 It is now time for oral questions. I recognize the member for Brampton Centre. Good morning, Speaker. My question is to the Premier. Health experts confirmed more cases of the Omkron variant yesterday here in Ontario, and four public health units have new restrictions to prevent further COVID-19 spread in their communities. This government has promised to use every tool to help contain the spread of this virus, but that simply hasn't happened. We need better testing, tracing, and isolation of cases. But the government must also mandate vaccinations for health and education workers so that our hospitals and schools are safer for patients, students, and staff. Why won't the Premier do what's right to keep people safe starting with mandatory vaccinations for health and education workers? Thank you for applying on behalf of the government, the Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. Thank you very much. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you to the member opposite for the question. We have taken every precaution possible. We are working with the federal government in order to prevent people from traveling from several South African countries right now. There may be other countries that will be added to this list. We are also asking the federal government to initiate point-of-arrival testing for all people arriving in Canada, regardless of where they come from, because we know that there is some spread of the Omkron variant. However, we are ready for whatever might happen. We have a very robust testing strategy. We have expanded our locations. We have 230 assessment centres that are open and over 500 pharmacies with more coming online. We also have boots on the ground for case and contact management. There are 375 people that have been identified as having been in those countries, South African countries, within the last 14 days. We are following up with all of them and doing the proper gene sequencing to make sure that we understand what we are dealing with, whether it is Omkron or another variety. So Ontario is ready for whatever might happen. That is a question. Thank you, Speaker. What we have learned from this pandemic is that being cautious has helped reduce the spread of the virus. The government should be adapting their plant and make paid sick days actually permanent, instead of taking them away from workers at the end of this year. That would give certainty to workers and workplaces, for example, in Brampton, to know that if those workers get sick, that the government has their back. Most experts in this province, including the Premier's own science table, has called for permanent, paid sick days. Why isn't the Premier doing what's right for Ontario? And ensuring that workers in this province have paid sick days before they expire on December 31st. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Of course, the the Premier has has led on this issue, frankly, right right from the very beginning. We knew how important it was to ensure that the people of the province of Ontario, especially those those frontline workers that were supported, Mr. Speaker. That's why the Premier negotiated with our federal partners and over $1 billion program to bring 23 paid sick days to the people of the province of Ontario. We understand, of course, how important it is to continue to support Ontario frontline workers. That is why there continues to be a program in place for workers. And we will, of course, always be there for workers as we battle our way through this pandemic. Mr. Speaker, there's a lot of work yet to do, but we are well on our way as a province to really to doing fabulous things. We have almost 90 percent of our population with two vaccine doses. And I'm I told Mr. Speaker that a significant, a significant number of those five and 11 have registered or are getting their vaccines. Speaker, so we're well on our way. And it's because of the hard work of the people of the province of Ontario. And the final supplement. Speaker, in addition to taking away sick days, the government plans on stopping the use of vaccine certificates that Ontarians have been using to help support our local businesses. All of this comes to an end on January 17th because the government isn't taking the fourth wave and this new variant seriously enough. Speaker, the ICUs are filling up. Public health units are bringing back restrictions and 10,000 people have lost their lives in Ontario due to COVID-19. People have suffered enough. And the last thing this province needs or anybody wants is another lockdown. We can prevent that. Why is the premier scrapping vaccine certificates when we could use them to prevent another province wide lockdown here in Ontario? And thank you again to the member for the question. The loss of any life is extremely sad. And our condolences go to the families of those who have lost family members. However, we are ready. We are taking this situation very seriously with this new sequence of this new variant. And when we first announced our plan to reopen Ontario, Dr. Moore, our Chief Medical Officer of Health, was very adamant in saying that this is the plan. However, if there is a dramatic change in circumstances, such as what might be prevented by this new variant, we still don't know enough about it to be able to make that determination, even though we are proceeding very cautiously. We don't know what we're dealing with, but we will be ready for it. But Dr. Moore did indicate there, if there is a change in circumstances, we will have to modify that plan. But it's too soon to say right now we are taking the necessary precautions, but if we have to move those dates out again, we will certainly do that to protect the health and safety of all Ontarians. Thank you. The next question. Once again, the member for Brampton Center. Thank you, Speaker. My question again is to the Premier. The Premier knows that $15 an hour just doesn't cut it. Last week, he said, and I'll quote, let's face it, that's a beginning wage. It's tough for anyone to survive on $15, end quote. But his own low wage policies don't help. Ontarians know it's getting harder and harder to make ends meet. Housing costs have skyrocketed, hydro and gas and insurance are all up. And food banks, Speaker, are experiencing the highest usage since 2009 because people are struggling to put food on their table for their families. It doesn't have to be this way. Will the Premier support our call to increase the minimum wage to $20 by 2026? It is really difficult to know where the NDP is on this, Mr. Speaker. They seem to, on a daily basis, change their position with respect to that, Mr. Speaker. In fact, on the day that we made that announcement, phenomenal taken members of the NDP were still presenting petitions to the House for calling for $15 a day child or minimum wage, Mr. Speaker. So what we have done is we've made sure that the economy is in a position where we can support a $15 a day minimum wage. Mr. Speaker, the NDP will, of course, know the devastation that was left behind in the province of Ontario. 