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March 5, 2018

41st Parliament, 2nd Session

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Hansard Transcripts

Votes and Proceedings

Orders and Notices

Hansard Transcripts 2018-Mar-05 (PDF)

L145 - Mon 5 Mar 2018 / Lun 5 mar 2018

LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY OF ONTARIO

ASSEMBLÉE LÉGISLATIVE DE L’ONTARIO

Monday 5 March 2018 Lundi 5 mars 2018

Introduction of Visitors

Oral Questions

Hospital services

Home care

Hospital services

Hospital services

Diagnostic services

Children’s mental health services

International trade

Horse racing industry

Workers’ compensation

Entrepreneurship programs

Forest industry

Labour dispute

Student assistance

Water quality

Notice of dissatisfaction

Wearing of pins

Correction of record

Visitors

Member’s birthday

Deferred Votes

Time allocation

Notice of dissatisfaction

Sheridan College students

Introduction of Visitors

Members’ Statements

Cornwall Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Awards

Pharmacare

Kingston prison farms

Florence Kehl

International Women’s Day

Olga Duguid

Nepean Ice Crushers hockey team

Voting age

Brooklyn Hewton

Introduction of Bills

Election Amendment Act (Voter Eligibility), 2018 / Loi de 2018 modifiant la Loi électorale (admissibilité des électeurs)

Petitions

Anti-smoking initiatives for youth

Cardiac care

Fishing and hunting regulations

Gasoline prices

Highway improvement

Long-term care

Highway improvement

Politiques énergétiques

Fish and wildlife management

Energy policies

Long-term care

Long-term care

Orders of the Day

Fairness in Procurement Act, 2018 / Loi de 2018 sur l’équité en matière de marchés publics

Time allocation

Supply Act, 2018 / Loi de crédits de 2018

Visitor

The House met at 1030.

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

Prayers.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): This being the first sitting Monday of the month, I ask everyone to join in the singing of the Canadian national anthem.

Singing of O Canada.

Introduction of Visitors

Mr. Jim McDonell: This morning I was pleased to have Ashley Rensler and Michael Hutchison in from the National Elevator and Escalator Association. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mr. John Fraser: I’m sure they’re just on their way in, but I’d like to introduce Nikki Porter and Shaun Kehoe from Epilepsy Ottawa, who are here and who are going to join us in the gallery. They will be meeting with members throughout the day. I would encourage all members to attend the Epilepsy Ontario reception this evening in the legislative dining room.

Mr. Robert Bailey: It’s my pleasure today to introduce to the House representatives of Epilepsy Ontario, in the persons of Cynthia Milburn, the CEO of Epilepsy South Central Ontario; Dianne McKenzie, CEO of Epilepsy Durham Region; and Melanie Jeffrey for Epilepsy Ontario. They’re here on their lobby day. Welcome, ladies.

Hon. Daiene Vernile: I would like to congratulate all of the Canadians who received Academy Awards in last night’s ceremony. There were literally hundreds of talented Canadian movie industry individuals working behind the scenes in the production of The Shape of Water, which was shot in Toronto and Hamilton. Ontario is a proud supporter of our movie industry. Congratulations to all the winners.

Ms. Lisa M. Thompson: I’m pleased to welcome today to Queen’s Park Devon Girard and Maddi Thomas. Devon and Maddi are the daughter and granddaughter of Marian Keller of Brussels. Devon has brought her niece Maddi here today to learn all about the Ontario Legislature. I hope it’s a good day.

Ms. Jennifer K. French: I am pleased to also welcome Dianne McKenzie and Chelsea Kerstens from Epilepsy Durham Region to the Ontario Legislature and to thank them for all of their work every day.

Hon. Michael Coteau: I’d like to take a moment to welcome C.J., who is the president of the Ontario Young Liberals association in Don Valley East. Welcome back to the Legislature.

Mr. Jim McDonell: This morning I had a great meeting with Shaun Kehoe, David Charchalis and Nikki Porter from Epilepsy Ontario. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Hon. Eleanor McMahon: I’m really pleased to welcome to Queen’s Park today two residents from my riding of Burlington. They are the parents of our page captain today. Heather Sutherland’s parents are here: Sandra Leslie and Chris Sutherland. They’re in the members’ gallery this morning. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Hon. Michael Coteau: On behalf of the Honourable David Zimmer, MPP from Willowdale, I’d like to welcome page captain William Pham’s family: his mother, father and brother. His brother Lucas is joining us here today. Welcome to the Legislature.

Ms. Sophie Kiwala: I would like to welcome to the Legislature this morning Harriet Faught and Michael Faught, who is her father. Harriet is here for the Speaker’s award for youth writers, taking place this evening.

Also, Mercedes Augustyn, or Sadie; her father, Joseph Augustyn; and Emilia Leslie, client services coordinator for Epilepsy South Eastern Ontario in Kingston and the Islands, are here for epilepsy day. A warm welcome to Queen’s Park.

Mr. Arthur Potts: It gives me great pleasure to welcome members from the Beaches–East York Young Liberals who are here today for my private member’s bill to lower the voting age to 16. I have Adrien Blanchard, Jacob Landau, Chris Knipe, Roya Shidfar, Jacob Ouimet and Noor Samaie. Thank you very much for your support, and welcome to Queen’s Park.

Hon. David Zimmer: The Minister of Children and Youth Services introduced my guests, but I’ll introduce them again. Welcome to the Legislature.

Ms. Deborah Matthews: I’d like to welcome Michelle Franklin from Epilepsy Southwestern Ontario. She’s doing an absolutely wonderful job supporting people with epilepsy.

Mrs. Cristina Martins: It’s a great pleasure to introduce someone who will be visiting us a little bit later this afternoon. A good friend of mine and her daughter Stephanie will be here today from Cummer public school.

Oral Questions

Hospital services

Mr. Victor Fedeli: In the last week, there have been three high-profile incidents of Ontarians stuck abroad because of the lack of hospital beds at home.

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

Mr. Victor Fedeli: Oh, this question is to the Premier.

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

Mr. Victor Fedeli: One of those men, Stuart Cline from London, passed away this past weekend at a hospital in St. Catharines. He was stuck in Mexico, and then in St. Catharines, some 200 kilometres away from his home. This tragedy is a direct result of this government’s refusal to properly fund hospitals across the province. It’s a tragedy that should not—must not—happen again to an Ontario family. How is this government preventing a similar tragedy from happening again?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Well, Mr. Speaker, I completely agree with the member opposite that this is a tragedy, that this is a situation that should not have arisen. When Ontarians travel abroad, they take the safe decision, I hope, to purchase travel insurance, and they expect that that will allow them to get the care that they need. That is our expectation as well: that the insurance company and the health system would work together.

I think that we need, collectively, to ask very serious questions about what happened here. For me, Mr. Speaker, what is particularly concerning is that, as of February 26, there were 31 level 2 and 3 ICU beds available in Toronto. There were 34 available in Hamilton-Niagara. There were 16 available in the southwest and there were seven available in Erie. We have very serious questions to ask about what was that communication between the insurance company and the system.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Victor Fedeli: Speaker, back to the Premier. The CBC reported that his eldest son was left asking many questions: “The question that kind of haunts me ... could it have been different if he had come back right away?” “Do we need to go through all that additional torment of just waiting?” “Having him sedated for so long, did that adversely affect his condition?... We’ll just never know those answers.” And he’s right, Speaker. We’ll never know those answers. But what we do need to know now is that no other family will be left asking these same questions.

Mr. Speaker, will the Premier promise families that they won’t be stuck in a foreign country waiting for a hospital bed?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: As I said, this is a very serious question. As the member opposite has said, there are many questions swirling around this. We know, Mr. Speaker, that the hospital had ongoing communication with the insurer to recommend locations where the patient could receive appropriate care in order to get them home safely. What we know is that there were beds available in Toronto, in Hamilton-Niagara, in the southwest and in Erie. So the question is, what was the disconnect in that conversation between the insurer and the health system? The beds were available.

The system was working in the sense that the beds were there. There were vacancies. They were available. So why did that happen?

I don’t have the answer, Mr. Speaker, and the member opposite rightly asked the question. We are asking those questions because I agree it should not happen again.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Final supplementary? The member from Elgin–Middlesex–London.

Mr. Jeff Yurek: Back to the Premier. Speaker, this government has failed the families of all Ontarians who have been stuck abroad. They deserve to come home and they deserve treatment from Ontario’s world-class doctors. But because of that government across the way, hospitals are over capacity and overcrowded. Hallways, bathrooms and closets—makeshift hospital rooms. It’s unacceptable. It’s unacceptable in Ontario and it’s unacceptable, period. Ontario can and must do better.

Mr. Speaker, will the Premier pick up the phone and call the Cline family and apologize for their failure in the health care system? And will the Liberal government guarantee that no other Ontarian will be stuck in a foreign country because of the government’s failure to fund our health care system?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Well, Mr. Speaker, as I’ve said, this is a tragedy and I understand. I understand why the members opposite choose to politicize it. The reality is, there were beds available in Ontario. There was capacity in the system. If there hadn’t been, then this would be a very different discussion. But there were beds. There were 31 beds in Toronto, 34 beds in Hamilton-Niagara, 16 beds in the southwest and seven beds in Erie.

The question is—and it is a very serious question, Mr. Speaker, and I absolutely understand why the Cline family would be asking this question—why was there not a better communication between the insurer and the system? What broke down that didn’t allow their loved one to be here, to get to Ontario where there were beds available? We are asking those questions and we will do everything in our power to make sure that this never happens again.

Home care

Mr. Victor Fedeli: My question is for the Premier. The headlines read, “Ontario is Courting a Home Care Fiasco.” There is no doubt, Speaker, that those headlines are right. Providers don’t want this new SEIU agency. Workers don’t want the new agency. Patients don’t want the new agency. The only people who want the new agency are the Liberals and the SEIU. This does not pass a smell test.

Mr. Speaker, what deal have the Liberals struck in return for creating this SEIU-backed agency?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Mr. Speaker, my mum is 89 and my dad is going to be 92 in a few days. I know that for them, having familiar people around is really important, people who know them, and they don’t have to make an adjustment. And when they do have to make adjustments, it’s a real challenge for them and for my sisters and me.

I believe that everyone in Ontario who needs the support of a personal support worker should have the option to have more control and choice over their home care services. That’s what this is about. This is about helping people to get continuity in their care, giving them some choices. It’s also about—and this may not be something that the member opposite cares a lot about—support for personal support workers so that they can have a rational

schedule to do their work.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Victor Fedeli: Back to the Premier: Whenever and wherever an SEIU-backed home care agency pops up, trouble soon follows. Washington state, and Michigan and other states are currently in lawsuits just like here in Ontario against the SEIU and their SEIU-backed agencies. Some of these lawsuits include improper disclosure of political contributions; driving up the costs of home care; and abuse of personal support workers, family caregivers and patients. It’s best summed up as an agency that will cause distress, confusion and anxiety. The evidence is all here.

Is the Liberal relationship with the SEIU really worth the distress, confusion and anxiety for patients, PSWs and providers?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Again, let me just say that we value the enormous contribution of personal support workers—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Order.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: —no matter what union they belong to, no matter—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Right after I ask for order, a certain member just keeps right on going. I’ll be watching.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Along with somebody making a comment while I’m making a comment. You can look away all you want, Minister.

