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October 30, 2017

41st Parliament, 2nd Session

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Hansard Transcripts

Votes and Proceedings

Orders and Notices

Hansard Transcripts 2017-Oct-30 (PDF)

L112 - Mon 30 Oct 2017 / Lun 30 oct 2017

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO

ASSEMBLÉE LÉGISLATIVE DE L’ONTARIO

Monday 30 October 2017 Lundi 30 octobre 2017

Introduction of Visitors

Oral Questions

Casinos

Labour dispute

Hospital services

Hospital services

Power plants

Road safety

Rouge National Urban Park

Environmental protection

Hydro rates

Sexual violence and harassment

Government advertising

Employment standards

Employment standards

Energy policies

Visitors

Notice of dissatisfaction

Members’ Statements

Dave Thomson

Knights of Columbus

STEM girls

Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir

Hospital services

Wilson Building for Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences

Highway improvement

Al Charron

Veterans Memorial Garden

Visitor

Introduction of Bills

Phones Down, Heads Up Act, 2017 / Loi de 2017 interdisant l’utilisation du téléphone portable par les piétons

1701423 Ontario Inc. Act, 2017

Fairness in Minimum Wage Act, 2017 / Loi de 2017 sur l’équité en matière de salaire minimum

Statements by the Ministry and Responses

Immigration francophone

Petitions

Long-term care

School closures

Dental care

Highway improvement

Long-term care

Elevator maintenance

Dental care

Pharmacare

Employment standards

School bus safety

Komoka Provincial Park

Correction of record

Orders of the Day

Strengthening Protection for Ontario Consumers Act, 2017 / Loi de 2017 sur le renforcement de la protection des consommateurs ontariens

Cutting Unnecessary Red Tape Act, 2017 / Loi de 2017 visant à réduire les formalités administratives inutiles

The House met at 1030.

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

Prayers.

Introduction of Visitors

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): This morning, in the Speaker’s gallery, we have special guests. First, former member from Windsor–Sandwich in the 36th and from Windsor West in the 37th, 38th and 39th Parliaments, Sandra Pupatello.

Also in the Speaker’s gallery we have a delegation of officials from Shanghai, China, led by Mr. Lixin Wang and Mr. Yiqun Wang. Please join me in welcoming our delegation.

The Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs on a point of order.

Hon. Jeff Leal: Thanks very much, Mr. Speaker. The legendary American journalist Edward R. Murrow provided some great advice to President Kennedy in 1961 when he said that an error doesn’t become a mistake until you refuse to correct it.

Mr. Speaker, I want to apologize to you for my decorum last Thursday in the House. It’s important for me to apologize to you and to all members of this House, because you have a very difficult job, maintaining decorum, and it certainly wasn’t assisted by my action on Thursday. So I want to sincerely, Mr. Speaker, apologize to you and all members of the House.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I accept the member’s apology and thank all members for maintaining the decorum in this place that I know we all want it to have.

It’s time for other introductions.

Mr. Bill Walker: From the great riding of Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound are the parents of page captain Andy Walker: his mom, Kim Mizen; his father, Kevin Walker, my cousin; and proud grandmother June Mizen. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mr. Percy Hatfield: I’d like to introduce three people from the Canadian Nuclear Association here today: Sara Forsey, Ed Mischkot and Michael Sung. I’ll be meeting with them later on in the day. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Hon. Bob Chiarelli: I’d like to welcome a couple of guests of page Dana O’Brien, who is from my riding of Ottawa West–Nepean. Joining us in the members’ gallery are Dana’s grandmother, Joan Hug-Valeriote, and family friend Sarah Greene. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mr. Robert Bailey: I’d like to welcome, in the west members’ gallery today, David Tanel and Bob Scott, with the Canadian Nuclear Association.

Ms. Peggy Sattler: I would like to welcome to this House today Bruce Babcock, Gary Lima and Jeff Wright, who have joined us from Fanshawe College. Welcome.

Hon. Glenn Thibeault: I too am pleased to welcome a delegation of members from the Canadian Nuclear Association to the Legislature today. I invite all members to join them for a reception from 5 to 7 this evening in rooms 228 and 230. Welcome to the Legislature.

Mr. Jeff Yurek: I would also like to welcome Fanshawe College here. Bruce Babcock, Gary Lima, Jeff Wright, Peter Devlin and Lori Higgs are also here. I invite everyone to their luncheon today.

Ms. Catherine Fife: I’d like to welcome Scott and Bettina Wahl from Waterloo today. They are the parents of Matthew Wahl, page captain today.

Hon. Deborah Matthews: I, too, would like to welcome the Fanshawe people and remind all members that there’s a reception today in rooms 228 and 230. I hope you can all join us.

Also, Speaker, I have two very dear friends of mine, members of the London Ladies Literary League, a book club that has been in existence for decades: Janet Stewart and Carol Brooks. Welcome.

Mr. Lorne Coe: I’d like to welcome teachers and students from R.S. McLaughlin Collegiate and Vocational Institute in Oshawa to Queen’s Park. Welcome.

Ms. Laurie Scott: I’d like to welcome today our page Payton Marsh’s mother, Melissa Marsh, and her friend Christine Buonaiuto. Thank you very much for coming.

Oral Questions

Casinos

Mr. Patrick Brown: My question is for the Premier. Serious concerns have arisen regarding Great Canadian Gaming, the company that is the government’s hand-picked choice to operate the Woodbine casino. It is alleged that organized crime funnelled questionable money through a BC casino operated by Great Canadian Gaming. Gamblers allegedly—this is unbelievable—brought in hockey bags stuffed with apparent drug money to be washed through the casino.

This has led to a large-scale investigation. The Premier has said she is paying close attention to it. That’s not good enough, Mr. Speaker. Is the government not concerned about getting into business with a company where there’s an ongoing investigation under way?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: I know that the Minister of Finance will want to comment. My understanding is that the procurement decision was made by the OLG—the government of Ontario was not involved—and that the Great Canadian Gaming company is not part of the BC review, nor are they under any criminal investigation.

The OLG, as I said this morning, has anti-money-laundering provisions in place for all gaming sites throughout the province, and is in compliance with all federal anti-money-laundering rules. The AGCO and OLG conducted rigorous background checks on Great Canadian Gaming as part of the procurement process.

I know that the Minister of Finance has already been in touch with OLG. As I said earlier to the media, we are paying very close attention to this because of what has happened in British Columbia.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary? The member from Nipissing.

Mr. Victor Fedeli: Thank you, and good morning, Speaker. Back to the Premier: These allegations are exactly why this casino deal must be halted immediately. The fact that the government isn’t concerned about these allegations is shocking.

When the casino contract was awarded, the minister told reporters he was “extremely excited” about the deal. But once charges were announced, the minister said that he was not involved and unaware. If the finance minister didn’t know about it, then he’s in dereliction of his duty. If he did know, then why did he tell the media he wasn’t aware?

Speaker, we need to get to the bottom of this. Did the minister know his hand-picked casino operator is linked to a money-laundering investigation?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Finance.

Hon. Charles Sousa: It’s obvious that the members opposite are doing everything they can to deflect from the fact that they don’t have a plan, that they have no idea as to where they’re going, and they’re now—

Interjections.

Hon. Charles Sousa: They preface their arguments with the term “alleged.” Let me be clear: The integrity of this process is of the utmost importance. My understanding is that Great Canadian Gaming is not under investigation. The opposition allegations are misinformed and ignore the facts.

Both the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario and the OLG conducted rigorous background checks as part of the procurement process and the selection of the service provider. The OLG has strict anti-money-laundering programs in place, which are compliant with federal anti-money-laundering rules. The AGCO also performs extensive and independent due diligence into current and past business practices and conduct before registering a gaming operator.

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

Mr. Victor Fedeli: Back to the Premier: Internal government documents reveal a $500-million money-laundering investigation in BC. We read about “suspicions of ‘terrorist financing,’” possible organized crime connections, hockey duffel bags full of cash—tens of millions of dollars in $20 bills. Who does that?

The RCMP investigation goes back to 2015. They said that there was about $220 million laundered in BC in one year alone. How can this have all happened under the minister’s nose?

We need to get to the bottom of this. To the Premier: What did the finance minister know and when did he know it?

Hon. Charles Sousa: Again, let me be clear: It’s my understanding that Great Canadian Gaming is not under investigation. The AGCO and BC regulators are in contact, and they have been throughout the process. But the member opposite is making allegations and is now inferring criminal activity by a public company. I’ll leave him to live with that fact.

We on this side of the House have a process in place, and a procurement that is fair and transparent. It has to follow due diligence before it proceeds to where it goes.

I recognize that the member opposite is trying to spin and provide some indication of blame. What we need to do is be fair in the process, and let the process run its due course.

Labour dispute

Mr. Patrick Brown: My question is for the Premier. We are now in the third week of a province-wide college strike. For three weeks, students have been left in flux, not sure if their semester, if their year, if their time in education is going to be lost because of this strike. Mr. Speaker, we can’t gamble with our students’ education.

My question is for the Premier: Despite the fact this has gone on now for three weeks, why is there no urgency to this? Why has the Premier done nothing to get both sides back to the table?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: I absolutely am concerned about this. We want to see students back in the classroom. Both the minister and I have an expectation that both sides will find a way to get back to the table, that that’s where the agreement needs to be. It is certainly my intention that no student would lose their term because of this.

The minister has been in conversation with the parties. We are encouraging both sides to get back to the table. But the agreement needs to be forged at the table, and that’s why both sides need to get back to the table and get that agreement signed.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Patrick Brown: Again to the Premier: The Premier says that she’s concerned, but she’s done nothing for three weeks to get both sides back to the table. We need more than concern. This strike has been called “anxiety-inducing” for many students needing to complete their semester.

Just for the Premier to appreciate the urgency of this, let me share a story from Morganna Sampson, president of the Fanshawe Student Union, and what she told the media, that students in trade and apprenticeship programs are at particular risk. Those students rely on employment insurance while in school, but that funding has been halted during the college strike. Sampson said, “They’re left without a job, without schooling, and without funding to live off of”—a very precarious situation.

Why isn’t the Premier doing more? Saying you’re concerned is not enough. I want to know what the Premier is going to do to get both sides back to the table immediately.

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

Hon. Deborah Matthews: Speaker, I want to begin by saying that this is a very troubling strike situation. We are very concerned about it. I sure would love to know the plan they have to get both sides together. I have been meeting with—

Interjections.

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

Hon. Brad Duguid: Be specific.

Mr. Lorne Coe: You’re playing games.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Whitby–Oshawa will come to order. I’ve been standing for a few seconds now. And the Minister of Economic Development and Growth, come to order.

A refresher: When I stand, you stop everything.

Finish, please.

Hon. Deborah Matthews: Both the Premier and I are very strongly encouraging talks to get back in action—

Interjection: You’re doing nothing.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): If we want to play that game, I’ll win. We’re going to warnings.

Carry on.

Hon. Deborah Matthews: We have been very clear that we want to get both sides back to the table. That’s where the solution will be found. In the meantime, I’m meeting with several student groups, including Morganna Sampson from Fanshawe College, and we’re making sure—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Dufferin–Caledon is warned.

Carry on.

Hon. Deborah Matthews: We’re making sure that students have the information they need to get through the strike. This is a very difficult situation. We are hoping it will be resolved soon.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): If I knew, the person would be warned.

Final supplementary? The member from Leeds–Grenville.

Mr. Steve Clark: Thanks, Speaker. Back to the Premier: I have to say, as a former part-time instructor in the college system, I have to give this government’s answer a failing grade to date.

