 It's now time for Question Period. The Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. Thank you, my question to Premier. Premier, as we begin the week, sadly in liberal Ontario, liberal government, there are a million people that work. I recently spoke to a man in Niagara Falls who lost his job, John Deere, part of the 300,000 manufacturing jobs lost. He talked to me about the impact on his ability to pay the mortgage, to pay the bills, and very importantly, first, he started with the impact on his pride as a human being, as a dad, a provider for the family. He did get a job parking cars for $11 or $12 an hour, but he says, can't we do a lot better than this? It's because of people like that that I brought forward my plan, the Million Jobs Plan. It created a good million jobs in our province, well-paying, middle-class jobs. So, Premier, part of my plan is to lower taxes for all businesses to actually hire in the province again instead of giving out corporate giveaways to the well-connected. Isn't it time to lower taxes to create jobs and help people like this man in Niagara get a good job? Thank you. Thank you, Premier. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Well, I absolutely support the notion, and we are working very hard to make sure that we make the right investments in people, the right investments in infrastructure, and that we partner with business, Mr. Speaker, that we create those partnerships that will allow jobs to be created, Mr. Speaker. What I do not see from the leader of the opposition is any way in which driving labor down, Mr. Speaker, driving good jobs out of the province, cutting and slashing across government, and not partnering with business, Mr. Speaker, all of which are pillars of his plan. I do not see how those tactics will create jobs, Mr. Speaker. We have created a net of more than 440,000 net new jobs since 2009, Mr. Speaker. Employment last year, Mr. Speaker, we're going to continue on our plan. Thank you. I think the Premier mistakes my plan with her own. There's no doubt that Premier's plan has bankrupted our province. It's cost us 300,000 manufacturing jobs, and he put us deeper and deeper into debt. I think, Premier, if the plan is not working, isn't it time to try something bold, something new, and something as optimistic as it says in Ontario can lead again? That's my plan. That's my billion jobs act. Let me, for example, Kellogg's recently announced the closure of their plan to London. You gave Kellogg's a big corporate handout to create a small number of jobs, and in return, we're losing 6 or 700 jobs in London. Don't think that works. You now have a plan before you. I think you're taking it to cabinet to do billions more in corporate handouts. You have a question before you if we should give Chrysler $700 million, a billion. You've given handouts to Ubisoft. Question. On my point of view, instead of corporate handouts to the well-connected, why don't you lower taxes for all businesses in every sector to succeed? That should create jobs, a great contour of middle-class jobs in our province. That's a better way. So thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I think the leader of the opposition knows that taxes have been lowered in our jurisdiction, and we are competitive, Mr. Speaker. He also knows that the HST, which was a conservative policy, which we implemented, was done expressly, Mr. Speaker, for the manufacturing sector. And the manufacturing sector knows that that was an important move, Mr. Speaker. But what the leader of the opposition is talking about, Mr. Speaker, is he's talking about walking away from the people who are working in plants, in Oshawa, in Oakville, in Brampton, in Woodstock, and in Windsor, Mr. Speaker. He's talking about reversing a policy in this province to work with and support the auto sector that has been in place for decades, Mr. Speaker. I do not believe that he has fought through this policy, Mr. Speaker, because to abandon the auto sector and the auto parts sector in Ontario would lose hundreds of thousands of jobs, Mr. Speaker. I'd appreciate, while I'm standing, I'd appreciate the attention given to me by the minister of the environment along with those that want to shout down somebody. So let's cool it. Final supplementary, please. Premier, you've created a province of Ontario with higher taxes, unaffordable energy rates, more and more red tape. That means the only way for business to open up in Ontario is you have to bribe them with hundreds of millions of taxpayers' subsidies. That's basically what it is. And I think you should start saying no to the corporate extortion that you've got yourself into. I think it's better to lower taxes for all business and succeed to get affordable hydro in the province of Ontario again. Get the heavy hand of government off their backs so they can succeed. Now, it's just not me saying that. Your own economist, Don Drummond, said that your corporate welfare policies were not working. He said we should get out of that business, Premier. And I agree. Let's actually create an environment, whether you're in the auto sector, whether you're in agriculture business, whether you're in financial services, whether you're in the cities in the province of Ontario. I want to see them all invest in creative jobs. My question is, why don't you? Premier? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Well, what I would say is why does the leader of the opposition not understand that partnering with business and supporting business and particularly, Mr. Speaker, in this case we're talking about the auto sector that partnership is decades old, Mr. Speaker. The naivete associated with the leader of the opposition's position is quite stunning, Mr. Speaker. And I, you know, I go back to 1996-97 when there was $746 million put into a businesses in the province, Mr. Speaker, during the Harris years. 1997-98 $425 million $98.99 $360 million $99.2414 million $2201 $717 million Apparently the leader of the opposition and his colleagues used to understand that it was important in order for us to compete globally that we work with business, Mr. Speaker, that we put those supports in place. Apparently he's lost the thread. Any question? Back to the premier. I was there. I was car to cabinet and what did we do? We lowered taxes. We had affordable energy raised. We got off the back of business. And the results, the results we created an environment for 1.1 million new economic era that's chasing jobs in the province. The biggest area of subsidies from the McGinty-Winn Liberals is the unaffordable handouts to wind and solar projects that the full tune is some $46 billion premium. You thought you'd build an industry where everybody could work at a wind farm or at a solar panel factory. We've actually lost jobs for every short-term job we create with those four in the broader economy. It isn't $46 billion an awful expensive price tag to actually cause jobs to feed the province of Ontario. Just send that program, I would. Can you see the face? You tricked me there. Premier. Minister of Energy. Mr. Speaker, I'm sure the leader of the opposition supports a healthy