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October 2, 2013

40th Parliament, 2nd Session

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Hansard Transcripts

Votes and Proceedings

Orders and Notices

Hansard Transcripts 2013-Oct-02 (PDF)

L067 - Wed 2 Oct 2013 / Mer 2 oct 2013

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO

ASSEMBLÉE LÉGISLATIVE DE L’ONTARIO

Wednesday 2 October 2013 Mercredi 2 octobre 2013

WEARING OF PINS

ORDERS OF THE DAY

SUPPORTING SMALL

BUSINESSES ACT, 2013 /

LOI DE 2013 VISANT À SOUTENIR

LES PETITES ENTREPRISES

INTRODUCTION OF VISITORS

ORAL QUESTIONS

ELECTION ADVERTISING

ELECTION ADVERTISING

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE

PAN AM GAMES

TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE

TOURISM

PAN AM GAMES

PAN AM GAMES

TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE

LAND USE PLANNING

HORSE RACING INDUSTRY

FULL-DAY KINDERGARTEN

GO TRANSIT

INTRODUCTION OF VISITORS

MEMBERS’ STATEMENTS

ONTARIO NORTHLAND TRANSPORTATION COMMISSION

LABOUR DISPUTE

GOVERNMENT’S RECORD

WIND TURBINES

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

ISLAMIC HISTORY MONTH

COBOCONK AND DISTRICT

LIONS CLUB

MOHANDAS KARAMCHAND GANDHI

DECORUM IN CHAMBER

REPORTS BY COMMITTEES

STANDING COMMITTEE ON REGULATIONS AND PRIVATE BILLS

STATEMENTS BY THE MINISTRY

AND RESPONSES

GO TRANSIT

VIOLENCE AGAINST

ABORIGINAL WOMEN

VIOLENCE AGAINST

ABORIGINAL WOMEN

GO TRANSIT

GO TRANSIT

VIOLENCE AGAINST

ABORIGINAL WOMEN

PETITIONS

ONTARIO COLLEGE OF TRADES

TAXATION

AIR QUALITY

ONTARIO MUNICIPAL BOARD

PHYSIOTHERAPY SERVICES

HYDRO RATES

TIRE DISPOSAL

AIR-RAIL LINK

HEALTH INSURANCE

COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTRE

LYME DISEASE

DOG OWNERSHIP

ORDERS OF THE DAY

TIME ALLOCATION

WASTE REDUCTION ACT, 2013 /

LOI DE 2013 SUR LA RÉDUCTION

DES DÉCHETS

The House met at 0900.

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

Prayers.

WEARING OF PINS

Hon. David Zimmer: Mr. Speaker, a point of order?

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): A point of order from the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs.

Hon. David Zimmer: Speaker, I believe we have unanimous consent that all members of the Legislature be permitted to wear pins in recognition of the efforts to end violence against aboriginal women and girls.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The Minister of Aboriginal Affairs is seeking unanimous consent to wear pins representing the fight against violence against aboriginal women and children. Agreed? Agreed. We have agreement.

Hon. David Zimmer: Thank you, Speaker.

ORDERS OF THE DAY

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Orders of the day.

Hon. John Gerretsen: Good morning, Speaker, on this beautiful fall morning when it’s Kingston day at Queen’s Park. The government is pleased to call government order G105.

SUPPORTING SMALL

BUSINESSES ACT, 2013 /

LOI DE 2013 VISANT À SOUTENIR

LES PETITES ENTREPRISES

Mr. Leal, on behalf of Mr. Sousa, moved second reading of the following bill:

Bill 105,

An Act to amend the Employer Health Tax Act / Projet de loi 105, Loi modifiant la

Loi sur l’impôt-santé des employeurs.

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

Hon. Jeff Leal: Thanks very much, Mr. Speaker. I just want to let you know, and the viewing audience in Peterborough, Ontario, this morning that I will be sharing my time with the distinguished member from Vaughan, who has a very long and distinguished career in the small business sector in the province of Ontario, particularly in the area of Vaughan. I know he will be talking about that today.

At the onset, any of us who have had the opportunity to visit wonderful Kingston, Ontario, know that is the centre of many small businesses. We’ll join with the Attorney General later today in rooms 228 and 230 to see everything that Kingston has to offer. I suspect His Worship Mayor Gerretsen will be there too. We’re looking forward to that wonderful hospitality that only Kingston can provide for us today.

I’m pleased to spend a few minutes this morning to talk about Bill 105. You know, prior to my election to the Ontario Legislature exactly 10 years ago today, I was employed in a small business in Peterborough called the Coyle Packaging Group.

They’re a very successful small business. They have—

Mr. John Yakabuski: It’s more successful since you came here.

Hon. Jeff Leal: Well, I was just going to get to that. It’s interesting: I think sales have grown at least 75% since I left a decade ago. Thank you so much to my good friend the member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke for pointing out that historical fact.

I just want to recognize the Coyle Packaging Group. The president is Jim Coyle. Along with his two brothers, Bill and John, he has been running the businesses they inherited from their father, the late Gord Coyle, a decade or so ago—very successful. Particularly, in Jim’s case, I want to acknowledge his wife, Wendy, who is now a cancer survivor and went through a very, very difficult time for the last 12 months. Wendy is now doing very, very well and is on the road to full recovery.

They are an example of a very successful small business in the packaging group. They’re going to directly benefit from the 2013 budget changes in the employer health tax that are targeted, helping more than 60,000 Ontario small businesses to promote jobs and growth. These reforms—these important reforms—are part of our government’s ongoing work to make Ontario the most attractive place to do business in North America, and all of us on all sides of the House share that.

Just to give you a couple of quick highlights before I turn it over to my colleague the member from Vaughan, businesses with annual payrolls under $5 million will be exempt from paying the EHT on the first $450,000 of their payroll. I know that will be extremely helpful. I’m thinking about Home Hardware on Lansdowne Street West in Peterborough. They will be recipients. This will be able to help them.

I know that Stuart Harrison, the general manager of the Greater Peterborough Chamber of Commerce, has advocated for years that we change the benchmark level for the EHT for small businesses. So, Stuart, if you’re watching out there in Peterborough this morning, this one’s to you, and thank you for your great advocacy work to make this a reality.

I’d also like to add that this exemption will be indexed to inflation every five years, ensuring that small businesses see a consistent reduction in their taxes—very important.

With those few introductory remarks, it’s my pleasure to turn it over to my colleague the member from Vaughan.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: I want to begin by thanking the member from Peterborough and Minister of Rural Affairs for those introductory comments regarding Bill 105. Here we are at second reading of this particular piece of legislation supporting small businesses, the Supporting Small Businesses Act, 2013, which was highlighted as one of many outstanding measures in Ontario budget 2013.

I want to commend the member from Peterborough for those introductory comments, as he explained, I think, very eloquently, his own experiences, before arriving in this particular chamber 10 years ago this very day, working with small business in his community prior to his arrival here in the Legislature, but also the work he’s done—the significant and outstanding work this particular member, like many members here on this side of the House have done over the last 10 years, in some cases, and in shorter terms for those who arrived after 2003—to help support small business here in the province of Ontario.

So thank you to the member from Peterborough for those introductory comments and for all of his great work here in this House.

There are many topics on which I’d like to touch today with respect to this particular bill, but the member from Peterborough did start his comments by talking a little bit about the fact that this is his 10th anniversary, or at least the 10th anniversary of his first election to the House back on October 2, 2003. I know there are a number of other members on this side of the House for whom this is also a 10th anniversary. I think it’s really important, with respect to the debates we’ve had in this place since budget 2013 around some of the other bills that have arisen because of the budget.

For example, the legislation regarding the Financial Accountability Officer and some of the other stuff we’ve discussed here on this floor since budget 2013—when I’ve had the privilege to stand and talk about many of these pieces of legislation, I’ve often referred to them as part of the ongoing or evolutionary process, and I think that it’s timely. It’s more than just coincidence that here we are on the 10th anniversary of the first election of the Ontario Liberal Party, or at least the return of the Ontario Liberal Party to power.

There have been many, many things that have occurred over the last 10 years that speak to the fact that this is a government that has, throughout those 10 years, worked very, very hard to make sure that Ontario’s economy remains strong, remains on track, and that has dealt with significant challenges like the 2008 global economic crisis by responding quickly and forcefully to ensure that we are prepared to weather that storm that, frankly, engulfed many, many other jurisdictions, both national and subnational, around the world.

And because of the steps that were taken by this government in the aftermath of what occurred in 2008, and the decisions that have been made since, the Ontario economy remains on track. It remains strong and robust and it continues to grow, Speaker.

Here we are again today talking about this particular bill, this notion of making sure that we work hard to support small businesses, that we continue to support small businesses here in Ontario. This is another example of that evolutionary process. As I said at second or third reading—I don’t remember now—of the Financial Accountability Officer legislation, there are many things that occurred over the course of the last 10 years with respect to making sure that our economy remains strong and remains on track.

I’ll repeat them because I think they bear repeating, and people watching at home and people here in this chamber I think need to recognize that we always need to learn from stuff that has occurred in the past so that we can go forward and chart a course moving forward that is stronger and that provides us with the opportunity to continue to achieve outstanding things.

So as I said at third reading of a previous bill, Speaker, there are a lot of people in Ontario today, maybe some who are watching right now from my community of Vaughan, who wouldn’t even know that there was a time in Ontario when a government of the day was able to tell the people, prior to that 2003 election campaign, that the books were balanced, that there was no deficit, that everything was on the up and up and that everything was fine.

When we came to power in 2003, we called in a former Auditor General to review the books, and we learned, to our shock and to our dismay and extreme disappointment—I know that was felt by people right across this province. We found that, in fact, it wasn’t a balanced budget situation, that there was a hidden deficit of close to $6 billion, that the former PC government had actually not been completely forthcoming with the people of Ontario.

Even though they had been asked repeatedly at the last budget before the 2003 election and throughout the 2003 election, they chose not to be completely forthcoming with the people of Ontario and instead decided to leave that hidden deficit for us to discover and to deal with upon our election in 2003.

We took steps in the aftermath of the 2003 election campaign to pass sweeping, important, groundbreaking legislation that would provide a level of accountability and transparency so that no future government, ours included, could ever enter into an election campaign and pull the wool over the eyes of the people of Ontario. We passed legislation in this House to make sure that the province’s books are reviewed before each election campaign going forward to make sure that ruse, that opportunity the PC government of the day took to not be forthcoming with the people of Ontario couldn’t occur again.

And we’ve seen in 2007 and in 2011 the opportunity for the Auditor General to review the province’s books to make sure the people of Ontario have the whole story. That kind of financial accountability and transparency has been the hallmark of this Ontario Liberal government for 10 years, and today the bill that we’re discussing, Bill 105, is another example of that evolutionary process.

I said at third reading of a previous bill, Speaker, that many people in Ontario wouldn’t know that there was a time in this province when, again, a former government, a PC government, was able to spend tens and tens and tens of millions of taxpayers’ dollars on what many felt was partisan government advertising. They blurred those lines, Speaker. They did that frequently, not unlike what we see the federal Conservatives doing with the hundreds of millions that they’ve spent on advertising pushing out their plans.

