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May 3, 2012

40th Parliament, 1st Session

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Hansard Transcripts

Votes and Proceedings

Orders and Notices

Hansard Transcripts 2012-May-03 (PDF)

L047 - Thu 3 May 2012 / Jeu 3 mai 2012

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO

ASSEMBLÉE LÉGISLATIVE DE L’ONTARIO

Thursday 3 May 2012 Jeudi 3 mai 2012

ORDERS OF THE DAY

ONTARIO ELECTRICITY SYSTEM

OPERATOR ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 SUR LA SOCIÉTÉ

D’EXPLOITATION DU RÉSEAU

D’ÉLECTRICITÉ DE L’ONTARIO

TIME ALLOCATION

ACCEPTING SCHOOLS ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 POUR

DES ÉCOLES TOLÉRANTES

INTRODUCTION OF VISITORS

ORAL QUESTIONS

HOSPITAL FUNDING

AIR AMBULANCE SERVICE

JOB CREATION

JOB CREATION

AIR AMBULANCE SERVICE

GOVERNMENT APPOINTMENTS

ORGAN DONATION

AIR AMBULANCE SERVICE

ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT

RENEWABLE ENERGY

AIR AMBULANCE SERVICE

HEALTH CARE

VOLUNTEERS

AIR AMBULANCE SERVICE

TOURISM

USE OF QUESTION PERIOD

DEFERRED VOTES

ACCEPTING SCHOOLS ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 POUR

DES ÉCOLES TOLÉRANTES

CORRECTION OF RECORD

INTRODUCTION OF VISITORS

MEMBERS’ STATEMENTS

ELAINE STANDEAVEN

ELLIOT LAKE SENIORS ROUNDTABLE

ANNIVERSARY OF POLISH CONSTITUTION

HORSE RACING INDUSTRY

CONDOMINIUM LEGISLATION

YOUNG SINGERS

DAWN PAXTON

PETERBOROUGH FISHING FESTIVAL

ANNIVERSARY OF POLISH CONSTITUTION

REPORTS BY COMMITTEES

STANDING COMMITTEE ON FINANCE AND ECONOMIC AFFAIRS

NOTICE OF DISSATISFACTION

INTRODUCTION OF BILLS

WIRELESS SERVICES

AGREEMENTS ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 SUR LES CONVENTIONS

DE SERVICES SANS FIL

METROLINX AMENDMENT ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 MODIFIANT

LA

LOI SUR METROLINX

STATEMENTS BY THE MINISTRY

AND RESPONSES

CONSUMER PROTECTION

COMMUNITY LIVING DAY

SOUTH ASIAN HERITAGE MONTH

COMMUNITY LIVING DAY

SOUTH ASIAN HERITAGE MONTH

CONSUMER PROTECTION

SOUTH ASIAN HERITAGE MONTH

CONSUMER PROTECTION

COMMUNITY LIVING DAY

HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL DAY

PETITIONS

GREENBELT

RADIATION SAFETY

RAIL LINES

DOG OWNERSHIP

RADIATION SAFETY

ANTI-BULLYING INITIATIVES

TAXATION

EASTERN ONTARIO DEVELOPMENT

GASOLINE PRICES

AIR-RAIL LINK

GO TRANSIT

TOURISM

WATER QUALITY

UTILITY CHARGES

PRIVATE MEMBERS’

PUBLIC BUSINESS

LABOUR RELATIONS

AMENDMENT ACT

(FAIRNESS FOR EMPLOYEES), 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 MODIFIANT LA

LOI SUR

LES RELATIONS DE TRAVAIL

(ÉQUITÉ À L’ÉGARD DES EMPLOYÉ

S) ENSURING LOCAL VOICES

IN NEW CASINO GAMBLING

DEVELOPMENT ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 VISANT

À GARANTIR LA CONSULTATION

DES POPULATIONS LOCALES

AVANT LA CRÉATION

DE NOUVEAUX CASINOS

ELEPHANT PROTECTION ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 SUR LA PROTECTION

DES ÉLÉPHANTS

LABOUR RELATIONS

AMENDMENT ACT

(FAIRNESS FOR EMPLOYEES), 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 MODIFIANT LA

LOI SUR

LES RELATIONS DE TRAVAIL

(ÉQUITÉ À L’ÉGARD DES EMPLOYÉ

S) ENSURING LOCAL VOICES

IN NEW CASINO GAMBLING

DEVELOPMENT ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 VISANT

À GARANTIR LA CONSULTATION

DES POPULATIONS LOCALES

AVANT LA CRÉATION

DE NOUVEAUX CASINOS

ELEPHANT PROTECTION ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 SUR LA PROTECTION

DES ÉLÉPHANTS

ENSURING LOCAL VOICES

IN NEW CASINO GAMBLING

DEVELOPMENT ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 VISANT

À GARANTIR LA CONSULTATION

DES POPULATIONS LOCALES

AVANT LA CRÉATION

DE NOUVEAUX CASINOS

AMBULANCE AMENDMENT ACT

(AIR AMBULANCES), 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 MODIFIANT

LA

LOI SUR LES AMBULANCES

(SERVICES D’AMBULANCE AÉRIENS)

The House met at 0900.

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

Prayers.

ORDERS OF THE DAY

ONTARIO ELECTRICITY SYSTEM

OPERATOR ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 SUR LA SOCIÉTÉ

D’EXPLOITATION DU RÉSEAU

D’ÉLECTRICITÉ DE L’ONTARIO

Mr. Bentley moved second reading of the following bill:

Bill 75,

An Act to amend the Electricity Act, 1998 to amalgamate the Independent Electricity System Operator and the Ontario Power Authority, to amend the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998 and to make complementary amendments to other Acts / Projet de loi 75, Loi modifiant la Loi de 1998 sur l’électricité pour fusionner la Société indépendante d’exploitation du réseau d’électricité et l’Office de l’électricité de l’Ontario, modifiant la Loi de 1998 sur la Commission de l’énergie de l’Ontario et apportant des modifications complémentaires à d’autres lois.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Debate? Minister of Energy.

Hon. Christopher Bentley: Thank you, Speaker. I will be sharing my time with my parliamentary assistant, the member from Richmond Hill.

I’m very pleased to be able to stand and speak to this bill. It’s part of a journey that we’ve taken since we became the government in 2003, a journey to make sure that the people of Ontario have reliable, clean jobs supporting and producing affordable energy.

We know where we were. We know where we were in the years leading up to 2003. We know about the brownouts. We know about the shortages of electricity, of power. We know that we have been following a journey that saw the ability of Ontario to actually produce electricity go down but the demand of electricity consumers in Ontario go up, and that is not a good combination of directions. Our ability to produce, down; our demand, up—this can only mean what it produced: brownouts, shortages, diesel generators on street corners in communities—not a good foundation for a strong economy.

We also know that in the years leading up to 2003, Ontario became more and more reliant on coal, on energy produced from coal, on energy that relied on a technology that had been around for centuries. We all know that coal dirties the air. Dirty air makes people sick. Ontario had become increasingly reliant on that technology that ultimately made people sick.

So we started a journey that sought to remedy the direction Ontario had been going in, a journey that I’ll speak to in a moment but a journey that has, as part of it, brought us to this bill, which is another step in the journey.

Those watching the proceedings might say, “What is the Independent Electricity System Operator and what is the Ontario Power Authority, and why are you putting them together?” I know that my colleague Reza Moridi, my parliamentary assistant, will get into this in much more detail, as well as telling more about the journey we’ve been on. But very simply, the Ontario Power Authority not only engages in long-term planning for the province, but it is also responsible for obtaining or procuring additional sources of power generation in the province and for managing those contracts; in the case of Ontario, many thousands of contracts now. That’s their responsibility.

The Independent Electricity System Operator also engages in planning, beginning with the very short, minute-by-minute planning to make sure that we can match the demand of consumers for electricity with the electricity that’s available—get it to the right place. They’re responsible for dealing with either shortages, as they particularly had to in the years leading up to 2003, or, from time to time, when the weather is particularly good—surprisingly good and nobody is inside using power—the occasional surplus. They deal with that on a minute-to-minute basis.

So they’ve got a planning function as well as managing the market, because electricity moves within Ontario, between Ontario and other provinces and between Ontario and the United States and all the different states. Electricity moves by the second, and the IESO, or Independent Electricity System Operator, actually manages that.

The IESO was one of a number of agencies created when the old Ontario Hydro was broken up by the Tories, and the Ontario Power Authority was established to help us have a way of actually obtaining or procuring electricity—extra generation—when we needed it in 2003, 2004 and 2005.

So why put them together? Well, we see an opportunity now to take those planning functions that are in the two different agencies and put them together. That strengthens the planning capacity of the province, because it puts it together in the same place. We also see an opportunity here to take out some back-office duplication and extra costs, and reduce the cost of running our electricity system. At the end of the day, what we’re always trying to do is find ways to reduce the costs on families and businesses. We want reliable, we want clean, we want job-producing, but we also want to manage the costs. Taking costs out—costs that are great, costs that are small; we’re looking at them all.

We understand that this amalgamation will reduce costs by about $25 million a year. That’s a significant amount of money for most families and businesses. Some might say that in the context of the overall electricity system it’s not a huge amount of money. But I think $25 million is a significant saving. If we can put $25 million on top of other savings, we’re going to see the effect on the bills of families and businesses. That’s one of the things we’re always trying to do: Find ways to take costs out of the system.

I also know that amalgamating agencies is something the New Democratic Party has particularly asked us to take a look at. They asked that in the context of the budget discussions we were having. They participated in those budget discussions. It was an important point that they raised. So we’ve taken this idea and listened very carefully, and we’ve come up with this bill to put these agencies together.

Now, let’s be very clear: There are a lot of other ways we’re taking costs out of the system. We have, for example, reduced costs in our large, publicly owned agencies, Ontario Power Generation and Hydro One, already by almost half a billion dollars. But we’re not satisfied with that; we’re doing more. Remember, it’s producing and delivering for the most reasonable cost—so half a billion dollars out already, and we’re looking for more.

But we’ve not stopped there. We’re placing both of those agencies on an international benchmarking exercise. What that really means is that we’re going to compare our big agencies to similar agencies in other parts of the world to see whether we’re doing it as effectively as we can—high quality, yes; clean and reliable, yes; but as effectively as we possibly can, and that means the most cost-effective.

But we’re not stopping there. We’ve set up a panel, a group of three people—Murray Elston, David McFadden, Floyd Laughren—to take a look at the local distribution companies—there used to be over 300; there are now 78—

Interjections.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): Can I ask you guys to take your discussion outside, please.

Hon. Christopher Bentley: —to see whether the number of companies is the most effective way to deliver electricity from the major transmission lines down to the families and businesses in local communities. That’s what we’re taking a look at, and we are continuing to look at ways to take costs out of the system.

This has, as I say, Speaker, been a journey, a journey to reduce the amount of power we get from coal to zero—we’ve reduced it by 90% already; we’re at zero in 2014—to make sure we have enough power—brownouts in 2002-03; paying lots of money for imports in 2002-03.

We’ve brought on more generation. We’ve made sure that that generation is clean. We’ve launched a green energy and economy act, a jobs-producing act, which has nicely positioned us in Ontario to have a strong, clean, renewable sector in the province of Ontario to accelerate getting out of coal, produce great jobs in Ontario—20,000 already, on the way to 50,000—and has nicely positioned us for a substantial share of the clean-tech worldwide market. Clean technology is going to be about $3 trillion by the year 2020, which is not that far off. We’re nicely positioned to have a very substantial part of that and looking forward to the jobs it creates as we take advantage.

But you can’t go and sell clean tech from Ontario to someone else if you’re not using it yourself. The first thing they do is say, “Well, what are you doing?” We’re doing it; we’re practising it; we’re leaders.

It has been a journey, and this bill is one more step on that journey of making sure we have clean, reliable, jobs-producing, jobs-supporting and affordable electricity right here in the province of Ontario.

Now I’m going to turn it over to my parliamentary assistant, because I know, given his background, he has a lot that he would like to add to this debate, Speaker.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): The member from Richmond Hill.