community. There's nothing more important to our party than the health of our citizens. Health has always been our top priority. The clean energy is helping to replace and has in fact replaced dirty coal. Mr. Speaker, that represents of $4.4 billion in environmental and healthcare costs. Mr. Speaker, we had to build a surplus of energy in this province. We did it by also eliminating dirty coal and we have built a safer, healthier community as a result of that. And Mr. Speaker, we're now represents less than 4% of our generation in the province of Ontario. And Mr. Speaker, less than 4% is not a doomsday scenario that that leader of the opposition is claiming, Mr. Speaker. He's exaggerating and he's not telling the truth. Withdraw. Withdraw, Mr. Speaker. I... I'd like to get to the next question. Supplementary. Thank you. Speaker back to the premier. One thing too, premier, I don't know if you ever notice. It seems like hardly ever these grants go to Ontario companies. They're almost always international companies. Maybe it's because you want to cut a very expensive ribbon. So, for example, the biggest area of subsidy has been Samsung. Samsung, the Korean based on they become incredibly rich. Now, you would never give money to a competitor of Blackberry, right? You would never tell the people of Kitchen or Waterloo, Cambridge that you would give about hundreds of millions of dollars to the big competitor, Samsung. But that's precisely what you've done. I don't know how you can reconcile this to taxpayers to say you're taking money out of their pockets. They're taking money out of businesses or higher hydro rates to hand it over to an international competitor. Clearly, this is a policy that we can't afford. It's costing us jobs and investments outside the country and we're hurting our own company. So, Premier, why don't you abandon this misguided expensive policy and support my million jobs plan to put people back to work in our big economy. Thank you. Minister of Energy. Minister of Economic Development Trade and Appointment. I can't believe what I'm hearing because a lot of our support goes to those great Ontario based small medium and large size businesses. Just last Friday, I was in Cambridge and I provided a support through the Southwestern Ontario Development Fund for a great Ontario company, Cambridge Tows, that I know the people that are aware of that company understand just how important it is we continue to support that made in Ontario. Member from the PN Carleton will come to order. Which manufactures containers for our agricultural industry right across this country, provided support as well on Friday through the Southwestern Ontario Development Fund. Frankly, Mr. Speaker, I understand if the member opposite, if the leader sees the importance of those made in Ontario investments, it's because his party and he didn't support the Southwestern Ontario Development Fund. The last year and a half has created and retained more than 24,000 jobs, Mr. Speaker. Final supplementary. One of the games, Speaker, my daughter I think learned in school is hot potato. Looks like they played a bit of hot potato over there. Everybody is trying to answer the question. Except the premier. The reason it's a hot potato is because it's bad economic policy. Energy act subsidies don't make any sense and the jury is in premier. It's costing us jobs. There is a better way to stop the subsidies and get affordable hydro for all. Also, you're forcing these projects into communities that don't want them. You're not even enforcing your own rules. For example, in West Lincoln, the Niagara Regional Wind Corporation and HAF Wind Energy, those projects are in a state of chaos. Five turbines have been built as part of that wind project, but three of them don't even meet in setbacks. They're effectively breaking the law. It seems to me if somebody breaks the law then you take out the turbines and make sure you follow the laws in the province of Ontario. That makes sense. But here's the bottom line. It costs us jobs. It divides communities. You're not even enforcing your own laws. Why don't you get rid of this misguided, outdated policy and support my plan? It'll bring good jobs back and help John Deere employer work in the province of Ontario. Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker. Again, I just don't understand where the member opposite is coming from with this million job loss plan. Quite frankly, and we already know, Mr. Speaker, that he's going to, if he gets into power his party is going to cut 10,000 jobs among education workers, thousands more in the healthcare sector. He's already indicated he didn't support the Cisco investment which is bringing 100 jobs to this province. We already know that he didn't support the auto sector in 2009. Frankly, if the party opposite had had their way, we wouldn't have an auto sector, Mr. Speaker. The member from Northumberland, the member from here in Bruce, the member from Simcoe Gray will come to order. Finish, please. And Mr. Speaker, I know these are challenging times across the province, particularly in the Niagara region. I acknowledge that. But that's why the Southwestern Ontario Development Fund, Niagara Piston and Beansville, as well as Indexable Cutting Tours and Wellands. And I was at the opening of original foods in Dunville and the Niagara region as well. More than 100 jobs created there, Mr. Speaker. Importantly, in a community that really needed that help because of previous closures. Thank you. Question, leader of the third party. Speaker, my questions for the Premier. Over this winter, the Premier had numerous opportunities to visit Niagara. How would she describe the state of unemployment in that region, Speaker? Premier. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I know that, first of all, I want to welcome the new member for Niagara Falls. Welcome to the House. Have opportunities to visit Niagara Falls before the by-election was announced, Mr. Speaker. And after, and Mr. Speaker, I know that there is a lot of work to be done in that community and in other communities across the province, which is why, Mr. Speaker, a six-point plan, which is why we know that investing in infrastructure, I heard about infrastructure investment and the need for infrastructure investment in Niagara Falls, Mr. Speaker, whether it's a hospital or whether it is transit, Mr. Speaker, making sure that we have the right go transit, the right municipal transit, Mr. Speaker, those kinds of initiatives and those kinds of investments are very, very important. And that's why infrastructure investment is very much a pillar of our economic plan. So we will continue to work with Niagara Falls. We will continue to work with communities across the province to make sure that those supports are in place. Speaker, what we heard from families was that they're feeling the squeeze and they're worried about jobs. There were over 100 families who relied on a paycheck from Vertus who are wondering how they're going to pay the bills now that the plant in Fort Erie has closed its doors. 