300,000 manufacturing jobs had left the province. The member in her own question talked about the high hydro rates, talked, the Minister of Education has talked about the over 400% increase in childcare. There were so many things that were discouraging jobs and investments in the province of Ontario. We had to turn that around. We have, Mr. Speaker, the climate is there where we can support our workers. And this economy will begin to thrive like it has never done before. Mr. Speaker. Thank you. And the supplementary question. Speaker, I think it's important to note that the minimum wage would actually be higher than $15 right now if the Premier hadn't canceled the planned increase when it was slated to happen. But he made things even worse for workers and froze the minimum wage and kept it low for three orders. The Premier himself has said he and his family could not make ends meet on $15 an hour. So why is he forcing working families in Ontario to live on $15 an hour? People shouldn't have to turn to the food banks or worry about how they're going to pay their bills. Speaker, will the Premier do the right thing and support our plan to get workers a $20 minimum wage in a stable, steady and predictable way? Mr. Speaker, there is so much to unpack in that question. We brought forward a $15 minimum wage because the timing was right to do that because we are starting to see the economy change, Mr. Speaker, principally because of the policies of this Premier. The NDP could have helped us on that, Mr. Speaker. They could have voted for those when we were first brought into office, Mr. Speaker. They could have voted for those tax reductions that we brought in place to help the lowest income earners in the province of Ontario. They chose to vote against that, Mr. Speaker. They could have helped us and voted with the initiatives brought forward by the Minister of Labor to ensure that there are more people in the trade. These are good, high-paying jobs, Mr. Speaker. That will lead to thousands of people having the dignity of a well-paying job. The NDP voted against that, Mr. Speaker. They could have voted in favour of what the Minister of Education was doing to make childcare more affordable after 15 years of supporting the Liberals who saw increases to childcare of over 400%. They voted against that, Mr. Speaker. Affordability and making life affordable for Ontarians is something that we are proud of. Thank you very much. The final supplement. Mr. Speaker. Whether a worker is stalking grocery store shelves, cleaning a hospital, or any other important frontline work, they deserve respect. But as the Premier has admitted, $15 an hour as a minimum wage simply isn't going to cut it. Respect is not just saying thank you to these workers at press conferences, but it's actually about paying these workers a wage that pays their bills. Everyone is feeling the squeeze right now, Speaker. A steady, stable path to a $20 minimum wage will help workers make ends meet and will help end the Premier's low-wage policies. Will the Premier do the right thing and support our plan that respects workers with a $20 an hour minimum wage increase and recognize them for their hard work? Thank you to my colleague across the aisle. Mr. Speaker, I want to remind the people of Ontario that under their leadership with their buddies, the Liberals, again, as my colleague said, we lost 300,000 jobs. That's 300,000 people that couldn't pay rent. That's 300,000 people couldn't put food on the table because of their policies, Mr. Speaker. We took a different approach. We made sure we created an environment that companies can come here and thrive and grow. We saw 307,000 more people gain employment that they could put towards rent, that they could put down on a deposit for buying a home. Under the NDP and Liberals policies, they destroyed this province for 15 years. For 15 years, Mr. Speaker, they always focus on they want the government and the people of Ontario to rely on the government. That's your policy. Rely on the government and have the nanny state. We don't believe in that, Mr. Speaker. The next question. Good morning, Mr. Speaker. This question is for the Premier. Speaker, a lot has been asked of Ontarians during this very long and lingering pandemic. People across the province have made enormous sacrifices to keep each other safe and keep our economy moving. There was an understanding, I think, that the government would have their back. I think that the government would have their back. I think that the government would have their back. I think that the government would have their back. I think that the government would have their back. In fact, I remember the Premier said he'd do whatever it takes to protect our communities and help us recover. Imagine then, Speaker, what a shock it was for Ontarians to learn in the latest FAO report that over the first two quarters of this year, this government spent $4.3 billion less than it planned. How can the Premier possibly justify short-changing Ontarians at such a fragile point in our province's recovery? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And since the beginning of this pandemic, the government has been committed to leveraging the province's fiscal firepower to support the people of this province and businesses. Mr. Speaker, this was front and center during the public estimates where it showed that this province spent $19.1 billion supporting the pandemic response and COVID in the province . In fact, this represented the largest year-over-year dollar increase in program spending on record. In addition to this, Mr. Speaker, this year, our government continues to invest in our critical healthcare infrastructure by supporting those investments through the fall economic statement, which was revealed this past month as well, that committed to supporting and expanding home and community care, committed to supporting and increasing our healthcare investments across the province. