 It is now time for our questions to the Leader of the Remedies Association of Opposition. Thank you, Speaker. Speaker, my questions to the Minister of Finance. Minister, could you please brief the assembly on the additional costs in your budget from the Liberal government's decision to cancel both the Oakville and Mississauga gas plants? Thank you, Minister of Finance. So, Mr. Speaker, members of the opposition are inquiring about something that they said they would do. Members of the opposition are saying we'll cancel the power plant. In fact, the Leader of the opposition was there in a bus doing a press conference with a pink elephant, no less, saying we are the ones that will stop the power plant. We are the ones that will cancel it. We said we would move it. And the member now is suggesting that somehow what they said they would do, they now say they could not do. We have decided the House said we would. A promise they made that we kept and we've accounted for it and it is going through as it should be. Mr. Speaker, thank you. I don't think, Speaker, I got an answer to a very straightforward question. I think that when you're... I recognize that this is the Minister's first budget as Finance Minister. And some of my colleagues say, hopefully last we get Ontario back on track in the province. But so surely your budget must be close to finality if not ready to go. And you are aware of the gas plant cancellation costs. After all, you were in on the decision. You were a key component of making that decision. And now you see the actual numbers. So you can play political games, Minister. You can continue these sort of political stonewalling that has become the typical win McGinty government approach. Or you can just answer very simple and direct question as Finance Minister, budget's ready to go. So why don't you just please tell us what are the costs that you've designed for the Liberal decision to cancel both Oakville and Mississauga gas plants. So, Mr. Speaker, we have accommodated at a price that was established a couple of years back and it was put forward last year when it was at $190 million. And the contingencies and so forth going forward have been accommodating for a number of initiatives. But more importantly, Mr. Speaker, the member opposite is right now suggesting and he's committed this. He hasn't even read the budget, doesn't even know what it states. We've been on target. We've exceeded our target. Our fiscal controls are working. We are on road to balance the budget. Four years running, we've beat those targets and more jobs are being created. And Mr. Speaker, the response is, well, we don't care what it's been doing. We're not even going to look at it. We're just going to defeat it without even reading it. Mr. Speaker, now that's a shame. There's going to be any assistance for me. I'd like to ask for it first. No question. Well, thank you, Speaker. You know what is the ministries of the term? It's a shame. What's clearly a shame is the minister who's preparing a budget can't even stand his place and tell us exactly what the costs are going to be to cancel. And let's be very direct here. You've been on this decision to cancel the gas plants from day one. You are intimately aware of the details of how much this is going to cost taxpayers and increase the fiscal hole in your budget. If I heard you correctly, minister, you said the $190 million has been booked. I was listening closely to your answer. So are you telling us that the hole in your budget is only $190 million in the cancellation of the gas plants? When the auditor general himself says it's much more than that, are you really sticking to that old story that it's only $190 million? Where you've come clean, so it's exactly how big of a hole does your cancellation of Mississaug and Oakville gas plants cost Ontario? So, Mr. Speaker, we're moving forward on a very strong, balanced budget, a budget that doesn't put at risk our economic recovery. It's a budget that speaks to the needs of the people of Ontario. And it's not about political gains, Mr. Speaker. This is about what's the best interest of the people of Ontario. The opposition are obviously gunning for an election. That is not what the people of Ontario want. That is not what we on this side of the House want. We want to work collaboratively with all members of the House for the best interests of the people of Ontario. This budget is going to speak to them. It's going to be a balanced approach that talks about the way forward to balance. And it's going to initiate even more economic recovery, more economic stimulus, more jobs. And our measures, our restraint measures, as well as our stimulus measures, is working. We've beat targets. We're exceeding results. We're ahead of all other areas of Canada. And Mr. Speaker, that's what we should be doing together for the people of Ontario. And that's what we're going to be doing going forward. Good answer. Balance budget. Back to the... Speaker, back to the... Sorry, leader. That was the supplementary, the final supplementary. You're now on new question. Thank you. Thank you, guys. Speaker, still back to the minister of finance who had a bit of a slip. He said it's a balanced budget. The reality is with how hard Ontarians are working, with the amount of revenue that's come in, it should be a balanced budget in the province of Ontario. We should be creating jobs. We should be at the top in Canada, not at the back of the pack. The minister can't answer a very basic question. And I know you know the answer, because you were there at the cabinet table when Dalton McGinty and Kathleen Wynne made a decision to cancel the gas plants. You were the finance minister. You were one of the members who taxpayers may have paid anywhere from $650 to over $1 billion to save your seat. And this is not just simple wasteful spending. This is a direct and conscious decision of your Liberal government to use taxpayer dollars to cancel gas plants. So, the minister, I'll give you one last chance on this. Will you please tell us? Will you please tell us? Question? Exactly how much you have booked in your fiscal plan for the cancellation of the Oakville and Mississauga gas plants? Thank you. Simple question. Why not a simple answer? Mr. Finance. So, Mr. Speaker, we have brought forward the materials necessary. The AG has signed off on our fiscal matters. We've been very open and transparent. Mr. Speaker, we're the government that didn't hide $5 billion when they were last elected. We're not the government that is putting forward any secrets, Mr. Speaker. We're being very open and transparent. We're being... And we're not selling off assets that are going to provide even more revenue and more growth for the province of Ontario. We're going to continue doing what's in the best interest of our public. And I can tell you, Mr. Speaker, our deficit is under control. We have what it takes to balance our books by 2017-18. We're exceeding our targets four years running. Our growth in spending last year was under 1%. Coming forward on our next budget, you're going to see