 It is now time for oral questions. I recognize the leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. Thank you very kindly, Speaker. My first question is to the Premier, but I think it's important to acknowledge that this past weekend almost 2,000 auto workers in Windsor probably had a pretty sleepless time wondering about their futures and I hope that all members commit to fighting for those good auto jobs in Windsor. But my question is about other workers, Speaker, to the Premier. People are pretty frustrated with the big cuts and bad choices that this government has been making. On October 13th, nurses in Bimbroke literally were told by the Premier that they had to hand back negotiated wage increases. These nurses work with highly disabled folks, with very, very severely disabled folks 24-7. So my question is, why does the Premier think it's okay to take away negotiated wages that these frontline nurses had negotiated with their employer? The parliamentary assistant and member for Eglinton Lawrence. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you for the question. Our government, of course, values the important contribution of nurses who really are providing our patients with timely, safe and equitable access to really high quality and appropriate care in a variety of settings. And that's why we have acted swiftly with the pandemic pay to make sure that they are recognized for their efforts. At the same time, the government is committed to protecting our public sector jobs and that is why we've had our legislation of the Protecting a Sustainable Public Sector Work Act. Our government's top priority, of course, is their health and safety and we want to make sure that we continue to support our nurses and make sure that this premium, which is one of the largest ever in the province of Ontario, is out there benefiting 375,000 employees from 2,000 employers. I also want to point out to the Member Opposite that our hospital sector and most of the other sectors, I believe, have all paid out those extra funds to nurses. And we agree that they're playing a vital role in the delivery of healthcare and will be instrumental as we transform our healthcare system and emerge from this pandemic. Thank you very much. The supplementary question. Thank you so much, Speaker. The fact of the matter is the non-profit employer here named Able Living or called Able Living wants to do the right thing by these nurses, wants to pay them appropriate wages, but the Premier instead would rather claw them back. He always says no to frontline workers, to our frontline nurses, our healthcare heroes. President of ONA, Vicki McKenna says this and I quote something the member was just speaking to. The reality is, and I quote, it's time for Premier Ford to honour these nurses, recognise their worth and do the right thing. I agree with Ms. McKenna. Why does the Premier say no to our nurses, to our PSWs, to the frontline workers that helped us get through this pandemic when he should be saying yes? Again, the Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Health. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the member opposite. Our Premier only says yes. He has invested so much money, over 52 million to recruit, retain and support over 3,700 more frontline healthcare workers and caregivers through our COVID-19 fall preparedness plan and we have a 27,000 employees, PSWs, nurses, RPMs, which we are recruiting as well. This is the largest recruiting campaign of nurses and PSWs and training initiatives as well in the province's history. We have also acted swiftly to ensure that our healthcare workers are recognised, as I said, through the pandemic pay and our government has been working closely with the Mental Health and Addiction Centre of Excellence at Ontario Health and a number of other hospitals to also provide specific supports during these difficult times for frontline workers in order to support them. It's critical to remind the member opposite that as of March this year more than 6100 healthcare workers have been able to access supports that they needed and we continue to support them in every way we can, which during this what we know is a difficult time for all of them. The final supplementary. Well, Speaker, I would submit that this Premier has no idea how unaffordable life is becoming. Inflation is up. The cost of everyday living is up. A 1% wage increase just doesn't cut it, Speaker. Better wages will actually help our province. All you have to do is ask economist David Card, who very clearly identified that good wages actually help our economy. Why can't the Premier say yes? Why can he say yes to his buddies, but not say yes to PSWs, to frontline healthcare workers, to nurses, to those other frontline workers that were heroes during the pandemic and helped us get through. Why will he not say yes to them? Parliamentary Assistant, the Minister of Health. I think in my last answer in response to the member opposite, I did go through a lot of ways in which this Government and our Premier has been saying yes to nurses, PSWs and our RPMs who are all working very hard to support us through the COVID-19 pandemic. We've obviously made a decision to proceed with the Protecting Sustainable Jobs Act. We think it's important to protect those jobs and we have a policy in place, but we've also recognised the incredible efforts that frontline healthcare workers, especially our nurses and RPMs and PSWs have gone to, through the pandemic pay, and we are on an initiative which is the highest recruiting and training initiative in the province's history, recruiting and training more nurses, RPMs and PSWs across the board in this province so that we can make sure that we have all the health human resources we need and a great plan going forward. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you very much. The next question, once again, the Leader of the Opposition. Thank you so much, Speaker. Speaker, my next question is also for the Premier. After about 19 months of struggling, small businesses like restaurants still do not have a level playing field here in our province. Big venues on the one hand, big event spaces like arenas and stadiums are full of fans. And that's a great thing, but on the other hand, we have restaurants that are still not getting a fair shake from this government. So my question is, why does the Premier always say yes to his big buddies, to the big fish, but no to the little guy like small local businesses? To reply, the House Leader. Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the opportunity to answer that. But the Member, I'm sure, will can well appreciate that the return to play protocols of the NHL and NBA and OHL far exceed the minimum standards that we are putting in place for our small or non-essential businesses speaker. Having said that, Mr. Speaker, as the Chief Medical Officer highlighted, caution is what has helped us get to where we're at today. We are very optimistic. We remain obviously cautious. We are looking for that data, which will come out in the two weeks following Thanksgiving, Mr. Speaker. And as the Premier indicated last week, we are reviewing new opportunities to exit Stage 3, Mr. Speaker. Again, cautiously optimistic thanks to the hard work of the volunteers. Thank you. The supplementary question. Well, Speaker, it was a slap in the face last week when restaurant tours had a no show of cabinet ministers at a prearranged meeting. In fact, the representative from Restaurants Canada said this, and I quote, the industry leaders on the call were angry and extremely frustrated because the government simply not talking to them. And then to add insult to injury, of course, Speaker, on Friday we had a show and tell by the Premier and not a word was provided to give these restaurant tours some hope. So my question is, when will the Premier treat businesses like restaurants, small businesses, better? Treat them as he treats his big buddies. Goodbye. Good morning, Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And again, the member opposite might call it a show and tell, the vaccination, the application that was brought forward by the Minister of Digital Government has, and so far is showing to be a great success. It has been, I'm told that some five, six million Ontarians have begun downloading the QR code. I know our small, medium businesses or restaurants or the gyms are looking forward to this. It will make it easier. It will make it will give us the ability to keep these places open, which is what they want. They want stability, Mr. Speaker. They want to know that the people and people who are attending restaurants or gyms want to know that it is safe to do so. The app and the QR code will continue to allow us to do that. But we understand, we understand how frustrated small businesses have been is why we've been pushing Ontarians to be vaccinated. I'm happy that Ontarians are vaccinated at the numbers that they're at. Ultimately, Mr. Speaker, the QR code, the vaccine, the application we brought for Ontarians, overwhelming ability to get out there and get vaccinated to keep these small businesses open and stay open. The final supplement. Well, Speaker, small businesses have been doing their part, as we all know. They've been checking their certificates. They've been implementing other protocols. And what they need is their government to be there for them. Small mom and pops like restaurant speaker have been struggling, struggling to stay afloat. But the Premier is always saying yes. He says yes to his lobbyists. He says yes to his insiders and his buddies. But he's missing in action when it comes to small businesses. So my question is, when will small businesses be invited onto the same playing field as the Premier's big buddies? Again, to applause the government host leader. Speaker, obviously, small, medium and large job creators are and remain the backbone of the economy of the province of Ontario. It is why we've made so many investments to ensure that jobs stay in Ontario and that we bring back the jobs that the pandemic sent away, Mr. Speaker. But it's not just about the pandemic. We are looking at making and continue to make investments, the type of investments that saw the Ontario economy lead the nation prior to the pandemic, Mr. Speaker. We want to, as we emerge from the pandemic, ensure that we have an economy that is stable, that is growing, that are small and medium job creators can stay open, Mr. Speaker. That is why we're very encouraged by the numbers that we continue to see. But it doesn't mean that we're going to claim victory. That's why we've increased the ICU capacity, something that the previous Liberal government failed to do. That's why we've increased and are making massive investments in our long-term care sector, Mr. Speaker. But it's also why we're making investments in infrastructure, Mr. Speaker, so that the economy will continue to grow post-pandemic the way it did before the pandemic and we can continue to lead the nation and be the engine of the economy of this country. David. Thank you. The next question. Thank you, Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Education Early Learning and Child Care. Speaker, Amanda, a mom in my writing, reached out to me recently. At eight months pregnant, she's already worried about the terrifying costs of childcare. Like most Ontario parents, Amanda cannot afford to pay the equivalent of a mortgage in childcare costs. Most other provinces have a deal with the federal government, including those with Conservative governments. But Ontario has yet to sign on. Where is Ontario's deal? What does the Minister have to say to parents like Amanda who need $10 a day childcare? To apply for the government, the Minister of Education. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My message to Amanda is that this government is fighting for a better deal for her family and for all families in this province who want affordable childcare, who want accessible childcare but want it to be sustainable. So we don't have a scenario where we have a funding program that reduces the cost per child and then in three, four, five years that funding, that price, it rather increases sharply for them. That's not what we want. We want a sustainable deal that reduces costs for families. Under the former Liberal government, childcare rose by 40% unacceptable and a record that is indefensible. Our government has increased investment in childcare by making it more affordable through a tax credit, the Ontario Care Tax Credit, which is providing roughly $500 of savings per child. It was enriched during the pandemic. Obviously, we have to continue and we are, in good faith, the federal government to get a good deal that includes recognition of the unique advantages Ontario provides and invests in particular when it comes to all-day kindergarten. So we continue to fight for a better deal for the people of this province. Speaker, the childcare sector in Ontario is in a state of crisis. Families in Ontario are paying up to $2,000 a month in childcare fees. We cannot afford the Ford government's endless delays. Workers are underpaid and leaving the sector, leading to severe understaffing. We need to get to work on building a universal affordable quality childcare system right away. Will the minister stop dragging his feet and start prioritising families and childcare workers and deliver a 10-dollar-day childcare now? We ensure that the people of this province, the taxpayers, get the best possible deal that they deserve. And I will not take the advice of the opposition parties who would have accepted any deal instead of a better deal with long-term sustainable increased investment that Ontario families deserve. The only province worse than Ontario when it comes to childcare under the former Liberal government is the NDP province of BC. We agree that both the former Liberals and the Democrats of British Columbia are not examples or benchmarks to look to for inspiration. We have a plan in place to reduce costs, to increase spaces, a billion dollars of investment by our Premier to create 30,000 new spaces, 10,000 of which will be in new schools. I recognise the price of childcare is too expensive to too many families. We knew this, which is why in our first budget we introduced a tax credit to make life a bit more affordable. We're going to work with the federal government in good faith to land a deal that allows sustainable long-term funding that ensures childcare is affordable to families right across Ontario. Thank you. The next question