by her school to attend OALC. She had never been to an overnight camp, she had never interacted with people from across the province, she had no idea that she had potential as a leader, and she certainly had no idea that she could ever be Premier.

Speaker, at a time when we need young people to be at their best as we enter this post-COVID world, at a time when we know that students need opportunities for experiential learning and team building, why would the government choose this moment to remove supports from OELC?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries.

Hon. Lisa MacLeod: I wanted to say thanks for the question. Obviously, right now, as we talk about the support for sport, recreation and leadership skills in the province of Ontario, the Minister of Education and myself have been working hand in glove, particularly over the past 19 months, in order to ensure that we do have the supports.

I also want to acknowledge the member opposite for becoming Ontario’s first female Premier, and for that leadership experience that she had through the province impacting her. Of course, as we speak right now, on this side of the House we would like to welcome, as I’m sure all Ontarians do, Manitoba’s first female Premier, Heather Stefanson, for her election to the House.

But I want to be perfectly clear: This government has invested in sports, recreation and after-school programming right across this province. In fact, just a week ago, I was in Ottawa, in our nation’s capital and my community, investing $13.5 million in after-school programming for vulnerable youth.

We’ve also invested—and I’ll speak to this in the supplemental—in increased, enhanced supports for athletes across Ontario, including our high-performance—

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

The supplementary question?

Ms. Kathleen O. Wynne: I’m not actually denigrating some of the things that the minister has talked about, Mr. Speaker; I’m talking about a unique property and unique set of programs. OELC has had to adjust and adapt over their more than 70 years, but they have survived and they have thrived because of their own strong belief in the importance of nurturing student leaders.

In their own words: “Our sustained success ... has been as a result of our foundational belief that students can, and do, make a difference, and that the cultivation of leadership requires a very special environment, one that fosters curiosity, reflection and growth and provides students with opportunities to learn about themselves, others and their communities.”

Speaker, OELC is not a place reserved for the elite or for the wealthy or for the privileged. It is a place that provides opportunity to children from every background, kids who would otherwise have no access to leadership programs because their parents wouldn’t necessarily be able to pay for them. It’s a place that helps prepare young people to lead in an unknowable future.

Will the government commit to sustaining OELC, in order to provide this generation and the next with the opportunities that have enriched the lives of so many young Ontarians for 70 years?

Hon. Lisa MacLeod: I’d be happy to have a conversation with the member opposite post-question period to talk about that specific entity.

I will say that we will continue to work with our after-school programming. The $13.5 million my ministry invested is in addition to the $13.5 million that the Minister of Education has invested. Our priority in this government is to ensure the health and well-being of all young students and athletes in this province.

We have invested extraordinary amounts of money in our sport and recreation division, including $105 million into the sports and recreation sectors this past year. In addition to the $105 million, we increased the investment into the Ontario Trillium Foundation, which just recently had a call for applications in terms of their capital and operating supports.

So we’re happy to continue to work with organizations across the province. In fact, as minister, I have often said—regardless of whether I was here or in Children and Community Services—that government cannot and should not do it alone. We need community organizations across this great province, which are supported by our ministry through the Ontario Trillium Foundation, to grow our economy, but also to support our—

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

Treaties recognition

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Meegwetch.

Remarks in Oji-Cree.

My question is to the Premier. First Nations across Ontario have called on this province to drop its appeals of the Robinson-Huron Treaty annuities case. Under the agreement signed in 1850, the share of revenue First Nations receive from mining and forestry on their treaty territory would increase as revenues increased over time. Speaker, there has been no change in the annuity since it was set at $4 per person in 1874.

Is Ontario prepared to honour the Robinson Treaties and share the resources fairly?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): To reply on behalf of the government, the Attorney General.

Hon. Doug Downey: Thank you for the question and the active interest in the Robinson Treaties. As you know, it’s a matter of discussion between officials, and so it’s something that I can’t comment on in the House, but it’s something that I’m keenly aware of and interested in pursuing. Again, I can’t get into the content of it, but it is something very important to this government—that we continue to engage in a respectful manner to reach a resolution for everybody.

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

Mr. Sol Mamakwa: Doing an appeal in court is not honouring the treaties. This week is Treaties Recognition Week in Ontario. I remind Ontario that treaty relationships should not be fought in court.

The Robinson-Huron Anishinabek want to move forward with treaty renewal, and Ontario is blocking this process.

Chief Dean Sayers of Batchewana said of this matter, “As a people, this colonial court process is not our preferred resolution to a disagreement about treaty implementation.... The treaty is a sacred agreement that has to be interpreted in a way that” serves both parties.

Again, will Ontario stop wasting time and resources and finally honour the promises of the Robinson Treaties?

Hon. Doug Downey: As the member opposite would be aware, most court matters get resolved without actually having the courts decide them. So I would encourage the ongoing dialogue, in the spirit of the dialogue that we’ve been having with several treaties.

Again, I can’t comment on the content of it, but this is a very important matter for this government.

COVID-19 response

Mr. Rick Nicholls: My question is to the Minister of Health.

Minister, wouldn’t you agree that it would be advantageous for members of the science table to welcome doctors who work day in and day out caring for COVID-19 patients and who may have a very different viewpoint on the treatment and issuance of public guidelines? I believe that move would further add credibility. Many are front-line doctors working side by side with other health care professionals. They can add valuable insights from their experiences in assisting the government in providing the best solutions for patients. In my opinion, a more balanced approach would assist the science table in making, again, more informed decisions. I’m sure you would agree with that.