Mr. Reza Moridi: It is my pleasure to rise in this House and to speak on Bill 75,

An Act to amend the Electricity Act, 1998 to amalgamate the Independent Electricity System Operator and the Ontario Power Authority, to amend the Ontario Energy Board Act, 1998 and to make complementary amendments to other Acts.

Mr. Speaker, I would like to begin my remarks today on the state of Ontario’s electricity sector and some of the recent changes made in this sector, as well as what we see as the opportunities for new economic development in the electricity sector in Ontario.

Ontario has always been the world leader and a pioneer in energy, whether it be the 19th-century birth of North America’s petrochemical industry; Sir Adam Beck’s creation of the world’s first publicly owned electricity utility, harnessing the power of Niagara Falls; or the province’s current role as a global leader in the emerging clean energy industry.

But first, here are some of the key numbers on the electricity sector in Ontario. You will note that the sector is undergoing significant change and experiencing exciting investment, development and renewal.

Ontario’s electricity sector is a $16-billion industry, employing 95,000 Ontarians in direct and indirect jobs. Ontario’s electricity sector includes 5.1 million electricity customers and more than 3.3 million natural gas consumers in Ontario. More than 80% of the power generated in Ontario in 2011 came from emission-free sources such as wind, hydroelectric and nuclear. This is 6% more than the Canadian average. We have some of the most aggressive conservation targets in North America.

Ontario is also home to the largest smart-meter rollout in North America, with 4.7 million smart meters already deployed. We will be the first globally to mandate time-of-use electricity prices for 100% of residential and small business customers by the end of this year, with 80% on time-of-use to date.

Mr. Speaker, let me go back to prior to 2003 and see where we were then. Under the Ontario PCs, our electricity system was in a state of crisis. Families and businesses didn’t know if the lights would stay on when they flipped the switch. Mismanagement saw prices jump 30% in just seven months. Electricity demand had risen by 8%, but generating capacity fell by 6%. That is the equivalent of Niagara Falls running dry.

Ontario was forced to import expensive US electricity, costing Ontarians almost $1 billion in 2002 and 2003 alone, and the PCs had to sign a multi-million-dollar contract to rent dirty diesel generators to keep the lights on in our downtown core, at a cost of $2.80 per kilowatt hour, at a time when electricity was 4.3 cents per kilowatt hour.

PC experiments like deregulation and privatization of Ontario’s electricity system resulted in massive, unpredictable price spikes, and the PCs had to slap the debt retirement charge on families’ electricity bills to pay for their costly experiments. They added $1 billion to the stranded debt and left future generations with a $20-billion hole to fill.

They wilfully neglected our electricity transmission and distribution system. This meant that we needed to rebuild over 5,000 kilometres of transmission lines. That is like driving from Toronto to Whitehorse, Yukon.

Under the PCs, the use of dirty coal to produce electricity increased by 127%. The cost to human health and the environment of burning coal in Ontario power plants was more than $3 billion per year. This resulted in 300 premature deaths and 150,000 illnesses, like asthma attacks, each year.

Now let us see what we have done since 2003. We have introduced new clean energy electricity generation sources to Ontario. This results in a $13-billion investment in new generation since 2003 to tackle the shortfall in supply we inherited, with 9,000 megawatts of new, clean power for Ontario. That’s about one fifth of our current supply.

Ontario will be completely coal-free by the end of 2014. This would be equivalent to taking up to seven million cars off Ontario’s streets and roads—basically, almost all the cars in Ontario today. This is the single biggest climate-change initiative in North America, saving $4.4 billion in avoided health and environmental costs to Ontarians. Ontario has shut down 10 of 19 coal-fired plants to date.

Ontario now has the five largest wind farms in Canada. In 2003, Ontario had 15 megawatts of wind capacity. We now have about 2,000 megawatts of clean wind power—enough power to meet the annual needs of more than 500,000 homes. The third-largest solar photovoltaic farm in the world is located in Sarnia: 18 megawatts of clean energy with $400 million of private sector investment that created 800 construction jobs.

We have invested $2.6 billion in hydroelectric expansions on the lower Mattagami River, with 800 jobs created. This is the largest hydroelectric power project in northern Ontario in 40 years, a unique project in partnership with the Moose Cree First Nation. The Niagara tunnel hydroelectric project, the largest construction project in Niagara region in 55 years, with over 400 jobs, is expected to produce enough electricity to power 160,000 homes for the next 100 years.

It would be difficult to cover all the facets of public policy change and economic investments that have occurred in the past eight years as a result of the McGuinty government’s investment in the electricity sector. But I’m going to do my best to cover some of those achievements.

Over the past eight years more than $13 billion has been invested in Ontario’s power systems to tackle a shortfall in supply. Since 2003 we have added almost 9,000 megawatts of power, about 25% of our current generating capacity. That is roughly enough to power cities the size of Toronto and Ottawa combined.

About $9 billion has been invested in Hydro One transmission and distribution lines. Improvements include upgrades to some 5,000 kilometres of power lines. The province is also making the shift to renewable power, and we are seeing evidence of new economic activity associated with that shift. Today, Ontario is Canada’s leader in wind and solar power, and home to the largest operating wind and solar farms in the country.

Last year, more than 80% of the power generated in Ontario came from emission-free sources. We have also introduced some of the most aggressive conservation efforts in North America, encouraging energy efficiency through innovation programs, technology and education aimed at residential, business and industrial customers.

Finally, we are well on our way to meeting our goal to phase out coal by the end of 2014. Last year, for the first time, we got more of our electricity from solar and wind than from coal. The transformation of our electricity sector is bringing meaningful changes that include reduced pollution, reduced emissions, increased reliability and economic renewal. Our task is now to solidify and build on what we have achieved so far.

This transformation will require the private and public sectors to invest up to $87 billion in the next 20 years. How can we leverage these investments and create economic benefits for the province and for Canada? I will speak to this opportunity more broadly in a minute, but let me first touch on what we have already done to stimulate investments in new, green jobs in Ontario.

We introduced a long-term energy plan that clearly lays out our plan for a clean, modern, reliable, sustainable energy future. In 2009, the Green Energy and Green Economy Act was enacted to expand renewable energy generation, encourage energy conservation and promote the creation of clean energy jobs.

At the heart of the Green Energy Act, we established North America’s most comprehensive feed-in tariff program, which sparked the development of renewable en-ergy projects by offering guaranteed prices and long-term contracts to the developers of wind, water, solar and bio-sourced energy.

Since its launch in 2009, the FIT program has created a clean energy program of unmatched scope and turned Ontario into a clean energy leader in North America. To date, we have created more than 20,000 clean energy jobs and announced projects that will attract more than $27 billion in private sector investment. We are currently on track to create up to 50,000 jobs, and more than 30 businesses have publicly indicated their intent to set up or expand their clean energy manufacturing plants here in Ontario.

We introduced a feed-in tariff program that attracted $20 billion of private sector investment in green energy. That will create an estimated 20,000 direct and indirect jobs in places like Guelph, Windsor, Cambridge, London, Newmarket, Mississauga, Sault Ste. Marie and Oakville. The program has undergone its first scheduled two-year review.

The results of the review of the FIT program were announced by Minister Bentley on March 22. The review recommended that prices be adjusted to reflect lower costs and that other program adjustments be made to build on the success of the program. We are committed to implementing those recommendations.

Mr. Speaker, Ontario is moving ahead with its clean energy program, taking immediate steps to ensure the long-term sustainability of renewable energy while creating more jobs, lowering prices and giving communities a greater say.

Following the first review of Ontario’s signature feed-in tariff program, the government will act quickly to implement all the recommendations, which will include:

—creating more jobs sooner by streamlining the regulatory approvals process for projects while maintaining the highest environmental protection standards;

—reducing prices for solar projects by more than 20%, on average, and for wind projects by approximately 15%, on average;

—encouraging greater community and aboriginal participation through a new priority point system, which will also prioritize projects with municipal support;

—reserving 10% of remaining capacity for projects with significant participation from local or aboriginal communities; and

—developing a clean energy economic development strategy to leverage Ontario’s significant expertise and strengths to become a global leader in this sector.

Regular program reviews are a feature of FIT programs around the world. Ontarians were encouraged to participate in the review by answering an online survey or making a written submission by December 14, 2011. The review received more than 2,900 responses to our online survey and more than 200 written submissions. The review also met with more than 80 stakeholders.

Now, there has been a lot of chatter on the FIT 2 review and the effect on ratepayers. New rules and prices balance the interests of ratepayers with the need to continue to invest in Ontario’s clean energy economy. In order to support the sustainability of the program, prices will be examined annually to ensure they reflect current costs.

Mr. Speaker, I want to touch briefly on the Samsung project. This project attracted a $7-billion private sector investment in Ontario by Samsung. This project will build 2,500 megawatts of renewable energy. It will create 16,000 direct and indirect jobs in Ontario, and this will include the Siemens turbine blade plant in Tillsonburg, with 900 direct and indirect jobs; the CS Wind tower plant in Windsor, with 700 direct and indirect jobs; and the SMA Solar inverter plant in Toronto, with 100 direct and 100 indirect jobs.

We made a strategic investment for the province of Ontario to attract new jobs and opportunities in an every-day-changing industry. I want to take this time to give my honourable colleagues some more information on our investment in Ontario through the Korean consortium agreement. The Ontario government has negotiated an agreement with the Korean consortium, comprised of Samsung C&T Corp. and the Korea Electric Power Corp., KEPCO, which will lead to both energy generation and manufacturing facilities being constructed in Ontario. It’s interesting, Mr.

Speaker, to say that many years ago we exported two nuclear reactors to South Korea—we exported our nuclear technology to South Korea—and now South Koreans are bringing their solar and renewable energy technology to Ontario.

The agreement with Samsung stems from opportunities created for developers and investors through Ontario’s Green Energy Act. This is expected to be among the first of many major investments to result from the leadership position Ontario has taken in Korean energy.

The consortium will be an anchor tenant in growing a new, vibrant green economy in Ontario. The province signed an agreement with the Korean consortium originally in January 2010, and amended it in the summer of 2011. This agreement allows for the creation of jobs and investments into Ontario’s economy, and will create 16,000 direct and indirect jobs. Mr. Speaker, great progress has been made since the agreement has been signed, and the province improved the deal to better deliver results and provide even greater value for Ontario families.

Here’s a brief chronology of the agreement with the Korean consortium: in the fall of 2008, KC approached the Ontario government; in the summer and fall of 2009, intensive negotiations between Ontario and the KC partners; January 2010, agreement signed; July 2011, agreement was amended by Ontario and the KC; August 2011, amendment and original agreement were made public.

What were the changes to the agreement in the summer of 2011? Under the amended agreement, in exchange for the same one-year commercial operation date extension that was provided to all existing feed-in tariff contract holders in February 2011, the economic development adder payments to Samsung were reduced. If the maximum economic development adder is obtained, it means that the cost to average ratepayers in Ontario over the next 20 years will be about 36 cents a year. The amended agreement will also see four clean technology manufacturing plants open their doors earlier: three plants in December 2011 and one in August 2012.

It’s also important to note that the Korean consortium is required to create a total of 900 jobs by the end of 2012. If a partner manufacturing plant closes prior to 2016, the economic development adder is reduced by 25%.

Samsung and three manufacturing partners, meaning Siemens, CS Wind and SMA, have had their facilities in commercial operation since December 2011. Siemens has built a wind blade manufacturing plant in Tillsonburg. Siemens expects the plant to create 300 jobs at peak capacity, and 600 indirect jobs. CS Wind has built a wind tower plant in Windsor. The plant is expected to employ up to 300 people when running at full capacity, and 400 indirect jobs are also expected with this plant.

Celestica and SMA are expanding the Celestica GTA facility to manufacture solar inverters. The plant is expected to create up to 100 direct jobs and 100 indirect jobs.

On September 8, 2011, KC announced that they have selected London, Ontario, for the site of a new solar module manufacturing facility. The manufacturing partner is still to be determined, and per the agreement it is expected to be operational by August 31, 2012. This plant is anticipated to create 200 direct manufacturing jobs and 120 indirect jobs. As per the amended agreement, KC will be eligible for an economic development adder, contingent upon meeting job commitments at these four manufacturing facilities.