90 people from Redpath in Niagara Falls are going to see an end to their paychecks in May Speaker. Will the premier tell those people that she thinks her six-point jobs plan is actually working? Well, Mr. Speaker, what I can tell the leader of the third party is that there are situations where companies have made changes and there have been job losses and there are also situations where jobs are being created, Mr. Speaker. Just on Friday, I believe the Minister of Children Youth Services made an announcement in Windsor, an investment in Thomas Canning, Mr. Speaker, $3 million of 40 new jobs in a food processing plant, Mr. Speaker. There are those kinds of investments and the companies that the Minister of Economic Development Trade was talking about, Mr. Speaker, that are Ontario companies. They're small and medium enterprises, Mr. Speaker. They are the kinds of businesses that we know need support in order to be able to invest, to be able to expand and create jobs. That's what we're doing, Mr. Speaker. That's the work that we're doing and we are seeing those jobs stay and come to Ontario and there's more work to be done, Mr. Speaker. Well, Mr. Speaker, for the years the Liberals have insisted that corporate tax giveaways, the HST and private power schemes would bring prosperity to Ontario and they promised 600,000 new jobs. Can the Premier produce any evidence of those 600,000 jobs, Mr. Speaker? Well, Mr. Speaker, more than 400,000 of them since 2009 have been created, Mr. Speaker. The leader of the third party is supportive, for example, of our wine strategy, Mr. Speaker. $75 million over five years to make sure that the wine strategy in the very region that she's talking about is able to continue that industry that has grown up over the last 30 years, that it is described, Mr. Speaker. I did hear her endorsement when we made the announcement, but I can tell you that the wine and the grape growers, Mr. Speaker, were very supportive and they wanted to hear that announcement. They wanted to know that we were going to continue those supports in that investment. So I hope that the leader of the third party understands that that's a critical part of that regional economy and deserves the support of all parties in this House, Mr. Speaker. But I will say I'm glad the Premier had time to read the NDP platform from 2011. Premier's no strings attached corporate tax giveaways and loopholes are not creating jobs, Speaker, and people are falling further and further behind. Families in Niagara not only see that, but they feel it. They see Ontario's unemployment is above the national average and Niagara's unemployment is the highest in the entire province. So I'm glad the Premier ready to admit that the status quo simply isn't good enough for the families in Niagara or in fact anywhere across Ontario. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I'm never satisfied with the status quo and in fact we had a wine strategy in place in 2011 so it's excellent that the leader of the third party put that into her platform. It would be interesting to know, Mr. Speaker, what the leader of the third party would put into a platform today is that we haven't seen support on retirement security, Mr. Speaker. We haven't seen support for the Ford Erie plan. We haven't seen support for the wine and grape strategy that we've put in place, Mr. Speaker. We haven't seen support for increased investment in transit, Mr. Speaker. So I am very, very, very impatient, Mr. Speaker, which is why we have been moving on every one of those fronts and we will continue. Will? The Premier needs not worry, Mr. Speaker. Feeling the squeeze though, it's not just that liberal policies aren't doing the job when it comes to job creation. It's the government at Queen's Park seems to be going out of their way to make things even worse. That's certainly the story for the residents of Ford Erie who are fighting to keep jobs alive after the government's short-sighted attempt to kill the Slots at Race Traps partnership is the answer. So Mr. Speaker, as the leader of the third party knows, the Slots at Race Traps program was not a transparent program. It was not accountable, Mr. Speaker. It was not a program that could be supported or should, quite frankly, have been supported by any party in this house, Mr. Speaker. We have put in place a plan that over the next five years will allow the industry to restructure, Mr. Speaker. What we're looking for right now, the leader of the third party knows that we have been working with Ford Erie for months long before there were any questions in this house about the race track industry, about the horse racing industry. There was not a question in this house. We were already working with Ford Erie. We have an arrangement, Mr. Speaker. There will be a 2014 season at Ford Erie and Mr. Speaker, for Niagara region families worried about jobs. The plan they've seen from this government isn't very impressive at all. Instead of smart tax measures that reward job creators, the Liberals are opening up new tax loopholes and giveaways for companies to shift jobs away. Instead of providing affordable, accountable electricity so businesses can compete, the government blows a billion dollars a year to subsidize cheap electricity to protect local jobs, the Liberals went out of their way to kill the slots at race tracks partnership. Will the Premier agree that the Liberal plan isn't working for communities like Niagara and admit that it's time for real change in this province? So Mr. Speaker, I just want to, I want to talk about some of the major investments that have been made in the region, apart from the $75 million investment in the wine and grape strategy Mr. Speaker. SciTech Canada, a grant of $2 million and a loan of $8 million was provided through the strategic jobs and investment fund and that supports a total investment of $125 million to expand its Niagara Falls facility and that project will create 30 new jobs and retain $105 in Niagara Falls Mr. Speaker. Rich products of Canada Limited, Fort Erie we announced a $3.9 million advanced manufacturing investment strategy loaned to rich products to support a total investment of $13 million to protect, will create 5 jobs and retain 43 jobs Mr. Speaker. So the reality is that as we make these investments as we develop these partnerships there are commitments Mr. Speaker there are commitments to retention of jobs there are commitments to the creation of new jobs. That's the kind of partnership that works for the people of the region and the people of the province Mr. Speaker. Thank you. New question? Remember from Burlington. She was for the Premier. Premier in 1998 Honda opened a new plant in Alastair without a government payoff but in 2014 Ontario can't compete without massive handouts your government spent an estimated $3 billion a year in corporate subsidies but nine figure loot bags won't fix the problems with Ontario's economy. Job killing red tape, sky high high door rates, taxes, taxes Ontario's manufacturing sector has lost 300,000 jobs on your liberal watch. Trying to subsidize those jobs back would cost taxpayers tens of billions of dollars Wouldn't it be cheaper to get the provinces fundamentals right? See you later please. Thank