even better results, Mr. Speaker. Thank you so much. I... I'm sadly startled, Mr. Speaker, that the Minister of Finance says they've had no secrets. He said they've been open and transparent. Then I asked the minister, why did you bury, what, 40,000 to 60,000 documents? Why did you keep the cost covered for so long? And why were you in on the decision around the cabinet table to vary the cost of the gas plant cancellation? It was PC members here in the House supported by the NDP that brought the contempt motion to the floor, that got the answers here. You try to keep it hidden. We want taxpayers in the end. It's far from no secrets. It's far from open and transparent. Minister, this shakes our very confidence in your ability to bring in a budget that will actually get us to balance. It shakes our confidence in your ability to grow the economy. It shakes our confidence in this government's ability to help those 500,000 women and men, our friends, neighbors and relatives who are out of work. I'll ask it. Why won't you be honest with taxpayers? Tell us exactly what this is going to cost, and it's surely a goodness. It must be your budget plan. You know the numbers. You made the decision. Appreciate it, please. Thank you. Minister of Finance. Well, thank you, Mr. Speaker. You know the people of Ontario want their representatives to represent them. And I have been representing my community with pride and with responsibility. I have stood in this House even prior to being elected to defend the interests of our communities right across the province. A mistake was made. We corrected it. You agreed with it. And it should have been done much earlier. And as a result, we're taking the actions necessary and we're taking the decisions that are necessary to get it right. And, Mr. Speaker, we made other tough decisions, like tax reform, like lowering business taxes, like lowering consumers' taxes, like ensuring that we have a value-added tax system that makes us competitive. And as a result, we're the third largest jurisdiction in North America to attract direct foreign investment. People are coming to Ontario, more businesses are coming here, more jobs are being traded because of the actions that we've taken. The opposition are advocating a slash-and-burn policy that would hurt our economy. Thank you. Final supplementary. I'm incredulous that the Finance Minister would simply dismiss the cancellation of Oakville and Mississauga as a mistake that was made. A mistake that was made. This was not ordinary incompetence. This wasn't standard. Ways should come to expect. This was you putting the Liberal Party ahead of the interests of taxpayers, ahead of the interests of law, ahead of the interests of people. It was a deliberate decision to spend money to save liberal seats, including yours. And we see what the thinking is. The Minister says, well, he has a duty to represent his constituents. He has a duty to be their representative. Sir, you have a duty to spend taxpayer money wisely. You have a duty to look out for the money that people send to Queens Park. And you have the gall to spend a billion dollars on it to save your own seat. That's not what the Finance Minister does. We're sure. Speaker, clearly it's time to change the government. If this Finance Minister thinks he's just spent a billion dollars to save his own speed. We can do a lot better than this, Speaker. This Finance Minister clearly out of his debt. Thank you. You see that? Thank you. Minister of Finance. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I said also that I have a duty and a responsibility to the province of Ontario. That's why the lessons learned that what we've done in terms of what we're going to do forward in sighting of such projects will be corrected. And that is what's necessary because we're always working for the best interest of the entire province. One thing that the opposition member and the leader has not been doing. In fact, he's been talking down Ontario by calling us a banana to publish. We are the province that have been leading all of Canada with more jobs than the rest of Canada combined. We're taking the necessary steps to pride and promote certain sectors of our economy for greater economic renewal. And the opposition members would rather fight as opposed to collaborate. They would rather put us down rather than pick us up. Fortunately, the people of Ontario know better. They're willing to work. They're doing their job. And we're going to do ours as well. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. New question? New question? The leader of the third party. Thank you, Speaker. Questions to the Premier. In an interview in today's Wall Street Journal, the finance minister has quoted us saying, and I quote, people are aware of the fiscal realities before us. They know the government must take a measured approach to bend the cost curve and control our spending, unquote. Does the Premier agree with this view, Speaker? Premier? Absolutely, Mr. Speaker. I absolutely agree that we need to take the measures necessary to stay on track to balance the budget by 2017-18. And that's exactly what the Minister of Finance has been talking about in the previous questions. It's what the leader of the third party will see as we bring our budget forward, Mr. Speaker. And that is what is expected of us by the people of Ontario, Mr. Speaker, in order to be able to deliver the services that everyone in this province needs, we need to make sure that we have fiscal responsibility along with investment in a fairer society, Mr. Speaker. That's the balanced approach our budget will take. Thank you. Supplementary? Well, Speaker, other media reports indicate that the government still plans to phase in new corporate tax loopholes that will let Ontario's biggest corporations write off the HST when they buy gas or take clients out on the town. Now, if the government's trying to bend the cost curve, Speaker, why are they investing over a billion dollars a year and yet another no-strings-attached corporate tax loophole? Is that what the people of this province expect from the Liberals? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I know that the Minister of Finance will want to speak to the details, Mr. Speaker, but I just want to say that I think what is necessary now is to look at the budget in its entirety, Mr. Speaker, because it is an organic document in the sense that there are supports obviously for business, Mr. Speaker. It's very important that we make sure that business is competitive and that we can bring business to the province. But at the same time, Mr. Speaker, I'm concerned that we have identified that we know our areas that we need to be working on, and some of those, I think the Leader of the Opposition would like to work on us with us, Mr. Speaker. So, whether it's home care, whether it's youth unemployment, Mr. Speaker, whether it's making sure that the social assistance system is unravelled in the sense that it becomes a more rational system, Mr. Speaker, all of those things are areas that we want to work on. We have to get our fiscal house in order, Mr. Speaker. We need to work towards a balanced budget in 2017-18. And that's what you'll see in the budget, Mr. Speaker. Final supplementary. $1.3 billion goes a lot of ways to make the books balanced, Mr. Speaker. I've got to tell you. Look, it's people that make our economy work, and it's people who need to be the priority when we plan for the future. But time and time again, they see a government that just doesn't seem to care about their challenges. They're scrambling to find home care for loved ones. They worry about their kids finding a decent job and pay the bills that keep climbing higher and higher and higher. And the government tells them that they have to tighten their belts even more. But when it comes to handing Ontario's largest corporations yet another tax break, the belt can't be loosened quick enough. How can the Premier tell people they have to pay more and expect less while she's handing Ontario's largest corporations $1 billion a year in HST breaks? Very much, Mr. Speaker. I think the leader of the third party knows that the Finance Minister is working with the federal Finance Minister on this particular issue, Mr. Speaker, because there is a connection between what the federal government does and what we do here in the province, Mr. Speaker. But the reality is that the budget document will cover a range of issues, Mr. Speaker. We're making a balanced approach to putting this budget in place. So indeed, Mr. Speaker, our businesses are competitive and need to be competitive. And we are demonstrating that businesses coming to Ontario jobs are being created. At the same time, we need to make sure that those services that are so critical to people's lives every single day that those services improve, Mr. Speaker, there's always a way to make those services better for young children, our First Nations children, Mr. Speaker, that are seniors, that people across the province who need government supports have those support services. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions to the Premier. People are hoping for a new approach, but all Ontarians see as a liberal government that's the same old, same old. They see a government that has no problem spending what could be more than a billion dollars to cancel a billion dollars on a new corporate tax loophole, Speaker. But when it comes to a first start program to get 25,000 young people working or eliminating the home care wait list in this province, the government is suddenly very cautious. Will the government tell Ontarians whether they should expect another status quo liberal budget this time around, or will the Premier finally commit to putting families first? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I know that the leader of the third party, she and I have had conversations about these issues, Mr. Speaker, and, you know, she's been very public about the issues that she identified. They were issues, in fact, Mr. Speaker, that I had already identified during my leadership campaign. There were things that I want to work on, Mr. Speaker, and I've been very clear that the whether it's home care or whether it's youth unemployment, those are things that are of deep concern to me, Mr. Speaker, and they're things that we need to advance. We need to make sure that we move the bar on those issues, Mr. Speaker, because we know that there are more people who need home care and they need it in a timely way. We know that there are young people who are not able to find a job, partly, Mr. Speaker, because of a mismatch between labour market and labour force, but also, Mr. Speaker, because I think we need to make better connections labour, government, and business. That's the kind of work we're all about, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, people understand very well that these are tough times and they want to see smart investments that will improve health care, that will create jobs and that will make life more affordable for them. Instead, they see a government that seems much more interested in helping themselves with hundreds of millions of dollars spent on private power deals and that helps the Liberal Party, Mr. Speaker, and over a billion dollars and yet they want to open up. Why won't the Premier put corporate tax loopholes on ice, Speaker, and make the people of this province the priority in this upcoming budget? Minister of Finance. Mr. Speaker, thank you. I appreciate the question, but let's be clear. There is no new corporate tax loophole that's being opened up. These are, as you know, restricted-input tax credits that are coming and doing, and it's not a billion dollars, Mr. Speaker. But regardless, we are taking steps to close those loopholes. We're taking steps to ensure that we protect the interests of Ontario, and that's what we've been saying, and that's what we're doing, and we look forward to continuing to work together to try to find the best way forward to both support business, encourage investment, while at the same time, ensuring that Ontario has what it takes to balance its books by 2017-18. Thank you. Final supplementary. You have to make some pretty tough choices. New Democrats don't think this is a time for new no-strings-attached billion-dollar handouts to corporations that don't pay so that they don't have to pay the HST. It makes no sense at all, Speaker. Instead, we think this is a time to invest in prosperity that everyone can share in, not just a few well-connected insiders. Instead of billions of dollars spent on gas plants or billions of dollars spent on corporate tax loans, we think it's time to invest in jobs and healthcare and making life more affordable for the people who make this province work. Will the Premier agree that now is not the time for a corporate tax loophole, but rather a time for a balanced approach that puts the people first instead of a liberal approach that puts insiders first? So, Mr Speaker, that's what we're saying. We're taking a balanced approach. We're not going to take extreme measures that would hurt our sensitive recovery. A slash and burn across the board cut to a government, an Ontario government that's already the lowest cost per capita government anywhere in Canada, but we're also not going to take extreme measures of taxing and overspending that will also hurt our economic recovery. We need to be on that balanced approach, on that road to ensuring that we eliminate and tackle our poverty. I've committed to doing that. Our party has said we would. We're taking those measures. We're dealing with the federal government as well, and we're going to encourage that we're all at our best. And I hope everybody will work with us as well. Thank you, Mr Speaker. Question? The member from Corn Hill. For the Minister of Finance, Speaker, anyone who has ever watched the budget process knows this one is more than just odd. He said, imminently, budgets usually come in March prior to the end of the previous fiscal year. Next week, it will be May. Liberals cannot fathom what the word balance even means. The Minister's numbers don't