 It is now time for a question period the leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. Thank you very much. I guess you had a good weekend too. Let them take my time, Speaker. My question for the Premier. We believe it's time to clear the decks, to get on with the big issues in the province, that's to create jobs, grow our economy, and get government spending within our means. We have a motion on bills that you and I talked about to clear them out of the way so we can focus on the big issues. If we do that, what bill are you bringing forward tomorrow to help create jobs in the province of Ontario? Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. The leader of the opposition has seen that it is possible for us to find some common ground to actually move forward on some of the House leaders are going to be talking about it. And Mr. Speaker, I will suggest that some of the legislation, like the waste reduction legislation, is exactly the kind of economic job-creating legislation that we need to work on together, Mr. Speaker. Supplementary? No. I think our concern is you're going to actually kill jobs and reduce innovation in our economy with that legislation. But nonetheless, I mean, here's the point. You know, these bills are prepared to move through the legislature with alacrity because we need to focus on jobs and the economy. And Premier, you've made the case that your priorities for the legislative agenda are when teens can access tanning beds and rules around water, heat, or salesman. We support those bills. Let's get them through. But then you say, well, what is left of your legislative agenda? It's been nine months of endless conversations, endless consultations. That's actually a direct question. We clear this stuff aside. We open up the session. Give me one bill that you're bringing forward tomorrow to actually get spending within its means or to create jobs. Where is the agenda? Thank you. Premier? Mr. Speaker, I'm not sure, actually, whether it's today or tomorrow. But the piece of legislation we're going to be bringing forward as it happens is to increase the employer health tax exemption, Mr. Speaker. And in fact, that piece of legislation would – what it would mean is that the exemption would increase from – would be increased from 400,000 to 450,000 starting January 1st, 2014, Mr. Speaker. And this would have a positive impact. And in fact, Mr. Speaker, would allow more than 60,000 employers across Ontario to be – to have that break, Mr. Speaker, including 12,000 that would no longer pay the EHT. That provides space, allows them to hire more people, Mr. Speaker. That's a job creating piece of legislation. I hope we'll have that support. Final supplementary? Well, you know, it's interesting. After nine months, you went on a hand-holding exercise across the province, lots of consultations. But Premier, it's time to get on with the job and it's time for action and it's time to focus on the big issues. You've made the case throughout the summer that your top priorities were tanning bed legislation and legislation around water, heater, salesmen. We think that it's time to move those aside and focus on the big issues. We have a bill right now sitting in committee from across the board wage freeze. Make sure government spends within its means. We have a bill to get energy rates under control by stopping the wind turbines across the province of Ontario. We have a bill to get rid of the College of Trades so young people can actually get a good job in the trade. So if you're covered as bearer, well, you move forward with our agenda and actually put people back to work, businesses back creating jobs and our folks back in balance in this great province of Ontario. Thank you, Premier. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Now while I appreciate the leader of the opposition's newfound willingness to work with us on some pieces of legislation, what I need to say, Mr. Speaker, is that I don't think that protecting young people from getting cancer or protecting consumers, Mr. Speaker, I don't think those are trivial things. I think those are very important. At the same time, Mr. Speaker, we are taking action. There is a reverse trade mission happening right this morning, a global trade forum, Mr. Speaker, where people from around the globe are here looking at Ontario. We're making connections between those businesses, Mr. Speaker, and those relationships are going to create jobs. I understand that the opposition, Mr. Speaker, doesn't value relationship. I would suggest, Mr. Speaker, the fact that we've been able to have conversations over the last few months means that we're actually going to be able to move some legislation. I'm sure, Mr. Speaker, it's working. The shouting is going to stop, and I'll stop it as quickly as I possibly can if I have to do it. A new question. The members from Central Great Britain. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The question is also for the Premier. Premier, you've had nine months as Premier of this province. You presented my leader two weeks ago, Tim Hudak, with a list of six government bills you wanted to see through the House and three private members' bills from our side. We're agreeing with you today through a programming motion. I should add that 90% of those bills aren't of your making. They're left over from Dalton McGinty's government. They're housekeeping bills. They do nothing to help the over 500,000 women and men who woke up this morning without a job. So let's not have any more conversations because that could go on for days. Let's get your commitment now. Let's support our programming motion. Clear the decks and get on with talking about jobs. Mr. Speaker, and I've already said, I think it's a very good thing. The very reason that I presented that list of bills to the leader of the opposition, Mr. Speaker, was to say let's get on with these pieces of legislation because there is a lot more work to do. Things, Mr. Speaker, like getting the Waste Reduction Act passed. Things like getting the employer health tax exemption passed, Mr. Speaker. So my hope is that if we can act on these bills that I presented to the leader of the opposition, then maybe on some of these other things we can get some cooperation too because, Mr. Speaker, I agree with the leader of the opposition. We do need to create jobs. We are creating jobs. That's what the global trade forum is about this morning. That's what legislation that we're introducing into this house is about, Mr. Speaker. I look forward to their support. Premier, in spite of telling the media and the public that you've been trying to work with us and then blaming us for holding up a legislative agenda, nothing could be further from the truth. The only program in motion that you brought forward was in Bahoot with the NDP. We were cut out of that country. Order. I expect the same on all sides. Please finish. You've never had a conversation with us about speeding up the legislative agenda and getting on to talking about jobs and the economy. Never. So we