Here in the Legislature, we have a saying: “Audi alteram partem,” or “Always hear the other side.”

So my question is, will you invite these front-line doctors to assist the science table, and will you agree to an open, healthy debate with doctors on both sides of the issue? I believe the voting—

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Thank you very much. The Minister of Health to reply.

Hon. Christine Elliott: We listen, of course, to a variety of doctors. We have our Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Moore. We have the science advisory table. We have the people at Public Health Ontario. There are already many front-line professionals who are advising on a volunteer basis to help out with this.

If the member is suggesting that we should have a discussion at the science advisory table of those who are in favour of vaccination and those who are not—absolutely not; I would not agree to that, because the experts have already indicated that the best way to protect yourself, your loved ones, your family and your community is to be vaccinated.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): And the supplementary question?

Mr. Rick Nicholls: Back to the minister: Shockingly, it’s been observed that the rising number of unexplained medical problems in otherwise healthy people as potential adverse reactions to the vaccines is not being reported. But to suggest that the vaccines cause medical problems invites professional ridicule.

Doctors are at a loss to explain the increase in non-COVID-related ailments, including a reported increase in heart attacks in young people—mainly males who receive the vaccines. Recently, four university students died within a two-week period.

The number of childhood adverse effects have been on the rise. The most notable side effect is myocarditis in males, which can cause permanent damage. Medical experts I have spoken with state that many of the damaged young people could require a heart transplant in later years.

So, Minister, will you commit to investigating these known health issues with doctors whose narrative may differ from the science table and work to mitigate this situation?

Hon. Christine Elliott: What I can say is that, in a situation where there has been a negative impact that may be related to a vaccine, that has been thoroughly investigated by all of the doctors involved in the situation. We’ve had several situations where we’ve recommended certain medications, have certain vaccines for people of different ages.

But to suggest that they’re not being indicated and they’re not being reported is absolutely not true, not in Ontario. We take this very seriously. We are looking at the situation for each and every adverse event. That is something that Dr. Moore takes very seriously, that our government takes very seriously. And this is absolutely important, because we are following the science. We are following the clinical evidence, and we will continue to do so to protect the health and safety and well-being of all Ontarians.

Travel industry

Ms. Jill Andrew: Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries. Last month, the federal government ended CRB for good, the only relief available for independent travel agents after their businesses were slowed down due to COVID. This government listed independent travel agents as eligible under the Ontario Tourism and Travel Small Business Support Grant.

For my constituent Carol, an independent travel agent for 20 years, CRB was her lifeline. She and 7,000 agents across Ontario—75% of them being women—have not received a cent promised by this government from the Ontario Tourism and Travel Small Business Support Grant due to an oversight, frankly, in the application that requires a TICO registration number. What the agents have, of course, is a TICO certificate number.

My question is to the Speaker—my question is to the minister, Speaker: Will the minister fix this error, allowing independent agents access to this grant and backdate their support?

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I’d like to offer an answer, but I think I’d better refer to the minister of heritage.

Hon. Lisa MacLeod: Do you want to take a crack at that, Speaker?

I want to thank the member opposite for her advocacy. I also want to thank her for standing up for her constituents over the period of this pandemic.

Of course, as I’ve said many times in this Legislature, the sectors that I represent have been first hit, hardest hit and by all means will take the longest to recover. We’re anticipating travel and tourism won’t get back to pre-pandemic levels until at least 2025, particularly as these continued waves continue to hit different parts of the economy and our society.

I will say that our government is absolutely committed to the restoration of the tourism sector, which is why we’ve invested $100 million into the tourism recovery fund; another additional $150 million-plus into a travel incentive, which will occur next year; $100 million into small business grants; and $50 million into festivals and events programming in addition to $105 million for the Ontario Trillium Foundation.

How has that supported our Ontario Tourism and Travel Small Business Support Grant in terms of travel agent support? They received over $8.6 million to eligible travel agents and wholesalers throughout the province of Ontario. We’re proud to have stood up for them at that time. We’re proud to stand up for the sector now.

And last week, at the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario, in the city of Ottawa, our nation’s capital, I was able to be there with 500 people at a hybrid event, in person as well as online, to say we are going to be back—

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

Ms. Jill Andrew: The minister of culture and tourism has missed the point. It’s that the travel agents are listed as eligible for this program; however, the application says you require a TICO registration number. The agents have a TICO certificate number, so they are being left out.

Carol, who is a member of the Association of Canadian Independent Travel Advisors, has written to this government, to this ministry—as have I as well—along with the Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction, as well as to the Premier, and none of us have heard back from this Conservative government on our advocacy for independent travel agents.

My question, this time to the Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries, is, how are we going to help independent travel agents if this government is not providing them any funding whatsoever and they have no other funding stream?

Hon. Lisa MacLeod: I just want it to be very clear that the Ontario Tourism Recovery Program is aimed at accommodations and attractions businesses that are key generators of paid tourism visits to a region and a significant contributor to the area’s economy and job creation.

