 It is now time for a question period, the leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. Thank you, Speaker. My questions to the Deputy Premier. Before I get to that, I just wanted to be happy on behalf of the Ontario PC Caucus, extend our best wishes to Constable Michael Klarenbeek and Constable Klarenbeek's family. Constable Klarenbeek, of course, shot at the Brampton Courthouse. He's recovering at the Civic Hospital, and we want to send our best wishes for his speedy recovery. To this Ontario hero. To the Deputy Premier, it's been three years since the Liberal government got mired in this controversy around the cancellation of gas plants that cost taxpayers over $800. The most troubling allegations have now arisen as of Thursday, when the Ontario Provincial Police anti... Stop the caucus. The Minister of Immigration and Citizenship will come to order. The Minister of the Environment will come to order, and the Minister of Finance will come to order. Please finish. The OPP anti-racket squad indicated that an episode was given access to destroy criminal evidence, criminal activity to destroy evidence. I assure the frustration of the outrage of Ontarians about this allegation. Why Premier Nguyen, or U.S. Deputy Premier, did nothing to prevent the destruction of evidence? Thank you. Well, thank you, Speaker, and I too want to offer wishes for a very speedy recovery to Officer Mike Klarenbeek and his family. The Speaker, this has reminded us of the bravery of our frontline police officers who every day put their life on the line to protect us. So we wish speedy, speedy recovery, Speaker. Speaker, I will be referring the supplementary to the Government House Leader, but I do want to address the issue of the Premier's availability today. She is doing her job as Premier. She is on her way to Sault Ste. Marie. She's got a number of events there, including a very important announcement at Algoma College. She's been available multiple times over the weekend. She was in Lindsay on Friday. She was with MPP Wong to visit the residents at Shepherd's Village. She's been available all weekend long to answer questions, and I will look forward to the supplementary speaker. Thank you. Supplementary. Well, I hope, Speaker, I can have your assistance. If the Premier is not able to answer questions today, I certainly hope the Deputy Premier will answer those on the Premier's behalf and not refer them. You know, the Premier and I actually had a meeting, Premier Nguyen, on January 28th in her office. I assumed I was speaking with Premier Nguyen on January 28th. She conducted herself that way in the Premier's office, and she actually asked me to back off on pursuing contempt charges in committee. I now understand why. I understand, too, that you attended a caucus meeting on January 30th of this year, 2014, and Premier Nguyen ran that caucus meeting, not Dalton McGuinty. Can you confirm that Premier Nguyen was in charge? She ran the caucus meeting on January 30th. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, let's start at the beginning. Thursday we learned of some very serious allegations. They are allegations, Mr. Speaker. But, Mr. Speaker, if true, they are very serious, and we take them very seriously on this side of the House. The fact of the matter, Mr. Speaker, if members take time to review the document which was tabled in court, they will learn that these are allegations which pertain to the period in which Premier McGuinty was Premier and to his former Chief of Staff. They make no reference, Mr. Speaker, to an involvement by the current Premier, Mr. Speaker. The current Premier has explained that, and despite that, Mr. Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition continues with baseless accusations, which are, quite frankly, below an insult to the office that he holds. And, Mr. Speaker, we look to him to remedy the situation, Mr. Speaker, and to stop playing politics with this very serious matter. Final supplementary. You know, again, Mr. Speaker, these are the most serious of allegations of the criminal destruction of evidence in the Premier's office around the gas-planned scan. The member from Glendier and Professor Russell come to order. The Premier is unable to answer these questions today, despite knowing these questions would be at the top of the list. The Deputy Premier should do so. Taxpayers are entitled to very direct answers to simple, straightforward questions. If you argue that Premier Nguyen was unaware of what was happening under her watch, that she was in charge, then that shows that she was grossly incompetent and extraordinary negligent. So either she was complicit or she willfully looked the other way, either of which qualify her to be Premier of the province of Ontario and get us under the mess that we're in. So let me ask you again, Deputy Premier, which is it? Was she involved or did she simply intentionally look the other way? Do you see the case? Do you see the case? Thank you. Government House Leader. Mr. Speaker, this is very disappointing. The Leader of the Opposition has no interest in the facts. Mr. Speaker, the documents that were tabled in court make it clear that the accusations, they remain accusations, Mr. Speaker. We all have to be very careful. Deal with the former Chief of Staff to Premier McGinty and have nothing to do with the current Premier. You know, Mr. Speaker, let's try to get our facts straight here. The Leader of the Opposition stands up and talks about a meeting with the incoming Premier before she became Premier in her office. Mr. Speaker, that was in the office of the interim, excuse me, the acting or the incoming Premier, Mr. Speaker. That had nothing to do with Premier McGinty's office. Premier McGinty was Premier until February the 11th and the accusations which are outlined, the accusations which have not been proven, Mr. Speaker, involve his former Chief of Staff. It is time, Mr. Speaker, that the Leader of the Opposition, he is debasing his office, acknowledged these facts, and removed Mr. Speaker from his website and stopped repeating allegations which are totally baseless. Thank you. New question. Please honor the opposition. You know, again, back to the acting Premier. Facts are stubborn things. And I met with Premier Wayne in her office when she conducted herself as Premier. Order. January. Excuse me. The Minister of Finance will come to order second time. Please carry on. Facts are facts, and I'm going to hold you accountable on behalf of taxpayers in the province of Ontario to get the bottom. Please conduct yourself as Premier. The House Leader now says, well, she was something called Acting Premier. She also says she was the Premier at Designant. She says she's Leader of the Liberal Party. Enough of the dissembling, enough of this information, the fact of the matter was Kathleen Wynne was in charge. Excuse me. Please withdraw. Thank you. The fact of the matter is Kathleen Wynne was in charge. She was at the wheel. This is as much Kathleen Wynne scandal as Dalton McGinty's. The criminal destruction of evidence, the allegations. The case was reported on March 6th, 2020. So, Kathleen, was she responsible, or was she willfully negligent, both of which, disqualify her? Thank you. The Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities will come to order. Deputy Premier. Government House Leader, Sir. Government House Leader. Mr. Speaker, the meeting and question between the Leader