 It is now time for all questions, the leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. Thank you, Speaker. Premier, when the teacher of the year can't get a job, because he finds himself eight hundredth on the seniority list as a result of the new liberal hiring policy of Regulation 274, doesn't that tell you that something has gone badly off the rails when it comes to teacher hiring in her province? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I know that the Minister of Education will want to comment in the supplementary, but I just want to thank the leader of the opposition for raising the issue. I know that it is of concern, and we have heard those concerns. Absolutely. I know that the Minister of Education has got a working group in place to look at what changes we might be able to make, and so we're open to that, Mr. Speaker, and we've said all along that as we've heard these concerns, we're taking them seriously and we want to do what we can to make it right, Mr. Speaker. Any other supplementary? Well, Premier, it's not time for another committee. It's time for some action. This is pretty basic. It's very straightforward. I mean, we all care as parents. I know you do want to make sure that your kids and now your grandchildren will have the best possible teacher in the classroom. My daughter, Miller, has been blessed to have that. My dad retired principal, and I spoke to my dad about this, and he'd always look for the teacher who's going to bring the most to the job, the right qualifications, they're going to coach the hockey team, do drama, they brought life experience to the table. I had a lot of confidence in principals. As a parent, they make the right decisions for the school. This is the way it's always worked. Under Regulation 274 under this liberal government under your leadership, that's been tossed out the window, and now they're hired on the basis strictly of seniority. Clearly, as a parent and grandparent, you would agree that this is not in the best interests of our kids. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And, you know, I haven't seen the proposed bill, so I don't know exactly what it will say, but it's really important to me and to us that Ontario's teachers have a fair and consistent hiring practice and process across school boards, Mr. Speaker. That kind of consistency and that kind of predictability is very, very important. Last year, we heard from teachers that that wasn't the case, and the reality is that, you know, the regulation ensures that teaching candidates are chosen by a number of criteria, not just seniority, and they can go beyond seniority. But to go back to my original comment, I recognize that there are concerns, Mr. Speaker. I recognize that there may have been an overcorrection in terms of some of the issues that had been brought forward. That's why there is a working group in place, the Minister of Education, and we are open to making changes. We acknowledge that there are concerns, and we will do everything in our power to make sure that we get it right, Mr. Speaker. The Premier, again, this is not a time for waffling. It's not a time to study the issue. It's a time for action. I've yet to find a person, aside from maybe a teacher union head who thinks that this is appropriate for our kids. Let me tell you a bit about Jason Trin. Jason Trin is the kind of teacher my dad would have hired at Lakeshore Catholic. And I do want to say, Speaker, that school celebrate his 25th anniversary this past weekend of school my dad began in Port Colver, Lakeshore Catholic. I'm proud of that, and I'm proud of what he did. And he hired teachers then that rose up the ranks. Some became principals themselves, vice-principals, leaders. The Minister of the Environment, come to order. Jason Trin is an impressive young man. He has his master's in molecular biology. He was actually given the Premier's New Teacher of the Year Award for what he did to inspire, and the students, a love for science that brought in a new camp as well to get kids to improve their grades and grade nine testing. So why is Jason Trin 800th on the list? Shouldn't he be number one on the list? Won't we want that quality in our classroom? Thank you. Yes, thank you. And we, Speaker, we absolutely agree that it is important to have excellent teachers in our classroom, and that's exactly what we will do. But I think it's also important to understand that we have thousands of young teachers out there who want jobs, and it's not fair to the young teachers out there who want jobs and perhaps to older teachers who have recently qualified if we don't even post the job. We need to have some sort of process where, when there is a position available, that the job is posted and there's opportunity for interviews so we can select good teachers. Now, are there some problems with the regulation? Yes. We've got problems too. And that's why there's a working group. That's why there's a study. And that's why I've committed to the sector that if they can find a solution. Thank you. I dare say that in a classroom somebody given an answer would not be allowed to be shouted down. New question, the leader of the opposition. Back to the premier if I could, that speaker, on the same topic. Premier, the minister of education says we need a good process. Clearly, the process should be the best person gets the job. It makes sense. We've all been inspired. We wouldn't be here in leadership positions as NPPs as one of the lucky 107 in this place. We weren't inspired by a teacher. One of mine was Mr. Komar, another named college school in Welling. Now, don't go after me. Mr. Komar, environment, but Komar, order. Maybe some of the questions I asked today. But if it wasn't for that kind of inspiration, I probably wouldn't be where I am today. And you want to have these types of teachers in our schools. Experience, of course, but also passion. How are they going to help out the kids in the schools? How are they going to contribute to the extracurricular activities? Howard Goodman, a trustee with the Toronto Board, raised another issue of Regulation 274 saying it unwillingly puts those diverse new rookies at a disadvantage he references to the Vietnamese school, where a teacher who speaks Vietnamese could help a lot of these kids is sidelined because of your seniority hiring process. Well, you do the right thing. No studies, no delays. Just end this odious practice. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And as the minister of education has said, I would agree that not even having a job posted is not a good practice. There are obviously changes that needed to be made. And the fact is that we are open to making changes. We recognize that there are concerns. And we will work with the sector. And as the minister of education said, come to some consensus and implement those changes. That is what we've committed to doing, Mr. Speaker. But I have to say I'm really glad that the leader of the opposition is asking a question about education. His white paper on education, 10,000 education workers would be fired, Mr. Speaker. And I would like to suggest the education system were fired. Fewer kids would get extracurricular activities, Mr. Speaker. Fewer kids with special needs would get support, Mr. Speaker. And the system would not work as well in the best interest of students. So I'd ask him how he sees that as the best interest of the system. Thank you. Well, you know, obviously the premier hasn't taken the time to read the white paper because it's all about what's best for our kids raising standards in the classroom. And clearly, if you want to raise the standards in the classroom, you want to make sure the best possible teachers are with our kids each and every day. And let's call it straight here. You caved into the teacher unions. And as part of that process, you handle the keys to hiring to the teacher union bosses. I think that's wrong. When I asked my dad how he did this, he said, they post the job. They would probably get hundreds of applications. They would shortlist. The committee, usually the principal, the vice principal, the department head would interview the best candidates. They wouldn't have went down to the best list. And they'd hire the best teacher. And the school was recognized and celebrated and grew as a result of that. Other principals say the exact same thing. So, premier, if you admit that your system has problems, why continue it for a minute more? Why keep Jason, Trin, and excellent teachers on the sidelines? Why don't you just end Regulation 274 now and stop this mess so our kids can get ahead with the best skills they can do? Mr. Speaker, I want it. As soon as I'm ready to sit down, I don't want you to continue. And the member from Stormont's not helping things what I'm trying to explain. As soon as I sit down, don't start up. Premier. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I want to just draw attention to, again, one of the premises underneath the question of the leader of the opposition. And that is that somehow working with the education sector, working with the organized teachers in the sector is not a good thing. And I think we need to pay close attention to that, Mr. Speaker, because that underpins the philosophy of the leader of the opposition. To work in a collaborative way to find common ground to work with the people who are in the classroom and who are part of organizations is not the way that he would work, Mr. Speaker. And so getting rid of 10,000 teachers, canceling full-day kindergarten, that is the track that the leader of the opposition would put us on. That's not what we're going to do, Mr. Speaker. We are seeing advances in our schools. We want a fair and consistent hiring practice. And we're open to changing that regulation, Mr. Speaker. Final supplementary. I think this is an instructive, Speaker. When the time came to choose between the wishes of the teacher union bosses and what's best for our students, the premier side of the union bosses, I don't think that's helpful to our kids. I've not talked to a single person, and I've talked to a lot of people about this. People are very concerned. We care about how our kids are going to do. We want the best of the best in our classrooms with the kids. It should be based on their skills, their determination, their contribution to school, not if their pets of the union bosses are highest on the seniority list. Now, Premier, if you won't act, we will. My colleague from the PNC, Lisa McLeod, is bringing forward a private member's bill today to get rid of Regulation 274 and restore what has made our schools strong in the past that rewards the citizens by principles and that rewards the best possible teachers. So if you won't do it, we will. I'll ask you this. Enough consultations, enough committees, do the right thing and support Lisa McLeod's bill later on. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So let me just be clear on this side of the House. What we support is publicly funded education. Increased funding, Mr. Speaker, in the education system has gone up 44% since 2003. There are 13,300 new teachers in the system, Mr. Speaker. Kids' test scores are up. Graduation rates, when we came into office, were 68% out of high school, Mr. Speaker. Now they're 82%. Kids are doing better, Mr. Speaker. We have one of the comments. Regulation 274 was put in place because there were concerns about the consistency of the hiring practices, Mr. Speaker. It may be that it wasn't overcorrection and it may be that there need to be changes to it and that's why the Minister of Education is prepared to make those changes, Mr. Speaker. But make no mistake, public education is advocated for by this government, Mr. Speaker. We have strengthened the education system, working with the sector, the party opposite, Mr. Speaker, would undermine that success and would fire people. Thank you. Can you see it, please? When my memory is working, I will make this comment. I'm going to ask the member from Renfrew Nipissing Pembroke to come to order and I'm going to ask the Minister of Rural Affairs to come to order. And that's the second time. New question, the member from Bramley League, Ormold. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, yesterday in the House, the Minister of Finance echoed claims by the insurance companies that they've enjoyed very minimal profits. The minister said it was a fact that insurance companies are receiving about 3% in their ROE profit margins. Mr. Speaker, does the Premier stand by this claim? Minister of Finance? Finance. So, Mr. Speaker, the member opposite from that bench talked about the ROE. We are trying to express and make note of the fact that the ROE, if we were to take the return on premium that which was calculated in Alberta, for example, the premium, the return on premium in Ontario would actually be 5% to 6%, which is the lowest in any province in this country. A huge supplementary. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. An independent report written by a long-time insurance industry actuary prepared for today's auto insurance hearings actually shows the industry had in fact over a billion dollars of profits last year and that the ROE calculated would be something in the range of 14%. That's four times higher than what the minister claimed yesterday. Is the Premier ready to admit that they may be wrong about the actual profits that the insurance industry is making? Minister of Finance? So, Mr. Speaker, I've just explained that there's a great difference between this ROE calculation, which we've already advanced and told the FISCO that on the rolling scale we want to reduce. It is a formula-based system and we expect the rate to fall further. But let's be clear, it's the difference between ROE and the return on premium. And it doesn't seem, and I appreciate that this misunderstanding over there because it's a complicated initiative and it's a complex issue. We understand that. But we will continue to say that we will review, we're overhauling the formula further to make it more transparent for all drivers, but as I've stated, when you compare Ontario to the rest of Canada, the return on premium, first for example in Alberta, in Ontario