I want also to take this opportunity to cover some misconceptions and inform this House of the First Nations involvement in the proposed green renewable energy park in Haldimand county.

The Minister of Energy is committed to the success of the green energy investment agreement. We will work with the Korean consortium and their developer partners where possible to help facilitate green energy projects. The Korean consortium and their partners have the responsibility to meet the requirements under the renewable energy approval process, including consultation with First Nations and the Métis communities. We take the crown’s duty to consult First Nations and the Métis very seriously.

As part of the consultation required under the renewable energy approval process, Samsung is consulting with the Six Nations elected council. We understand that business arrangements between Samsung and the Six Nations elected council are currently being negotiated. Six Nations launched a 30-day consultation period to discuss Samsung’s projects and potential community involvement. The Six Nations elected council voted to move forward with the Grand Renewable Energy Project in Haldimand county. Six Nations elected council and Samsung are negotiating final equity and capacity funding agreements.

Mayor Hewitt of Haldimand county is a strong supporter of the Samsung project. Actually, he has appeared in Samsung TV commercials, and Samsung, Pattern, NextEra and Capital Power helped launch the community vibrancy fund for the county on September 2011. This is a $2-million-per-year fund for the 20-year life of the project.

The agreement will lead to approximately 16,000 green energy jobs over six years and bring $7 billion of renewable energy investments to Ontario. Jobs will be created during the construction, installation and operation of renewable energy projects, as well as direct employment in manufacturing plants. In addition, the increased renewable energy development and the manufacturing activities will support indirect job creation in areas such as finance, consulting and other manufacturing, service and development industries.

Here are some of the key facts about our green energy initiatives:

—kick-starting our renewable manufacturing industry by bringing four green manufacturing projects and partners to Ontario, with an investment totalling $7 billion;

—creating approximately 16,000 direct and indirect jobs over six years;

—generating approximately 110 million megawatt-hours of emissions-free electricity for the lifespan of the FIT contract—enough power to supply every home in Ontario for three years;

—displacing up to 40 megatonnes of carbon dioxide—equivalent to moving every single car off Ontario roads in one year; and

—creating even more economic development opportunities for aboriginal communities, municipalities, manufacturers, etc.

Over the longer term, the additional manufacturing will deliver a very real contribution to Ontario’s GDP, estimated at a net $1 billion over 10 years.

The economic development adder is an incentive over and above the feed-in tariff paid for green energy generation. The EDA payments will be reduced on a pro rata basis if job levels fall below 85% of 900 jobs. Average jobs between 2013 and 2015 are to be maintained at 765 jobs. If jobs fall below 765 by 15%, KC’s EDA will be reduced by 15%. If a manufacturing partner ceases operation before December 2016, the EDA will be reduced by 25%.

I would like to take a few moments to talk about our nuclear fleet. We are refurbishing Ontario’s nuclear capacity. We’ll create almost 25,000 jobs and generate annual economic activity of $5 billion.

It would interest this House to know that we have conserved 1,700 megawatts of electricity since 2005. Investments in conservation of energy from 2006 to 2010 will result in $3.8 billion in avoided system costs.

In 2011, the OPA launched the province-wide saveONenergy electricity conservation program. According to the Canadian Energy Efficiency Alliance, we have improved Ontario’s conservation rating from a C grade in 2004 to an A-plus grade in 2009.

We have introduced the industrial conservation initiative, which lowers costs for participating large businesses that shift consumption away from peak times.

We have brought forward the Energy Consumer Protection Act—tough new rules that greatly strengthen protections for consumers from unfair practices in the retail sector.

The Ontario energy and property tax credit has provided up to $1,025 in tax relief for seniors. The Ontario clean energy benefit provides a 10% reduction in electricity bills for eligible Ontario families, with an estimated $150-per-year saving for families, $1,700 in savings per year for farmers and $2,000 in savings per year for small businesses. The northern Ontario energy credit gives up to $200 in tax relief for families in northern Ontario.

As of May 1, 2011, off-peak hours started two hours earlier, at 7 p.m. instead of 9 p.m., on weekdays. This provides an extra 10 hours a week during the lowest-cost period.

Mr. Speaker, we are modernizing our electricity grid for the 21st century. We have invested over $9 billion since 2003 in improvements in Hydro One’s systems, including upgrades to 5,000 kilometres of power lines, the distance from Toronto to Whitehorse, Yukon.

We have rolled out smart meters to Ontario homes and small business consumers on time and on budget, with over 4.7 million units installed already. As of February 1, 2012, approximately 3.6 million customers were on the time-of-use program. We have launched a $50-million smart-grid fund to help advance smart-grid and economic development opportunities for Ontario’s local distribution companies and businesses.

Ontario has a balanced and diversified portfolio of strengths with various sectors in the industry. As in the corporate world, only a diversified company with a balanced portfolio can use its strengths to truly capitalize on its growth opportunities. In particular, you will note Ontario’s traditional strengths in nuclear, hydro power and natural gas, along with Ontario’s more recent leadership in grid automation, data management and electric vehicles.

The smart grid is an adaptive, flexible and responsive 21st-century electricity system and the next logical step in Ontario’s energy future. The smart grid is the digital way of the future. Think of it as modernizing our energy infrastructure, like going from the rotary dial phone to a smart phone, or as having the Internet applied to our electricity system, allowing real-time information to be used almost instantaneously to balance supply and demand at the retail level.

Smart grid development is an area with tremendous potential for economic growth in the electricity sector, but also in financing, technology, research and development, building design, construction and manufacturing. Ontario is an early adopter. When it comes to smart grid technology, we are already ahead of our main competitors in the world. We currently have over 4.7 million installed smart meters in this province. But smart meters, our highly successful feed-in tariff program, and even the move toward electric vehicles are just the beginning.

The province is now home to many innovative companies researching developing ground-breaking smart grid technology and using it in their businesses. Ontario’s Smart Grid Forum, a utility- and industry-led initiative focused on creating a road map for smart grid implementation, estimates that Ontario’s electric utilities will invest approximately $2 billion in smart grid technology over the next five years.

Actually, it’s already started. In 2009, Hydro One, the province’s largest electricity distributor, launched its Smart Zone initiative in Owen Sound. This project is focused on integrating various solutions in the areas of distributed generation, distribution automation and planning tools. The project has attracted international private sector planning tools, including system integration and project management services from IBM. In April 2011, Ontario launched a $50-million smart grid fund to support innovative Ontario-based projects, advancing the smart grid and bringing a range of associated benefits to the province.

Mr. Speaker, by taking a leadership position in advancing the smart grid, Ontario is leveraging its current advantage to become a global leader in clean energy technology. We plan to be the test bed for new products and innovations, and the manufacturing base for them too. Globally, jurisdictions are moving towards incorporating renewable technologies into their energy mix. Ontario has the knowledge base and the expertise to help fill this demand.

Now I want to touch on the role of key organizations in our electricity system. I want to quickly give an overview of the various key organizations and players in the Ontario energy sector. The Ministry of Energy primarily provides policy direction and the framework; it also enacts the legislation and regulations to advance policy. The Ontario Energy Board is an independent, quasi-judicial board that regulates local distribution companies and sets distribution rates. Local distribution companies deliver electricity to consumers and plan, expand and manage distribution infrastructure.

They are mostly municipally owned. Finally, the Electricity Distributors Association, which is actually celebrating its centennial in 2012, represents local distribution companies and is active in policy discussions.

Let me say a few words about the Independent Electricity System Operator. The Independent Electricity System Operator, the province’s electricity market operator, manages Ontario’s electricity system and operates the wholesale electricity market. It forecasts the demand for electricity and ensures that there are available supplies to meet demand.

More than half of all electricity consumed by this province is paid for at wholesale prices. Most lower-use consumers, such as homeowners and small businesses, pay the regulated rate that is revised every six months based on market and contract prices paid to generators.

Generators offer electricity into the market at varying prices, depending on technology and fuel type.

The IESO dispatches the cheapest generators to the point where supply is sufficient to meet demand.

The Independent Electricity System Operator is responsible for maintaining the bulk electricity system reliability by balancing province-wide supplies and demand in real time; operating Ontario’s electricity market and managing settlement and the billing for generators and load customers; and operating the metering data management and repository, a core part of the province’s smart metering program that tracks information on time-of-use electricity consumption.

The MDM/R enables local distribution companies to bill consumers on time-of-use rates; assembles valuable data on consumer response to time-of-use prices to facilitate further research and policy development on conservation and demand management initiatives; periodically issues 18-month province-wide system reliability assessments; and conducts technical impact studies for proposed modifications to the bulk electricity system—for example, generator and load connections.

The Independent Electricity System Operator works in real time at the heart of Ontario’s power system, connecting all participants: generators that produce electricity; transmitters that send it across the province; retailers that buy and sell it; industries and businesses that use it in large quantities; and local distribution companies that deliver electricity to the province and to people’s homes.

Through research and policy development, the IESO also helps ensure that Ontario’s electricity system and the markets continually evolve to adapt to changing economic conditions, evolving generation mixes and emerging policy priorities.

Let me say a few words about the IESO. Since its inception in 1999, the IESO has developed and implemented a broad range of rules, procedures and tools that allow the province’s electricity system to function safely and reliably for the benefit of all Ontarians.

The IESO played a key role in managing the restoration of power following the August 2003 blackout that affected a large portion of the northeastern US and Canada.

On an ongoing basis, the IESO provides expert advice to the government and the Ontario Energy Board on a broad range of initiatives.

The IESO developed, implemented and is currently operating the metering data management repository, a core part of the province’s smart metering program that tracks information on time-of-use electricity consumption.

Through prudent planning and effective communications, the IESO maintained system reliability through periods of extreme summer weather, including July 21, 2011, the day with the third-highest total energy consumption on record.

Recognizing the current economic climate, the IESO held its usage fee flat for the third consecutive year in 2011.

Let me say a few words about the OPA. The Ontario Power Authority is responsible for the following:

—medium- and long-term system planning; the procurement of generation supply; managing generation contracts; conservation programming; and aboriginal consultation and engagement.

The OPA plays a major role in executing the Ontario government’s plan to transform Ontario’s electricity system by helping to reduce Ontario’s energy consumption and procuring clean, modern, cost-effective power to support sustainable electricity for the future of Ontarians.

Together with Ontario’s local distribution companies, the OPA launched a suite of province-wide conservation programs to run from 2011-14 and has helped build the capability of delivery agents and customers to participate in conservation programs.

In 2011, the OPA continued to build on the success of the feed-in tariff and the microFIT programs by processing nearly 30,000 applications, awarding contracts and launching a planned two-year review of the programs. The OPA was selected as one of Canada’s Greenest Employers in 2011. It was selected as Smart Commute Toronto-Central’s 2011 employer of the year, and it was listed as one of greater Toronto’s top 90 employers.

We are already leaders in innovation. Right here in Ontario, colleges and universities are producing the world’s next generation of new-economy engineers and clean energy specialists. We are alert to the challenge—and the opportunity. Ontario is already halfway around the first lap while most jurisdictions are just coming out of the starting blocks.

So how do we all take advantage of this opportunity? How can we use Ontario’s early adopter status to become a recognized global leader in the electricity sector, in energy supply, use and innovation? Ontario’s energy system forms an essential part of our economy, and it is very important to every Ontarian. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. Jeff Leal: No, just keep going a couple more minutes. You’ve got a couple more paragraphs there. Keep going.

Mr. Reza Moridi: Thank you, Ontario’s energy system forms an essential part of the very foundation of our economic prosperity. We have proven our ability to provide innovative solutions to advance global clean energy objectives.

In 2010, investment in the global clean energy market—wind, solar and bioenergy—was nearly $200 billion, and global investment in renewable energy projects is expected to mobilize nearly $7 trillion of new capital over the next 20 years. I believe that Canada’s next great economic opportunity is to capture global product mandates for clean energy technology and innovation. In other words, in addition to investing in new ways to extract energy, we should be investing in the innovative use of energy.