Carry on.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: We value the work that personal support workers do, which is exactly why we have invested in personal support workers. We have increased their salaries and it—

Mr. John Yakabuski: You value the SEIU a lot more.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke and the member from Leeds–Grenville will come to order. We’re inching towards warnings, thanks to those.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: It doesn’t matter what organization they belong to. The fact is, we have supported personal support workers across the board. This change is about providing patients with access to continuity and choice in their care, which I think is something we can all agree is important.

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

Mr. Victor Fedeli: Back to the Premier: It’s important this question is asked directly to the Premier. This agency was created with one bullet point in a news release and no further details on October 26, 2017, much to the delight of the SEIU. Around that same time, an SEIU-funded third party started running negative campaign ads against the PC Party.

Speaker, these questions need to be asked. Was the first set of attack ads funded by SEIU a thank-you for creating this agency? Will there be a second set of ads if the Liberals continue down this path?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: If this is a question about negative publicity that the PC Party is getting, I really can’t wade into that. That really isn’t my bailiwick.

Let me just say that the self-directed care model we are looking at is about giving patients more control over their care and more choice. Let me just read from—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Nepean–Carleton will come to order. One more comment, we’re going into warnings.

Carry on.

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Let me just quote from Bob Hepburn in the Toronto Star, November 8: “The move is a welcome and long-overdue initiative ... it will address deep concerns by home care patients who have no control over hiring or scheduling of personal support workers.”

The reality is that that reflects why we are making this move, to give patients more control and more continuity in their care.

Hospital services

Ms. Teresa J. Armstrong: My question is to the Premier. Larry Dann is a London man, a constituent of mine, who had to wait abroad for an Ontario hospital bed when he got sick. Larry recently spent eight days waiting in a Miami hospital—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The Minister of Municipal Affairs will come to order. We’re now in warnings.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): We are in warnings.

Finish, please.

Ms. Teresa J. Armstrong: Larry recently spent eight days waiting in a Miami hospital ICU with a serious infection. His insurance company was told there were no beds for him at home.

Can the Premier please explain to families in London and across Ontario why this keeps happening?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: I thank the member opposite for the question, as I did when the member from the Conservative Party asked the question. This is a very important issue. When there is capacity in Ontario, that patients wouldn’t be able to get to those beds, we have to ask why that would happen.

The member opposite is talking about a different situation than the one that we were discussing earlier, but I would hazard a guess that even in that situation—and I don’t know specifically, but if we looked across the whole province there likely were beds that were available, perhaps not in a specific jurisdiction, but that should not be the issue. If the beds are available in the province, if someone is overseas or is abroad, they should be able to come back to Ontario.

That’s the question we’re asking: What’s the breakdown between the insurers and the system? And we need to get to the bottom of it.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Teresa J. Armstrong: Larry never got an Ontario hospital bed; he was treated entirely in Miami. Luckily, he had travel insurance, because we all know how much medical care can cost in the US.

Larry said that his insurance company was very diligent. They tried very hard to find him a bed to come home, even organizing an air ambulance to get him back to Ontario. But he was never moved because there weren’t any beds.

Does the Premier think that Larry’s insurance company was lying to him?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: I think the member of the third party knows that I am not going to comment on a specific situation because I don’t have the details. If indeed there were no beds anywhere in the province, then that is of great concern, Mr. Speaker.

But if, as in the previous situation, there were beds in the province that were available, not in the particular home community of the patient, but there were beds available in the province, that’s the situation that we need to unearth. We need to understand if that’s the case, and if that is the case, then why was that patient not able to go to one of those beds?

I don’t know the answer to that in this situation, but those are the questions that we are in the process of asking because there is a disconnect between the insurer and the system and we need to find out what the problem is.

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

Ms. Teresa J. Armstrong: Danny Marchand was in Collingwood. There was no insurer at that point and he still couldn’t get a bed in Ontario when he broke his leg in Collingwood.

Larry Dann is one of too many cases where an Ontarian has been stuck abroad waiting for a hospital bed to open up at home. These families have been let down by the Premier and this Liberal government, which has cut and frozen hospital budgets for 15 years. They’ve been let down by the last Conservative government, which closed 28 hospitals and fired 6,000 nurses.

Ontario’s hospitals are overcrowded. When will the Premier finally take action to fix this crisis and when will she stop turning her back on these families?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Mr. Speaker, it’s quite the opposite. We have made enormous investments in health care and in home care. We will continue to do that. We know that the health care system in Ontario, and quite frankly in this country, is the greatest and clearest expression of our compassion for one another and of a fair society. We completely understand that, which is why we continue to increase investment in the health care system across the board.

This is a very particular issue that we need to get to the bottom of. There seem to be some situations where there has been a lack of understanding or confusion between what the insurer is saying and what the health care system is saying. We need to get to the bottom of it and ensure that it doesn’t happen again.

Hospital services

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

Ottawa’s Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, better known as CHEO, is an incredible facility. Their health care providers care for sick children from across Ontario and Canada and even from abroad. In February, CHEO’s emergency department had its busiest month on record. Every day, the hospital cared for 249 sick children in their ER; one day, the front-line professionals cared for 303 sick children. This winter, Toronto’s SickKids hospital also had the busiest month they have ever had.

Why is the Premier standing by and watching as the only two hospitals in Ontario that specialize in caring for sick children struggle every day with dangerously high overcrowding?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: We are not standing by and watching; we are actively engaged with our hospitals across the province. In fact, just a few weeks ago, I sat down with a group of hospital CEOs. I am listening to their concerns.

I recognize that, on top of the $100 million that we’ve invested to create 1,200 new hospital beds across the province, which is the equivalent of six new medium-sized hospitals, and on top of the $500 million that we put in our last budget—we recognize that there is more to be done. We are working with our hospital partners to make sure that we understand that and continue to increase investments.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary.

M me France Gélinas: So far this year, CHEO has been forced to transfer 12 children, including four babies, to other hospitals because of the serious overcrowding crisis that they’re trying to deal with. These kids are some of the most critically ill in their hospital. CHEO’s chief of staff said that it is often the sickest kids who are forced to move because of the overcrowding in their hospital.

Why is the Premier okay with some of the sickest kids and babies in Ontario being forced to move away from home to get the treatment that they need?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: I know that the government House leader wants to comment on this in the final supplementary. But let me just say that there is likely no more stressful time in a family’s life than when a baby is sick. My heart goes out to anyone in the province who is going through the experience of trying to find the right care for a sick child. We are blessed in this province that we have hospitals like SickKids and CHEO that provide such excellent care and work with families to make sure that their children get that care.

We recognize that there is more that we have to do. We recognize that, on top of the increases in funding that we have already made, there’s more that we need to do. I recognize that, as we move forward, we need to continue to work with our partners to make sure that we solve the problems that they are actually confronting.

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

M me France Gélinas: Dr. Gina Neto, chief of emergency medicine, said, “We’re at peak season staffing, but despite that we’re overwhelmed. And I get the sense that we’re not the only hospital that’s overwhelmed.”

She’s right, Speaker. Last week, the Queensway Carleton Hospital declared a code orange, an alert issued when all hospital beds are full and surge capacity has been exhausted. That was the second code orange in the hospital’s history; the first one was the month before. Is this what we’ve come to, Speaker?

Ottawa hospitals deserve better than this. Families across Ontario deserve better than this. Why doesn’t the Premier agree?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Government House leader.

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: I want to speak a little bit about CHEO because I know that hospital very well, coming from Ottawa and being a father of two very young children. CHEO is one of the most incredible children’s hospitals that we’ve got, not only in Ontario but, I will say, around the country and the world. The staff at CHEO works very hard every single day to ensure that our children in the Ottawa area and beyond get the best care possible.

The issue around overcrowding is a serious issue. In fact, the chief of staff of CHEO herself said that the reason for the unexpected high number and the shortage of beds is because of the extraordinary flu season that we’re seeing right now taking place here in our province, as well as an unusually large number of complicated medical cases.

The member opposite is right. This is a situation that is happening not only in Ontario, but across the country right now, where there is overcrowding as a result of the flu season that we’re going through. That’s happening in the United States as well. We are dealing with that circumstance.

Diagnostic services

Mr. Jeff Yurek: My question is to the Premier. Staff at the only clinic providing life-saving PET/CT scans in Windsor-Essex were shocked to learn that their funding was to be completely cut off for their program. The clinic, which has been in operation for over seven years, was notified just hours before the government publicly announced a new PET/CT scanner would not be going to their clinic. The head of the clinic, Dr. Kevin Tracey, says, “I feel like I’ve been mugged.”

This is another example of this government giving with one hand while taking with another. My question to the Premier: Why didn’t the ministry properly notify this important community clinic that their funding was about to be cut off?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Attorney General.

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: We are very much committed to an equitable access to quality care in all regions of Ontario, and we will continue to work with our health care partners to help patients get diagnosed faster. We are adding new state-of-the-art medical imaging equipment, including PET and CT scanners, where they can best serve patients. We are working with Cancer Care Ontario to ensure that existing PET and CT scanners continue to provide high-quality diagnostic imaging services for all Ontarians by planning their replacement in a timely manner and by prioritizing additional equipment in new locations.

Cancer Care Ontario is currently working on a long-term strategy with an approach that considers several factors, such as service needs, patient referral patterns, age of machines, downtime and facility capacity. To date, Ontario’s provincial PET program has 14 PET and CT scanners in 12 centres across the province.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary.

Mr. Jeff Yurek: Back to the Premier: For years, Dr. Kevin Tracey put countless hours, effort and his own money into a program that the government just brushed aside without notice. He petitioned this government for a new scanner and was led to believe that the clinic would be receiving the new PET/CT scanner. Instead, this clinic is now facing staff layoffs.

My question for the Premier: Can she explain why the government would go ahead with the decision without any consultation or discussion with Dr. Tracey’s clinic? And will the Premier answer that question?

Hon. Yasir Naqvi: I was speaking earlier of the long-term strategy that Cancer Care Ontario is working on with our government. To launch this long-term strategy, we are providing Windsor Regional Hospital with a new PET/CT scanner to help open a new site for scanning services in the Erie-St. Clair region. Responding to the growing needs of the community, up to 600 patients per year will benefit from this new PET scanner.

Increasing access to diagnostic services is part of our plan to create fairness and opportunity during this period of rapid economic change. The decision to help Windsor Regional Hospital open a PET/CT scanning site is to reduce the likelihood of patients experiencing a service disruption from an existing aging scanner. This scanner is the only one serving patients in the entire Erie-St. Clair region.

We will continue to make this very important investment. We work along with the local community to make sure that these services are well targeted for those communities that will benefit the most.

Children’s mental health services

Miss Monique Taylor: My question is for the Minister of Children and Youth Services. Last week, I saw a very disturbing story about the death by suicide of 15-year-old Kanina Sue Turtle in a foster home in Sioux Lookout. A video taken by her recording her own death wasn’t seen by her parents until they received her belongings, including her iPod, many months later. The video shows Kanina was left alone in a back room of a home for 45 minutes before anyone came to check on her. By then, it was too late.

Speaker, things like this shouldn’t be happening. We shouldn’t be having to ask these questions in the House, so I apologize. But I ask the minister, how could such a tragic death happen, and what will be done to make sure that it won’t happen again?