is for Whitby. Thank you, Speaker. My question is for the Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction. I've had the opportunity to visit and meet with many types of businesses in Whitby, and I've been hearing a similar message from many of them. Red Tape and burdensome overregulation has been a barrier to businesses as they look to expand their presence and grow their business. As we continue to combat the fourth wave of the pandemic and businesses plan ahead, they need to know that their government is behind them and creating an environment for businesses to succeed. Speaker, my question for the Minister is can you please share what work you're doing to reduce red tape and support small businesses in Ontario? The Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction. Thank you and good morning, Speaker. And I'd really like to thank my colleague and the member for Whitby for his question and the great work that he's doing in his community. Speaker, when this government came into office, we inherited a regulatory system that was stifling business growth. We made a promise to reduce regulatory burden on businesses to grow our economy and create jobs, and we have followed through. We've reduced Ontario's total number of regulatory compliance requirements by six and a half percent since June of 2018 and achieved $373 million in net annual savings to businesses, not-for-profits, municipalities, universities and colleges, school boards and hospitals in regulatory compliance costs. Last week I announced Ontario's fall 2021 red tape reduction package and I introduced the Supporting People and Business Act to this House. This bundle will build on the work that our government has already done through previous packages, support businesses and people right across our province and I look forward to sharing more details in the supplemental. Thank you. Thank you to the minister for her response. I'm encouraged to see the tremendous progress made so far and I'm proud that our government has made this a priority. And I also know, Speaker, that like previous bills, the changes made here will have a positive impact on people and businesses across the province. Now, while many changes to regulation and processes have been made to provide immediate support throughout the pandemic, we also need to ensure that we're planning towards the future, Speaker. Will the minister provide more detail on what this bill means for Ontarians now and moving forward? Thank you. Thank you. Thank you to the member for Whitby for another excellent question. This bill builds on the progress of previous bills introduced under the leadership of our premier and my predecessor. It also applies lessons learned from temporary changes introduced during the pandemic that, if passed, will help modernise processes and reduce burdens and unnecessary costs. These items are important. The costly red tape will help businesses and people rebuild and invest in safety measures and reducing unnecessary and duplicative requirements for the public and private sector will save time and streamline how government works. Together, alongside digitisation initiatives and modernising regulations, these changes will make interacting with government easier to support individuals and families with investment and job creation to support our economy now and in the future. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you. The next question, the member for Toronto, St. Paul. Thank you, Speaker. My question is to the premier. I know a single parent mum in our community. She's the sole caregiver of her 28-year-old son with autism and developmental disabilities. He's been on the waitlist for supportive housing since he was 16. During COVID, his routine moved abruptly online, which threw him into hospital. In response, his behaviour became violent and last weekend reached the point where mum was forced to call the police. She called this call a nightmare. He's now in hospital. We spoke to DSO last week. They've said upon his discharge his living situation is likely to remain the same without any other supports available. No housing, not even a case worker. Speaker, many people with disabilities have been ignored by this Conservative government. Development services agencies are grossly under-resourced. My question is to the premier. What is the premier going to do between now, October 18th and June 2nd, 2022, to ensure families like this are not left behind? To reply to the government, the Parliamentary Assistant, Member for Ottawa, Ross-Napia. To the member opposite for this important question. Of course, making sure that our individuals in our developmental services sector have received support throughout the COVID-19 pandemic has been a key priority of this government. We recognise that every individual has different needs, which is why each case is reviewed on an individual basis. Those individuals who are assessed to be most in need are prioritised for the available resources. We know that demand is growing in this sector. That's why we have invested $13 million over three years through Budget 2021 to assist more people with developmental disabilities in accessing community housing and to support their independent living through an expansion of the Adult Protective Service Worker Program. It's also important to note that adults who have requested residential support are likely to be eligible for funding through both Passport and the ODSP Program. I'll speak more to the reforms that are underway in our development. Thank you. The supplementary question. My question is to the Premier. Let me speak clear. The $13 million over three years is a drop in the bucket. This is not going to address the human rights crisis that many people with disabilities and their families are facing. This government's cuts to social services adds more pressure on people with disabilities and their caregivers who are providing unpaid work, I might add. In some cases, 24-7 at the expense of their own income and mental health. This government's $13 million over three years, again, to put that into context. In 2019, the Conservative Government had a $12 million for goodness sakes. Why couldn't their profit pay for their own fridges? To the Premier, how does this government explain that fridges are a higher priority than this mom and her son with disabilities and developmental disabilities? Will this Premier ensure this mom's son has a safe place to live when he is discharged from the hospital? Because home speaker is no longer an option. Thank you. Minister of Labor, Training and Skills Development, come to order. To reply for the government, the parliamentary assistant, Member for Ottawa of West Nippon. Thank you, Speaker. And to be clear, over the past year, our government has invested a record $2.9 billion in developmental services including more than $1.8 billion for residential supports for individuals with developmental disabilities. And further to that, Speaker, our government is taking action to do much needed reforms to this sector which has been neglected for over the past 10 years. We are taking action through our journey to belonging reform efforts. I'm pleased to share that our long-term vision for developmental services in Ontario is underway as we speak. We are consulting with members of the community, with agencies, with individuals accessing these services. And we are moving quickly to improve current supports and streamlined processes for those accessing services by simplifying the assessment process, improving passport to better address people's needs, reducing the administrative burden on service providers, building skilled staff capacity, and introducing the government. Thank you very much. The very next question. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Premier. Mr. Speaker, Ontarians are hearing a lot about how the Premier is a yes man. And it's true. He said yes to appointing his friends and their families to plumb positions. He said yes to killing the green economy. The Premier said yes to cutting public health funding. And he said yes to returning kids to unsafe classrooms. Monsieur le Président, le Premier ministre a dit oui à un attaque contre les... The Premier said yes to everything that affect our economy. He said yes to billion-dollar businesses opening to full capacity and overpriced beer while local restaurants and small businesses receive virtually no support from this government. When will the Premier start saying yes to small businesses and stop saying yes to his friends on Bay Street? Thank you. Mr. Speaker, but let's be very clear. Had the Liberals said yes at any point in the 15 years that they were in power, we wouldn't be in the situation that we are in today. They said no to increasing ICU capacity. What was the result of that lack of investment in ICU capacity? The province of Ontario, one of the largest and most important economic zones in North America was brought to its knees because the Liberals failed to make those investments in ICU capacity. We have said that 800 people in an ICU will never bring down the province of Ontario again. Shame on the Liberals for not doing that Mr. Speaker. We also knew that investments had to be made in long-term care Mr. Speaker. They didn't do it Mr. Speaker, went in coalition with the NDP. 600 beds I think is the sum total. I have more than that built in my own riding Mr. Speaker, on way to 30,000 Mr. Speaker. Had the Liberals just said no to high energy prices, our small medium and large job creators wouldn't have led this province the way they did in the years that the Liberals were in office Mr. Speaker. What we have done is said yes to small job creators, yes to an economy and yes to a... Stop the clock. Order. Start the clock. The supplementary question. Thank you Mr. Speaker. My supplementary is for the Premier. And of course the government does like to say yes. They say yes to closing playgrounds but say no to safer schools. They say yes to capacity stadiums while saying no to family restaurants. Stop the clock. Member for Kitchen and Conestoga, come door. Minister of Labor, Training and Skills Development. For the second time, come door. Restart the clock. They said yes to an iron ring around long-term care but said no to the funding and the inspections to get it done. They said yes to celebrating frontline workers but have said no to paying them a fair wage and guaranteeing their sick leave. On the issues that matter most to Ontarians the Premier is saying yes on television while telling them no around the cabinet table. Mr. Speaker, which is it? Is the Premier the yes man? He's selling us on TV or is he the doctor? No, he's acting out behind closed doors. Mr. Speaker, when the new Liberal Leader had an opportunity to set down his platform for the next election what did he say yes to? Well maybe doing some reform of how we elect people. That's all that matter to the Liberal Leader. What we have done is this we took power in 2018 we saw an economy that was driving away jobs because of red tape we set immediately to change that we looked at other areas of the economy reducing taxes for a small medium and large job creators we looked at the overwhelmingly high cost of energy in the province of Ontario and we tackled that immediately getting rid of high costs of contracts that the Liberals brought in for their friends. We made those changes. We made investments in healthcare we made investments in long-term care we're making investments in transit and transportation, Mr. Speaker unlike the Liberals who talk about the north and talk about the Ring of Fire we're actually making progress by working with our First Nations partners to make sure that the resources of the Ring of Fire can benefit the economy of tomorrow Mr. Speaker we are making great progress the people of Ontario making great progress and this economy as well on its way. Thank you Mr. Speaker and my question is to the Attorney General Speaker, organization like Canada's Assaulted Women's Helpline have reported increased call volumes during the COVID-19 pandemic the people of my riding need to know that their government is working to help victims of intimate partner violence last week the Attorney General announced a $67,000 grant for the Brain Injury Association of Waterloo Wellington's intimate partner violence response program Speaker, this is an important program for those who have suffered a brain injury due to intimate partner violence this investment made through the Civil Remedies grant program will make a big difference in the lives of victims of intimate partner violence in my riding. Could the Attorney General please tell us how our government is working with local partners like the Brain Injury Association of Waterloo Wellington police and prosecutors to support victims and fight back against crime and to reply the Attorney General Thank you and I want to thank the member from Kitchener Conestoga for the question and for his insights and his support in the region of Kitchener Conestoga and Kitchener Waterloo in general as the member knows and as we've talked about the tremendous work the Brain Injury Association of Waterloo Wellington is doing it is vital to one of the fastest growing regions in our province the supports that are provided there locally are tremendously important for victims as they are in the process of seeking justice and taking steps toward overcoming the terrible violence they've experienced. This important project was one of 18 that our government supported this year through the Civil Remedies grant program it's funded through cash and proceeds seized from criminals after funding 33 projects that targeted human trafficking last year this year's Civil Remedies grant program investments have been directed to help victims of crime and strengthen local capacity to prevent intimate partner, family and gun and gang violence. Mr. Speaker we agree with Ontarians who say crime should not pay and the Civil Remedies grant program is one more concrete action we're taking to make a lasting difference in Kitchener Waterloo. That's again a supplementary question. Thank you very much Minister. This funding is welcome news in my writing and I'm relieved to hear that after years of neglect and disinterest under NDP supported liberal governments our government is focused on supporting victims of crime and dismantling the criminal networks that prey on our communities. My constituents need to know that our government is committed to supporting law enforcement prosecutors and community organizations to help break the cycle of offending. Could the Attorney General please tell us how this government is stepping up to support Ontario communities fight against crime and confront victimization. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Can I call you the Attorney General? Thank you Mr. Speaker. Our government is committed to strengthening every available tool including civil forfeiture to help police prosecutors and local partners fight back against criminal networks. It's why we made changes to Ontario's civil forfeiture laws to help them catch up with the rest of the country. In the 2020 Smarter and Stronger Justice Act crime should never pay and the $1.5 million investment of C's funds that we've been discussing through that program it tangibly strengthens local capacity to prevent intimate partner, family and gun and gang violence. In addition to building the capacity improving access to supports for victims of crime that will also help community organizations do the vital work needed to help keep our youth safe and safe on the streets and at home. And that's only the beginning. The reinvestment of C's from criminals is also helping support people experiencing victimization due to the crime through mental health crisis services. Specialized care and support and education and training opportunities. We're enhancing all of those Mr. Speaker. And we've also provided funds for the north to help with the drug crisis in rural and remote northern First Nation communities. Our efforts are not allowed criminal networks to prey on our communities. Thank you Mr. Thank you. The next question, the member for Waterloo. Thank you very much. My question is to the Premier. The Windsor community is reeling from the shock of losing a shift at the Stellantis plant. 1,800 jobs lost by next April. The repercussions are widespread. The Premier to date hasn't said anything. When GM lost jobs the Premier said and I quote the doc. Unquote. What is this government going to do to save these jobs in Windsor? They deserve answers. Minister of economic development, job creation and trade. Thank you Speaker and thank you for the question. We are disappointed to learn of the Stellantis decision to reduce the Windsor assembly plant to one shift operation in 2022. We want the employees at the Stellantis plant to know that our government stands with them and their families. We need to continue with the right supports to ensure long term growth to create stable and good paying jobs in the sector. We're committed to the success of Ontario's auto manufacturing sector and the 100,000 people who are directly employed before COVID-19. That's why we developed an auto manufacturing sector. We're committed to driving prosperity so the auto sector can remain resilient and adaptable now and in the future. We encourage Stellantis to continue to work with their union to ensure that everything is being done to protect good jobs in Ontario. Supplementary question. The people of Windsor, these workers in Windsor are working on a new strategy and we've needed it for years and you know this because you are on this side of the house asking for that same auto strategy. Instead of doing that, the Premier stands at the border and waves goodbye to these jobs. Windsor needs a Premier that is going to fight for these jobs not wave the white flag. What is this government going to do? Tangible actions. What are you going to do to save this country? Thank you. Thank you. The member asked about an auto strategy and thankfully when we put driving prosperity in place two years ago after years of neglect, we saw an unprecedented $5 billion announcement in auto investments in 30 days alone followed two months later by a further billion dollar investment. This is unprecedented Speaker and today we continue to commit to look not only at those $6 billion in auto investments but we are looking at the electric vehicle battery plants that go with them. We've launched a critical minerals program to bring those minerals to Ontario. We're looking at everything we can be doing to enhance the future of auto in the province of Ontario whether it's in the making of the materials and the mining of the minerals that go into those batteries. That is driving prosperity. Next question. My question is for the premier. Two weeks ago, Ontarians celebrated Ontario Agriculture Week. A week ago today, Ontarians celebrated local food with their families. The food and farming sector employs over 800,000 people contributing $50 billion to Ontario's GDP. But we learned over the weekend that the premier is going to double down on his scheme to build a $10 billion highway that will pave over 2,000 acres of farmland parts of the green belt and unleash sprawl on thousands of acres of farmland. It makes no economic or financial sense. So Speaker, will the premier say yes to local food? Will the premier say to local food, yes to local food and farming jobs? And say no to highway 413 which will destroy farmland and food and farming jobs? The Associate Minister of Transportation Thank you very much Speaker and I'm proud to be part of a government that is expanding the green belt and investing in the future. Let's put this in perspective. This is a growing population of secret cells. This is the best place to live in the world. The GTA is expanding by 3 million people in 25 years and in fact the greater Golden Horseshoe Speaker by 2046 is going to hit almost 15 million people. That is incredible growth and unlike the last government this government is going to say yes to focusing on that growth, focusing on the future so we can enjoy what this province has to offer not just today but for many generations to come Speaker major highways are a crucial artery for the people of this province from working back to their loved ones but to make sure that those food products from our local farmers reach the markets they need to reach and we continue to be that economic engine that runs North America Speaker this government will continue to invest in transit today and tomorrow. Speaker we need a history lesson here the 401 was built to address congestion of the GTA then the 407 was built to do it unfortunately it got sold off and now they're saying the 413 when will this government learn building more highways leads to more congestion and more sprawl and directly threatens on terrorist food and farming economy it's a financial disaster to waste 10 billion dollars on a highway that will save people 30 seconds it's an economic disaster to pave over the farmland that feeds us and creates jobs in the local food economy and it's a climate disaster to be building more highways like this when we have to drastically and urgently reduce climate pollution so will the premier say no to the land speculators who will benefit from this highway and say yes to the people and farmers who know we need this land to feed us and to protect us from flooding again the associate minister of transportation well thank you very much speaker I have a lot of respect for the member opposite and I'm sure he can agree that the last government did very little to protect our green space in fact under the Ontario Liberals we lost 100 hectares of forest and 30 hectares of wetland that was removed from highway construction approximately 330 hectares of the green belt was impacted