 Now, time for oral questions. And I recognize the Leader of Her Majesty's Board of Opposites. Thank you, Speaker. My first question is to the Premier, who people deserve to have sitting in his place answering questions today. Yesterday, the Canadian Armed Forces presented a deficit. I'm going to interrupt the Leader again and remind all members of the House that it's not appropriate to point out the absence of any member. And again, there's a reason for it. It's a long-standing tradition from time to time. Any of us might be away from the House, and so it's, again, a courtesy to all members. Again, I'll recognize the Leader of the Official Opposition. Thank you, Speaker. In these horrifying times, my first question this morning comes to the Premier. Yesterday, the Canadian Armed Forces presented a devastating report into neglect and abuse of seniors in Ontario's long-term care homes. The report is heartbreaking and horrifying, especially for families and seniors in these homes. I spoke with some family members from Orchardville this morning, and they are devastated. Not because they're surprised, but because it confirms the warnings that they had been screaming at this government for weeks. The Premier has had 24 hours to think about it. Maybe that's what he's still doing now, somewhere off in the annals of this August place. Will the Premier now agree that his Minister of Long-Term Care failed to protect seniors in our homes and ask for her resignation and call for a full public inquiry into long-term care? Once again, and maybe this is the last time, I hope, I'm going to ask the members not to make reference to the absence of any other member. I'll look to the government to respond to the question. Minister of Long-Term Care. Thank you, Speaker. And thank you for the important question. Our government is absolutely committed to transforming long-term care and health care. That is why, all this time, we've been transforming to Ontario health teams and to Ontario health. We've taken the long-term care sector very seriously, understanding the need for transformation. I spent almost 30 years as a family doctor caring for people, our most vulnerable people, understanding their needs, and that's what I came here to do. Some of the issues were long-standing. Some of them had occurred over decades. The staffing crisis, the congestion in our homes, the lack of redevelopment, and then COVID hit. COVID has impacted homes around the world. Ontario is no different. And we have been taking measure after measure, tool after tool, to create the stability in these homes. And we knew these particular homes were in crisis, which is why we brought in the Canadian Armed Forces. So I'm very grateful. And as we move forward, we will be sure to make an independent commission to find the solutions and the answers. Thank you. The supplementary question. Speaker, families who read devastating reports yesterday of ongoing abuse and institutional neglect deserve so much more from their government. Instead of acknowledging the role that the cuts and neglect played in creating this crisis, the Premier and his minister offered excuses. Instead of accountability, the Premier blocked plans for an inquiry and defended his team. Immerses are suffering abuse and literally dying, dying in long-term care homes where they're supposed to be protected. If that's not grounds for dismissal or for an immediate resignation by this minister, my question is exactly what is grounds? Minister of Long-Term Care to reply. Thank you, Speaker. And thank you again to the opposition for that question. When we look at long-term care as I have for decades, you understand our most vulnerable people are in long-term care. The report was appalling. There is no question. How we respond to that now with an independent commission that allows the public to be heard, that allows for public hearings, that allows for a public report is absolutely critical. Those voices need to be heard. The vulnerable people in long-term care, as I've said for the past almost a year since becoming the Minister of Long-Term Care, they deserve respect and dignity. And I have sung that from the rooftops for the last year and all my career as a family doctor. Knowing the importance of how we treat our vulnerable in society is how we will be judged as a society. So I implore the opposition who has known about the issues in long-term care to be part of this solution. We all play a role in being part of this solution. This cannot be in vain. The lives lost must be valued. Thank you. The final supplementary. Speaker, a commission is not good enough. And that was something that the women from the homes this morning that I spoke to actually agreed with. They think a commission is the wrong way to go, and so do we. The Premier and his Minister Speaker cannot claim to be surprised by a crisis that they had a hand in creating. For months, for months, Speaker, workers in homes and families of residents have been sounding a relentless alarm bell about the conditions in long-term care, the horrifying things that they were watching before their eyes happening to their loved ones in long-term care. The Ford government either knew what was happening or chose not to know. The Premier can do the right thing today. Admit that his Minister of Long-Term Care failed to protect seniors in homes, ask for her resignation, and call a full public inquiry. Will the Premier do that? And if he won't, why not? The Minister of Long-Term Care replied. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you again for the question. Long-term care was in crisis before COVID hit, and our government was committed and is committed and will be committed to the care and compassion for our most vulnerable citizens. I rose on the Chamber on March 12th to talk about this is a time for caring and compassion. It is not a time for vitriol. I will say today that it is a time for finding solutions. These problems have been festering in long-term care for decades. Our government is committed to making sure that long-term care is part of the transformation, that it is integrated into our health system in a significant way that will make a difference to the lives of those living in long-term care and those who have passed and to their families and to staff. Our number one commitment was to the safety and well-being of residents and staff. And that is why this work must continue and we must have a full understanding through an independent commission. And you've also heard the Premier say, everything is on the table. We had four EOs, changes to regulation to provide flexible staffing for our long-term care homes leading into this, anticipating the problems that COVID would cause. And we called in the military when it was absolutely essential, looking around the world where homes have been abandoned. We've taken every measure and I live with my conscience. I know that I've done everything. I know that our government has done everything. Thank you very much. The next question, once again, the