you. Premier. Mr. Speaker I'm developing trade and employment. Minister. Thank you Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker I'm very proud that Ontario remains the number one destination in all of North America for foreign direct investment and Mr. Speaker 90% of the time when businesses choose to come here to Ontario they do that without any government support whatsoever. They have a great investment climate we have a tax rate which is lower than most of the U.S. states we have a quality of the workforce which is second to none quite frankly Mr. Speaker we have a great healthcare system many reasons why businesses would choose to come here and that's partly why Mr. Speaker we've added 25,000 manufacturing jobs since the recession we've added 12,500 jobs the auto sector alone direct jobs and I know the member opposite doesn't support the auto sector and if she had her way she would eliminate the auto sector from Ontario we're not prepared to do that Mr. Speaker we support it. The measures are important and we're actually succeeding that doesn't mean that there's not much more work to do we're constantly looking at ways to increase those investments and create them. Back to the premier your way to prosperity your government should be creating a level playing field for all businesses GM and Toyota have both said that it is the most expensive place in the world to build a car. The solution isn't to pay those countries to be your friend it is to make our economy competitive paying out huge incentives while ignoring fundamental problems is like getting a new pay job to fix the broken transmission University of Calgary professor Jack Mint says Tim Hudex the million drawback is the kick start to Ontario's economy needs will you support him? Okay stop stirring it the member from Cambridge come to order and the member from Renfrew Premier Mr. Speaker I know that there are many people in that member's party that support the right to work legislation that will gut labour across this province we're not prepared to do that frankly I believe that the leader the opposition still believes in that principle Mr. Speaker and I challenge the member opposite to go down to Windsor and tell the 4600 people that are working at that Chrysler assembly plant that in two years time they won't have their jobs if the conservatives get to power and I challenge that member opposite as well to go to the Ford plant in Oakville and meet with many of her own constituents from Burlington Mr. Speaker and tell them that she did not support the Ontario government's investment in Ford last September where her federal cousins the federal PC party came forward with Ontario equal measure to support those jobs retaining those jobs in the future I know she didn't support the Cisco proposal to create 3700 jobs in this province I know she doesn't support Chrysler New question member from Niagara Falls Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the Premier Niagara has the highest unemployment in Ontario for some people it's just a number I've met those people I met with them in the coffee shop talk with them on the phone talk with them in the living room and now I'm standing up here for them at Queens Park they're worried about their jobs they're worried about their jobs for their kids and their grandkids these are real people facing real challenges does the Premier think that her jobs plan is working for the people across Niagara across Niagara Falls riding who are wondering question oh I'm sorry yes in fairness to the member and all new members that will be coming when I say that you have about 10 seconds to wrap up just so that you know from here on to Mr. Speaker and again I welcome the member and I know that he is an advocate for his community Mr. Speaker our job is to advocate for all of the people across the province Mr. Speaker and to make sure that region by region and community by community we put the right conditions in place which is why we've made those investments in Niagara Falls and the Niagara region that I spoke about earlier whether it's the wine and grape strategy in order to be able to compete whether it's the investment in the hospital or the support for the race track Mr. Speaker that will allow those people who I many of whom I have met Mr. Speaker who need those jobs and need to make sure that there is a strategy I hope that the member is able to work with his caucus and to understand that support for those businesses is absolutely critical that's how we put that in place and also Mr. Speaker for policies like the minimum wage increase and like retirement security are things that we have to work together on Mr. Speaker There are young people across Niagara Falls riding who are wondering if they'll be able to stay in their hometown because to stay they need the kind of good jobs that will let them raise their own families they want to be able to live work and raise their families in Niagara I'm going to stand up for their jobs is a premier ready to admit that the status quo isn't working and it's time for a plan that rewards job creators cut small business taxes and get people in Niagara and across Ontario working again Thank you Mr. Speaker and Mr. Speaker I also want to congratulate the member opposite for his election win and representing that important riding here in the legislature we mentioned youth specifically Mr. Speaker because apart from the fact that just last month or sorry in January the province created 7,800 youth jobs alone for youth between the ages of 15 and 25 that youth unemployment rate is gradually coming down it is unacceptably unacceptably high but that's part of the reason why we've created our youth jobs initiative 295 million dollar investment over two years which includes importantly Mr. Speaker our youth jobs funded ministered by my colleague behind me the minister of training colleges and universities and just the latest information on that youth employment fund which are new hires in businesses across the province as of February 21st 7,934 young people have received placements and jobs because of that program Mr. Speaker Thank you, new question the member from Ottawa Orleans Thank you Speaker and my question is for the minister of health and long term care and stroke foundation and Canadian cancer society are joining us in the house today I met with four of them this morning every seven minutes in Canada someone dies from heart disease or stroke many of these deaths are preventable and the risk factors are well understood and smoking is one of these risks and kids are especially vulnerable to its harms there is bill before the house now the youth smoking prevention act which would help to protect children from harmful tobacco smoke I would like to ask the minister through you Speaker how important it is that this proposed legislation be passed swiftly Thank you, minister of health and long term care Thank you Speaker and thank you for the member from Ottawa Orleans who is a huge champion of these issues in fact it's the McNeely amendment to the smoke free Ontario act that banned power walls Speaker I too welcome and thank the representatives from heart and stroke