Colleges are trying to reassure students that there’s a plan in place to save the semester. However, OPSEU states that the plan hasn’t been shared with faculty. In fact, they say that there hasn’t been any consultation at all about saving the semester, and that’s certainly not reassuring to anyone involved.

Can the Premier explain why there have been no consultations to save the semester? And if there is a plan, can she share it with us today? These students deserve that peace of mind.

Hon. Deborah Matthews: Every college is working on contingency plans and the ministry is involved in contingency plans for those in apprenticeship programs. I was pleased to see that Morganna was quoted on the meeting that we had. She said it went extremely well, that it was very productive: “Now that we’ve had these meetings,” we’re sure the government is “looking out for us.”

That is a student leader speaking about what this government is doing to support students through this process.

Hospital services

Miss Monique Taylor: My question is for the Premier. On Tuesday, October 3, the Minister of Health told this House, in response to my colleague’s question about severe hospital overcrowding, that the NDP was fearmongering for partisan political reasons. On Thursday, October 5, Hamiltonian Jim Sanford was lying on an ambulance stretcher inside a packed ER crying in pain for more than four hours before the paramedics gave him pain medication. No one from the hospital was available.

Does the Premier still think that shining a light on hospital overcrowding is fearmongering?

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

Hon. Eric Hoskins: I’m certainly happy to look into that specific occurrence.

It is the obligation of all of us in the health care system to provide the highest quality of care. That’s precisely why—in terms of capacity challenges because of a growing population and an aging, more complex population—we’re increasing the number of acute-care beds by 54 in Hamilton alone. There’s an additional set-aside of additional acute in-patient beds, should Hamilton or that entire LHIN require them, as we go into the flu season.

It’s important to recognize that the majority of hospitals in this province do not have capacity challenges, but where they do exist, we are making the necessary investments to ensure that the beds are available.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Miss Monique Taylor: Back to the Premier: Jim’s family describes his time at Juravinski Hospital in Hamilton as chaotic. Jim was a cancer patient. He fell at home and was brought to Juravinski after the hospital closer to his home was too full to accept him. The four hours he spent in the overcrowded ER saw him go from smiling and waving to no longer being able to speak. The ER was so overcrowded that Jim’s stretcher was parked barely inside the ER’s sliding door, which opened every time he moved. His decline in the ER while waiting for medical care was so fast and stark that medical staff told his family he could die, and soon.

Jim’s widow told the media, “An emergency is an emergency. It shouldn’t be waiting forever.” Why doesn’t the Premier agree?

Hon. Eric Hoskins: Mr. Speaker, I’m sorry that this individual had the health care experience that he did at Juravinski Hospital in Hamilton. It is a great regional cancer centre, providing excellent cancer care to Ontarians.

We have a great cancer care system in this province. It’s not perfect—just like we have great hospitals across this province, but they’re not always perfect.

I’m happy to look into this specific occurrence.

That’s why we’re making the investments that we are; we’re making those investments in cancer care so that—on a global level, we have one of the best cancer care systems in the entire world. In terms of outcomes, we have some of the best cancer outcomes, with regard to survival, in the entire world.

It doesn’t mean that—unfortunate incidents such as this may happen. I’m happy to look into this.

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

Miss Monique Taylor: I wish the minister would listen to my question. I’m talking about the ER, not about the care at Juravinski for cancer patients.

When Jim was finally admitted to the ER, it was into a curtained-off

section that his family said was no better than the hallway. “It was so crowded, it just felt stifling,” said Jim’s daughter. After another three hours, Jim’s family became desperate just to get him out of the ER before he died there.

Jim wanted to spend his last few days with his family in his home. Instead he spent hours in an overcrowded ER, in pain, while his family frantically tried to move him somewhere more private.

Jim died four days after this ER visit. His family doesn’t blame the paramedics or the hospital staff. They point the finger directly at province-wide hospital overcrowding that has left hospitals with more patients than beds.

What does the Premier have to say to Jim’s family today?

Hon. Eric Hoskins: Mr. Speaker, of course I’m very sorry and disturbed by the untimely death of this individual, and my heart and sorrow goes out to his family, friends and loved ones.

When it comes to hospital overcrowding, that’s precisely why we made the investment that we did—to keep up with those specific hospitals where they’re seeing an increased volume in their ERs because we have a growing and an aging population.

Just like the member opposite seemed not to support our investment in the former Finch site, the former Humber River Hospital site, to bring more patients out of hospital to open up hospital beds—I’m still not sure if she supports or doesn’t support our investment of $100 million to create 1,200 new acute-care beds in hospitals across this province, including at the Juravinski site.

Hospital services

M me France Gélinas: Ma question est pour la première ministre.

Last week, the Premier and her Minister of Health offered Ontario hospitals a temporary band-aid solution to the ongoing overcrowding and hallway medicine crisis in Ontario. Anything helps, but the Premier still doesn’t seem to understand the magnitude of the problem. The temporary beds she announced are not nearly enough to reverse the damage from years of cuts and freezes under the Premier and her Liberal government.

For example, in North Bay Regional Health Centre, they have been forced to lay off over 400 front-line care workers, and they often will have to warn their community about bed shortages. They call it “bed crisis days.”

The Premier’s plan is to give North Bay eight temporary beds. Does she really think that this is enough to reverse the damage of years of underfunding by this Liberal government?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: I know the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care is going to want to speak to the specifics. Just let me say that there have been years of increases to the health care budget in this province under this government. Every single year, funding has gone up across the system.

The reality is that there are system challenges that need to be addressed. It was interesting. On the weekend, I had the opportunity to spend substantial time with Senator Bernie Sanders from the States. We were touring hospitals in Toronto, and it was a great opportunity to have a conversation about what’s really working here in Ontario, in our universally accessible, publicly funded health care system, and where there are challenges.

One of the things that really is working is that we are able to plan. We are able to look at where the gaps are and find solutions to those problems.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

M me France Gélinas: The Sault Area Hospital used the phrase “code burgundy” to describe times when overcrowding was so bad that the code was announced to start the coordinated effort to find extra beds for patients. In January of this year, the hospital scrapped “code burgundy” altogether, not because the overcrowding crisis had gotten better but because it had become meaningless. They were calling it each and every day.

The Sault Area Hospital had the second-highest occupancy rate of any hospital from 2012 to 2016. They peaked at 121% occupancy.

The Premier has offered the Sault Ste. Marie hospital eight temporary beds to solve this crisis. How can the Premier and the Minister of Health be so out of touch with the challenges faced by the Sault Ste. Marie hospital?

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

Hon. Eric Hoskins: After providing the Sault hospital with an increase of over $6 million this year in their operating budget—by the way, I think it’s the highest in the province—which represents a 4.93% increase to their operating budget this year, we did allocate additional acute in-patient beds, as we did for North Bay, as the member herself has just referenced.

It’s important, when we look at the North East LHIN, that there is set aside an additional, as-yet-unallocated 31 beds that will be allocated by hospitals in concert with the North East LHIN in the coming weeks ahead, so we can specifically target those beds where they’re needed most, and we can also prudently allocate them in response to what we anticipate will be a severe flu season.

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

M me France Gélinas: Health Sciences North, in my hometown of Sudbury, has been offered 16 temporary beds to address the overcrowding and hallway medicine crisis. Every single day, Health Sciences North is forced to house 30 to 35 sick patients in hallways, TV rooms and anywhere else they can find. The 16 temporary beds offered don’t even address the shortage faced by Health Sciences North right now, never mind when flu season hits.

How does the Premier expect these 16 beds to solve the ongoing overcrowding crisis that she has helped create in our hospitals?

Hon. Eric Hoskins: We are allocating additional acute in-patient beds across this province, 1,200 of them. In addition to that, we’re creating approximately 600 transitional spaces to provide specialized care for people who no longer need to be in hospital, and 200 in affordable housing specifically for seniors.

But what we won’t do, Mr. Speaker—I can only imagine if we took the advice of the NDP when they were in power and they closed 24% of all the acute beds across this province, 13% of the mental health beds across this province, for a total of 9,600 bed closures during a short period of time when they were in power. If we were to take their approach—let alone their minister of cuts, who would have taken, additionally, $500 million out of health care and education—I can’t imagine where we’d be.

Power plants

Ms. Lisa MacLeod: Good morning, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Premier. This weekend, the headline read, “A Tale of Duplicity or Ineptitude.” No, Mr. Speaker, this was not the title of a new book recapping the last 14 years of Liberal government; it wasn’t even a news story about Bill Morneau. It was a National Post headline regarding the latest testimony in the gas plants trial. The

article stated that 21 minutes after Laura Miller responded, “I have no records” to a freedom-of-information request about the gas plants, it is alleged that “Laura Miller’s ‘life partner,’ Peter Faist, tried to wipe clean her desktop computer.”

That is 21 minutes. Is this the new gold standard for what constitutes open and transparent government with this Liberal Party?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Attorney General.

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: I think the member opposite very well knows, and I think she’s been—all members know the rules quite well, that when issues are before the courts, we don’t discuss those issues in that manner. I’m glad that she’s reading her National Post on Saturday mornings and can read those headlines back to us, but I think she very well knows that there is a live case that is going on as we speak, and we should respect that process. The Legislature is not the place to discuss the evidence that is before the courts.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Lisa MacLeod: What’s troubling for people on this side of the House and the people of Ontario is that it was very clear that those who testified before the justice committee in the last Parliament didn’t necessarily have respect for this assembly, and whether it’s hockey bags full of money or deleted emails, Pete’s Project is back on the stand today in a courtroom down the street.

We learned that, “At one point during the process of clearing the hard drives, Faist emailed Miller to say ‘things aren’t going well ... may have to wipe them.’ She replied, ‘Uh-oh.’”

So, Mr. Speaker, “uh-oh.” With the history and track record of this government, how can we be sure there aren’t any more “uh-ohs” happening right now in that government?

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: I’m not surprised that a party without any substantive plan is the one who is going to ask questions like these and try to just read some bits and pieces from a newspaper

article and not respect our legal process.

On this side of the House, we have the utmost respect for our court processes, we have the utmost respect for our judiciary and we have the utmost respect for the rules. That is why our government has been focused on making sure we introduce more accountability and transparency, by making sure that we have a directive sent to all political staff that we have mandatory training programs.

We have appointed chiefs of staff who are accountable for record-keeping, and we have improved archiving requirements, not to mention that we have passed the accountability act, which prohibits the wilful deletion of records and creates a penalty for doing so. That’s the record of this government, and we’re proud of that.

Road safety

Ms. Cheri DiNovo: My question is to the Premier. According to statistics published by the Ministry of Transportation, the number of deaths caused by distracted walking did not increase at all between 1993 and 2012. This means there’s little or no evidence that the advent of cellphones has led to an increase in deaths due to distracted walking. However, these MTO statistics show that deaths due to distracted driving nearly tripled during the same time. The OPP says that distracted driving now causes more deaths than impaired driving or speeding. So why is the government contemplating a bill that treats distracted walking as the problem and not distracted driving?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Transportation.

Hon. Steven Del Duca: I think the member from Parkdale–High Park knows that this is a private member’s bill that she’s alluding to that I anticipate will be brought forward at some point in the Legislature.

On the larger topic that was embedded in her question: I think she knows that on this side of the House our Premier and our government have moved forward aggressively in targeting distracted driving, impaired driving and a whole host of other initiatives that we’ve undertaken through two pieces of legislation, Bill 31 and Bill 65, that have passed here over the last couple of years.