The Canadian Council of Chief Executives has long acknowledged that Canada’s natural resources in renewable energy like wind, tidal, biomass, geothermal and solar resources make us well positioned to be a clean energy leader.

Mr. Speaker, I move adjournment of the debate.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): The member from Richmond Hill has moved adjournment of the debate. Agreed?

Second reading debate adjourned.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): The debate has been adjourned. Orders of the day?

TIME ALLOCATION

Hon. Laurel C. Broten: I seek unanimous consent to move the following motion without notice:

That when Bill 13,

An Act to amend the Education Act with respect to bullying and other matters, is next called as a government order, the Speaker shall put every question necessary to dispose of the second reading stage of Bill 13 without further debate or amendment, and at such time, Bill 13 shall be ordered referred to the Standing Committee on Social Policy; and

That the vote on second reading may be deferred pursuant to standing order 28(h); and

That Bill 14, the Anti-Bullying Act, 2012, the private member’s bill sponsored by the former member from Kitchener–Waterloo, be reinstated at the Standing Committee on Social —

Mr. Gilles Bisson: Point of order—

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): Point of order, the member from Timmins–James Bay.

Mr. Gilles Bisson: You accidentally skipped the fourth paragraph.

Hon. Laurel C. Broten: I’m only on the third paragraph—oh, I’m sorry, Speaker. Yes, I did. Thank you, Gilles.

Let me start again, Speaker.

That when Bill 13,

An Act to amend the Education Act with respect to bullying and other matters, is next called as a government order, the Speaker shall put every question necessary to dispose of the second reading stage of Bill 13 without further debate or amendment, and at such time, Bill 13 shall be ordered referred to the Standing Committee on Social Policy; and

That the vote on second reading may be deferred pursuant to standing order 28(h); and

That Bill 14, the Anti-Bullying Act, 2012, the private member’s bill sponsored by the former member—

Mr. Gilles Bisson: Point of order—

Hon. Laurel C. Broten: Then I don’t have the right copy.

Mr. Gilles Bisson: Can I read that sentence for you?

Hon. Laurel C. Broten: Sure.

Mr. Gilles Bisson: With the indulgence of the House, I’ll read that sentence.

Hon. Christopher Bentley: Can I rise on a point of order?

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): The Minister of Energy, point of order.

Hon. Christopher Bentley: Thank you very much, Speaker. I’d like to stand on a point of order. I just want to make sure that all of the things are proceeding as they need to be proceeding and that we actually make sure that we’re all at the same—are you ready now? I think my point of order has been addressed, so thank you very much.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): The Minister of Education.

Hon. Laurel C. Broten: Thank you very much, Speaker. I’m very pleased to seek again unanimous consent to move the following motion without notice:

That when Bill 13,

An Act to amend the Education Act with respect to bullying and other matters, is next called as a government order, the Speaker shall put every question necessary to dispose of the second reading stage of Bill 13 without further debate or amendment, and at such time, Bill 13 shall be ordered referred to the Standing Committee on Social Policy; and

That the vote on second reading may be deferred pursuant to standing order 28(h); and

That Bill 14, the Anti-Bullying Act, 2012, the private member’s bill sponsored by the former member from Kitchener–Waterloo, be reinstated at the Standing Committee on Social Policy at the same status it was as of April 26, 2012; and

That sponsorship of Bill 14 be transferred to the member from Nepean–Carleton in order to allow Bill 14 to receive public hearings simultaneously with Bill 13 and that its clauses be considered at the clause-by-clause stage of Bill 13 in accordance with the terms of this motion; and

That the committee be authorized to meet in Toronto during its regular meeting times on Monday, May 7; Tuesday, May 8; Monday, May 14; and Tuesday, May 15, 2012, for the purpose of conducting public hearings on Bill 13 and Bill 14; and

That the committee be authorized to meet beyond its normal meeting times on Monday, May 14, 2012, and Tuesday, May 15, 2012, for the purpose of conducting public hearings but must adjourn on both days no later than 8 p.m.; and

That the committee be authorized to sit on one day during the constituency week of May 21, 2012, through May 24, 2012, for the purpose of holding public hearings on Bill 13 and Bill 14 in Ottawa, Ontario; and

That the committee be authorized to meet in Toronto during its regular meeting times on Monday, May 28, and Tuesday, May 29, 2012, for clause-by-clause consideration of Bill 13; and

That the committee shall be authorized to meet beyond the normal hour of adjournment for clause-by-clause consideration on Tuesday, May 29; and

That during clause-by-clause consideration of Bill 13, the committee shall dedicate Monday, May 28, to considering which, if any, elements or clauses of Bill 14 should be incorporated into Bill 13, and that any remaining time on May 28 and all of May 29 shall be dedicated only to dealing with remaining clause-by-clause amendments to Bill 13; and

That the committee be authorized during clause-by-clause consideration to incorporate such provisions of Bill 14 into Bill 13 as the committee deems appropriate; and

That the filing deadline for filing amendments to Bill 13 with the clerk of the committee shall be 5 p.m. on Thursday, May 24, 2012. At 5 p.m. on May 29, 2012, those amendments which have not yet been moved shall be deemed to have been moved, and the Chair of the committee shall interrupt the proceedings and shall, without further debate or amendment, put every question necessary to dispose of all remaining sections of Bill 13 and any amendments thereto. Any division required shall be deferred until all remaining questions have been put and taken in succession, with one 20-minute waiting period allowed pursuant to standing order 129(a); and

That, despite the deadline for filing amendments, amendments that arise during discussions at committee on May 28 incorporating Bill 14 into Bill 13 may be introduced during the course of clause-by-clause hearings on that day, provided the amendment relates to the scope and principle of Bill 14; and

That, upon completion of clause-by-clause of Bill 13, the committee shall refer Bill 13, as amended, only back to the House to commence third reading debate on Bill 13, as amended; and

That the committee shall report Bill 13 to the House no later than Wednesday, May 30, 2012. In the event that the committee fails to report Bill 13 on that day, Bill 13, as amended, shall be deemed to be passed by the committee and shall be deemed to be reported to and received by the House; and

That, upon receiving the report of the committee, the Speaker shall put the question for adoption of the report forthwith, and at such time, Bill 13, as amended, shall be ordered for third reading, which order may be called on that same day; and

That, when the order for third reading of Bill 13, as amended, is called, four hours shall be allotted to the third reading stage of Bill 13, as amended, apportioned equally among the recognized parties. At the end of this time, the Speaker shall interrupt the proceedings and shall put every question necessary to dispose of this stage of Bill 13, as amended, without further debate or amendment; and

That the vote on third reading may be deferred pursuant to standing order 28(h); and

That, in the case of any division relating to any proceedings on Bill 13, as amended, the division bell shall be limited to five minutes.

Interjections.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): Please sit.

You’ve all heard the motion from the Minister of Education. Shall the motion carry? The motion is carried.

Motion agreed to.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): Orders of the day.

ACCEPTING SCHOOLS ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 POUR

DES ÉCOLES TOLÉRANTES

Resuming the debate adjourned on May 1, 2012, on the motion for second reading of the following bill:

Bill 13,

An Act to amend the Education Act with respect to bullying and other matters / Projet de loi 13, Loi modifiant la

Loi sur l’éducation en ce qui a trait à l’intimidation et à d’autres questions.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): Pursuant to the order of the House just passed, I need to put the question on Bill 13.

Ms. Broten has moved second reading of Bill 13,

An Act to amend the Education Act with respect to bullying and other matters.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry?

I heard a no.

All in favour, please say “aye.”

All against, please say “nay.”

I believe the nays have it.

This vote will now be deferred until after question period.

Second reading vote deferred.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): Orders of the day.

Hon. James J. Bradley: No further business, Mr. Speaker.

Ms. Lisa MacLeod: A point of order, Speaker.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): The member for Nepean–Carleton on a point of order.

Ms. Lisa MacLeod: It’s not even a point of order, but please don’t cut me off. I just want to say thank you to all members of this assembly. I’d like to point out my colleague Peter Tabuns for his great work in working with us, as well as the Minister of Education and other members here who feel very strongly about anti-bullying legislation.

A week ago tomorrow, my colleague from Kitchener–Waterloo decided to retire from this place, and I appreciate the opportunity to carry on what I think is a significant legacy of hers, an issue that she has fought for for many years, the anti-bullying legislation.

I have great gratitude for my members, from all parties, who want to see that flourish. Thank you all very much, and I really appreciate that.

The Deputy Speaker (Mr. Bas Balkissoon): The member knows that’s not a point of order.

This House now stands recessed until 10:30.

The House recessed from 1010 to 1030.

INTRODUCTION OF VISITORS

Hon. James J. Bradley: I’m pleased to welcome to the Ontario Legislature today Ms. Caroline Brendon, mother of page William Alexander from École L’Héritage in St. Catharines, as well as William’s sister Caroline Alexander. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mr. Phil McNeely: It’s my pleasure to introduce in the east gallery today the mayor of all the people of Ottawa, Jim Watson, a former cabinet minister and MPP, of course, and his assistant, Serge Arpin.

Ms. Laurie Scott: I’d like to welcome, from Community Living here today: Karen McNeilley from Community Living Lindsay, Randy Netherton from People First, and Richard Semple from Community Living. I’d like to welcome them to Queen’s Park today.

Mr. Bas Balkissoon: On behalf of Minister Milloy, I would like to welcome some visitors to the Legislature today from Community Living Ontario. Visiting with us today is Deborah Rollier, the president; Garry Cooke, the past president, and his daughter Laurie; Theresa Somerton, a board member; Alan McWhorter, interim executive director; and Gordon Kyle, director of social policy and government relations. I’d like to welcome them to the Legislature.

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the organization, I would like to advise everyone that there’s a reception between 3:30 and 4:30 today in the dining room, and everyone is invited.

Mr. John O’Toole: I’m pleased to welcome today the Community Living group from my riding of Durham: Mathew Ritchie with Colleen Arbuckle. There are a number of other people that I’d like to recognize, but when they show up, Mr. Speaker. I’ll be introducing them during question period, perhaps.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Nice try.

The member from Windsor West.

Mrs. Teresa Piruzza: I’m pleased to introduce today some members from Community Living Windsor-Essex who are with us here today. We have Karen Charette, the director of Community Living supports and operations; Lisa Raffoul, manager of Community Living supports and also a founding member of Ensemble; and Jessica Martin. They’re also here today for Community Living Day. Thank you for attending today, and welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mrs. Donna H. Cansfield: I’d like to welcome to the Legislative Assembly Dalia Mukherjee, the mother of page Dia Mukherjee. I’m hoping that she’ll enjoy watching her daughter in action this morning during question period.

Mr. Bob Delaney: I’m pleased to introduce four special guests who’ve come to observe question period. They were here this morning for the clause-by-clause reading of Bill 2. I’m pleased to introduce Adina Lebo from CARP’s downtown chapter, and she’s the chair; Kevin McLean, who is the district D veterans service/ seniors officer for the Royal Canadian Legion; Gail Simpson, who is the manager of professional development and practice support for the Ontario Society of Occupational Therapists; and Vanessa Foran, who is the director of policy partnerships and government relations of the Parkinson Society Canada. I welcome them to the Ontario Legislature.

Mr. Taras Natyshak: I’d just like to echo the sentiments from the member from Windsor West and welcome members from Essex Community Living: Karen Charette, Lisa Raffoul and Jessica Martin. I’m really proud to welcome them here today, and I’m so proud of the work that you do in our community. Thank you so much.

Hon. Glen R. Murray: I would like to introduce to the House today Mr. Ranjit Singh Dulai, who is the president and CEO of Petroleum Plus Inc. He’ll be joining us shortly in the gallery. He has been very active in the community with youth and with the Malton action committee. Mr. Dulai has guests from the UK, very importantly from the border force of the United Kingdom, who are joining us: Mr. Manmohan Vij and Ms. Sukesh Vij.

Mr. Norm Miller: I’m pleased to introduce page Sabrina’s school, that isn’t quite here yet but will be shortly, and that’s Jeff Mann, teacher, and the Muskoka Montessori School, which will be at Queen’s Park today. I’d like to welcome them once they eventually get here.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): We do welcome them.