My priority is for the tourism economy in Ontario to be restored, not the tourism economy in the Dominican Republic or in Florida or in Mexico. My priority is to make sure people want to visit back in Ontario at the appropriate time, which is why that particular fund is dedicated toward those key anchor attractions, which is why we invested not only $100 million into that area but also over $100 million into Ontario’s iconic cultural institutions, and an additional $35 million into our Ontario arts sector.

And that’s why we invested $8.6 million to eligible travel agents through the Ontario Tourism and Travel Small Business Support Grant, which was nearly 10% of the entire allocation of the budget’s program. Travel agents and wholesalers—

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

Question period has concluded.

Deferred Votes

Carbon Budget Accountability Act, 2021 / Loi de 2021 sur la responsabilité en matière de budget carbone

Deferred vote on the motion for second reading of the following bill:

Bill 32,

An Act with respect to a carbon budget for Ontario / Projet de loi 32, Loi préconisant un budget carbone pour l’Ontario.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): We now have a deferred vote on the motion for second reading of Bill 32,

An Act with respect to a carbon budget for Ontario. The bells will now ring for 30 minutes, during which time members may cast their votes.

I’ll ask the Clerks to please prepare the lobbies.

The division bells rang from 1143 to 1213.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): The vote on the motion for second reading of Bill 32,

An Act with respect to a carbon budget for Ontario, has been held.

The Clerk of the Assembly (Mr. Todd Decker): The ayes are 20; the nays are 37.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I declare the motion lost.

Second reading negatived.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): There being no further business at this time, this House stands in recess until 1 p.m.

The House recessed from 1214 to 1300.

Introduction of Bills

Support for Adults in Need of Assistance Act, 2021 / Loi de 2021 sur le soutien aux adultes ayant besoin d’assistance

Madame Gélinas moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill 40,

An Act respecting reporting of adults in need of assistance and the provision of assistance to those adults / Projet de loi 40, Loi concernant le signalement d’adultes ayant besoin d’assistance et la fourniture d’une assistance à ces adultes.

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

First reading agreed to.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): I’m pleased to invite the member for Nickel Belt to briefly explain her bill.

M me France Gélinas: The act requires regulated health professionals to report to a board of health if they have reasonable suspicion that an individual who is 16 years of age or older is being abused or neglected, and the failure to do so becomes an offence.

The act requires a board of health to ensure that each report it receives is assessed and verified within a certain amount of time. The act also permits board of health employees certain rights of entry into premises to carry out these requirements.

The act provides that every board of health shall establish a team that will review cases and recommend a support and assistance plan for individuals in need. The review team must include at least one legally qualified medical practitioner. For each case, employees and the chair of the review team have reporting obligations to the medical officer of health of a board of health. The medical officer of health shall ensure that the number of reports received by a board of health, the number of cases for which the reported information was verified, the reasons for which reports were made and the outcomes of the reports are published on the board of health’s website every six months.

Motions

Committee sittings

Mr. Michael Parsa: I move that, in addition to their regularly scheduled meeting times, the following committees be authorized to meet at the call of the Chair for the remainder of the fall meeting period and any extension thereof: the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs, the Standing Committee on General Government, the Standing Committee on Justice Policy, the Standing Committee on the Legislative Assembly, the Standing Committee on Regulations and Private Bills, and the Standing Committee on Social Policy.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? I heard a no.

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

All those opposed will please say “nay.”

In my opinion, the ayes have it.

Miss Monique Taylor: On division.

The Speaker (Hon. Ted Arnott): On division.

Motion agreed to.

Petitions

Optometry services

Mr. Gilles Bisson: Like many members in this assembly, I have a huge amount of petitions in regard to eye care service in Ontario. It reads as follows:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the Ontario government has underfunded optometric eye care for 30 years; and

“Whereas the government only pays on average $44.65 for an OHIP-insured visit—the lowest rate in Canada; and

“Whereas optometrists are being forced to pay substantially out of their own pocket to provide over four million services each year to Ontarians under OHIP; and

“Whereas optometrists have never been given a formal negotiation process with the government; and

“Whereas the government’s continued neglect resulted in 96% of Ontario optometrists voting to withdraw OHIP services beginning September 1, 2021;

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

“To instruct the Ontario government to immediately commit to legally binding, formal negotiations to ensure any future OHIP-insured optometry services are, at a minimum, funded at the cost of delivery.”

I sign this petition and give it to Theo.

Highway safety

M me France Gélinas: I would like to thank Mrs. Monique Mussar from my riding, who, while attending the ceremony of life for William and Sandi Tibbo, who died on Highway 144 at Marina Road, collected all of these petitions.

“Make Highway 144 at Marina Road Safe.

“Whereas residents of Levack, Onaping and Cartier, as well as individuals who travel Highway 144, are concerned about the safety of a stretch of Highway 144 in the vicinity of Marina Road and would like to prevent further accidents and fatalities; and

“Whereas three more accidents occurred”—now four—“in summer 2021 resulting in severe injuries, diesel fuel spilling into the waterways,” the death of two people and their dog, Max, and “the closure of Highway 144 for several hours delaying traffic and stranding residents; and

“Whereas the Ministry of Transportation has completed a review of this stretch of Highway 144, has made some improvements and has committed to re-evaluate and ensure the highway is safe;”

They petition the Legislative Assembly as follows: “that the Ministry of Transportation review Highway 144 at Marina Road immediately and commit to making it safe, as soon as possible, and no later than December 2021.”