Just a few weeks ago, the Premier and I announced that we’re going forward with additional proposals to toughen some of these sanctions, Speaker. For the last 16 consecutive years, the province of Ontario has ranked first or second across North America for road safety. But we know that our work is not done. That’s why the ministry is focused exclusively on making sure that we have the toughest penalties for those behaviours that are not acceptable, and we’re going to keep working hard to make sure that we get it right.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Cheri DiNovo: I’m sure that the Minister of Transportation was very well aware of this private member’s bill coming forward and, in fact, vetted it.

My question is back to the Premier: Last week, the group Friends and Families for Safe Streets organized a vigil at Toronto city hall to remember the 54 people who have died this year alone from traffic violence. There was also a ghost bike ride for David Delos Santos, who was killed by a truck driver after dropping off his daughter at school. He did nothing wrong.

Drivers who commit offences that seriously injure or kill vulnerable road users face no meaningful consequences. They can simply mail in a cheque. Instead of bills that blame victims, will the government pass my Bill 158, the Protecting Vulnerable Road Users Act, and take real action to protect pedestrians, cyclists, seniors and children who share our streets?

Hon. Steven Del Duca: I’m going to do my best to give the member from Parkdale–High Park the benefit of the doubt, Speaker. I know that she is an advocate for making sure that we work collectively and collaboratively to protect our most vulnerable road users.

But that member also knows that just a few days ago we announced as a government that we would be moving forward with a number of legislative proposals that will be introduced later this year that would also include in them, if passed, the toughest penalty in the Highway Traffic Act: careless driving causing bodily harm or death on the road, which would contain up to a $50,000 fine, if convicted, and also no more than two years in jail. Again, it’s the toughest penalty in the Highway Traffic Act, if passed.

In addition, we continue to have crackdowns on distracted driving and impaired driving, both alcohol and drug impaired driving, Speaker. We continue to drive home the message that we have to protect our most vulnerable road users. That’s why we passed Bill 65 with respect to safety in school zones and community safety zones, and it’s why we’re working closely with the OPP and others—

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

New question.

Rouge National Urban Park

Mr. Joe Dickson: My question is to the Minister of Economic Development and Growth. We know the minister has been a tireless advocate for the establishment of Rouge National Urban Park for nearly 30 years. He’s planted trees there endlessly alongside some of our other caucus members and many supporters of the park.

Protecting green spaces in one of Canada’s most populated and culturally diverse metropolitan areas, the greater Toronto area, is no easy task, but it’s one of great importance to our government. We have been leaders in establishing and expanding protected areas: part of the greenbelt, the Oak Ridges moraine and the Niagara Escarpment, to name a few.

Mr. Speaker, we continue to work together with municipalities to ensure that our cities and towns grow sustainably. Everyone can enjoy the natural beauty of our province to hike, bike, swim, paddle and even camp.

Minister, a week ago you were at Bob Hunter Memorial Park to make an important announcement. Could you please provide us with more information about this great news?

Hon. Brad Duguid: Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member and all the members of the Legislature who attended that really emotional event that we had about a week or so ago. Public representatives from all three levels of government, indigenous leaders and staff from Parks Canada were there, as well as advocates, community groups and environmental groups that have worked on this matter for almost 30 years.

Indeed, this is rather personal to me because I was a staffer here 30 years ago when I began working on this issue. So I want to thank the Premier and my colleague the Minister of Infrastructure for allowing me to carry this file over the finish line.

It really was an honour for me to be there a week ago Saturday to make this announcement that, indeed, we are transferring 1,600 acres of environmentally sensitive lands to Parks Canada, so that future generations will enjoy this natural oasis in the middle of our city.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Joe Dickson: Thank you, Minister, for that information and, once again, for being such a strong champion of this park and ensuring the condition for ecological integrity was met. I know it’s a tough fight, but it was worth it to see that the incredibly diverse natural area receives the strongest protection.

It is my understanding that the park is now close to 80 square kilometres, which is 23 times bigger than Central Park in New York and 50 times bigger than High Park in Toronto. The park now links Lake Ontario to the Oak Ridges moraine, and it is Canada’s first-ever national urban park.

The Canadian and Ontario governments, indigenous peoples, environmental groups and farmers all worked together to make the most of a rare opportunity to protect precious green space to the edge of the country’s biggest city for generations to come.

There are so many exciting things for us to explore and to do in the Rouge. What is the best way for individuals and families to enjoy the park and learn about its many treasures?

Hon. Brad Duguid: To the Minister of Education.

Hon. Mitzie Hunter: I’m very pleased to rise in the House and to talk about the Rouge National Urban Park. I want to say thank you to the member from Oak Ridges–Markham, as well as the member from Scarborough Centre, who was there as this park was being transferred to the federal government in terms of the final details.

Elder Sault, who was there, said that Rouge Park has retained its splendour, and indeed it has.

Students at the University of Toronto Scarborough campus have developed the Rouge app—la Rouge. This app was developed by entrepreneurs who are part of a program called The Hub, which is an incubator that’s developing innovative programs. They have developed a remarkable system to navigate the park and to explore its splendour.

I would encourage all members of the House to download this app and to visit the Rouge National Urban Park.

Thank you so much to the member for Scarborough Centre—

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Thank you. I’d like to remind the Minister of Education: When I stand, you sit.

Mr. Sam Oosterhoff: He stands; you sit.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I don’t need a parrot.

New question.

Environmental protection

Mr. Steve Clark: My question is to the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change. My constituents find it outrageous that environmental approvals from two decades ago could be used to open a mega-dump on the ED-19 site. Much has changed in 20 years, including legislation actually protecting the environment.

Minister, you recently received three expert reports from the Canadian Environmental Law Association documenting changes to site conditions. The township of Edwardsburgh/Cardinal has declared itself an unwilling host.

The minister’s predecessor committed in writing that “a change in circumstances or new information that wasn’t presented at the time of approval” would allow for reconsideration.

The minister now has both. Will he commit to revoking those stale-dated approvals or sending this matter to the Environmental Review Tribunal?

Hon. Chris Ballard: Speaker, our ministry’s priority is to divert as much waste from landfill as we possibly can. I can say that, through our waste diversion efforts, we’re keeping about three million tonnes of waste out of landfills every year.

But we recognize that solutions need to be put in place for waste that can’t be diverted. I can say that currently this group is required to undertake consultation and studies in order to determine if the project can be done in a way that is protective of both the environment and of human health.

The proposal will be subjected to a number of ongoing assessments and review, and the organization will need to continue to consult with the public and with all stakeholders.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary.

Mr. Steve Clark: Back to the minister: A dump has never opened in Ontario with such outdated approvals. It’s unprecedented and hardly the legacy this minister or this Premier would want.

Remember, they were granted for a municipally operated landfill for waste from Leeds and Grenville, not a private mega-dump for garbage from across Ontario. The minister has also heard from the Mohawk Council of Akwesasne, who were never consulted. Grand Chief Benedict wrote to remind the minister of his constitutional duty, upheld by the courts, to consult First Nations on such matters.

Speaker, there are many compelling and, frankly, constitutional reasons for this minister to get off the sidelines. Will he use his authority to scrap those historic approvals and guarantee no landfill activity at ED-19 without a full environmental assessment?

Hon. Chris Ballard: Speaker, I go back to the fact that there is a need across Ontario for places to put landfills, places to locate dumps, for those things that can’t be diverted away and reused. Just a while ago, my predecessor introduced a bill around the circular economy because it’s built on the adage that one person’s garbage is another person’s treasure. That’s key to moving forward.

The circular economy will make sure that as little material as possible ends up as waste in landfills. We are committed to building a greener Ontario. That’s why we have the Waste-Free Ontario Act. Through this act, we’ll be saving municipal—

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

New question?

Hydro rates

Mr. Peter Tabuns: My question is to the Premier. Last week’s release of the Premier’s long-delayed long-term energy plan confirmed what the NDP has been saying since March: The Premier is forcing ratepayers to take out a massive payday loan to artificially and temporarily lower bills before the election. After the election, the bills of Ontario families will rise even higher and faster because they have to pay back an extra $40 billion in interest and principal. But even I was surprised by the sharp rise in hydro rates for industrial consumers, which the Premier had excluded from her $40-billion borrowing scheme.

Will the Premier explain why, under her plan, northern industrial hydro rates will rise almost 40% between 2019 and 2025?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Energy.

Hon. Glenn Thibeault: It is important for us to continue to talk about the long-term energy plan, the fair hydro plan and, of course, large industrial consumers. We recognize the importance of electricity prices for businesses, and this is reflected in many government programs that help businesses make electricity more affordable, such as the ICI program, Save on Energy for business, the industrial electricity incentive, the Northern Industrial Electricity Rate Program and the Industrial Accelerator Program, just to name a few.

As well, Mr. Speaker, in the long-term energy plan, the 2017 long-term energy price plan outlook for industrial consumers reflects an average increase in line with inflation—in line with inflation going through right until the end of this long-term energy plan. This plan is working for our large industrials, and we’ll continue to offer these programs to help to lower their rates even more.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Peter Tabuns: Again to the Premier: Under the Premier’s hydro plan, rates for manufacturers, automakers, steel mills and other large power consumers will rise by 30% in just six years. Northern industrial customers will be hit even harder; their rates will rise almost 40%. Instead of getting private profits off hydro bills and bringing Hydro One back under public ownership, the Premier is putting even higher burdens on Ontario’s manufacturing sector and northern industries.

Will the Premier tell us how many industrial jobs will be lost because of her privatization plan for our hydro system?

Hon. Glenn Thibeault: We’re continuing to see job growth in our industry thanks to the leadership of the Minister of Economic Development and Growth and the Premier. Also, we have just said the long-term energy plan price outlook for our large industry reflects an average increase in line with inflation. It’s also important to say that the electricity price for industrial electricity consumers in Ontario is lower than the average price in the Great Lakes region, as reported by the US Energy Information Administration. Rates in Ontario remain competitive—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Prince Edward–Hastings is warned. The Minister of Indigenous Relations and Reconciliation is warned. Any other smart-aleck remarks?

Finish, please.

Hon. Glenn Thibeault: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Let’s be clear: Rates in Ontario remain competitive with other Canadian and American jurisdictions, with prices in northern Ontario in particular among the five most affordable jurisdictions on the continent. That’s thanks to the Northern Industrial Electricity Rate Program, something that we continue to work with all of our northern industries on.

We’re working for all consumers, large and small, in this province.

Sexual violence and harassment

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): To who?

Mrs. Cristina Martins: Sorry, to the Minister of the Status of Women.

These two simple words have sparked more than 1.7 million tweets in 85 different countries. The sheer volume of these stories exposes just how widespread sexual harassment and sexual assault are in our society.

We know that if we do not talk about important issues like sexual violence and harassment, we will allow them to go unnoticed. We give way to silence and the status quo. We know there is a very real stigma around reporting sexual violence and harassment which prevents some survivors from coming forward.

This campaign has opened a critical conversation. Can the Minister of the Status of Women share with us what she is doing to help keep this important conversation going?

Hon. Indira Naidoo-Harris: I’d like to thank the member from Davenport for this very important question. As the Minister of the Status of Women, it’s my goal to do everything I can to ensure that women feel safe in this province. But the disturbing accounts of sexual harassment and assault sparked by hashtags like #MeToo tell a different story.

The reality is that women in our province and country, and around the world, are being harassed and assaulted every day. These two simple words have become a rallying call to stand up to gender violence. My colleague is right: We must change attitudes on this troubling issue.

I want the women of Ontario to know we are listening. We moved forward with the groundbreaking It’s Never Okay: An Action Plan to Stop Sexual Violence and Harassment to shed light on this serious issue, and our multimedia award-winning public education campaigns have sparked discussions.