Further introductions? There being none, it is now time for oral questions.

ORAL QUESTIONS

HOSPITAL FUNDING

Mr. Tim Hudak: My question to the Deputy Premier: Your government continues to put the interests of the Ontario Liberal Party ahead of the interests of Ontario families. In the face of a credit rating downgrade, you should have brought in more reductions in expenditures, but instead you’ve triggered a by-election. You signed a deal with the NDP that increased taxes and increased spending in trying to save your Liberal skin instead of doing the right thing. And the same thing is happening with hospital projects around this province, Mr. Speaker.

Last night I attended a rally with 10,000 folks in Grimsby, standing behind a good project at West Lincoln Memorial Hospital. But sadly, this is one of six projects cancelled by the Liberals, including South Bruce Grey, Wingham and District Hospital, Brockville General Hospital, St. Thomas Elgin, and Sunnybrook.

Can the deputy minister explain why he cancelled projects in PC ridings but is putting a $1.2-billion mega-hospital into the city of Windsor? Why won’t you do the right thing and move projects forward instead based on their merits and not—

Applause.

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

Hon. Dwight Duncan: It’s nice that the Leader of the—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Minister of Finance.

Hon. Dwight Duncan: The black knight of Ontario politics strikes again, Mr. Speaker. Where have you been? You haven’t raised the issue for the last month. And by the way, this week we had to close racetracks that cost jobs in my riding, in the member for Windsor West’s riding and in the member for Niagara Falls-Fort Erie’s riding.

The budget is very fair. What is difficult to comprehend is: How can he tell us yesterday we need to cut spending and now today increase spending? You’re trying to have it both ways; you can’t have it both ways.

First you said we should adopt every one of Drummond’s recommendations and you said not to cherry-pick; then you started to cherry-pick, one by one by one by one. No, Mr. Speaker. The people of Ontario see through it. He’s been absent without leadership even in his own riding. It’s—

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

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Let’s bring it down.

Supplementary?

Mr. Tim Hudak: Minister, your budget is partisan pork-barrelling at its ugliest. You cancel five projects in PC-held ridings and now you’re boasting about a $1.2-billion mega-hospital in your own riding that was never on the list in the first place.

We support all efforts to rein in after nine years of their gluttonous spending spree that has put us into huge debt. But now they’ve got a brand new project in the Deputy Premier’s own riding that miraculously appeared, a $1.2-billion project.

Last night I stood proudly with the folks in Grimsby behind a good project for West Lincoln Memorial. We believe projects should be based on their merit. What will they do for health care—not for the political parties, not for the Ontario Liberal Party?

If it’s true you’re making decisions based on merit and not what riding they’re in, will you table today the criteria you used to reject PC riding projects and to put your own on the top of the list of $1.2 billion?

Applause.

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

Deputy Premier.

Hon. Dwight Duncan: I know the Leader of the Opposition hasn’t read the budget yet. He voted against it before he read it.

Let me just remind him now: The riding of Simcoe North, which I believe is represented by the Conservative Party—the leader may not know that—$474 million for the Waypoint Centre for Mental Health Care. The Leader of the Opposition may not know this. You have a member from Barrie. That would be one of those people back there—Mr. Jackson. The Royal Victoria Hospital: $258 million.

I had a little contretemps with your member from Cambridge who voted against the Cambridge hospital. You may not know it, but you have a member from Cambridge. He’s got his Cambridge hospital redevelopment. His local newspaper told him he shouldn’t follow your lead; he should vote for it.

You ought to learn who’s in your caucus in the cities you represent—

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Thank you. Sit down. A reminder for all members that you are to use the—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): A reminder for all members: You are to use the member’s title or their riding.

Final supplementary: the member from Leeds–Grenville.

Mr. Steve Clark: This government is putting politics ahead of our province. The Premier continues to force unwanted industrial wind farms on PC ridings like Prince Edward–Hastings, Haliburton–Kawartha Lakes–Brock, Lambton–Kent–Middlesex and Chatham–Kent–Essex, yet cancels wind projects in Liberal-held Scarborough—

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member will make sure that the question is relevant to the first two.

Mr. Steve Clark: Speaker, he racks up billion-dollar bills to cancel unpopular power projects in Liberal ridings like Oakville and Mississauga.

Minister, making billion-dollar decisions based on politics instead of merit is no way to run a government. It speaks to the Premier’s utter incompetence and disregard for taxpayers. It’s shameful. I join with my leader and ask you, Minister: Will you table in this House the criteria you use for which hospitals remained and which were cut?

Interjections.

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

Deputy Premier?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: Mr. Speaker, I did want to also go back to the Leader of the Opposition and say to the people of West Lincoln—here’s what he had to say when asked about the West Lincoln hospital on budget day. He said, “I’m more interested in a balanced budget than any individual project.”

Well, you know, you can’t have it both ways. He’s been absent without leadership. He takes one position one day and another position another day.

With respect to the final supplementary, I remind him that we have green energy jobs going on in Burlington, Cambridge—

Hon. Christopher Bentley: Tillsonburg.

Hon. Dwight Duncan: —Tillsonburg and a variety of others. Why do you want to close down those jobs in the member from Cambridge’s riding and in the member from Burlington’s riding?

You know what? We’re about jobs, Mr. Speaker; they’re about games. They’ve been absent without leadership. The people of Ontario demand leadership. They’re getting it only from this side of the House.

AIR AMBULANCE SERVICE

Mr. Frank Klees: My question is to the Attorney General. AgustaWestland, the company that sold Ornge 12 helicopters for $144 million and then kicked back $6.7 million to Ornge in the form of a marketing agreement, is under investigation in Italy for a surprisingly similar deal.

Here is what was reported in the Italian media about the interrogation of the former director general of AgustaWestland’s parent company: “The discussion focused on the bribes and kickbacks that it appears were paid by the public group’s company responsible for helicopters—AgustaWestland—to win foreign sales.”

My question to the Attorney General is this: Given the similarity between the Ornge deal and what is under investigation, will the Attorney General agree to refer this information to the OPP, the RCMP and the justice department of the United States of America?

Hon. John Gerretsen: I’m pleased to refer this to the Deputy Premier.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Nepean–Carleton and the member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke will come to order.

Deputy Premier?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: Mr. Speaker, my understanding is that the Ontario Provincial Police are investigating the situation at Ornge—all the events. We’ve had the Auditor General go through there. We have the public accounts committee looking very closely at all matters with respect to Ornge.

I think the last piece is the fact that that party opposite is obstructing Bill 50, which is designed to deal with the problems that the Minister of Health identified and dealt with in a very timely fashion. I hope that they will do what they’ve now done with two bills this morning and stop obstructing and let Bill 50 get passed.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Frank Klees: After yesterday’s testimony from a former employee of Ornge who was responsible for the deliverables under that $6.7-million kickback marketing agreement, it’s interesting to note that the circumstances are uncannily the same as is being investigated in Italy. Ornge bought 12 helicopters from Agusta. India bought 12 helicopters from Agusta. According to Mr. Borgogni, the cost of the helicopters in India had been inflated in order to pay a multi-million-dollar kickback to the political party Lega Nord with the approval of AgustaWestland’s CEO. We have reason to believe that the Ornge deal is very similar in terms of the inflated price.

I ask the Attorney General again: Given the information that we have now conveyed to him, will he agree to ensure that that is conveyed to the OPP, the RCMP and the US minister of justice?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: To the Attorney General.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Come to order, please. The member from Durham and the member from Leeds–Grenville will stop.

Attorney General.

Hon. John Gerretsen: Thank you very much, Speaker. First of all, the member is fully aware of the fact that our legislative committee, public accounts, is looking into this issue. If issues come out of that that lead to further investigations by the police officials of this province, obviously that will be done.

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

Mr. Frank Klees: When will the ministers of the crown in this government start to put the public interest ahead of their political self-preservation?

If any member of the executive council is responsible to look beyond politics, it is the Attorney General. That is his responsibility. I have conveyed to him important information that I am asking him to ensure that the OPP investigation is familiar with. I’m asking him, because the deal was struck in Philadelphia, that he provide the same information to the US ministry of justice. I’m asking him to inform the RCMP because of their international jurisdiction. Will the Attorney General take on his responsibility and ensure that that information is conveyed to the appropriate enforcement agency?

Applause.

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

Attorney General.

Hon. John Gerretsen: First of all, we are very proud of our system of justice here.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I am going to refer to individuals, which I’ve already started to do. I will tell you that when I get the quiet, it’s not the moment in which you start up again.

Attorney General.

Hon. John Gerretsen: First of all, I think we can all be very proud of our system of justice here in Canada and in Ontario on an ongoing basis. I’m very proud of the members who work in the Ministry of the Attorney General on a day-to-day basis.

As the member is fully aware, the OPP is already investigating all of the various allegations that have been made around Ornge, etc. With the information that the member has provided here—and it has become public—I’m quite sure that the OPP will do the right thing and investigate that as well.

We, as a government, do not direct our policing authorities as to what to investigate. They know their job. The member knows that. Let the OPP do the work that they are entitled to do on an ongoing basis on this issue as well.

JOB CREATION

Ms. Andrea Horwath: My question is to the Acting Premier. Last October, the people of Ontario sent us here to focus on the issues that matter to them. They’re worried about their jobs, the cost of everyday life and the state of their health care. They expect us to work together to get things done for them. This week, I’ve asked the government to look very seriously at New Democrat proposals, especially on jobs. Is the government ready to do that?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: Oh, absolutely, and we welcome that commitment on the part of the third party. Unfortunately, the official opposition ruled themselves out of any discussion on these matters, preferring instead to be nominating candidates around the province, preferring instead to be obstructing important legislation.

We, in the budget, as the leader of the third party will be aware, set up a jobs and prosperity task force. We are putting approximately $2 billion together in a fund that they will give us advice on. We have already indicated our willingness to refer your ideas to that commission to look at. I know we’ll be announcing the makeup of that commission in fairly short order.

I welcome those ideas and I welcome the opportunity to look carefully at them, to discuss them to see where we might find common ground.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Sadly, folks who were happy to see some real progress made last week saw more of the same old cynical politics when they tuned into Queen’s Park this week: squabbles over process in legislation, even though we share a goal; political insiders making big bucks from the mess at Ornge; and desperate manoeuvres from a government to take back an absolute majority instead of working with the mandate that the people gave them not so long ago.

Is this government ready to roll up their sleeves and work on new ideas to create jobs that get people back to work, or are they completely—completely—determined to play the same old political games?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: I’m pleased that the Legislature was able to get the bullying legislation into committee, working together with all parties. That’s a very pleasant change of pace.

I am given to understand that in committee this morning, the official opposition has now officially backed down on their attempts to block Bill 2. There were a lot of members of CARP there, and the committee member from the official opposition ran upstairs to check things out with his leader, came back and said, “Okay, we’re not going to block this anymore.” Well done. We’re glad to hear that.

We will continue to make this Legislature work. We will remain focused on health, on education and on jobs. The leader of the third party is absolutely right: That’s extremely important.

Jobs are important. We’re proud of the fact that we brought forward a number of initiatives in the budget. I look forward to having the opportunity, in consultation with the jobs and prosperity task force, to look at further suggestions from the leader of the third party.

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

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Speaker, these are very tough times in Ontario; I think everybody knows it. The people who get up every morning to make this province work want us to talk about the jobs that we can win for them, not the power that the government can win for itself.

Is this government ready to focus on the right priorities, roll up their sleeves and get to work on new ideas to create jobs to get people back to work in this province?

Interjection.

Hon. Dwight Duncan: As my colleague says, we’re doing it each and every day, Mr. Speaker.

We look forward to hearing more about the leader of the third party’s ideas on a job-creating tax credit. That certainly sounds promising, although we don’t have the details yet from the leader.

This morning, the Premier was at Agfa HealthCare. More than 86 jobs were created there; 276 were retained. That’s an important investment that we made. The third party often calls that corporate welfare. We don’t think it’s corporate welfare. The leader of the third party ought to be careful, because they criticize, on one hand, that we do this with businesses—and by the way, sometimes they’re not successful; that’s part of the risk you have to take—and then on the other hand says that she wants us to do more.