Leader of the Opposition. Speaker, my next question is also to the Premier. Look, if this was their number one commitment, Speaker, they have failed miserably. They have failed miserably and everybody knows it now. We all knew it before. We did here in this chamber, here on the Opposition bench, because the previous government failed as well. But now everybody knows the failure in long-term care. Yesterday the Premier claimed he was shocked at the treatment of residents in homes like Eatonville Care Center. Over a month ago, on April 24th, families of residents of that home filed a statement of claim, alleging failure to protect residents, including sworn affidavit, detailing residents not being cleaned after soiling themselves, residents being denied testing even when exhibiting signs of COVID-19. And one family who did not learn that their loved one died or had COVID-19, rather, until the funeral home actually informed them of his death, or after his death, rather. We read these documents. They were around over a month ago. The media reported on these horrifying situations over the last number of weeks, Speaker. Where were the Premier and the Minister briefed on this situation? And if not, why not? And if so, how can they claim to be surprised by what the Armed Forces found at Eatonville? Minister of Long-Term Care to reply. Speaker, and thank you again for the important question. I have said many times that long-term care homes were on the front lines of this battle with COVID. And when you consider the report, it's very clear that there was a war going on in our homes against COVID, the fact that the military had to be called in to support these homes. And the staffing shortages that suddenly became magnified many times more when COVID came into the homes, it would spiral into an abyss very quickly. And that's why the military was called in. These are not normal times. We are in a state of emergency. And our long-term care homes have been facing the brunt. And all the tools that we have taken, we have moved quickly. Government does not move quickly. And that's why we brought emergency orders to make the process faster, to deal in a decisive and swift way. The very last emergency order was included in one case of COVID because that's why we have to move fast. This is a different setting and our government has taken every measure possible. The supplementary question. Speaker, the minister stood in this house and assured Ontarians back at the end of February that everything had been done, that they had a plan, that long-term care was going to be fine. And then the Premier talked about the iron ring around long-term care. And they said they were going to spare no expense on long-term care. All of these empty words over and over and over again for weeks and weeks and weeks while family members and residents became more and more desperate. Eatonville and the Hawthorne Place Care Centre were also the subject of a court ruling on April 23rd. A judge intervened, Speaker, on behalf of frontline workers at those facilities who were desperately, desperately trying to protect residents who were not being cohorted and staff who were denied access to personal protective equipment. When those workers first decided to take legal action, there were six cases of COVID in that facility. There are now 43 residents who are dead. We're the Premier and the minister briefed on this court ruling. If not, why not? And if so, how can they claim to be surprised by what the armed forces found at Hawthorne Place? Thank you, Speaker, and thank you once again for the question. Our government has been committed, and you can see that from the very beginning of our government's commitments. We look at the 15,000 beds that we were to be developed and redeveloped. What we're finding is the wardrooms, the lack of redevelopment, the lack of new space. Our hospitals were also at capacity with hallway health care. This was an entire system reorganization. Ontario Health, Ontario Health teams integrating long-term care into that process so that they could be more integrated with expertise involving infection control and also the expertise for our long-term care home, so badly needed. Our personal support workers were short in supply. We asked the government to help us streamline that process to make that easier. The staffing crisis, the capacity in our hospitals, it all needed addressing, and our government was working on that from the beginning. We all know that health care deserves transformation. Our most vulnerable people in their time of need deserve that care, and we've taken measures throughout this, and we will continue to take measures after years of neglect of this system by the opposition, not supporting change in long-term care. Thank you. The final supplementary. Thank you very much, Speaker. In February of 2019, the Ministry of Health conducted a resident quality inspection at the Altamont Care community facility. They found that the facility failed to keep the home furnishings and equipment clean and sanitary. Walls were covered in food stains, and that the residents with bed sores were not being properly treated. This resident quality inspection was one of only nine conducted in over 626 homes in Ontario. It was one of only nine inspected. The Premier scaled them back. Those inspections, dramatically, after private long-term care operators described those inspections as red tape. We're the Premier and the Minister briefed on this inspection report. And if not, why not? And if so, how can they claim to be surprised at what the armed forces found in Altamont? Minister of Long-term Care. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you again. These homes were in crisis, and that's why the military was called in. I would be remiss if I did not acknowledge the majority of our homes and the majority of our personal support workers who are doing day in, day out at a tremendously challenging job. I would make note of the good work being done in many of homes. And you've heard the Premier say it is not right to paint all homes in the same vein as the homes that are in the crisis. We need to be supporting our homes. We need to be supporting our personal support workers and those who are doing a good job who are not an outbreak and especially those who are doing important work, crucial work, critical work to support our most vulnerable. Our whole health transformation has been about caring for the vulnerable. People in a time of need, whether they need acute care or whether they need long-term care. We have started that work. It will continue. And it will continue with a commitment that other governments have not had. The next question. Once again, the leader of the opposition. Thank you so much, Speaker. Speaker, my next question is also to the Premier. The same Premier who cut funding to long-term care and virtually eliminated long-term care inspections, who has no right at all at this point in time to be shocked by the state of long-term care and no credibility whatsoever when he