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Fiscal firepower? Well, that sure fizzled out. I'm not sure the minister understands the seriousness of this. At a time when the success or failure of reopening depended on keeping transmission down, this government underspent on public education for over $1 million. While parents were preparing for their children's return to school and demanding a safe September, this government spent 700 million less than planned on education. And while the government was making deals with their developer buddies to pave over the green belt, the budget for municipal transit projects was left untouched. Speaker, through you to the premier, why on earth would the government need it most? Well, thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And as the member opposite note, the expenditure monitor is a point in time estimates based on specific data requested by the FAO. It also doesn't take into full consideration the government's investments as it includes consolidated entities such as school boards, hospitals and agencies. But, Mr. Speaker, government committed to the largest expenditure in this province's history in supporting our frontline healthcare workers, supporting our education sector, supporting our hospitals, Mr. Speaker, and that was over $16.7 billion last year. That was the largest year over a year dollar increase in program spending in the history books of this province. And that included investing in mental health, included in 3100 new beds to support our healthcare system and businesses across this province. Next question, the member for Halliburton, Quartha Lakes, Brock. My question is for the Minister of Colleges and Universities. Speaker, the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of healthcare workers. Unfortunately, there is currently a shortage of nurses here in Ontario. The combination of the pandemic and an aging population has increased the urgency to address healthcare shortages. And with such a clear shortage, we must work to fill the gaps. So, Mr. Speaker, can the Minister tell us what substantial action she has taken to address the nursing shortage in Ontario, and will the Minister pledge to create more nursing spots and programs by the 2022 academic year? Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the member from Halliburton, Quartha Lakes, Brock for highlighting such an important and key issue. This past year, the COVID-19 pandemic has shown all of us how critical nurses are to our healthcare system. In fact, Mr. Speaker, our government has gone above and beyond to address the nursing shortage in Ontario. Specifically in my ministry, we have worked to provide programs in order to maintain excellence in nursing education while expanding choices for students. This past month, our government said yes to new standalone four-year Bachelor of Science in Nursing degree programs at Seneca College's King Campus and York University. These new programs are in addition to the 16 universities and 23 colleges offering Bachelor of Nursing programs in collaborative partnerships. Through allowing students to access high-quality local education for students. This is a bold and progressive move under our government that will provide students with more choices for nursing education, further strengthening our healthcare workforce as more Ontarians pursue this important career path. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the minister for that answer. I am delighted to hear that the government is ready to respond to the needs of our current healthcare system. When we consider a problem as important as the nursing shortage, we must also consider regional differences and needs of varying healthcare units. In a province as large as Ontario, different communities have drastically different local healthcare needs. Additionally, one problem that many students encounter when trying to get a nursing education is having a significant impact on the health of the country. This is a very important issue. The government appreciates the gap between nursing shortages in communities across Ontario. So, Mr. Speaker, can the minister please tell me what she has done to address the regional barriers that students face to access nursing education close to home in order to address nursing shortages across Ontario? I believe that students in small towns and students in big cities should have the same opportunities and choice when starting post-secondary education. That is why in recent months our announcements of new standalone nursing degree programs at Georgia College, St. Lawrence and your Consenica will add to the existing 36 new nursing programs. We are a government for the students and we have the opportunity to do so. The Consenica will add to the existing 36 nursing programs at colleges and universities across Ontario. Having nursing programs available in Kingston, Belleville, Berry, Owen Sound and King City, Ontario's nurses go above and beyond to provide exceptional care to patients. And it is my job to ensure we make life easier for students in all regions who choose such an important career path. My question is to the Premier. By now, families and kids across the province are used to this government's double-speak regarding the Ontario Autism Program. By now, families and kids across this province are used to this government's confusing talk around the Ontario Autism Program. This is a Premier that promised to clear the wait list on the campaign trail only to have it ballooned to 50,000 kids after taking power. This is a government that dismantled an existing functioning program to build when it calls a gold standard. Nearly every parent and advocate will tell you that it is far from it. This is a government that repeatedly bragged about doubling the budget for the Ontario Autism Program. But yesterday's Financial Accountability Office's report shows that you've actually underspent on the program by over $100 million. How do you think it feels to be a child who has been without necessary therapies for over 1,000 days? How do you think it feels to be a parent and find out that this government has been underspending on the program while you go further and further into debt to provide care for your kid? Can the Premier explain why children, community and social services? Thank you, Speaker. And I appreciate the question from the member opposite and the opportunity to give the facts. Our government has doubled the funding for the Ontario Autism Program from 300 million to 600 million. We have almost five times as many children receiving services right now. Forty thousand children are receiving services. That is, as I said, five times as many more children as previously. The previous government promised a program and only delivered services to 25% of eligible children, leading 23,000 children without care. 31,000, 33,000 actually, invitations have been put out for children to come in to the program. 