Hon. Michael Coteau: I agree with the member opposite. These types of things should not happen in Ontario. Any time a young person takes their life or hurts themself, I think everyone in this Legislature feels for that family and that community, and of course the individual.

As the minister responsible for this file, we look for ways to work with indigenous partners. I’ve gone across the province and spoken to communities. I’ve met with parents who have lost loved ones. We’ve put in place some different strategies to look for ways to help communities with these challenges. In the supplemental, I’ll talk about some of those initiatives that we’re working on.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Miss Monique Taylor: Kanina’s family has been trying to find out what happened to her. Her mother was told by the agency that her daughter was suicidal, something that she didn’t believe until she had actually seen the video. But she did have multiple scars from self-harming. Another video on Kanina’s iPod showed that she had tried to kill herself the day before, in the bush. She was a very troubled youth, but she was left alone and she took her own life. Since then, her parents have been left in the dark as they try to get the truth.

Will the minister tell this family what happened to their daughter, and will he put in place measures to ensure that this doesn’t happen again?

Hon. Michael Coteau: Of course, any family that wants to connect with the ministry and with me to talk about any issue in regard to their children, I’m always available for those families. As the minister for this file, I always find this particular area very challenging for me emotionally because we’re talking about children. We’re talking about the loss of young people here in the province.

We’ve been working with indigenous communities through our indigenous children and youth strategy to look for ways to build more culturally appropriate programming for young people. I’ve heard from leaders in the province that if you can build resilience within a child as a young person, as they get older it helps them take on some of the challenges; land-based programming that we’ve expanded here in the province as well. But I think the real key here, Mr. Speaker, is to make sure we work with communities and listen to communities and have communities respond to those issues right in their communities, rather than going to other parts in the province.

International trade

Mr. Shafiq Qaadri: Ma question est pour le ministre du Développement économique et de la Croissance. Speaker, in the chaos that is Trump’s America, there is a tide of protectionism, tariffs, unfree trade and Depression-era populism. They’ve introduced, as you will know, a proposed tariff on steel and aluminum globally, part of the growing sentiment that we first saw with Buy American legislation in New York and Texas.

Ontario is the Canadian leader of steel production: 20,000 people employed directly and 55,000 indirectly. It’s especially concerning for communities like Sault Ste. Marie and Hamilton.

The interim position of the interim PC leader tells me that they are rudderless, leaderless and aimless, and likely busy with their own internal civil war. Speaker, the opposition parties have repeatedly made it clear that they have no—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Stop the clock. I’m standing to try to respond. The member will focus on government policy.

Mr. Shafiq Qaadri: Speaker, I find it troubling that our colleagues across the way have ostrich policies, heads in the sand, and do not wish to stand up for businesses, workers and families, particularly in Hamilton—

Interjections.

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

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The minister is not helpful. The member from Leeds–Grenville is warned. I happen to know what I’m doing.

Mr. Shafiq Qaadri: Speaker, my question for the government minister is this: Will the minister of economic development, growth and trade please explain to us why our policies regarding Bill 194 are so important?

Hon. Steven Del Duca: I thank the member from Etobicoke North for his very pertinent question relating to government policy, specifically Bill 194. Speaker, last week in this Legislature we witnessed the very sad and sorry spectacle of members from the Conservative opposition caucus repeatedly standing up, and on Bill 194, government policy, repeatedly refusing to stand up for Ontario workers and businesses. It was sad. It was sorry. It fundamentally stands in opposition to the core responsibility that every member of this Legislature has—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Huron–Bruce is warned.

Finish, please.

Hon. Steven Del Duca: It stands in stark contrast to what the people of this province expect of their elected officials.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Niagara West–Glanbrook is warned.

Just put your hand up if you want a warning, and then we’ll move right to naming.

You may finish, please.

Hon. Steven Del Duca: They can interrupt, Speaker, but they will never distract this government from standing up for the people of Ontario.

We will support Bill 194—

Interjections.

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

Supplementary?

Mr. Shafiq Qaadri: Thank you, Minister of Economic Development and Growth.

Speaker, on this side of the chamber, we are of course very concerned about the Buy American trend—the hard right economic nationalism and policies that Trump’s own defence, treasury and chief economic adviser oppose.

While the Tories were sleeping, our government has taken action to protect Ontario businesses, particularly with reference to President Trump’s steel tariffs.

It’s no secret that the political landscape is chaotic and that there seem to be random acts of policy every day. This tide of protectionism poses a serious threat to Ontario’s workers and businesses, but we are not standing idly by in this potential face of discrimination. Our government is committed to sending a strong message that discrimination against Ontario workers will not be tolerated, a call that has been joined by the European Union and dozens of nations across the world.

My question is this: Will the minister please inform this House about what steps Ontario is taking to protect Ontario businesses?

Hon. Steven Del Duca: President of the Treasury Board.

Hon. Eleanor McMahon: On this side of the House, we’re standing up for our workers and businesses. That’s why our government has tabled and is committed to passing the Fairness in Procurement Act legislation that fights for the fair treatment of Ontario workers and businesses.

Sadly, instead of standing up for Ontario businesses and Ontario workers, the PCs are sitting this one out and are choosing instead to stall the passage of Bill 194 through procedural delays and tactics in the House, largely, we can only assume, as a result of their own internal struggles.

On this side of the House, our government has a plan to create fairness and opportunity for Ontarians. It’s why our Premier has taken a productive, proactive and personal approach, meeting with nearly 40 US governors in an attempt to influence change.

We will not take lessons from that side of the House. Instead, we will continue to stand up for Ontario workers and businesses and speak when it matters.

Horse racing industry

Mr. Randy Pettapiece: My question is to the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs.

It appears the government will soon be announcing the shutdown of Ajax casino. This reckless decision will likely spell the end of quarter horse racing in this province and put over 1,700 local jobs at risk.

The mayor of Ajax, Steve Parish, said, “We have been fighting to protect the #AjaxCasino and quarter horse racing. @MPPJoeDickson has given up” by writing a two-page letter—

Interjections.

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

I’ve mentioned to members in this House once before—well, actually, several times: Take care of yourself, take care of your critic’s role, but leave other members out of this when it comes to doing work within their own riding.

Carry on.

Mr. Randy Pettapiece: On this side of the House, Speaker, we are not giving up.

To the minister: Will you stand up for the people of Ajax and rural jobs, or would you rather be remembered as the minister who killed quarter horse racing in Ontario?

Hon. Jeff Leal: I do appreciate the question from my colleague for Perth–Wellington.

We, of course, over the last number of years, in successive budgets have put substantial funding to sustain horse racing in the province of Ontario. Ontario is the home of 15 tracks: two thoroughbred tracks, one quarter horse track and 12 standardbred tracks across the province of Ontario.

We’ll continue to work with the local member and continue to work with the people of Picov Downs to make sure that quarter horse racing has a bright future in the province of Ontario.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Randy Pettapiece: Again to the Minister of Agriculture: This government’s record on horse racing and the rural economy has been a total disaster. Let’s not forget these are the same Liberals who secretly plotted to “go to zero dollars for horse racing.” It’s the same Liberals who ripped apart the Slots at Racetracks Program knowing it could mean “23,000 job losses and 27,000 dead horses.” And now it’s the same Liberals who—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Finish, please.

Mr. Randy Pettapiece: And now it’s those same Liberals, Speaker, who look ready to destroy quarter horse racing for crass political reasons.

Speaker, I support Ajax council’s demand—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Stop the clock, please. The Minister of Economic Development and Growth is warned.

The member may finish.

Mr. Randy Pettapiece: Thank you, Speaker. I support Ajax council’s demand that the government delay any further decision until after the June election.

To the minister: Will you do the right thing and apologize to the town of Ajax and horse people across the province?

Hon. Jeff Leal: I want to thank the member for his supplementary but, Mr. Speaker, I want to provide a little history here. One John Snobelen, who had a very distinguished career on that side of the House, when he was part of the panel along with Elmer Buchanan and John Wilkinson was the guy who said the SARP, a racetrack program, was not transparent and accountable and that changes needed to be given—a very astute observation from someone who sat on that side in that caucus for a long period of time.

When you really want to look at the architect of the problems that Ajax Downs is having, one needs to look at one Rod Phillips, who was a bit of an architect of what happened with regard to this.

Secondly, the member from Ajax–Pickering is a tireless defender of horse racing at Ajax Downs.

Workers’ compensation

Ms. Cindy Forster: My question is to the Premier. Speaker, the Ontario workers’ compensation system, or WSIB, has failed workers in this province who find themselves injured at work.

Under the Liberals’ failed policies, if you get hurt at work on the job and you rely on compensation benefits under WSIB to make ends meet, they rely on a policy called “deeming.” WSIB pretends that you have a job that you don’t actually have in order to allow WSIB to gut your benefits. For a government that seems to be so in tune with vulnerable workers and with fairness, this policy is detrimental to injured workers, and it sinks them deeper and deeper into poverty.

When will the Liberal government put an end to deeming, fix these failed WSIB policies, and make sure that injured workers get the dignity and the respect that they deserve?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Labour.

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Thank you to the honourable member for the question. Speaker, workers and their families in the province of Ontario need to know that when they go to work, everything is done to prevent an injury from taking place in the first place. Ontario is one of the safest jurisdictions in the entire world in which you can work. The number of incidents has come down over the past 13 or 14 years by half. We’ve cut those incidents in half, yet these injuries continue to happen and, unfortunately, fatalities continue to happen. We need to do everything we possibly can to ensure that those injuries don’t happen in the first place.

But to get to the member’s question, when injuries do happen, we need to make sure that these people are treated fairly, they’re treated with respect and they’re treated with dignity, and it’s an ongoing process, Speaker. We continue to work with the WSIB to make sure that Ontario workers get treated the way they should.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary.

Ms. Cindy Forster: These injured workers and many progressive advocacy groups for injured workers have raised alarm bells for years. New Democrats brought forward multiple amendments under Bill 148. Every key amendment, including the issue of deeming, was voted down by Liberal members. We could have fixed it there.

Every day, I hear from workers who are deemed to have phantom jobs they don’t have and have their compensation benefits cut, and they no longer can make ends meet. Workers who, for example, are diagnosed with permanent back injuries are deemed to be able to get a job at Walmart as a greeter, which they are never going to be able to get.

I’ve heard from workers who have gone into severe depression, have had to sell their homes and live in shoddy basements because of deeming.

I ask this government again, when is the Premier going to fix our broken system of compensation and make sure that injured workers get the benefits and the protections they need? When are they going to fix deeming?

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Thank you again for the supplementary. As I said, it’s important that when somebody is injured on the job in the province of Ontario, they get the right treatment. We continue to improve in that regard because we know it’s critical when somebody suffers an injury that they’re treated properly.

I’m proud of the government. We passed legislation that’s going to further protect injured workers. Starting in January of this year, all injured workers, including both partially and fully disabled, will finally receive the same CPI coverage, which they deserve. Psychological injuries are also covered now, including work-related chronic mental stress.

But what didn’t come out in the question was that those two initiatives, which are going to help a lot of people in this province, are initiatives that both opposition parties voted against. When you stand up and tell me I should be doing something, we continue to look at improvements that could be made; but now and then, you should look in the mirror.