Well, Speaker, many people wouldn’t know that there was a time in Ontario when that took place, and it was common. We changed that. We determined that it made the most sense for us to move forward in order to make sure that the people of Ontario had a degree of faith and a degree of confidence that their tax dollars were not being spent on supportive or overly partisan advertising by the government of the day. We took steps to make those changes, and I believe the people of Ontario are all the better for it.

So there are many, many steps that we’ve taken over the last 10 years as a government to bring that level of fiscal accountability and transparency, and to support Ontario’s economy. And here we are today, Speaker.

We find ourselves in a situation where, coming out of that 2008 global economic crisis that occurred because of circumstances well beyond any particular province’s control, we managed to deal with those here in Ontario by making the right kind of investments in people, the right kind of investments in infrastructure, which we continue to make, and also by working with our small business community to create the kind of climate, the kind of environment, in which small businesses can continue to grow and to thrive and to prosper.

The decisions that we made post 2008 continue to this day, and over these last number of months on this side, Premier Wynne and our colleague Ontario Finance Minister Charles Sousa have made decisions going into budget 2013 to make sure that as a government we can continue to keep Ontario’s economy on the right track, that we can continue to provide the circumstances, or the environment, which Ontario’s small businesses and large businesses can use to leverage so that they can continue to invest.

Again, Speaker, because it does bear repeating, it’s important to note that as a government, our priority is that we continue to invest in people, that we continue to invest in crucial infrastructure, and that we continue to do whatever we can to support a dynamic and innovative business climate for the people of Ontario. Those are our priorities, and we see evidence of those priorities in this particular bill, in Bill 105.

I think it’s also important to note—I look at my own community with respect to this issue of investing, particularly in infrastructure. I look at Vaughan. Vaughan is not unlike many other municipalities that ring Toronto and, frankly, not unlike many other suburban municipalities right across this province. It’s growing very, very quickly—population increases over the last quarter century. I’ve lived in my community for 25 years, and to have seen the difference in terms of the size and the population shift in growth and the intensity of the development that’s taken place in my community it simply breathtaking.

Again, it’s similar in ridings like Richmond Hill, ridings like Oak Ridges–Markham, ridings that ring other urban centres: Kitchener, London, Ottawa and so on. But when I think of what’s taken place over the last 10 years in a community like mine, in a city that now has a population that exceeds 300,000 and continues to grow, I see that the decisions that have been made by the Ontario Liberal government over the last 10 years to invest in that crucial infrastructure have paid significant dividends back to my community and so many others. There are many examples.

Even in the 12 months that I’ve been on the job representing my community of Vaughan, there have been tremendous examples of our government’s commitment to invest in infrastructure. I can think of the fact that in budget 2013 we announced the approval of the nearly seven-kilometre stretch of Highway 427. Highway 427 is serving not only York region and the city of Vaughan but also serving Peel region and the city of Brampton. The 427 extension is roughly to run from Highway 7 currently, where it stops, up to Major Mackenzie Drive, a roughly seven-kilometre stretch. There will be three interchanges.

It’s a highway, from an economic standpoint, which will help leverage significant investment from small businesses and also medium and large businesses, because that highway extension essentially bisects or cuts through something that’s known as the Vaughan enterprise zone.

That’s roughly 1,200 or 1,300 acres of greenfield employment land that has yet to be developed because, frankly, the city, the region, and all of the businesses and land owners in the area have been waiting for the opportunity to see the 427 extension get approved so that in the very near future—hopefully with some hard work and dedication—we can get shovels in the ground, we can get that built and we can unlock all of that economic development potential.

The city of Vaughan has estimated that when the Vaughan enterprise zone is fully built out, it will help leverage and create the kind of investment that will produce, directly and indirectly, tens of thousands of new jobs here for the greater Toronto area.

That’s one example of the kinds of investments that we’ve been making in crucial infrastructure. I can think of others in my community: what we’ve done with respect to the Viva rapid transit system. That services not only Vaughan but also Richmond Hill, Markham and some of the other communities in York region—hundreds of millions of dollars.

A recent announcement that the member from Richmond Hill participated in, with the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure, regarding some of the work that’s taking place, the fantastic new—I guess traditionally we would call them bus stops, but they’re so much more in terms of helping to convince and encourage more and more people in fast-growing areas like Richmond Hill, like Vaughan, like right across the York region, to make the choice to use public transit because it’s accessible, it’s innovative and it helps move them in a more timely fashion.

It’s hundreds of millions of dollars invested by this government over 10 years, and we continue to invest.

One of the first announcements that I participated in last fall was an announcement around the widening of Highway 7 in my community to help build in the extra lane to service this Viva bus rapid transit, a nearly $140-million investment—that I had the privilege of making alongside one of my colleagues back in, I believe, last October. These are the kinds of investments.

Interjections.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): I’m having trouble hearing the speaker, and all of the noise is coming from his side. If you want to have little discussions, like four different discussions, you might want to go out in the lobby and do it.

Continue.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate that. I will do my best to speak even louder, if that helps.

In addition, as I was saying, investments in that crucial infrastructure matters so much, not just to the people of my community, but also to the small businesses. Back on April 10, I believe it was, I had the opportunity to represent our Minister of Health and Long-Term Care by announcing a $49.7-million planning grant for Vaughan’s hospital. That is now planning money that will help the team at Mackenzie Health finish the entire planning process and take us through procurement without requiring additional funds.

That is a massive project that is of crucial importance to my community—but not just my community of Vaughan; all of southwest York region.

That will help our small business community in York region and beyond continue to lure the kind of investment that we need, because they can sell to their customers and their prospective employees and to suppliers that they are working in an area—that they are providing economic development, that they are hiring people, that they are trying to encourage folks and customers to come and participate with them in that economic exchange that drives our economy forward, by saying, “We have local access to quality health care here in this community.”

These are the kinds of decisions that our government has been making over the last 10 years. I think it’s important to mark here today, on our 10th anniversary as a government, that we are continuing to move forward with these kinds of investments, investing in people. I think investing in people is something else, when you take a look at the creative way, over the last number of months and years, that we’ve invested in helping to expand the post-secondary education sector in the province of Ontario.

Creating new apprenticeships: There may be no other issue with respect to PSE that’s as important within aspects in my community as the fact that we’ve expanded the apprenticeship system so extensively in the last 10 years.

I can think of three or four significant, leading-edge training centres that exist in my community alone, tens and tens of thousands of square feet of training space where young women and men get the opportunity to embark on a career in the skilled trades, because this government has understood from day one that it’s important that we invest in giving young people in particular—but not just young people; people who may want to shift at different points in their career as they get a little older—an opportunity to learn a new skill, or acquire their first skill coming out of high school or coming out of university, and establish themselves in a very successful career in the trades.

It’s one of the reasons that we helped create, working with the industry, working with all industries, working with the community of skilled trade—it’s one of the reasons we chose, as a government, to create the College of Trades. It’s the first time in Canadian history that a provincial government, to my knowledge, has embarked on providing what I like to call the community of skilled trades with the ability to be self-governing, with the opportunity to be in control of their own affairs.

Frankly, whether it’s a trade in the manufacturing sector or the service sector or the motive sector or the construction sector, who knows better than the people in the trades themselves what they need for their future, be it ratio reviews, be it applications and considerations with respect to which trades are voluntary and compulsory, given whether it’s dealing with any of those kinds of things that matter to those trades?

For far too long in Ontario’s history, while many other professions—teachers, nurses, doctors, lawyers and many, many others—had the ability to be self-governing, were empowered and enabled to be self-governing, the community of skilled trades, the roughly 130 or so skilled trades in the province of Ontario, still had to come cap in hand here to the Ontario government to ask for direction and to give their advice in a way that sometimes wasn’t completely clear.

To have now taken the opportunity to provide those trades with the opportunity to govern themselves, to regulate themselves, is a groundbreaking initiative. It helped to continue to encourage the kinds of investments in people that we’ve been making over the last number of months and the last 10 years.

When I take a look at the specific bill itself, Bill 105, the notion of supporting small business—it’s kind of a well-worn cliché, but I think the reason it is a well-worn cliché is because it is true: Small businesses are in fact the backbone of any particular advanced economy. When you think of who does the work, who takes on the significant risk—I look again at my own community in Vaughan.

There are thousands of women and men who have taken it upon themselves to embark on certain, let’s call them entrepreneurial adventures, people who have decided that they want to take that risk, to perhaps partner with others, find their own resources, seek out support from financial institutions because they have an idea, because they have an innovative and creative concept, because they have a degree of drive.

Whatever the rationale is, whatever that initial source of inspiration or that initial spark is, Speaker, I have tremendous respect that I know many of us—dare I say, all of us in this chamber have tremendous respect for those individuals who decide that they’re going to roll up their sleeves, they’re going to take advantage of that initial idea, that initial innovation, that entrepreneurial flair they may have, and start their own small business.

While government can’t necessarily at every single step of the way make decisions for small business owners and other business owners, what government can do is take the time and take the energy and have the creativity to provide small business owners and those who aspire to be small business owners—by supporting that dynamic and innovative business climate that I talked about a second ago, Speaker. It is such a crucial thing.

I know there are people who represent different communities here in this chamber—some today like the member from Peterborough, who talked about his experiences, before arriving in this House 10 years ago, working for a small business. I’m sure there are people here who were involved in small businesses—perhaps they ran their small businesses—and they know that it’s not always easy to embark, to take that risk, that initial jump, but many of them did it. Many of them succeeded. Many of them did well. Many of them prospered.

I think part of the role of government is to, like I said a second ago, create that environment, create those conditions so that those who decide to take that jump are enabled and helped and supported to do well. So, Speaker, in budget 2013, one of the many, many, many important measures, whether it was relating to auto insurance or relating to investments like the Highway 427 extension for my community or the funding that we set aside for the youth employment strategy, the $295 million, or the money that was set aside for home care—a number of measures in the budget.

But this one, to me, has a particular importance because of that requirement, that responsibility that falls to government to help create that innovative and supportive business climate.

I know the member from Peterborough did refer to this a little bit when he was talking about the bill in his introductory comments. But just so we understand clearly, through this particular act, budget 2013 announced reforms to the employer health tax that are targeted at helping more than 60,000 Ontario small businesses in promoting jobs and growth. That’s 60,000 small businesses.

But, Speaker, that goes beyond just this concept of a statistic; 60,000 is a big number, but those 60,000 small businesses, in turn, are likely run by members of 60,000 families that want to do well, that don’t expect a handout necessarily, don’t expect that they’re going to have government make all of their decisions for them.

But they’re 60,000 families working in 60,000 small businesses, or being involved in those small businesses, that simply want the opportunity, that simply want to be able to roll up their sleeves, like I said a second ago, to work hard, to partner with government, to work with financial institutions, to sell their product, to sell their service, to be innovative, to be creative and to employ tens and tens and tens of thousands more people here in the province of Ontario.

The reforms are part, as I’ve said earlier, of our government’s ongoing commitment to make Ontario the most attractive place to do business here in North America. Speaker, on that note, over the last number of months and years, I know that we’ve all heard the Minister of Finance and others talk about how Ontario is considered to be a very attractive place for foreign direct investment. For a long time, Ontario was considered, I believe, the second-most popular destination for foreign direct investment across North America. Today, I believe we stand at third.