of the Opposition and Kathleen Wynne was held in the Transition Office, not the Premier's office located here in this building, Mr. Speaker. I think it's time that we get our facts straight. Mr. Speaker, there were documents that were filed in court last Thursday, Mr. Speaker, and those documents made it clear that this is an unproven allegation, Mr. Speaker, against the former Chief of Staff of Premier McGinty. Mr. Speaker, there have been a number of third parties who have taken a look at these documents. Let me tell you what they're saying. The Ottawa Citizen March 28th, quote, Trail of Evidence and Gas Plant Probe ends before Wynn's government starts. Ottawa Citizen, same day, March 28th, quote, detectives have found no evidence that any computers in Premier Kathleen Wynn's office were accessed. Toronto Star, March 29th, 2014, a close reading of the 111 pages of OPP documents provides no hint yet of any info priority. Wynn Wynn was Premier. Office. I'll refresh your memory another meeting that took place. Minister of Energy, come to order. This is just me who met with Kathleen Wynn as Premier. On January 31st, Kathleen Wynn and Dalton McGinty met with left-wing party. Minister of Aboriginal Affairs, come to order. On that day, January 31st, Kathleen Wynn took over as Premier Designant, which gave the authority to direct government activities. January 31st, she met with Dalton McGinty and a Lieutenant Governor. She became Premier Designant. That tells me that she was in charge, that she is responsible, that this scandal has equal responsibility with Kathleen Wynn and Dalton McGinty. And my question is, why didn't she say no? Why didn't she stop the destruction of evidence related to the Gas Plant scandal? Is that an incredible failure to do a very basic job expected by taxpayers? Just as a reminder to all members, I will say it over and over again, please refer to all members in this place, either by their title or by their writing. Thank you. Deputy, sorry, Governor Houselier. Mr. Speaker, the member has opposite accusations. He can repeat them over and over again, but they do not make them true. They are baseless, Mr. Speaker. They are irresponsible and they demean the very high office that he holds. Mr. Speaker, again, last Thursday we learned of a document that was filed in the court. That document contains allegations, unproven, Mr. Speaker, about the former Chief of Staff to Premier McGinty, and it outlines a series of activities that happened while Premier McGinty was the Premier, Mr. Speaker. The Leader of the Opposition can try to turn himself into pretzels and stand here over and over again, Mr. Speaker, saying things which are not accurate, but the fact of the matter is, Mr. Speaker, that the facts speak for themselves. And as the Leader of the Opposition learned yesterday, Mr. Speaker, we have certainly on this side of the House consulted legal experts as to the action that we may be taking, Mr. Speaker, if he continues in this baseless stream of allegations. Thank you. Final supplementary. Well, let's look at Kathleen Wynne's record. She initially said that the g- Excuse me. Title, please. Premier Wynne's record. She said initially the gas plan scandal cost 40 million. We found it was a billion dollars. We found out she has the co-chair of the Liberal campaign when they ordered the cancellation of the gas plants. She was actually the one who signed the cabinet direction to pay Trans-Canada whatever it took to make the gas plant scandal go away. That cost taxpayers a billion dollars. She had meetings in her office January 28th, with me January 31st with the Premier, and then on February the 7th, she ordered the Auditor General to do a review of the gas plant file. You say she was in charge February 11th. On February 7th, she was giving orders around here. So clearly she was in charge, and if she wasn't, the extraordinary incompetence tells me she's not fit to keep this province out of the mess we're in. Clearly, if we want to get Ontario back on track, it's time to change the team that runs this province. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, please. Thank you. Government House Leader. Mr. Speaker, I will put the Premier's record up against the Leader of the Opposition's record any day of the week. Order, please. Member from Simcoe North, come to order. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, that restruct the Justice Committee with a broad mandate and broad powers has provided hundreds of thousands of documents to that committee, has appeared twice in front of that committee and made sure that government members and ministers and staff have also appeared and what we have from the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Speaker, who's someone who went on YouTube and said that if he became Premier of the province, then he would cancel the gas plants, Mr. Speaker. We have a Leader of the Party whose candidates went out and campaigned against the very same gas plants that he's speaking about today, Mr. Speaker, and he will not come clean and acknowledge that very simple yet important fact. Your question. Thank you, Speaker. Question period is supposed to be a venue for the government to be held accountable by refusing to face questions today about the liberal gas plant scandal. The Premier is making a mockery of accountability. New Democrats will not participate. New question. Tough they get going to the Deputy Premier and I would expect an answer. On January 26th, Premier Nguyen becomes Leader of the Liberal Party. On the 28th, she meets with the Leader of the Official Opposition asking to stop the gas plant probe. On the 30th of January, she meets with the Prime Minister in a caucus meeting. On January 31st, she meets with the Premier, Dalton McGinty, to assume leadership as Premier-elect. On February 4th, an IT services cabinet officer provides David Livingston's executive assistance with a global administrative password. On February 6th, Laura Miller, Deputy Chief of Staff has computer access. From February 7th, Premier Nguyen is Premier of Ontario and ensures that there is access to a 24-hour drive clean. On Thursday, March 27th, 2014, I asked them if we could have Premier Nguyen for a drive. She refused to give it. Thank you. Deputy Premier. Government House Leader. Mr. Speaker, let me ask the Honourable Member to recall another date. In fact, the Leader remembered February 11th, Mr. Speaker, when Premier Nguyen was sworn in as Premier in this very chamber with the Leader of the Opposition present. Fat of the matter is, Mr. Speaker, this dog doesn't hunt. February 11th was when Kathleen Nguyen became Premier, but Mr. Speaker, let's go beyond that, Mr. Speaker, to look at the document that was released that was made public last Thursday, the court document. It makes very clear, Mr. Speaker, that there are allegations, serious allegations, not proven, Mr. Speaker, against the former Chief of Staff Mr. Livingston of Premier McGinty about actions that took place under his watch. Mr. Speaker, I can continue quoting the Globe and Mail. March 31st, 2014, there is nothing in the documents that suggest any records were deleted after Ms. Nguyen was sworn into office on February 11th, 2000. Thank you. Supplementary. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the Prime Minister for being the leader and, in fact, the Premier. She is expecting us to believe that no one was Premier of Ontario for six weeks. There's not an Ontario out there that believes that. They believe that Kathleen Nguyen was Premier of Ontario on the February 11th. They believe that the computers were accessed during that period of time. If the Premier is so clean on all of this, they will be able to clean the documents that she has been dealt with, tampered with or deleted. She hasn't done that because she either doesn't know or has been. She needs to come clean. Will your government do it on behalf of the taxpayers? Thank you. Mr. Speaker, maybe we need a little bit more money for opposition research. I see the Honourable Member's fueling her tirades over the past few days where it outlines, Mr. Speaker, those computers which it is alleged were tampered with, Mr. Speaker, and it's very clear that the current Premier's name appears nowhere, Mr. Speaker. No, the current Premier's computer was not involved with this. The court documents are very clear and the Honourable Member to be engaging in this sort of baseless allegation, Mr. Speaker, these drive-by smears is really an insult to the office that she holds as an opposition critic. Mr. Speaker, on February 11th Premier Nguyen became Premier before that Premier McGee was Premier and the court documents make very clear, as the media reports have outlined, that the allegations in question are about his former Chief of Staff, Mr. Livingston. Thank you. New question. The Member from Mississauga, Brampton. Training, colleges and universities. The city of Brampton is one of the fastest growing communities in Canada. This means that more and more young people are graduating from our high schools and deciding about their future. I strongly believe that post-secondary education is vital for the success of young people in this ever-changing, competitive world. Therefore, the creation of a university campus in an underserved area like Brampton is very important, because that provides an opportunity for our young people to get a high-quality post-secondary education closer to their homes. And I'm very passionate about the possibility of locating a university campus that can better serve the needs of students in Brampton. Can the minister tell my constituents how can we bring a new campus to Brampton? The member has been a hugely strong advocate in our region for post-secondary education. Our government released its framework for major capacity expansion in December, and on Thursday we put out our request for proposals. We're deeply committed to making sure that the long-term investments necessary to build on the world-class reputation of our post-secondary sector that our post-secondary sector has earned. We need to plan ahead so that our post-secondary system has the next generation of students. We also know that having a post-secondary institution expand or locate in the community can have a tremendous local economic impact. Interested municipalities will need to work through a university proponent to participate in this RFP. I know the member has a long-standing interest in this RFP, and I'm sure students in her community appreciate that. Thank you. Supplementary. It's great to hear that the residents of my great riding of Miss Saga South will have an opportunity to work together to bring a new campus to the city of Brampton. However, I'm sure that the people of Brampton would like to know more about how they can qualify for a campus under the government's policy framework, and I will certainly do everything I can to work with local partners to make that happen. Mr. Speaker, can the minister explain what factors he will be considering when reviewing applications? Thank you, minister. Process for consideration of our campus capacity expansion RFP will be transparent and fair for all proponents. A key consideration will be ensuring the expansions take place in regions where student demand and growth is located. 30% of the waiting will go to location. Cost is also critical during these challenging fiscal times. 40% of waiting will go toward sustainability for students and taxpayers and value for money. And 30% of waiting will go toward the campus product itself, including local community and economic impacts, promotion of innovation, impact on labor market needs and alignment with differentiation priorities among others. Preference will be given to proponents that involve partnerships with colleges. After a decade of record investment in our globally competitive post-secondary education system, to ensure we provide that next generation of students with the quality of education they deserve. Thank you. My question is for the acting Premier. There are a lot of similarities between the gas plant scandal and Ontario's latest financial debacle. Your government said the gas plant cancellation would cost $40 million, but it took the auditor general to tell us it's really $4.1 billion. And now, in the budget, you told us and the financial community that you'll balance by 2017, yet only days before that, your own documents entitled quote, Confidential Advice to Cabinet quote, said you had a $4.5 billion gap. I'm sensing a pattern here. During the gas plant scandal, you knew one thing and told the public something different, and now you're doing the same with finance. It's the opposite to be true. Quite frankly, how do we believe anything you ever say again? Mr. Speaker, we wrote off $40 million as attributed to the cancellation of that power plant, and that was written off. The auditor general was asked to review, and they noted that the relocation of the power plant over the period of 30 years would amount to an additional building as a valuation of that facility, the investments in transmission, and so forth. The member is now talking about the integrity of the numbers that have been presented. Numbers that also the auditor general has reviewed and confirmed as correct. And now he's saying that we've somehow hidden something that's been out there for public consumption in our fall economic statement. If the member would just read, Mr. Speaker, he would understand exactly where is that place, and the fact that we're going through the global changes. We're reacting and we're taking the proper steps to meet our targets and balance the books by 2017-18. As you said, we agree. Thank you. Stop for a minute. Thank you very much. Back to the acting premier. Let me compare the gas plant scandal to your financial debacle another way. During the contempt hearings, you turned over 36,000 documents, and a dozen cabinet ministers stood up and declared, quote, we're on track to balance the budget. Yet your confidential advice to cabinet only days before told you and your cabinet ministers you're not on track to balance the budget. You're on track to balance the budget by 2017-18, and again eight cabinet ministers stood up in this legislature and declared, quote, we're on track to balance the budget. Yet your confidential advice to cabinet only days before told you and your cabinet ministers you're not on track to balance. I have a question for you. Why do liberal cabinet ministers continue to stand in this legislature and say one thing when they know the complete opposite to be true? Thank you. Minister of Finance. Mr. Speaker, we are on track to balance the books by 2017-18. More importantly, four years in a row we beat our targets. Our spending was less than one percent year over year, and we were the only government to actually cut spending last year. We have met our targets. The Auditor General has confirmed them as such. We're taking the steps necessary. And what is true, Mr. Speaker, is that we do have a plan to create those jobs and stimulate economic growth by investing in our economy, not by doing across-the-board cuts that would make it even more difficult for recovery. So we recognize what's necessary. We have also acknowledged that our economy today has changed. And Ontario's had to recalibrate to ensure that we stay ahead. And we've led the way. We have more than 180 percent of those jobs returned to the province of Ontario because of the actions that we've taken and working in collaboration with our stakeholders. We're the leanest government in Canada, the lowest cost government by far from any other government in this country. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the new Minister of Co-operative Housing. Co-operative housing is an important component of Ontario's affordable housing solution. Several cooperative housing units were originally built in the 1970s. The then federal government had worked with the province to ensure that they received federal support. With these agreements, the co-ops helped Ontario's most needy by providing rent gear to income subsidies, making life more affordable to Ontarians. However, these agreements are inspiring and we're quickly approaching the day in 2020 when most of these contracts will end and so will rent gear to income supplements. Two weeks ago, the Closing the House and Gap campaign was here at Queen's Park advocating that our government stand up for these vulnerable Ontarians. Mr. Speaker, true you to the Minister, could he please explain what our government has done to support Ontario's cooperatives and social housing providers? Thank you, Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Thank you very much and I'd like to thank the member from Scarborough Rouge River for his advocacy on behalf of those in co-op and social housing. I want to recognize the hard work and advocacy of a few people, Bud Purvis, Harvey Cooper, Ginia Day and Sean Gayden who came to the legislature to advocate for this very important issue. Our government believes that long-term local solutions are the only way that we can tackle homelessness. Our government has focused on Ontario's housing first strategy, which gives priority to finding permanent housing linked to flexible support services. We understand the importance of this. It's why we've invested $3 billion in affordable housing since 2003 more than any government before us. Though we've got more work to do, I was pleased to learn that the former minister met with Councillor Anna Bailau in February to hear their concerns and see how our government could help. I reaffirm, Speaker, that Ontario's most vulnerable and all housing providers and the federal government to ensure that we have predictable long-term solutions for Ontario's most vulnerable. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to thank the minister for the answer. I'm sure my constituents will be pleased to hear our government's commitment to co-operative and social housing. Two weeks ago, the Housing Gap campaign came to Queen's Park. They spoke of their need for funds to continue their investment in capital repairs for Toronto community housing, which will be $2.6 billion over the next decade. They also have asked that we have all parties in this house stand with our government to continue our call on the federal government to maintain their existing housing stock. Stock. They believe that the federal government needs to come back to the table with a long-term stable source of funding. Mr. Speaker, through you to the minister, could he please explain what our government is doing to ensure that the opposition, the third party, follow our government's lead on calling on the federal government to maintain their funding. Thank you, minister. Thank you. Our government has continued, Speaker, to call on our federal partners to join with our government to come up with a stable long-term solution for homelessness in Ontario. We've had a lot of parties at the Roma OGRA conference last month to ask their local members and minister Kennedy to urge the federal government to come back to the table and understand the City of Bramford is doing so. However, unfortunately, like the federal conservatives, Speaker, the third party's been silent and we can see what's happened here today. Sadly, this is typical for a party whose leader has said that according to the Toronto Star has done everything possible to avoid policies on tough issues that require political bravery. With that in the sidelines, we've acted over $600 million for affordable housing in Toronto since 2003. 4,700 new housing units repairing over 37 in almost 15,000 homes with housing allowances and rents-ups. There's more to do. This is a societal issue, Speaker, and I hope the third party will finally stand shoulder to shoulder with us to demand that the federal government step up. New question, the member from Cambridge. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for the acting Premier. We've all heard before the tales of what the Premier knew to be a fact. She knew the cost of the Oakville cancellations would cost $40 million, despite signing a cabinet document that stated otherwise. She knew the documents requested a committee had been made public before thousands and thousands more were dropped on our desks at the 11th hour. So we excuse the people of Ontario after a year and a half of being taken for a ride by this Premier, where she's dropped us off. Either the Premier knew full well what was going on, or she was willfully blind to the facts. Acting Premier, can you tell the people of Ontario which is it? Good question. Mr. Speaker, talk about being blind to the facts. Mr. Speaker, we've all established Kathleen Wynne became Premier of this province. Mr. Speaker, don't take my word for it. I invite the honourable member to go read the document that was tabled in court. That document made very clear that the accusations which have not been proven, I think we all have to be very careful, were about the actions that took place under Premier McGinty's time as Premier with his former Chief of Staff. The fact of the matter is, Mr. Speaker, again, I can quote media outlet after media outlet which undertook the process of it and came away with the conclusion, Mr. Speaker, that they are engaging in the most baseless kind of character attacks. And as Mr. Speaker, the Premier pointed out in her open letter yesterday, she is taking the steps of consulting legal experts on this. Mr. Speaker, that was a completely unbelievable answer. This government brags about the number of documents handed over. When they know full well the most damning documents are deleted or hidden or corrupted or damaged or destroyed by a liberal strategist's boyfriend. We are worried, Mr. Speaker, we're worried there is no reason for the Premier to come clean with the people of Ontario because in the world of liberal politics, money talks, especially hush money. Acting Premier in the real world, when you escort a man to your computer, give him your password and watch him destroy data, you know, the wall, you know, you can see that, the president's wife, Lauren Remy, does it. She gets promoted to Press Secretary, the Minister of Education, and Becky Codd-Downey gets promoted as Press Secretary. Rebecca McKenzie gets promoted to Chief