I’m looking forward to the specifics of your proposal so that we may have the opportunity—

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

JOB CREATION

Ms. Andrea Horwath: My next question is also for the Acting Premier. Yesterday, the Premier said that the jobs council would put our job creation tax credit on the table. Today, there are more than half a million Ontarians out of work. They’re looking for work now. When can Ontarians expect to see that jobs council actually getting down to work on job creation in this province and on our tax credit—

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Deputy Premier?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: As I’ve indicated, we expect that announcement very soon. But I don’t want the leader of the third party to leave people with the impression that other good work isn’t going on as we speak.

Last month, Ontario employment increased by 46,000 jobs, all full-time—more than half the jobs created in Canada. The CFIB cited an increase in small business confidence that shows that our confidence grew for the seventh month in a row. Statistics Canada: Ontario’s GDP grew by 2% in 2011, led by a 2.4% increase in manufacturing. KPMG rates Ontario fourth in business costs among nine mature economic countries.

Mr. Speaker, there is more to do. There are too many Ontarians still looking for work. We will continue to work every day to find those jobs, and I look forward to her proposals and her party’s proposals with—

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

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Speaker, wages in Ontario are stagnant, but the cost of living isn’t. In fact, wages in Ontario are growing at the slowest rate in all of Canada. A job creation tax credit gives a bigger reward to companies that pay their employees better salaries.

Now, I might be incorrect, but I thought I heard the Acting Premier say that they agree that a job creation tax credit makes some good sense. Can I get that confirmed?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: Mr. Speaker, what I haven’t heard, for instance, in our discussions here, and I look forward to seeing absolute, concrete proposals from the NDP, instead of—for instance, would your tax credit be refundable? That’s an important question.

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Yes.

Hon. Dwight Duncan: So it would be refundable. We’ve now established that. How long would it apply for and what would the undertakings have to be?

We’d love to see more of this, because the member opposite knows that we have a number of refundable tax credits that are designed to create jobs that haven’t, frankly, been as successful as we’d like. We welcome her input and her ideas, Mr. Speaker. Just send us over the information, if you want to do that now.

Is it refundable? What industries would it apply to? How much would it be? What would the impact of the fiscal plan be? All of those things. We look forward to discussing that, and we will take their proposals very seriously.

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

Ms. Andrea Horwath: Speaker, a job creation tax credit to incent businesses to boost wages is part of Obama’s 2013 budget plan. Is the Acting Premier going to look at the half-million unemployed people in this province, look at them straight in the eye, and admit that the Liberal plan isn’t working but they’re going to continue to offer more of the same? Or is the government finally going to step up to the plate, stop the games and start making some changes and making some new ideas implemented in this province?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: Mr. Speaker, earlier this year myself and officials from the Ministry of Finance had an opportunity to meet with officials from the Obama administration. Much of what she’s referring to is already in place in Ontario.

We need to get off of reading the headlines and just asking a question and start talking about the specific improvements. I welcome those ideas, but I would remind her that much of what she’s spoken of in terms of what the Obama administration is doing is already in place in Ontario.

AIR AMBULANCE SERVICE

Mr. John Yakabuski: My question is for the Minister of Health. For months now, the Minister of Health has refused to be held accountable for her failed leadership. She has ducked and dodged and twisted herself up in knots trying to explain her failure and inaction. Her performance has been so weak that the mild-mannered House leader has been dispatched to clean up her mess and uncomfortably defend the indefensible.

But Speaker, he knows, as every other Liberal member knows, that Minister Matthews spent last August and September ignoring reports about scandal and corruption at Ornge, and chose instead to spend that time testing the waters for her upcoming leadership bid.

Given this, Speaker, I’d ask the Minister of Health if she’s embarrassed by having to drag her cabinet colleagues in to clean up a mess that she has created.

Hon. Deborah Matthews: Speaker, I think that I’d turn to the Auditor General for advice on matters like this. The Auditor General has actually said that we have moved substantially and taken significant action to clean up the mess at Ornge. I’d be happy to review that, but I think if you went back and checked Hansard, I may have mentioned that before once or twice.

But you know, Speaker, a fundamental problem, I think, at Ornge, was that the board did not exercise the responsibility that was entrusted to them. One of the members of the board is someone named Kelly Mitchell. Now maybe we could talk about who Kelly Mitchell is, Speaker. I do think he resigned from the board immediately the story hit the front page. I think he was also absent without leadership in his role on the board at Ornge. He, of course, is a top fundraiser, a very close adviser—

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

Mr. John Yakabuski: It’s funny; she talks about private citizens but doesn’t talk about her own role in this scandal.

Again to the minister: David Caplan walked the plank for his role in the eHealth scandal, the member for Eglinton–Lawrence was sacked for his fondness for cricket clubs and the Attorney General was demoted for his poor handling of the eco fees fiasco. Countless other Liberal backbenchers are sitting there, rotting away, while the Minister of Health stumbles her way through the biggest scandal in Ontario’s history.

While less-preferred members of the Liberal caucus were hung out to dry, this minister has been granted immunity. The Premier has ignored the fraud, concealment and kickbacks at Ornge. He’s ignored the ineptitude and inexcusable failures on the part of this minister.

So I ask the minister: Have you looked your colleagues in the eye and justified your continued presence on this front bench, or are you prepared to do the right thing—

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

Applause.

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

Minister?

Hon. Deborah Matthews: Speaker, my responsibility as Minister of Health is to clean up problems when I find them, and I did act aggressively: completely new leadership at Ornge.

But I think people might want to know about the old leadership at Ornge, the leadership that simply did not do their job. Kelly Mitchell is the former chief of staff to several PC Party ministers, including John Snobelen. He served as a board member for Ornge, but he also did some other work as—he’s a co-founder of something called Picea Partners. He worked for PC leaders in leadership campaigns and billed a rather remarkable $176,000 to the PC Party in 2011. So this guy was busy, but I don’t think he should have been too busy to be exercising his responsibility on the board of directors at Ornge.

GOVERNMENT APPOINTMENTS

Mr. Taras Natyshak: My question is to the Minister of Labour. Minister, media reports have indicated that the recently appointed chair of the WSIB is making a compensation package of roughly $188,000 a year. Can the minister verify that this compensation package is accurate?

Hon. Linda Jeffrey: Mr. Speaker, I’m really pleased to take this question, because the WSIB is responsible for delivering services to over 230,000 employers and over four million workers across Ontario. It’s a very serious responsibility, and the former Minister of Labour, Minister of Health and Deputy Premier, Elizabeth Witmer, is very exceptionally well-qualified to be the chair of the WSIB. I’m really pleased about that.

I want to remind the House that over the last three decades, other governments of all stripes had difficulties with this file, and the WSIB has seen their unfunded liability go up. A few years ago, that financial crisis came to a head and it became more apparent.

Since the release of the Auditor General’s report in 2009, the WSIB has worked very hard to improve its financial sustainability. This includes posting a surplus last year, for the first time in a decade.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Taras Natyshak: The last WSIB chair didn’t make the sunshine list and was only a part-time employee. We understand the government is giving Elizabeth Witmer $188,000 a year to be the WSIB chair, and it has suddenly been made a full-time position.

Can the minister explain why the WSIB chair has suddenly become a full-time gig and why the pay has gone up as well?

Hon. Linda Jeffrey: I think this sounds more like an election stump than worrying about injured workers. We have a very serious task here, and we want to make sure that we have a strong chair, because they need to bring strong leadership to the WSIB board. They need to work to eliminate the unfunded liability. They need to help injured workers and reduce tape for business.

Our government has already begun steps to address the unfunded liability, including asking Professor Harry Arthurs to conduct a comprehensive funding review of the system.

I look forward to working with the new chair of WSIB to retire that unfunded liability, to protect injured workers and to ensure that the WSIB operates in a businesslike fashion. I want to thank Steve Mahoney for his dedicated service and commitment to the chair of the WSIB over the last six years.

ORGAN DONATION

Mr. Bob Delaney: This question is for the Minister of Government Services. Many Ontarians have loved ones requiring an organ to save their life. Every day, hundreds of Ontarians wait for the gift of life. One of them is Fatima Baig, a young woman who lives in the Middlebury area of Mississauga–Erindale and needs a liver donor.

There were 946 organ transplants in Ontario last year. The number of yearly organ transplants in Ontario has grown by 53% since—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member of Hamilton East–Stoney Creek, come to order.

Mr. Bob Delaney: Organ donation registration is a critical part of our world-leading health system, and we need to attract more Ontarians to register as an organ donor.

Minister, how is ServiceOntario meeting this challenge and improving our organ donation system?

Hon. Harinder S. Takhar: I want to thank the member from Mississauga–Streetsville for asking this question. Every donor who provides donations of organs and tissue can save up to eight lives. So our government is absolutely committed to helping people like Fatima Baig to get the gift of life.

Our government is already asking all people who are coming to renew their health cards for donor donations. So I am very pleased to announce today that we are expanding the organ donor registration request to those who renew their driver’s licence and photo ID cards as well.

We have already rolled this out in four locations and will be expanding to 91 locations of ServiceOntario very shortly, with the remaining over 200 locations added next year—

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Bob Delaney: Minister, when an individual registers to be an organ donor, they can help save the life of someone like Fatima Baig. I know Fatima Baig, and I know her family. She’s a young woman who’s a teenager, and she’s a good student.

Ontario is one of only a few provinces with organ donation registries. However, 1,500 people like Fatima Baig still wait for an organ in Ontario. Only 21% of Ontarians have registered to be an organ donor. People like Fatima will surely die unless more Ontarians register to be organ donors.

This initiative at ServiceOntario is one measure of an integrated strategy to increase organ donation registrations. We need to do more to encourage Ontarians to register as organ donors.

Minister, what else is Ontario doing, in partnership with the Trillium Gift of Life, to increase organ donor registrations?

Hon. Harinder S. Takhar: To the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care.

Hon. Deborah Matthews: The reality is that every three days someone in Ontario dies waiting for an organ transplant. We can do better. We must do better. That’s why I’m very pleased the Trillium Gift of Life has launched their beadonor.ca campaign. That has dramatically increased the number of people who are registering to be a donor.

In addition, they’ve launched the Gift of 8 campaign, and I am very pleased that I personally have got a page on that Gift of 8 campaign. I encourage all members of this House to register a page and challenge their community to do better. Last year, 280,000 people gave their consent to donate. That’s an increase of 110,000 people over the last year. We must do better for people like Fatima.

AIR AMBULANCE SERVICE

Ms. Laurie Scott: My question is for the Deputy Premier. The corruption at Ornge and lack of accountability in the Liberal cabinet have revealed much about the character of this government. It’s evident that Ontarians are governed by a party, a Premier and a cabinet whose sense of entitlement colours every decision they make. Surely this sense of entitlement is driving the complete and utter failure of the Liberal government to take responsibility for the corruption and hold the appropriate people accountable.

I’m troubled by the government’s refusal to demonstrate that decisions have consequences and that accountability is a fundamental principle in ensuring public confidence in government.

So I ask the minister: Why has no one in the Liberal government been held accountable for corruption at Ornge?

Hon. Dwight Duncan: It’s unfortunate that the Conservatives have repeatedly tried to undermine the public accounts committee. In fact, we’ve now had 20 hours of hearings with 28 witnesses. I’ve had the opportunity to watch them on television, and it’s astounding what we’ve been able to determine. Kelly Mitchell: over $17,000 in donations made from him and his companies; 15 PCs benefited, including the member for Haliburton–Kawartha Lakes–Brock.

Boy, oh boy. Now, she’s making faces, Mr. Speaker, and I don’t blame her, because she’s been absent without leadership. She can toss over drive-by smears, but when we start to look at this, we look at Lynne Golding, we look at Guy Giorno, Kelly Mitchell, Kelly Long—the fingers of this creep into that caucus even more deeply than the scent that’s coming from Ottawa.