11,000 invitations have been put out for the childhood benefits. This is a world-leading program. It is a continuum of care. It involves mental health services that were never provided before. This is by the community, for the community. Thank you very much. Thank you. That's not the case. This government recently announced it would be enrolling a total of 8,000 kids in the OAP by the fall of 2022. Remember, the wait list is long. And it's that long because of this government's actions. The majority of kids on the wait list have been waiting without service for over 100,000 days. Every day matters to these kids. Every parent worries about their child's future, but especially a parent whose child is growing up without the supports they need to thrive. Cynthia, a parent in London whose son is waiting to be enrolled in the OAP, asked the question, how do we treat someone with a disability? The person you are giving the short end of the stick to is a three-year-old kid. What do you have to say to Cynthia and her son and the 50,000 kids that remain on the wait list that you promised to clear? Thank you, Speaker. Once again, I appreciate the opportunity to clarify the important work that's been done in the community for the autism community to make sure that those 50,000 children that are registered for this program are going to be receiving their care of which 40,000 already are receiving services. Back in 2018, when our government came in, there were 31,500 people registered for the program and only 8,500 were receiving support. Our government said we must do better for those children and for them, there are five times as many children receiving services than ever before. This is a huge improvement. We provided foundational family services. All children who have a diagnosis of autism have access to services, to funded services. We provided the early intervention services to help young children receive the critical services that they need in their development. We also provided a program that is evidence-based that is clinically informed and researched. Thank you, my question is to the minister of health. Many people have succumbed to the pressures of getting vaccinated by their employers or be fired. Many aren't given reasonable accommodation to have rapid testing to save their jobs. They are in danger of losing their jobs. Vaccinations should be about freedom of choice. The premier stated mandatory vaccines in health care has been dropped. Yet many of the Ontario health teams are telling hospitals in their areas that mandatory vaccines will remain in place. So nothing changes. People continue to lose their jobs creating a health care crisis. Truthfully, no one can tell me what changed from yesterday to today. Yesterday workers were forced to leave the country. The government is looking to arrange a watch your kids play hockey and frequent restaurants. So minister, what has changed? We are now with tier society splitting families, putting neighbor against neighbor and forcing business to turn away patrons. Is that what you and the government really want? Minister of health to reply. Thank you to the member for the question. I think the short time we have been talking about COVID-19 in health. That is our responsibility as government. That is why we have had to take these measures. Nobody wants to do any of this, but we have to. We have had to implement measures in order to save people's lives before the vaccine was available. Now that the vaccine is available, we are asking everyone, especially with this new variant of concern, we still need to know more about it, but it is all the more I am urging all people to please go out and be vaccinated now. If you are ready to receive a booster shot, please go and get that. We are going to be looking at changing the age requirements for people to be eligible to receive the booster and there will be more information available about that later this week. And please consider having your children vaccinated as well ages 5 to 11. That is the way we prevent this vaccine from spreading and that we can all return to our lives as well. We know vaccine development, testing and regulation is painstaking process that takes years of dedication and hard work to complete. COVID-19 products have not gone through the same process and rigor. Long-term safety and efficacy data that is crucial for assessment is not available. What is worse, various injury reporting databases show immediate effects of vaccine-caused injuries and that they have reached unprecedented levels. Public Health Ontario as of November 14 reported 537 cases of myocarditis and thousands of adverse events following immunization. And now parents can register their 5 to 11-year-olds to be injected. Healthy children are at a minimal risk of severe outcomes like hospitalizations from COVID-19. Minister, considering the above points, we provide the better rationale for the decisions to vaccinate children other than saying these vaccines are safe. Minister of Health? These vaccines are safe. I can assure the member of that they have gone through rigorous testing protocols. We are very fortunate that we have the technology now that we are able to have these vaccines available for adults as well as for children. We know that many parents still have questions about the concerns they have with respect to vaccinating their children age 5 to 11 and that's why we have information available. We understand that there will be questions and that's why we have a partnership with hospital for sick children for parents to call to ask those questions and then to have their children vaccinated. This is extremely important because right now we know that a third of the new cases of COVID are occurring among school aged children so it's all the more reason for parents to protect their children to have them vaccinated which protects their children, their loved ones and their community. This is absolutely important and we urge everyone to please move forward, have your questions answered and please have your children vaccinated. Thank you. The next question the member for Renfrew Nipissing Timber. The Speaker has been one week since 5 to 11 year old became eligible for vaccinations in Ontario. I'm very happy to make appointments for their children this past week. I've heard from parents in my writing who have been eager to schedule appointments since news on childhood vaccines came out. As COVID-19 cases continue to rise with Ontarians moving inside this holiday season I know many parents would be glad to have an additional level of protection for their children. Could the minister please tell the House how many parents have booked doses for their children and when they can expect their children to be able to get vaccinated? Thank you. Thank you very much to the member from Renfrew Nipissing Timber for the question. I'm very proud of our success in the vaccine roll out which has resulted in one of the highest vaccination rates in the world. As of this week we have reached almost 90% of the population 12 years and older having received their first dose. The number of children aged 5 to 11 are eligible to book an appointment to receive the vaccine. Already over 150,000 appointments have been successfully booked and over 86,000 children have already received their first vaccine. That's in one week, Speaker. I'm also pleased to advise that many public health units like Toronto are continuing to add more locations to their roll out including school and community-based clinics. The