and Canadian cancer for their life saving work Speaker the reality is that smoking kills 36 people in Ontario each and every day that's why it's so important to quickly pass bill 131 I believe we have all party support for that I was pleased that the leader of the opposition has written a letter supporting the youth smoking prevention act and last week the member from nickel belt indicated she'd like to see this bill move quickly unfortunately bill 131 has been installed in this legislature we would like to see it move it more quickly and we're calling on all parties to quickly move this bill through the legislature Thank you minister Speaker I'm pleased to see our government is placing such a high priority on protecting kids from tobacco smoke I hope that the opposition will work with us to send the bill to committee very soon but smoking isn't the only way to lead to heart disease and stroke healthy eating is important in maintaining a healthy heart and a good eating habits start young our government has taken steps as always looking at other initiatives to keeping Ontarians especially children healthy speaker can the minister tell us what our government is doing to help ensure our children are eating nutritious food Thank you speaker and thanks again to the member from Ottawa Orleans speaker we know that healthy kids grew up to be healthy adults that's why we created the healthy kids panel and we've taken strong action to implement many of its recommendations we've announced an expansion of the student nutrition program we've enhanced support for breastfeeding moms and we started the healthy kids community challenge last October we committed to introducing legislation that would require the posting of calories in large chain restaurants after consultation with health leaders food service industry and above all parents I believe this is something all three parties can support I certainly know that the member from nico belt has advocated menu labeling herself as with bill 131 I'm reaching across the aisle to ask the third party to stop stalling important bills I'm moving to the house and then when this bill is introduced let's get it passed your question the member from the key in Parliament thanks very much speaker the question is to the premier the green energy act has cost this province billions of dollars dollars for energy we don't need a price we simply can't afford premier the government promised at the time 50,000 new jobs in term for massive four billion dollar annual subsidies to wind and solar you stripped away locally based decision making the jobs never materialized but skyrocketing hydro rates the general went so far as to say that for every job created by the green energy act four we're lost here in Ontario your own liberal long-term energy plan says that you will subsidize this policy with 42% increases in our hydro rates the cause and effect are proven and it's time to move on from this policy question today we'll have people from rural Ontario here marching to ask you to listen to them to stop the green energy and then will you rip up the green energy please please thank you the member from Durham the member from Durham will come to order and as I get quiet I want quiet premier minister of energy I thank the critic for the question Mr. Speaker you know there were some anti-wind demonstrators outside the legislature Mr. Speaker they were mothers for I think that the name or similar name and I met with them several months ago Mr. Speaker and I certainly appreciate their commitment and their concern as I indicated earlier Mr. Speaker green energy has replaced dirty coal dirty coal Mr. Speaker dirty coal Mr. Speaker was causing 4.4 billion dollars cost and environmental cost Mr. Speaker on the other hand their position on the other side is very confusing first of all the leader of the opposition said he will cancel wind contracts then he said he would not cancel wind contracts now Mr. Speaker that caucus over there is telling maybe they will cancel wind contracts supplementary Mr. Speaker replacing dirty coal is nuclear it's gas it's hydroelectric not expensive wind turbines at the expense of freedom in the rural areas of this province your green energy act is bankrupting this province it is costing us to lose jobs the world trade organization agrees they say it's a dud you are the only jurisdiction in all of Canada the first province to break international law in the history of our nation I haven't even gotten to the environmental and health effects of what's happening to birds what's happening to turtles and what's happening to humans there is no due process for municipalities and your environmental review tribunal has become a sham and it's disgraceful Health Canada and Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Energy are studying I'm asking the premier if she won't scrap the green energy act today will she at least signal to Ontario that doesn't want these wind turbines they don't have to put up they still have a moratorium please please thank you minister of energy and the number from Derm is using this as an opportunity every time and I'm going to ask him stop doing that carry on Mr. Speaker the green energy act has created over 31,000 jobs in Ontario Mr. Speaker several weeks ago I met with senior officials from Siemens and we discussed a number of issues including job creation they indicated that their Tilsenberg plant Mr. Speaker for wind turbines is continuing to create more jobs than originally estimated probably in the order of 200 jobs Mr. Speaker I visited Celestica in Don Valley last week Mr. Speaker and they're planning on doing expansion in clean energy Mr. Speaker the jobs are continuing to be created we haven't compiled them all Mr. Speaker because they're happening across the province and I hear example after example after example Mr. Speaker of new jobs being created in clean energy and Mr. Speaker we have people coming out of our community colleges who are well versed in clean energy and they're going to clean cleaner Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker again to the premier the construction of the promised new Niagara Falls hospital can be an important source of local jobs at a time when families in Niagara are facing the highest unemployment rate in the province what guarantees can this government give to the people and companies in the Niagara region that the construction of the new Niagara Falls hospital will hire local and by local citizens thank you very much Mr. Speaker and I know the minister of health will want to speak to this great project but I wanted to say that we were very pleased to be able to announce $26 million for a planning grant for the new hospital in Niagara Falls a firm commitment that we are going ahead with that Mr. Speaker we're following through on Dr. Kevin Smith's expert advice Mr. Speaker it was very clear actually during the the past few weeks that it was not necessarily the position of the NDP to build that hospital Mr. Speaker there was a real lack of commitment and it wasn't clear whether the hospital would be built in Welland or somewhere else or all the other services would be