it's 5% to 6%, which is lowest anywhere in the country. Well, we know Mr. Speaker that we're paying the highest rates in the country, so that's something we need to fix. It seems like this government is ready to break speed records when it comes to helping the insurance industry but they slam on their brakes when it comes to helping out drivers in this province. Over the past 5 years, the industry has enjoyed billions in dollars in savings due to auto insurance reforms. The government has already taken out billions in cost from the system, but for drivers the rates continue to climb. Salil from Mrs. Saga watched this summer as his rates increased by $500 to over $3,000 a year. That's with no new claims, no new car and no accidents. The minister simply got his facts wrong and now the government has a choice. Will they stand up for drivers who deserve a break? Question. Or will they keep helping the insurance industry maintain their record profits? Mr. Finance. So Mr. Speaker, the third party has started talking about this and they've been talking quite a bit in the last number of months but we on this side of the house have been taking action on this for the last 2 years as a result of these actions that we're able to now pass on savings to consumers and we will continue to do so. It's not something that you flip a switch and it gets done, it takes a lot of work and it's taken a lot of years to make it happen and we are seeing some results to that and we'll continue doing what's in the best interest of the public and yes, we all need champions and we need champions on all sides of the house to work together to make this happen. We will do our part, we will continue to lead. New question, the member from Timmins-Dreams Bay. Mr. Speaker my question is to the premier. People who have elected us have told me they want us to work hard for them and they want us to deliver results that makes their lives better for example reducing auto insurance rate. Can the premier tell us how many people she's met with that are concerned about the plight of Ellis Dawn Corporation? Minister of Labor Thank you very much Speaker and I appreciate the member opposite asking a question Speaker, having stable labor relations is always the cornerstone of our government. We have worked extremely hard over the years since coming into office in 2003 to make sure that we have balanced and stable labor relations and that's why I'm really proud to say that we have a situation in Ontario that 97% of labor agreements are achieved through collective bargaining which is a tremendous success in terms of the effectiveness of our labor relations agreement and will continue to work with all political parties and our labor partners to ensure that trend continues to progress. Thank you very much Thank you Well the question was to the premier and it was a pretty simple one can you tell us who's been lobbying you to get this piece of legislation passed and all we get is what you're trying to do I'm going to ask you the question again it's a very simple question can the premier tell us who's been lobbying you to fast track this legislation that's going to benefit but just one company in this province Ellis Dawn Thank you I think the member opposite knows that the bill he's referring to is a private members bill that was brought up in this house and it's been debated and was passed through this house it's obviously up to committee hearings which is up to the house leaders to decide whether that process will take place or not so I think it will be a fair for me to comment on a private members bill but of course we listen to all interested parties on issues that are important to all Ontarians the focus of our job as a government and the premier has spoken about this often is to grow our economy is to create jobs to make sure that hardworking Ontarians have opportunities across the province to meaningful good paying jobs final supplementary the only thing that appears to be growing is the coffers of the liberals and Tory party ask the question again your government is about to embark on a programming motion with the conservative party to fast track a piece of legislation that's going to benefit one company in a sector so I'm going to ask you the question again can the premier explain to us how you end up putting this piece of legislation as priority and how and who has lobbied you as you know this is a private members bill that was brought forward by the official opposition it's been debated through this house and passed of course this is a minority so we have worked with all political parties to make sure that the bills that are important to Ontarians has passed through this legislation and I thank the NDP for being big supporters of a lot of the very important legislation that we have passed through this house including the budget bill that is making life affordable for everyday Ontarians every single day so we look forward to working with all political parties to make sure that we are growing our economy and creating a good paying jobs for all Ontarians thank you speaker my question this morning is for the minister of energy good morning minister your ministry has been given the draft Oakville gas plant cancellation findings from the auditor general the previous auditor told us Mississauga was turned over six to eight weeks in advance your people have it somebody's got it minister will you tell this house what it cost to cancel the Oakville gas plant or will you continue the long line of liberal operatives who have dodged, deleted and distorted the facts you told us Mississauga was $190 million to cancel but the auditor told us the truth it was $275 million you stood in this legislature and told us it was $40 million to cancel Oakville would you care to confess this number this morning minister before the auditor general will spanks you down again Mr. Speaker before the auditor general's report on the Mississauga gas plant issue the member from Pembroke Nipissing stood in the house and he made the same accusation to me at the time that we had the report my answer at that time Mr. Speaker was no I'm not aware as a copy of the report I have not seen a copy of the report I will await the auditor general to present the report that's the fact Mr. Speaker so I'm going to ask the opposition party to stop making accusations that are speculative that are unfounded that demean the credibility of people on this side of the house it's a disgrace thank you your deputy the OPA and the IESO have all missed the September 12th deadline to turn over thousands of documents to us if one of you is late that's one thing but the fact that you're all holding back tells us someone has invoked the cone of silence do we need to bring another contempt motion to find out what you're hiding this time didn't you learn anything over the last year why won't you tell us the real cost of cancelling Oakville I know why those missing documents will tell us why will you turn over the files today or are you going to let this premier repeat history throw you under the bus with you found contempt of this house thank you minister