supplementary. Thank you, Speaker and I would like to thank the minister for her response. Many parents in my riding are excited that their children are now able to benefit from the protection of the COVID-19 vaccine. This will ensure that they can continue to do the activities they love whether it's at school or on the weekend. I know some parents have reached out to myself and my colleagues with questions surrounding childhood vaccinations and would like more information before booking an appointment. Speaker, can the minister tell us where constituents who have questions or are just not sure yet where they can go for more information? Minister Hal. Thank you again to the member for the question and for your interest in this very important consideration. I'd like to start by saying that we know vaccines are safe and the most effective way of preventing COVID-19. But we also understand that many parents have questions and it's okay to have questions about the COVID-19 vaccine. I've heard from many parents too and I understand the importance of making sure your children have the best protection possible. Which is why parents, caregivers and children are encouraged to call the provincial vaccine confidence line that can be accessed by calling the provincial vaccine contact center at 1-833-943-3900 or visit COVID-19 vaccine consult service to book a confidential phone appointment with a sick kids clinician. Speaker, we look forward to getting one step closer to all Ontarians having safe and effective protection against COVID-19. Thank you very much. The next question, the member for university goes there. I'm going to go to the minister of health. In March 2019, the Ford government cut its funding to Kensington market's overdose prevention site run by St. Stephen's community house. And this decision has had real life devastating consequences. In the last month alone, two people living near Kensington market have died of suspected overdoses. Through donations, St. Stephen's is doing everything they can to provide critical services to our community. But with our provincial funding many more people in Kensington are unable to connect with the services they need to stay alive. Services like harm reduction, primary care, mental health care, supportive housing and supervised injection sites. Premier, minister of health, can you help our community save lives by restoring funding to St. Stephen's overdose prevention site? To respond to the mental health and addictions. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, our function since we first came to government was to ensure that we build continuums of care throughout the province of Ontario to help everyone where and when that help is needed. We've created and worked with police to build mobile intervention crisis teams. We've worked to build OATs to assist individuals. We've invested in consumption and treatment sites. We've built and are building continuums of care throughout the province of Ontario. We've made investments just recently 32.7 million dollars for addiction supports for individuals in need of help throughout the province of Ontario. And we will continue making those investments as we've indicated we would through the investments of 3.8 billion dollars over 10 years which now has we've achieved 525 million dollars in annualized funding to support the mental health and addiction needs of the people of the province of Ontario. And the supplementary question. Back to the minister of health. Opioid deaths in Ontario have risen by a staggering 79 percent since the start of a pandemic. And if you are in the homeless population, the overdose, dying of an overdose is the number one reason why you're going to die. Minister, people in my writing are dying from preventable overdose deaths because they don't have access to supportive housing. In the midst of this crisis instead of helping our community this government is choosing to cut funding to municipalities and housing. Minister, we don't need cuts, we need help. The city of Toronto has requested 48 million dollars in funding to provide 2,000 new supportive housing units to help house people who have no homes. These are the people sleeping in parks. These are the people who need homes now. Minister, can your government help Toronto address our homelessness crisis by providing more funding to supportive housing? Thank you, Mr Speaker. And once again, what I'd like to begin with is explaining that a continuum of care is more than just providing the supports initially, such as the access points that I mentioned in the previous response. But it's also to ensure that there are the wraparound services for individuals, and that's why our government has taken a multi-ministerial approach to looking at the issues that need to be resolved and is making investments through the 525 million dollars and will continue to make investments along with and supported by the Minister of Housing to ensure that individuals seek the treatment and are able to access it, are able to come out of the treatment and then have the wraparound supports that are necessary to ensure that they will have success after that treatment. So our government has made those investments, is continuing to make those investments and has laid the foundation through the roadmap to wellness to ensure that those systems are put in place to assist individuals regardless of whether they're homeless or have construction jobs and need supports. The next question. The Member for Arwa, Thank you Mr. Speaker and Mr. Speaker to the Premier. In just over three years this government has issued 57 ministerial zoning orders. This is more than triple the amount the previous government issued over 15 years. The MZOs issued by this government have been used to bypass environmental protections and reward politically connected developers. We should be building within the existing boundaries of cities, but the PCs are using MZOs to enable endless suburban sprawl into protected nature and farmland. The Auditor General's report has said that the government violated on tarant, environmental rights by not consulting on projects. My question is, does the government think that they have shown accountability in due consultation in the use of MZOs? And to reply the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. The leader of the Liberal Party announced that he would say no to 500 supportive housing units. He'd say no to building housing for our homeless veterans. He'd say no to expanding Sunnybrook Hospital and he'd even say no Speaker to expanding 37 long-term care beds in our province. The reason Speaker, we're in a housing supply problem in this province and a problems in our long-term care because of the 15 years that this government said no. On the Premier Ford and our government we're saying yes to building more homes. We're saying yes to building more long-term care and we're saying yes to building more transit. We're the only party Speaker that will say yes to one charity. Supplementary question. Mr. Speaker, according to the housing market information available, the use of MZOs has been a failure in terms of increasing housing supply. Less housing is being built under this government than there was under the previous one. MZOs are not a substitute for comprehensive reform to allow for more multifamily housing to be built. Ontario Liberals have a plan to scrap the existing MZO process and replace it with a new rules-based approach. Does the government have a plan, a real plan to increase housing supply or will they keep selectively allowing certain developers to build when it suits the Premier? Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing All MZOs issued a non-provincially owned land has come at the request of a local council and a supporting council resolution. They're not forced on municipalities. You know, Stephen Del Duca will tell you that he's against MZOs but what you'll hear is his plan is exactly like ours. In fact, the member opposite mentioned some MZOs that their government did. In 2009 they gave an MZO for a golf dome. In 2006 in Markham they gave an MZO for an outdoor golf driving range. In 2008, in Pickering they made an MZO for an outdoor golf driving range. In 2013 in Oakville they made an MZO for an outdoor golf driving range. Speaker, I like golf but we've got to build affordable housing. We've got to build long-term care. We're going to continue to say yes. Please start the clock. The next question is for Peterborough Coortha. Thank you Mr. Speaker. I'd like to thank the member for setting the table for my question. My question is for the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. Speaker, I hear from my constituents continuously about the housing market and the difficulty in entering it. The previous Liberal government sat on their hands for 15 years and did absolutely nothing to address the housing crisis but they did fix the golfing crisis. Young families, seniors and hardworking Ontarians are desperate for housing that meets their unique needs. I understand that the Premier and the Minister intend on hosting a Housing Affordability Summit with the province's big city mayors and chairs to discuss this critical issue. My constituents and many Ontarians are eager to know more. So, Speaker, can the Minister please inform this House on what steps he'll be taking over the coming months to address the lack of housing supply across Ontario? The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing. I want to thank the member for his tremendous advocacy on the housing file in his writing. He's right. Our government policies under the Housing Supply Action Plan are working. We're getting more supply but there is much more that we can do. The member notes that we're inviting municipalities to the table to discuss what we can do together to build more homes and make housing more affordable right across Ontario. So last week I was pleased to announce that on December 16th Premier Ford and I will be hosting a provincial municipal summit for Ontario's big city mayors and for regional chairs to identify further opportunities to collaborate as we continue to work diligently on the housing crisis. Our goal for the summit, Speaker, is for everyone to leave with a collective understanding of what can be done to tackle the issue of housing affordability and we want to emerge with a renewed sense of commitment by the two levels of government. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you to the minister for that response. We know that our government's housing policies and choices are working to make housing more affordable by increasing the supply of the full range of housing options and we need that full range of housing options not just one simple option. To make home ownership more affordable for more people more needs to be done. Speaker, if we're serious about addressing the housing affordability crisis we need all hands on deck. We must have our municipal partners at the table working with us. We need to provide the municipalities with so they can unlock the much needed housing in their own communities. Mr. Minister, I want to thank the honourable member for that great question. We've already heard much positive feedback from municipalities who look forward to meeting with the premier in December and also the meeting we'll be having in January at the rural Ontario Municipal Association Conference but we do need our municipal partners to put the good use to put to good use the tools that we've given them as a government and this includes measures such as the community benefits charge and allowing development charges for rental and non-profit housing to be spread out over a greater period of time. We need municipalities to work with us to increase the supply of all kinds of housing and I look forward to joining the premier and our municipal partners next month as we look for progress through so we can identify the new opportunities to collaborate and to get shovels in the ground. We need to build more housing and we need to build a fast bigger. Question, the member for Algoma Manitilo. Thank you speaker my question is for the premier winter is upon us all in northern Ontario snowfall led to closures of highway 17 and 11 recently with it over 24 hours to reopen in some cases residents of Duberville were dismayed to learn that the section of highway 17 were closed from Sault Ste. Marie all the way into Terrace Bay because of the weather winter road closures are nothing new in the north but what really upset the people in Duberville was that highway 17 closure was not posted anywhere on highway 519 people drove out to highway 17 in poor weather on unclear roads only to find out that highway had been closed speaker the residents of Duberville feel completely let down by the lack of proper road maintenance and road closure notices will the premier finally admit that this government is continuing to fail northern Ontario and commit to improving road winter maintenance on all our highways. The Parliamentary Assistant and member for Scarborough Rouge Park. Thank you and thanks to the member opposite for that question all of us in this house share the goals of a safe and efficient highways network across our province particularly in northern Ontario where winter months pose significant challenges for drivers Ontario has among the highest standards in the entire country to achieve bare payment following a snowfall there will always be exceptional circumstances during a winter storm and that said our review of winter maintenance operation on highway 17 and highway 11 in 2020 confirmed that we are meeting or exceeding all clearing standards for these highways and last winter we achieved bare payments on highways of highway 