kept in place and the hospital would be built in Niagara Falls which would be a particularly irresponsible position so I'm very very pleased that we are committed to better health care in Niagara Falls we're committed to building the hospital Mr. Speaker and we're following through on that commitment supplementary Premier jobs are the most important issue for the families in Niagara when it comes to building large infrastructure projects this government should be looking to create as many local jobs and opportunity for workers engineers, architects contractors to shore up the local economy in Niagara what is this government doing to make sure that the promise new Niagara Falls hospital construction will provide as much needed local jobs by hiring locally stimulating local businesses and by purchasing locally made products thank you Mr. Health and Long-Term Care Well Speaker I am delighted that we finally have some clarity about where the NDP stands when it comes to the construction of a new hospital in Niagara Falls Speaker I congratulate the new member he's having an impact already and I look for further clarity on NDP positions on say minimum wage coming from the newest member of that caucus speaker so I am delighted that we have moved forward to the planning grant for the new hospital in south Niagara I know that will benefit the constituents of the member from Niagara Falls and the members of the whole Niagara region this is an important step forward to improve the quality of care and I really do urge the member opposite to vote for bill 141 which will support local employment thank you Speaker Question to the member from Scarborough Aging Court Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the Minister of Labor Minister as a father you know how tough it's been balancing work life looking after your children and working support your aging parents that's why I am proud to support bill 21 the Leaves to Help Families Act which seek to provide Ontarians with three parties to support the family. Having worked as a nurse I feel strongly about this bill and its intent to ease the stress on everyday lives of Ontarians. In my writing of Scarborough Aging Court the residents slowly support this bill and I brought 12 petition to the House on this particular bill however it is frustrating Mr. Speaker to see that all three parties have worked together in committees to improve the bills is now stalled by the third reading debate. We can easily process bill by now to help so Mr. Speaker through you to the Minister what kind of reaction to the Ministry regarding this delay in terms of bill 21. Thank you Minister Laverton. Thank you very much Speaker I want to thank the member from Scarborough Aging Court for her relentless advocacy in regards to bill 21 to ensure that we have family caregiver provided for in our province. Speaker we have heard from sole caregivers on the importance of this very important bill and we have heard frustration from many stakeholders that they came to watch third reading debate that this bill was being bogged down in unnecessary debate in this House Speaker. Speaker I am talking about the caregiver coalition which is composed of the MS Society the Alzheimer's Society, the Parkinson's Society, the ALS Society the representatives of Speaker from the Heart and Stroke Foundation and the Canadian Cancer Society all members to expedite the debate on this very important bill and to pass this bill into law so that we can give the much necessary break that our families deserve for looking after for their loving caregiver so I urge and implore all the members of this House special opposition speaker to vote in support of that bill. Thank you supplementary. Thank you Mr. Speaker and thank the Minister for the response. I must admit that there is a frustration in terms of hearing the debate about the third reading debate. When we start a third reading debate Mr. Speaker members of opposition continues filibuster and stalling tactics and going rear of different speaking points and recycling speaking points Mr. Speaker and roundling on different topics on the should not relate to the bill 21 this bill should have been passed like any other many of the legitimate bills that are before the House Mr. Speaker yet the opposition continue want to make change so Mr. Speaker through you to the minister can you please explain some of the final points of this bill that we have may have missed thank you thank you Speaker and thanks to the member again Speaker this bill is first and foremost about compassion compassion that we owe to our loved ones and of course the families the caregivers who look after them in time of need today's speaker I'm asking the opposition to think about the Ontario's that are struggling with family responsibilities when deciding whether or not to stall this bill any further I'm asking the opposition Speaker to acknowledge the support of the Heart and Stroke Foundation and the Canadian Cancer Society and the countless others that have put their support behind this bill the same bill they are keeping from becoming law Speaker it is absolutely clear this is not a partisan issue the content of the bill are not the value of our society where we look after our families we look after each other to make sure that caregivers have the necessary job protection that they need to look after their loved ones let's pass this bill into law so that our families have the necessary supports they need at home to look after their loved ones Speaker Thank you My question is on Ontario are gathering on the front lawn today to bring yet another message your team has failed and the rubber is finally hitting the road as electricity bills are skyrocketing for all Ontarians urban and rule no matter which way they spell it it's a no win situation your government turns his back on proponents when they break the rules you take municipalities trying to stand up for their constituents to court you tell government employees who try to do the right thing to stand down you ignore the facts determined by the State of Ontario University of Waterloo Health Study and here's the kicker your government actually appealed itself when an ERT did the right thing and said no to a proponent Premier will you do the right thing stand up have the confidence today personally go out and address the group that are outside admit to your correct mistakes and help them Thank you very much Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker that I have met with folks who have strong opinions about wind energy across this province Mr. Speaker repeatedly in community after community and Mr. Speaker I know that the member opposite doesn't want to talk about the fact that cleaning up the air is at the root of this Mr. Speaker I know that the member opposite doesn't want to talk about the reality of 31,000 jobs that have been created Mr. Speaker I think that the member opposite should acknowledge that when I came into this office I said we were going to change the rules about citing these energy infrastructure Mr. Speaker we've done that Mr. Speaker and we've worked with municipalities The member from Renfrew the member