this should be right but if the honourable member wants to bring it to the floor the legislature then I will answer it the simple fact is that the committee not good enough carry on the committee asked the ministry and the Ontario power authority to undertake very very extensive searches for the documents that both organizations have been forthcoming in the past my understanding Mr. Speaker is they have spent over a million dollars in the searches they have already done for the committee and they are still Mr. Speaker the most current request they have been in communication with the committee they have outlined the steps they are taking Mr. Speaker and they are working round the clock in order to produce the documents that the committee has asked for Mr. Speaker there have been tens of thousands of documents provided by this government and I think Mr. Speaker this is a matter for continual discussion thank you, new question member from Frenny v Spadina my question is to the premier the condo act review panel released its second report yesterday there is some progress but for condo owners looking for a quick and cheap way to settle a dispute the recommendations come up short the report sets up a condo office to hear disputes if it's a small matter the case goes to a quick decision maker and it gets settled so far so good but if it's a big matter then it goes to a dispute resolution office, lawyers are welcome and all you get is an assessment no settlement and if your dispute is with the developer the report says the present model works reasonably well in other words you're on your own and good luck in court this process continues to work well for consultants, lawyers and developers but not for condo owners will the government put condo owners first thank you very much Mr. Speaker and I know the minister of consumer services supplementary but I just want to make a comment because I want to first of all thank the member opposite for raising this issue it's something that many of us I would say all of us in government hear about the concerns of condominium owners and in that sector the need for changes to the condominium act so I'm very pleased that the member opposite raised the issue I'm very pleased that we have had the opportunity to put in place a very innovative I would suggest and comprehensive consultation process because it's complex it's a complex issue how the act should change and what's in the best interest of the people who live in all of our constituencies in condominiums Mr. Speaker so I'm very pleased that that process is underway and I look forward to working with the member opposite to get some resolution for condominium owners Speaker the report says condo owners should pay a levy to $36 a year to support the condo office plus user fees with 600,000 condo units this office would cost condo owners over $21 million a year this is about the same net cost as the landlord tenant board but when you go to that board your disputes get settled quickly and cheaply this condo office settles the small stuff but for everything else it just adds a new process and when it's over you're still looking at mediation and arbitration and then the courts if condo owners must pay the same cost as the landlord tenant board shouldn't they get a condo tribunal that can settle all their disputes like the landlord tenant board I do want to thank the member opposite for the question I know he's a strong advocate for this file and I'm just very pleased to also inform the member in the house that stage 2 of the condo report review was released yesterday by the public policy form and I was absolutely thrilled to attend the residents panel final meeting this past weekend where they endorsed in large measure this concept of a condo office I know the member is talking opposite talking about some sort of tribunal the notion of a condo office as recommended in the report is to address dispute resolution and many other aspects of condominium living such as education and training potentially licensing of property managers so I think it's important that we all have a look at the report it's up for a 45 day review by the public I'm very pleased that so many stakeholders condo owners residents lawyers stakeholders have been involved thank you thank you Mr. President thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the minister of immigration Ontario represent the largest Francophone community outside of Quebec in my rating we are the largest Francophone community in Canada to celebrate Francophone culture week-long festival is one of the largest of its kind through live music street art and dance this festival celebrates the more than 600,000 Francophone community members living across this province I was pleased to recently learn about a new website funded through your ministry providing French speaking people around the globe about the information about the benefits of working and living in Ontario Mr. Speaker through you to the minister could you please tell us more about the great new initiative from our government Mr. President Thank you Mr. Speaker I want to thank the honourable member for his question and once again congratulate him on his recent election to his house Mr. Speaker at the Ontario Association of Francophone Municipal Conference in West Nipissing I announced that our government is making it easier from municipalities to meet demographic challenges and attract skilled Francophone newcomers to help grow their communities Francophone Municipal Immigration Information online portal provides detailed information and tools to help attract Francophone immigrants and help build and help them settle here in the province of Ontario this new web portal was built in partnership with 18 municipalities across this great province and through the portal we're also helping Francophones in Ontario make online connections to find jobs in their communities this initiative Mr. Speaker will help us meet our 5% target for Francophone Immigration laid out by the Ontario Immigration Strategy the development of this portal is part of Ontario's $1.3 million investment in the Municipal Immigration Information Online Program referred to as MEAL Thank you Thank you Minister this is a great initiative that will help our Francophone communities flourish I know this will make a difference in helping municipalities attract skilled Francophones to the needs of their community Mr. Speaker, as we know Ontario has a rich Francophone history which helps make Ontario a vibrant cultural mosaic that it is mosaic that it is today the Francophone in Ontario represents 4.5% of the total population in Ontario the Franco-Ontarian population is very dynamic since many years we have welcomed many immigrants from North Africa and Asia I ask to the Minister other measures of his ministry do what to support our Francophone communities Mr. Speaker, I'd like to thank the member for his question and his championing of the Francophone culture here in this province our government is committed to achieving the goals of the immigration strategy and one of them is being to position newcomers here in