took the initiative today to do it for you. So just say yes. Let's move forward. No more conversations. There's no tricks in the motion. It's been approved by the clerks. Just say yes. Be seated, please. Premier. Well, I look forward to the house leaders talking about the programming motion. I think it's a step in the right direction, Mr. Speaker. No matter member of the opposition says, Mr. Speaker, the fact is that we have found a way because I have had a number of conversations with the leader of the opposition because I presented the notion that somehow there might be a way of moving through some of these pieces of legislation where there was agreement. If they need to take credit for that, Mr. Speaker, so be it. The fact is we're going to move these pieces of legislation through, and I'm very pleased that the leader of the opposition has taken me up on my offer, Mr. Speaker. Premier. The only one showing leadership around here is Tim Houdak from the U.S. So if you can't make up your mind now, you've got two hours and a half, and we hope that we will get unanimous consent to introduce that motion. If we don't get unanimous consent, then we hope by the end of the day that your government house leader will introduce the programming motion, that we clear the decks, we get on with talking about jobs and the economy, and start working for the people of Ontario and the unemployed of Ontario. They deserve nothing less. Thank you. Thank you. Premier. Mr. Speaker, this is a very positive development. I know the house leaders are going to have this conversation. It's exactly what I think needs to happen is there needs to be a coming together on some of these things that are important, Mr. Speaker, make no mistake, and the members of the opposition can diminish these pieces of legislation, but protecting young people from cancer, protecting consumers, Mr. Speaker, against fraud, those are very, very important initiatives. And I hope that given this exchange that we will see, Mr. Speaker, that the opposition will work with us on things like the employer health tax exemption, Mr. Speaker, which is a direct job creator, and I look forward to their support, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Thank you, Speaker. My question is to the Premier. Can the Premier tell us what her priorities are for the legislative session? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Well, I think the leader of the third party knows that we are right now in the throes of implementing many of the priorities that we put forward in the budget, Mr. Speaker. We identified priorities, and we worked with the leader of the third party and with the third party to make sure that we put those pieces in place. We had already identified investment in home care, Mr. Speaker. We had already invested investment and identified investment in infrastructure. That is the kind of strategy, Mr. Speaker. Investment in people, investment in infrastructure, investment in and support of businesses that will create jobs. That's what the Global Trade Forum is about this morning, Mr. Speaker. Connecting our businesses with businesses overseas, expanding our export capacity and creating jobs here in Ontario. That's our priority, Mr. Speaker, and that's what we're working on. Thank you. Supplementary. Speaker, families have made it clear to us that they want to see results that create jobs, that improve healthcare and make everyday life more affordable for them. We want to deliver those results for them, Speaker. Now this morning, the Conservatives put forward their priorities for the session, including a bill that will help one single company out of their obligations to their employees. Now it's clear that their priority is delivering results for Alice Dawn. Can the Premier tell us what her priority is? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I just want to say to the leader of the third party that I think that she knows full well that our priority on this side of the house is creating jobs and helping people in their day-to-day lives. We have been very clear about that, Mr. Speaker, since before we introduced the budget and we continue to focus on that strategy. Investment in people, investment in infrastructure, Mr. Speaker, and support and investment in the businesses that are going to create those jobs. The small, medium enterprises, particularly, Mr. Speaker, which is where the job creation is happening. On the piece of legislation that the leader of the third party is talking about, there is a situation that arose in the 1950s, Mr. Speaker. It is an anomalous situation and it's something that we believe needs to be addressed. Thank you. The people who make Ontario work every day sent us here to work hard for them, not for well-connected liberal and Tory lobbyists who are working overtime to get legislation passed that will help exactly one single company. They have a pretty simple question for their Premier. Is her priority delivering results for them or working with the Conservatives to deliver results for Alice Dawn? I think the leader of the third party knows full well that it is my responsibility and my intention and my objective to deliver results for the people of Ontario across this province, Mr. Speaker. And that means that we are working with Labour. We are working with business. It means that driving a wedge between Labour and business and somehow suggesting that to work with business in any capacity somehow does not work in the best interests of people in the province. That's just not the case, Mr. Speaker. Businesses create jobs. Jobs are what people in this province need, Mr. Speaker. So we're going to continue to work with business, with the Labour sector in partnership so that we can create the jobs to people around this province all over the province. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My next question is also for the Premier. People are looking for results that help them, not just well-connected insiders. Hector lives in Brampton. And like many drivers, he's tired of paying some of the highest auto insurance premiums in Canada. He's retired. He hasn't had a claim in 15 years. He hasn't bought a new car. But this year, he saw his insurance go from $1350 to $1,700. That's more than a 20% increase, Speaker. What does the Premier have to say to drivers like Hector who are seeing their premiums go up rather than down? Well, Mr. Speaker, I would say to Hector and I would say to people in constituencies around the province that over a year ago, Mr. Speaker, I identified auto insurance as an issue, something that needed to be addressed. I held a roundtable in my own riding. I had experts come and we talked about the issues of geography associated with auto insurance rates, Mr. Speaker. I talked about it during my leadership and, Mr. Speaker, it is included in our budget and we are tackling that change. We know that auto insurance rates need to come down and we need to take costs out of the system in order for that to happen. The Leader of the Third Party suggests that somehow that can happen overnight, that those changes can be immediate. That is just not the case, Mr. Speaker. We are working with the industry and the Leader of the Third Party knows that our target is a 15% reduction and we will make that happen. Thank you, Supplementary. Speaker Aftar also lives in Brampton. This year he watched as his premiums increased by nearly $400 up to $4,400 a year. Now that's an increase of 10%. Aftar doesn't have any new claims, Speaker, and he's driving the same car this year as he was driving last year. At the same time as the Premier is helping insurance companies maintain generous, guaranteed profits, she's leaving drivers like Aftar paying more. Is the Premier going to make sure that drivers like Aftar actually see some relief? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And we have made a commitment that we are targeting a 15% reduction, average reduction across the province, Mr. Speaker. And again, I think the Leader of the Third Party knows that it is not immediate. And as my colleague says here, there's no silver bullet on this. We have to remove costs from the system. We have to work with the industry because the Task Force recommendations on fraud reduction, Mr. Speaker, are fundamental to getting at why the costs are going up. So we're going to work with the industry, we're going to remove those costs, and we have targeted a 15% average reduction across the province. That is what we will deliver, Mr. Speaker. Final supplementary. Seems to me this government already removed $2 billion of costs annually in the last couple of years, Mr. Speaker. Here's what people see. When it comes to protecting the profits of insurance companies, the government is ready to work very, very hard. But when it comes to delivering results for well-connected insiders, the government is also ready to work hard. But when it comes to delivering results for everyday people, the government is dragging its feet. When is this premier going to make delivering results for people like Aftar and Aftar a priority for a change? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Well, the interests of the people about the leader of the third party is talking about are our priority, Mr. Speaker. As are the people, as they are for the people of the province. All of the people of the province who are burdened by some of these costs. I understand that. In fact, in 2012, auto insurance rates on average went down by about 0.03%, Mr. Speaker. And I know that's not a huge amount, but that is movement in the right direction. And remember we are talking about average decreases, Mr. Speaker. And that is our target, is to reduce on average auto insurance rates by 15%. Since 2003, Mr. Speaker, because there have been many changes made, the rates have moved at a slower pace than inflation. So the rates have not increased as quickly as they did prior to that. We will continue to work with the industry. It is absolutely our intention to reduce rates by 15% on average, Mr. Speaker. That's the target. That's what we will aim for. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, my question this morning is for the Premier. Good morning, Premier. You've been on the job now for nine months, yet Ontario's economy is only staggering along. You'd think that a new Premier would want to put forward some concrete suggestions to get the 600,000 men and women who woke up this morning without a job back to work. But so far, we've seen nothing. Nothing to create new jobs. Nothing to give confidence to investors. Nothing to put a lid on skyrocketing energy prices that send businesses fleeing from our province. Premier, a show about nothing may work as a TV sitcom, but it's a lousy way to run this province. Where's your jobs and economy plan? Thank you. Well, Mr. Speaker, I wish the member opposite had been at Ford in Oakville last week, Mr. Speaker, when we announced a $70.9 million investment, Mr. Speaker, that will protect 28 flexibility to be able to compete globally. That is the point of that investment. Ford is investing $700 million. We're putting in $70.9 million. The federal government is putting in the same, Mr. Speaker. So that kind of support is part of our strategy. And it's the investment in people. It's the investment in infrastructure. And it's a support for businesses like Ford that is going to create jobs. And it's going to allow Ontario to continue to recover better than most jurisdictions in North America, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Canada's corporations are sitting on $500 billion in reserves. Much of that is here in Ontario where your high taxes, high energy rates, and strangling red tape are forcing these companies to sit on that money. They're not investing in Ontario because business likes certainty. They're not investing in Ontario because they continue to hear you say one thing, but always do the opposite. They know that our deficit is larger than every other province's combined. They see that you have no plan to rein in spending, no plan to create jobs, and no plan to change the course that's dragging Ontario down. Premier, isn't it clear that your tired team has run out of gas, and run out of time? Premier? Minister of Economic Development Trade and Employment. Minister of Economic Development Trade and Employment. Well, Mr. Speaker, I have to obviously disagree with the member opposite. He needs to do his research because the reality is on a per capita basis, Ontario is the number one destination in North America for foreign direct investment. And since the bottom of the recession in June of 2009 we've created almost 100,000 net new jobs. 90% of those jobs are full-time jobs, Mr. Speaker. Almost 80% of them are in the private sector. And even today, Mr. Speaker, we have a global export form where more than 600 Ontario businesses are together with 20 investors and 20 buyers from the Asia-Pacific region and they are working together to further Ontario's exports as well as investment between that region and an important growing region as this part, as well as this province. So Mr. Speaker, the fundamentals are completely the opposite. We are thriving. We're creating jobs. We had almost a record number of jobs created last month. I don't know where he's getting his... The member from Timmy's, James Bate. Yeah, my question is to the premier. Premier last August, you had said to the media that you thought it was right and that the members of the Justice Committee should be allowed to ask questions in regards to the motivation of why liberal staffer sent emails saying that they were going to try to interfere with the speaker. We're going to be moving in an anonymous consent motion a little bit later. Stop the clock, please. I do get a sense of where the member is trying to go. I would ask him to rephrase his question without including any references to an already dealt with issue. If you can find a way to say that, I'll allow it. If you continue, I'll not allow it. Mr. Speaker, to the premier, my question is why are you going to support an anonymous consent motion that does essentially what you said and what you promised would happen last summer when asked by the media in regards to asking questions about the motivation of those who wrote those emails? Premier. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Cognizant of some of the warnings that you've already given us in the past, I will simply review what happened. There was an exchange that took place at the committee. There was discussion amongst the house leaders and it was decided that the opposition would go forward with a point of privilege who have ruled on that point, Mr. Speaker, and what I have said to the house leaders, I think what the premier has said is we would consider any sort of suggestions that come forward as long as they align with that ruling and the one that was shared by the new Democratic Party, in my opinion, does not align with the ruling that you brought forward, which is why we are not accepting it. Thank you. Supplementary. Premier, first of all, your word is the most important thing that you have in the business that we're in. And when the premier of Ontario says I cannot understand why members of the Justice Committee can't ask these questions, it brings into question that word. What this motion does, it says, and I just quote, that in fact we don't want to deal with what happened with the speaker in regards to the decision. We want to talk to the motivation of what those people were all about. How do you prepare to support the unanimous consent motion that would allow us to have people come before the committee and deal with what their motivation was, not what the speaker has decided? Thank you. Again, Mr. Speaker, there was concern on all sides of the house of the ruling that was made by the chair of the Justice Committee, not from a procedural point of view, Mr. Speaker. I think the ruling was very much in order, but it's implications. We had to bring forward one was to work something out amongst house leaders around the scope of the committee or the other was to bring forward a point of privilege. The opposition house leader brought forward a point of privilege. Mr. Speaker, you gave a very clear ruling and as I said, Mr. Speaker, anything that comes forward has to be looked at in the context of your ruling and Mr. Speaker, I have looked at the motion brought forward and in my mind it does not align with the motion. Mr. Speaker, that you've asked us to leave it at that in our exchanges here in the legislature. Thank you. No question. My question is to the Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Employment. Speaker, we all know that Blackberry has been a strong pillar of the ICT sector in the Kitchener Waterloo region, a company that has also spawned growth in the Ottawa region, providing jobs to many constituents in my writing of the people across this province and in my writing asking questions about the next steps for the company, particularly with regards to how many job losses this would cause in the province. Speaker, could the Minister please provide the house for the update on the situation at Blackberry and inform us here on what our government is planning to do to help those workers affected by these job losses. Thank you. Minister of Economic Development and Employment. It's no doubt that this is an extremely challenging time, not just for Blackberry but particularly for the employees, the individuals that are employed at that Ontario company. We've already been working because of the changes that have been taking place of Blackberry over the past number of years. We've already been working with the region closely with the municipality, the regional leaders, of course the business leaders as well, great organizations as well like Communitech supported for a number of years to make sure that we're providing re-employment and training services to former Blackberry employees. We've been doing that for some time. In fact, the program that we have in place, we are extending further into next year so we can specifically deal with the challenges we're facing. But I have no doubt, Mr. Speaker, that the people of Waterloo, the people of that entire region are up to this challenge. Thank you. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you Minister for the update. This is absolutely right. It is never easy when losing a job. I would like to join the minister in sending my support to the families affected by these layoffs. Despite this challenge for Blackberry, I think we can all agree that the ICT sector in Ontario has seen significant growth in the last decade, something we can all be proud of. But with these job losses at Blackberry and significant profit losses for the company, what impact could this potentially have for Ontario and the ICT sector in particular? Mr. Speaker, despite the challenges that Blackberry is facing, we need to put it in context. We need to understand that Ontario is the third largest jurisdiction in North America for the ICT sector. There are more than 250,000 people in this province that are employed in the sector, including 30,000 in the Waterloo region alone. Mr. Speaker, there are great opportunities. There are almost 1,000 firms in the Waterloo region that involve the tech sector. No doubt Blackberry is an important pillar of that and it was an important part of building the ecosystem that exists in that region. But to give you an example, there are 1,000 tech jobs which are currently unfilled in the Waterloo region alone today. So Mr. Speaker, we're confident that a lot of the employees that will unfortunately be laid off from Blackberry will find opportunity within the region, within the sector. A sector that by the way contributes $30 billion to the province of Ontario. 5% of our GDP and as I mentioned, a quarter of a million has been involved. New question? Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Premier, but I don't mind if she directs it to the transportation expert from Winnipeg. I want to take this time to remind the member and all members that we always refer to each other as either from their writing or their title. Nothing else. The federal government has announced support for the subway plan supported by the City of Toronto. My question, Premier, is when will the Liberal government quit playing politics with this issue and support the subway supported by everybody else? Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. Well again, for the second time this morning I'm happy to say that our actions have produced results. The fact is we've been in the City of Toronto. But in Brampton and in Oshawa and in York Region Mr. Speaker. My question of last week, I told you that the concern of governments under four premiers built open 64 subway stops and at this point under two premiers, you being one of them, Ms. Wynn, your government has opened none. When are you going to open your first subway stop? Yeah. Cross-town would have had many stations open at the party opposite to a systematic approach to building transit infrastructure in this region of the country because we need infrastructure having a transportation and a transit strategy for every part of this country never mind. So I hope that this is the beginning of that kind of partnership Mr. Speaker. Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Education on Friday a freedom of information request revealed that the Vaughan home daycare where two-year-old Eva Vickovich died last July had meat contaminated with Listeria in its refrigerator. Were complaints about contaminated and potentially lethal meat among those that your ministry never followed up on? Minister of Education. Yes, thank you and my heart does go out to the family of the child in this incredibly difficult time. I think it's important for the legislature to recognize that the area in which my ministry is authorized to act is within the realm of the number of children who are at an unlicensed daycare and in fact since this incident we have brought we have applied for an injunction and have been granted a temporary injunction to prevent this particular provider from operating a daycare anywhere in Ontario. Because this is before the courts waiting for the hearing of the permanent injunction I cannot comment any further on the specifics. Thank you. The freedom of information report shows that when the ministry of education inspectors finally visited the daycare last November they were refused entry for 20 minutes. The ministry's manager for licensing speculates that the operator moved children next door while the inspectors were waiting. If the inspectors had gone in right away they may have found 27 children and they may have closed that daycare immediately perhaps saving that child's life. How many children's life has this government put at risk because of its toothless inspection of home-based daycares? Yes and I repeat my ministry has applied for an injunction in this particular case but I think what's in terms of the ongoing public policy we have stated publicly that one of the problems with the existing day nurseries act is in fact that my ministry has very little authority with respect to unlicensed daycare and that in fact the need to go to court is problematic and that we have committed to making amendments to the legislation to find a more effective process to intervene in the future. Thank you. New question and a member from auto ourselves. Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Community and Social Services. As a new member here in the legislature I've quickly learned our role here and I know that the role we all play back home in our communities is vital to our work here. It's the most to connect with my constituents and learn of their successes and their challenges and how the work we do is making a positive change in their lives. As members we get an opportunity to hear about what we can do better and how we can improve the quality of services provided by our government. I know from the news that I saw over the summer that the Minister of Community and Social Services was also connecting with people right across Ontario including in my hometown of Ottawa. Speaker can the minister tell us about some of the communities he visited and what he has heard that can truly improve the policy formed by our government. Thank you. Minister of Community and Social Services. Mr. Speaker I want to thank the member from Ottawa South he has in fact over the last 14 years been connecting with constituents and I suspect that's why they sent him here. Speaker I did have a busy summer I met with some 173 groups over a six week period. Individuals businesses, community groups advocates, clients parents, agencies workers, union leaders municipal leaders and even a couple of first nation communities. And I did that because I wanted to learn directly a little bit more about how the services we provide impact people and how we can improve them. And I'll never forget Mr. Speaker the experience of visiting some of the people across the province with the developmental disability who live with dignity and respect in their communities with the help of supports provided by Ontario. Thank you. Supplementary. Mr. Speaker as the minister's example demonstrates it's important to listen and witness the everyday lives of Ontarians. Some of the stories are not only truly remarkable but inspiring. I'm glad to know that our government is making the right investments in people and improving their lives every day. As mentioned earlier the minister visited my hometown of Ottawa and I appreciate him taking the time to meet with the people of our city and learn some of the innovative ideas that might be leading and how they can be used across Ontario. Speaker can the minister tell us of his visit to Ottawa and what he was able to see that could be used across the province. Thank you. I'd be delighted but I'd be remiss if I didn't confess straight up that Ottawa is one of my favorite cities. Thank you. While I was there I had a chance to visit a number of places. I got to drop into the Causeway Work Center an entrepreneurial social enterprise venture that's doing some really good work and the Ottawa DSO drop-in center with its focus on skills development. I also visited one of the municipal service delivery centers. Probably, Ottawa's got probably one of the most sophisticated social delivery systems in the province. It's something I think we can learn from and I intend to visit back to see just what additional earnings we can gain from them. There are a lot of things that our government can do to make things better. I was impressed with what Ottawa had to offer and we're glad we visit that city to learn some more. Thank you. A member from Newmark and Aurora. To the Minister of Health Speaker, here's what the president of the largest provider of fixed wing air ambulance services to Orange told the public accounts hearing last Wednesday. And I quote, questionable and unethical business practices still exist at Orange. And I quote, allegations of inherent conflicts of interest coercion by Orange senior executives of proponents during the bidding process little if any operational oversight by Orange of its private sector aviation suppliers and speaker, no requirements whatsoever for proponents to prove that they have the financial capacity to deliver on their contractual obligations. I ask the Minister of Health are any of these revelations about what is going on at Orange today under its new executive of concern to you or will you simply accept them as Minister of Health and long-term care? Thank you speaker and I can assure the member opposite that Orange is taking these allegations very, very seriously. They are investigating them. I think it's important to understand speaker that Orange is into a new chapter and we are seeing the evidence of that speaker in that their commitment to put patients for a speaker to enhance transparency and accountability they value these principal speaker and they are acting on them. Speaker, I think it's important to acknowledge that our frontline staff at Orange put their lives at risk every single day making sure