Entrepreneurship programs

Mr. Han Dong: My question is to the Minister of Research, Innovation and Science. According to the 2017 global entrepreneurship index, Canada is ranked third out of 137 countries in its health of entrepreneurial ecosystems. It’s a remarkable step for our people, specifically Ontario’s youth, and many live, work and study in my riding of Trinity–Spadina.

Our future prosperity depends on our youth having the right skills, experience and supports to actively participate in our economy of today and tomorrow. No jurisdiction can thrive in today’s knowledge-based economy without investments in innovations that attract ambitious entrepreneurs.

Minister, could you please inform the members of this House how these investments have contributed to Ontario’s economy?

Hon. Reza Moridi: I want to thank the member from Trinity–Spadina for that question.

Mr. Speaker, since 2014, our government has provided nearly $39 million in funding to support on-campus entrepreneurship programs in our universities and colleges, and this includes campus-linked accelerators and on-campus entrepreneurship activities. These programs have catalyzed the development of innovation ecosystems and have made significant contributions to Ontario’s economic prosperity.

Over the last three years, our government’s investment in CLAs and OCEAs has fostered over 4,000 businesses, created 6,700 jobs, generated $133 million in revenue and raised $171 million in investments. The impact of this economic success can be felt across Canada and the world, with Ontario’s flag flying in markets around the globe.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Mr. Han Dong: I want to thank the minister for his answer. It’s always pleasing to see our government come closer to achieving long-term economic goals, such as higher-quality job growth and sustainability. Thanks to the government’s investment, all of Ontario’s post-secondary institutions have on-campus entrepreneurship programs.

I would also like to congratulate the minister on receiving the Innovation Ecosystem Impact Award at the recent UBI Global awards. I understand that this award recognizes individuals who have made an exceptional contribution to national and international innovation ecosystems.

Minister, could you please inform the members of this House of how your ministry has strengthened the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Ontario?

Hon. Reza Moridi: Again, I want to thank the member for that question.

Mr. Speaker, this award is not for me alone. It’s a minister’s job to be a catalyst to help people get the support they need to succeed.

We have built a vibrant innovation ecosystem in this province thanks to the Premier’s leadership—an ecosystem with an impressive 59 accelerators and incubators at 44 colleges and universities across the province of Ontario. From 2014 to 2016, over 280,000 youth have benefited from accelerators and incubators in our universities and colleges. According to UBI’s 2017-18 global world incubation ranking, four of Ontario’s incubators are ranked among the top university-linked accelerators around the world.

Mr. Speaker, we are committed to nurturing our innovators and building a stronger innovation ecosystem and innovation economy in our province.

Forest industry

Mr. John Yakabuski: My question is to the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry.

The minister would know that the forest industry employs over 172,000 hard-working men and women and has an economic impact of $15.5 billion. Over 7,000 of those people work in my riding of Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke. The regulatory impediments her government imposes upon them continue to have a massively detrimental effect on their ability to support their families and build our communities.

The Liberals’ ill-conceived Endangered Species Act is the single biggest threat to the forestry industry. On the eve of an election, they now propose a further two-year exemption—Liberal politicking at best.

Speaker, my question to the minister is this: The county of Renfrew has asked for a more meaningful five-year exemption. I support them unequivocally. Will you?

Hon. Nathalie Des Rosiers: Thank you for the question. Actually, I had the opportunity to meet with the forest industry several times on this, and I think they are quite happy with the two-year exemption. It allows them to come to a real solution to reconcile forest development and the Endangered Species Act.

The Endangered Species Act is a commitment that all should have to protect biodiversity in Ontario. It is an important aspect of our policy, and everyone should be behind it. There are some concrete solutions that can be achieved, and the panel we have put in place, which will be announced shortly, is about finding practical solutions to reconcile forest development with endangered species.

As I say, we’re happy to continue to work on this file. I think a solution is appropriate and will be found.

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

Mr. John Yakabuski: Back to the minister: New minister, same old song.

Species at risk and the forests themselves should be protected using the best science available. Social and economic impacts should be considered equally as well.

The Crown Forest Sustainability Act, the gold standard, is the overriding guidance that should be applied. When multiple exemptions to the ESA are required, one thing is crystal clear, Minister: Your government got this wrong from the very beginning. It is time for the ESA to be examined by an independent panel to determine a long-term approach to protecting species at risk and their habitats without decimating this industry.

Will the minister extend the exemption to five years and use that time to get working on a plan that protects species at risk, including the hundreds of thousands of humans who depend on this essential industry?

Hon. Nathalie Des Rosiers: Certainly we are committed to ensuring there are reconciliation efforts between the forest industry and the Endangered Species Act. That’s what we’ve been working on and that’s the point of the two-year survey. Indeed, I’m surprised we’re not talking about this as a big success, because the forest industry is doing well. It’s prepared to do far more for the environment, has done so and will continue to do so in the future.

I continue to think that the Endangered Species Act of Ontario is the gold standard. It does have within it lots of flexibility, lots of tools to both protect endangered species and recognize the socioeconomic impacts.

Humans are certainly part of the way in which we look at the endangered species. They need endangered species protection so they can continue to rely on biodiversity in Ontario.

Labour dispute

Ms. Peggy Sattler: My question is to the Premier. More than 3,000 York University workers are on the picket line this morning, taking a stand against insecure, unstable academic jobs and the underfunding of post-secondary education that is undermining any possibility of job security.

These workers deliver 60% of the instruction for York University students, but their contributions are completely undervalued. These workers want to get back to the important work they do supporting students. York University students want to be able to learn without having to cross a picket line.

Will the Premier use her influence to get the employer back to the bargaining table today so that a negotiated settlement can be reached?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of Labour.

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Thank you to the member for the question. I know surely she is not asking us to intervene in an inappropriate way in this matter, Speaker. Ontario has got an excellent record of—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Finish, please.

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Thank you, Speaker.

Ontario has got a great record with dispute resolution. Over 98% of all agreements in the province of Ontario are reached without any strike, are reached without any lockout, and that’s because of the encouragement and the assistance that both sides bring to the table in order to reach that agreement. But the Ministry of Labour, Speaker, has some of the best mediators and the best arbitrators in the country and they have been working with these groups. I would urge both sides to return to the table. Put the students first.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary?

Ms. Peggy Sattler: Speaker, this situation is not unique to York University; 800 workers at Carleton University have also begun job action this morning.

For almost a decade, Ontario has ranked the lowest of all provinces in Canada in university per-student funding. Not only has this downloaded the cost of university onto students and their families, creating record levels of student debt, but it has also led to an explosion of contract staff and faculty as a way to reduce payroll costs.

Students understand the negative impact this has on the quality of post-secondary education, which is why the CFS was at Queen’s Park last week urging an increase in full-time permanent positions and fairness for contract workers. Will the Premier show some leadership, address the underfunding of post-secondary education and reduce precarious work in the university sector?

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: Speaker, Ontario has got one of the best post-secondary systems in the entire world. We work very, very hard with—

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Finish, please.

Hon. Kevin Daniel Flynn: We’ve made changes to OSAP to make sure that system is available to people who simply couldn’t avail themselves of that system in the past. It’s been a huge success. The primary concern of this government is the students that are attending post-secondary education in the province of Ontario. At the same time, we respect the collective bargaining process that allows parties to bring their best to the table.

What we should be doing in this House, Speaker, is urging both sides in both situations to get back to the table—protect your interests, but put students in the province of Ontario first.

Student assistance

Ms. Soo Wong: My question is for the Minister of Advanced Education and Skills Development.

Speaker, the Premier has been touring many campuses across the province to speak to students about what the government is doing to support them on and off campus. In fact, the minister and the Premier recently toured the University of Toronto Scarborough campus and heard from many of my constituents, like Sheila, Daven and others, about their issues. So I know the minister and the Premier heard first-hand from many of the students at town halls and round tables about supports that they currently receive, like free tuition, free e-textbooks and mental health support, as well as resources they need to succeed.

Speaker, through you to the minister, can she please inform the House what the government is doing to support students in our colleges and universities?

Hon. Mitzie Hunter: Thank you to the member for Scarborough–Agincourt for that question. Yes, the Premier and I had an opportunity to visit many campuses across the province. Premier, you actually did many more. It was so incredible to hear from the students, and I know you were really listening to them.

When it comes to our post-secondary education system in Ontario, we are global leaders. Just one example is that Ryerson’s DMZ has been recognized as the number one business innovation hub in the world, Speaker.

Our government firmly believes that attending college or university should be based on a student’s potential to learn, not on their ability to pay. Improving access to post-secondary education is a key priority for our government.

Speaker, I’m pleased to provide this House with an update on OSAP. Last year, we predicted that 210,000 students would receive free tuition for this academic year. This year, more than 225,000 students are receiving free average—

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

Ms. Soo Wong: Thank you to the minister. I’m glad to hear that our government is putting students first and breaking down one of the most significant barriers to pursuing post-secondary education. We know that about 33% more mature students are now receiving OSAP than before.

I know this is not the only challenge students are facing. At my recent skating party on Family Day, I heard from a group of U of T Scarborough campus students like Ashma, Abouti, Jessica, James, Marina and Pilar. I know they’re watching. They shared with me about the challenges they’re currently facing like mental health support resources, campus sexual violence and limited resources for indigenous students.

Speaker, through you to the minister, can she please address the concerns identified by the students and what we are doing to make campuses more safe and supportive and being inclusive to our students?

Hon. Mitzie Hunter: As the Premier and I were touring these campuses, we were listening to students and the concerns that they were raising. Helping students with their costs is part of Ontario’s plan to keep post-secondary education within the reach of all families, while building the best-educated workforce in the world. While we’re revolutionizing the way students access post-secondary education in our province, the PCs voted against OSAP reforms. Think of that, Speaker.

We are so happy that more and more people are able to access post-secondary education, but also, that means that our campuses need to be able to support people with different experiences and needs. Beginning this school year, we’re investing an additional $6 million annually over three years to improve mental health post-secondary services on campuses, bringing our annual investment to $15 million. This is just the beginning.

Water quality

Mr. Monte McNaughton: My question today is to the Premier. I’m sure the Premier and her new Minister of Health have been paying attention in this House when we have, on numerous occasions, asked questions and made statements regarding water which has become undrinkable because pile driving for wind turbine foundations has disturbed the local aquifer in north Kent.

When will this government direct the Minister of Health to undertake a health hazard investigation into the dangers posed by the heavy metals in the drinking water of my constituents?

Hon. Kathleen O. Wynne: Minister of the Environment and Climate Change.

Hon. Chris Ballard: Thank you to the member opposite for what is a very important issue around the protection of our drinking water right across Ontario. The ministry is actively holding the company accountable for addressing complaints related to changes in their well-water quality. We have undertaken a review of water quality data, to assure residents that their water is safe to drink. Thus far, the analysis has not shown a connection between water quality and construction activity.

The company has informed the ministry that they will work with homeowners, where they are supplying alternative water supplies, to provide and pay for a licensed well contractor to inspect their wells and answer any questions they may have.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Supplementary.

Mr. Monte McNaughton: Back to the Premier: Several generations of residents of north Kent have drawn their drinking water from the aquifer, which carries water along the Kettle Point black shale stratification. Since the construction in this area of industrial wind turbines, whose foundations are anchored by pile-driving steel beams into the shale, 17 water wells have begun producing nothing but murky brown liquid.