the province so that they can be successful specifically we are investing in French language services for newcomers because we know they need these skills to succeed in the new work environments and better integrate into their communities in addition to tuition free language services in 2013-2014 our ministry has doubled its support to Francophone settlement service providers some key services that we help fund here in the province are settlement counseling guidance, assistance with immigration and transition issues, translation workshops and a broad range of settlement related issues we want Ontario's Francophone newcomers current and future to succeed and we know we will strengthen Ontario's vibrant communities and help contribute to our province's economic prosperity thank you Mr. Speaker we have a new market of work Mr. Speaker to the Minister of Health just after midnight on August 29th Thunder Airlines under contract to Orange to provide air ambulance service was dispatched to to picket Janicum first nation Janicum that was a code for when that crew landed an air Bravo aircraft also under contract to Orange paramedics air Bravo could not transfer that patient because a satellite telephone was not functioning the patient along with the Orange medics were flown to Thunder Bay where the patient was eventually then admitted the delay was extensive is the minister aware of this incident and can she tell us what the outcome was thank you well thank you speaker and I can tell you that Orange is committed to providing the highest possible quality of care in Pocanjacum and elsewhere across this whole province speaker I can tell you that the new leadership in Orange is really focusing on measuring and improving the care that they provide and I can assure you speaker that every person is made to provide the highest quality care in every case thank you supplementary apparently the minister knows nothing about I can tell the minister that that patient died I can also tell the minister that it's alleged that the reason that the air Bravo satellite telephone was not working is because air Bravo had not paid its bills I can also tell the minister that air Bravo admitted under testimony last week that the company was having serious financial difficulties I can also tell the minister that Orange failed when issuing a contract to air Bravo to conduct any financial inspection of that company to determine whether it had the capacity to deliver I'd like to ask the minister this question after everything we have heard about the lack of oversight on the part of the ministry on the part of Orange over the work that has to be done to deliver safe secure reliable air ambulance why over these number of months do we still have to hear about incidents like this I know I'm interested in hearing some of the quality metrics and the results at Orange so speaker from January to March this year orange paramedics were available to respond to calls 97% of the time orange aircraft were in service 99% of the time orange paramedics were available to respond to calls 95% of the time 96% of patient transports between health facilities are confirmed within 20 minutes 90% of oranges patient transports from emergencies focusing on measuring the quality of care the nature of the work in emergency medicine and emergency services is there will always be cases what's important to me is Orange under the new leadership of Dr. McCallum is measuring and reporting on quality metrics that's a big change thank you new question the member from London west my question is to the minister of community safety and correctional services minister leading up to the Pan Am Games this government made a regulation under the private security and investigative services act that effectively allows security guards to act as police officers until March 31st 2016 this regulation didn't come to the house for debate but instead was quietly filed much like the laws enacted during the G20 fiasco in Toronto in 2010 has this government learned nothing from the G20 about the consequences of enacting secret regulations minister will you explain to Ontarians why this regulation to give security guards the same duties as police officers was passed in secret and without appropriate public pamphlet and debate minister of community safety and correctional services I wanted to thank the member for our question as you know Mr. Speaker the safety health and safety of those athletes and those who will come to the Pan Am Games in 2015 we wanted to ensure that they will be safe that the athlete will have a wonderful experience so we are as we speak and we have been for some time we have a committee that has been put together headed by the OPP to make sure that the athlete and the people who will attend the game will be safe I have the full confidence that this group is working well together and will make sure that every safety measure will be put in place for the safety of all of those who will come to the Pan Am Games after what happened during the G20 Ontarians are rightfully concerned about the potential for serious civil liberty abuses when those responsible for security are not fully briefed on the limits of their powers the changes proposed to prevent the abuses that happened during the G20 in Toronto are still being debated in this house in the absence of new legislative protections how will the minister ensure that the appropriate training and safeguards are in place to prevent security guards from misinterpreting their new found powers during the Pan Am Games so we can prevent the kind of civil liberty violations we saw during the G20 this is an excellent question and yes, we will be hiring security guard and they will be under the direction of the police and I'm pleased that we have added in the contract that they will have to hire new grads, new security guard from our colleges so this is part of our youth strategy to find job for our youth and the number one priority will be that these security guard will be well trained and they will know exactly what will be their responsibility and you know, there's nothing that has been passed in secret regulation don't come to the house and this has been posted on the website for 30 days and so we have been very clear, very open we have a lot of the police the police force thank you thank you so much Mr. Speaker my question is for the premier and the minister of agriculture and food across the province people are very excited about the government's local food strategy in my great writing of Oak Ridge is Mark and we are fortunate to have so many opportunities to shop for local foods the Holland Marsh is right next door and the Stovall Market and many other farm markets offer the chance to purchase local produce and support local producers I know that the budget included a commitment to develop a local food fund Speaker, could the premier and minister of agriculture and food please update the house on this commitment thank you very much Mr. Speaker thank you to the member for Oak Ridge is Mark and for this question and I think that the issues around local food are of concern to