add up, but he promises balance by 2017-18. We can only conclude there's no plan, just a black hole that keeps on expanding and swallowing up Ontario. Yes, Minister, we'll all know more after your speech at noon, but we'll have a group of business people who pay to hear you talk. Why won't you just tell all Ontarians right now for free how you can control spending without a single piece of legislation aimed at doing that? Ontario's jobs and spending crisis aren't even on your radar. Are you planning on slamming Ontarians with massive tax increases? So, Mr Speaker, I've been talking with all members of the opposition as well as my own caucus and, more importantly, Mr Speaker, I've been consulting with people all across our province and we've touched more people than we've ever done before in preparing a budget that speaks to them. And, Mr Speaker, in our consultations with the member opposite was a delivery of the Finance Committee's report. I've committed to reviewing that report prior to announcing our budget and I've received it just last week at the end of the week. I'm making every commitment possible to work together and I'm hopeful that you'll read the budget before you announce what you're going to do because you're already saying you won't even approve it. We have a strong plan, a plan that's balanced a plan that's going to take us on a path to recovery, a plan that's going to ensure that we balance our books by 2017. Well, Minister, you may soon have a budget but most people watching you seem to feel much like we do. You have no credible plan. You're in the front benches of government that has nothing in the cupboard because it tosses taxpayer money down the drain. Imagine how far the billion plus power plant dollars burned by the McGinty win election team would have gone if available now or the 300 plus million in counting that you've handed teachers to cover your missed steps of last fall. Tell us, Minister, how you plan to balance the budget by 2017-18 as you have promised. What will we call them? New taxes, levies, fees, premiums, because here's the thing, Minister you cannot just come in here next week, read a speech and expect Ontarians to believe one single thing you say. The record for your non-mandated government speaks for itself. That is being cut. What is increasing? Thank you, Minister of Finance. So, Mr. Speaker, the member opposite just made up a bunch of numbers that are untrue. And unlike the opposition, when they were in power and in fact they came out with a budget that was untrue, $5 billion in the hole. Mr. Speaker, we have proven that we can exceed our targets four years in a row. We've been able to surpass everything that we say we would do because we're working together with Ontarians. We have attracted more investment than any other place in Canada. And we'll continue to work with them to ensure that businesses see Ontario as a good place to do business. We will continue to ensure that our public and our people are at their best and working. We have over 400,000 net new jobs since the recessionary lows. The entire world is having issues with their growth. We recognize that. That's why we're taking measured steps. That's why we're taking restraint measures to ensure that we balance our books and we're moving towards that target. I look forward to having you read the budget. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Finance. Mr. Speaker, in 2010 this government made changes to the auto insurance system in Ontario that slashed benefits in Ontario paid out to drivers by 50% in the GTA by 70%. Last week in committee hearings the IBC themselves admit that these changes resulted in two billion dollars of annual savings for the insurance industry. The IBC themselves admitted it. Yet, in the past two years drivers have seen their own premiums go up by 5%. When will this government pass on a portion of those billions in dollars of savings to drivers in Ontario? Well, you just sort of answered it, didn't you? You just said that the measures that we took with the antifrost task force to go at the root causes of that fraud to ensure that we're able to lower some of those costs will enable us to have the opportunity to have reduced premiums. We need to do just that, Mr. Speaker. And I agree premiums are too high. I agree in Ontario the costs of insurance are 10 times higher than other parts of the provinces in other parts of Canada. So we need to ensure that we work together to reduce those costs and ultimately reduce our premiums and that's what we're working towards doing. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Well, just to correct the Minister of Finance it's not the antifrost task force it's this government's decision to slash drivers in Ontario to result in millions of savings. On April 12th FISCO released its report its annual report for 2013 for the first quarter and, Mr. Speaker, no surprise there's absolutely no cuts to premiums for drivers in Ontario. In the upcoming budget this government has a choice it can either choose to again support the multi-billion dollar insurance industry or it can pass on millions and dollars of savings to drivers in Ontario. Mr. Speaker, which will it be? Mr. Speaker, which will it be? So, Mr. Speaker let's be clear when the NDP were in power insurance rates went up 27 percent when the PCs were in power it went up 43 percent. We took power in 2004 we put legislation in place to try to lower those insurance premiums we are now working with the opposition to try to do the same in 2013 we'll get there we'll work with you the people of Ontario expect us to do just that and I agree we need to lower those premiums we need to work with the industry to make it so let's do that together Thank you Mr. Speaker Thank you Mr. Speaker My question is to the dedicated and experienced minister of the environment Mr. Speaker, today across the province and around the world will be celebrating Earth Day an initiative to show public support for environmental protection this year it is estimated that Earth Day will take place in more than 190 countries with over a billion people participating and activities to support our environment I know that in my writing of Glen Gary Prescott Russell families will be taking part in events to show their support for tackling climate change Speaker, through you are you able to explain the significance of Earth Day and what the people are doing to participate in this important event Thank you minister of the environment Excellent question today marks the 43rd Earth Day since its civic civic observance first took place in April 22 of 1970 this year individuals, businesses schools and organizations across the province will be joining over the one billion across the globe taking part in their communities to address environmental issues everyone can take part in Earth Day just one act symbolize the difference we can make in addressing climate change for example, on the weekend I joined Birlington Green Environmental Association in Beachway Park for a shoreline cleanup where it was great to see so many people pitching