of Staff, all while Peter Wallace felt it wasn't his place to say anything at all. Acting Premier, why do the McGinty Win Liberals get promotions and that caution is the excuse me excuse me excuse me the member from Lampton Kent Middlesex the member from Lent Lampton Kent Middlesex is continuing to speak first one I was trying to say something and then when I was trying to get his attention the Minister of Education will come to order the member from Simcoe North will come to order I'm going to offer a caution I don't like some of the language although I didn't quite find it part on parliamentary I'm going to caution the member not to go any further with that kind of accusation Governor House Leader Mr. Speaker I didn't think it was possible I didn't think it was possible for the member to go any lower but he's just proven it in that question Mr. Speaker last Thursday document was made public a court document which contains allegations about the former Chief of Staff to Premier McGinty it's a voluminous document Mr. Speaker I understand over a hundred pages everyone who's looked at it knows that it is very very clearly about the former Premier's watch and the allegations are directed at Mr. Livingston they are not proven and Mr. Speaker to stand up here in the legislature and to attempt to drag through the mud the names of hard-working staffers on this side of the house Mr. Speaker who were in no way implicated in that document that makes it very very clear Mr. Speaker is beneath him Mr. Speaker I thought that members is an honourable member but what he just did Mr. Speaker is beyond beyond Mr. Speaker contempt and I cannot believe that he would have said that. Thank you new question the members of the Scarborough Guildwood. Speaker my question today is for the minister responsible for seniors affairs minister on several occasions while addressing this legislature you have provided up-to-date information on the implementation of the Retirement Homes Act 2010. Thanks to this important piece of legislation for the first time in Ontario seniors living in retirement homes have strong protections under provincial law. Mr. Speaker in Scarborough alone there are ten retirement homes four of which are in my riding of Scarborough Guildwood serving hundreds of senior residents minister I know that you have been to several locations in Scarborough and our seniors have welcomed you there. I know my constituents of Scarborough Guildwood appreciate this government's hard work to keep these residents safe and secure and involved in their local communities. Speaker can the minister inform this house of some of the work conducted by the retirement homes regulatory authority question. Thank you minister responsible for seniors affairs. Thank you very much speaker. It's indeed very refreshing to hear the member from Scarborough Guildwood speak with such passion and advocacy about seniors and it the same goes for all our seniors. Speaker let me say that since its inception we have up to some six hundred and ninety seven retirement home licensed speaker and this speaks well for the regulatory authority. Speaker as well we have to say that thanks to the present government our seniors today are enjoying in their retirement homes more safety more protection than ever before. It means that the regulatory authorities working speaker and what will continue to do so since 2012 up to thousand now speaker we have received some five thousand inquiry with respect to retirement homes. We continue to provide information on the conditions of all the retirement home speakers that is available to all the seniors and their families. They can access that information to the answer the info line as well as the RHA R H R A dot C A Web site I'd like to thank the minister for that answer and I know that families in my riding of Scarborough Guildwood are also thankful that this government has always been ready and willing to listen to the needs of our seniors. Speaker the seniors of my riding like thousands of seniors across Ontario have worked so hard to build this great province like my parents who emigrated from Jamaica arrived they arrived in Canada many years ago. They chose to make this their home right here in Ontario. They went straight to work laying the foundations for the communities we live in today. Speaker recently the fifth phase of the Retirement Homes Act 2010 came into effect. Can the minister explain how these new regulations continue to build on the successful protections implemented by our government? Thank you minister. Again Speaker I want to thank the member for the question and she's quite right. We have made quite a few improvements since the act came into force. As a matter of fact we have just approved the phase five of the retirement regulatory authority speaker and I have to say thanks to the present government of Cattle in Wind. Seniors today are moving forward and they know that they can get better service, better quality, better care in a very safe environment. What are some of the changes that we have been proposing and coming from the phase five speaker? We have established the Retirement Home Regulatory Authority Emergency Fund. We have mandatory insurance for each retirement home. We have established formal process for complaint handling by the RHRA included complaint review officer, screening for staff and volunteer by the police and as well speaker we have created an RHRA. Thank you. New question for the member for Prince Edward Hastings. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. My question this morning is for the acting Premier. Your unelected handpicked Liberal Premier knew when she ran for the leadership of your disgraced party that she was inheriting the contempt charges she was inheriting the criminal activity that went along with it. Her predecessor fled the office like a coward. Yet she stood on a stage arm in arm chanting the name Dalton as you did even though that his reputation had been tarnished beyond belief. She knew that the gas plant scandal was the biggest scandal in Ontario's history and it turns out the most expensive too. Yet she expects us to believe that she knew nothing about the secret diabolical mission that was going on to destroy documents in her office when she was the Premier. Now Minister I know you have your own OPP investigation to contend with but how can you continue to stand up for this government that's so embroiled in criminal activity. Thank you. See the police. Again I'm going to offer a caution to making any accusations of criminal activity is not expected from any member in this house. Deputy Premier. To the government house leader speaker. You know Mr. Speaker it really does insult the office that that member holds is a critic. That question Mr. Speaker was the worst kind of politics and what we've seen here today. Mr. Speaker is a progressive conservative party that doesn't care about facts. They don't give a damn about facts. Mr. Speaker all they care about. Well please. The draw. Mr. Speaker all they care about is scoring very cheap political points. The fact of the matter is Mr. Speaker that the reason why we are having this debate and discussion here is because a court document was made public last Thursday and that court document is very serious but it's very clear. It's about allegations that took place under the former Premier. Mr. Speaker and it is directed. It's not proven Mr. Speaker. And again we have