Speaker, I think, especially when you consider the challenges we’ve faced, the challenges that our manufacturing sector faced in the wake of that 2008 global economic crisis, the fact that because of the decisions we’ve made here in this chamber as an Ontario Liberal government, but also because of the resilience of those people who work in small business, those people who are small business owners, because of the resilience and the determination and the drive of the people of Ontario—we actually remain in a very, very strong position, and we are a very attractive place for businesses to work here in North America.

Speaker, in terms of the actual technical aspects of the bill, what this particular act will do is provide the opportunity for businesses with annual payrolls of under $5 million to be exempt from paying the employer health tax on the first $450,000 of their payroll each year. That particular exemption will now be indexed to inflation every five years, which will ensure that small businesses see a consistent and ongoing reduction in their taxes.

When I think about these measures—and again, I revert back to my own community. I can think of many small business owners with whom I’ve developed a relationship over the years. Some are friends; some are people in my community. Again, they just want that opportunity.

They just want to be enabled and empowered to make the kind of decisions that will not only provide them with some security and provide them with some prosperity for themselves and their families, but will help them employ many, many other women and men and to give many, many other families—to leverage that initial entrepreneurial creativity, to provide support, to provide prosperity and to provide opportunity for thousands of others whom they would indirectly employ as a result of some of these investments.

Not that long ago, I happened to step into a business in Kleinburg, which is perhaps one of the most beautiful parts of my riding of Vaughan. I happened to go into a wonderful little place called Dolcini, which is run by a gentleman named Joseph and his wife. Together, they create some fantastic baked goods that are renowned all around Kleinburg and beyond.

I think of how this kind of measure—and certainly in my community there are lots of opportunities. I think of St. Phillips Bakery. I think of so many others in Vaughan, not just in that particular sector but in many other sectors, who will be able to take advantage of this opportunity in budget 2013 to continue to grow their businesses, to continue to employ people and to continue to make the kinds of investments.

Because we’re actually going to be indexing this exemption to inflation every five years, it not only provides them with an ongoing consistent reduction; it provides them with a degree of certainty and stability around this particular aspect of how they operate their businesses because they’ll know that for five years it’s being indexed to inflation. It’s not the kind of stand-alone or one-off decision that’s made by a government that has to be revisited every year. Now they have an understanding.

They can better plan and make better decisions as a business because they understand that this particular aspect has those five years.

I think it’s important to note that this particular new exemption will reduce the cost of hiring and it will reduce the burden of red tape for small businesses like Dolcini, like St. Phillips, like so many others—Plan B Promotions. I can think of literally hundreds and hundreds in Vaughan that will have the opportunity to take advantage of this measure that’s included in Bill 105 so that they can continue to plan for their own successes going down.

That means, as I said just a couple of minutes ago, that more than 60,000 businesses in Ontario will see a reduction in their taxes, including roughly 12,000 businesses that will no longer pay this tax at all. That’s 12,000 businesses, Speaker. When I was referencing the 60,000 number just a minute or two ago—I think it’s really important to stress that we don’t just think about these numbers in an abstract way. Sixty thousand is a big number; 12,000 is a big number.

Let’s think about what the impact really is on those business owners, on their employees, on their families, on their communities, on someone who today doesn’t even know that in six months or 12 months or 18 months they’re going to be hired by one of these small businesses and given their own chance of prosperity, their own chance at economic security, because of the decisions that we’ve made in this budget. I think it’s really important that we take that into account and that we don’t just—in this place, I think it’s often very easy for us to think about these numbers in that abstract way.

I think it’s important that we drill down and that we understand what the human impact is, or at least what the human potential is, or the impact on the human potential is, with some of these measures.

It is really important also to note that our government remains focused on creating the very best environment for a strong economy that creates good, high-paying jobs. I said a couple of minutes ago: At the very foundation of the decisions that we’ve made over the last number of months and that we will continue to make, we have to remember—and I’ll keep repeating it because it’s so crucial—that we are a government that believes passionately in investing in people, investing in infrastructure and doing what we can to support a dynamic and innovative business climate.

I see that my colleague from Scarborough–Guildwood is here: a recent arrival to this Legislature, someone who understands very well what it means to be in a community where supporting people and supporting infrastructure and supporting that business environment—especially when we take into account her background and the backgrounds of many other people here who have worked in a variety of sectors and have a very sincere understanding of what it means.

Interjection.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: I would think that even in communities like Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke, the people living in that community would want to understand they are represented by a member and represented by a government that understands the importance of investing in them and investing in their infrastructure.

The small business owners in ridings like Nipissing and Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke and Scarborough–Guildwood would understand that it’s important for us to knit these three aspects together—to merge, to blend these three—because that is the best way for us to continue to move Ontario’s economy forward.

The measures that we’ve taken here in Bill 105, which I have said at length here today are very crucial for making sure that Ontario’s economy remains strong—I think it’s also important to note that these measures are not stand-alone, in many respects.

I talked at the outset of my remarks today about how our government has taken many evolutionary steps over the last 10 years to provide the kinds of support for people, the kinds of investments in infrastructure—we’ve made the kinds of decisions that matter, in order to support a dynamic and innovative business climate here in Ontario.

I think it’s also important to take into account some of the other measures that we’ve taken, to demonstrate that evolutionary process that I believe has existed, and I believe we can demonstrate has existed, in Ontario over these last 10 years.

Our government has taken significant steps to cut taxes for business and create the right conditions for jobs and growth, to create that dynamic and innovative business climate that I talked about just a second ago.

Currently, Ontario’s business tax cuts will deliver $8.5 billion annually to business, improving Ontario’s competitiveness and business investment climate. These include the harmonized sales tax, a more modern value-added tax. When fully phased in, the HST will result in the removal of about $4.6 billion a year in embedded taxes paid by business.

Speaker, a few minutes ago, when I talked about how high Ontario ranks with respect to how popular we are for foreign direct investment, this is one of the measures that helps drive those kinds of outcomes for the province of Ontario. There are businesses in other parts of Canada, other parts of North America, other parts of the world that are looking for a place to put down roots, to set up.

Be they small, be they medium, be they large, they look at a wide variety of indicators, understanding that there is a dynamic and innovative business climate in a community like Ontario, in a province like Ontario, the kind of environment or climate that we continue to create with measures like the ones that exist in Bill 105 but also the kinds of measures that exist in other elements, other aspects, of budget 2013—the kinds of ideas, the kinds of elements that are at the very foundation of every single decision that Premier Kathleen Wynne and Minister Charles Sousa and the rest of the folks on this side of the House make, that help guide us in the decisions that we make.

That’s all very much at the very foundation of making sure we provide that kind of business climate, so that Ontario continues to be an attractive place for investors and prospective business owners.

We’ve also eliminated the capital tax. This is something that corporations paid, whether or not they had a profit, and was a significant disincentive to investment. We made sure that we took care of that. We also cut corporate income tax rates for small and large businesses.

Again, with respect to how crucial and important small business is in the community—the community of Ontario at large, Speaker, but even in communities like yours, in Hamilton; like mine, in Vaughan; like Ottawa Centre; like York West, my neighbour to the south; Richmond Hill, my neighbour to my east—in all of our communities, small business is crucial.

I know I spent a couple of minutes talking about the respect and the admiration that I have for entrepreneurs, women and men who decide, because of some initial spark of genius or flash of genius, that they have an idea or a service they want to provide. It is our job as a government to help enable that, not stifle it—to help enable that, enable their expertise, leverage their idea and provide them with supports, like the supports we see with respect to the moves that we are making on the EHT and cutting the corporate income tax rate for small and large businesses.

In addition to the actual business tax reductions, the HST and the streamlined CIT administration provide compliance cost savings of over $635 million per year for businesses.

That might sound like a bit of an abstract line, and frankly, looking at it, it kind of is, this notion of compliance cost. But when I talk to business owners in my community of Vaughan, whether they’re in Woodbridge or Maple or Kleinburg or other parts of my community, they tell me this matters a great deal to them.

The fact that they had to spend so much time, energy and their own resources with respect to dealing with compliance issues was something that they felt was a significant disincentive to them, instead of being focused on what we, as a government, want them to focus on, which is helping to grow our economy by being innovative, by encouraging investment and by hiring as many people as they possibly can.

We’ve done other things over the last number of months and years. We’ve introduced and passed cuts to the business education tax rate since 2007, resulting in savings of over $200 million for Ontario businesses. I know there are certain businesses, for example, in northern Ontario—some of our mills in northern Ontario—which have benefited from significant cuts to the business education tax component of what they once had to pay, thanks to the advocacy of individuals like both of our members from Thunder Bay, like the advocacy of the members from Sudbury, Sault Ste.

Marie and many, many others across northern Ontario. Mayors, councillors and business owners across the north came to us over the last number of years and talked to us about how we can help to encourage ongoing investment in their businesses. We took steps to provide these incentives and we continue to do so.

So there is a very clear path, a very clear evolution, a very clear route that we have decided—very, very importantly over the last 10 years, to take decisions on this side of the House, and we continue to do that, and you see evidence of it in budget 2013. We make our decisions through that lens of, “What will provide individuals and businesses with a sense of opportunity, with a sense of optimism and hopefulness for the future?”

I have said it repeatedly in my remarks today: We can’t make every single decision for business, nor should we. We are not in the business of running businesses, that’s true, but we are in the business of providing every single opportunity to enable those individuals who have that entrepreneurial flair, that drive, that desire, the innovative idea, that initial flash of genius to make the kinds of decisions to drive our economy forward.

Whether we’re Liberals, PCers or NDPers, it’s our job to find the environment, by working together in this chamber to come up with ideas like Bill 105 so that we can reduce the burden that small businesses feel they have to participate in in order to do what we want them to do, which is to employ our families, our neighbours and our friends.

Interjection.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: I hear comments from somebody across the way. In that particular member’s community, I’m pretty sure the small business owners are delighted to know that we are taking steps that will enable them to make the kinds of decisions that will employ her constituents.

I sincerely hope, in the remarks that we hear from the third party at some point today at the second reading debate on Bill 105, that we hear the kind of constructive ideas that will help small business owners across the province understand that the parties stand united when it comes to actually trying to help small business owners, so that in turn, as I said a second ago, all of our constituents have an opportunity for a brighter future.

I think it bears mentioning—I have tons of other things I want to talk about—

Mr. Rob Leone: Please do.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: I plan to, and I appreciate that.

I think it also bears mentioning that there are some in this House who seem to think the most interesting and innovative way to drive an economy forward is to drive it into the ditch. We’ve heard people on this side of the House talk very extensively about this right-to-work-for-less concept.

Speaker, when I talk to small business owners in my community, what they tell me is, “Please do what you can to enable a brighter economic future for all of us, please do what you can to provide us with tools like the tools we see in Bill 105, but please also make sure that you can help create a high-wage economy,” so that at the end of the day, whether somebody is running Dolcini, St. Phillips, Plan B Promotions or a car dealership, whatever it might be, they actually have customers who can afford to buy their products.

This is all about making sure that we don’t drive to the lowest common denominator, as members from the PC caucus want us to do.