I support this petition, will affix my name to it and ask page Sujay to bring it to the Clerk.

Optometry services

Mr. Mike Schreiner: I continue to collect thousands of petitions from my constituents to save eye care in Ontario.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the Ontario government has underfunded optometric eye care for 30 years; and

“Whereas the government only pays on average $44.65 for an OHIP-insured visit—the lowest rate in Canada; and

“Whereas optometrists are being forced to pay substantially out of their own pocket to provide over four million services each year to Ontarians under OHIP; and

“Whereas optometrists have never been given a formal negotiation process with the government; and

“Whereas the government’s continued neglect resulted in 96% of Ontario optometrists voting to withdraw OHIP services beginning September 1, 2021;

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

“To instruct the Ontario government to immediately commit to legally binding, formal negotiations to ensure any future OHIP-insured optometry services are, at a minimum, funded at the cost of delivery.”

I wholeheartedly support this petition, will sign it and ask Emily to take it to the table.

Tenant protection

Mr. Terence Kernaghan: My petition is entitled, “Call on the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to Implement Real Rent Control.” It reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the average rent has increased by over 50% in the past 10 years;

“Whereas nearly half of Ontarians pay unaffordable rental housing costs because they spend more than a third of their income on rent;

“Whereas all Ontarians have a right to a safe and affordable place to call home;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly as follows:

“Petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to pass our Rent Stabilization Act to establish real rent control that operates during and between tenancies; a public rent registry so tenants can find out what a former tenant paid in rent; access to legal aid for tenants that want to contest an illegal rent hike; and stronger enforcement and tougher penalties for landlords who do not properly maintain a renter’s home.”

I fully support affordability, accountability and transparency for renters and will affix my signature and deliver it to the Clerks.

Places of religious worship

Mr. Rick Nicholls: I received this particular petition from the great people of the great riding of Wellington–Halton Hills.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas worship is critical to the lives of many Ontarians, and the gathering for worship is an essential aspect of religious faith; and

“Whereas the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms recognizes freedom of religion as fundamental, and the Supreme Court of Canada has interpreted this as including the freedom ‘to manifest religious belief by worship and practice;’ and

“Whereas both the federal and the Ontario provincial legislatures have recognized religion as a human right; and

“Whereas the social, emotional and spiritual elements of worship are significant; and

“Whereas places of worship provide many valuable social services through their members to the communities they are in, and the good work of places of worship in their communities is hindered by the inability to physically gather; and

“Whereas places of worship have been diligent in observing health and safety protocols and have not been a significant source of spread of COVID-19; and

“Whereas the safety and the well-being of religious communities are best preserved through the cooperation of religious leaders and the Ontario government;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

“That the Legislature recognize the importance and value of worship, and to include places of worship as an essential service under the reopening Ontario act, allowing religious communities to gather for worship.”

I wholeheartedly agree with this petition, will sign it and give it to the page Zada.

Optometry services

Mr. Faisal Hassan: I have tons of petitions on saving eye care in Ontario.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the Ontario government has underfunded optometric eye care for 30 years; and

“Whereas the government only covers an average of 55% of the cost of an OHIP-insured visit, the lowest rate in Canada; and

“Whereas optometrists must absorb the other 45% for the over four million services delivered annually under OHIP; and

“Whereas optometrists have never been given a formal negotiation process with the government; and

“Whereas the government’s continued neglect resulted in 96% of Ontario optometrists voting to withdraw OHIP services beginning September 1, 2021;

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

“To instruct the Ontario government to immediately commit to legally binding, formal negotiations to ensure any future OHIP-insured optometry services are, at a minimum, funded at the cost of delivery.”

I fully support this petition. I’ll be affixing my signature to it and providing it to page Graden to take it to the table.

Optometry services

Mr. Ian Arthur: If I ever need an issue brought before the Legislature, I’m going to contract the optometrists.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the Ontario government has underfunded optometric eye care for 30 years; and

“Whereas the government only pays on average $44.65 for an OHIP-insured visit—the lowest rate in Canada; and

“Whereas optometrists are being forced to pay substantially out of their own pocket to provide over four million services each year to Ontarians under OHIP; and

“Whereas optometrists have never been given a formal negotiation process with the government; and

“Whereas the government’s continued neglect resulted in 96% of Ontario optometrists voting to withdraw OHIP services beginning September 1, 2021;

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

“To instruct the Ontario government to immediately commit to legally binding, formal negotiations to ensure any future OHIP-insured optometry services are, at a minimum, funded at the cost of delivery.”

I support this petition, will affix my name to it and give it to page Tanvi to deliver to the Clerks.

Optometry services

Ms. Catherine Fife: I’d like to thank Pierce Family Vision for providing this petition.

“Petition to Save Eye Care in Ontario

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the Ontario government has underfunded optometric eye care for 30 years; and

“Whereas the government only pays on average $44.65 for an OHIP-insured visit—the lowest rate in Canada; and

“Whereas optometrists are being forced to pay substantially out of their own pocket to provide over four million services each year to Ontarians under OHIP; and

“Whereas optometrists have never been given a formal negotiation process with the government; and

“Whereas the government’s continued neglect resulted in 96% of Ontario optometrists voting to withdraw OHIP services beginning September 1, 2021;

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

“To instruct the Ontario government to immediately commit to legally binding, formal negotiations to ensure any future OHIP-insured optometry services are, at a minimum, funded at the cost of delivery.”