from Prince Edward Hastings and the member from Northumberland and the member from here on Bruce who asked the question come to order Here he is Good on that commitment Mr. Speaker these pieces of energy infrastructure are cited and we will continue to work with municipalities on that project Mr. Speaker Thank you The member from Eleverton Thank you Mr. Speaker and I would like the Premier to answer my supplementary My constituents and others are currently appealing now over the 50 story industrial wind turbines planned on the Oak Ridge's moraine The moraine is ecologically important because it provides clean safe drinking water to over 20 million people It's been protected since 2002 The community has spoken out against these wind turbines 2,874 people commented on the EBR posting The Buddhist Association of Canada opposes the project The Curve Lake First Nation insists further consultation take place Many constituents in my writing have traveled to Queens Park today yet again to protest Premier you've turned your back on the moraine and your supposed consultation process Will you immediately call our Tourium on the wind turbines Thank you Premier Mr. Speaker I addressed the issue a little bit earlier Mr. Speaker The reality is the leader of the opposition has said he will not cancel existing wind contracts They're talking about an existing wind contract Mr. Speaker What is your policy? Are you going to cancel it? Are you going to expose the province to more liability? Mr. Speaker The group that is outside this legislature Mr. Speaker There are mothers who are concerned about health Mr. Speaker I want to repeat the point by eliminating dirty coal The health impacts of getting out of dirty coal 4.4 billion dollars per year Mr. Speaker 928 fewer hospital admissions per year Mr. Speaker 1100 fewer emergency room visits per year Mr. Speaker 333,000 minor illnesses such as headaches coughing and other respiratory symptoms avoidance Mr. Speaker That's why we're in renewable energy Mr. Speaker Thank you My question to the Premier When this government pulled slot machines across Ontario the hard working families that depend on the racing industry felt like they had the carpet ripped out from underneath them Now the Premier has been doling out short-term funding when the timing suits them which in the case of Fort Erie happened to just come in time for the by-election during the by-election Families in Fort Erie can't plan a future based on one year funding Will the Premier commit today to a long-term partnership with the Fort Erie race track to a future that they can look forward to Thank you very much Mr. Speaker And I know that the member opposite is fully aware that Elmer Buchanan and John Snowblen and John Wilkinson formed a panel Mr. Speaker and worked on a five-year plan Mr. Speaker in which we're investing $400 million So we are putting in place a long-term plan Mr. Speaker We want that kind of sustainability and the snide remark that the timing of the Fort Erie contract deal was coincided with the by-election Mr. Speaker Again the member opposite knows full well that we were working for months before there was even a by-election called to make sure that every race track in this province had the opportunity for a sustainable future That's the work that we've been doing We will continue to do that Mr. Speaker I made a commitment to put the horse racing industry back on track Mr. Speaker Well it's interesting Speaker that the announcement actually came on the liberal for trailing in the polls So Speaker Any business would tell you that long-term planning is crucial and since the slots were pulled from the Fort Erie race track families who depend on a track had no way to plan for the future short-term funding, vague promises of a five-year plan that may one day be released They had to march in the streets and march here at Queens Park for months before the Premier would listen One-time funding and vague promises are not a plan for the families who live in Fort Erie Well the Premier reinstates the slot at the race track partnerships that horse racing can continue in Fort Erie and sustain over a thousand jobs locally Mr. Speaker We're not going to reinstate a plan that was unaccountable that was not transparent in the long-term industry Mr. Speaker We're not going to do that and we've been working on putting a better plan in place and that is what we have done $400 million over the next five years and Mr. Speaker the NDP was crying for a season for Fort Erie in 2014 Mr. Speaker They were screaming from the rooftops that that's what they wanted when they finally got to the issue which was long after we had already started working on it Mr. Speaker So the plan is in place we're going to continue to work with Fort Erie the people of Fort Erie who work at the race track know I have met with many of them Mr. Speaker they know that I am committed to making sure we do everything possible but there will be a business plan Mr. Speaker there will be a transparent exchange of dollars as part of that plan and that is why we are going to continue to work with it Mr. Speaker Thank you Mr. Speaker My question is for the Minister of Energy in days past the electricity system in Ontario could be described as a bunch of wires attached to wooden poles powered by a generator and turned on by the flick of a switch and while I know our electricity system has been modernized with the advent of smart meters and smart grids to some today the system appears the same Mr. Speaker could the Minister tell us how these new technologies are changing how we interact to use our electricity system Minister of Energy I thank the member for the question Mr. Speaker several weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit Barry and the new IBM state of the world data center in Barry Mr. Speaker they are analyzing information from smart meters and other information in order to create a more efficient energy sector and not only that Mr. Speaker that is another example of clean energy creating jobs in Ontario in fact Mr. Speaker smart meters are modernizing our outdated inefficient energy system they help Ontarians conserve energy and save money 2006 conservation and our smart grid have saved our energy system over four billion dollars in avoided costs smart meters help us conserve and allow local distribution companies to quickly determine when systems arise when system issues arise and avoid them as quickly as possible Mr. Speaker the smart grid the home of smart grid in North America is Ontario Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker through you I want to thank the Minister for his response I believe my colleagues will agree with me that we need to continue to do more to promote conservation in Ontario I know this is important to the people in my riding of Scarborough Guildwood Speaker I understand that smart meters allows us to control our energy usage during peak times to help save money and conserve power I've also heard that during the recent ice storm local distribution companies like Toronto Hydro used smart meter data to assist with restoration efforts Mr. Speaker can the minister please