More work needs to be done, and this government has a plan. I’ll explain more in the supplementary.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mrs. Cristina Martins: I would like to thank the minister for her answer. Hashtags like #MeToo have shone a light on how prevalent sexual violence and harassment are in our homes, workplaces and communities. While #MeToo was about opening the conversation, the hashtag #WhatNow is a call to action.

We know that racialized and indigenous women are even less likely to report instances of violence. Women are showing enormous courage and strength by speaking out, and we need to make sure they know we are listening.

Speaker, can the minister please tell us what the government is doing to fight sexual violence and harassment in Ontario?

Hon. Indira Naidoo-Harris: We know that campaigns like #MeToo are exposing serious problems in our society. There’s no question that gender-based violence is far too widespread and has a devastating impact on survivors and their families.

That’s why we’re working hard right now on the Gender-Based Violence Strategy that addresses sexual harassment and violence. Our overall Gender-Based Violence Strategy will connect work from the sexual violence and harassment action plan, the ending violence against indigenous women human trafficking initiatives and update the Domestic Violence Action Plan.

The strategy aims to stop domestic violence, improve supports to survivors and strengthen the justice system’s response.

My ministry, along with the Ministry of Community and Social Services, held engagement sessions with the help of trauma counsellors to hear directly from those with experience of gender-based violence. We listened to survivors and experts, and used their voices to inform the strategy and are releasing it. Our next steps toward ending gender-based violence will be included in our plan.

Government advertising

Ms. Sylvia Jones: My question is to the Minister of Infrastructure. In the Auditor General’s 2016 report, the auditor raised serious concerns about the government spending taxpayer dollars on partisan ads. In the report, the auditor said the government’s infrastructure ads were “self-congratulatory and aimed at ensuring that the government gets credit for its potential future spending....”

Your latest online infrastructure ads brag about projects in Toronto and Brampton. They are exactly what the auditor said should not be happening.

I know the Minister of Energy has chosen to ignore the auditor, but will the Minister of Infrastructure listen to this independent officer of the assembly and stop spending taxpayer dollars on partisan ads?

Hon. Bob Chiarelli: Mr. Speaker, I’m going to direct the supplementary to the President of the Treasury Board.

We’re making the largest infrastructure investment in Ontario’s history: an unprecedented $190 billion over 13 years. This investment is having positive, life-changing impacts across the province.

Whether it’s a new school or a new hospital, people in Ontario have a right to know about the work we are doing to build better communities, and so we’ve started a highly localized public awareness campaign to shed light on how our historic investment will affect people in their everyday lives. Showcasing impactful projects is a measure of transparency that helps pull back the curtain on the specific details of our government’s plan.

As always, we are in full and complete compliance with the government’s advertising act, one of the most stringent in the entire country.

Mr. Speaker, the people in Ottawa should know that we’re making a $200-million extension to the Ottawa heart institute. That’s important to them.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Sylvia Jones: Did you even listen to the question?

Ever since the government watered down the auditor’s oversight of government advertising—

Interjections.

Mr. Steve Clark: Uh-oh.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): That’s not helpful. It might have cost you.

Please.

Ms. Sylvia Jones: Ever since the government watered down the auditor’s oversight of government advertising, the Liberals have been spending millions on partisan ads. Instead of raising awareness about the fentanyl crisis or signs of human trafficking or child abuse, the government chooses to brag. The government isn’t using these ads to help Ontarians; they’re spending taxpayer dollars to promote the Liberal Party.

Will the minister tell Ontarians how much of their money his ministry is wasting on these partisan ads?

Hon. Bob Chiarelli: President of the Treasury Board.

Hon. Liz Sandals: Speaker, I do need to point out that Ontario remains the only jurisdiction in Canada that has legislation banning partisan advertising. We passed this—

Ms. Lisa MacLeod: So funny. What a joke.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Nepean–Carleton is warned.

Finish, please.

Hon. Liz Sandals: Thank you. We passed this historic legislation because we are against government using taxpayer dollars for partisan advertising. That was our position in 2004, and that is our position now.

As part of the 2015 budget, we modernized the Government Advertising Act to give the Auditor General oversight of additional areas of advertising, including digital advertising, transit advertising and movie theatre ads—something that the AG herself actually asked for. The legislation was also amended to provide a clear definition of partisan advertising—

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

New question.

Employment standards

Ms. Cindy Forster: My question is to the Premier. Liberals have had 14 years to make changes to improve the lives of workers in this province, and yet now, in the final days of this government, it’s clear what this Liberal government is willing to do does not go far enough.

New Democrats tabled amendments at second reading that ensured that every worker in this province would have the right to join a union in a straightforward process, not just a few preferred sectors. The Liberals voted against that.

New Democrats tabled amendments to give every Ontarian the right to take three weeks’ vacation after one year, not after an unrealistic five years with the same employer. The Liberals voted against that.

The New Democrats’ amendments would have provided for five paid leave days for every worker in this province and 10 days for victims of domestic violence. The Liberals voted against that.

Why is that?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Labour.

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Speaker, the public exercise that accompanies Bill 148 has been very, very thorough. We had the Changing Workplaces Review. It took about two years. We had two excellent advisers travel the province and talk to business, talk to workers, talk to organized labour, talk to a number of groups that have to do with changing workplaces—with the way that workplaces have changed over the years.

As a result of that, we took that out after first reading, because we knew we needed to get as much input as we possibly could on this issue. We took the advice we received from labour, from business, from those people who advocate for workers, and we changed it. We brought in amendments. Those amendments were voted for at the committee level.

It’s been through debate in the House again. It has been sent back to the committee. I’m pleased to report today that it’s going to the committee today, and the public will have another chance to tell us what their concerns are, what they liked with the bill and what changes we should make. This has been a very extensive process.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Cindy Forster: I think the public has told us: Card-check was the number one priority for everyone.

New Democrats committed to a $15 minimum wage two years ago. We tabled an amendment that would have actually seen servers in restaurants make the same money as security and other workers in this province by making the same minimum wage, not a two-tiered minimum wage. The Liberal government voted against this. How is that fair?

Will this government, during this committee process, commit to the same minimum wage for liquor servers in restaurants and for young people?

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: About 30% of the people in the province of Ontario make less than $15 an hour. About half of those are between the ages of 25 and 64. Those are the years when you’re trying to raise a family. It’s where you’re buying clothes for the kids, and it’s where you’re trying to pay your rent. It’s those important years when you’re trying to raise a family. What we’ve done as a result of this is that we’ve brought in a suggestion that the minimum wage should go to $15 as of January 1, 2019.

As I remember, two years ago, we couldn’t get the NDP to talk about the minimum wage, Speaker; I think a little history lesson is involved here. Two paid sick days, three weeks of vacation after five years of employment with the same employer, equal pay for work of equal value—if you’re doing the same work as someone you’re standing next to, you should get paid the same—

Ms. Catherine Fife: How about the college workers? How about the faculty?

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Kitchener–Waterloo is warned.

You have one sentence.

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: This is the largest advance in Ontario’s history. Thank you, Speaker.

Employment standards

M me Nathalie Des Rosiers: Ma question est également pour le ministre du Travail. Minister, in my riding of Ottawa–Vanier, people talk a lot about Bill 148, and I also have questions about it. I think we know that constituents are quite interested in the increase to a $15 minimum wage, increasing notice for employees in scheduling, equal pay for equal work, paid sick days for everyone and changes to the unionization process.

The Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs travelled through Ontario throughout the summer, but this was unusual, because usually committee work happens after second reading. Can the minister tell us again why the bill was referred to committee after first reading, and how that decision impacted our plan to make workplaces fairer?

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Thank you to the member from Ottawa–Vanier for this excellent question and also for the advocacy she has brought to this bill.

When we brought in the act, as I was saying in the previous answer, we knew it was going to affect a lot of people in the province of Ontario. We needed to get that input. We needed to get it from business, from labour and from poverty advocates. That’s why we sent it out to the committee at the first chance we had. At first reading, it went out.

That committee travelled to 10 cities across this province. They heard almost 200 presentations. They received approximately 1,000 written submissions from families, workers, employers, labour unions and health professionals. What we did is we took that information, and we proposed amendments to reflect what the committee members had heard. They addressed some of the concerns of small business, they addresseed some of the concerns of workers, but they maintained the protections that were in the act.

Speaker, we know bold steps are needed to support Ontario’s workers and their families, and that is exactly what Bill 148 is doing.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

M me Nathalie Des Rosiers: Merci, monsieur le Ministre. This process has been very exciting, I think, for Ontario, to see how workplaces will become fairer if the bill passes.

One issue in particular that interests me is the need to expand job-protected leave for victims of domestic and sexual violence. We know that it’s important for victims to have the time and the support they need to actually deal with tremendously difficult circumstances. I believe it’s really the right decision to amend Bill 148 to establish a new separate leave for victims of domestic and sexual violence.

Now that second reading debate is complete, I look forward to hearing more about what we can do to further strengthen Bill 148. Can the minister please inform the House what we can expect to see in the coming weeks?

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Thank you again to the member from Ottawa–Vanier. I had hoped to have the support of the whole House, but despite the opposition voting against our plan to make workplaces in Ontario fairer, I’m proud that Bill 148 passed second reading. It has been referred back to the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs.

Today, actually, marks, as I said, the beginning of the second round of public hearings, where the committee will hear from over 50 groups, unions and businesses in the province, groups that really represent all walks of Ontario life. There’s also the opportunity now for the public to send in some written submissions to the committee to make sure they’re heard.

In the first go-around, the input we received from Ontarians was really valuable and really helped to formulate some of the amendments. It helped inform our decisions. I look forward to doing exactly the same, Speaker, with the input we receive. We’re not going to back down from this. We’re going to make it better and we’re going to make Ontario’s workplaces fairer.

Energy policies

Mr. Bill Walker: My question is to the Minister of Energy. You’ve recently re-announced a commitment to refurbish our nuclear fleet, and this is good news. We remain committed to this clean baseload and effective form of energy. What we don’t understand is why you continue to sign exorbitant green energy contracts. The reality is, your government could have cancelled a number of contracts without penalty, which would have provided relief from the 300%-plus rate increases which your government is solely responsible for.

The total cost of your green energy experiment is going to cost $133 billion. If you had put the people of Ontario first instead of your own partisan political needs and cancelled these contracts, it would have saved millions of dollars.

Through you, Speaker: Will the minister answer to the people of Ontario why you didn’t cancel those contracts when you had the chance and why you continue to sign more, having had surplus power currently in our province?

Hon. Glenn Thibeault: I know the opposition doesn’t have a plan at all for the energy sector, let alone anything to do with clean and reliable power for the province of Ontario. I know the opposition leader said that he would actually tear up renewable contracts. Do you know what that would do? That would expose us to $20 billion in lawsuits and costs, and it signals to business that Ontario can’t be trusted.

Let’s look at what we’ve done with renewable power in this province. We now benefit from over 90% emissions-free electricity. We are the envy of North America when it comes to the grid that we have. Clean energy initiatives have generated over 42,000 jobs at more than 30 solar and wind manufacturers across the province. We also talked about looking at the LRP II and suspending that contract because we are in a robust supply. But if you would look at the long-term energy plan, you would see that a few years down the road we’re not going to be in that robust supply and nuclear—the refurb will continue to provide a lot of that green power for us.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Bill Walker: Back to the Minister of Energy: This minister is clearly out of touch. If his government had committed $133 billion to the refurbishment projects instead of playing politics, these projects would have been in progress, ensuring clean baseload and cost-effective power, while ensuring 60,000 well-paying direct and indirect jobs across our province.

The completion of these projects would have actually resulted in lower energy costs as opposed to the huge increases of 300% that have resulted during your 14 years. These rate increases are forcing closures of schools, cuts to hospitals and long-term-care homes, and the hikes are leaving businesses and households in the dark and forcing hundreds of companies and jobs out of Ontario.