It’s my pleasure to support this petition, affix my signature and give it to page Sujay.

Optometry services

Mr. Jim McDonell: I have a petition to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.

“Whereas the government has been hard at work ensuring that patients have access to the care they need when they need it, which includes eye and vision care for Ontarians; and

“Whereas the government recognizes the valuable services that optometrists provide to people living in Ontario; and

“Whereas the government recognizes that compensation increases for optometrists have long been neglected by previous governments; and

“Whereas the government has made every possible effort to lay a foundation for a long-term relationship with the Ontario Association of Optometrists, including engaging a third-party mediator chosen by the OAO to assist them in reaching an agreement and offering a one-time lump sum payment as well as immediate OHIP fee increases; and

“Whereas any decision to withdraw services is the decision of individual optometrists under the direction of the OAO, despite the government continuing to fund these optometry services through OHIP;

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

“To petition the Ontario Association of Optometrists to immediately return to the bargaining table to work with the OAO’s chosen mediator to work out a long-term deal.”

I agree with this and will pass it off to page Theo.

Optometry services

Ms. Andrea Horwath: I have a petition to save eye care in Ontario, signed by many folks—Hamilton, Brantford, Huntsville, Binbrook, Ancaster and Dundas.

“Whereas the Ontario government has underfunded optometric eye care for 30 years; and

“Whereas the government only covers an average of 55% of the cost of an OHIP-insured visit, the lowest rate in Canada; and

“Whereas optometrists must absorb the other 45% for the over four million services delivered annually under OHIP; and

“Whereas optometrists have never been given a formal negotiation process with the government; and

“Whereas the government’s continued neglect resulted in 96% of Ontario optometrists voting to withdraw OHIP services beginning September 1, 2021;

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

“To instruct the Ontario government to immediately commit to legally binding, formal negotiations to ensure any future OHIP-insured optometry services are, at a minimum, funded at the cost of delivery.”

I agree with this petition, Speaker. I affix my signature and send it by Fraser to the table.

Mental health services

Mr. Mike Schreiner: I have a petition to improve mental health services.

“Whereas issues of mental health and addiction are not being properly and successfully addressed in Ontario; and

“Whereas currently, most mental health services are only available through extended health care that’s offered by private insurance companies, and not everyone has the privilege of purchasing a private insurance plan or securing a permanent position that offers these benefits; and

“Whereas mental health services have become even harder to access for a lot of people due to job loss during the COVID-19 pandemic...; and

“Whereas ... many people who need long-term psychotherapy but” are finding it financially difficult “has become” an “ultimate barrier to ... the service they need; and

“Whereas social workers in Ontario firmly believe that access to mental health care is a fundamental human right that everyone should have access to;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to immediately embark on including mental health care in OHIP to ensure everyone has the rights they deserve.”

I will sign this petition and ask Zada to the table.

Treaties recognition

Ms. Bhutila Karpoche: It’s Treaties Recognition Week, and I have a petition here titled “Honour the Robinson-Huron Treaty.” It reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas 21 First Nations of the Robinson-Huron Treaty have called on Ontario to engage in negotiations to fulfill their treaty obligations;

“Whereas, in return for the Anishinaabe sharing their lands and resources with the crown, the crown agreed to pay annuities that were to be augmented as the revenue generated from the resources in the territory grew;

“Whereas the annuity amount for treaty beneficiaries was raised to $4 in 1874 and has not changed since;

“Whereas, in 2018, the Ontario Superior Court found the crown has a mandatory and reviewable obligation to increase the treaty’s annuities when the economic circumstances warrant;

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

“Fully implement the augmentation clause contained in the Robinson-Huron Treaty signed in 1850. The government should engage in negotiations to fulfill Ontario’s treaty obligations by reaching a settlement agreement with the Robinson-Huron signatory nations.”

I fully support this petition and I urge the government to move beyond words to action.

Opposition Day

Affordable housing

Ms. Andrea Horwath: I move opposition day motion number 3 as follows:

Whereas Ontario needs to build one million homes over the next 10 years to keep up with the need for housing, according to the Smart Prosperity Institute; and

Whereas consecutive Liberal and Conservative governments have developed policies geared more to politically connected developers and speculators than regular people; and

Whereas the ability to purchase a home should not depend on how wealthy your parents are, and rising home prices have made it increasingly difficult for working people to afford homes in the province, driving record numbers to leave Ontario in search of places they can afford; and

Whereas housing speculators have only made the crisis worse, creating bubbles that make it harder for low- and middle-income Ontarians to enter the market; and

Whereas speculation and vacancy taxes have proven effective in prioritizing homes as places for people to live, instead of financial commodities for deep-pocketed speculators; and

Whereas the Ontario Real Estate Association has called on the Ford government to end unfair and exclusionary zoning practices to allow more affordable “missing middle” housing options like duplexes and townhouses to be built in urban neighbourhoods close to jobs, services and amenities, and the Ontario Federation of Agriculture has called on the Ford government to protect farmland from needless urban boundary expansions;

Therefore, the Legislative Assembly calls on the Ford government to develop an affordable home ownership plan that: implements speculation and vacancy taxes to help cool the market and fund affordable housing; updates land use planning rules to accelerate the construction of “missing middle” housing and other affordable home ownership options, while protecting farmland and natural heritage from wasteful sprawl; and introduces new, environmentally progressive building standards to make homes greener and more energy-efficient.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bill Walker): Ms. Horwath has introduced opposition day number 3. I return the floor to the leader of the official opposition.