More turbines continue to be built in north Kent. Another project, Otter Creek, is planned for the Wallaceburg area, which will involve pile driving into that same black shale bedrock. Will the Premier advocate good health policy by pushing for a stop to these unnecessary wind turbines? How many more wells must be contaminated before this Liberal government declares a health hazard?

Hon. Chris Ballard: I appreciate the follow-up question, because it allows us to clarify once again how important it is to this province that the drinking water quality is protected not only in north Kent but right across the province.

I can say, when talking about the north Kent wind farm, that last week my ministry had a very productive meeting with the scientists from Water Wells First, where the ministry presented our robust and extensive scientific results. I would encourage the member opposite to review those results with the scientists from Water Wells First.

I will say, again, that the ministry takes concerns regarding groundwater quality very seriously and we’re actively holding that company responsible and accountable for addressing these complaints related to any—

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

Notice of dissatisfaction

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Pursuant to standing order 38(a), the member from Perth–Wellington has given notice of his dissatisfaction with the answer to his question given by the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs concerning horse racing at Ajax Downs. This matter will be debated tomorrow at 6 p.m.

We have a deferred vote on government notice of motion number 62, relating to—

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I’m sorry. The member from Nickel Belt on a point of order.

Wearing of pins

M me France Gélinas: I believe we have unanimous consent to wear our little epilepsy awareness pins.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member from Nickel Belt is seeking unanimous consent to wear the pins for epilepsy. Do we agree? Agreed.

The member from Toronto–Danforth on a point of order.

Correction of record

Mr. Peter Tabuns: Speaker, I wish to correct my record. In my speech on February 28, Hansard, page 7418, I said that the NDP hadn’t supported cap-and-trade. I meant to say we had not supported the carbon tax.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): All members are allowed to correct their record. I thank the member for his point of order.

The member from Durham on a point of order.

Visitors

Mr. Granville Anderson: I would like to introduce constituents of mine, Dianne McKenzie and Chelsea Kerstens, from Epilepsy Durham Region.

Member’s birthday

Hon. Michael Coteau: Mr. Speaker, I’d like to wish Chris Ballard a happy birthday.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Happy birthday.

Deferred Votes

Time allocation

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): We have a deferred vote on government notice of motion number 62, relating to allocation of time on Bill 194,

An Act respecting fairness in procurement.

Call in the members. This will be a five-minute bell.

The division bells rang from 1142 to 1147.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): All members, please take your seats.

On March 1, 2018, Mr. Ballard moved government notice of motion number 62, relating to allocation of time on Bill 194,

An Act respecting fairness in procurement.

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

Ayes

Albanese, Laura

Anderson, Granville

Baker, Yvan

Ballard, Chris

Berardinetti, Lorenzo

Bradley, James J.

Chiarelli, Bob

Colle, Mike

Coteau, Michael

Crack, Grant

Del Duca, Steven

Delaney, Bob

Des Rosiers, Nathalie

Dhillon, Vic

Dong, Han

Duguid, Brad

Flynn, Kevin Daniel

Fraser, John

Hoggarth, Ann

Hunter, Mitzie

Kiwala, Sophie

Lalonde, Marie-France

Leal, Jeff

MacCharles, Tracy

Malhi, Harinder

Martins, Cristina

Matthews, Deborah

Mauro, Bill

McGarry, Kathryn

McMahon, Eleanor

McMeekin, Ted

Milczyn, Peter Z.

Moridi, Reza

Naidoo-Harris, Indira

Naqvi, Yasir

Potts, Arthur

Qaadri, Shafiq

Rinaldi, Lou

Sousa, Charles

Takhar, Harinder S.

Thibeault, Glenn

Vernile, Daiene

Wong, Soo

Wynne, Kathleen O.

Zimmer, David

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

Nays

Armstrong, Teresa J.

Arnott, Ted

Bailey, Robert

Barrett, Toby

Bisson, Gilles

Cho, Raymond Sung Joon

Clark, Steve

Fife, Catherine

Forster, Cindy

French, Jennifer K.

Gates, Wayne

Gélinas, France

Gretzky, Lisa

Hardeman, Ernie

Hatfield, Percy

Hillier, Randy

Jones, Sylvia

MacLeod, Lisa

McDonell, Jim

McNaughton, Monte

Munro, Julia

Nicholls, Rick

Oosterhoff, Sam

Pettapiece, Randy

Sattler, Peggy

Scott, Laurie

Tabuns, Peter

Taylor, Monique

Thompson, Lisa M.

Walker, Bill

Wilson, Jim

Yakabuski, John

Yurek, Jeff

The Clerk of the Assembly (Mr. Todd Decker): The ayes are 45; the nays are 33.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): I declare the motion carried.

Motion agreed to.

Notice of dissatisfaction

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Pursuant to standing order 38(a), the member from Elgin–Middlesex–London has given notice of his dissatisfaction with the answer to his question given by the Attorney General concerning PET and CT scanners in Windsor-Essex. This matter will be debated tomorrow at 6 p.m.

Sheridan College students

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The Minister of Advanced Education on a point of order.

Hon. Mitzie Hunter: Yes, Speaker. I could not let this morning pass without asking us to congratulate the amazing students and graduates of Sheridan College whose work was recognized last night at the Academy Awards with The Shape of Water. Four wins, nine nominations—another example of excellence in Ontario’s post-secondary education system.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): There being no further deferred votes, this House stands recessed until 1 p.m. this afternoon.

The House recessed from 1151 to 1300.

Introduction of Visitors

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Introduction of guests? Introduction of guests? Last call for introduction of guests.

Interjection.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Therefore, it’s time for—introduction of guests? Someone’s doing something they’re not supposed to do right now, and that’s run in the House and carry scissors at the same time.

The member from Beaches–East York.

Mr. Arthur Potts: Speaker, thank you very much. I’m delighted to welcome a whole bunch of youth from my riding association of Beaches–East York who are here in support of my private member’s bill that I’ll be tabling later today.

Interjections.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Don’t go by his example of running in the House.

Members’ Statements

Cornwall Chamber of Commerce Business Excellence Awards

Mr. Jim McDonell: The Cornwall Chamber of Commerce recently hosted its annual Business Excellence Awards to celebrate the achievements of innovative businesses and entrepreneurs in my riding. The winners in each category are as follows:

Olsonfab was named Business of the Year.

Small Business of the Year went to Pure Organic Spa.

Entrepreneur of the Year went to Rachel Lamoureux, the owner of Blooms.

Team Cornwall Ambassador of the Year was Roy Nichol of April Wine.

The Historic Walking Tour was singled out for Tourism Excellence.

For the creation of over 130 full-time jobs, Xplornet was honoured for Economic Impact of the Year.

The Above and Beyond Award went to Dr. Thorin Gault.

The Cornwall Innovation Centre received the Breakthrough Award.

Nolan Quinn received Young Professional of the Year.

Fred and Bonnie Cappuccino received the Dr. Garth Taylor Humanitarian Award for their work with children in need around the world.

Rick Shaver, the publisher of Seaway News and Cornwall Living, was honoured with the Lifetime Business Achievement Award.

Citizen of the Year was awarded to the very deserving Rachelle Lamond, who has worked to make a positive difference in our community for over 25 years.

It truly was a great venue and a fun night. I’d like to thank chair Rory MacLennan and executive manager Lezlie Strasser—who was recognized for 30 years of dedicated service to the chamber—and all the volunteers who put together such a great night.

On behalf of the residents of Stormont–Dundas–South Glengarry: a job well done.

Pharmacare

M me France Gélinas: Ontario has six different drug plans. The latest, called OHIP+, is for children and youth. OHIP+ started on January 1 and, since then, my office has received countless calls from frustrated parents. Here are a few examples:

Robin Labelle’s daughter takes 13 different medications, which were all covered by their workplace drug plan. Since January 1, the pediatricians at SickKids are doing applications to the Ministry of Health’s EAP program so that they can have coverage through OHIP+, or at least get a written refusal from the ministry so the family’s insurance will pay. So far, all they’ve got is frustration and out-of-pocket costs.

Brenda Skibinsky’s son takes a common drug, but because he needs a 10-milligram pill rather than the usual 20 milligrams, it is not covered. Her pediatrician applied to the EAP weeks ago, and they are still waiting. The doctor told her it will be six to eight weeks before they hear back from the ministry. So Brenda is now paying out of pocket for medication that her drug plan used to cover.

Epilepsy Ontario is here today. They shared the story of four-year-old Ava. OHIP+ will not cover the cost of her generic anti-seizure medication because—get this, Speaker—the child must first try and fail at two other medications before OHIP+ will cover the generic medication that works and controls her seizures.

This is not acceptable. This new Liberal drug plan is making our health care system less caring and less compassionate. We can do better.

Kingston prison farms

Ms. Sophie Kiwala: It gives me great pleasure to rise today and acknowledge a tremendous event in Kingston and the Islands’ history and a very good announcement.

As many of you know, six prison farms across Canada were closed starting in 2010, including two in Kingston, the Joyceville and Collins Bay Institutions.

Applause.

Ms. Sophie Kiwala: Yes. I would also like to acknowledge the work of our MP, Mark Gerretsen, and the federal minister, the Honourable Ralph Goodale, the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, for their work on this file.

I would also like to acknowledge a group of absolutely outstanding activists in my riding, who never gave up the fight to have the farms reinstated. For nearly a decade, members of the Save Our Prison Farms group have campaigned, lobbied and sacrificed their Monday nights in snow, sleet, hail and rain to stand vigil outside of the Collins Bay Institution in order to bring the cows home. Such advocates include Dianne Dowling and Jeff Peters, who kept pushing even when there was little hope of progress. They continued to stand guard for perhaps one of our society’s most marginalized groups, and their work has paid off.

In my view, this is a typical Kingston story. It’s a story of steadfast resilience and a group of people who came together for the well-being of a marginalized population. That, to me, is a big part of what Kingston is all about.

Florence Kehl

Mr. Randy Pettapiece: I want to pay tribute to Florence Kehl, a remarkable constituent who passed away last month.

Florence was a beacon of grace and compassion who dedicated her life to the service of others. Driven by her strong Christian faith, Florence and her husband mortgaged their house in Stratford to start the House of Blessing in 1983. Today, this now-9,000-square-foot centre offers food, clothing and children’s programs to the less fortunate in our community. In 2015, Florence also opened the Healing Rooms of Stratford, a non-denominational centre where people can go for prayer and spiritual support.

For her efforts, Florence was recognized with many awards over the years, including Stratford Citizen of the Year, the Ontario Medal for Good Citizenship, and the Queen’s Golden and Diamond Jubilee Medals.

More importantly, Florence is remembered and cherished by the countless people whose lives she touched. A long-time House of Blessing volunteer, Jacquie Beale, had this to say: “When I was so down, God answered my prayers through an angel on earth. The angel on earth was Flo.”

We can all be inspired by this humble woman, who served as a living example of the scriptural teaching, “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat.”

I would like to extend condolences to Florence’s husband of 56 years, Norm, her family and friends and everyone else whose life she changed for the better.

International Women’s Day

Ms. Catherine Fife: I’m proud today to rise to speak about International Women’s Day.