Speaker, we make decisions on this side of the House to make sure that our economy remains strong because businesses have the opportunity to do what they do best, but at the same time, part of that is making sure that they employ women and men who have the kind of wages that can enable those women and men and their families to buy the services and goods those businesses and thousands of others like them across Ontario sell. Otherwise, this formula, this equation, doesn’t work.

We don’t move Ontario’s economy forward by making sure that too many of those folks get left behind because a certain caucus, the PCs in particular, want to drive wages down so that they actually reflect what’s happening in the Deep South in America. This is not the direction the people of my community want us to go in, and this is not the direction, most importantly, that the business owners in my community want Ontario to move forward with. It makes no sense. It doesn’t make economic or social sense.

That’s why in budget 2013, and in particular with the measures that we are introducing and hoping to pass here in Bill 105, we are enabling those people who took that initial risk, who set up their small businesses, whose dream it was to provide a better future for themselves and for their kids. And most importantly, when I talk to most small business owners, it’s not just about them, their spouse, their kids; it’s about their employees as well. It’s about that relationship, that kinship that they’ve developed with the people who they employ. They want to make sure that their employees do well; they want to make sure their kids’ employees do well.

I have many businesses in my community—small, medium and large—where people have been employed in those businesses for better than two decades. That speaks to a fundamental relationship-building opportunity. When I think of a small business owner or a medium business owner in my community, that’s what I think of. That’s the symbol; that’s the image that’s in my head. I know that it’s not any different in most other communities that we all represent around the province. They are people who care. They are people who drive our economy forward. They are the people who provide the lion’s share of employment opportunities for people in all of our communities.

With Bill 105, we are helping to move their agenda forward. That’s an agenda that will benefit all of us, because it will help Ontario’s economy continue to grow and prosper.

Interjection: Hear, hear.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: I’m not done just yet. I’m not done just yet.

There are other steps that we have taken over the last number of years. When I think about the stuff that we’ve done as a government, the ideas, the creativity, the energy that we have brought—Premier Wynne, Minister Sousa; other folks, like the member from Ottawa Centre; people such as the member from Mississauga–Brampton South, the member from Oakville, and so many others; the member from Ottawa–Vanier, the member from Guelph, the member from Pickering–Scarborough East—all of us, and many others on this side of the House—and yes, from time to time, speakers on the other side—

Interjection: From time to time.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: From time to time—not always; there’s not always necessarily that consistent confluence or coming together of ideas and energy.

We have taken many decisions on this side of the House. For example, since 2009, the marginal effective tax rate on new business investment has been cut in half. This places Ontario below the average marginal effective tax rate among Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development countries and well below that same average in the United States.

Again, sometimes the language we use in this House—I think we all fall victim to this from time to time—sounds a little bit like too much jargon. Somebody watching at home might say, “What the heck did the member from Vaughan just reference?”

What the member from Vaughan just referenced with that one statistic, and many of the others that I’ve had the opportunity to present today, are examples of how we have created and continue to create that innovative and dynamic business climate so that small, medium and large business owners can make decisions that will help Ontario’s economy continue to grow. Those are the kinds of decisions that move alongside or move in parallel with the kinds of decisions we’re making: to invest in people and to invest in crucial infrastructure.

The infrastructure that we’ve invested in over the last 10 years—dozens of new hospitals that have been opened in the province of Ontario; new expansions to university campuses and college campuses; roads, highways, public transit—it continues to this very day.

I read a report just a couple of days ago from a certain organization, the Residential and Civil Construction Alliance of Ontario, that said that for every $1 billion invested in infrastructure renewal, the spinoff impact from an employment standpoint is roughly 34,000 jobs. I think I have the number right from the report: $1 billion invested; 34,000 jobs. That’s the correlation, the employment link. Again, 34,000 jobs: It’s a big number. It’s 34,000 people, 34,000 families that have a paycheque coming in because of every $1-billion investment this government has made in infrastructure.

If you think back over the last 10 years, if you look at everything that we’ve accomplished in infrastructure alone over the last 10 years, think of the tens and tens and tens of thousands of women and men working in the skilled trades in particular who have benefited directly because of those investments that we’ve made in their communities.

Though I wasn’t a member in this House at that time, I think back to that period in the aftermath of 2008 and the aftermath of that global economic crisis, when there were national governments and subnational governments around the world that were paralyzed, that were suffering from a complete lack of understanding about how to move forward.

Here in Ontario, partnered in actual fact with the federal government, we made investments, millions and millions and millions of dollars—billions of dollars—of investments in helping to support Ontario’s auto sector, but also investing in crucial public infrastructure so that in communities across Ontario—certainly in my riding of Vaughan—people could continue to be employed.

Hon. Jeff Leal: Good thing we didn’t follow the Mitt Romney approach.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: Absolutely. The Mitt Romney approach, as the member from Peterborough cites, is driving folks to the bottom: driving wages down, driving opportunity down and driving an economy into the ditch. We’ve heard that exact same rhetoric from members of the PC caucus. I had the chance to actually spend some quality time with my friends in that caucus a number of days ago at their gathering in London. The conversations I had the opportunity to have in the hallways—I’ll admit that their rubber chicken tastes an awful lot like ours at those gatherings; I will admit that much, at least.

But I will also say that in the conversations I had with individuals in the hallways, it’s clear to me that that is a party that doesn’t have a clear understanding of the direction it wants to go in. They have 14 white papers they’ve been talking about, policies and ideas they’ve been talking about for two years. They had resolutions at the convention itself that bore no resemblance to those white papers.

I’m not quite sure who’s really in control of that party, but fundamentally—and this is what’s most troubling for the people in my community and most troubling for the people of Ontario—it’s not a question of whether it’s a competition or a fierce battle inside that party between good ideas and better ideas; it’s a competition or a fight between bad ideas and horrible ideas. That’s something that’s very troubling for a party that I know wants to put itself forward and make it sound like it has some wonderful sense of where Ontario should go.

But when I listen to the 14 white paper policy ideas—and I’ve read through some of them—I see nothing more than an opportunity for businesses in my community and employees in my community to have less opportunity, to have less hope, to have less of a chance at earning a good living wage so that they themselves can continue to invest—less of an opportunity.

Miss Monique Taylor: Bill 74 goes against everything you just said.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: The member from Hamilton—I believe it’s Hamilton; forgive me if I’m wrong. I know, because I have friends and family who live in Hamilton—I was just in Hamilton the other day, as many of us were, and I know that small business owners in Hamilton, like in Toronto, like in Vaughan, Ottawa and all across the province of Ontario, want Bill 105 passed because they know this will help them leverage more opportunity, more economic development.

This will help them, in turn, leverage more investment so they can hire more people so that small business owners in Hamilton can hire more Hamiltonians, or perhaps people who live in Burlington, Oakville or somewhere else, to come and work at their businesses. That’s important in Hamilton, it’s important in Vaughan and it’s important right across the province of Ontario.

Going back to what I was saying a second ago, those same small business owners don’t want us to create an economy where we effectively, because of their ideas to drive down wages, eviscerate their customer base. It makes no sense. It’s not logical. I wondered, when I was in London, if there was a napkin left anywhere in any bar or restaurant in that town because of how they’ve developed their policy ideas: back-of-the-napkin style. I don’t think there was.

But fundamentally, in that battle, in that race to the bottom, in that battle between the bad and horrible, which we see in evidence, we see on display, on a daily basis—we know that’s not the Ontario that the people outside this building believe in. It’s not the Ontario they dream about, it’s not the Ontario that they inherited from their parents, and it’s certainly not the Ontario that they want to bequeath or pass on to their kids and grandkids.

That’s why, for a decade, starting on this very day 10 years ago, those ideas, those policies, that opportunity, that determination to destroy what is fundamentally at the heart of Ontario’s cultural, social and economic DNA has been rejected. It has been rejected three times over by the people of this province, Speaker, and it will continue to be rejected, because that is not a recipe for success for the people of Ontario, the small businesses of Ontario, for anybody in Ontario except—not even except for anyone. I don’t know who it’s a recipe for success for.

On the other hand, in budget 2013, with every decision that our government makes, that Premier Wynne and our team make, we invest in people, we invest in infrastructure, and we invest in supporting a dynamic and innovative business climate. That’s why it’s so important.

Just the other day I was talking to a business owner in my community. He was talking about how exciting it is—I was talking about the 427 extension at the outset of my remarks—about the investment the government of Ontario is making, for the decision we have made to expand or extend that highway 6.8 kilometres, from Highway 7 to Major Mackenzie Drive in my community: three interchanges, at Langstaff, Rutherford and Major Mackenzie Drive. It will service not only Vaughan and York region but also Brampton and Peel region.

This particular landowner is delighted because he and the rest of his business partners can now travel across North America and lure head offices, lure significant companies to come here because we have made a decision.

What we’ve provided the business owners in my community with, unlike a recipe that the member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke and his colleagues have been peddling to no avail for 10 years, Speaker—

Mr. John Yakabuski: You guys break any promises lately?

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): The member from Renfrew—

Mr. Steven Del Duca: What we have been doing in this community has put my community, and many others like it across Ontario—providing business owners with a plan.

In the case of the 427 extension, he knows that if he’s approaching a business somewhere else in North America, he can say, “You know what? Come to Ontario,” because not only do we have an attractive and innovative and dynamic business climate because of measures like the ones in Bill 105 and the rest of the stuff I talked about earlier from budget 2013, but you also have, in Vaughan’s case, the opportunity to settle and build in the Vaughan enterprise zone, close to the new 427 extension, close to Highway 407—that would be the same highway they sold for a song when they should have kept it in public hands a number of years ago, the members from the PC caucus.

You’re near the 407. You’re near the 401. You’re near the 427 extension. You’re near Pearson airport. You’re near the 400. What the business owners in my community can say is, “Come to Ontario. Come to York region. Come to the Vaughan enterprise zone. Bring your expertise with you. Bring your creativity with you. Bring your employees. Hire many, many other employees locally and help move Ontario’s economy forward.” They’ve had tremendous success, and they’ll continue to have success, whether it’s businesses like Adidas, businesses like Cuisinart and others—Sobeys—setting up massive facilities in my community because of the decisions we’ve made as a government.

That’s why it’s so important that all three caucuses continue to have interesting dialogue here in this House but never lose sight of the fact that we’re not here to represent our own crass political interests, notwithstanding what the members from the PC caucus seem to believe. We are here to produce a better product for the people of Ontario.

When I think of my parents and I think of my grandparents, a set that came from Scotland and a set that came from Italy to this country to give us a better life, to give me and my siblings a better life, when I—

Interjections.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: Sorry, Speaker.

I think it’s important to note, when I think of my grandparents, and when I think of my parents, and I think of my siblings and myself, I know what kind of Ontario it is that we want to leave to our kids.

I have two young daughters: an almost six-year-old and a two-and-a-half-year-old. I want them to grow up in a community—and they are, Speaker; they are growing up in a community where they have the kind of economic opportunity, where they live in a society, where they live in a neighbourhood and a community where the social bonds are strong, and they understand that if they want to take on a trade, they’ll have a fantastic opportunity. If they want to become a professional of some kind, they’ll have a great opportunity because of the investments we’ve made in post-secondary.

If they want to become a small business owner, they will understand, in years to come, that they have access to initiatives like the ones we’ve included in Bill 105 and in budget 2013 to enable them to do better, to enable them to have a more prosperous and secure future for their kids and for their grandkids.