in to help the environmental cleanup I was also able to join the volunteers in Streetsville on Sunday along the Credit Valley Conservation and Sierra Club group along with those, we honored the Greenbelt Champion Peter Orfanos and planted trees in his memory it was encouraging to see people around the province know that their efforts are making a difference in the fight against climate change and environmental degradation Thank you supplementary Thank you speaker and thank you minister for providing this house with some examples of the wonderful work people are undertaking to help protect the environment the theme for this year's Earth Day is the face of climate change the Earth Day network describes the faces of climate change as those facing the reality of its effects and there are other faces the faces that are doing their part to fix the problem just like the people you participated with over the weekend Speaker through you, would the minister be able to explain what our government is doing to ensure that we are part of those faces that are working to fix the problem Thank you minister Our government is facing out coal replacing it through the green energy thousands of megawatts of emission free electricity coal fired electricity generation with its huge CO2 emissions is down by more than 95% since 2003 we invested $16 billion in public transit to address the largest domestic sources of smog causing pollutants in Ontario motor vehicles we are also committed to stopping urban sprawl in the GTA through initiatives such as the green belt which protects nearly 2 million acres of green space the equivalent of Prince Edward Island the far north act protects a land mass of 225,000 square kilometers in 2005 we passed the places to grow act to protect our agricultural lands and green spaces from urban sprawl by 2020 we will fulfill our commitment to plant 50 million trees in southern Ontario just last week the federal government's national inventory report shows that 2005 to 2011 we know gas emissions in Ontario Thank you I know my job New question the member from Nipissing That question is for the premier Premier it would appear that everything you've done on this gas plant scandal has been to benefit the Liberal Party nothing absolutely nothing was done in the interest of any of the taxpayers you told us the cost of Mississauga was $190 million when the auditor general told us you had to know all along the true cost was $275 million in fact both of it was already paid out to announce that bogus number it's clear you can't be trusted with our money the confidence of your government is at stake here so Premier will you stand up and give us one good reason to believe anything you ever say Thank you very much I've done exactly what I said I said during the leadership that when I got into office I would be opening up the process I would provide opportunities for everyone to be able to get into office and to be able to make sure that every document that was asked for was made available and I started acting on that the day that I came into this office in fact we offered to broaden the scope of the committee and the party opposite did not want to do that member from Renfrew needs to sit in his seat so I can tell him not to stop so Mr. Speaker I am very pleased that the scope of the committee is broader that every question can be answered that all documentation can and has been asked for and that is what I said I would do and that is what I have done Thank you Premier let me give you the latest example of your government saying one thing when the complete opposite is true last week your energy minister had a nerve to say and I am going to quote speaker we were not in a very good bargaining position mainly because the opposition forced us to show our hand and put all the documents on the table and compromised our bargaining position Premier your bogus 40 million dollar Oakville number was announced before any of the documents were ever released how could he stand and say that with the confidence of your government why do you continue to spread this nonsense I ask you again stand up and give us one good reason to ever believe anything you ever say again Mr. Speaker we have been extremely transparent on this issue all the way through we have a committee that is working and we have a person who is leading this for the opposition his brand Mr. Speaker is the yellow tie but I think he wants to change his yellow tie in for a trench coat and call himself Colombo because he is trying to parse and split every fact and every answer in committee and make a tremendous stand out of it Mr. Speaker we have been open we have been transparent we have been sharing information and most importantly Mr. Speaker we have accepted the auditor generous report and we are encouraging the committee to serve and be diligent in trying to get better rules for locating energy sites Thank you Mr. Speaker Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the Premier this morning Elliot Lake is still looking for answers into devastating Algoma collapse from last June the legal council for the mall action committee and the seniors action group of Elliot Lake at the public inquiry is now unable to continue representing these groups because has not been paid by the Liberal government since last summer even the commissioner himself indicated that this was a concern for the commission council and staff for a community that has suffered so much this government cause delay is utterly unacceptable will the Premier commit to removing barriers at the Elliot Lake inquiry so that the voices of the victims are not silenced one minute longer Attorney General Thank you very much Speaker and we know how important the Elliot Lake inquiry is first fall that's why it was initiated within a week or so after the tragedy took place I've looked into the issue that's been raised with respect to the payment of the lawyers it's my understanding that the bill was actually submitted sometime near the end of February and it's being looked after today Thank you supplementary Good to you all Again to the Premier of Council it is the responsibility of the Attorney General's office to reimburse the legal fees of the participants who were granted funding yet the government hasn't fulfilled its responsibilities in Elliot Lake for eight months now it is shameful that this government's failures have put extra hurdles in the victims quest to get answers will the Premier ensure that these delays do not hurt the families of the victims as well as the community who are desperately waiting for answers Attorney General Well, Speaker, absolutely we want to get down to the bottom of this we want the inquiry to get to the bottom of this as I indicated before the first legal bill that was presented to the government but sometime near the end of February it went through an assessment process as soon as the story came out that the lawyer wasn't being paid we've looked into it and it's being looked after today Thank you Thank you, Speaker and my question is for the Minister of Energy Minister, since 