Speaker, through you: Will the minister be straight with the people of Ontario? Will you admit your sale of Hydro One and the debt incurred by your recent unfair hydro act will result in higher rates in the future?

Hon. Glenn Thibeault: Let’s be clear: The investments that are happening from this side of the House are endless. I never have enough time to talk about the billions of dollars that we’re putting into transit, into roads and infrastructure. We continue to build more and more on this side of the House because we’re building Ontario up.

When it comes to our renewable industry, it is a success story. As I said before, we’re home to 30 solar and wind manufacturers, including Heliene in Sault Ste. Marie, CS Wind in Windsor and Silfab Solar in Mississauga. Ontario trains wind power technicians and other experts in the renewable sector at Fanshawe College, at St. Lawrence College and at St. Clair College. We also have an industry based in innovation, which we’re exporting to other countries and jurisdictions looking to follow our lead on green energy policy. Loraxian in Oakville: renewable energy strategy and knowledge to global markets; SolarWall—Mr. Speaker, it’s just endless.

Visitors

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry on a point of order.

Hon. Kathryn McGarry: I wanted to introduce, in the east members’ gallery, two residents of Cambridge: Rich Rees and Lynn LaPlante. Thank you for joining us today.

Hon. Michael Coteau: It’s my pleasure to welcome members of staff from Anishinaabe Abinoojii Family Services who are joining us here in the Legislature. Welcome to the Legislature.

Notice of dissatisfaction

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Now that question period is over, pursuant to standing order 38(a), the member from Leeds–Grenville has given notice of his dissatisfaction with the answer to his question given by the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change concerning the ED-19 landfill site—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): It’s never too late to get a warning.

This matter will be debated tomorrow at 6 p.m.

There are no deferred votes. This House stands recessed until 1 p.m. this afternoon.

The House recessed from 1141 to 1300.

Members’ Statements

Dave Thomson

Mr. Bill Walker: Last month, I had the honour of joining the Peninsula Family Health Team at the Friendship Club in Lion’s Head to celebrate Dr. Dave Thomson’s 25 years of medical practice on the peninsula.

Following a decorated career in the Canadian Navy, Dr. Thomson turned his attention to medicine. He obtained his family medicine specialization in June 1992. Dr. Thomson always likes to tell the story that he received a call from Dr. George Harpur in Tobermory in the early summer of 1992, asking him if he was free to lend a hand on the peninsula. Dr. Thomson said sure, he could try to help out for a little while, and, 25 years later, he is still there.

Dr. Thomson opened his medical practice on the peninsula in September 1992. During his medical career, he has been active in many leadership and community roles in support of the provision of exemplary health care for our residents in our community. Now in his 25th year of medical practice, Dr. Thomson is as busy as ever. He continues to have weekly patient clinic days in both the Lion’s Head and Tobermory sites of the Peninsula Family Health Team.

He serves as the medical director for the long-term-care facility in Lion’s Head, provides hospital and emergency coverage at our local rural hospital in Lion’s Head, provides palliative care home visits, assists monthly with medical surgeries at our regional hospital in Owen Sound, is a regular preceptor for medical students and residents from four medical school programs in Ontario, and provides physician support to the Tobermory Hyperbaric Facility.

Dr. Thomson is the embodiment of a true rural family physician. His practice encompasses entire families in our community, from the youngest grandchild to their great-great-grandfather and everyone in between. Dr. Thomson has made the beautiful Bruce Peninsula his home for over 30 years, where he spends his free time with his wife, Jane, daughters Megan and Emma, and his beloved dog, Seamus.

I invite the members to join me in congratulating Dr. Dave Thomson on his 25th anniversary of providing medical care on the Bruce Peninsula.

Knights of Columbus

Mr. Percy Hatfield: I want to start out today with a big shout-out to the Knights of Columbus in Windsor and Essex county. Twenty years ago, they adopted our local hospice and they’ve been raising money for the hospice every year since then. It started with a friend of ours, Mike Agius. We used to be involved in the Forest Glade fastball league together. Mike’s friend, Bill Fontaine, came down with cancer and his final days were spent at the hospice.

Mike decided to do something to help others going through the same thing. He convinced all of the local councils to get involved, and since then they’ve raised more than $300,000 for the hospice. They collected another $8,500 or so on the weekend. Gale and I were honoured to spend an evening with these community boosters. The bishop of London, Ronald Fabbro, was there as well.

One of the speakers was Andrew Despins. He said that the hospice isn’t a place where people come to die—it’s much more than that. It’s a place where people come to live their final days with the respect and dignity they so much deserve.

Speaker, changing gears, as my time is running out: You can’t settle a contract dispute unless you’re at the table. I’m asking the government to direct the two sides involved with our community colleges to get back to the bargaining table, tell them to sit down and settle this dispute. Don’t suggest it; direct them to bargain, and do it this week. The students deserve nothing less.

STEM girls

Ms. Daiene Vernile: October 11 is International Day of the Girl. On that day, I hosted a STEM girls event at Google headquarters in Kitchener and it was a huge success: 80 girls from Waterloo region schools from grades 5 to 8 attended the event to promote science, technology, engineering and math.

There are many challenging, well-paying jobs in the STEM field but a smaller proportion of women in the sector. This contributes to a gender wage gap. We know that girls and boys perform equally well in math and science until middle school. For a variety of reasons tied to how the sexes are socialized, we often see girls dropping out of these subjects by high school. Speaker, they need to be encouraged to continue with math and science. Showing them what a STEM career looks like and role models who are successful in this field is one way to do that.

I invited six speakers, all dynamic women in various STEM careers. One produces apps at Google. Another one has a wind turbine tech company. Another is a theoretical physicist. We even had a student there. What followed was a TED Talks-style format. The women shared why they chose a STEM career, what they do in their jobs and what’s challenging and rewarding in their sector.

The positive feedback that we received from most students and teachers was overwhelming. Speaker, it was so encouraging to see girls inspired by the work of these impressive women, reminding them that girls can succeed in STEM. We’ll do it again next year.

Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir

Mr. Monte McNaughton: It gives me great pleasure to inform the House that on Saturday, October 28, the famous Canadian ice dance pair, Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir—the pride of Ilderton, Ontario—set a new world record score, decisively winning the Skate Canada International event held in Regina, Saskatchewan.

I would briefly like to remind this House of the remarkable record of these artist-athletes. Moir and Virtue are Olympic champions. They are three-time world champions. They’re seven-time Canadian champions. And they’re the youngest pair ever to win the ice dance competition at the Olympics.

This pair has now skated together for 20 years. Both Moir and Virtue received their earliest training at the Ilderton Skating Club, which continues to be a pillar of the community, thanks in large measure to the dedication of the entire Moir family.

I congratulate Scott and Tessa on this most recent win, and I look forward to watching the 2018 Olympic ice dance competition, which will be taking place in South Korea. I know we will all be treated to another stunning performance from our great Canadian skaters.

Hospital services

M me France Gélinas: Our hospitals are at a tipping point. Some of them are so overcrowded that it is starting to impact quality of care. I’ll give you the example of Mr. Gratton from my riding.

On May 13, Mr. Gratton fell ill and went to the emergency room. It was determined that he needed a pacemaker and had advanced prostate cancer. As his health continued to deteriorate while he was in hospital, it became clear he needed long-term care.

At any other time, he would have been assessed in the hospital and given options to wait his turn for long-term care—but not anymore. In order to apply for long-term care, he had to leave the hospital.

It was impossible to care for him at home. He needed 24-hour care, oxygen, a catheter. He needed help with transferring, with feeding.

He was transferred to a retirement home with home care. Once at the retirement home, he started to fall out of bed. A few days later, the PSW assigned to his care did not show up. He spent the day unfed, in soiled clothes, without his medication. He was deemed in crisis and was allowed to apply for a long-term-care home.

Not surprisingly, he fell ill again. He was sent to emergency. He had pneumonia, a bladder infection, blood poisoning. His long-term-care bed opened up, but he was too sick to go to long-term care.

Mr. Gratton died in hospital last night.

His family felt that the overcrowding in our hospital meant that they were too focused on getting him out the door, on clearing a bed.

How many other families are treated the same way?

Wilson Building for Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences

Mr. Ted McMeekin: I rise to celebrate my alma mater, McMaster University, as they open the new humanities building, the Red Wilson building, a 150,000-square-foot facility.

There are two interesting stories behind this. One, of course, is the love and attention and care that Mr. Wilson exemplifies for his alma mater, for which he has added a $10-million donation, and the other is the support of the students. The year that the decision was made to fund this facility was one when the government, to be frank, had decided not to support any social science or humanities infrastructure—going to engineering and science. But the students at the university wrote over 400 passionate letters to me reflecting on why, after a 30-year struggle and wait, this facility was so essential.

So for students out there who think from time to time, as I did from time to time when I was a student, that you don’t have a lot of influence, you really do have.

The students took charge. They really own this building, and I will be there this afternoon to celebrate its opening.

Highway improvement

Mr. Rick Nicholls: Two weeks ago, there were two accidents in Carnage Alley. In the space of only two days, two tractor trailers flew off the road. Before this, there were five crashes in six days leading up to the Thanksgiving weekend. As my constituents tell me, it’s sheer luck that no one has been seriously injured in the latest accidents in Carnage Alley.

The Premier has had enough time to decide whether her government will take any action to make Carnage Alley safer, but I’m not convinced that this government is taking the danger of Carnage Alley seriously.

First, the Premier made a promise in this House to build a barrier. Everyone understood that to mean the cement barrier in my riding that my constituents were demanding. By the way, Speaker, I have over 4,000 signatures ranging from Windsor to Ottawa demanding that a cement barrier be built.

Then the Premier began walking that promise back, and the transport minister said he was looking into high-tension cables. Cables may be effective against a car, but a large truck would just plow right through them.

Winter is coming, and that stretch is extremely hazardous. Transports will inevitably cross over the grass median and end up in the ditch in the opposite direction. Construction is currently taking place there, on that very stretch from Tilbury to Chatham, so take the time and build the cement barrier.

I want my colleagues here to understand that my constituents and I will not let this matter go. Again, I say, we must build a cement barrier now.

Al Charron

Mr. John Fraser: Ottawa South has produced many great athletes. One of the most notable is rugby legend Al Charron. Just this past week, he was named to the World Rugby Hall of Fame.

He has been described as the greatest forward our country has ever produced. He represented Canada four times at the world cup. He played with the Barbarians all-star squad five times. He played professionally in England and France. He played for Hillcrest High School and the Ottawa Irish.

He has never forgotten his local roots. He still calls Ottawa South home, and he continues to be a great supporter of local athletes.

Al is humble; he’s a gentleman. He credits his successes as team successes. I know that the member from Nepean–Carleton would tell you he was a big part of the Rowan’s Law team here in this Legislature. He continues to be a tremendous champion for the sport he loves and the athletes who play it.

I ask that all members of the Legislature join me in congratulating Al, a really great guy, in this tremendous achievement.

Veterans Memorial Garden

Mr. Jeff Yurek: This past weekend marked the official opening of the Veterans Memorial Garden in St. Thomas.

More than 100 people braved the cold and gathered in downtown St. Thomas for the opening. In addition to the general public, the crowd was made up of city officials; members of the Royal Canadian Legion, Lord Elgin Branch 41; members of the Elgin Regiment; Mayor Heather Jackson, Warden Grant Jones and MP Karen Vecchio. In addition, the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, Her Honour Elizabeth Dowdeswell, was there for the opening.