13 and highway 11 96% of the time within 12 hours following a snowfall that service is to meet the bare payment standard 90% of all time average across the province and we have a high track record on highways thank you very much and the supplementary question quicker again to the Premier making sure that highways are clear of snow isn't just a matter of convenience for people living in the north poor winter road conditions cut people off from essential services prevent us from getting our goods to market and lead to fatal highway accidents far too often all of last week from my writing people were contacting my office about the terrible driving conditions and road closures on highway 17 people like Catherine Leclerc who told me her trip home from Thunder Bay to Wawa was one of the worst winter trips she has ever taken people cannot wait days after a snowstorm to use the highway will the Premier ensure that the people in the north are able to travel safely this winter by making highway 17 and 11 a class one highway thank you Mr. Speaker more winter maintenance equipment have been added to off-lead there are over 1,100 pieces of winter maintenance equipment ready to be deployed to keep highways clear even during harsh winter storms and we have increased the proactive application of anti icing liquids in advance of winter storms and the number of winter maintenance equipment available for fighting the winter weather Mr. Speaker in northern Ontario in particularly highway 17 and highway 11 MTO is installing an additional of 14 road weather information system in stations including along highway along these particular two highways 17 and 11 over the last few years we have hired over 20 new inspectors and coordinators and provided them with the tools to effectively ensure our contractors are meeting our highest standards Mr. Speaker again we will make sure that standards for clearing to help northerners get where they need to go faster and thank you very much the next question member for Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker late last year my daughter was expecting her first child initially doctors had recommended against expecting women getting vaccinated as any dad should do I told her not to get the vaccine she complied thankfully on Valentine's Day she gave birth to a healthy baby girl Shiloh I shed tears of joy but a few months later doctors said it was okay to get the vaccine and be done to ensure the safety both the mother and their unborn baby but now minister I shed tears of sorrow in the Waterloo area 86 stillbirths have occurred from January to July and normally it's roughly one stillbirth every two months but here's the kicker mothers of stillbirth babies were fully vaccinated and you've clearly said on numerous occasions that the vaccines are safe so minister what do you say to the doctors who told them they were expecting women it was hard to get fully vaccinated and what should they tell the mothers who deliver a stillborn baby Mr. Health thank you very much for your first congratulations to you for the birth of your grandchild that is wonderful news but it is also safe it has been tested we are recommending that women who are pregnant do receive the vaccine for the protection of themselves protection of their baby as well has been proven it has been accepted by the Health Canada by the World Health Organization by the FDA and this is something that we want to make sure that we can protect everyone women who are pregnant is entirely safe and recommended for them to receive the vaccine for themselves their own protection the safety of their loved ones and the safety of the community supplementary question thank you speaker back to the minister minister look I make no apology for continuing to ask you about reputable clinical trials and exposed side effects seemingly occurring in more and more people I have been asking you in the science table as far back as when I was in caucus I often questioned the efficacy of the data even their modeling as to expected COVID cases but now we are hearing reports of yet another variant Omicron which is being brought in from South Africa don't you find it ironic that double vax people can fly and they are the carriers not the unvaxed as usual I'm certain mainstream media we'll see this as an opportunity to flip fear back into the minds of the Terrians so through you speaker my question to the minister is are you planning another lockdown to contain this variant which seems to affect it only a very few people is this going to be deja vu all over again minister of health to reply well what I would say to the member we don't know enough about the Omicron variant right now there's still much we need to learn we don't know if it actually originated in South Africa right now we don't know which countries have it but we're taking our every step possible to protect Ontarians we're working with the federal government to make sure that the borders are closed to people from seven South African countries but there may be more countries that we need to add on since the cases that have been identified in Canada and Nigeria so there's much more work that we need to be done and we'll take the steps as we need to take them Dr Moore has been very clear that we do have the plan to reopen Ontario but if there is a major concern that is prevented by presented by this variant that we'll have to reassess but we're taking every step now to do the necessary testing 375 people that have been identified as having traveled during that time period we're going to test trace isolate and quarantine as we need to for the protection of all people in Ontario next question through you to the minister of health Niagara is experiencing a crisis with EMS services members from the Niagara region emergency medical service are expressing grave concern that they are understaffed under resourced and burnt out as demand for emergency services continues to rise Joe Benarski president of the United States and an active paramedic stated patients who call 911 frequently have to wait for long durations to have a show up at their doorstep because there are no amulances available the Niagara region public health and social services committee has stated that the current situation has reached a critical state it's been reported that there are often not enough ambulances to provide emergency coverage for all of Niagara and will this government support paramedics in their work and commit today to hiring more full-time paramedics more full-time dispatchers and ensure that the people of Niagara call 911 they get the timely care that they deserve thank you to the member for question it is very important that people across the province of Ontario receive timely access to medical care through ambulance services and we really appreciate the work the paramedics have been doing we know that health human