the green belt was changed 17 times under the last government this government is doing things differently we are working with our partners in Ottawa to make sure there is an EA conducted to make sure that we are minimizing the impacts and our farmland this is something Stephen Del Ducat never did or never supported speaker but we understand there is a balance here to look forward to the growing needs of our province a growing population and to keep commerce moving in this great province speaker I will reiterate those studies are continuing we are going to make sure what's right for the people of this province and as I said before it's not just about today it is for those generations to come thank you the next question the member for Sarnia Lampton my question is to the Minister of Environment Conservation and Parks my question as Ontario has taken significant action to keep our neighbourhoods parks, lakes, rivers and streams clean and free of litter and waste reducing the impacts of waste in our environment and communities has been a major focus of this government over the past three years could the Minister of the Environment Conservation and Parks please share with this House the initiatives that they will be undertaking to educate Ontario as part of this year's waste reduction week any parliamentary assistance to the Minister of Environment, Conservation and Parks the member for Barry Innisfil thank you to the member for Sarnia Lampton for that excellent question and all his advocacy in his community and everything he does stand up for this week marks waste reduction week that kicks off today and goes all the way until October 24th it's a national run campaign and it's an opportunity to remind Ontario's what they can do to help their environment we saw this summer tremendous uptake that Ontarians really care about litter and waste reduction 3.1 million Ontarians reacted to our day of action on litter and Waste Free Wednesday campaign they know that we need to reduce plastic pollution in our waterways and right now 22 pounds of plastic end up in our great lakes but speaker thanks to the improvements that we're making in innovative plastic capture technology less plastic waste is now ending up in our lakes and this is great news but speaker there is more we're also improving our recyclable our recycle program to increase the amount of things that are recyclable and much more just so Ontarians can do a little bit more for their environment supplementary question well thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you to the Parliament and the Assistant for answering that question waste reduction week sounds like a very important initiative to keep our community safe and clean and in my writing the Sarnia Lampton my constituents are always wondering what our government has done to reduce waste and ways to contribute to reducing litter in their communities could the minister of the environment conservation and parks please share with us on what the government is further doing to keep litter out of our communities lakes and rivers thank you and to reply member for Barry and Mr. and thank you to the member from Sarnia Lampton he knows that if you spend one hour each weekend cleaning up litter collect up to four full bags of garbage and that is something that is tangible and something that each Ontarian can do and I want to thank those Ontarians and my colleagues who participated in Waste Free Wednesdays this summer where we collected over 150 bags of litter which was 3,300 pounds if you equate it to weight which is also the equivalent of a female HIPAA Speaker the answer is clear and Terrence want to do something about their environment they want to join our government in the supports that we're offering protecting our parks, our lakes, our rivers and our neighborhoods things like improving our recyclable program which will now see more things being able to be recycled and reused for example now more than 50% of our battery waste is now reused into other materials something that was difficult for other governments to accomplish and of course we're reducing the amount of organic waste in our landfills as well speaker we are on it and Terrence want to do something about it and we are doing something about it for June Thank you Next question from London North Centre My question is to the Premier Speaker the loss of OHIP insured eye exams is a huge blow to families in London and across the province Despite months of notice the government stopped negotiating with optometrists and kids, seniors and persons with disabilities are starting to miss their eye exams they're not receiving their health care A London mom Jessica told me how increased screen time during the pandemic has hurt her children's eyes she told me that her oldest daughter has been complaining about her eyes since the amount of screen time drastically increased last year with online schooling she is now struggling on a daily basis it's affecting her ability to learn Karen is another London mom who reached out to me to let me know her daughter was experiencing difficulty seeing the board she wrote to me saying imagine my surprise when I called her optometrists and was told that I was unable to book their eye exam kids have had their learning disrupted for the past few years and now the lack of eye care is making this new school year even harder for them why isn't the minister putting the proper funding in place to make sure kids get the eye care they need and deserve the parliamentary assistant Member for Edmonton Lawrence Thank you to the member opposite for this important question we're extremely disappointed that at the urging of the Ontario Optometrists Association some optometrists have chosen to withhold publicly funded services for our youth and seniors and it's really due to the fact that the OAO continues to decline an independent third party mediators invitation to come back to the table and the conditions that have to be met for negotiations to resume it's really concerning because they continue to tell the public and the member opposite seems to have adopted this that they are at the table when in fact they are not and the current impasse lies squarely at the feet of the OAO which instead of participating in these good faith negotiations is choosing to demand an outcome before allowing negotiations to start the government has made a reasonable and fair offer and it's the beginning of a future negotiations and we would just like the OAO to come back to the table so that people such as the ones that you have mentioned in your question can get the eye care services that they should get Thank you Back to the premier you know the members disappointment concerns should be about the underfunding on your watch speaker optometrists and London families are ready for OHIP funded eye care services but this government keeps telling them no that's concerning for Londoners like Dennis who rely on annual eye appointments to do his job Dennis is a senior in my writing who works as a crossing guard near his local school eye exams are a regular part of his job to ensure kids can get to school safely but his appointment this year was postponed because this government refuses to negotiate with optometrists unless this issue is resolved by November Dennis