to be very careful at his former chief of staff Mr. Livingston. But you know Mr. Speaker if the Honourable Member wants to talk about gas plants then perhaps in the supplementary he'll tell us about the cost. When they stood on YouTube and promised that if they were elected that those gas plants would be canceled. Thank you. The member from Oxford will withdraw. Supplementary. Mr. Speaker back to the acting Premier and I don't know what the heck this government is going to do when that guy leaves because somebody's actually going to have to answer a question over there. You know what the thing. The stink of this gas plant scandal is something this government can't outrun. They're trying to continue the cover up as long as they can Mr. Speaker but they're not going to get away with it. You've got the same old McGinty cast of characters there. You know these are the same people that stood up on the stage in January of last year and said they were going to continue the Dalton legacy. That's what they promised to do. And yes Mr. Speaker they've done an excellent job of it because it's already cost us over a billion dollars to cancel that gas plant. Any time anyone brings this government's incompetence to light. What we get is a threat to sue questions. Silence and censure. Will you do the honorable thing you said you'd stand on your record. Will you call the non-confidence motion today and let the public decide this once and for all. Before I before I turn I I offer an apology to the member from Oxford. I was incorrect and I apologize. I will now ask the member from Nipissing to withdraw withdraw. Thank you. Speaker I'm not sure about my colleagues but when I saw that ridiculous display I'm quite proud of the fact that our Premier has sought and obtained legal advice. Mr. Speaker the fact of the matter is that what we have seen from the opposition is this drive by smear. Mr. Speaker again there was a document that was released by the courts last Thursday that makes it very clear that there were serious allegations Mr. Speaker that took place under the former Premier's watch. Again Mr. Speaker what is the Toronto Star have to say on March 29th. The close reading of the 111 pages of OPP documents provides no hint of yet of any impropriety when Premier Wynn was Premier. Toronto Star March 30th regarding Tim Hudex claims about Premier Wynn the OPP documents suggest no such thing. Mr. Speaker it is time that the Progressive Conservatives came clean Mr. Speaker they apologize and they remove the offensive the offensive language from their website and stop spreading these unbased fears. Questions. My question is for the Minister of Research and Innovation. Ontario is recognized for the many excellent academic and research institutions and the strong collaboration with the industry. To build on this further we continue to create the right condition that will lead to innovative business climate that will attract investment create jobs and increase the quality of life Ontarians. Fostering collaboration this intensely competitive global economy is important and is also a competitive advantage. To help to translate Ontario's research strength into competitive commercialized activities business must be able to access world class knowledge and expertise available in Ontario's research institution. Mr. Speaker through you to the Minister of Research Innovation what step is the government's taking to facilitate knowledge mobilization between the industry and academic institutions. Thank you Mr. Speaker and I would like to thank the member from Scarborough Aging Court for that very important question. Mr. Speaker our government recognizes the importance of a strong relationship between academic and the research institutions and also industry in our province. That's why our government created collaboration voucher program which provides redeemable credits to small and the medium-sized businesses for expertise and resources from Ontario's research and academic institutions and research hospitals. Collaboration vouchers Mr. Speaker are a practical tool to facilitate knowledge mobilization between industry and academic institutions. Not only does this voucher program help businesses improve their competitiveness around the world and productivity in the marketplace but it helps translate Ontario's research strengths into stronger innovation and commercial activity in the future. I am proud Mr. Speaker that our government's initiatives to foster strategic collaboration and knowledge mobilization in our province of Ontario. Thank you supplementary. Thank you Mr. Speaker I'm pleased to hear that our government is undertaking a stronger collaboration between the innovative business and industry and academic institution. Ontario's research community is a globally recognized as commercial friendly jurisdiction that supports the growth of innovative companies and activities. International research collaboration is a rapidly grown component of core research activities for all countries. They enable researchers to participate in networks of cutting-edge and innovative activity. Ontario is a home of many world-class researchers. They know collaboration provides opportunities to move further and faster by working in with others leading people in the field. But in a global context especially in the developing countries and economies ramping up their research investments to achieve promise it must collaborate nationally and building international bridges. Mr. Speaker to the minister of research and innovation can he please let us know what international partnerships and collaboration a government has undertaken to promote this research. Thank you minister. Thank you Mr. Speaker I want to thank again the member from the Scarborough agent corps for that question. Mr. Speaker Ontario understands the importance of collaboration and the building international bridges to remain competitive. Ontario has several active MOUs that focuses on promoting Ontario's strengths while attracting investments to Ontario. In fact I had the pleasure of visiting China a couple of weeks ago with the focus of collaboration and collaborative opportunities in life sciences information and information technology and clean technology. We announced that the next phase of our MOU between our government and the ministry of science and technology of China under this MOU a total of 12 academic and industry research and development collaboration projects are being funded by both our governments as Ontario's second largest trading partner China's emerging economy will remain a key factor in Ontario's international business strategy. Mr. Speaker these partnerships these partnerships will lead to the generation of new technologies at lacking talent and international investments into our province of Ontario and creating jobs for today and tomorrow. Thank you. Your question to the member from the Dean Carlson. Thanks very much speaker. Please have the added opportunity today. My question is to the acting premier look I don't know what is worse the premier evading this assembly and not answering questions. The the member knows full well we do not make reference to people's presence or absence in this house. Don't do it again please. I'm not sure what's worse the fact that the premier's avoiding accountability or the fact that the NDP is refusing to hold this government to account. So I'm going to try it one more time since they will not answer