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Thank you so much, Speaker. I appreciate that. I’m pleased to be on my feet debating this motion, because it really does speak to a serious, serious problem that we have here in Ontario. In fact, it’s definitely a problem that exists in other provinces as well. But here in Ontario, prices of homes are literally out of control.

We believe that everybody, no matter how much money they make, should be able to afford a safe roof over their head. That is absolutely a basic fundamental human right, the right to housing. We take it seriously, and we know that good policy coming out of governments can actually achieve that goal. We can actually achieve the goal of ensuring everybody is appropriately housed and that folks who want to and should be able to buy a home are able to do so.

It is absolutely clear that the skyrocketing price of housing is having an impact on people. It’s having an impact on young people. It’s having an impact on the decisions that young people are making or not making. I don’t know how many times I’ve heard young people talk about the fact that they simply cannot afford to buy a home in the neighbourhood that they were raised in, in the community that they love, where they have most of their familial connections and most of their memories. They simply have been priced out of the market, and it’s devastating.

It’s devastating for families that, for example, want to start putting down some roots and raising a family. What we know for sure is that young people are delaying those kinds of decisions. They’re delaying those kinds of decisions because they simply can’t afford a place that’s big enough to meet the needs of a potential family situation. So those kinds of decisions of partnering and of raising children are being put off by folks because they are despairing that they’ll never, ever actually be able to get into the housing market.

We know that people put off growing their family. They may have one child already, they’re looking to have a second or third child, and they simply can’t do it, not because of any reason other than the fact that they can’t afford a place that’s big enough to accommodate a growing family. That’s really unfortunate, Speaker, and it doesn’t need to be that way.

We can actually put in place policies that create options for young people and for anybody who wants to actually get into the housing market.

As I said this morning in question period, it is absolutely the case that life is getting harder and harder for people. I mentioned that this morning in the context of our Premier’s low-wage policies that are keeping peoples’ wages down while everything else is going up. One of the biggest expenses that people have, just in general, is their housing cost, the cost of their rent or the cost of the mortgage.

Of course, things had gotten really bad after 15 years of the Liberals not addressing the housing crisis that we were faced with before the pandemic.

This government came into office and things have just gotten more and more expensive as they’ve driven peoples’ wages down, putting people who are living on the minimum wage in a situation where they’ve lost between $5,000 and $6,000 since this government didn’t proceed with an increase in the minimum wage, and of course, we’ve watched as this government has told workers on the front lines of COVID and the front lines of all kinds of different workplaces that helped us through the pandemic that they don’t deserve a raise.

Health care workers are kept to a 1% wage freeze, which of course means that those who are looking to perhaps save some money and get into the housing market have been prevented from doing that because of the low-wage policies of this government.

People are having to fight very hard—very hard—to try to build a life in our province. They deserve to have some rewards from the hard work that they put in day in and day out. Unfortunately, where we are now, after 15 years of Liberal inaction and dragging us backwards by this government, the dream of home ownership has not only become more distant but young people are abandoning the thought of even being able to own their own home.

In fact, I was talking to a young person, I guess it was in September or so, and he was telling me that he and his partner had decided that they were going to buy a place in Costa Rica because they simply cannot afford to buy a home. They know they will never be able to buy a home in the community in which they live, which is here in Toronto. Instead, they’re setting their sights on a vacation place in a country that they can afford, which is really troubling. It should never have come to this, Speaker.

But the good news is, of course, we can do something about it, and that’s what this motion is all about. It’s not new that this crisis has existed. As I said, the driving up of housing prices has been ongoing for some time now. We know that the Wynne-Del Duca government was not on the ball when it came to taking control of this crisis. They let prices skyrocket here in the province. They had a chance to put the brakes on those rapidly increasing prices when they were in office; they chose not to do so.

And, of course, we have this government that’s much, much more focused on helping their buddies, helping developers and helping the folks who are already very well-off, who never have to worry about whether or not they can afford a home. They’re home builders and they make a heck of a lot of money, giving some of it, of course, to the government in the form of political donations. The helping out of buddies and insiders is not going to help one young person to afford a home in this province.

We know that for Liberals and Conservatives the fundraising has increased, and, really, the people who build those homes, they’re really a cash cow for the government. Now, of course, as these billionaires are not only building the homes and getting all the consideration from the government while everyday people can’t put a roof over their heads, we also see that there are these billionaires—these buddies of the current government and the previous government are buying up properties not even to live in them. They’re buying up properties as assets, as part of their portfolios.

In many cases, they leave those homes absolutely empty because they’re not buying them to be a home; they’re buying them to be a part of their financial portfolio, which is really, really problematic.

We believe here in the NDP that homes should be for people to live in, not to be an asset that some wealthy billionaire can plow their money into. We can absolutely do better than what’s happening now, and that’s why this motion speaks to some of the things that we want to see happen. We want to help people to own their own home so that they can thrive, so that they can live in the neighbourhoods that they were raised in, so that they have that dream of homeownership once again and so that that dream is attainable here in the province. That can be done.