While it is fitting to celebrate the achievements of women, it is just as important to recognize all of the work that we still need to do to achieve equity and equality for everyone in this province. We know that parity doesn’t happen overnight, but it has been 30 years since the Pay Equity Act was passed, and still women make 30% less than men, racialized women make 32% less, immigrant women make 39% less and indigenous women make 57% less. It doesn’t have to be this way.

This year’s theme for International Women’s Day is “Press for Progress.” It’s clear that there is so much more that we can do together. We need to ensure that the voices of the LGTBQ+ folks are taken seriously and respected. We need to make child care more affordable and accessible for young parents. We need to stand in solidarity with indigenous women to address the call for action on missing and murdered women and children. And we need to elect more diverse voices to this Legislature and to councils.

That’s why I’m so proud to be working with St. Jerome’s University to found Waterloo region’s first Equal Voice

chapter on March 25. And I’ll be welcoming my Girls’ Government group from Vista Hills Public School to this Legislature on April 9.

For me, this International Women’s Day is a call to action. We can do more; we must do more.

Olga Duguid

Mr. Brad Duguid: On January 24, 2018, my mother, Olga Duguid, passed away from respiratory failure at Ajax hospital. While we’ll all miss her, it’s my dad, Jim, whose life has been left with the biggest hole after 56 years of marriage.

Their relationship was one of absolute devotion and total love, something that’s very rare, especially in today’s just-in-time world. Looking back, I don’t believe we can think of any time that they ever spent more than a night away from each other. For those who don’t believe in the term “soulmates,” you would if you met Jim and Olga.

To my siblings and I, our mom helped make us who we are. She gave us the inspiration to do whatever in life we chose to do and the confidence to take chances and pursue our dreams, knowing that no matter whether we failed miserably or succeeded, we always knew that we would be greeted by our mom and dad with love and pride. That is an incredible advantage in life.

She was fiercely proud of her kids. One out of three of us pursued a reputable profession. My sister became a nurse and was a nurse for over 30 years. As for the other two, my brother became a lawyer and of course the other became a politician. Thank God for my sister. Despite that, you always knew her greatest pride was her kids and her grandkids.

While we all still mourn her loss, we’re comforted by the fact that she had a great 80 years and her love and pride for us all will continue to give us strength, confidence and joy throughout the rest of our lives.

Nepean Ice Crushers hockey team

Ms. Lisa MacLeod: I rise today to congratulate one of the best peewee girls’ house league teams in all of Canada, the Nepean Ice Crushers of the Wildcats organization. Regular season and league champions, the team also placed first in Almonte and second in the DIFD tournaments.

I often share great sport stories from teams across Nepean–Carleton, but this one, Speaker, is very personal. I’m a parent and a trainer on this team. This was the team that I spend my weekends with and who, especially in the past eight weeks, gave me more moments to treasure and enjoy than I could have ever imagined.

The Nepean Ice Crushers were led by our phenomenal coach, Scott Boassaly, and his amazing coaching staff and den moms. Yesterday, he handed out gold medals to Addison Wellstead, Alyssa Tam, Ava Bajada, Dena Yousuf, Emma Gardner, Erin Lee, Eulalie Reesink-Babillon, Holly Graham, Janelle May, Lauren Boassaly, Melinda Palumbo—who scored the game-winning goal—Mikyla McCormick—who got three shutouts, Speaker—Natalia Martinez-Peers, Toryn Clarke and, of course, my own daughter, Victoria Varner.

These girls were invested, they shared many ups and downs, and they felt responsibility for one another. They were each other’s champions. They often had tough games, but they had lots of laughs. They brought us all together, as teams often do, and of course we know that’s what hockey is and why it’s the greatest game on earth.

I say frequently that all-stars aren’t necessarily the best players. All-stars are talented on and off the ice, and that’s what those Ice Crushers are. I want to congratulate them for a great season, and I was grateful to be part of it.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): That statement answers a lot of questions. Never mess with a hockey mom.

Ms. Lisa MacLeod: Yes, never.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): Further members’ statements.

Voting age

Mr. Arthur Potts: I rise today in advance of tabling a private member’s bill to talk about the importance of lowering the voting age in Ontario. Young people 16 and over have adult responsibilities in our province, but they are denied some of the same rights. They are contributing and active members of our society, and thousands are employed or volunteer in their communities. In denying them the right to vote, we are effectively disenfranchising them. This implies that we think that they have nothing of value to add to political conversations, but nothing, Speaker, could be further from the truth.

In fact, many young people, like the ones who are here today, inspired this private member’s bill, and I’m happy to bring it forward.

Despite their inability to vote, young people do find ways to engage in the political process. One of the greatest testaments to this is happening now south of the border. Students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School have challenged senators and congressional representatives and have sparked the #NeverAgain movement. These young people are engaged in a substantive debate on gun control, but they did not—and could not—vote for the representatives responsible for the laws.

Speaker, I believe that giving 16-year-olds the right to vote will increase voter participation and will cause political parties to develop policies that take youth interests into consideration.

Moreover, taxation without representation was not acceptable in the 1700s in England and should not be acceptable in modern-day Ontario.

We must provide young people with a direct and democratic channel for making their views heard, and in doing so, we give them a responsible stake in the future of Ontario.

For this reason, I ask all members of this House to support lowering the voting age in Ontario to 16.

Brooklyn Hewton

Mr. Bill Walker: I’m excited to rise today and recognize yet another young and enterprising constituent from my riding of Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound. This time, I would like to share with the House news from Lion’s Head, where a 17-year-old fiddler extraordinaire, Brooklyn Hewton, showed immense creativity and generosity when she used a $150 grant from the Royal Bank of Canada’s Canada 150 grant and turned it into almost $13,000 worth of donations for the Lion’s Head Hospital auxiliary.

Brooklyn, who plays fiddle with Midnight Blue, and my friend Dave Nixon hosted a musical fundraiser for the local hospital last summer. Her double-duty act as organizer and performer drew a crowd of 600 people to the Bruce County Country Music Fest in Lion’s Head, where she entertained them for several hours to the sound of country and bluegrass music.

The fundraiser was a huge boost for Brooklyn, whose initial goal was to raise $5,000. In the end, she actually more than doubled her goal when she sold some 600 tickets and collected almost $13,000 in donations, with the help of the Lion’s Head auxiliary members.

Auxiliary president Sharon Winegarden said that Brooklyn’s “initiative, creativity and generosity ... are an inspiration to us all.” The auxiliary, hospital staff—doctors, nurses—and the whole community are proud of her efforts to make a difference to health care in our community.

Because Brooklyn—who was crowned queen at last year’s Groundhog Day festival—isn’t one to rest on her laurels, without a shadow of a doubt, she is already busy planning the next live music festival, which she promised would go again toward making a difference in our community and helping to keep services close to home.

Considering that Brooklyn’s musical talents have been well known for several years, there’s no doubt she will continue to do amazingly well at home and beyond.

Brooklyn, thank you so much, and all the best of continued success.

Introduction of Bills

Election Amendment Act (Voter Eligibility), 2018 / Loi de 2018 modifiant la Loi électorale (admissibilité des électeurs)

Mr. Potts moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill 202,

An Act to amend the Election Act with respect to voter eligibility / Projet de loi 202, Loi modifiant la Loi électorale en ce qui concerne l’admissibilité des électeurs.

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

First reading agreed to.

The Speaker (Hon. Dave Levac): The member for a short statement.

Mr. Arthur Potts: This bill amends the Election Act to lower the age for persons to be eligible to vote in an election to the Legislative Assembly from 18 years to 16 years. Related amendments are made throughout the act.

Petitions

Anti-smoking initiatives for youth

M me France Gélinas: I’m pleased to present these petitions that were collected in Hamilton Centre, as well as by Cheri Bainard from Hanmer in my riding.

It reads as follows:

“Whereas:

“—In the past 10 years in Ontario, 86% of all movies with on-screen smoking were rated for youth;

“—The tobacco industry has a long, well-documented history of promoting tobacco use on-screen;

“—A scientific report released by the Ontario Tobacco Research Unit estimated that 185,000 children in Ontario today will be recruited to smoking by exposure to on-screen smoking;

“—More than 59,000 will eventually die from tobacco-related cancers, strokes, heart disease and emphysema, incurring at least $1.1 billion in health care costs; and

whereas an adult rating (18A) for movies that promote on-screen tobacco in Ontario would save at least 30,000 lives and half a billion health care dollars;

“—The Ontario government has a stated goal to achieve the lowest smoking rates in Canada;

“—79% of Ontarians support not allowing smoking in movies rated G, PG, 14A ... ;

“—The Minister of Government and Consumer Services has the authority to amend the regulations ... ;”

They petition the Legislative Assembly as follows:

“—To request the Standing Committee on Government Agencies examine the ways in which the regulations of the Film Classification Act could be amended to reduce smoking in youth-rated films ... ;

“—That the committee report back on its findings to the” Legislature.

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

Cardiac care

Ms. Peggy Sattler: I have a petition entitled “Stop the Closure of the Cardiac Fitness Institute.” I would like to thank the many citizens of London and area who signed this petition. It reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the Cardiac Fitness Institute (CFI) at the London Health Sciences Centre has provided over 35 years of cardiac rehab and care services to thousands of patients; and

“Whereas research shows that long-term lifestyle changes following serious cardiac events are critical to save lives and to prevent costly hospital visits later; and

“Whereas the CFI is the only program in London that provides long-term cardiac rehab support, with approximately 1,400 cardiac patients currently benefitting from the program; and

“Whereas patients who access CFI services have a rehab retention rate of 75% to 80%, well above the average for patients who attend short-term programs; and

“Whereas the LHSC has cited a lack of government funding as a driving factor in their decision to close the CFI;

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

“Immediately fund the CFI to prevent its closure and ensure that heart patients and their families have access to the care they need to stay healthy.”

I couldn’t agree more with this petition. I affix my name to it and will give it to page Sully to take to the table.

Fishing and hunting regulations

Mr. Jeff Yurek: “To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the Ontario hunting and fishing regulation summaries are printed each year by the Ministry of Natural Resources and distributed to hunters and recreational fishermen throughout the province to inform them of all the relevant seasons, limits, licence requirements and other regulations; and

“Whereas these valuable documents are readily available for hunters and anglers to keep in their residence, cottage, truck, boat, hunt camp and trailer to be fully informed of the current hunting and fishing regulations; and

“Whereas the MNR has recently and abruptly drastically reduced the distribution of the Ontario hunting and fishing regulation summaries such that even major licence issuers and large hunting and fishing retailers are limited to one case of regulations per outlet; and

“Whereas hunters and anglers do not always have access to the Internet to view online regulations while travelling or in remote areas;

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

“To immediately return the production of the Ontario hunting and fishing regulation summaries to previous years’ quantities such that all hunters and anglers have access to a copy and to distribute them accordingly.”

I agree with the petition and affix my signature.

Gasoline prices

M me France Gélinas: I would like to thank Roger LeBlanc from Val Caron in my riding for the petition. It reads as follows:

“Whereas northern Ontario motorists continue to be subject to wild fluctuations in the price of gasoline; and

“Whereas the province could eliminate opportunistic price gouging and deliver fair, stable and predictable fuel prices; and

“Whereas five provinces and many US states already have some sort of gas price regulation; and

“Whereas jurisdictions with gas price regulation have seen an end to wild price fluctuations, a shrinking of price discrepancies between urban and rural communities and lower annualized gas prices;

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

“Mandate the Ontario Energy Board to monitor the price of gasoline across Ontario in order to reduce price volatility and unfair regional price differences while encouraging competition.”