The Veterans Memorial Garden committee, made up of community members, spearheaded the project over the last two years and were able to raise enough money to create the gardens. The hard work of the committee contributed to over $110,000 raised through their efforts. I want to really thank Herb Warren and his committee for putting this together for the city of St. Thomas and the county of Elgin.

The garden includes the city’s Boy Soldier statue recognizing First World War veterans, the city’s Second World War/Korean War cenotaph, and a new monument that was created, recognizing those who served in the war in Afghanistan.

In addition, a Vimy tree was planted. A Vimy tree was grown from acorns from Vimy Ridge brought over to Canada, and we now have one of those in St. Thomas.

The committee felt that this garden made sense because it brought together all the monuments throughout the city to one central location.

The new Veterans Memorial Garden provides the people of St. Thomas with more than just a memorial. There’s a park to enjoy, and spots to sit and reflect on the contributions made by brave men and women.

I look forward to the first Remembrance Day service, occurring November 11.

Visitor

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): A point of order from the member for Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound.

Mr. Bill Walker: Thank you very much, Speaker. I’d like to introduce June Mizen, grandma of page Andy Walker. He’s the page captain today, and my cousin.

Introduction of Bills

Phones Down, Heads Up Act, 2017 / Loi de 2017 interdisant l’utilisation du téléphone portable par les piétons

Mr. Baker moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill 171,

An Act to amend the Highway Traffic Act to prohibit pedestrians from holding and using certain mobile devices while crossing a roadway / Projet de loi 171, Loi modifiant le Code de la route afin d’interdire aux piétons de tenir et d’utiliser certains appareils mobiles lorsqu’ils traversent la chaussée.

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

First reading agreed to.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): I recognize the member from Etobicoke Centre for a brief statement explaining the bill.

Mr. Yvan Baker: The Phones Down, Heads Up Act amends the Highway Traffic Act to prohibit pedestrians from holding and using certain mobile devices while crossing a roadway, subject to certain exceptions. The bill also requires that the Ministry of Transportation conduct an annual campaign to raise awareness of the dangers of distracted driving, with an emphasis on texting and driving.

1701423 Ontario Inc. Act, 2017

Mr. Coe moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill Pr73,

An Act to revive 1701423 Ontario Inc.

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

First reading agreed to.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): Pursuant to standing order 86, this bill stands referred to the Standing Committee on Regulations and Private Bills.

Fairness in Minimum Wage Act, 2017 / Loi de 2017 sur l’équité en matière de salaire minimum

Ms. Forster moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill 172,

An Act to amend the Employment Standards Act, 2000 with respect to the minimum wage / Projet de loi 172, Loi modifiant la Loi de 2000 sur les normes d’emploi en ce qui concerne le salaire minimum.

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

First reading agreed to.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): Would the member for Welland like to give a brief statement explaining her bill?

Ms. Cindy Forster: The bill amends the Employment Standards Act, 2000, with respect to the determination of the minimum wage in Ontario. What it actually aims to achieve is that there would be no exemptions to the minimum wage except expressly for home workers who are currently paid more than the minimum wage and for hunting and fishing guides who are paid for flat rate half and full days.

Statements by the Ministry and Responses

Immigration francophone

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): I’m pleased to recognize the Minister of Community Safety.

L’hon. Marie-France Lalonde: And francophone affairs.

Monsieur le Président, si je m’adresse aujourd’hui à l’ensemble de mes collègues de l’Assemblée législative, c’est pour souligner de façon officielle la cinquième édition de la Semaine nationale de l’immigration francophone.

Cette année, c’est sous le thème « Une langue, mille accents » que nous reconnaissons l’apport des nouveaux arrivants qui ont choisi l’Ontario comme terre d’accueil.

Comme en témoignent les toutes dernières données du recensement de 2016, la population du Canada et de l’Ontario est en croissance, notamment grâce à l’arrivée d’immigrants dans notre pays. Cela comprend, bien sûr, les immigrants francophones. La vitalité qu’ils insufflent à notre province bénéficie à l’Ontario sur tous les plans.

En apportant avec eux leurs expériences et leur savoir-faire, les immigrantes et les immigrants francophones contribuent de façon significative à l’enrichissement social et culturel de l’Ontario. Leurs talents et leurs compétences multiples soutiennent la vitalité de nos communautés francophones et assurent à notre province un brillant avenir économique.

Notre gouvernement reconnaît l’importance de l’immigration francophone au développement d’une collectivité ontarienne moderne, dynamique, pluraliste et prospère. C’est pourquoi nous gardons le cap sur notre cible de 5 % d’immigration francophone en Ontario et nous entendons déployer les efforts nécessaires de concertation et de mobilisation pour faciliter l’atteinte de cet objectif.

Dans ce contexte, je suis heureuse de pouvoir affirmer que sous le leadership de ma collègue la ministre des Affaires civiques et de l’Immigration, l’honorable Laura Albanese, l’Ontario a réalisé des progrès notables dans le cadre de sa Stratégie ontarienne en matière d’immigration. Ainsi, nous avons récemment mis sur pied un comité consultatif sur l’immigration francophone dont le mandat est de fournir des conseils sur la mise en oeuvre des 13 recommandations faites par le Groupe d’expertes et d’experts sur l’immigration francophone.

Coprésidé par les sous-ministres du ministère des Affaires civiques et de l’Immigration et du ministère des Affaires francophones, le comité est composé de hauts fonctionnaires d’autres ministères provinciaux, du ministère de l’Immigration et de la Citoyenneté et du Canada ainsi que d’intervenants communautaires du secteur de l’immigration francophone. Je remercie davantage l’engagement des membres de ce comité, qui trouveront des pistes de solutions en vue d’aider notre gouvernement à atteindre sa cible de 5 %.

Par ailleurs, je rappelle que notre province continue de jouer un rôle de chef de file à l’échelle pancanadienne. L’Ontario a coprésidé le groupe de travail sur le programme Entrée express avec Immigration, Réfugiés et Citoyenneté Canada. Nous anticipons que les changements au programme fédéral d’immigration en vue de mieux encadrer la sélection d’une main-d’oeuvre francophone qualifiée vont porter fruit. En 2017, plus de 4 % des nominations par l’entremise du Programme ontarien des candidats à l’immigration ont été attribuées à des candidats francophones, alors qu’elles s’élevaient à 3 % en 2016.

L’Ontario travaille de très près avec les autres provinces et territoires au sein de la Conférence ministérielle sur la francophonie canadienne et du forum des ministres responsables de l’immigration pour favoriser l’immigration francophone à l’échelle pancanadienne. À cet égard, je tiens à souligner la tenue du tout premier Forum pancanadien sur l’immigration francophone au Nouveau-Brunswick, où étaient rassemblés, en mars 2017, les ministres fédéraux, provinciaux et territoriaux responsables de l’immigration ainsi que des ministres responsables des affaires francophones.

Dans le cadre de ce forum, les ministres ont exprimé leur soutien à l’élaboration d’un plan d’action fédéral-provincial-territorial sur l’immigration francophone hors Québec, à la tenue d’un symposium communautaire et à l’organisation d’un deuxième forum conjoint en 2018.

Ma collègue l’honorable Laura Albanese et moi-même tenons fermement à faire avancer le dossier en étroite collaboration avec notre collègue du gouvernement fédéral, de même qu’avec nos homologues des autres provinces et territoires.

Il est évident que le rôle du gouvernement fédéral est crucial et que l’Ontario désire continuer de travailler de concert avec le ministre de l’Immigration, des Réfugiés et de la Citoyenneté, l’honorable Ahmed Hussen.

Comme vous le savez, la rétention de nouveaux arrivants compte tout autant que leur recrutement et leur accueil. Nous continuons donc à mettre l’accent sur les services aux immigrants francophones, qui comprennent des programmes d’établissement, de cours de langue et de formation relais pour les nouveaux arrivants.

À

titre d’exemple, j’aimerais souligner que nous finançons un portail sur l’immigration francophone par l’entremise duquel 21 partenaires municipaux font la promotion de leurs communautés comme destinations pour les immigrantes et les immigrants francophones. Il va sans dire que nous jugeons exemplaire l’expertise, l’engagement et le dévouement des communautés francophones dans l’accueil et l’intégration des nouveaux arrivants francophones en Ontario.

J’invite finalement tous mes collègues de l’Assemblée législative à célébrer cette semaine de l’immigration francophone et à rendre hommage à toutes celles et à tous ceux qui ont choisi de vivre et prospérer en Ontario et pour remercier celles et ceux qui les accueillent et qui les aident dans leur intégration au sein de leur communauté d’accueil.

Monsieur le Président, je vous remercie—

M. Shafiq Qaadri: Vive la francophonie.

L’hon. Marie-France Lalonde: —et vive la francophonie.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): Responses?

M me Gila Martow: En tant que porte-parole des affaires francophones du caucus progressiste-conservateur, je tiens à féliciter tous les immigrants et immigrantes francophones qui célèbrent la Semaine nationale de l’immigration francophone.

Alors que nous sommes rendus à plus de 620 000 francophones en Ontario, c’est important que nous puissions offrir des services et des emplois à nos immigrants francophones.

Notre chef a eu l’occasion de rencontrer récemment l’ambassadeur de France au Canada, Kareen Rispal, et le consul général de France à Toronto, Marc Trouyet, pour discuter de l’immigration et de l’énergie. Il est important de continuer à entretenir de telles relations pour que les francophones reçoivent des services et des emplois une fois qu’ils ont immigré en Ontario.

Je ne crois pas que ce soit assez de se concentrer sur l’immigration francophone. Nous devons aussi aider nos francophiles, dont je suis une.

Merci beaucoup, monsieur le Président.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): Responses? The member for Nickel Belt.

M me France Gélinas: Thank you, Speaker. Merci, monsieur le Président.

Je commence en souhaitant bonne semaine de l’immigration francophone à tout le monde. Comme il a été mentionné, le

titre est « Une langue, mille accents ». Si jamais ça vous tente de rire un petit peu, allez en ligne voir ce qu’Improtéine a fait pour célébrer la semaine de l’immigration francophone. Je vous garantis que vous allez rire.

C’est sûr que du côté du caucus néo-démocrate, on encourage et on soutient l’immigration francophone. On a besoin de leurs expériences, de leur savoir-faire. On sait qu’ils contribuent de façon significative à enrichir tant le filet social que culturel de l’Ontario. On a besoin de leurs talents et de leurs compétences pour soutenir la vitalité de nos communautés francophones et nous assurer un brillant avenir tant économique qu’autre, et ça, à la grandeur de l’Ontario.

Je commence en disant que j’étais très heureuse lorsque le gouvernement a annoncé une cible d’immigration francophone de 5 %. L’Ontario est la province de choix pour une grosse

partie des nouveaux arrivants dans notre pays, et c’est seulement raisonnable que le gouvernement se soit donné comme objectif d’avoir au moins 5 % des nouveaux arrivants qui seraient francophones. En ce moment en Ontario, nous sommes 611 000 francophones—

Une voix.

M me France Gélinas: On est rendu à 622 000 francophones, qu’on me dit. Mais, par contre, notre poids démographique continue de diminuer.

Donc, le gouvernement nous annonce un objectif de 5 %. Malheureusement, cet objectif n’a pas été atteint. On parle tout au plus de 2 % d’immigration francophone. Les chiffres parlent d’eux-mêmes. Je vais en lire quelques-uns.

En 2010, nous avons eu 3 574 immigrants et immigrantes francophones. En 2011 : 3 400; en 2012 : 2 947; en 2013 : 2 631; en 2014 : 2 089; et en 2015 : 2 061.