I think of the education system and how much more robust it is today than it was 10 years ago. I think of our energy system in the province of Ontario, where it was 10 years ago and where it is today, Speaker. The difference is remarkable.

Interjection.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Well, the member from Renfrew is on a bit of a roll, isn’t he? So we’ll hope he’ll take it back a notch, won’t he? Thank you.

Continue.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: Thanks very much, Mr. Speaker. You know, I do understand the member. It hits a bit close to home for the member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke and many of the others with which he serves in that caucus, because they understand, sitting here on the 10th anniversary of their first of three significant rejections by the people of Ontario, that what they have proposed for a decade, what they continue to propose, the way they look at things, their perspective, is not providing them with the kind of short-sighted political success that they are looking for, Speaker. That speaks to something more fundamental.

That’s why the people of Ontario have embraced the Ontario Liberal government for 10 years. They continue to embrace Premier Wynne and the rest of our team because they see that we are making an earnest effort to reach out to both other parties in this place, but also to municipalities, to business owners. We are taking an earnest step toward supporting small businesses because of measures like the ones that we see here in Bill 105. We are taking on the challenges that we’re confronted with.

Just the other day, Premier Wynne was in my riding. She was in my riding to highlight an initiative with respect to four bakeries in my community that have taken advantage of an economic development grant of $1.2 million, which, in the grand scheme of things and the stuff that we debate in the House, might seem like a small number, but those four businesses managed to leverage that $1.2-million provincial investment and hire 51 people—51 new jobs created for those four bakeries.

That’s 51 families—because, again, I don’t like to talk about jobs or numbers; I think it’s more important to talk about the real impact on people—that now have a brighter future in that industry, because those businesses, small and medium, have partnered with our government and leveraged an innovative and creative $1.2-million economic development grant to provide that more hopeful future, that more prosperous future.

Again, whether it’s what’s in Bill 105 itself, this notion of providing that indexed-for-five-years opportunity for small businesses that have a payroll of less than $450,000 to be exempt from the EHT—whether it’s that measure; whether it’s the billions and billions of dollars that we invested in communities like Sudbury, Scarborough–Guildwood, Ottawa Centre, York West, Guelph, Ottawa–Vanier, Richmond Hill, Oakville, Peterborough, Vaughan, Hamilton and all the other communities across Ontario; whether it’s the way that we invest in people, because we have built a stronger health care system, because we have built a stronger and more robust education system that’s producing the kind of results we need, and that’s both at the elementary and secondary level and also at the post-secondary level; whether it’s because of the initiatives we have undertaken with respect to our economic development; all of the steps combined that we have taken to create that dynamic and innovative business environment to invest in people, to invest in infrastructure, that’s why it is so crucial here at second reading that all three parties in this chamber—and I say this almost every time I stand up to speak at any particular length about any particular bill.

When I go home on weekends, when I talk to people in my riding—whether they’re friends, whether they’re family—they understand that sometimes we have to play a bit of a game in this place, but what they really ultimately expect is, when you put aside some of the back and forth, some of the cut and thrust that we all do enjoy a little bit in this place, that fundamentally we are supposed to be here for them.

Whether they are individuals, whether they are employees, whether they are business owners—whatever they happen to have taken on in terms of their life’s work, they want to make sure, while we may have an idea and that caucus may want to change a semicolon and that caucus may want to change a paragraph, and the back and forth that takes place, that ultimately our sights are set on producing a final product that benefits them in their homes, in their neighbourhoods and in their municipalities and communities, whether they’re in the north, whether they’re in rural Ontario, whether they’re somebody who was born here or somebody who came here, whether they’re Franco-Ontarian—wherever they happen to be from.

They want to make sure that we continue to work together for their kids, for their grandkids, for—in the case of those who don’t have kids and grandkids—their neighbours’ kids and grandkids—

Mr. John Yakabuski: You’re repeating yourself, Steven.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: Whether they’re in Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke or Glengarry–Prescott–Russell, it doesn’t matter. What’s most important is that we move Ontario’s agenda forward, that we continue to invest in people, that we continue to invest in crucial public infrastructure—like the Vaughan hospital, the 427 extension, the subway to Vaughan that’s under construction right now, the Viva BRT and so many other fantastic initiatives that we’ve taken on the infrastructure side—and that we continue to invest in supporting a dynamic and innovative business climate.

Bill 105 is a crucial cog in this entire picture that I have painted over the last 55 minutes or so. I call on everyone in this House to actually talk a little bit over the course of the debate here at second reading, but we need to move this bill forward, because by moving this bill forward, and many others like it coming from this side of the House, we will move Ontario forward together.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Questions and comments?

Mr. Rob Leone: I’m pleased to respond to the member from Vaughan in what was a good ad for the Liberal Party of Ontario. He talks at great length about small businesses, the plight of small businesses and the great things that the Liberal government has done for small businesses in Ontario.

I remember a survey a couple of years ago—I think it was done by the CFIB—that said that small businesses in Ontario, once surveyed after four years in business, said three quarters of them wouldn’t do it again. That speaks to the climate that this government has created for small businesses in the province of Ontario. It’s a terrible wreck. They’ve done nothing for small businesses.

I noticed that the member from Vaughan likes to talk about all of the “investments” that are being made by their government. Well, investments are being made, obviously, on an overdraft account; they have no money. Spend, spend, spend: That’s all I heard from the member from Vaughan. What he hasn’t told us is that in their own budget, in the last year of their plan, they actually are going to spend $800 million less in program spending but have not outlined what they’re going to cut. In addition to that, they’re going to spend $4 billion more on interest charges servicing that debt.

That’s a $5-billion hole, and they have not told the people of the province of Ontario how they’re going to manage, what programs they’re going to cut, what services are going to be no longer available for the people of the province of Ontario.

So it’s all nice and flowery when they start talking about writing cheques, but they never, ever talk about the kinds of difficult decisions that they’re going to have to make in order to balance the books in the time frame that they’ve stated. Where is that $5 billion going to come from? What services are going to be cut? Don Drummond has listed a number of recommendations to get us there. They seem not willing to take any one that’s going to get them closer to balancing the books.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Questions and comments.

Ms. Cheri DiNovo: Mr. Speaker, there are few folk in this Legislature more passionate about small business than myself. I had a small business; my son has a small business. And there’s no party more passionate about small business than the New Democrats. That’s why we demanded of the Liberals that they put this bill into place. It is absolutely unfair that the Royal Bank and someone with one employee are treated the same, so this changes that.

Also, I have to say a shout-out to TABIA and to the Bloor West Village BIA, the very first BIA in the entire world, started over 40 years ago in my riding.

That’s why we in the New Democratic Party also fought and won some concessions—not all—from the Liberal government on the business education tax and making that fairer for small business, because this is about Main Street, not the mall. This is about that group that represents that place in our economy that gives us 85% of our new employees, our new jobs. We get that in the New Democratic Party. We understand that. That’s why we are champions for this sector, and that’s why we know it’s a struggle in that sector.

There are a number of ways that we could address more the needs of small business, and quite frankly we’re not doing it. One of their demands is to rationalize the MPAC system; it’s hurting small business. Another of their demands is to look again at the business education tax because it’s still not fair enough. These are demands that small business is putting forward—not only small business—but their demands are falling on deaf ears, I’m afraid, with this Liberal government.

Luckily, today, as one of our conditions for support, the Liberals have put into place our demand—and this is our demand—for closing this loophole.

Again, yay to small business. Thank you for all you do. I wish we could do more for you.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Questions and comments.

Hon. Madeleine Meilleur: Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to rise today and speak on behalf of the small businesses in my own riding. The small businesses in my riding are the soul and heart of my community. They are those who work very hard, they are those who employ quite a few people and they are those who make the economy stable. They are those who get involved in community organizations. They are those who chair those organizations that a lot of people in my riding rely on. They are those who are involved in the church fundraisers. They are ones who will be at the archbishop’s fundraiser next week to help the less fortunate of our community.

I come from a small business family. I’m the only public servant in my family. My father was a small business person. My brother now has the business. My brother is in the lumber business and went through all of the ups and downs of the economy, but luckily he survived. He is a great citizen for the community where I come from. So I understand the challenges that they have. I understand that we need to support them. I understand that they are very important for the economy of Ontario.

Last weekend, we were in Hamilton. I was very shocked to hear how Hamilton is doing well. They have less unemployed people than anywhere in Ontario and in Canada. That’s what I was told by the business community there. I didn’t hear that in the past, and I want to congratulate small business people from Hamilton.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Questions and comments?

Mr. John Yakabuski: It’s a pleasure to comment on the address by the member from Vaughan, which could be titled Fantasia, because the Ontario that he’s talking about there is a dream. They talk about someone who walks through this world wearing a pair of rose-coloured glasses. Where has he been? Has he really not talked to any real people? Does he just get his messaging from the jug of Kool-Aid in the whip’s office? I mean, is this where he gets his messaging? Good Lord, Mr. Speaker, has he not been around in his own riding or across Ontario and listened to small businesses?

Yes, this bill is a good step, but it’s only recognizing the reality of inflation, and they didn’t need an exemption before you people brought in an employee health tax. That was the biggest tax increase in Ontario’s history.

You’ve got to actually get out of your cocoon; you’ve got to get off the Kool-Aid intravenous pump that you must be on, because you actually have to get out there where the real people are. Talk to the small businesses who have been hurt so badly in this province under 10 years of Liberal rule—10 years of Liberal rule.

Go to a small business and ask them, “How are you coping with red tape under this government?” Ask them, “How are you coping with the increases in electricity charges under this government? How are you coping with the additional energy charges of other kinds under this Liberal government?”

You want to talk about a one-sided story from the member for Vaughan? Anybody out there in TV land who was listening to what he was saying this morning would think that this guy was from another planet. I can’t comment on his personal address, but they would not believe that he’s actually living in today’s Ontario under the mess that the Liberals have made.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): The member from Vaughan has two delicate minutes to respond.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: Thanks very much, Mr. Speaker. I want to begin by thanking the member from Cambridge, the member from Parkdale–High Park, the member from Ottawa–Vanier and even the member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke for their comments and, I would say, questions. I’m not quite sure I heard any questions in there. I heard more barbs, I suppose.

There are a couple of things I do want to say in my final minute and 40 or so seconds. One thing is, to the member from Cambridge and to the rest of the folks operating in that caucus: When the member from Cambridge spoke, again, he got up and he talked in a very jargony kind of way. He talked about numbers.

I think what’s most important to recognize, and I said this throughout my comments earlier this morning, is that when we move forward with initiatives like the ones in Bill 105, we are not doing it for the sake of some big number, though it will help 60,000 businesses. We’re doing it for the families, the 60,000 small business owners, the 12,000 small business owners that will now be permanently exempt from the EHT. We’re doing it for the families of those in which they find themselves as business owners, but also the families that they employ. It’s most important to think about those people, not these broad, sort of high-level numbers that sometimes we all fall prey to talking about here.

To the member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke: I’ve only been in this place for 12 months as a member of the Legislature. I’ve been very proud to serve my community of Vaughan. Everything I put on the record here today is in fact true, and a fact. The hospital, the other infrastructure, the 427 extension, the BRT that we’re doing with Viva that’s servicing all of York region: These are all things that are taking place, that are employing literally thousands of women and men in my community at this very moment.