resources are stressed right now that's why we're putting more money hundreds of millions of dollars into training for more nurses registered practical nurses personal support workers and paramedics right now we have community paramedics that are working in health as well as in long-term care to make sure that seniors who are at home are going to be provided if they're waiting for a long-term care space or if they want to remain in their own home with the supports that they need around them we are providing those paramedic services and we are working to integrate that with the work that health is doing to provide the nursing and other services that people might need so the work is continuing and we will make sure that everyone including in Niagara receives the services that they need in a timely manner speaker in the last seven months nearly 350 patients in Niagara were left stranded for four to six hours due to offload delays 63 people spent more than six hours on EMS stretchers because there simply are not enough hospital beds while the people of this province are laying on stretchers this government spent nearly half a billion dollars less on health care than it originally planned the money was available this government chose not to use it the premier needs to explain to the people of Niagara why he chose not to spend on health care while our family members are stuck on EMS stretchers will the minister commit today to fix the Niagara 911 crisis thank you well I believe I answered the first part of your question my earlier response but I think it's also really important to concentrate on what the actual situation is with health care spending as we announced in the fall economic statement our government has invested an additional 5.1 billion dollars this year and allocated an additional 5.2 billion dollars next year in dedicated COVID-19 health funding the financial accountability office which is what I expect that you're referring to reports on a quarterly basis the spending differences between planned and actual spending at a point in time while the spending may not have happened in q2 the a lot of the spending is already happening now and will be reported later because the FAO's point in time figures do not necessarily reflect the overall spending plan so what I can say is that the 974 million in lower than expected spending is going to be caught up as we move towards the end of the year because of the timing when the next question member for the speaker and my question is for the Premier so families depend on their government to be ready especially right now and the premier's three temporary paid sick days are set to expire at the end of December and we know the families are going to need those paid sick days to stay home with their sick take their children to be vaccinated maybe get a booster shot themselves British Columbia and the federal government is going to be ready to get those paid sick days permanent for their workers so speaker we're not in this pandemic yet and families need to know that we have their back and it shouldn't always have to be a fight to get what they need so speaker will the premier do the right thing and make paid sick days permanent by passing bill seven today to reply the government host speaker you'll find that the federal government is going to be ready to support the proposals that were brought forward by the liberal party and by their leader was that it sought to put the burden on to our small medium and large job craters in the province at a time of course when they were having challenges because of the COVID pandemic so we went into a different direction we worked with our federal workers we went even further than that by bringing in excuse me an additional three days for our workers and these days allow our workers to get whether it's vaccinated whether they have to stay home with a loved one who has COVID there really can be used for a number of factors and we went even a step further than that we ensured that we were the first government province of Ontario to protect all workers when it came to vaccines. Thank you Mr. Speaker. If the minister read bill 7 he knows that his assertion isn't correct. In any event families also depend on us to protect them and since vaccinations for 5 to 11 year olds have started we've seen arise an anti-vax protest directed at our kids children and their families in Windsor North Bay, Ottawa and other communities have been intimidated when trying to online health care workers continue to be harassed, just for trying to do their job. And the Premier's response to this has been to do nothing, zilch. He's always looking for somebody else to take action. Ignoring this issue is a failure of leadership. And it's letting down our families and our kids and our health care workers. So Speaker, will the Premier take action today by passing Bill 2 or introducing his own legislation to create safe zones around vaccination sites to protect our kids, our families and our health care workers? Have a nice leader. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Now, of course, the member will know because he served in government for a number of years and was part of a party that governed for 15 years. Mr. Speaker, the member will know that there are already resources and tools in place to protect individuals, in particular those right now who are seeking to get vaccines and want to be safe, Mr. Speaker. But he mentions in his question that his bill has changed. Well, how surprising, colleagues, the Liberals have changed their mind on something else. They flip-flop back and forth, Mr. Speaker. Now yesterday he talked about the government taking some time to bring in sick days. I have to remind the member that he had 5,110 days to bring in paid sick days when he was a member of government. That's 5,110 days to bring in two paid sick days, Mr. Speaker. Now, we've brought in three paid sick days as part of a $1 billion program, Mr. Speaker. We didn't put the burden on small businesses like the Liberals and the NDP, frankly, wanted us to do. Instead, we ensured that our small, medium and large job creators and our essential frontline workers had access to paid sick days and that their jobs were protected, Mr. Speaker. It didn't take us 5,000 days, Mr. Speaker. It took us a lot less. And we'll conclude that question period for this morning. We now have a deferred vote on a motion for closure. On the motion for third reading of Bill 27, an act to amend various statutes with respect to employment and labour and other matters. On November 25th, 2021, Mr. McNaughton moved third reading of Bill 27. On November 29th, 2021, Mr. Cazuto moved that the question be now put. The bells will ring for 30 minutes, during which time members may cast their votes on Mr. Cazuto's motion that the question be now put. I will ask the clerks to please prepare the lobby.