We can cool off those speculators, those investors, those folks who make money off of our housing stock and really do nothing but make the affordability crisis worse and worse and worse.

When we form government, we will be introducing an annual speculation tax—we will be doing that—on residential property, and we will also be implementing a vacancy tax on residential property so people are dissuaded from buying up these homes and leaving them vacant, and so people are dissuaded from speculating in the market and creating a situation where the homes keep being sold over and over again as the price continues to go up. We’re going to go after the speculators, the ones particularly who don’t pay taxes in Ontario.

Speculators from other parts of the world, other parts of the country, they are not paying taxes in Ontario, and we are going to make sure that they have to pay for this kind of behaviour that creates such a crisis when it comes to affordability of housing in our province.

We are going to also make it very clear that huge swathes of agricultural land, farmland, environmentally sensitive areas and greenbelt land are not where houses should be being built. There’s a lot of opportunity to build what is called the missing middle, which are things like townhouses, as the motion identified, multi-residential units that are more compact, that aren’t the big huge towers, but are things like duplexes and townhouses and those kinds of units which people can afford.

We have a huge problem with a lack of those kinds of missing middle homes, and folks know that if we had more of those in place, if we had more of those available, it would make a big difference to help people get into the housing market and then eventually move on.

We think that what we need to do here is act and not just simply sit idly by as we watch people’s dreams become dashed and their ability to own a home becomes further and further unattainable for them. So as this crisis continues to unfold, what we’re hoping is that this government will understand that they actually do have a role to play, and it’s not just to make their buddies wealthier; it is to make sure everyday working folks, the little guy, are able to live in this province and are able to put a roof over their heads, their family’s heads, and able to purchase a home.

That’s the responsibility of a government—not to just help the wealthy, which we know that they do constantly, but to help everyday folks build a great life in this great province. That’s we’re all about. We’re looking forward to being able to help people own a home next year.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bill Walker): Further debate? I look to the member from Parkdale–High Park.

Ms. Doly Begum: Scarborough Southwest.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bill Walker): Scarborough Southwest. My apologies.

Ms. Doly Begum: Thank you, Speaker. You’re doing well.

Mr. Speaker, I’m so proud to represent a riding, the riding of Scarborough Southwest, where we have community members who are concerned about their neighbours, concerned about their neighbours’ ability to afford a life in this province, who are concerned about our province and the environment, making sure that we’re able to protect our communities, our neighbourhoods and our green space.

So I’m proud to join the NDP’s call to develop an affordable home ownership plan that implements speculation and vacancy taxes to help cool the market and fund affordable housing; updates land use planning rules to accelerate the construction of missing middle housing and the other affordable home ownership options while protecting farmland and natural heritage from wasteful sprawl; and introduces new, environmentally progressive building standards to make homes greener and more energy-efficient.

Speaker, Scarborough Southwest is home to families who want to be able to build their life where they grew up, to be able to stay in their communities, but unfortunately, with the price of housing, it has just been impossible. We have a whole generation of people across this province who cannot even envision living in the same communities that they grew up in, let alone affording to buy their own homes. The lack of affordable housing is a crisis, and therefore, we need an ambitious plan that addresses this crisis.

Over the past year, in the name of pandemic management, the government has passed omnibus bills which made it easier for developers to now encroach into our protected lands, yet none of this made it easier for the average family to own a home—not to mention that this crisis we’re facing is the result of consecutive Liberal governments, and now this Conservative government, who have failed to address the housing crisis.

Speaker, in my limited time, I just want to point out that in order to address this crisis, we have to look at the way we can make sure that we’re protecting our land but providing homes that people can afford to buy.

On residential streets like Windy Ridge in my riding of Scarborough Southwest—we have been informed that corporate speculators and private equity companies will be taking over the land and beautiful green spaces to build condos that may not be affordable for a lot of the community members who actually live in the neighbourhood. That is not the way to address this crisis. Families who have lived in Scarborough for all their lives are still struggling to make ends meet and raising their families—across the area with single homes, because the market rent is just unaffordable, let alone buying a home.

Speaker, I want to end—and I have a limited amount of time, because it’s just a big issue and there is so much happening—by pointing out that there are a few things we can do right now to end this, and this motion addresses that. That includes bringing back real rent control and ending vacancy decontrol and making sure that the Landlord and Tenant Board is actually being fair and there are in-person hearings, which have been stopped throughout this pandemic—and a lot of landlords and a lot of tenants have been struggling with that, and we need to bring back in-person hearings right now.

We need to make sure that we establish a cooling strategy for seniors and other vulnerable tenants across our province.

Speaker, I thank you for this time and call on the government to join us in passing this motion.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bill Walker): Further debate?

Mr. Ian Arthur: It’s an honour to rise and speak to this debate, and thank you to the Leader of the Opposition for bringing it forward. I want to begin at what should be the starting point of any policy discussion on housing, that housing is a human right. Everyone deserves a place to live and to have the feeling of safety that so many of us get to take for granted, but an increasing number of people actually do not.

We have strayed very far from that being a reality for so many in Ontario. We are in the midst of a crisis, and that word barely does it justice, Speaker. Homelessness is skyrocketing and continuing to do so. House prices seem to know no bounds in terms of their increases. Families are being priced out of rent, let alone ownership. And it’s remarkable: This has been going on for over 30 years. We knew the path we were going down, we had the data to show that the policies that were in place for the last 30 years did not work, and we still pursued it anyway.