risks not being able to do his job I also think of persons with disabilities such as diabetes like my constituent Mandy who wrote to me I am unable to book or receive care from my optician due to the current government's unrealistic determination of fair pay to opticians I will go blind and become a drain on the government if this does not get rectified as soon as possible when is this government going to stop saying no and make sure seniors like Dennis and people like Mandy can access the care they need to go about their daily lives and the Parliament Assistant to Minister of Health to respond thank you to the member opposite obviously this is a very important issue and anyone who has been denied an appointment who needs to have an appointment and has any harm or suffering as a result of any delay should reach out to the College of Optometrists to fill and if they don't do so the College of Optometrists will help direct people to another provider I'll just say our government has made a fair and reasonable offer an immediate compensation increase of 8.48% retroactive to April 1 which is a catch up fee of increases Physician Scott a one time payment of $39 million to catch up for increases that they didn't have for the last decade under a former government future fee increases aligned with physician fee increases a commitment to immediately establish a working group to look at the overhead cost they seem to want us to look at and we're happy to do that finally a commitment for ongoing monthly discussions through an optometry services review committee we are at the table ready willing and able they need to come to the table so that we can negotiate a fair and reasonable agreement which all Ontarians want thank you the next question member for Don Valley West thank you very much Mr. Speaker I'm going to start a partisan election season in Ontario the people around the premier want the people of Ontario to believe that this man is someone who indiscriminately and cheerfully says yes to every request of him but when it comes to support for people Mr. Speaker immediately upon the his election this premier said no to an increased minimum wage no to Indigenous curriculum writing teams he went on to say no to funding for smaller class sizes during COVID or no to a vaccine mandate no to a logical reopening for small businesses and for months and months no to paid sick days Mr. Speaker when there has been a prolonged outcry in the premier caves on an issue such as sick days the answer has been less like yes and more like alright alright we'll do something the government's response on sick days is a half measure because it is temporary having come this far through the pandemic will the premier now actually say yes to ten permanent paid sick days to apply the minister of labour training and skills development thank you very much Mr. Speaker and I can tell the former premier that we will always say yes to workers in this province we're going to continue every single day have their support families and all of our communities that's why Mr. Speaker I was proud today to announce that Ontario is going to be launching the most comprehensive system in the country when it comes to workers that work through temp help agencies and recruiters Mr. Speaker no worker in Ontario should fear going to work no worker in this province should sleep on straw mattresses Mr. Speaker no worker in Ontario should have their passport or held by their employer so Mr. Speaker I was proud to join today with my parliamentary assistant to ensure that we're bringing forward a comprehensive licensing system to ensure that workers in Ontario are protected something the former government did not do Mr. Speaker I'm pleased that the government is picking up on the work on temp agencies which was started under our government but Mr. Speaker this government has to know the workers over and over they cancelled sick days they didn't raise the minimum wage they changed the regulations around PSWs and the supports in long-term care in one place Mr. Speaker as soon as this government was elected it repealed legislation that actually protected workers Mr. Speaker I suppose it is part of the political game to praise reckless support of development of environmentally sensitive land to behave as those slogans and back slapping are actual responses to real world problems but it is a dangerous part of the political landscape Mr. Speaker the fact is that real people need the support of their government in a very trying time rather than sitting on billions of dollars this government had the opportunity to invest in businesses in communities in schools and in people's lives post pandemic people will still get sick and without paid sick days they will still be at risk will the Premier commit to making 10 paid sick days permanent and if not why not Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker the former Premier offered two paid sick days we are at three paid sick days today in the province of Ontario but Mr. Speaker I want to remind the former Premier of this province that she and her government said no to more than 300,000 workers in this province that lost their job under you Mr. Speaker we are continuing to build back a better province here as we come out of this pandemic Mr. Speaker we will always be with working people in this province we are going to continue to support them that's one of the reasons for example Mr. Speaker that we are so passionate about getting more young people into the skilled trades these are jobs that pay six figures that have defined pensions and benefits and I have to remind Mr. Speaker that when she was the Premier of this province there is a 40% reduction in apprenticeship registrations we are going to build back a better province and not take advice from the Liberal Party thank you the next question the member for Nicobel my question is for the Minister of Health thank you my question is for the Minister of Health Ontarians have expected and received the best cancer care in all of Canada and beyond while the minister claims that cancer surgeries and services continue during the pandemic a study from the Canadian Cancer Survivor Network shows us that it is not so Ontario cancer patients have the longest wait time in Canada specifically cancer patients now wait 46 long days for their cancer surgery and 34 long days for their cancer care appointment these delays has a profound impact on the health of cancer patients including their mental health and their caregiver when will cancer patient in Ontario gain access to timely cancer surgery and where is the minister's plan to bring down the long wait time for cancer care Member for Edlington Lawrence and Parliamentary Assistant Minister Todd thank you very much and thank you to Member Opposite for this important question I also met with the Canadian Cancer Survivor Network and discussed some of those statistics I don't remember them quite the way you have cited them there were some statistics that were doing well on and some we need to improve obviously but we have 1.8 billion dollar investment into our hospital sector that we've made we're dedicating 300 million dollars to reducing surgical backlogs for delayed or cancelled surgeries and procedures due to the pandemic and I want to be clear that