Vous êtes capables de voir qu’à chaque année, le nombre d’immigrants et immigrantes francophones diminue. En 2016, on a eu une petite remontée à 2 380 immigrants et immigrantes francophones.

On est loin d’avoir atteint notre but. Je ne sais pas pourquoi le gouvernement annonce que l’Ontario se donne un objectif de 5 % sans se donner d’échéancier, sans se donner de plan d’action et sans en faire la mise en oeuvre non plus. Donc, on a des annonces mais pas d’action pour soutenir ses annonces-là.

Depuis 2010, comme je viens de vous lire, le nombre d’immigrants francophones a continué de diminuer. Pendant ce temps-là, le nombre total d’immigrants et immigrantes en Ontario continue d’augmenter. Je vous dirais que c’est un manque flagrant d’attention et d’action de la part du gouvernement, ce qui est un peu, je vous dirais, ce qu’on revoit souvent dans les priorités francophones : on nous fait des belles annonces, mais sans plan d’action, sans mise en oeuvre et sans résultats.

Petitions

Long-term care

Mr. Bill Walker: “To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontario’s 627 long-term-care homes play a critical role in the support and care for more than 100,000 elderly Ontarians each and every year;

“Whereas nine out of 10 residents in long-term care today have some form of cognitive impairment, along with other complex medical needs, and require specialized, in-home supports to manage their complex needs;

“Whereas each and every year, 20,000 Ontarians remain on the waiting list for long-term care services and yet, despite this, no new beds are being added to the system;

“Whereas over 40% of Ontario’s long-term-care beds require significant renovations or to be rebuilt and the current program put forward to renew them has had limited success;

“Whereas long-term-care homes require stable and predictable funding each year to support the needs of residents entrusted in their care;

“We, the undersigned, citizens of Ontario, call on the government to support the Ontario Long Term Care Association’s Building Better Long-Term Care pre-budget submission and ensure better seniors’ care through a commitment to improve long-term care.”

I fully support it, affix my name and send it with page Eliana.

School closures

Ms. Peggy Sattler: I’d like to thank Roberta Lamb of Camden East, Ontario, for collecting 700 signatures on a petition to make a moratorium on school closures, retroactive to 2016-17. The petition reads as follows:

“Whereas the Minister of Education, Mitzie Hunter, declared on June 28, 2017, a province-wide moratorium on future school closures based on the results of the spring engagement process, stating that the pupil accommodation review process was flawed and should be overhauled; and

“Whereas during the 2016-2017 school year this flawed pupil accommodation review process was used to close schools; and

“Whereas some of these schools are not scheduled to close until the end of June 2018, so that staffing for these schools remains in place for 2017-2018; and

“Whereas it would be consistent with the spirit of the moratorium and the reason for the overhaul of the” pupil accommodation review “process, to stop those closures announced after September 2016; and

“Whereas the 2015 Auditor General’s report ... recommends greater funds be put towards maintenance of current schools; and

“Further,

whereas the current funding formula does not properly address the needs of schools within rural and northern communities;

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

“1. Reverse the closure decisions for all schools where those decisions were made after September 1, 2016;

“2. Provide fair and equitable pupil accommodation review processes that school boards must follow, recognizing the unique needs of rural and northern communities; and

“3. Review the current funding formula with a goal of developing fair and equitable funding formulae for all rural, northern and urban schools.”

I will gladly affix my signature to this petition and give it to page Ryan to take to the table.

Dental care

Mrs. Cristina Martins: I have a petition here that was dropped off at my office by Gabrielle and the Davenport-Perth Neighbourhood and Community Health Centre. It reads as follows:

“Whereas lack of access to dental care affects overall health and well-being, and poor oral health is linked to diabetes, cardiovascular, respiratory disease, and Alzheimer’s disease; and

“Whereas it is estimated that two to three million people in Ontario have not seen a dentist in the past year, mainly due to the cost of private dental services; and

“Whereas approximately every nine minutes a person in Ontario arrives at a hospital emergency room with a dental problem but can only get painkillers and antibiotics, and this costs the health care system at least $31 million annually with no treatment of the problem;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to invest in public oral health programs for low-income adults and seniors by:

“—ensuring that plans to reform the health care system include oral health so that vulnerable people in our communities have equitable access to the dental care they need to be healthy;

“—extending public dental programs for low-income children and youth within the next two years to include low-income adults and seniors; and

“—delivering public dental services in a cost-efficient way through publicly funded dental clinics such as public health units, community health centres and aboriginal health access centres to ensure primary oral health services are accessible to vulnerable people in Ontario.”

I agree with this petition, will affix my name, and send it to the table with page Sheldon.

Highway improvement

Mr. Rick Nicholls: This petition has been submitted by a number of my residents, this time from the Ridgetown area.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas in 2009 the Ministry of Transportation received environmental clearance for six lanes of the 401 between Tilbury to Elgin county;

“Whereas the 401 between Tilbury and London was already known as ‘carnage alley’ due to the high rate of collisions and fatalities there;

“Whereas current work being done on the 401 between Tilbury and Ridgetown will reduce the road to a single lane for up to three years thus making this stretch a serious safety concern;

“Whereas there have already been four deaths, nine serious injuries requiring hospitalization and over eight collisions this summer within the one-lane construction area;

“Whereas the government of the day pledged to invest $13.5 billion in highway improvements and has sharply increased the fees for driver permits and licence renewal fees which are used for highway maintenance and improvements;

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

“To commit to upgrading the 401 from four to six lanes and install a cement median barrier from Tilbury to Elgin county.”

I strongly approve of this petition. I will sign it and give it to page Rochelle.

Long-term care

M me France Gélinas: I’m happy to add to the 20,000 petitions I’ve already presented by adding another 5,000.

“Whereas quality care for the 78,000 residents of long-term-care (LTC) homes is a priority for many Ontario families; and

“Whereas over the last 10 years 50% of Ontario’s hospital-based complex continuing care beds have been closed by the provincial government...;

“Whereas the provincial government does not provide adequate funding to ensure care and staffing levels in LTC homes keeps pace with residents’ increasing acuity...;

“Whereas there is extensive evidence that a care standard can result in increased staff levels, which translates into improved quality of care for residents;

“Whereas for over a decade several Ontario coroner’s inquests into nursing deaths have recommended an increase in direct hands-on care for residents and increase in staffing levels;

“Whereas the Ontario Liberal government first promised a legislated care standard for residents in the province’s long-term-care homes” in 2007 but in 2017 “they have yet to make good on their promise;

“Whereas the Long-Term Care Homes Act (2007) empowers the provincial government to create a minimum standard—but falls short of actually creating one;

“Whereas the most detailed and reputable study of minimum care standards recommends 4.1 hours of direct care per day;”

They “petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

“

(1) An amendment must be made to the Long-Term Care Homes Act (2007) for a legislated care standard of a minimum four hours per resident each day...;

“

(2) The province must increase funding in order for long-term-care homes to achieve a staffing and care standard and tie public funding for homes to the provision of quality care...;

“

(3) To ensure accountability the province must make public reporting of staffing levels at each Ontario LTC home mandatory;

“

(4) The province must immediately provide funding for specialized facilities for persons with cognitive impairment...;

“

(5) The province must stop closing complex continuing care beds and alternative-level-of-care beds to end the downloading of hospital patients with complex medical conditions to long-term-care homes.”

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

Elevator maintenance

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): The member for Beaches–East York.

Mr. Arthur Potts: Thank you, Speaker, for recognizing me for petitions. I look forward to doing so.

I have one here to support Bill 109, from my colleague the member for Trinity–Spadina.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas we’ve seen rapid growth of vertical communities across Ontario; and

“Whereas elevators are an important amenity for a resident of a high-rise residential building; and

“Whereas ensuring basic mobility and standards of living for residents remain top priority; and

“Whereas the unreasonable delay of repairs for elevator services across Ontario is a concern for residents of high-rise buildings resulting in constant breakdowns, mechanical failures and ‘out of service’ notices for unspecified amounts of time;

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

“Urge the Ontario Legislature to support Bill 109, the Reliable Elevators Act, 2017, that requires the repairs of elevators to be completed within a reasonable and prescribed time frame. We urge the Legislature to address these concerns that are shared by residents” right across Trinity–Spadina and the province of Ontario.

I endorse this petition, sign my name and send it with page Thomas.

Dental care

Mr. Bill Walker: “Expand Public Dental Programs.

“Petition to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas lack of access to dental care affects overall health and well-being, and poor oral health is linked to diabetes, cardiovascular, respiratory disease, and Alzheimer’s disease; and

“Whereas it is estimated that two to three million people in Ontario have not seen a dentist in the past year, mainly due to the cost of private dental services; and

“Whereas approximately every nine minutes a person in Ontario arrives at a hospital emergency room with a dental problem but can only get painkillers and antibiotics, and this costs the health care system at least $31 million annually with no treatment of the problem;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to invest in public oral health programs for low-income adults and seniors by:

“—ensuring that plans to reform the health care system include oral health so that vulnerable people in our communities have equitable access to the dental care they need to be healthy;

“—extending public dental programs for low-income children and youth within the next two years to include low-income adults and seniors; and

“—delivering public dental services in a cost-efficient way through publicly funded dental clinics such as public health units, community health centres and aboriginal health access centres to ensure primary oral health services are accessible to vulnerable people in Ontario.”

I support this, affix my name and send it with page Asma.

Pharmacare

M me France Gélinas: I’m happy to present this petition, and I thank Ashley MacLellan from Val Caron in my riding. It reads as follows:

“Whereas prescription medications are a part of health care, and people shouldn’t have to empty their wallets or rack up credit card bills to get the medicines they need;

“Whereas over 2.2 million Ontarians don’t have any prescription drug coverage and one in four Ontarians don’t take their medications as prescribed because they cannot afford the cost;

“Whereas taking medications as prescribed can save lives and help people live better; and

“Whereas Canada urgently needs universal and comprehensive national pharmacare;”

They “petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to support a universal provincial pharmacare plan for all Ontarians.”

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

Employment standards

Ms. Sophie Kiwala: “To the Legislature of Ontario:

“Whereas podiatrists treat foot pain and deformities in women twice as often as foot disabilities in men, often due to having to wear high heels in their workplaces;

“Whereas Ontario podiatrists see far too many patients with injuries in the workplace that are entirely avoidable and are caused by wearing footwear that is inappropriate or outright unsafe;

“Whereas clinical evidence demonstrates that wearing high-heeled shoes causes a much higher incidence of bunions, musculoskeletal pain and injury than those who do not wear high heels;

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

“To put their best foot forward, and take swift action to amend the Occupational Health and Safety Act to protect workers from dress codes that mandate unsafe footwear in the workplace.”

I agree with this petition wholeheartedly, sign it and give it to page Linnea.

School bus safety

Mr. Rick Nicholls: “To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Bill 94, Highway Traffic Amendment Act (School Bus Camera Systems), 2017, will make it easier to get convictions for drivers who do not stop when lights are flashing and the stop arm is extended on a school bus; and

“Whereas responsible governments must update laws as new technology is developed; and

“Whereas numerous states and provinces are already leveraging new technology to convict drivers who put children in danger while Ontario falls behind; and

“Whereas municipalities including the city of Mississauga have passed resolutions in support of Bill 94; and

“Whereas the Ministry of Transportation has had three years to conduct consultations after a similar bill was initially introduced in 2014 and thousands of children are put in danger each day due to low conviction rates;

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

“To call Bill 94 to committee so it can be strengthened with input from the Ministry of Transportation and other experts engaged in ensuring student safety and to pass Bill 94 into legislation in order to protect our children from motorists who disobey school bus safety laws.”

I approve of this petition. I will sign it and give it to page Alexander.