I suppose I can understand and almost sympathize with a certain degree of the derision in that member’s voice, Speaker, because if I had been rejected and my party had been rejected three times over, in such a resounding and compelling way, by the people of Ontario, I’d probably feel as bitter as he does.

The good news for me is that I’m part of this team, and this is the team that today is celebrating 10 years of moving Ontario forward together, 10 years of building a stronger economy, not moving Ontario into the ditches as those folks on that side are proposing to do.

I call on everyone—

Mr. John Yakabuski: Time.

Mr. Steven Del Duca: —to pass this at second reading and take it to committee.

Second reading debate deemed adjourned.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Paul Miller): Thanks for the assistance from the member from Renfrew.

It being 10:15 or close to, this House stands recessed until 10:30 this morning.

The House recessed from 1014 to 1030.

INTRODUCTION OF VISITORS

Mrs. Jane McKenna: I’m proud to welcome one of my constituents to Queen’s Park today: Burlington’s Arthur Gallant, one of five Canadians, and the only Ontario resident, selected to serve as a spokesperson for this year’s Faces of Mental Illness campaign, which is part of Bell’s Let’s Talk mental health initiative. He’s here to help promote Mental Illness Awareness Week, which runs from October 6 to 12. Welcome to Queen’s Park, Arthur.

Hon. John Gerretsen: Speaker, I hope that you will indulge me for just a few moments. This is Kingston day at Queen’s Park, the second time that we’re doing this, and I’d like to introduce a whole group of people who are here today.

It starts off with the city council. Mayor Mark Gerretsen is here, together with councillors Jeff Scott, Sandy Berg, Dorothy Hector and Jim Neill. Hal Linscott is here, the city lawyer. Also with the city are Melanie Ryttersgaard and Susan Nicholson.

From the Kingston chamber of commerce, we have Matt Hutcheon here, who’s the chief executive officer, along with Bill Stewart.

From the Rogers K-Rock Centre, we have Lynn Carlotto and Nick DeLuco.

From the Kingston Economic Development Corp., we have our world-renowned town crier—many times a world champion—Chris Wyman, together with Connie Markle and Melissa Shorrock.

From Queen’s University, one of the best universities in the entire world, we have Principal Daniel Woolf, and Sheilagh Dunn.

From St. Lawrence College, which is also absolutely second to none when it comes to the college world, we have President Glenn Vollebregt, Gordon MacDougall and Morgan Davis here, as well as Victoria Stinson.

We also have here Wendy Vuyk and Rory O’Donnell from the Seniors Association, one of the most active in the entire province. We have Diane Luck and Catherine Milks.

From the Sir John A. commission—we’ll be celebrating the 200th anniversary of Sir John A.’s birthday in 2015—is Mary Rita Holland, who will be known to some of my NDP colleagues.

From the Downtown Kingston! BIA, we have Jan MacDonald and Lily Roebuck.

I think I’ve named everybody who is here, but there are many other people here. Join us all at 11:30 in rooms 228 and 230 for Kingston day at Queen’s Park.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Now that ministerial statements are over, it’s time for responses.

I couldn’t resist.

The Minister of Aboriginal Affairs.

Hon. David Zimmer: I’d just remind members that this morning at 9 o’clock, unanimous consent was given for members to wear a lovely blue pin in recognition and in memory of missing aboriginal women. If you haven’t received your pin, it’s in your respective lounges.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): On behalf of the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, regarding page Megan Lai: mother, Judia Mark; father, Terry Lai; grandmother Kin Law; grandfather, Lee Lai; and Principal Derek Gaudet are here in the gallery, visiting. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

I’m going to take this up with the Clerk, but I believe the town crier’s hat is better than mine.

ORAL QUESTIONS

ELECTION ADVERTISING

Mr. Tim Hudak: My question to the Premier. Premier, you’ll recall—and I know we had a personal conversation as well—that the Chief Electoral Officer has pointed out the problem with third-party groups, like the Working Families Coalition, hijacking democracy, in effect warping the democratic process to advance their own agenda at the expense of taxpayers. You and I had a conversation about that.

The Chief Electoral Officer has called for reforms to limit the insidious influence of the third-party special interests. I want to congratulate my colleague from Chatham–Kent–Essex, Mr. Nicholls, on bringing a bill forward to do exactly that.

Premier, in the spirit of co-operating to do the right thing, will you co-operate with the Ontario PC caucus and close this loophole that has influenced politics for far too long?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: I would just say to the Leader of the Opposition that I know he remembers that we are the party that has brought in rules around third-party advertising during campaigns, and I’ll just go over them in case he hasn’t remembered those. In 2007, we introduced third-party advertising rules in Ontario for the first time. That was in 2007. Under the current rules, third parties that spend $500 or more on election advertising are required to register with the Chief Electoral Officer, and the registered third parties have to also report to the CEO on election advertising expenses.

If election advertising expenses are $5,000 or more, then those reports have to be audited. Those rules ensure that there’s transparency. Mr. Speaker, there were no rules in place before we brought those in. So we’re very interested in transparency and understanding exactly who’s donating and what is being paid and having those statements audited.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Tim Hudak: Obviously, that’s a disappointing answer from the Premier. It sounded more like Pat Dillon talking than I’d expect from the Premier of the province of Ontario.

You know, Premier, you were actually on the receiving end of the big stick of big labour in the recent Kitchener–Waterloo by-election. As you know, big labour, including the teachers’ unions, spent $1.1 million in advertising just for one by-election. The combined advertising spending of the Liberals and the PCs was $370,000. This is not a level playing field. It’s not in the interests of real working families, taxpayers in our province.

The lesson you should have learned is to close that loophole and eliminate the insidious influence of these special interest groups. Instead, the lesson you learned was to leap back into the pockets of big labour and give them everything they wanted, including the ability to decide what teachers get hired in the classroom and raises we can’t afford.

Premier, tell me that you’ve rethought your approach to get back into the pockets of big labour, and do the right thing for the people in the province, Ontario taxpayers, and close this ugly loophole and level the playing field for all political parties.

Interjections.

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

Premier.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Mr. Speaker, I would remind the Leader of the Opposition that we’re the party who put rules in place where there were no rules. So we’re very interested in transparency.

I would just say that one of the things that really worries me about the current political climate is that there is a serious underestimation and, I think, almost an insult towards the people of the province, towards voters, that somehow they can’t figure out what is going on. I believe they need more information. That’s why we put—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I’ve noticed a trend, and I’m going to ask that it be stopped, and that is, as soon as the person stands up to answer the question, shouting down happens. That’s not appropriate.

Premier.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I think that—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Member for Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke, come to order. As soon as I sat down, it started again. Don’t. Don’t.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: There need to be rules in place, Mr. Speaker. We put rules in place. I believe the democratic process means that a whole range of people need to have opinions. They need to be able to express those opinions. I think the Leader of the Opposition is underestimating the voters of this province.

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

Mr. Tim Hudak: Frankly, Premier, the only insult to taxpayers is that you’re letting Pat Dillon and big labour run the province of Ontario. I think you’re missing the essential point here, why this is a problem. The problem is that the influence of these insidious third parties is—that they’re hijacking democracy. Effectively, they’re buying election campaigns, and you don’t understand that at the end of the day it’s average hard-working taxpayers who pay the price. Their taxes have gone up. The deficit has skyrocketed—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Excuse me. Sorry for interrupting. This goes both ways. I want the question put and I want the answer provided without the interference and without the yelling.

Please carry on.

Mr. Tim Hudak: You miss the problem here. The problem is that average hard-working families are paying the price. The debt is that much deeper. They don’t get the services they deserve. There are fewer jobs available to Ontarians because of bully boys like Pat Dillon who want to turf-protect at the expense of and to raid the pockets of hard-working taxpayers.

Why don’t we follow the approach that other provinces have done and that exist in federal legislation? Let’s level the playing field, let’s restore democracy and let’s take away the special interest influence on your government that is bankrupting the province of Ontario.

Interjections.

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

Premier?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: The Leader of the Opposition is talking about his perspective on the things that have happened over the last 10 years, and I just want to give our perspective. We’ve created over 600,000 new jobs; we’ve provided $1 billion in tax relief to Ontario manufacturers since 2010; 2.1 million more Ontarians have access to family care; 4,000 more doctors are practising in this province; 16,400 new nursing positions have been created; 23 new hospitals have been built; 480 new schools have been built; 184,000 children are enrolled in full-day kindergarten. We have 60,000 new spaces in post-secondary education—which means 160,000 young people have access to post-secondary.

You’re right. Things have changed in the last 10 years. The plan of the opposition leader has been rejected three times, Mr. Speaker. I think that’s what he’s upset about, and I think he underestimates the voters of this province—

Interjections.

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

New question.

ELECTION ADVERTISING

Mr. Rick Nicholls: My question is for the Premier. Today in Ontario, we see a situation where more money is being spent on advertising during election periods by third-party organizations than the major political parties. Premier, this isn’t fair, nor is this democracy. Elected officials should be accountable to the people who elect them, not the special interest groups and powerful unions.

Tomorrow, I will be introducing the Special Interest Groups Election Advertising Transparency Act. If passed, this bill will put a cap on third-party spending during election periods. Premier, this is about allowing all political parties to have an open, honest debate during elections without the unacceptable propaganda we see from these third-party groups.

Premier, will you work with us and pass this bill?

Interjections.

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

Premier?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: I think I’ve answered this question a couple of times, but I’m happy to do it again. In 2007 we brought rules into an area where there were no rules. The member opposite talks about accountability for the people who elect us. I agree with that, Mr. Speaker. Having more transparency and more accountability in place is exactly why we brought in the rules that we did in 2007 when we introduced third-party advertising rules in Ontario for the first time. There were no rules. There had been no rules put in place at all previous to that, Mr. Speaker. Now, third parties that spend $500 or more on election advertising—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): That’s not going to work. I will tell you, my patience is a little thin on this one because it’s simply shouting people down.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: So if they spend $500 or more, they are required to register with the Chief Electoral Officer. They have to report to the Chief Electoral Officer on advertising expenses if that is more than $5,000. If it’s more than $5,000, those have to be audited. That kind of transparency is exactly what’s needed.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Rick Nicholls: Premier, you said that you want to be open and transparent and that you want a government that is accountable. Accountable to whom, Premier: the people of Ontario or the unions that do your bidding? How do you justify not supporting this bill or not allowing your members to vote their conscience?

As each election passes, the amount of money spent by the US-style super PACs in Ontario grows, and so does the influence held by special interest groups. This is not the Ontario that I grew up in.

Premier, will you do the right thing and support my private member’s bill and put an end to the unelected and unaccountable influence currently held by special interest groups?

Interjections.

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

Premier?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Let me say again that I agree there needs to be transparency on who is advertising in these situations. There needs to be accountability for the money that’s being spent. That’s why we put in place rules where there had been no rules, and I’ve gone over those a couple of times. If election advertising expenses are $5,000 or more, then those reports have to be audited so it’s very clear what is being spent.