that people get the care they need when they need when patients need to be transported speaker the people at Orange are there. So as I say Orange is taking these allegations very seriously and is looking into it. Thank you. Speaker that's precisely why we're concerned about this because we support those frontline people at Orange the paramedics and the pilots and the people who are doing the frontline work. What we're concerned about are the allegations in the executive suites of this organization that suggests that there's conflict of interest that's rampant. We're told by Mr. Rick Horvath, the president of Air Bravo that the president and CEO is fully aware we were told that the chief operating officer has actually allowed his confidential emails to be distributed to his competitors. Speaker this is the executive suite of the executive suite that the minister assured us was being cleaned up we want to know will she order an independent investigation of what is going on in the executive suites at Orange will she confirm that for us today. Thank you. Minister of Health. As everyone in this house knows there is new leadership in place at Orange. They have impeccable credentials and they are working very hard to ensure that patients who need Orange get the care they need. Speaker I'm not the only one who thinks that Dr. McCallum is in fact an excellent leader I have a quote here I think that Mr. McCallum or Dr. McCallum brings a brand new perspective to openness and transparency precisely for that quote is from Frank Cleese on March 2019 2013. So I know the member opposite has a great deal of respect for Dr. McCallum let's let him do his work. Thank you. Leader of the third party. Thank you speaker my questions to the Minister of Energy. This government has got its wires crossed when it comes to the power needs of the Northwest. Last week the Minister of Energy sent some very mixed signals to say he said and I quote any future generating plant in Thunder Bay will be used 6 hours per year. Is this government looking for fresh excuses not to honor its commitment to convert the Thunder Bay generating station to gas or is the minister ready to admit that he got his facts wrong. Minister of Energy. Mr. Speaker I'm happy to speak to this issue again. First of all I want to say that already there is a conversion underway and the Atacocan plant will be available next year for 200 megawatts. Mr. Speaker there is significant we're already in procurement for the East West High Line Mr. Speaker to bring another 400 or 500 megawatts into the Thunder Bay in Northwestern Ontario area. Investments are being made but the good news Mr. Speaker is that more investments are going to be made and the draft plan for Northwestern Ontario energy is circulated everybody in the north the task force has it Thunder Bay has it and we're waiting for some response from that we expect to get that response soon we shared that with them at AMO conference around August 20th last month Mr. Speaker we're waiting for the response we are committed to having energy in Thunder Bay in Northwestern Ontario and the amount that they need Mr. Speaker while people in Thunder Bay have been waiting a long time to hear some straight answers from this government instead they have a minister who claims the plant is only working 6 hours a year when in fact it's 70 times as much they have a minister who wrote me to say that the plant is running at 4% capacity when it's much much more and they have a minister who wrote answers in quote 3 or 4 weeks and then promptly took it back and at the same time told Thunder Bay citizens to get ready for a long long wait now is the minister's confusion a case of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing Speaker or is it simply a sneaky way of pulling the plug on the Thunder Bay generating station gas conversion Mr. Speaker I don't think it would be an exaggeration to say that the leader of the third party is playing politics with this issue Mr. Speaker I couldn't wouldn't dare say that Mr. Speaker the task force that has produced the draft report has a massive investment strategy for Northwest Ontario we're already creating new generation in Thunder Bay we have not made a final decision on Thunder Bay at this particular point and I would remind the leader of the third party that we have not had all the results back in from Thunder Bay and the task force in terms of the response to the Northwest draft plan it is an extensive promise of investment we're doing it, we're going to continue to do it and Thunder Bay has nothing to fear about the reliability of their electricity Mr. Speaker New question the member from Langary Prescott Russell my question is to the minister of training colleges and universities he's very hardworking there are many youth in my riding of Langary Prescott Russell with skills and knowledge wanting to contribute to Ontario's workforce yet with the youth unemployment rate at 9% higher than Ontario's overall average unfortunately many of these talented young individuals struggle to find good opportunities for employment this is very challenging not only to the youth but also to their parents and to their families involved and I'm also concerned that there needs to be supports in place to help the youth in these situations Speaker through you to the minister what is this government doing to ensure that our young people have access to good jobs and opportunities to gain workplace experience Good question Very good question Thank you Mr. Speaker Not only do I agree with the member on the importance of this question I have to admit he's got a very good selection in ties I think we're completely matching today which means we're one of the same when it comes to this issue Mr. Speaker ensuring our young people have opportunities in our economy is a top priority for our government that's why we created the youth employment fund to offer young people an opportunity to gain some real work experience learn work skills learning and income I'm very pleased Mr. Speaker to share with Ontario youth that applications this exciting program are now available across the province youth employment fund will help to provide access to much needed workplace experience for 25,000 young people across Ontario through this fund we're also making a special effort to help youth facing barriers including Aboriginal and Northern youth youth with disabilities newcomers and visible minorities and youth leaving care or on social assistance Mr. Speaker 25,000 young people going to get an opportunity Thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you Minister it's good to hear that the youth employment fund will be helpful to thousands of youth across the province and I'm reassured that we're making a special effort to assist youth to face different barriers when trying to find good jobs and workplace experience especially in small towns and rural communities like I have in my right in Blengary Prescott and Russell I've heard that the proposed federal changes to training funding may impact some of these