everyone in this and they are issues that are very important to the agri-food sector but Mr. Speaker they are important economic issues because the reality is that a local food initiative can spur the agri-food economy can help expand the agri-food economy and Mr. Speaker I was very pleased to join folks at Food Share last week to announce the local food fund it's a 30 million dollar fund Mr. Speaker that over three years will allow for investment in the kinds of initiatives that will raise awareness about local food and will actually help farmers Mr. Speaker and help food processors to be able to find markets to expand their businesses Mr. Speaker and we know that if we support Ontario farmers if we support Ontario food processors Mr. Speaker it's good for people's nutrition it's good for the food that we eat good for what we eat but it's also good Mr. Speaker thank you Mr. Speaker thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you to the Premier and Minister of Agriculture and Food for the update my constituents will be excited to hear that our local food fund is now up and running and that your ministry is now accepting applications in my community the local food movement is strong and consumers flock to our farm markets I'm fortunate enough to represent a riding that has both urban and rural roots and my constituents will have questions about the fund can the Premier and Minister of Agriculture and Food provide more details on the fund and the type of projects it aims to support thank you very much Mr. Speaker and the member from Oak Ridge has marked some comments on the rural and urban nature of her riding and I think that one of the things about this discussion is that we are so interconnected Mr. Speaker and the notion that somehow rural Ontario and urban Ontario are separate entities is just not the case Mr. Speaker and my colleague the Minister of Rural Affairs talks about one Ontario and that is exactly the case Mr. Speaker we are one Ontario so the local food fund is designed to help producers, people who run restaurants Mr. Speaker and other interested parties to support regional local food networks to enhance technologies and capacities in order to be able to grow to provide minor capital services to be able to grow to foster research and best practices and share those best practices and Mr. Speaker to invest in education and outreach so that everyone in the province understands how local food can be accessed and why it is so important to do so thank you, your question member from Wellington, Halton Hills Mr. Speaker my question is for the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities more than five months ago we learned that the A.O. Smith plant was a deceased manufacturing putting 350 people out of work I called upon the government to help our community with training and economic development support and in response the government promised an action centre to support the displaced workers and help them find jobs that action centre is having an open house today will the minister explain to this house why it took him more than five months to open an action centre to help these A.O. Smith workers and training colleges and universities I'm happy to Mr. Speaker we respond within a matter of hours when these layoffs notices are given we respond by contacting the municipality and we did in that case we've been working very closely with the mayor and the municipality we respond by contacting the employer we respond by contacting the workers and their representatives and Mr. Speaker we don't take unilateral action and step on those of all of the other people in those local communities we work with them so there are times Mr. Speaker when our intentions are our offers to set up things like an action centre are taken into consideration by those on the ground locally and implemented in the time that meets their needs that's the case here we're always available we're always ready to respond and we'll work with that community as best we can to respond to this challenge Minister don't you dare blame my constituents for your own delays that is totally unacceptable in 2005 8 years ago and before the recession hit I called upon the Liberal government to have an all-party committee of this legislature investigate our industrial competitiveness with a view to developing an action plan to protect manufacturing jobs in the province action and indifference have directly contributed to the loss of 300,000 manufacturing jobs in this province and even when a plant like A.O. Smith closes displaced workers wait more than five months for the support that they need the Premier now says that she will focus on job creation and the economy in light of their disastrous record on jobs how can the people of Ontario see any light at the end of the tunnel as long as these Liberals remain in power thank you Minister Minister of Economic Development Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker I in fact take offense to what the member opposite just I think we've started shouting people down again I will talk to the member for Renfrew and Nipissing Pembroke in a calm manner and tell him this is not enough Well Mr. Speaker I think I have to repeat that I take offense at what the member opposite has just said because he knows well the number of conversations that the two of us have had not just specifically about A.O. Smith but also the fact the announcement the efforts that I've been making in terms of meeting with repeatedly with the local leadership with the businesses in the area I've been working hard with the southwestern Ontario Development Fund in fact we've made a number of announcements that directly and positively impact the people in the area and the people that are affected by the closure in the Fergus plant I met at AMO I met with the local leadership as well I think he should talk to the Mayor with the efforts that this government is making to address the issues with A.O.W. Smith as well as the job opportunities and job challenges that are faced by the local leadership there so and I and he knows well he knows well the efforts that I've been making and the announcements that we're hoping that will come forward in the foreseeable future that will benefit the people in the area. Thank you New question the member from what? Thank you Speaker my question is to the Premier this Liberal government is so focused on sticking Ontarians with the bill for more transit promises in the GTA that it seems to have forgotten that commuters depend on buses and trains to get them to work in regions like Niagara where I live it's bad enough that the Conservatives in Ottawa have slashed our via rail service in our community but it's even harder for the people who live in Niagara to understand why this government keeps wavering on the GO train service why won't the government publicly submit to a date year round all day go to St. Catherine's in Niagara Falls and stick to it. We committed and we have expanded GO service across the GTAJ Mr. Speaker and the member opposite knows perfectly well that we have done that and that we have expanded GO service