this investment is in addition to over 200 million dollars that we announced last fall and that means a half a billion dollars invested to reduce the backlog of surgeries and procedures and the funding will ensure that hospitals can expand their hours and keep operating rooms open over the weekend we don't want to have anyone waiting unnecessarily for their surgeries I should also point out that we did a complete and average of 88% of targeted surgical allocation at all hospitals across the province over 430,000 scheduled surgeries have taken place since the start of the pandemic so we're working very hard to clear the backlog and continue to do so thank you thank you speaker Ontario used to have the best cancer care system now 42% of cancer patients are not satisfied with the quality of their care this is unheard of in Ontario for people trying to get their cancer diagnosis it is even worse with 66% of cancer patients are not satisfied with the care or lack thereof they are receiving minister Ontario's trust in our healthcare system our cancer system is being eroded what is the minister of health going to do to address this unacceptable drop in the quality of our cancer care services when is she going to acknowledge that these long delays are problematic the quality of cancer care back to meet the good peoples of Ontario's expectations parliamentary assistant minister of health thank you speaker thank you to the member opposite for the question we are seeing improving trends obviously with COVID-19 indicators and vaccination rates and Ontario health has issued a memo to hospitals to safely resume non-urgent and non-emergent surgeries and procedures including those requiring and that means that the hospitals that meet the criteria that Ontario health will be working closely to try to clear those backlogs so we do have a plan going forward to try to clear these backlogs and since the start of this outbreak or pandemic our government has really been transparent that we are sparing no expense when it comes to providing Ontarians with access to the high quality care they know and expect and that applies to our cancer system as well which is obviously very important and we plan to catch up as many cases are dealt with as quickly as compassionately as possible thank you morning speaker my questions to the minister of labour on Friday I was visited by a constituent initial L an educator with a Toronto district school board for 30 years she teaches grade 5 and raised generations of North Yorkers 5 years ago L was diagnosed with serious cardiovascular disease she has been steady since last year she has been a part of the nation of the heart like many Ontarians who are not members of the Ontario PC caucus she is unable to get an exemption the school board is threatening that unless she vaccinates by the end of the month she may be terminated whether she is right or wrong on the science or cardiology she fears inflammation of her precious heart speaker the minister's office is denying that the government blocked my jobs and jabs bill I know this minister purports to be a kind and faithful man I know him will he do something to protect my constituent will he sentence L to unemployment training thank you very much we continue to encourage everyone out there who is able to get vaccinated I am proud to say that more than 87% of the people of Ontario who are eligible are now vaccinated with one dose more than 83% double dose of course we always encourage everyone if they need to to consult with their doctors if needed but Mr. Speaker we are going to continue to protect the health and safety of everyone the well-being of everyone in this province we have really together have come so far from when this pandemic hit in march of 2020 and we encourage everyone let's just keep working together let's get through this we are doing much better than many jurisdictions around the world let's keep that momentum going my follow-up is to the solicitor general the government is silent as thousands of Ontarians are losing their jobs daily because of their lawful medical choice according to the premier approximately 15% of Ontario's health care workers remain unvaccinated after months of willful blindness the government realized on Friday that suspension or termination of 15% of health care workers may lead to the collapse of the health care system they are now looking for ways to backpedal on their negligence but how about police, fire and EMS who are also stretched thin are their jobs not worth preserving because unless there is a serious crime it's difficult to get a police officer in North York while the record number of fire and paramedics are on stress leave can we afford to terminate first responders when no one shows up when we call 911 will the solicitor general protect our police, fire and EMS from suspension or termination or will the government dither and flip flop later as it is about to finally do on Ontario's health care workers again the minister of labour again my message to everyone in this province is to to keep working together I've had an opportunity to speak with health care workers with police with firefighters the overwhelming majority of people in this province are getting vaccinated that's important we've come so far as a province from back in those dark days when the pandemic hit Ontario I'm proud of what we've been able to accomplish together employers, employees all of the people in this province working together and I know the Ontario spirit the Premier does in all of our government and all MPPs or at least most MPPs and we're going to continue getting this together through this together Mr Speaker next question thank you Mr Speaker my question is to the Premier St Bernard School in York Southwest and tries to provide excellent education but recently had classrooms closed and teachers displaced their classes are at maximum capacity and can't accept any new students this means the newly built townhouses down the street with parents of young children would have to transport their youngsters elsewhere how is this acceptable Mr Speaker when will the government admit that classes need to be smaller and teachers should not be cut we certainly would agree with the member opposite that's why we provided $300 million for the second year in a row to hire more educators to hire more staff, custodians, ECs and principals because we recognize part of the layered approach advised by the Ontario Science Table was to take a multitude of actions one of which includes distancing within our schools which we are achieving through the investments the province has made in addition to the enhancement of masking the indoor masking requirement the screening before children enter a school and the massive improvement and ventilation at that school and at every one of the we are very proud of the fact that Ontario has one of the highest vaccination rates for youth in the country we have one of the lowest case rates for youth in the country because we have followed the best expert advice of the Ontario Science Table of the kids and the chief medical officer we will continue to do so to ensure that our schools are safe they remain open and kids continue to learn in this province question period for this morning this house stands in recess until