2003 our government has built a clean, reliable energy system in Ontario we've introduced stability into the system invested in renewable energy to become a leader in North America and created a culture of conservation across Ontario those investments have helped us get off of coal-fired generation and insured Ontarians that they have clean air to breathe our energy system has been the long-term energy plan Will the Minister please update the House and what our government is doing to plan for the future of our energy system Thank you, Minister I thank the member for Otto Orliens for the question we've made real progress in Ontario's energy sector since 2003 and the long-term energy plan has been an important part of that progress the energy sector is constantly evolving and that's why a three-year review was part of the plan that's why I announced last week that we will be conducting a formal review of the long-term energy plan to be completed within six months our review will be based on a strong and transparent consultation process with the public, municipalities and the energy sector consultation sessions will be held in every region of the province and we'll engage the aboriginal communities and their leaders I'm particularly interested on reviewing our supply mix, how conservation can play a larger role and how we can create a predictable and stable clean energy procurement process Thank you, supplementary Thank you, Speaker and Minister for your response and we look to the future, our energy sector I'm glad to see strong leadership from our government as we look to the best way to evolve Public consultation is an important part of what we do as government I'm glad it will be central to the review Minister, you mentioned three key areas for consultation as part of our long-term plan review, supply mix conservation and procurement of clean energy These are issues that affect the members of my community and families and businesses around the province Speaker, would the minister expand on those key areas? Thank you Minister, thank you to the member again the member is right, there will be three core areas of our review, the first is to receive feedback on Ontario's supply mix which is one of the greatest strengths of our electricity system right now We'll ask broad questions about where and how Ontario should produce power in the future, the second element is conservation Our government strongly feels that conservation must play a more prominent role whether it's through our innovative smart grid or home retrofitting, conservation gives ratepayers power on how much energy they use and how much they pay for it and finally we will create a predictable and sustainable clean energy procurement process We'll provide the right conditions to continue building our green energy industry including listening to municipalities and recognizing that communities have greater involvement in local energy projects We've had great success in our energy system and I look forward to building on that success, thank you New question? The member from New Market Aurora My question is to the premium Speaker, the member for Don Valley West was the co-chair of the Liberal Election Campaign in 2011 In that capacity, she was responsible for a decision that she knew would result in the appropriation of millions of tax dollars for the sole purpose of getting the member who sits to her immediate left re-elected and it's also widely known that that same member played a key role in her election as leader of the Liberal Party Now he's the finance minister and she's the premium. Would the premier tell us what she plans on doing to repay that campaign debt of $275 million to the taxpayers of this project? Very much Mr. Speaker and again I will just say that I was very clear during my leadership bid Mr. Speaker that there had been a decision made about the movement of gas plants Mr. Speaker. There was a cost associated with that. Everyone agreed that those gas plants should move Mr. Speaker. We have acted on that. What I said was that we were going to make sure that all the questions that were being asked were going to be answered that all the documentation would be available We opened up the process Mr. Speaker I did exactly what I said I was going to do and we will continue on that path Mr. Speaker making sure that the questions get answered and that's why I asked the auditor general to look at the Oakville situation Mr. Speaker. That is what's happening and we await his report. Thank you. Mr. Speaker. The auditor general made it very clear that spending $275 million to move that gas plant was a decision of the Liberal Party of Ontario Now the Liberal Party may acceptable to spend $275 million to save one seat and we don't believe the taxpayers of this province do either and he's asking the question the Liberal Party doesn't support that either and won't prop up a government that is so standard with my question I will repeat it one more time will the premier stand up she's already admitted it was a political decision and tell us how they are going to make it up to the taxpayers of this province don't give us a budget that will mean nothing call an election and have the people of this province pass judgment on her decision. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker and you know the member opposite has acknowledged that there was a political aspect to these decisions Mr. Speaker and every candidate in the party opposite was close to this issue and their writings that they were running and they advanced the position of those parties that they would cancel those gas plants Mr. Speaker that's what they said that was their position I really believe Mr. Speaker that Ontarians want to see people in this legislature working together we're going to bring a budget forward Mr. Speaker and we're taking a balanced approach to that budget Mr. Speaker I hope that both the parties opposite and they realize that we are on track we are going to balance our budget by 2017-18 Mr. Speaker that we are being fiscally responsible and then they will look Mr. Speaker at the investments that we propose to make sure that we have as fair a society as possible Mr. Speaker I hope they will look at that balanced approach I believe that that is what the people of Ontario want us to be doing as a government and they want that discussion to happen in this legislature Mr. Speaker thank you Mr. Speaker my questions to the premier the last couple of days we've been witnessing some pretty serious flooding in Huntsville, Quartho Lakes and the Muskokas we hope and expect that the province will provide residents in those communities with timely assistance flood victims in Thunder Bay are still waiting for help even though a flood that devastated 700 homes in that community happened almost a year ago last week the Thunder Bay flood victims cost $200,000 for private damage claims to houses and small businesses when will this government focus more on helping people and less on public relations Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Thank you Speaker and