in Niagara the reality is that the member opposite raises a very important issue and that is that we need to have an integrated transportation plan that includes the federal government, the provincial government and municipal governments because the service that the member opposite references was at the federal level responsibility Mr. Speaker so the fact is that I have at the Council of the Federation I have made it clear with my colleague Premier's that in order for us to have a coherent transportation network across this country Mr. Speaker we need the federal government to work with us in the meantime we will continue as we have been doing for the last 10 years Mr. Speaker Speaker, Niagara is filled with bedroom communities. People make a conscious choice not to move away from Niagara. They want to live where they live and they need transit available to them. Crowded buses and intermittent train service is taking the toll on the quality of life for people who live in the Niagara region. The government keeps saying that it's going to put in this go service all day but it never mentions when. Will the minister tell Niagara residents today when they will finally get the promise of daily go train services they so badly need? Thank you very much Mr. Speaker so I appreciate the member opposite advocating for her community and my experience when I was Minister of Transportation and I know there are other ministers of transportation who can attest to this that whenever we make an announcement about increased go service there's a brief moment of that's great and then the next expression is when can we have more because it is in such demand it is such a good service it provides such convenient and efficient transportation options for people so go is committed to two way all day service Mr. Speaker we know we know that there is increased demand for go service and that Mr. Speaker is from my perspective indicative of the culture shift that's happening in this province. People are looking at our finite resources and saying you know what we need to find ways to get out of our cars and get into transit that's why we're committed to building this infrastructure Mr. Speaker and expanding service across the GTHC. Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the minister of government services I receive calls and inquiries from constituents on a daily basis on a variety of issues including on access in services provided by the provincial government my constituents are hardworking men and women that lead busy lives commuting to and from work taking care of young children or elderly family members are their priorities spending time to try to locate government services that they need should not be time consuming provide an efficient and easy access to government information and services has been a priority of this government. Last year the commission on the reform of Ontario's public services provided recommendations on more efficient methods of delivering services that Ontarians need and want Mr. Speaker true you to the minister can he please tell us about the ongoing work to fulfill this government's commitment to deliver services more effectively to all Ontarians. Thank you Mr. Speaker the member is quite right that people with their busy lives are looking for convenient ways to deal with the government and particularly to access a variety of services. Service Ontario has as its mandate to try to make as convenient as possible for people to deal with those services and in fact Mr. Speaker this morning I announced a new measure that's being brought forward by Service Ontario the fact that people can now renew their driver's license online. Our website serviceontario.ca and they'll be eligible to renew their driver's license now it's once every five years this you can renew it once and we'll only have to go every five years to get an up to date photo. Mr. Speaker this new service has been added to more than 40 services already available including birth certificates, marriage certificates, license plate stickers and driver abstracts. Again Mr. Speaker it's a way of making people's lives easier. Thank you thank you to the minister for his response it is good to note a true service Ontario and initiatives such as the driver's license renewal service we are delivering on our commitment to making it easier for Ontarians to access the services they need where and when they need them the people of Ontario expect their government to deliver quality services including a range of services access options in my riding of Scarborough Rouge River it is important that there is a driver in every household at times driving to and from a location is the only option to renew a driver's license can be time consuming we should be taking steps to help people get in that done faster and more efficiently my constituents will be glad to know that they can now renew their driver's license online Speaker true you to the minister could he please inform this house on how the online driver's license renewal services expedites the process. Thank you Mr. Speaker six million Ontario drivers renew their driver's license and through this service most eligible most of them will be eligible to do it from an internet site in their home or elsewhere eligible drivers will be able to go online and the slogan we have is just click renew and drive after that a new driver's license will be mailed to the applicant will be valid for five years Ontario drivers who renew online need to go to a service Ontario every ten years as I mentioned previously to have a new photo taken drivers will be notified if they need to go renew their license in person because they have reached this time frame thank you Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker my question is for the minister of natural resources the MNR recently made changes to the endangered species act which streamed line a number of provisions in the permitting that is why I was surprised to read the EBR posting for woodland caribou yet another job killing posting for northern Ontario it's very clear from the proposals in this posting that the socio-economic analysis was never done to determine the impact which they would have on a northern municipalities forestry and a wide range of stakeholders so would the minister explain why these critical factors have not been taken into account that the forestry decided to kill more jobs thank you thank you and the member opposite knows full well that the government's position on this has been one of finding a balance to ensure that jobs in northern Ontario and throughout the province would be able to continue to thrive I categorically reject the assertion that this is somehow outside of the regular process the member introduced the private legislation which is not something on this side of the house that we're prepared to do we wanted to find the balance we've struck the appropriate balance we formed a committee we had ample input from countless stakeholders and what I can tell you speaker is that the various groups and organizations are very supportive of the changes we made Tom Lager and