tell us if the ministry has any programs to leverage this new smart grid technology or if there is any way that I can access this information Minister Mr. Speaker there is a lot of excitement in Ontario over smart grid and new technology in the energy sector Mr. Speaker a few months ago in partnership with Mars Discovery District we launched the energy apps for Ontario challenge this challenge is a great example of people using their ingenuity and creativity to create new tools that can inform the public these apps will help Ontario households and businesses manage and better understand their electricity use so they can make informed decisions and save money using the smart grid data energy apps for Ontario will empower consumers by providing easier access to their own electricity data and allowing them to securely share their data with mobile and web based apps they can actually Mr. Speaker get all of that data from their meter and use that to help create apps for themselves new tools to conserve energy Mr. Speaker thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the minister training college universities Minister a critically important part of your mandate is to uphold and enhance the skilled trades in this province your exercise of this responsibility is vitally important to all the fine hard working men and women in the trades today whether they are compulsory or mandatory trades while we practice politics in this place I know they would not want the practice of your work being done by the Ontario College of Trades as such will you commit today to halt any compulsory certification review before the Ontario College of Trades until after the next election thank you what a political question for somebody who just said we shouldn't be playing politics with the college of trades Mr. Speaker what I will say is this we're very proud of the work that we're doing both as a government to promote the skilled trades across this province Mr. Speaker we have our youth apprenticeship fund which is doing some great work in our high schools to encourage young people to get into the skilled trades which is so so important and Mr. Speaker as we work with the federal government we're working at ways to do even more to encourage young people to take on apprenticeships we've doubled the number of apprenticeships in this province in the last 10 years we're proud of that but Mr. Speaker there's more work to do Mr. Speaker building a stable environment for the skilled trades across this province building an environment where those skilled trade workers themselves have a say in those future decisions is the direction we're going as opposed to making these decisions in smoky opening room back rooms okay so you didn't answer the question to begin with okay so one of the greatest powers the Ontario College of Trades has is to change a trade to compulsory one and minister the ramifications of such a change cannot be exaggerated should any trade be changed into a compulsory one the process needs to be perfect so I trust the minister could appreciate that the politics of a provincial election campaign no question about it and I trust the minister can also recognize that given your party is likely to be supported with hard dollars from the very organization seeking compulsory certification the election is no time to do that and I can tell you minister if you compulsory certify a trade like carpentry and let these guys do it down there right now you can you can cripple the construction industry in the province of Ontario so I'll ask you again will the minister stand in his place today and commit to any compulsory certification review should we go into an election and it's very important minister this is an important question I don't want you to dance around this yes or no it'd be fine okay no Mr. Speaker the fact is that the member asked the exact same questions where we're going through the ratio reviews concerned about process ahead of time concerned they were going to get it right and Mr. Speaker they did get it right because they reduced ratios 20 times more Mr. Speaker than any other party did over the course of time that they were in office including our own that's a pretty good accomplishment the process went very well now when they undertake the process for compulsory reviews Mr. Speaker they'll do that but the difference between us and them is it will not be a political decision it will not be a political decision made in the back rooms of the Albany club it'll be a decision made transparently by the college of trades by trades people themselves so politicians like yourself who want to get involved in these decisions will not have a role to play in those decisions because they'll get it a lot better than politicians from any party thank you the Liberals have told Ontarians over and over that they're going to deliver full day two way go service on all corridors but Speaker they're nowhere near delivering on that commitment families and businesses in the Niagara region have been clear they need the service they don't need higher taxes and fees the people of Niagara Falls riding could see that the Liberals haven't delivered on their promise and so they chose to elect a strong new democrat to get results for families and small businesses in our area the 12 mayors and the regional chair have also issued a joint statement to the province to tell them to get moving by 2015 on all day go service to the Niagara area my question to the premier when we listen to the people of Niagara while in St. Catharines and commit to a date delivering go service in the Niagara region thank you thanks Mr. Speaker clearly the member from Welland has a sense of humor which is good to know half hour all day go service runs on the Lakeshore line we are taking over from the party's opposite that made no investment in go froze the funding didn't acquire tracks and let the system fall apart and rot we have made up 20 billion dollars in transit infrastructure 10 billion the reason that we cannot move faster is because when you were over here you didn't buy any tracks from CNCP and you didn't invest in anything so we're making up for 30 years of neglect Mr. Speaker I would invite the member to come down to Hamilton with me in the near future to see a few announcements about the results of those billions of dollars of expenditure I'll just let you anticipate what that might be because it wouldn't be happening Mr. Speaker thank you Mr. Speaker I was listening intently in a question period and I hope I didn't misunderstand what the government was saying and I'm going to reference standing order 23 because they were talking about family caregiver leave that has not received or has not been debated at third reading and I remember very vividly speaking positively of the bill family caregiver leave at third reading Mr. Speaker I wonder what's going on in terms of trying to perhaps mislead but certainly of naming different first of all you will draw because you can't say that so withdraw withdraw that's not a point of order for the purposes of the question period there are no further debates this house stands recess until 3pm this afternoon