I just want to comment on the recent flooding we heard about this weekend I want to comment and commend the people and staff and the first responders in the town of Bracebridge the town of Huntsville the city of Bancroft the city of Quartho Lakes the township of Minden Hills and the township of South Algonquin and the municipality of Marks Day Warren certainly they've been under great duress and over the last weekend I want to thank them for their hard work and their dedication certainly emergency management Ontario and the municipal staff are working on the ground we have my ministry of municipal affairs and housing we have the ministry of community safety and correctional services that are all helping on that front and helping the mayors and the individuals to minimize damage and certainly we want to offer assistance and in the supplementary obviously I will get back to the survey issue that the member opposite raises The Premier herself Premier Nguyen promised up to $3.2 million during her tour of the flood damage areas of Thunder Bay last year but instead of the usual $2 contribution for every dollar raised locally the flood victims of Thunder Bay are only getting $0.20 on the dollar this nickel and diming is hard to take for people who have already lost so much this government can find $275 million to cancel the Mississauga gas plant why can't it pony up $3 million for the flood victims of Thunder Bay Thank you Speaker The province committed up to $17.2 million to Thunder Bay and area municipalities and the ODRAP program certainly has been we've been on the ground since the flood occurred last year we were there immediately to help and certainly we're ready to provide more than is actually currently projected the city of Thunder Bay asked the province to help cover the cost of their safe home programs and because things are covered under private insurance some of the items were reimbursed from this program were actually not eligible working with the municipality we understand that when you're in the middle of a crisis that you try and reimburse your community we're there on the ground helping we have made substantial investments we continue to do that because we want to make sure that this community gets back on their feet as quickly as possible I plan to be in Thunder Bay later this week to talk with the mayor and the councillors to make sure that we have the receipts that we need because at the end of the day we have an auditor general we're responsible for we have to provide the paperwork thank you new question thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation our government is bigging record investments in public transit which will benefit my riding of Scarborough Southwest where constituents rely on public transit to get to work and to get to school I know that reducing congestion is a priority in the GTHA region and I'm happy that our government is moving forward to address this need but many of my constituents are looking for more flexibility and convenience when using public transit to get home to their families they need options if their work demands make them stay late and they should have to worry whether transit will be available when they want to go home the government's record and recent announcement that 30 minute gold train services coming to the lake shoreline will address many of these concerns could the minister please update the house on this recent announcement thank you Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation thank you very much Mr. Speaker I'm just wondering if my opposition critics could stand up so we can all figure out who they are because it's one of the best kept secrets in the house I am again indebted to members on this side Mr. Speaker for holding the government accountable on transit and transportation yet again we should double the members pay because he has to be an MPP on the government side and to the opposition's job Mr. Speaker but the member is quite correct because he does do math before he makes commitments and he actually reads budgets before he votes on them another uniquely liberal attribute Mr. Speaker we are introducing half hour or better go service all day and the greatest advantage is you don't have to fumble with a schedule figure out one of the concerns at 1117 it will be there when you get to the station Mr. Speaker this is the biggest expansion of go in its history and we are proud to be moving on Mr. Speaker supplementary thank you Mr. Speaker and thanks to the minister for his excellent answer go transit's new seasonal weekend schedule sounds much improved and summer travel should be more convenient than ever my constituents Scarborough Southwest we are pleased to hear their transit investments are being public transit a better choice for commuters this will reduce congestion on our roads and improve quality of life for Ontario families but it is strange to me that this service will stop short of Hamilton it seems like a natural fit for residents there and I know that people in Hamilton and in Scarborough Southwest will be wondering why this service stops before it reaches them Mr. Speaker can the minister explain why this 30 minute all day to a go service will not be extended to Hamilton Minister Mr. Speaker I kind of love Hamilton it's one of my favorite cities in the country and the challenge we have Mr. Speaker is that the tracks from Aldershot to Hamilton are not owned by us they're owned by CNNCP and we continue to negotiate with them but Mr. Speaker I'm happy to report that is not stopping us from improving service to Hamilton as a matter of fact Mr. Speaker we are building a new go station in Hamilton supporting the great work of Leona and Hamilton will now have two go stations Mr. Speaker we're also going to be adding Mr. Speaker two more trips will be added in the morning and the afternoon starting in 2015 as one of the legacies of those amazing Pan Am games and we continue Mr. Speaker to spend hundreds of millions and billions of dollars improving track capacity Mr. Speaker but I would suggest when the opposition was in power Mr. Speaker and froze funding for go had they not done that you can already be in Hamilton Mr. Speaker the member from Prince Edward Hastings thank you very much Mr. Speaker my question is for the Premier this morning Premier is the chair of the cabinet meeting the cost of the Oakville cancellation was discussed it's clear that you know the cost of cancelling the gas plant yet whenever you're asked about the cost of cancelling the gas plant on the floor of the house here you bring up your offer to appear before committee Premier surely we shouldn't have to haul you before committee like some Quebec construction industry snitch just to get an answer to a question how long do you really expect the farm team to my left to prop you up and prop up your scandal plague government when you can't even answer a simple question this is question period I'm expecting an answer I would hope to get an answer from you if you can give an answer at committee down the road somewhere then you can tell us