said the proposed regulations provide some of the much needed balance of the implementation of ESA in the forestry industry and the most powerful is the association of municipalities he said the streamlined approach balance is protecting a dangerous species with other priorities supplementary thank you Mr. Speaker well I categorically reject that you care about jobs history has failed to perform a socio-economic analysis which my party would make mandatory some of those municipalities who will be impacted are doing a second letter to the premier and to you the town of Cochrane provides a detailed analysis of the impact which these proposals would have on the Abitibi river forest M&R proposals would require sacrificing half of the entire forest volume which would be catastrophic the impact on communities from North Bay to Hearst would be a loss of another 8,000 jobs 433 million in lost wages a loss of 273 million in lost taxes for the municipalities minister will you show that you care about the North and its people and withdraw those proposals Mr. Speaker the number of do you see it please do you see it we need we need quiet I mean it the member from Durham come to order and you're not supposed to be talking minister responsible for seniors answer please thank you the member opposite knows and she's referencing a plan from Cochrane who's the conservative candidate so I take that with a grand assault but what I will say is that Jamie Lim the president of the OFIA here's what the forestry sector says key component of the proposed legislation is the recognition by the government that forestry activities already provide for the protection of species at risk with regard to the Crown Forest Sustainability Act she says well also ensuring that economic development activities such as forestry would be allowed to proceed without unnecessary impacts it's quite clear that the forestry industry supports the changes we've made is very clear about that and the plan that we have proposed speaker and have implemented clearly recognizes that balance I am somewhat concerned about the position of the NDP because the opposition seems to be new question the member from Nickel Belt thank you Mr. Speaker I would like to wish you a good Frank Ontarian day it's a day to give homage to the past I have a question for the premier today Frank Ontarians in southwest particularly young people how long will they have to wait until they could continue their studies in French they have the right to have access to education in French that people in the north and the east or in the greater Toronto area have in its report of 2012 the commissioner to French language service said that access to post-secondary education must be given it's only 0-3% that's almost non-existent access to that education will and will the government will offer a college for southwestern French thank you very much for the question I spoke with students who have a need to have education a post-secondary education in the southern Ontario and it's a concern we don't have enough programs for the students it's very important that we have the programs it's also important or necessary to have another building I'm not sure it's something that we have a discussion on it but for me it's very important that we have the appropriate programs for students in the north and in southern Ontario thank you question thank you Mr. Speaker it's easy for a government to say to celebrate culture in French and to have education programs but measures are stronger than words up to now the government has done very little to offer post-secondary education in southern Ontario the Commission of French Language Services offered solutions and the NDP went to various communities legislative assembly and offered proposals as well maybe Mr. Speaker maybe they don't understand but my question is simple when will the government will offer enough programs for post-secondary students and university students in the southern Ontario for Francophone students the Minister of College of Information with Ray Faux who are the Francophone students representatives across this province they've had an opportunity to meet with myself I know the Premier has talked to some of those students across the province on many occasions Minister of Francophone Affairs has been an incredible champion of this we're not just talking Mr. Speaker we've taken action one of the things they asked for was an enhancement of our travel grant to ensure that Francophone students can take advantage of that grant even if there were services available within some of their communities that group of students was extremely pleased with the measures we've taken but I can assure the member as I've said to Ray Faux for the great work that they've done that we're working very closely with them and we're looking to move very quickly it isn't our throne speech we're going to take action to help ensure that Francophone students get greater access to Francophone courses in the Southwest and Central Ontario thank you we have a deferred vote on the motion of Mr. Nackley for second reading of bill 21 an act to amend the Employment Standards Act 2000 in respect of family caregiver critically ill child care and crime related child death or disappearance leaves absences calling the members this will be a five minute bell the members take their seats please the members take their seats please you're going to make them wait on March 18 2013 Mr. Nackley moved second reading of bill 21 all those in favor please rise one at a time and be recognized by the clerk Mr. Nackley Mr. Garrison Mr. Garrison Mrs. Geoffrey Mr. Geoffrey Mr. Sousa Ms. Wynn Ms. Matthews Ms. Matthews Ms. Mayer Ms. Sandals Ms. Sandals Mr. Hoskins Mr. Hoskins Ms. McCharles Mr. McCharles Mr. Quinter Mr. Quinter Mr. Bartolucci Mr. Bartolucci Mr. Bartolucci Mr. Groedel Mr. MacMecan Mr. MacMecan Mr. Chen Mr. Chan Mr. Pruzza Mr. Prutz Mr. Shirelly Mr. Shurelli Mr. Lile Mr. Lille Mr Flinn Mr. Flinn Mr. Moro Mr. Moro Mr. MacNeil Mr. MacNeil Mr. Morihti Mr. Morihti Mr. Orzzitti Mr. Qu öyle Mr. Qu ter Mr. Sergio Mr. Sergio Mr. Zimmer Mr. Zimmer Mr. Balkassen Mr. Balkassen Mr. Albannox Mr. Krapp, his mangas. Mr. McNaughton, Mr. Wilson. Mr. Wilson, Mr. Aner, Mr. Hardimak, Mr. Fidele, Mr. Fidele, Mrs. Elliot, Mr. Houdak, Mr. Acabusky, Mr. Miller-Perry-Sandmaskoka, Mr. Kleeves, Mr. Barrett, Mr. Dunlop, Mr. Holliday, Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Monroe, Mr. Chudley, Mr. Clark, Mr. Toul, Mr. Ouellet, Mr. Bailey, Mr. Mr. Bailey Mr. Jackson Mr. Smith Mr. Harris Mr. Thompson Mr. Sherman Mr. Eurek Mr. Scott Mr. McAnna Mr. Leone Mr. McDonnell Mr. Hillier Mr. Pettipies Mr. Milligan Mr. Taylor Mr. Tabbins Mr. Singh Mr. Miller Hamilton Mr. Campbell Mr. Mantoff Mr. Shine Mr. Manta Ms. Fife Ms. Sattler All those opposed, please rise one at a time and be recognized by the clerk. The ayes are 94, the nays are 0. The ayes being 94 and the nays being 0. I declare the motion carried. Mr. Labert Mr. Labert Standing Committee on General Government Great Committee. So ordered No deferred votes this house stands recessed until 3 p.m. this afternoon.