But I will just go back to something that I said earlier to the Leader of the Opposition. I believe that this gambit actually underestimates the people of Ontario and voters’ capacity to make decisions. I think that in elections and, quite frankly, between elections there should be broad debate on issues. There should be many, many voices talking about issues to elected officials and to each other within communities. That’s the way good decisions get made. That’s the way good policy gets made. Stifling that is not our objective.

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

Mr. Rick Nicholls: Premier, this isn’t about underestimating the people’s ability in Ontario to make informed decisions. This bill is in the best interest of all political parties—to put a cap on the enormous amount of money being spent by third parties. If you truly believe that your party is right and that your ideas will be accepted by the people of Ontario in the next election, then allow an honest and open debate by putting a cap on third-party advertising.

What kind of a province do we live in where third-party groups are allowed to spend more than political parties? They don’t have spending limits, they don’t have to report all of their donations and they don’t have to report all of their spending.

Premier, my final question is simple: How can you stand there and say that this isn’t completely outrageous? Will you support my bill tomorrow?

Interjections.

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

Premier?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: One of the things that we did when we came into office is we changed the rules around the way government advertising could work, because one of the things that was happening under the previous regime of the PCs was that tax dollars were being spent on very partisan advertising with a picture of the leader and all sorts of attribution to a particular individual on issues that really were to do with government decisions.

We changed the rules so that government advertising had to go through the Auditor General. I think that’s the kind of transparency that people in the province want to see. I believe the party opposite underestimates the voters of this province. We put rules in place to make sure that there was transparency on the expenditure of dollars by third parties. I think that is what is necessary—and I hope that the third party understands that when private members’ bills are brought forward, people on this side of the House make their own decisions.

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING

Ms. Andrea Horwath: My question is for the Premier. Yesterday, the government filed a motion in order to shut down debate on a number of bills, including one custom-designed for EllisDon, one of the Liberal Party’s biggest donors.

Can the Premier confirm that it’s still her intention to ram this bill through?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Labour.

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: Last Friday, the Ontario Divisional Court issued a ruling overturning the Ontario Labour Relations Board decision regarding the Ontario Sheet Metal Workers’ and Roofers’ Conference, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 586 and the EllisDon corporation.

Our lawyers at the Ministry of Labour have reviewed the decision. I have been advised that the ruling means that the status quo for the company is maintained. This decision achieves the same outcome as intended under private member’s Bill 74.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Well, Speaker, that’s about as clear as muddy waters. I’d like to read a quote that could have been written today:

“The government has grown further and further out of touch with your needs.

“They have favoured special interests over the public interest.

“We know that the government of Ontario belongs to the people of Ontario. Our decisions will be made in the interests of all Ontarians, not those of a select few.”

Can the Premier tell us who the source of that quote might have been, Speaker?

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: To the Premier.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Our decisions are going to be made based on a rational process. As the Minister of Labour said last Friday, the Divisional Court made a ruling that quashed the decision of the OLRB, the Ontario Labour Relations Board, so in other words, the company can continue to operate under the status quo. I understand that the parties have been given 15 days to appeal, if they so choose, and I’ve been advised that this ruling achieves exactly the same outcome that was being sought by the member opposite’s private member’s bill. I therefore believe that this bill is no longer needed.

We will not be supporting it. I will not be supporting it, assuming that the decision is not appealed. So that’s the decision.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Order.

Interjections.

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

Mr. John Yakabuski: Hail Pat! Pat Dillon!

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Order. The member from Renfrew will come to order.

Mr. John Yakabuski: Lord Pat! King Pat!

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I don’t know what it is, but if I ask you to do that and as soon as I say it you then start it again, I’m going to say that if you’re challenging me, I’m going to win.

Premier, wrap up.

Ms. Andrea Horwath: That’s it. It was done.

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

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Just to remind the Premier, the quote is of course from the platform of the Liberal Party some 10 years ago. Today, as the Premier scrambles to protect the interests of one well-connected company—or maybe not, considering what she just said—as the government scrambles to defend their decision to spend at least half a billion dollars cancelling private power plants in Mississauga and Oakville, as people see well-connected insiders expensing everything in sight while everyday people are still waiting for results that will improve their lives, does the Premier realize that she has become exactly what she campaigned against?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: I’m just trying to sort out what’s going on over there, because on the one hand, the Tories are suggesting that I’m serving an organized labour master, and the NDP is alleging that I’m serving a corporate master, so—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I’m probably going to do something a little on the unorthodox side and ask everyone if they wouldn’t mind standing up and yelling as hard as they can for the next five minutes. There are some interesting solutions that people have recommended that I should be doing, and I continue to fight on your behalf, indicating that I think you can be self-disciplined, and that these are inappropriate kinds of comments that elevate the discussion as opposed to bringing it down to a civil discourse. So I’ll put it into your hands.

Premier.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: In fact, neither of those characterizations is accurate, Mr. Speaker. There was a private member’s bill that was brought forward to correct an anomalous situation that had resulted from legislation in 1958. I suggested that that was—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Prince Edward–Hastings, please go to your seat.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: —because of that uneven ground in that anomalous situation.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): So I can you tell you to stop.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: The circumstances have changed. The court has ruled that the status quo can pertain, and because the circumstances have changed, we believe that that bill is no longer required. That is the situation.

TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE

Ms. Andrea Horwath: My next question, in fact, is for the Minister of Transportation. Yesterday, the Minister of Transportation refused to answer questions concerning the construction of the Herb Gray expressway. Can the Minister of Transportation confirm now that girders used in construction do not meet safety standards?

Hon. Glen R. Murray: Mr. Speaker, the independent expert review report, which we just received 48 hours ago, was tabled. The complete answer to the leader of the third party’s question is in that report. It very carefully measures a very thoughtful evaluation of a complex number of girders, some of which clearly are safe and some of which there are questions about.

This was an independent review by four of the leading construction engineering experts in Canada and one of our greatest legal minds. The report, Mr. Speaker, was delivered to the chief engineer, Mr. Cripps, who is one of the most respected—it is the chief engineer of Ontario’s decision. He is now moving on the implementation of those recommendations and on a pathway that a group of engineers have made.

This is not a political decision. This is an engineering decision. No girder will be installed in that parkway that is not safe, Mr. Speaker.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Andrea Horwath: How long has the ministry known there were safety issues in this project, and when did they inform the public and the minister?

Hon. Glen R. Murray: I didn’t hear the question.

Interjection.

Hon. Glen R. Murray: I don’t think anybody knew much about this for a very long time, because it was not part of a public conversation. No one raised this with me in February or in March or in April. I first heard about concerns from discussions I was having with people in the industry in May, Mr. Speaker.

I then took immediate action. I made phone calls to verify the information I was hearing. I immediately raised it with my officials. My officials investigated. Based on their report back, I felt immediate action and strong action was needed by the government to assemble engineers to get expert advice to ensure the safety and standards.

I also ordered that work be halted on the project, that no further girders be installed and that no girders would be installed that didn’t meet safety standards—not decisions by a politician, Mr. Speaker, but by the standard that has given Ontario the safest roads and highways in North America, the decisions of the chief engineer of Ontario. My job is to keep the politics out of this and keep the engineer in charge of this—

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

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Well, Speaker, at this point the people of Windsor have a pretty basic question: How could the government, on a project of such importance, costing billions of dollars, fail to ensure that safety standards were being met in the first place on this project?

Hon. Glen R. Murray: Mr. Speaker, the exact opposite is true. This government has, on every single project—$14 billion in infrastructure projects every year—ensured not just moderate standards but the highest safety standards in North America; better than New York, California, Alberta or Quebec—the highest in North America.

We are the watchdogs. The opposition is supposed to be the watchdogs. Mr. Speaker, she has members in that area. Why did the opposition not ask a single question on safety standards in the Windsor-Essex Parkway? I did my job; maybe they ought to do theirs.

PAN AM GAMES

Mr. Rod Jackson: Speaker, my question is actually to the Minister of Finance today—and if I may say, the Liberals are anything but watchdogs.

Maybe the finance minister, previously in charge of the Pan Am Games, will have some answers for me, since the current counterpart abdicated himself from his responsibility for Pan Am yesterday in estimates. Yesterday it was like pulling teeth, Minister, to get the truth about the many duplicitous Pan Am budgets.

We know about the so-called $1.4-billion Pan Am budget. We recently learned about the extra $10 million for the secretariat’s partying and paperwork budget, and the extra $719 million for the athletes’ village. No doubt today we will learn about numerous other extra budgets for security, transportation, and Lord knows what else.

Minister, how many Pan Am budgets are there exactly? What is the for-real total for the Pan Am Games? What is the total? What are the games going to cost us?

Hon. Charles Sousa: Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport and minister responsible for the Pan/Parapan American Games.

Hon. Michael Chan: I know the opposition wants to muddy the water, but they cannot muddy the facts. These are the facts: In 2009, the Pan Am bid book pre-budget stated “village." The village is outside the 2015 budget. In April 2009, a press release stated, “Not in the 2015 budget.” It’s to revitalize the West Don Lands community. In the 2013 provincial budget—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Hamilton East–Stoney Creek can’t do a drive-by heckle.

Hon. Michael Chan: —village addition is to the 2015 budget. These are the facts, backed up by public documents.

Through you, Speaker, to the member opposite, we know your leader does not read the budget and says, “No,” but you should.

Interjections.

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

Supplementary?

Mr. Rod Jackson: Speaker, amazingly, they’ve admitted there are multiple budgets. Yes, we knew they were lined up. Thank you for admitting that today, Minister. I want to know what the true cost of the games is. The athletes’ village is no different than the other venues that have a legacy cost attached to them after the games. You know that, and you need to be honest about it.

To clarify, the current Minister of Finance was actually the minister of lavish Pan Am parties and multiple top-secret budgets. He even proudly stated to me—

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Again, I will remind the member that you refer to anybody by their exact title or their riding, and nothing else.

Mr. Rod Jackson: Thank you, Speaker.

He even proudly stated to me that “the buck stops with me,” the Pan Am minister. But all the international partying that was reputed for its grandiosity happened with him in charge, and now he’s in charge of the books.

In fact, the culture of entitlement rampant in that ministry didn’t happen overnight, either. As we heard in estimates yesterday, there’s a $10-million Pan Am party and paperwork budget hidden off the books within the secretariat.

Minister, how much have the Liberals blown on Pan Am parties?

Hon. Michael Chan: Talk about abuse of expenses. There is one person in this House, allow me to remind the members, who expensed $3.20 for a box of chicken nuggets. In August 2009: $87.40 to have a meal with his colleague. In 2009, September: $1.27 for a Tim Hortons coffee. He expensed that coffee. November 13: $77 for Irish nachos and chicken wings at Don Cherry’s restaurant. Speaker, it is the Leader of the Opposition. He did that 10 years ago, and he did that again four years ago. He’s a repeat offender of abusing taxpayers’ money.

TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE

Mr. Percy Hatfield: My question this morning is to the Minister of Transportation. Minister, may I say, by the way, thank you for providing me that briefing this morning on the safety of the girders on the Herb Gray Parkway.

I haven’t read all of the report yet, it’s more than 140 pages, but if I can quote from page 132, the girders were “fabricated without full and proper compliance with all regulations, codes and standards, with tack welding not approved by a regulatory authority and with welders whose own certification credentials and workmanship are subject to review.”