We know what works. We know what best practices are, and we can look to so many other places in the world for how to deal with the housing crisis. We can look at Zurich and what they have done to improve their affordable housing supply. Their solution was twofold. They invested significantly—significantly—in building public housing themselves, and they enshrined it in the city constitution in 2011. What a thing to do, enshrine it in a constitution that housing is a human right. They made sure that for any private developments that were made, no less than 33% of them, a full third, were affordable housing.

That is the level of numbers that we need to ensure that there is affordable housing in Ontario.

It’s been hard to be part of this Legislature and see what we know to be best practices, backed up by data, out there in the world, and the divide between that and what is actually done in this room. Because the contrast is stark. We know what works. We know inclusive zoning works. We know rent controls work. We know that increases to the minimum wage don’t slow down the economy, and they provide people with access to housing. I don’t have a lot of time, but that’s what we can do here.

I want to just touch momentarily on what the reality of this is on the ground. Last week, I toured one of Kingston’s homeless encampments, Speaker, and it was a tragedy. I don’t even really have words for what it was like to tour through that, I guess, community. I don’t know what else to call it. There were so many people, and they had so little access to what they needed to live healthy, happy and fulfilled lives. And it’s growing. It’s growing every single day.

So would this government please adopt this motion by the Leader of the Opposition and allow us to address the housing crisis in Ontario?

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bill Walker): Further debate?

Ms. Bhutila Karpoche: Since I was elected in 2018, I have stood in this House countless times raising the issue of the housing crisis and calling for a response from this government. My community of Parkdale–High Park has been an epicentre of the housing crisis. Because of astronomically high rents caused by above-guideline rent increases and vacancy decontrol, people from my community have been forced out, displaced from the neighbourhoods they grew up in or raised their kids in and called home for years.

Our response to the housing crisis must be at the scale of the crisis itself. Speaker, we are faced with a government that has constantly sided with developers and corporate interests—a government for whom it is in their best interests not to acknowledge the scale of the crisis we’re facing.

But today I want to focus on something I’ve been hearing from my constituents when I speak to them at their door: the dream of home ownership, which has become increasingly out of reach for people in my community and for people across Ontario. Speaker, I think most people in Ontario grew up dreaming of owning their own place one day. And for many Ontarians, that was what they were led to believe was possible, that if you have a job that pays decent wages and you have the good fortune of being able to build up your savings, you could eventually have enough to buy a home you can call your own.

We know that home ownership can provide much-needed stability, both personal and financial. Homeowners don’t have to worry about being renovicted or about bad faith and bogus evictions. Homeowners can pay into their own equity instead of into the pockets of some big corporate landlord or developer.

But home ownership just isn’t possible anymore for most people in this province. Skyrocketing housing prices have made owning a home all but a fever dream for the everyday Ontarian. Even the average two-income household in Ontario—much less single-income families—finds it next to impossible to scrape up enough for today’s ballooned payments.

It shouldn’t have to be this way. Buying a home should not be an option that is only available to a select few, and not just for speculators to make more money on. Owning a home should be something that is achievable for young professionals, for young couples, for families who want it.

I absolutely support this motion. There are very specific actions that can be taken to address the housing crisis, and this motion outlines them. So I urge the government to support it and get working. It’s time to put an end to the affordability crisis in housing and put home ownership back within the reach of everyday Ontarians.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bill Walker): Further debate?

Mr. Faisal Hassan: It is a pleasure to rise today on behalf of the decent and hard-working community of York South–Weston and speak in support of our opposition motion calling for an affordable home ownership plan.

I’ll begin by stating a fundamental principle that all decisions in this Legislature should be premised on, and that is that housing is a human right. Everyone deserves a decent, stable place that they can call home.

The sad reality is that, because of decades of neglect by Liberal and Conservative governments, people are finding home ownership to be just a dream. In York South–Weston, people are being forced to leave the neighbourhoods they grew up in, thus leaving parents, family, friends and community behind.

The Conservatives and Liberals downloaded the cost of social housing onto municipalities with no way to pay for it. Now thousands of affordable and social homes are crumbling and unsafe, and next to no new affordable homes are being built. The provincial governments’ years of neglect and inaction on the housing file have led us to the housing crisis we now find ourselves in.

This motion today looks to make housing a priority and calls on the government to reverse their neglect, inaction and apparent lack of interest in developing a real affordable home ownership plan that places families first and not the interests of developers and land speculators. These housing speculators have made this crisis even worse, and it is near impossible for families to even enter the housing market. We need to look to other provinces that have tried to cool the market with speculation and vacancy taxes. Real rent control needs to be brought back, and renovictions need to end.

One year ago in York South–Weston, a staggering 170 eviction hearings were scheduled just in the month of November.

Because of Liberal and now Conservative disregard for affordable housing, there are now more families on the waiting list for affordable housing than those actually living in affordable housing units. Seniors now account for over a third of that wait-list for decent housing, and it is an embarrassment to this government that elders are waiting almost five years to obtain affordable housing.

Mr. Speaker, this motion calling for an affordable home ownership plan is needed urgently, right now. Communities struggled during the pandemic, and the inequities and disparities in housing for all were really highlighted. We need to move to a post-pandemic economic recove