programs that target youth that face greater barriers as our government steps up our efforts to help these youth find work it would be unfortunate if the federal government is taking measures that could harm those efforts Speaker can the Minister of Training Colleges and Universities please advise if these federal funding changes will hurt those youth who need these programs the most Thank you Minister Thank you Mr. Speaker I wish I could say otherwise but the fact is the member does have reason to be concerned actually all of us have reason to be concerned the federal government plans to cut 60% of the funding that goes to the labor market agreement which funds programs that among other things target youth with greater needs this is how they intend to fund their Canada Jobs grant program on top of that they're demanding that the provinces match that amount $132 million hit to programs that target Aboriginal and rural youth literacy and basic skills programs that target at risk youth among others we believe this is a counterproductive approach and we urge the federal government to rethink this course of action I also encourage all members service providers across the province and all Ontarians to contact their local MPs and join me in this government in urging the federal government to work with the provinces to find a better way to fund their new program Thank you Mr. Speaker Thank you very much Mr. Speaker my question today is for the Minister of Energy the Honourable General's report the Fraser report and now last week CD Howe report all have one thing in common and they all have denounced your government's green energy plan minister in fact CD Howe Institute said the Ontario power sector today has an oversupply rising prices to final consumers as well as volatile and contradictory policies Ontario's approach to power sector investment and planning is inefficient expensive and unsustainable Minister when will your government finally wake up look at the facts and accept that the green energy plan is nothing more than a pretty name on an ugly and expensive piece of legislation Thank you Minister of Energy Mr. Speaker what we're talking about essentially here is renewable energy and Mr. Speaker there are other people who want to speak about renewable energy as well for example the Minister of External Affairs for Canada John Baird he was down in Washington Mr. Speaker and because he was sensitive about President Obama's impression of the federal government in terms of carbon footprint very very quick to point out that Canada has the best record in North America of eliminating very cold burden generation Mr. Speaker and Minister Oliver Mr. Speaker has said the same thing well strange that when Mr. Baird was Minister of Energy in that government the PC government he was building more cold generation than anybody else in North America we're proud of our record we're making a healthier economy we're making a healthier population and it's a right choice I have to tell you and the Minister my father lived permanently on oxygen for 12 years and this nonsense and this ongoing spin has to stop there are real issues at hand and those issues are perpetuated by the ever increasing prices of your hydro rates that are revealed that provisions of the Green Energy Act and a whopping 66 ministerial directives have overridden your long-term energy plan and that means rising prices for consumers and more instability for business and investors and our rate payers as I said this project your project also is reported to say or generate over $370 million for rate payers so that they have to pay for your expensive green energy failed scheme Minister, the CD Howell report urges you to hit the pause button now will you face the music and commit today that doing the right thing is ending this scheme once and for all Minister Mr. Speaker there's only 4% or less of green energy in the grid at the present time the pressure on prices is because for 10 years the progressive conservative government made no investment in the energy sector they had declining they had declining transmission this government had to build an energy system almost from scratch we've created 13,000 megawatts we've improved over 7500 kilometers you asked the question Mr. Speaker that is rate base that goes on the rate base it pushed the rates up thanks to them we have taken some steps to mitigate the clean energy benefit has is reducing 10% of the electricity bills for families small businesses they should take the blame for rising prices because we had to build a system from scratch thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the premier good morning premier when the government shut down the slots at Windsor raceway which led to the collapse of the local harness racing industry in Windsor and Essex county and the loss of 2,000 jobs in my community the justification premier was that those who gambled at the track would gravitate to Caesars and do their gaming at Caesars and downtown Windsor by now premier must have had time to crunch the numbers did the experiment work how much additional revenue has been realized at Caesars since the slots at the track were shut down and so many people 2,000 people were left without good paying jobs in my community thank you thank you very much Mr. Speaker and I know the member opposite is asking a question in the context of the issues around the horse racing industry Mr. Speaker and the changes that were made I am very pleased Mr. Speaker for example that the Lakeshore group has been given 4 race states Mr. Speaker and I know that he is he will be happy about that because it's very close to his community Mr. Speaker $180 million we put into the system Mr. Speaker to guarantee a transition I am awaiting the report from the panel Mr. Speaker with a 5 year strategy we want the horse racing industry to be sustainable Mr. Speaker it was not transparent it was not clear how the funding was working Mr. Speaker and we had many opportunities for input on that we made a decision the Drummond report put forward a suggestion we made that decision but Mr. Speaker we have made it clear that we want to have a sustainable horse racing industry in Ontario and we are well on track to do that thank you nice try Premier thank you for those 4 extra dates in Leamington by the way the member from Essex and myself for their yesterday to show support no one from your government or the official opposition were but we were now prior to their self-fated decision to close the slots at Windsor Raceway the government was bringing in an estimated $8 million in clear profit $8 million Premier is nothing to sneeze at now there is no shame in admitting you made a mistake Premier no shame whatsoever we reopen the slots at Windsor Raceway breathe new life back into the provincial harness racing industry get those 2,000 people back to work and demonstrate to the people in this province Premier when you say it you mean it when you stand up as you did so repeatedly this morning and said that jobs are a priority to your government