Minister, where was the ministry oversight, the quality control, when 500 deficient girders were allowed to be installed in the biggest, most expensive highway project in Ontario’s history?

Hon. Glen R. Murray: It was exactly when that information—

Interjections.

Hon. Glen R. Murray: This is an important matter of great interest to the people of Windsor and Ontario. Maybe we could have a little quiet in the House deserving of the seriousness of this matter. Mr. Speaker, I can barely hear myself speak or think.

First of all, I want to thank the member opposite. I look forward to working with him. I think we share a concern that safety and durability standards have to be up to Ontario’s high standards, and I will commit to him that we will, as I’ve said before, not open a single bridge or roadway until those standards are achieved to the satisfaction of the chief engineer. It was because of the actions that he described that, when I became aware of them, I immediately took action by taking an inquiry and turning it over to the chief engineer.

Mr. Speaker, this is a new government. Premier Wynne has asked us, as ministers, to take charge of our files—

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

Mr. Percy Hatfield: Five hundred deficient girders by the Spanish supplier on the biggest parkway project in Ontario: This report makes it clear that the 500 girders are not up to code, yet the minister has chosen not to insist that the manufacturer replace them at the supplier’s cost.

Minister, you’ve chosen a seven-point remediation plan instead of replacement. I don’t know if this is the least expensive option of the two because I haven’t found that in the report yet, but what are the long-term safety guarantees of the remediation option?

Hon. Glen R. Murray: As I was trying to finish, the Premier has asked each of us to take charge of our files and not wait for problems to arise but to get on top of them. We took that strong action right away. We didn’t wait for the Auditor General or the Ombudsman or anyone else—or the opposition. We took that action.

Those 500 girders: The safety of anything that has been installed or will be installed will not be my choice. These will not be my decisions and they certainly won’t be made on budgetary choices. They will be made purely on engineering and safety standards. There was not an accountant or a politician involved in this decision. It was the expert engineers and the chief engineer who made this decision free and clear, without even a discussion with me, who came forward and said, “From an engineering and safety perspective, this is the right choice.” I trust the chief engineer of Ontario; he’s the one who should be making these decisions.

TOURISM

Mr. Bas Balkissoon: My question is to the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport. Basketball is one of the most popular sports of youth in my riding of Scarborough–Rouge River. After school and on weekends, driving through my riding, there’s never an empty basketball court.

On Monday, constituents of mine, many Torontonians and I were excited to hear the news that Toronto will host the 2016 NBA all-star game. The NBA all-star weekend is one of the most anticipated sporting events of the year. This annual event showcases the skills of some of the world’s best basketball players. For all basketball fans here in Ontario and for supporters of the Toronto Raptors, this is great news to know that this event will be right here in our great city. I know that it will showcase Toronto to the basketball world.

Can the minister please explain the government’s support for such a great event here in Ontario and how it will benefit us?

Hon. Michael Chan: Yes, the NBA all-star basketball game is coming to town. It will create jobs and strengthen our economy. Allow me to give you some numbers here: Organizers expect that the festivities will attract 100,000 attendees; 75,000 tourists and 30,000 overnight visitors, which will result in almost 28,000 hotel room nights in the span of 10 days.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke, I believe, has now been spoken to twice, if not three times.

Hon. Michael Chan: The events will be broadcast in 215 countries, in over 44 languages, with more than 1,800 media members covering it. The total broadcast audience is estimated to be in excess of a whopping 200 million viewers.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Bas Balkissoon: The response from the minister definitely demonstrates the magnitude of this event, and also the benefit it will have on Toronto’s economy. It is good to know that the government is taking an active role in fostering and promoting large-scale events to be hosted here in Ontario. As the minister said, an event like this will be bringing in many tourists, who will not only witness the activities of this event but will also be able to enjoy many of the aspects of our city, such as restaurants, shops and attractions. This is definitely a good thing.

Mr. Speaker, can the minister now tell us what else the Celebrate Ontario program does to further our province’s profile and attract visitors from out of province?

Hon. Michael Chan: I am more than happy to do that. I am pleased to advise that Ontario festivals and events attract tourists, create jobs and strengthen our economy. Every year, they support over 22,000 jobs in Ontario and generate millions of dollars in revenue.

In 2011, we enhanced the Celebrate Ontario program by offering a new Blockbuster category. This category is helping our province attract major national and international events that will further build Ontario’s reputation as a must-see destination. By offering new and improved experiences, event organizers can attract more tourists and increase visitor spending.

PAN AM GAMES

Mr. Jim McDonell: My question is to the Minister of Finance. Minister, yesterday at committee, Ontarians learned that your government failed to include the cost of the athletes’ village in the Pan Am Games’ $1.4-billion budget. Minister, if the $719 million for the athletes’ village isn’t included in the Pan Am Games’ budget, then where is the remainder of the money coming from?

Hon. Charles Sousa: It’s interesting to hear these gentlemen ask these questions when they have been part of the discussions for the last two years. I don’t know where you guys have been. I certainly don’t know where the critic has been. He has been in the office. He has been advised. When we released the Pan Am bid, it was very clear that it was in regard to the operating venues. The village and all the properties therein—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Leeds–Grenville will come to order. The member from Chatham–Kent–Essex will come to order. The member from—all of you.

Hon. Charles Sousa: We were very clear from the outset that the Pan Am village was a village made for the residents of Toronto. It’s going to be a YMCA. It’s going to help George Brown College for residence. It’s going to provide social housing. And they are marketable homes in the end, which is going to provide and allow for us to repay some of the expenses.

It’s a great opportunity for the city of Toronto and for the province of Ontario.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Jim McDonell: Again, to the Minister of Finance: Your priorities are misplaced. Instead of investing money into projects like the subway plan that is approved by the city, the federal government and the people of Scarborough, you choose to bankroll the Pan Am Games executives’ lavish parties. Rumour has it that you were taking money from other ministries—like affordable housing, when places like Hamilton, Barrie and Cornwall are in desperate need.

Minister, come clean: Where is the $719 million to build the village coming from?

Hon. Charles Sousa: The money was already accounted for, and we negotiated the tail end of the deal to bring back more value to taxpayers for the province of Ontario.

The member opposite is suggesting that maybe we should expense the 407 extension for the Pan Am Games or the air-rail link from Union to the airport for the Pan Am Games. What about the HOV lanes for the Pan Am Games?

At what point do we distinguish between what is being done for the infrastructure and long-term benefit of the city of Toronto versus what is being done for the entire province—and that’s to help our athletes so that they can train at home and succeed at home, and enable us to have a legacy for future generations. That’s what Pan Am is doing right around the province of Ontario.

PAN AM GAMES

Mr. Paul Miller: My question is to the Minister of Tourism. Yesterday, we learned that the cost of the Pan Am Games was not $1.4 billion like Ontarians have been told for years—since 2010—but actually, it’s $2.1 billion. Why I say that is, the fact that this government would create a separate set of books for the athletes’ village and not include them in the costs reported to the public is beyond infuriating.

Will this minister now tell Ontarians about any other games costs they haven’t been transparent about and have not included in the overall budget?

Hon. Michael Chan: My advice to the member opposite is: Calm down. Take some time; be patient. Read the 2013 provincial budget. Calm down again. Take some time, and read the April 2009 release by the government, at that time released by Mr. George Smitherman. Again, take some time; calm down. And also, read the big book—the big budget—where it clearly states that the village is outside of the TO2015 budget.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Paul Miller: With all due respect to the minister, if we calmed down, this place would be in a bigger mess.

Speaker, the minister is acting like it is an achievement of the Pan Am Games executives to pay back the 91-cent parking claim. With all due respect, there are a few more things out there than the parking claim. With a $700-million cost overrun that we learned about yesterday, Ontario taxpayers are more concerned than ever about the true cost of the games. The lack of accountability and transparency by this minister is mind-boggling. Ontario taxpayers demand that the minister come clean and reveal now the real, full cost of the games to the people of Ontario, who deserve that answer.

Hon. Michael Chan: Thank you again for the question.

Where we stand at the moment is fantastic; it’s great. Allow me to say that all the capital budget is under way. They are on time, on budget and, in the early report to us, they are under budget by about $15 million.

Our ministry performed an internal audit in 2012. The outcome of that audit: We asked them to tighten up their policy—them means TO2015.

More recently, I contacted the board in light of the expenses that were brought to my attention, and I am going to further find ways to become more transparent and accountable. Today, I am happy to announce that, as a first step, they have agreed to start posting—

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

TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE

Ms. Helena Jaczek: My question is for the Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure. Like many across the GTHA, my constituents are concerned with gridlock and rely on public transportation to get to and from work and school. Many in my great riding of Oak Ridges–Markham have reacted positively to the government’s investments in our province’s transportation system, which have eased their commute either through a more efficient GO service or improved highway infrastructure. However, they recognize that York region is one of the fastest-growing regional municipalities in all of Canada and, therefore, it faces unique challenges.

I would ask the minister what information he is able to provide to my constituents about other investments being made in public transit and transportation infrastructure in York region, especially in regard to the York region BRT.

Hon. Glen R. Murray: Before I start, I want to acknowledge three people who have been really foundational to achieving this amazing expansion of transit: the member from Oak Ridges–Markham, my friend Dr. Jaczek; the other doctor, Dr. Moridi, the Minister of Research and Innovation—both of whom have been unrelenting champions for seeing the biggest build-out—and Mr. Bill Fisch, the chair of York region, who has been really critical.

This is what we’re doing: We have committed $1.4 billion for the York Viva BRT project, part of our $50-billion Big Move. This is being built now—the lines, the stations. If you’ve been on Highway 7, it is an amazing piece of infrastructure.

We have given another $67.6 million, under the Metrolinx Quick Wins program for municipal capital, to help with bus acquisition, and $7.3 million into MoveOntario. This is creating 14,000 jobs in York region, and really increasing mobility. We’re very proud of this project.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Helena Jaczek: It’s certainly important to my constituents that transportation and transportation infrastructure remain a priority for this government. As we know, the subway going to Vaughan is eagerly awaited.

As you know, my great riding of Oak Ridges–Markham covers the largest geographical area in York region and includes four of the nine lower-tier municipalities. However, as I drive through my riding—which, because of its size, takes some time, I can certainly tell you—I notice how congested our highways can sometimes be. What I see with my own eyes reinforces the validity of my constituents’ questions regarding easing congestion problems in the region.

Mr. Speaker, I’d ask the minister to please inform this House and my constituents in York region on what else our government has done to reduce congestion and the current status of its projects.

Hon. Glen R. Murray: We have a very competitive process over here. The member from Vaughan was heckling me that if I don’t mention the subway and the 427 extension—I don’t want the other member from York region to feel unloved.

That speaks to the totality of what is the single biggest build-out of transit across the GTHA in the history of the province. Why are we doing this, Mr. Speaker? Why have we been putting another $634.7 million into York region since 2003? We’re doing that because there’s a cost, not just in the quality of life and families—dads and moms who are home another 40 or 50 minutes late from work. That’s a precious price we don’t want people to pay, because according the C.D. Howe Institute, this is costing us as much as $11.5 billion in lost investment. That’s fewer jobs.

The opposition likes to always ask, “What’s the jobs strategy?” There