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

Highway improvement

Mr. Jeff Yurek: “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 median barrier from Tilbury to Elgin county.”

I agree with this petition and will affix my signature.

Long-term care

Ms. Peggy Sattler: I have a petition to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario entitled “Create a Minimum Long-Term-Care Standard.” It reads as follows:

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

“Whereas the provincial government does not provide adequate funding to ensure care and staffing levels in LTC homes to keep pace with residents’ increasing acuity and the growing number of residents with complex behaviours; and

“Whereas several Ontario coroner’s inquests into LTC homes deaths have recommended an increase in direct hands-on care for residents and staffing levels and the most reputable studies on this topic recommend 4.1 hours of direct care per day;”

Therefore, “We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to:

“Amend the LTC Homes Act (2007) for a legislated minimum care standard of four hours per resident per day, adjusted for acuity level and case mix.”

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

Highway improvement

Mr. Robert Bailey: This petition is 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 median barrier from Tilbury to Elgin county.”

I agree with this and will send it down with Morgan to the table.

Politiques énergétiques

M me France Gélinas: J’aimerais remercier M. Clément Lacelle de Chelmsford dans mon comté pour avoir signé cette pétition.

« Entendu que les factures d’électricité sont devenues inabordables pour un trop grand nombre de personnes et que la réduction des factures d’électricité de 30 % pour les familles et les entreprises est une cible ambitieuse mais réaliste;

« Entendu que les familles ontariennes ne devraient pas avoir à payer des primes du temps d’utilisation, et celles qui vivent dans une région rurale ou nordique ne devraient pas avoir à payer des frais de livraison plus élevés et punitifs;

« Entendu que la seule façon de réparer le système hydro-électrique est de s’attaquer aux causes de base des prix élevés, y compris la privatisation, les marges de profits excessives, la surabondance d’électricité et plus; »

Ils pétitionnent l’Assemblée législative de l’Ontario de « réduire les factures d’électricité pour les entreprises et les familles jusqu’à 30 %, éliminer les délais d’utilisation obligatoires, mettre fin aux coûts de livraison ruraux inéquitables et rétablir la propriété publique d’Hydro One. »

J’appuie cette pétition, je vais la signer, et je la donne à Jamie.

Fish and wildlife management

Mr. Jeff Yurek: “To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the government created a special-purpose account (SPA) in 1997;

“Whereas the SPA pools together all revenues from hunting and fishing licensing fees, fines and royalties. The funds in the SPA are legislated to be reinvested back into wildlife management to improve hunting and angling across the province;

“Whereas the government is refusing to release the details of the spending of the SPA;

“Whereas a recently obtained report showed SPA expenditures from 2011-12 revealed expenditures (i.e. $69,000 spent to purchase and sell a house and $55,000 devoted to a psychologist) that are unrelated to wildlife management;

“Whereas in the past the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry has indicated that records for the SPA fund cannot be released as ‘they do not exist’;

“Whereas this is in direct contradiction to the Financial Administration Act that requires receipts and disbursement to be recorded for all special-purpose accounts;

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

“That in the name of accountability and transparency the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry direct the Auditor General to conduct a value-for-money audit of the SPA fund.”

I totally agree with this petition and affix my signature to it.

Energy policies

Ms. Peggy Sattler: I have a petition signed by many residents of London West that is entitled, “Fix Hydro Now.”

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas hydro bills in Ontario have become unaffordable for too many people;

“Whereas reducing hydro bills by up to 30% for families and businesses is an ambitious but realistic target;

“Whereas the only way to fix the hydro system is to address the root causes of high prices including privatization, excessive profit margins, oversupply, unfavourable net export practices and more;

“Whereas Ontario families should not have to pay time-of-use premiums, and those living in a rural or northern region should not have to pay higher, punitive delivery charges;

“Whereas changing the financing of private contracts and the global adjustment fails to reduce the long-term cost of hydro for families and businesses, does not fix the system and, in fact, will cost billions of dollars extra in borrowing costs;

“Whereas Hydro One can be returned to public ownership and management without increasing rates;

“Whereas returning Hydro One to public ownership would deliver over $7 billion back to the province and the people of Ontario;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, express our support for reducing hydro” rates “for businesses and families by up to 30%, eliminating mandatory time-of-use” charges, “ending unfair rural delivery costs, and restoring public ownership of Hydro One.”

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

Long-term care

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

“Whereas the government first promised a legislated care standard for residents in the province’s long-term-care homes in 2003 but are yet to make good on their promise;

“Whereas the Long-Term Care Homes Act (2007) empowers the provincial government to create a minimum standard;

“Whereas a study done in 2001 by the US Centres for Medicaid and Medicare Services cited 4.1 worked hours per resident day as a minimum target, which was later confirmed in a 2004 observational study and in a reanalysis by Abt Associates in 2011, and reinforced by the 2008 Independent Review of Staffing and Care Standards for Long-Term Care Homes report by Shirlee Sharkey, who recommended a four-hour minimum target;

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

“To legislate a care standard of a minimum four hours per resident each day, adjusted for acuity level and case mix.”

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

Long-term care

M me France Gélinas: I would like to thank Anne-Marie Higgs from Hanmer in my riding for signing this petition that reads as follows:

“Fair Treatment of the Frail Elderly Seeking Long-Term-Care Placement.

“Whereas frail elderly patients needing long-term-care placement in homes within the North East Local Health Integration Network ... have been pressured to move out of the hospital to await placement, or stay and pay hospital rates of approximately $1,000 per day; and

“Whereas frail elderly patients needing long-term-care placement in Sudbury and Sault Ste. Marie have been pressured to move to homes not of their choosing, or to ‘interim’ beds in facilities that don’t meet legislated standards for permanent long-term-care homes; and

“Whereas the practice of making patients remain in ‘interim’ beds is contrary to Ministry ... policy which identifies ‘interim’ beds as intended to ‘ensure a continuous flow-through so that interim beds are constantly freed up for new applicants from hospitals’;”

They “petition the Legislative Assembly as follows:

“—Ensure health system officials are using ‘interim’ beds as ‘flow-through,’ in accordance with fairness and as outlined in” the ministry’s “policy;

“—Ensure patients aren’t pressured with hospital rates and fulfill promises made to hundreds of nursing home residents who agreed to move temporarily with the promise that they would be relocated as soon as a bed in a home of their choosing became available.”

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

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

Orders of the Day

Fairness in Procurement Act, 2018 / Loi de 2018 sur l’équité en matière de marchés publics

Resuming the debate adjourned on February 28, 2018, on the motion for second reading of the following bill:

Bill 194,

An Act respecting fairness in procurement / Projet de loi 194, Loi concernant l’équité en matière de marchés publics.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): Pursuant to the order of the House dated March 5, 2018, I am now required to put the question.

Ms. McMahon has moved second reading of Bill 194,

An Act respecting fairness in procurement. Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? I heard some noes.

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

All those opposed will please say “nay.”

In my opinion, the ayes have it.

Call in the members. This will be a five-minute bell.

Interjection.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): No, it won’t.

I wish to inform the House that I have received a vote deferral notice asking that pursuant to standing order 28(

h) the vote on second reading of Bill 194, Fairness in Procurement Act, be deferred until the time of deferred votes tomorrow, Tuesday, March 6. It’s signed by the chief government whip.

Second reading vote deferred.

Time allocation

Hon. Nathalie Des Rosiers: I move that, pursuant to standing order 47 and notwithstanding any other standing order or special order of the House relating to Bill 175,

An Act to implement measures with respect to policing, coroners and forensic laboratories and to enact, amend or repeal certain other statutes and revoke a regulation, that the deadline for filing amendments to the bill with the Clerk of the Standing Committee on Justice Policy shall be 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 6, 2018; and

That the committee be authorized to meet on Tuesday, March 6, from 3:30 p.m. to 11 p.m., for the purpose of clause-by-clause consideration of the bill; and

That, on Tuesday, March 6, at 4:30 p.m., those amendments which have not yet been moved shall be deemed to have been moved, and the Chair of the Committee shall interrupt the proceedings and shall, without further debate or amendment, put every question necessary to dispose of all remaining sections of the bill and any amendments thereto. At this time, the Chair shall allow one 20-minute waiting period pursuant to standing order 129(a); and

That the committee shall report the bill to the House no later than Wednesday, March 7, 2018. In the event that the committee fails to report the bill on that day, the bill shall be deemed to be passed by the committee and shall be deemed to be reported to and received by the House; and

That, upon receiving the report of the Standing Committee on Justice Policy, the Speaker shall put the question for adoption of the report forthwith, and at such time the bill shall be ordered for third reading, which order may be called that same day; and

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

That, notwithstanding standing order 81(c), the bill may be called more than once in the same sessional day; and

The vote on third reading maybe be deferred pursuant to standing order 28(h); and

That, in the case of any division relating to any proceedings on the bill, the division bell shall be limited to five minutes.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): Madame Des Rosiers has moved government notice of motion number 63. I expect she will want to lead off debate.

Hon. Nathalie Des Rosiers: I believe the parliamentary assistant will be making our remarks later today.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): Thank you.

Further debate? The member for Haliburton–Kawartha Lakes–Brock.

Ms. Laurie Scott: Thank you, Mr. Speaker—

Mr. John Yakabuski: The Liberals don’t even want to speak to their dictatorship.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): I’m going to ask the member to withdraw that comment. He’s got to go down to his seat and withdraw the comment—the member for Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke.

Mr. John Yakabuski: I didn’t realize what I said was unparliamentary.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): We’ve got to get through the afternoon.

I ask the member to withdraw.

Mr. John Yakabuski: I’m waiting for the mike to go on. Thank you, Speaker. I saw that light, and then I knew I could speak.

I withdraw.

Ms. Laurie Scott: I share the frustration that my colleague from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke has, having to stand here yet again on another time allocation motion brought forward by the government. For those at home: It basically limits the time we can debate and make changes to the bill. I think I’ve lost count of how many times the Liberal government has used parliamentary procedure to shut down debate and to undermine the democratic input into their legislation.

This time, they’re rushing through Bill 175,

An Act to implement measures with respect to policing, coroners and forensic laboratories—

Interjection.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): I apologize. I’m going to ask the member for Davenport to come to order.

The afternoon is just starting. We’re here till 6 o’clock together.

I apologize again to the member for Haliburton–Kawartha Lakes–Brock, who has the floor.

Ms. Laurie Scott: Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I don’t mind that you keep the government side in check, because Bill 175 is an important act to implement measures with respect to policing, coroners and forensic laboratories and to enact, amend or repeal certain other statutes and revoke a regulation. It’s kind of important—more important than the motions that they’ve been bringing forward to debate, because they can’t even get their own legislative

schedule in order.

This is a massive piece of legislation. It’s hundreds of pages. It represents a very significant change to the current Police Services Act. As they like to say, this is the biggest change to the Police Services Act in more than 20 years—that came from their minister. It is, but in many ways it’s not a change for the better.

However, despite the significance of this bill and the many, many, many concerns expressed by stakeholders, the government is determined to compress clause-by-clause in committee into one day and to reduce debate at third reading to just one hour split among three political parties.