thank you racing industry to be sustainable I'm really glad that the member opposite was at Lakeshore it's his community I'm glad that he was there Mr. Speaker I'm also glad that it's our it's our commitment to the horse racing industry that's allowing this transition to happen Mr. Speaker cupping your hand as a microphone and yelling is not really what I like to see here trust me you don't even need your hands I can hear you anyway finish please first to admit Mr. Speaker that my predecessor stepped back from that initial decision and said we have to put in place a sustainable industry that just removing the money that was in the system Mr. Speaker even though the system wasn't transparent it was very fractious there needed to be a change we've acknowledged we need a 5 year strategy that integrates and that's what we're doing Mr. Speaker the member for me Jack Spickery thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the Minister of Energy Speaker we have been hearing news lately regarding nuclear safety particularly with respect to the ongoing situation in Japan of course this stems from March of 2011 when a magnitude 9.0 earthquake off the coast of Japan generated a 15 meter tsunami towards the Fukushima Beichi nuclear power plant this to Sammy caused a nuclear meltdown and the subsequent release of radioactive materials and the issue has recently resurfaced in the news with fresh leaks and concerns over the radioactivity of the region's fish, livestock and agricultural reeds through you to the Minister please explain the protections of the government has been installed to prevent such future occasions Minister of Energy Mr. Speaker I thank the member for the question and he certainly is right to show some concern in the sense that he represents those communities the health and safety of Ontarians is certainly our top priority in the wake of the Fukushima accident the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission established a task force to evaluate the implications of the nuclear event in Japan the report concluded that Canadian nuclear power plants are safe and robust and have a strong design relying on multiple layers of defense they also confirmed that the design of nuclear reactors safeguards against any incidents arising from external events such as earthquakes Ontario strives for continuous improvement from lessons learned from that report and Ontario power generation and Bruce power have taken numerous measures to enhance the safety of our nuclear facilities thank you Mr. Speaker thank you it's reassuring to know that Ontario has been taking very adequate steps this insurement of the safety of our nuclear reactors from events like the natural disasters while Ontario was not particularly prone to earthquakes I feel it is important that the government prepare for all possible eventualities when dealing with critical infrastructure like nuclear plants I also know from reading various news reports that another danger concerning nuclear reactors is related to their security while the threat to security is very low it nevertheless raises the question whether we are prepared for such an event or not Mr. Speaker can the minister tell me if we have precautions in place for such an event thank you thank you Mr. Speaker again I compliment the member for his responsibility on this particular issue nuclear safety and security are top priorities for the government and Ontario's nuclear operators Mr. Speaker you'll be pleased to learn that the Bruce power site received the highest possible security grade from the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission and Ontario power generation is aggressively pursuing a $350 million security enhancement project 95% of the enhancement program is completed and the remaining 5% is on track for completion by the end of this year OPG and Bruce power continue to ensure that enhanced security arrangements and contingency plans are in place at their nuclear facilities Mr. Speaker ongoing review of these facilities will continue even after the current security enhancement project has been completed I can tell you that if you speak to the management senior management of both of these facilities Mr. Speaker New question the member from Leeds Gremble Mr. Speaker my question is back to the Premier we started question period today with two lead questions one from my leader Tim Hudak and the other from my house leader Jim Wilson it's very clear Premier there's a half a million Ontarians that are out of work right now they need us to clear the decks and put forward some legislation that's going to create jobs my house leader today is going to table a unanimous consent motion this afternoon my question is very simple Premier are you going to support it yes or no Mr. Speaker we appreciate at this side of the house the new enthusiasm on the part of the progressive conservative party the fact of the matter Mr. Speaker is we found ourselves we found ourselves in this position Mr. Speaker because for the last year or so it's been the progressive conservative party who's been dragging their feet on every single bill that's brought forward Mr. Speaker Bill 14 non-profit housing co-ops while I might not necessarily be able to identify the individual who's using non-parliamentary language I am disappointed to hear it and I would recommend very strongly without me absolutely knowing for sure of who to withdraw might want to stand up and withdraw on their own thank you Mr. Speaker let me give some examples Bill 14 non-profit housing co-ops 15 hours and 50 minutes opposition filibuster Bill 36 local food act Mr. Speaker 20 hours 35 minutes Bill 55 longer protection for Ontario consumers 18 hours 39 minutes Mr. Speaker it's been this party that's been filibustering for the last year we welcome you thank you at any time any time the Speaker has a prerogative to remove somebody it doesn't mean just at the end of question period it could be at the end of question period it could be at the end of the day so I would ask the two members that seem to want to still yell cool it you have 10 seconds Mr. Speaker we welcome their enthusiasm but the fact of the matter is Mr. Speaker we will have discussion amongst House leaders and I wish they had some of this inpatience that was your 10 the member from Timmins James Bay on a point of order Mr. Speaker I seek you and Adams consent to expand the scope of the Standing Committee on Justice to allow for questions related to the motivation and intent of the Liberal Party staff and former staff of the Office of the Premier regards to the meetings with the Speaker and the Speakers of the Promethatia case of privilege and that this expanded scope shall not include the Speaker's confidential discussions I do have to do things properly so let me at least get the one part done the member from Timmins James Bay has asked for unanimous consent to put forward a resolution a motion sorry all of our do I hear unanimous consent it is there are no deferred votes this House therefore stands recessed until 1pm this afternoon