whether or not the premier's hard drive was wiped will the acting premier afford us this opportunity in telling us whether or not the premier's senior transition staff and all of our staff actually had any of their data wiped clean during that period of time. Thank you Deputy Premier. Mr. Speaker I answered that question several minutes ago. The Honourable Member can look at the document that was released by the court which talks about a series of computers which allegations are about Mr. Speaker. It does not include premier win Mr. Speaker. It includes a list of individuals that's made very clear in that document and Mr. Speaker I'll tell you what's really bad is the basis allegations coming from the opposition and I'll pick up on one point she made about the new democrats because it's not just against the progressive conservatives let me quote the Toronto Star March 30th the leader of the NDP indulged in conventional opposition mischief by implying police were quote now focusing on questions about the period after you were sworn in and became premier a clear misreading of the OPP documents and it's kind of interesting Mr. Speaker the theatrics we saw from the new democrats because when the PCs tried the same thing in November 2009 the leader of the NDP answered quote new democrats believe that it's extremely important to bring the voices of the people into this legislature I do not I I not only don't approve of their tactic thank you PCs but it changes the channel for them thank you thank you supplementary the NDP and the Liberals can play all the games that they want with the PR stunt by the premier yesterday and the PR stunt by the by the NDP today the only leader that is here committed to getting to the bottom of the gas plant scandal is Tim Hudak we are the official opposition I would like to know this how much was Peter Fass the outsider hired by the Liberals to just deplete the public records paid was he paid from the premier's office budget from the Liberal Party of Ontario how much was he given to destroy these records under the premier win leadership Mr. Speaker as I said many of the issues that have been raised by the member been dealt with in the court document Mr. Speaker in terms of the IT company that the honorable member speaking up we learned of the allegations on Thursday as she knows following those revelations an internal investigation was conducted and it was determined that the company has previously done occasional IT services work for the caucus office under the former premier in the party office the company was informed yesterday that services at the party office were terminated the proper authorities have been proactively made aware but to be clear Mr. Speaker the allegations centre on the former chief of staff to Premier McGinty these are serious allegations no one disputes that but the fact of the matter is Mr. Speaker they are still allegations and I all members all members Mr. Speaker to be very careful and to allow the police to do their work thank you Speaker my question is to the acting premier acting premier I understand yesterday the premier sent an open letter to the leader of the opposition in the letter the premier asks the leader of the opposition his caucus and his party to stop making false and defamatory allegations acting premier would you share with the House the contents of that letter Deputy Premier thank you Speaker and I would be happy to read into the record the contents of this letter dated March 30th 2014 to Mr. Tim Hudak dear Mr. Hudak during your press conference on March 27th you made several false misleading and defamatory allegations about me this is from the premier you alleged that I personally quote oversaw and possibly ordered the criminal destruction of documents unquote and that criminal conduct took place in my office the Ontario Progressive Conservative Party repeated these false allegations on its website and in a public mailing these allegations accusations are false and utterly unsupported answer you ought to know it speaker I will continue in the supplementary supplementary thank you to the acting premier for beginning to share that letter from the day that she was sworn in the premier has opened up the government to an unprecedented degree exactly under the current premier the government has implemented mandatory record keeping rules and staff training and new rules limiting political staff in and their involvement in commercial third-party transactions right acting premier would you continue to share the contents of that letter thank you deputy senior thank you the premier goes on to say as political leaders it is our role and public duty to engage in spirited political debate on on issues the decision to relocate the gas plants in the facts ongoing police investigation are legitimate subjects for this political debate false misleading and defamatory statements are not and they represent the worst kind of politics that is why i'm writing this open letter to you there should be no tolerance for false and defamatory accusations as a means to gain political power i am asking you and your member from storm on come to order immediately stop repeating these untrue statements and to immediately remove them from the pc party website and all other communications i have sought and i can please be seated please thank you new question the members from the pn carleton as my question is to the government house leader moments ago the government house leader indicated that peter fast had a contract with the liberal party of ontario according to reality on january 26 cathleen win became premier but also became leader of the liberal party that means he was one of her contracted employees this revelation is quite serious and in that it gives us more of an understanding into what is going on with this liberal government so i ask the government house leader once more were members of the transition team and kathleen wins hard drives wiped clean yes or no by a contracted employee of the liberal party of ontario question kathleen win assumed the leadership of your party mr. Speaker i i think this stretches longer than a Leonard Cohen song i mean the fact of the matter mr Speaker the fact of the matter is mr. Speaker the last thursday a court document was made public and mr. Speaker i would invite the honorable i believe it's on the Toronto star website i know you have to pay a certain fee every month taxes but mr. Speaker i would invite her to read that because it outlines a number of computers and it names those staff of the former premier premier McGinty that were in fact according to this document wiped clean there are allegations about the former chief of staff these are unproven allegations mr. Speaker and i think all of us should allow the police to do the work but in terms of mr. Speaker the premier's transition team i will point out to the honorable member that the committee has received information the justice committee and emails from the premier's transition team and again she should read those documents as i say mr. Speaker the court document makes clear what computers are talking about and its staff of former premier McGinty supplementary thank you the i'm sure that the minister is well aware that i was the first person to bring the revelations to the floor of this assembly we're quite aware of what's in the ito i asked this minister for very specific order he is choosing not to provide them i would