right now how much will it cost to cancel the thank you Premier Minister of energy Minister of energy I want to read one paragraph from the memorandum of understanding with respect to the cost and I would like to challenge the member who asked the question to tell me what it means the OPA shall pay to TCE the positive difference if any between one the aggregate amount of cost confirmed by the opinion of an independent auditor to have been paid by TCE and respective sections 2A and B and the schedule B and 2 the amount paid by the OPA to 2CE in accordance with the provisions of sections 2A and B and this schedule B or TCE shall pay to the OPE the positive difference if any between one the amount paid by the OPA to TCE in accordance with the provisions of sections 2A and 2B of this schedule B and 2 the aggregate amount of cost confirmed by the opinion of an independent auditor to have been paid by TCE and respective costs contemplated by sections 2A and B of this schedule B that's why we have the honour general looking into the cost and that's why we'll accept his report thank you Mr. Speaker the fake transparency continues I'd like to ask the member a question maybe he should ask Bob Delaney how much $1.3 billion would go how many people thank you Minister of Energy Mr. Speaker on September 24th 2012 an agreement was signed between the province of Ontario TransCanada and the OPA which set out the details of the cost of the Oakville plant Mr. Speaker they were put on the website there's also a 216 page contract by the parties that's on the website we now have the Ontario power authority and the auditor general looking into verifying the costs in a report that will be provided by the auditor general of Ontario we are awaiting the report of the auditor general to deal with those difficult clauses in trying to calculate the cost thank you my question is to the minister of health and long term care last month St. Joseph's health care center announced the closure of the hydro therapy pool this pool regularly serves 300 residents many of who face significant health challenges and issues I have dozens of letters from seniors like Ms. Hilda Pech who are devastated by the closure Ms. Pech wrote 10 years ago I was diagnosed with fibro myalgia osteoarthritis and osteoporosis and I looked for something that would help me and the pool has been the answer for me my question is simple is the minister going to allow the hydro therapy pool to close or will she intervene Minister health and long term care thank you speaker and thank you to the member opposite for the question of course I have also heard from people who would like to see the pool remain open what I can say speaker is that hospitals across the province including St. Joseph in London are looking very closely at their budget they must continue to provide that important service that can be delivered only in hospital if there are services that they are providing that can be delivered in the community then that is the appropriate thing to do so I know that St. Joseph's hospital has determined that there are facilities outside of the hospital that can provide important care for people speaker I look forward to the supplementary and I can talk about some of the reforms we are making on physiotherapy thank you supplementary speaker the community pools don't meet the needs of these patients because the community the pools the hydro therapy pools are designed for medical reasons to help them for rehab so speaker the hospital is looking for 6.3 million in savings and they feel as though they can justify the 25,000 expense of hydro therapy but this closure is nothing short of penny wise and pound foolish the future cost of caring for 300 residents who will lose their main source of rehab and therapy will undoubtedly be more expensive than the cost of keeping these people healthy speaker a solution needs to be found will the minister take steps necessary to ensure the community continues to have access to this vital service speaker of course it's very important to me that the people who take advantage of that pool now do have access to other places in the community that can provide that kind of physio that kind of help speaker last week I was very pleased to announce that we are almost doubling the number of people in this province most of them seniors who will have access to one-on-one physiotherapy and exercise programs and pulse prevention programs speaker by changing the way we deliver those services we're going to be able to significantly expand access is including in communities that do not currently have access to those physiotherapy clinic speaker this is advice that we've received from Dr. Samir Sinha from Dr. David Walker and indeed from Dr. Don Drummond speaker there are we've also got the support of the physiotherapy association and seniors and their advocates right across the province thank you Mr. President my question is I have a question for the minister of training colleges and universities colleges and universities release the new tuition framework for post-secondary education I know first-hand speaker from encountering families and students that there's a sense of gratitude and anticipation about our government steps to make post-secondary education more affordable to finance their education many students in Etobicoke North have part-time and summer jobs studying at the post-secondary level and financing a degree or a diploma can be a significant concern and undertaking the reduction in tuition caps has significantly helped students in my writing but many students and families worry that this initiative won't be enough so I ask the minister on behalf of students in Etobicoke North and beyond would the minister please inform the house what other programs initiatives and directives will allow students in our province to access our world class post-secondary education thank you Mr. Speaker I know the member has been speaking to students in his writing just by virtue of the issues he brings forward in the question and I think it's safe to say that students would have liked to have seen us go even further but they understand that we're trying to balance Mr. Speaker quality with affordability and frankly Mr. Speaker we're not willing to compromise on either this measure will save the average undergrad student and university about $1200 over the course of this tuition framework which is really important and Mr. Speaker despite the tough fiscal times that we've been going through our government has implemented the 30% off tuition grant that goes to low middle income students you know Mr. Speaker and all 230,000 low middle income students are benefiting from that grant this year that's making our post-secondary education system more affordable more accessible and reducing the burden of student debt thank you Mr. Speaker Premier on a point of order thank you very much I beg the indulgence of the house I want to introduce my constituent Janet McDougal and her daughter Marni who are here with us today no deferred votes this house is recessed until 1pm this afternoon