Komoka Provincial Park

Ms. Peggy Sattler: I’d like to thank the Thames Valley Trail Association for collecting signatures on a petition to remove the new fees from Komoka Provincial Park.

“Whereas Komoka Provincial Park has long served residents and visitors to London, offering free access to beautiful views and numerous recreational hiking trails; and

“Whereas evidence has shown that access to the natural environment helps to reduce stress, improve mental well-being, and lower risks for chronic diseases such as diabetes, heart attacks and cancer; and

“Whereas new parking fees ranging from $5.75 to $14.50 for daily use of Komoka Provincial Park have been imposed without consultation and without additional amenities to justify the new costs, appearing to be simply a cash grab by the Liberal government; and

“Whereas the lack of bike lanes and bus routes connecting Komoka Provincial Park to London, and the prohibition on roadside parking, requires almost all visitors to drive to the park and pay to park their vehicles; and

“Whereas the new fees are likely to decrease park visits with negative consequences for community health and well-being;

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

“That the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry eliminate the parking fees introduced in August 2016 to ensure that Komoka Provincial Park remains accessible to residents of the city of London and all Ontarians.”

I fully support this petition, affix my name to it and give it to page Eliana to take to the table.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): That concludes the time we have available for petitions.

Correction of record

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): Point of order: the member for Nickel Belt.

M me France Gélinas: I just wish to correct my record. When I answered on la Semaine nationale de l’immigration francophone, I said “centre interculturel francophone de Sudbury,” and it’s Contact interculturel francophone de Sudbury.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): Members can correct their record. We thank you very much.

Orders of the Day

Strengthening Protection for Ontario Consumers Act, 2017 / Loi de 2017 sur le renforcement de la protection des consommateurs ontariens

Resuming the debate adjourned on October 25, 2017, on the motion for second reading of the following bill:

Bill 166,

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

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): Before I ask for further debate on this bill, I wish to inform the House that I have in my possession the list of members who were warned this morning during question period. As we know, the warnings carry over into the afternoon sitting.

Further debate?

Ms. Jennifer K. French: I am glad to have the opportunity to have a full 20 minutes to speak about Bill 166, the Strengthening Protection for Ontario Consumers Act. I’ve had the opportunity to have a few two-minute hits here and there, so I am glad to be able to expand and expound on some of those points.

I find that most of my remarks begin the same way, and that is to applaud this Liberal government for the title that they have chosen for whichever bill we are debating. Today we’re debating the Strengthening Protection for Ontario Consumers Act. That’s a wonderful idea. We always should be protecting consumers, and here is a bill that we are supporting. But I have two desks in front of me covered with letters and thoughts to share from my constituency, from members of my community who would like more protection, who would like different protection, who feel that they were not included in this five-schedule piece of legislation.

Focusing on what is indeed in this piece of legislation, as I said, there are five schedules, but 1, 2 and 4 deal with new home construction warranties and the real estate sector. I might speak a little bit later about Tarion at length, depending on how we are for time, but essentially, Tarion is something that the government has had 14 years to fix, and repeatedly they have refused to do so, despite countless consumer complaints. Unfortunately, this is kind of a detail-free, enabling piece of legislation.

I don’t think that there is any reason to believe that those minor changes are going to result in any kind of changes that will finally give new home buyers the protections that they need and that they deserve. But we will come back to Tarion in a little bit—well, maybe we will; we’ll see how we are for time. Like I said, I’ve heard from community members and I want to bring their voices here, and not just say the same thing we’ve been saying for 14 years, which is that we need a fulsome review of Tarion, and we need to see the kind of changes that would actually have an impact on homeowners.

Schedule 3: We’re glad to see that this government is bringing forward protections when it comes to improving transparency and enhancing consumer protection in the online ticket resale market. Speaker, you may remember that this part of the legislation really came about in the unfortunate wake of the Tragically Hip concert that so many fans—and I know that really everyone in Canada, and certainly in Ontario, are fans. So many were unable to get tickets because of the online bot world, the scalper bots.

We all knew it was a problem, but this was such a personal, and unfortunate, chance for us to see just how little competition there is in getting tickets. It’s not the way it used to be when you—well, I was going to say, “the way it used to be when you would go online.” I’m sure there was a time before online, but that’s a really long time ago—getting tickets and paying what they were worth. In the online ticket resale market, there is an increased amount that you will pay above and beyond what’s on the actual ticket, but here, with the scalper bots—we need to fix that.

I was here the other day when the Attorney General spoke at length about this change and acknowledged—and I think we all understand—that sometimes regulation cannot keep up with technology, that technology moves faster than regulation can keep up with. Even if regulation tries, we still are going to find all these loopholes. We had had a bit of a back-and-forth where I said that, yes, I am more than happy to blame the government for the scalperbot loophole, but we all do recognize that it may have been inadvertent. But here we have the opportunity to fix part of it, and that is very important.

While we’re talking about access to the online world, whether it’s buying tickets or any other way of participating not just in our online economy, but our online space, I want to take the opportunity to say that our northern community members and our rural community members in Ontario, on a regular basis, advocate for better Internet service, for broadband, for any kind of high speed. There are so many parts of our fine province where folks aren’t able to access the online world, and if they do, it’s at really slow speeds and it’s intermittent service. That’s something that we really should fix.

It’s something that at every opportunity that I’ve had to talk to a northern or rural community member—at AMO, we hear about it on a regular basis. This is a perfect example. If you don’t have high-speed Internet, if you don’t have access to the Internet, how on earth can you even get in the game to buy a ticket or to do so many other things that we take for granted not just in the Toronto area but anywhere that has access to high-speed Internet?

That’s another part of the conversation. But back to this bill with

schedule 3: I made the joke that we need a mortal portal. That certainly isn’t a direction that this bill goes in. But regular folks, of course, cannot click fast enough, cannot keep up with the computer or with these high-speed bots. As I’ve said before and I maintain, everybody needs access to entertainment, Speaker, when they are dealing on a regular basis with this government and with so many of the struggles in our communities.

Schedule 3, though, specifically enacts a new act entitled the Ticket Sales Act. It replaces the Ticket Speculation Act. As I said, it was in response to the public outcry following the sold-out final tour of the Tragically Hip. Specifically, the act stipulates that anyone who sells a ticket on the secondary market at a price that exceeds the face value of the ticket—the seller must be able to guarantee a full refund under certain circumstances, confirm that the ticket is valid, and tickets cannot be resold for more than 50% of their face value.

It explicitly bans bots—and bots, Speaker, for the folks at home that might not be exactly sure what a bot is: It’s automated ticket-purchasing software that is designed to go around or circumvent ticket-purchasing procedures of online sellers. That’s what a bot is.

As I mentioned, the Attorney General in his remarks the other day acknowledged that sometimes regulation can’t keep up with the technology or advances that are happening. I think we intuitively understand that as we look out and we see the changing face of our online world and technologies, there is a lot to keep up with. We acknowledge that. It is a bit concerning that enforcing this ban, even though we all agree it should exist—to ban the bots—is going to be difficult. I think that this, or a different version of this conversation, will be one that we have again in this Legislature as we’re talking about protecting consumers.

I’m going to go to some of the letters that I’ve had. We reached out to our constituency office. They hear on a regular basis from folks needing protections for various things. This bill is called the Strengthening Protection for Ontario Consumers Act. I want to talk about protecting those consumers. Back in the spring, I had brought it to the Legislature’s attention that I had been approached by a very engaging door-to-door salesman who had questions about my energy consumption. He wondered if I knew that Ontario was going green, and if I also wanted to go green.

We had a very engaging conversation in my driveway. He was a very engaging man who wanted to know if I knew what the government was doing. I said, “Not even on a good day, no.” He said, “Well, they’re going green. Would you also like to go green?” I said, “Going green? Tell me all about it.” And so he did. It was fascinating because the company was not asking me to give them money—it wasn’t for them; it was for their going green initiatives. The money would be used to go green on my behalf. So I wasn’t giving money directly; they would be investing it in going green initiatives.

I don’t really know what those would be. Anyway, it was on my behalf, so that I could sleep at night knowing that I was helping to make the world a greener place. Basically, it was so that I could buy my way out of my carbon emissions. I tried not to take it personally, but he told me about how much carbon I was personally emitting. I don’t know how he would ever know that. It was very personal. He even offered to come into my home and check out different readings of—I don’t even know what he was suggesting. It was a fascinating conversation. I kind of wish that I could go back and see it again.

I did not admit that I knew anything about anything. I was just engaged in this conversation and couldn’t imagine that a home like mine emitted so much carbon that it weighed as much as an elephant or something like that. It was an elephant-sized amount of carbon emissions that I was responsible for, but I would be able to buy my way out of it with these green credits. It wasn’t even that complicated; he was willing to put it on my Enbridge bill for me.

Flash forward: I did not invite him in to check out my water heater or read various other things. I did not sign a binding or expensive scam contract, despite the fact that he was charming and engaging and this was my chance to help with the green initiatives.

A gentleman in our riding, Mr. O’Boyle, had his heat cut off because he couldn’t pay the over $300 a month that was tacked onto his bill because of these various contracts. His issues were brought to us through his family members, who were doing their darnedest to advocate on his behalf because these expenses had piled up on his Enbridge bill—these third parties that can just tack themselves on, and you’ve got to pay it. That is, of course, very concerning.

Our office does work with families regularly trying to untangle these predatory schemes.

Folks who show up at the doorstep are looking for people who don’t know what they’re getting into. This particular company that came to my door does have a track record. They’ve been fined by the OEB. It doesn’t take more than a Google search to see the litany of complaints that they leave in their wake. They and others are looking for vulnerable populations who don’t understand their rights or obligations, their responsibilities as tenants, renters or homeowners. They really do prey on people who don’t understand.

Speaker, I believe firmly that no business in Ontario should be allowed to build their bottom line preying on vulnerable people.

I know that we’ve had this conversation or a version of this conversation a number of times in this Legislature, about the door-to-door sales and what they can and can’t sell. This is another area we’re doing our best to keep up with. We’ve said that they can’t sell certain products like natural gas or different things at the door, but now there’s a whole new workaround, a whole new product line that they can sell. Again, it’s that constant struggle of keeping up with nefarious opportunity.

I have a couple more examples. We’re always working with the legal clinic in our community to try to connect folks with services and help when they get into these tangles.

Here’s another example: a couple who live in subsidized housing. They were sold a water filtration system. They were told, “Don’t worry.” They’re both on ODSP, but they were told not to worry, that they would be fine. They were also given the 10-day cooling-off information, but when they tried to cancel, they couldn’t get through to anyone to even ask how the water filter would be returned. Then they got a call from a collection agency threatening them, telling them that because they still had the water filtration unit, they were obligated to pay.

They were advised to send a registered letter to the collection agency telling them to stop contacting them and proceed to Small Claims Court for judgment—this was how the legal clinic had advised them—but then they were also left with a hole in their counter. This is just one tiny example of the rigmarole that ensues when someone gets into a contract that they may or may not understand and is predatory in nature.

Another case that the legal clinic put on our radar: A woman received bills from a lawn care company that had sprayed her lawn, but she had not authorized it. She was told that because they had sprayed, she would have to pay, even though she didn’t sign a contract for services, which is required for a bill of services or merchandise over $50. Again, this is just one example of somebody taking advantage and trying to get money where they can.

I can’t imagine how challenging it is to keep up with all of these, because even just in our office we hear about all of these creative, predatory folks that are out there. How on earth you keep up or keep ahead of them is always the challenge, but I believe that that’s our responsibility. If we’re strengthening protections for Ontario consumers, those are some great examples.

Here’s another one. I got