ask the minister one more time would he provide the assembly the committee and the leader of the official opposition with the nature of the contract for peter face from the liberal party of ontario thank you thank you member member from dufferin call it and come to order government house leader mr. Speaker both the caucus office and party require significant it services both to support staff to communicate with ontarians my understanding is the company performed it services like routine maintenance but mr. Speaker again mr. Speaker mr. Speaker i invite i invite the member to take a look at the court document that was released last thursday mr. Speaker on her document clearly outlines allegations mr. Speaker unproven allegations against the former chief of staff and in terms of the current premier mr. Speaker she was the one who worked i can tell you as house leader to open up a very broad a committee with a very broad mandate with a great deal of power mr. Speaker we have provided three hundred and twenty six thousand documents to that committee including documents and emails from the transition team and again mr. Speaker she should read them question members and then you're thank you very much speaker my question is to the minister of infrastructure and transportation or transportation and infrastructure speaker i drive about uh fifteen hundred kilometers a week and i know that ontario roads are among the safest in north america and while it's important that we continue to keep our roads safe while aiming to keep our seniors driving as long as they can and they do so safely uh recently uh minister your ministry announced changes to the seniors driving tests and i know that seniors in my riding have received this news quite well and many still have questions about exactly what those changes are speaker three i'm just asking the minister can can you please speak to these changes and how it will affect seniors in ontario thank you minister of infrastructure and infrastructure transportation thanks uh very much i have to be very careful mr speaker because my mother i can't give her age because she'll really get upset with me but suffice to say my mother's a woman of a certain age and she's watching what i'm saying so i better be on my best behavior today but uh she is someone who does not drive at night now uh she gave up her car she when she moved to the city so uh she could be close to myself and the rest of the family to take care of her but if she decided and my mother is a woman of some substantial will that she wanted to renew her driver's license again and she has kept it and i i commend the premier when she introduced uh uh equivalent to the driver's licenses so people like my mom can have a license she would take a vision test uh she would undergo a driver record review and she would attend group education sessions as well as complete two in-class screening exercises so these are easier less stressful answer threatening uh solutions and we really look forward to i think an easier system for our mums and dads and our grandparents it's more safe thank you mr. thank you very much speaker and thank you minister for that answer both my mother and father are seniors and i recall quite well my mother knocking my mirror off of my vehicle in the driveway so uh i just wanted to throw that in uh speaker i'm pleased to hear about the changes to the process and uh many seniors share uh the desire to drive for as long as they can and safely as well so uh the old program was onerous that i well know and caused many of the seniors in my area a fair amount of stress many of the enhancements to the program are quite similar to the previous renewal process for seniors but i do notice that we're shortening how long the entire process will take for seniors speaker through you to the minister can uh the minister please explain on why that is and what you've enhanced and will this result question any new fees to our seniors cute minister thank you uh mr mr speaker um i i once lived in the member from glenn gary prescott russians constituency because um my my mother and father nearly ended their relationship over my father's acquisition of half a bowl and my mother didn't realize she thought she wasn't going to have room in the freezer for it until i heard the word artificial insemination where my sister and i were sent away from the dinner table for the rest of my parents' conversation but i know in that constituency and many others uh mr speaker uh it gets dark and there are many areas of glenberry proscat russians rural communities that don't have uh the kind of lighting and when your eyes get a little more challenging to get older it's important so that there will no longer be these complicated tests that people have to study for um they will simply very stressful as the attorney general has just pointed out uh they will just simply be able to come and do a short classroom test that won't require much and as you know with legislation uh before the house first of all there's no fees as the health minister just pointed out none and second of all we're also looking at graduated drivers licenses for seniors as well mr speaker if we pass the legislation for the house thank you the uh the government house leader on a uh on a part of order thank you very much mr speaker i wish to correct my record earlier in question period i referred to uh the current premier before she'd assumed office i got a big tongue tied and said incoming or acting i of course mr speaker meant premier designate at that point the minister of finance on a part of work mr speaker i seek unanimous consent that the question on the motion of second reading of bill 177 an act to amend the legislative assembly act be immediately put forward without further debate or amendment and that the bill be ordered for third reading and that the order of the third reading of bill 177 be immediately called and that the question on the motion for third reading of the bill be put without debate or amendment yeah good idea the minister of the minister of finance seeking unanimous consent to be that the question on the motion of second reading of bill 177 an act to amend the legislative assembly act be immediately put without further debate or amendment and that the bill be ordered for third reading and at the order of the third reading the bill 177 be immediately called on that the question on the most of third reading of the bill be put without debate do we agree I heard a no the member the minister the minister of government services on a point of order I realized I forgot to introduce some elected officials here today from the city of Pickering we have Doug Dickerson deputy mayor and Kevin Ash Councilor Ford one welcome to the member from simple gray on a point of order yes mr. Speaker I seek unanimous consent that the sponsorship of bill 5 an act to freeze compensation for two years in the public sector be transferred to the member for Nipissing member for simple gray is seeking an animus consent to that the sponsorship of bill 5 an act to freeze compensation for two years in public sector be transferred to the member from Nipissing do we agree the minister responsible for senior affairs on a point of order as speaker I would really be happy if I could have a late show on the question that that's not a point of order there are no further there are no there are no deferred votes this house stands recess until 1 p.m. this afternoon