It’s a big bill. As I said, it’s the biggest change in 20 years. And yet, when we’re trying to make amendments to strengthen the bill, they’ve compressed that time. Again, democracy is out the door in front of the Liberal agenda. That’s more of the priority. Mr. Speaker, without a doubt, it’s very shameful.

Even before this time allocation motion was tabled, the Standing Committee on Justice Policy was already on an absurdly tight schedule. The opposition’s requests to expand hearings to allow for the views of the people in northern Ontario to be heard were rejected by the Liberal majority on the committee—not a surprise, but still.

But setting aside our concerns as the opposition, the most offensive part of all of this is that, in their rush to pass this legislation, the government will end up ignoring some very legitimate concerns expressed by stakeholders.

Last week in committee, we invited over 40 delegations representing a wide variety of organizations to make presentations to the committee over a period of just two days. These presentations were thoughtful and in many cases very detailed, containing concrete suggestions of how to fix the bill. This bill is hundreds of pages, and it has been over 20 years since the Police Services Act was changed. So that’s a very, very tight timeline. The government hasn’t even given parliamentarians enough time for their input and concerns to be properly considered.

The government clearly wanted to put on a show, to be able to say that they consulted the public, but it seems clear that they never had any intention of actually listening to the people who contributed their time to explain the many flaws of Bill 175. In many cases, these stakeholders spent their own resources to prepare legal opinions—no small ticket on that—but it seems like the government didn’t care about that. They may as well have skipped the hearings if they never had any intention of considering them as part of the process.

It’s an insult to use stakeholders as political cover while planning to force this legislation through anyway.

Thankfully, the official opposition has been listening to the stakeholders, and we’re determined to bring their concerns forward since the government isn’t listening to them. On this side of the House, we have been working hard to prepare amendments that would address the many concerns expressed by police associations, municipalities and community associations. We’ve done what we can to meet the short deadline set by this government, but I fear that the government will end up ignoring what we’ve done, which is sadly typical of their partisan approach in this House.

They’ve demonstrated this anti-democratic behaviour so many times before. I know it seems normal to you now. They always think they know best. They’re willing to ram through legislation without any consideration of different views.

When I delivered my speech on Bill 175 at second reading, I made the point that the content of this piece of legislation showed that this government doesn’t trust our police officers. The time allocation motion that we are now debating proves that point beyond any doubt.

I’ve listened to our three police associations; namely, the Police Association of Ontario, the Ontario Provincial Police Association and the Toronto Police Association. They told me how frustrated they were by the lack of consultation by this government during the drafting of the bill. They told me about the silence from this government in response to the very detailed briefing highlighting the concerns that they provided to the ministers last summer. Why did the Attorney General and Minister of Community Safety not treat their concerns with the seriousness they deserved? Silence and disdain is all they got from this government’s ministers.

Here’s a series of tweets from police stakeholders, starting with Bruce Chapman, the president of the Police Association of Ontario, which represents 18,000 police officers and civilian staff. On March 1, Mr. Chapman wrote: “Well over 40 individuals or groups have attended the justice committee hearings and made submissions on changes to Bill 175. What is the rush to ram through a bill where so many stakeholders have voiced concerns and requested changes?”

He’s right, Mr. Speaker, and he said that before the time allocation motion that we are debating now was put forward. Even then, the government was already seen as rushing through the consideration of Bill 175. But still, the police stakeholders were committed to playing a constructive role, hoping that the reasonable suggestions they had for changes to the bill would be considered.

Rob Jamieson, president of the Ontario Provincial Police Association, which represents nearly 10,000 uniformed police officers and civilian members, highlighted that commitment to what they thought would be a fair process: “Proud to be here representing our members. We will continue to participate and raise our concerns throughout this process and raise awareness about Bill 175 to our members and the community.”

Mr. Chapman echoed that when he tweeted, “Wrapping up the second and last day of justice committee hearings at Queen’s Park. The @PoliceAssocOn will be back next week Tuesday Wednesday and Thursday to hear clause-by-clause changes let hope government heard in order 2 #keepOntariosafe.”

Well, unfortunately, if—or, should I say, when—the government forces through its time allocation motion, Mr. Chapman won’t even get those three days. The committee will be forced to work through clause-by-clause on this massive piece of legislation tomorrow morning and then between 3:30 and 11 tomorrow night. Instead of three days, we only get one, Mr. Speaker—just one working day to consider all of the amendments to this massive bill.

You can understand that frustration expressed by Mr. Chapman later that very same day when he tweeted, “Absolutely shocked that government @Yasir_Naqvi put forth motion for time allotment on Bill 175 & rushing through justice committee clause-by-clause and bringing back on Wednesday March 7th to Queen’s Park 1 hr of further debate unbelievable.”

Rob Jamieson, president of the Ontario Provincial Police Association, shared Mr. Chapman’s concerns. He said, “Unbelievable that the Attorney General and former Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services @Yasir_Naqvi and government would accelerate the passage of Bill 175 that so negatively affects officer well-being and community safety.”

That really says it all, Mr. Speaker: unbelievable. And yet, nothing that this government does surprises us anymore on this side. The arrogant, we-know-best approach that they take is all too familiar, and we are working hard to bring that to an end soon when Ontarians vote for change in the form of a PC majority government this coming June.

Still, even with this government’s terrible and undemocratic record, I can’t believe that they would be so shamelessly dismissive of the concerns of our dedicated, hard-working police officers—again, just shameful. The only thing that I can think of is that they just don’t trust them. I say, they don’t respect the work of the police officers, they don’t respect their opinions, and they don’t care about what impact their legislation will have on them. How can our police services be expected to serve and protect Ontarians when their own government refuses to treat them with the respect that they deserve?

Have the Attorney General and the Minister of Community Safety even thought about the morale of the amazing people who put their lives on the line every day to protect Ontarians? Clearly, they haven’t. I spoke with dozens of police officers who are at the breaking point. They feel that the government has done nothing but make their work harder and harder to do, and they just won’t take it anymore. Bill 175 was the final straw for many of our experienced and dedicated officers. Many of them are taking early retirement, and who can blame them?

The government is clearly failing at its responsibility to provide safe, effective and affordable policing. The Association of Municipalities of Ontario, like the police, also have serious concerns about the legislation as it is currently drafted. From AMO: “Cities and towns are worried this government’s overhaul of policing does nothing to help reduce costs.”

Municipalities and organizations like the Eastern Ontario Wardens’ Caucus also expressed their concerns about the cost of implementing these changes on the municipal level. They worry about how this will impact the work of police services boards. They face new bureaucratic processes, strict timelines for community policing plans and unclear expectations in other areas.

Again, how does this government justify pushing through this flawed piece of legislation that offends our police officers and doesn’t address the concerns of our municipalities? They can’t. They are so blinded by their partisan political agenda that they will bulldoze through anything and anyone to force their will on Ontarians before the election, an election that they are on track to lose. They don’t care what kind of damage they’re doing. The concerns of Ontarians don’t matter. All that matters to this government is their own narrow political agenda.

While this government likes to talk about fairness, their approach to this bill and so many others shows that they are anything but fair. This government is willing to use all the procedural tricks in the book to rush through a bill that has so many problems. I’ll be talking in detail about all of the problems with this bill during third reading, but I think it’s only fair to highlight some of the major issues during this debate about time allocation, since this is what the government is planning to force on Ontarians.

Mr. Jeff Yurek: Sounds like Putin.

Ms. Laurie Scott: It does sound like Putin, but there you go. I leave it to the people of Ontario—

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): I’m going to ask the member for Elgin–Middlesex–London to withdraw that comment, and I have to ask the member for Haliburton–Kawartha Lakes–Brock to withdraw that comment as well—one after another.

Mr. Jeff Yurek: I’ll withdraw.

Ms. Laurie Scott: I withdraw, Mr. Speaker.

Mr. John Yakabuski: So they can say it’s about Trump but we can’t say it’s about Putin? I don’t understand that.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): Would you like to have a conversation about this after 6 o’clock, perhaps? I ask the member.

Mr. John Yakabuski: I would love to.

The Acting Speaker (Mr. Ted Arnott): The member for Haliburton–Kawartha Lakes–Brock has the floor.

Interjections.

Ms. Laurie Scott: We might have time. I think once we vote on this time allocation, we might actually have time to put a motion in, maybe, to discuss what the member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke is saying.

Getting back to highlighting some of the major issues that we heard about: In the current form, the bill would allow the outsourcing for certain police functions to private organizations, including security contractors, which carries with it significant community safety risks. The police associations have focused on this point in their argumentation, and with good reason. This bill introduces additional layers of oversight for our police officers but it offers no indication of what kind of oversight there will be over the contractors.

Let’s remember that these contractors will be allowed to replace police officers in many instances. How does this improve community safety, Mr. Speaker? It doesn’t. It’s a double standard—shocking—that will soon be the law of the land, if this government gets its way.

This bill also leaves far too much to regulation. It omits things that should certainly be codified in legislation. For example, the bill does not clearly define what the core functions of police officers will be. Is this just a case of sloppy drafting or is it something more? For my part, I believe this government is doing this deliberately because it wants to keep as much power as possible for itself. This will result in an unprecedented level of ministerial discretion in disciplinary decisions around policing. This is extremely worrying. I hope that the members opposite are listening to this. It’s extremely worrying.

Finally, the new oversight rules and administrative burden that this bill brings with it will force our police officers to do more with less. These changes are being forced through with no resources to support them. The government is not only making the work of our police officers harder to do; it isn’t even giving them the resources they will need to implement this bad piece of legislation. In fact, all of this will make it harder for police to deal with violent criminals since it appears to presume bad intent on their part. Talk about insulting, Mr. Speaker. You can’t get more insulting than what the government has done to the police officers we have in the province of Ontario.

These are just a few of the major issues that deserve to be scrutinized and debated in greater detail. But here we are, with the government forcing through this time allocation motion. At the same time, I’m sure that they are scrambling to develop some last-minute amendments themselves in response to the massive frustration expressed by stakeholders and to fix the major issues in their original draft. I’m sure that they’re hoping that throwing something in the direction of the stakeholders will somehow help to quiet them down and they can just sweep their concerns under the carpet.

But I can tell them right now that this won’t fly. The whole process surrounding the legislation has been so horribly mismanaged that there’s no way that this government will be able to restore any goodwill on this file.

The ultimate example of this is that we are debating time allocation on a bill that is clearly not ready to become the law of the land. Tomorrow, we’ll be forced to do a marathon clause-by-clause, reviewing rushed amendments from the government. Where we had three days or more, now we’ll have one. Then on Wednesday, we’ll be here debating this bill at third and final reading. I will only have 20 minutes to express the long list of concerns that the official opposition has with this bill. One hour wasn’t even enough for me to get through all the flaws at second reading, but we won’t even have a third of that time at third reading.

That’s a shame, Mr. Speaker. It’s a sign of the deep disrespect this government has not only for this House, not only for the opposition parties, not only for the police associations and municipalities, but for all Ontarians. They will remember this time allocation motion and Bill 175 as an example of this government’s anti-democratic approach. The worst part of all this is that this process undermines Ontarians’ faith in our institutions and it also undermines the faith of our police officers in their government.

Mr. Speaker, I know that I’m going to share my time today—the limited time that we have—so thank you for the opportunity. I hope that the