You know what—

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

Ms. Laurie Scott: Again to the minister: He is setting the example to the extent of the decay that has set in in that Liberal government. It’s troubling to see that a government has become so detached from the obligations and responsibilities bestowed upon it by Ontarians. This government’s sense of entitlement is destroying any credibility it once had. The Minister of Finance knows what he’s doing is wrong. He knows that by defending the Minister of Health, he’s undermining his personal integrity. He knows that the Minister of Health should have resigned months ago, that her excuses have been less than truthful and that she is undermining public confidence in our system of government.

So I ask the minister again: Why is he protecting the Minister of Health, and why is he so willing to compromise his personal—

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Question.

Ms. Laurie Scott: —for political gain?

Interjections.

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

Deputy Premier.

Hon. Dwight Duncan: Kelly Mitchell was paid $400,000 to lobby and schmooze the PC Party for Ornge and for its profits. Among the riding associations that benefited from his lobbying contracts was Haliburton–Kawartha Lakes–Brock.

I really think the party opposite should stop obstructing the committee and let it do its work. Let’s find out how many other Tories have been at the trough on this one.

The Minister of Health has done an outstanding job in, first of all, addressing the problem—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Durham is now warned.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): And I have tried to make it clear that when I do get attention, I don’t need these extra shots when it’s quiet.

Finish your answer, please.

Hon. Dwight Duncan: If the member is that serious, stop blocking Bill 50. Let us fix the mess that people like Kelly Mitchell and your riding association benefited from. They can’t have it both ways. They’ve been absent without leadership. Let Bill 50 pass. Let’s get this fixed once and for all.

Interjections.

Hon. Dwight Duncan: They can yell and call names and not do the work of the people; we will.

ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT

Mr. Peter Tabuns: My question is to the Minister of Energy. This morning, we started a debate on your Bill 75, merging two hydro agencies. Minister, on the verge of decisions to take a risky gamble to spend billions on new nuclear reactors, why is it that your bill is shutting down full public assessment of those decisions?

Hon. Christopher Bentley: It’s doing no such thing—doing no such thing at all.

As the member opposite would know, any large power facility in the province of Ontario will have a very, very robust environmental assessment process which, in the case of the Darlington site, has actually been going on since 2006, but, in addition, for any nuclear facility in the province of Ontario, there is a very robust process conducted by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission itself, which provides a report on safety and related issues.

The bill that was tabled today strengthens planning overall, takes out cost, but does none of the things suggested in the member’s question.

Mr. Peter Tabuns: The reality is that this government consistently acts to shut down public scrutiny.

In 2006, the environmental assessment that should have been brought forward for the power plant was set aside by this government. In the Darlington review panel, this government urged that panel not to consider any alternatives to what was put forward. Now, in this bill, you’re further limiting the ability of the public to get in there and assess what’s going on. Why are you afraid of scrutiny, Minister?

Hon. Christopher Bentley: Just reminding all of us and for the information of those at home, nuclear siting is the jurisdiction of the federal government, which has the most robust environmental assessment on these issues anywhere, and there’s a safety assessment. Nothing the Legislature of Ontario passes can get in the way or hinder in any way the federal regulatory oversight process. In fact, those involved in our atomic energy facilities in the province of Ontario—Tom Mitchell, Duncan Hawthorne—were leaders in the world effort to deal with issues in Fukushima. We have the leaders here, the strongest regulation anywhere.

The member opposite should not run down the very strong nuclear industry in the province of Ontario and the 80,000 jobs that go with it.

RENEWABLE ENERGY

Ms. Helena Jaczek: My question is also for the Minister of Energy. I’ve heard that Ontario’s clean energy economy is employing thousands of people across the province and is attracting private sector investment at a time when we need it the most. Clean energy manufacturers have established facilities and are employing Ontarians while—

Interjection.

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

I don’t know what has happened today, but I am going to ask the member from Hamilton East–Stoney Creek to come to order, and this is his final warning.

Ms. Helena Jaczek: —while they contribute to Ontario’s broader goal of replacing coal-fired power generation with cleaner sources of energy. Along with the direct jobs associated with these manufacturing facilities, tens of thousands of skilled trade workers are also being employed as projects are constructed across the province.

Minister, can you please update this House on the overall status of Ontario’s clean energy manufacturing sector?

Hon. Christopher Bentley: The member for Oak Ridges–Markham is exactly right. She’s very concerned about where the jobs of the future are coming from, and the clean energy economy in the province of Ontario is positioning us for those future jobs.

In the past couple of years alone, we’ve seen manufacturing facilities set up in Windsor, Tillsonburg, London, Guelph, Welland, Newmarket—it sounds like a Via Rail commercial—Burlington, Peterborough, Hawkesbury, Cambridge, Sault Ste. Marie, among others—already 20,000 jobs related to the green energy economy, just in the last couple of years.

The member is right: When we put up those facilities, you’ve got construction jobs all around the province, in every riding, that are benefiting from the completion of these clean energy facilities.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Helena Jaczek: Thank you, Minister. I’m pleased to hear that Ontario’s clean energy manufacturing sector continues to succeed and employ Ontarians.

Minister, General Electric, one of the largest companies in the world, has decided to invest in Ontario; in fact, in my riding of Oak Ridges–Markham. It is now home to the new GE Grid IQ Innovation Centre, a first in smart grid development in all of North America.

Clearly, Ontario’s clean energy economy has become a beacon for companies to come and invest in our province. I know that investments in our clean energy economy have reached some $27 billion, and this is good news for Ontario.

Minister, can you please tell this House what impact General Electric’s investments will have on Ontario’s clean energy economy?

Hon. Christopher Bentley: The member is right. It was just last year that the member from Oak Ridges–Markham and my colleague the Minister of Economic Development and Innovation were there with GE to open the GE Grid IQ Innovation Centre. There are hundreds of jobs. They just added 150 more jobs. There are 340-plus jobs there already. GE is making a $150-million investment in the province of Ontario.

Where is this investment going to take us? Well, it’s going to take us to be leaders in the clean tech sector. That sector is going to be a $3-trillion market in 2020. I know my colleague the Minister of Economic Development and Innovation is travelling all over, talking about Ontario’s leadership in this area.

With leaders like GE and Siemens and so many others, we’re positioning Ontario for the jobs of the future in that $3-trillion market.

AIR AMBULANCE SERVICE

Mr. Rod Jackson: My question is to the Minister of Health. Speaker, the minister’s failure to give a straight answer on the scandal and corruption at Ornge is reflective of her inability to manage her portfolio. Every day, more brown envelopes are showing up in PC inboxes. She has lost control of the Ministry of Health, and is consequently unable to fulfill her duties as minister. So I ask her: Will she finally put her province before her political ambitions and resign her position?

Hon. Deborah Matthews: For just a brief moment there, I thought the member from Barrie was going to rise to talk about the hospital that’s being built in his community. Unfortunately, he voted against it, and I guess we’ll just have to wait for that thank you. I’m sure it’s going to come, as it will come from other members with hospitals being built in their communities.

There is no question that there were serious problems at Ornge; that the leadership there was not doing their job. They forgot who it was they were working for. One of those people in leadership was none other than Kelly Mitchell. Not only did Kelly Mitchell sit on the board at Ornge; he also hired Dr. Mazza’s girlfriend in 2005 at the request of Dr. Mazza.

I think the people opposite have to let the committee do their work.

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

Hon. Deborah Matthews: There is work to do. The most important thing we do—

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Thank you. I would ask all members: Please do not make me get up when I say thank you.

Supplementary question?

Mr. Rod Jackson: My question had nothing to do with Kelly Mitchell; it had everything to do with the minister’s failure of leadership on the air and land ambulance files that are indicative of her inability to oversee the Ministry of Health.

Throughout the Ornge scandal, she has been perpetually uninformed and unprepared. After nearly a year of inaction on the sorry state of medical transfers in the province of Ontario, the minister has yet again failed to make any progress. The minister is barely treading water, and patient care is suffering as a result.

I ask her this: Given that, under her watch, patient safety has been compromised on a number of fronts, and she does not appear to be able to take the necessary action, will she put the safety of Ontarians before her leadership ambitions and resign today?

Interjections.

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

Minister of Health.

Hon. Deborah Matthews: Speaker, I understand that the members opposite are kind of uncomfortable with the links between Ornge and their caucus, but I can tell you we are taking action. There’s one piece of action that I am very determined to move through this Legislature, and that is Bill 50.

If the members opposite really care about what’s going on at Ornge, they will support Bill 50. Bill 50 is what we need to do to complete the transformation at Ornge, and I expect—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I want to ask the member from Renfrew if I have already warned him or not.

Mr. John Yakabuski: No.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I haven’t? Just asking.

New question.

HEALTH CARE

Ms. Cindy Forster: My question is for the Minister of Health as well; she’s popular today.

People in Niagara have been frustrated for many years with their health care. Countless promises by this government to improve care have instead closed our emergency rooms and hospital departments and, recently, the cancellation of an entire project in West Lincoln.

Last night, 12,000 people came out to voice their opposition to the cancellation of this project. The Niagara Health System is expected today to unveil major recommendations for changes to health care services. This time, will the government listen to the people of Niagara before making changes that affect them?

Hon. Deborah Matthews: Sending in a supervisor to a hospital is the last thing a health minister wants to do, but sometimes, I have no choice but to do that, and in the Niagara Health System, that was one example where sending in a supervisor has turned out to be exactly the right thing to do. Dr. Kevin Smith, I think, has done an exceptionally fine job as supervisor. I look forward to seeing his recommendations on what more needs to be done. I can tell you that Dr. Smith has put a very high priority on listening to the members of the community, and I expect we’ll see that reflected today.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Cindy Forster: Today an announcement by the Niagara Health System supervisor, Kevin Smith, will lay out the future of the NHS in recommendations. It’s expected to be concerning news for people who have been relying on health care in their local communities. Centralizing services and making people travel farther from their homes seems to be the direction that the NHS has been going.

Can the Minister of Health assure the people of Niagara that this time local communities will be seen as an equal partner, that their voices will be listened to and that short-term, Band-Aid fixes will be avoided?

Hon. Deborah Matthews: I would urge the member opposite to actually wait until she’s seen the report from Dr. Smith before she dismisses it. I expect that Dr. Smith will come forward with some strong recommendations. We will, of course, review them very carefully, but I do know that Dr. Smith has travelled throughout the region and has listened to people in the community. He is a leader in our health care system. He is determined to deliver the highest-quality care that is possible. So let’s look forward to see what the next steps are on the Niagara Health System.

VOLUNTEERS

Ms. Soo Wong: My question is for the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. Minister, my riding of Scarborough–Agincourt is very fortunate. Our community benefits every day from the hard work of our countless volunteers. They volunteer in our schools, hospitals and community organizations. Volunteers touch our lives and make our communities a better place to live. That’s why I was so proud this past March 26 to participate in the Scarborough Volunteer Service Award presentation. This year, 277 worthy recipients were honoured at our ceremony. I know many members of this House will want to attend the Volunteer Service Awards in their own community this year.

My question: Can the minister tell the House more about the Volunteer Service Award and how they can help recognize the outstanding volunteers in Ontario communities?

Hon. Charles Sousa: I thank the member for Scarborough–Agincourt for her commitment to helping others. I was pleased to join her at the VSA ceremony in Scarborough. Every year these awards celebrate the enormous impact volunteers have on our lives. Five-million-strong, volunteers are found in every corner of our great province. All of our selfless volunteers make a difference. These awards are just one way that we show our appreciation.

The annual Volunteer Service Award ceremonies are now in full swing in communities across this province. This year more than 10,000 volunteers will receive the Trillium pin for continuous service to local organizations. Congratulations to all of this year’s VSA recipients and thank you all for what you do to make Ontario a better place to live.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Soo Wong: The Volunteer Service Awards are always a great event in my community. They reinvigorate the spirit of volunteerism and get people thinking about how we can recognize and thank the dedicated volunteers—volunteers like grade 12 students George Xu, Mimi Daimiao Tan, Bryan Babiarz and Celestine Oi Han Chan-Liu.

Ever since the ceremony, constituents in Scarborough–Agincourt have asked me how they can recognize volunteers who have made a difference in their lives. Minister, who is eligible to receive a VSA and how can Ontarians get involved to help recognize volunteers in our communities?

Hon. Charles Sousa: Thank you to the member for being a champion of volunteerism in her community.

Ontario volunteers can receive a VSA for unpaid continuous service to their community for up to five years or more. Youth under the age of 24 can be recognized for two or more years of service. And organizations can nominate up to six of their volunteers—seven if one is a youth.

It’s important to know that the deadline each year for submitting nominations is January 25. Even though the deadline is many months away, it’s never too early to start thinking about recognizing our outstanding volunteers. Ontario has a strong and proud tradition of volunteering. I extend heartfelt thanks to those who do so much to make our communities better for everyone, every day.

AIR AMBULANCE SERVICE

Mr. Frank Klees: My question to the Deputy Premier. I would ask a page to deliver this material to the Deputy Premier. That is the amount of information that was ordered for one witness by a government member of the public accounts committee. Under the terms of reference of the government accounts committee, we are limited in most cases to eight minutes per caucus to question that witness.

The kind of slurs that the Minister of Health and other members of this committee, of this government, are throwing at individuals without an opportunity for them to give a proper explanation for what they have done is evidence of why we need a full inquiry into the Ornge scandal.

I will ask the Deputy Premier this: Will he agree to honour the motion of the public accounts committee to adopt the terms that we have proposed to ensure that we get to the bottom of this mess?

Interjections.

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

Hon. Dwight Duncan: To the Minister of Community and Social Services.

Hon. John Milloy: It’s hard not to comment on the honourable member’s accusations here in the House, someone who has repeatedly stood up and tried to hold hearings here on the floor of the House with drive-by smears. The simple fact is that the public accounts committee has the power and authority it needs to conduct the hearings. They are doing an excellent job.

I point out to the members opposite that yesterday, I believe, the committee felt there was one particular individual they wanted to hear longer from, so they adjusted the timing. The committee has the authority and has the controls that it needs.

As I say, Mr. Speaker, if the member wants to do this kind of kangaroo court here in the House, I will raise the issues—

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

Mr. Frank Klees: Speaker, I know the government House leader would have a hard time holding that material that I passed across. I’d like him to try to lift it, at least. Eight minutes, in most cases, is what we have to question a witness. The motion that was put forward, that we’re asking the government House leader to bring to this Legislature to approve, simply provides the Chair to call hearings at his will, subject to the subcommittee. It allows us to broaden the scope of those hearings so that we can get to the bottom of this.

I want to know this from the government House leader: What is he hiding? Who does he want to protect? If he wants to get to the bottom of it, as we do, he’ll bring that motion forward and allow this House to—

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

Government House leader.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Be seated, please. The member from Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound will withdraw.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): No, you won’t. You’ll stand and withdraw.

Mr. Bill Walker: Withdraw.

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

Government House leader.

Hon. John Milloy: Mr. Speaker, what’s kind of interesting—and I think all members will find it interesting—is, it’s my understanding that most of the documentation that was sent across has to do with the PC lobbyist Kelly Mitchell, linking him to the Ornge situation. I think we all know who Kelly Mitchell is. He’s a very prominent Conservative with very, very close ties to the PC Party and the Leader of the Opposition. He was paid almost $400,000 to lobby and schmooze Progressive Conservative MPPs. He is a huge donor and fundraiser for the PC Party. He was involved in the hiring of Kelly Long.

Perhaps the PC Party wants to provide a little bit more—

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

TOURISM

Ms. Sarah Campbell: My question is to the Minister of Tourism. This government cited declining numbers as the reason for closing the tourist information centres in Kenora, Fort Frances and Rainy River, but the government’s own numbers show that the traffic at Pigeon River is lower, yet it remains open. Minister, can you please explain how these decisions were made?

Hon. Michael Chan: I want to thank the member for asking the question. Tourism in Ontario is an economic driver, and we are committed to promoting tourism across Ontario, including northwestern Ontario.

Speaker, allow me to give you some numbers—that over the years that we have been promoting tourism in northwestern Ontario. Since 2003, we have invested or committed over $68 million to support tourism initiatives in the north, including in Kenora, Rainy River and Fort Frances.

Northern Ontario offers visitors beautiful natural landscapes and a variety of vibrant festivals and events. Since 2010, we have also provided approximately $5 million annually to the new northern regional tourism—

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

Ms. Sarah Campbell: I didn’t hear an answer, so I’m going to ask the same question again. This government cited declining numbers as the reason for closing tourist information centres in Kenora, Fort Frances and Rainy River, but the government’s own numbers show that traffic at Pigeon River is lower, and yet it remains open.

So I am wondering if the minister can please explain to me, the people of this House, the people of Thunder Bay and the people of Kenora–Rainy River why and how these decisions were made.

Hon. Michael Chan: As part of our plan, we will realign our tourism marketing services by focusing on online travel marketing activities. This will allow us to meet consumers’ travel research preferences through major redevelopment of Ontario’s tourism information website, call centre and brochure distribution service.

Travellers are turning increasingly to the Internet to organize their trips. In 2010, over four times more travellers used the Ontario Tourism Marketing Partnership Corp.’s website to make travel plans than those who visited a travel information centre.

USE OF QUESTION PERIOD

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member for Oshawa on a point of order.

Mr. Jerry J. Ouellette: Mr. Speaker, this is at least the third time that I have risen in this Legislature on this very issue. The Speaker in the past has ruled regarding this practice, and I will quote a couple of those.

December 13, 2007: “I would therefore remind the House that as much as possible, ministers should refrain from using question period to make statements that might more appropriately be made during a ministerial statement, particularly in response to questions asked by the members sitting on government benches.”

Although some members may think this is not a serious matter, it is a breach of the protocols of this Legislature, and I will continue to bring these forward.

Then, on November 2, 2009, he specifically stated—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Order. This is a serious point of order. I need to hear it.

Mr. Jerry J. Ouellette: Speaker Peters stated, “I can say that regarding last Wednesday’s question period, the matter is a little more definite. In replying both to the main question and the supplementary, the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities quite specifically used the opportunities to make announcements regarding his ministry’s response to certain problems with a private career college.

“The member for Oshawa has a valid point of order and was correct that this is an improper use of question period.”

Mr. Speaker, I would go on that, today, during question period, the member from Mississauga–Streetsville very specifically asked the Minister of Government Services a very important question, and the minister responded, “I am very pleased to announce...”, and then he goes on to explain the announcement.

The Speakers’ rulings in the past have been very much against all parties regarding this aspect and very much against parliamentary protocols. As such, announcements are better served during ministerial statements. I would ask the Speaker to now take appropriate action.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): On the same point of order, the member from Timmins–James Bay.

Mr. Gilles Bisson: Mr. Speaker, I don’t want to belabour the point, but I think the member raises an important point, and I’m just going to make this, to add to it.

It’s pretty clear that the way that our standing orders are written, there’s a time for ministers to be able to make the statements, and that’s properly done under standing order 35, where it says a minister of the crown may make a statement.

I think the member made the points that I don’t need to repeat. I would just urge the government, especially in the ability to make this House work a little bit better, to respect the rules as written, and the idea is to have ministerial statements so ministers can make those types of statements, and it allows the opposition to respond. Doing it in this way, I think, is not helpful.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): On the same point of order, the Minister of the Environment.

Hon. James J. Bradley: I’ll declare it the same point of order. I think you will agree, probably, because it talks about the contents of questions directed in the House.

Mr. Speaker, if you listened carefully to the innuendo and inflammatory language used by the opposition, accusatory questions that are directed to members of the government, then I think that we have to recognize that people who live in glass houses shouldn’t be throwing—

Interjections.

Mr. John Yakabuski: Could we strike that testimony from the record?

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I might remember.

That is not germane to this point of order.

I’m prepared to rule on this point of order. Not only does the member have a point of order; he is correct.

Applause.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Excuse me. Be seated. Be seated.

Question period is not to be used by the government as a forum in which to announce a new policy. I would ask that that be adhered to in this House at all times.

Another point of order: the member from Mississauga–Streetsville.

Mr. Bob Delaney: Speaker, I rise on a point of order pursuant to standing orders 23(h), 23(i), 23(

k) and standing order 37(d).

In his question to the Deputy Premier, the member for Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke made repeated remarks that imputed motives and used insulting language, particularly in reference to the member from Kitchener Centre.

I would ask, Speaker, whether or not, upon reflection, the member for Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke would wish to withdraw the offending remarks, and I would ask the Speaker to consider the transcript in relation to standing orders 23(h), 23(i), 23(

k) and standing order—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): To allow somebody to hear this, it is a point of order until I decide it’s not a point of order.

Number two: The member does know that I’ve made reference to this once before, and that is, I will not be reviewing Hansard, as I need to hear it as the day is presented for itself. Any member has the opportunity to withdraw or correct their own record. If I did not hear it and yet there was an opportunity for the member to withdraw, he or she will do so.

DEFERRED VOTES

ACCEPTING SCHOOLS ACT, 2012 /

LOI DE 2012 POUR

DES ÉCOLES TOLÉRANTES

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

Bill 13,

An Act to amend the Education Act with respect to bullying and other matters / Projet de loi 13, Loi modifiant la

Loi sur l’éducation en ce qui a trait à l’intimidation et à d’autres questions.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): We now have a deferred vote on the motion for second reading of Bill 13. Call in the members. This will be a five-minute bell.

The division bells rang from 1142 to 1147.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): On December 7, 2011, Ms. Broten moved second reading of Bill 13.

All those in favour, please rise one at a time and be recognized by the Clerk.

Ayes

Albanese, Laura

Armstrong, Teresa J.

Balkissoon, Bas

Bartolucci, Rick

Bentley, Christopher

Berardinetti, Lorenzo

Best, Margarett

Bisson, Gilles

Bradley, James J.

Broten, Laurel C.

Campbell, Sarah

Chan, Michael

Chiarelli, Bob

Colle, Mike

Coteau, Michael

Crack, Grant

Craitor, Kim

Damerla, Dipika

Delaney, Bob

Dhillon, Vic

Dickson, Joe

DiNovo, Cheri

Duguid, Brad

Duncan, Dwight

Flynn, Kevin Daniel

Forster, Cindy

Gerretsen, John

Gélinas, France

Gravelle, Michael

Horwath, Andrea

Hoskins, Eric

Jaczek, Helena

Jeffrey, Linda

Kwinter, Monte

Leal, Jeff

MacCharles, Tracy

Mangat, Amrit

Mantha, Michael

Marchese, Rosario

Matthews, Deborah

Mauro, Bill

McGuinty, Dalton

McMeekin, Ted

McNeely, Phil

Meilleur, Madeleine

Miller, Paul

Milloy, John

Moridi, Reza

Murray, Glen R.

Natyshak, Taras

Orazietti, David

Piruzza, Teresa

Prue, Michael

Qaadri, Shafiq

Sandals, Liz

Schein, Jonah

Singh, Jagmeet

Sorbara, Greg

Sousa, Charles

Tabuns, Peter

Takhar, Harinder S.

Taylor, Monique

Vanthof, John

Wong, Soo

Wynne, Kathleen O.

Zimmer, David

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): All those opposed, please rise one at a time and be recognized by the Clerk.

Nays

Arnott, Ted

Bailey, Robert

Barrett, Toby

Chudleigh, Ted

Clark, Steve

Dunlop, Garfield

Elliott, Christine

Fedeli, Victor

Hardeman, Ernie

Hillier, Randy

Hudak, Tim

Jackson, Rod

Jones, Sylvia

Klees, Frank

MacLaren, Jack

MacLeod, Lisa

McDonell, Jim

McKenna, Jane

McNaughton, Monte

Miller, Norm

Milligan, Rob E.

Nicholls, Rick

O’Toole, John

Ouellette, Jerry J.

Pettapiece, Randy

Scott, Laurie

Shurman, Peter

Smith, Todd

Thompson, Lisa M.

Walker, Bill

Wilson, Jim

Yakabuski, John

Yurek, Jeff

The Clerk of the Assembly (Ms. Deborah Deller): The ayes are 66; the nays are 33.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Le