says he will investigate. To quote frontline workers, and I quote, we have had to fight the provincial government every step of the way to ensure long-term care companies were keeping workers and residents safe. These decisions came from his desk, end quote. Why does the Premier think that families desperate for change will be content with an internal review led by the same Premier and the same minister who have done everything in their power to protect the status quo in long-term care? And I would even say, drag us backwards in long-term care. Minister of long-term care to reply. Thank you, Speaker. And thanks for the question. I have to push back. I have to clarify. I have to tell the truth. And the truth absolutely is that the inspections were never stopped. We have done more inspections than ever before. What you're describing is something that started with the Liberal government in 2016 after an auditor general's report to address. And I think it's very important that we clarify because reality matters. The truth matters. Looking at a public inquiry versus a commission, a commission will provide us with the answers faster. It will provide us with the transparency faster. Public inquiry or commission are both included under the Public Inquiries Act. A commission that we're describing, an independent commission, will be a commission that will allow public input. It will have a public report. There will be public hearings to construe it in any other way is inaccurate. We need to talk about the truth. Healthcare needs to be transformed. Our government is committed to doing that. We will continue to do what we started, and we will do it with a commitment that you're Thank you. Thank you very much. The supplementary question. Well, Speaker, I would say to the minister and to the Premier, resident quality inspections matter. They matter. And to take them down to nine a year when we have 626 long-term care homes in Ontario is negligent. It is then not that they're doing their duty as a government. And I would also say that suggesting that a behind closed door process is equal to a public inquiry does not pass the smell test because it is not the case. It is not equal. It is behind closed doors. It is not public. The Premier either knew about the serious problem, Speaker, in long-term care, or he chose not to know. Thankfully, our armed forces were able to break the iron ring of silence. And I have to say thank you again. The Canadian Armed Forces did all of us here in Ontario, a very important service. Question. Families and frontline workers have been consistent and clear that they want real change this time. They want real change. Will the Premier do the right thing and call a full, transparent, independent public inquiry today? Please take their seat to reply on behalf of the Government, the Minister of Long-Term Care. Thank you, Speaker. And thank you for the question. Our government is committed. And that's why it's began with a redevelopment of our long-term care system. It put dollars over almost $2 billion towards building capacity and redevelopment. We're undergoing a staffing study to inform a comprehensive staffing strategy. We are addressing Justice Galicia's report. The important work done by the Auditor General as well. And this government is absolutely committed to doing that. You can see that with the Ontario Health Teams. Ontario Health, we need to address the needs of an aging population, a growing and aging population, and a support for our most vulnerable people. And that's been ongoing. A commission, an independent commission that will have public input, that will have public hearings, that will have a public report. But the Premier has said all options are on the table. We need experience. We need to get to the bottom of this. We need to do it in a way that is transparent. Thank you. Thank you. The next question, the member for Milton. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Education. Mr. Speaker, parents, teachers, students in my writing of Milton are doing their best in these very difficult circumstances. They're being flexible. They're working hard and they're being creative. I've heard from countless parents who find that their kids are best supported when their teachers conduct live classes. This includes Adriana, who says in iCode, as a parent, I would love for my kids to get the live interaction with their classmates and teachers so they can be engaged and actually be learning at the same time and a code. Can the Minister please outline what our government expects from educators in delivering at-home learning for our students? Mr. Education. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you to the member for Milton for his question and his leadership. I want, Speaker, just to start with the recognition of gratitude to our educators, to our students and parents for rising to the challenge in this truly unprecedented time. Speaker, we believe that students are spending now one quarter of their year of their academic year at home. It is incumbent on all of us to give them every option using every opportunity and every tool and every technology to aid them in learning while they are home. And that's why, Speaker, we believe, as many parents have called for, live synchronous learning to create a classroom experience that will not emulate the in-class experience. Speaker, we acknowledge being in class, of course, is best. But at time of COVID-19 we have an opportunity to improve delivery of education to these students by embracing that community online. And, Speaker, that's why we're urging our school boards and our partners to work with us to implement this, standardize it, and improve learning for all students in this province. Thank you. The supplementary question. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the minister for the answer. In these difficult times, it's more important than ever that our education system adapt to the needs of students. This is critical, especially when it comes to mental health. Anxiety, depression, and other mental health challenges are on the rise, and tragically, our kids are not excluded from this. I know mental health is top of mind for our government as we seek to support students during these difficult times. Can the minister please provide some examples on how our government is prioritizing student mental health? Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Minister of Education replied. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you again to the member for Milton for the question. I know mental health is a priority for all members of the House, and I actually appreciate my conversations with the critics and all parties and the Leader of the Green Party discussing this very issue, and it is a why, in part, the Premier announced some weeks ago an additional 12 million to our investment to support mental health, to enable our young people to have the strength that they need through this difficulty. Speaker, part of that was to aid more funding to kids helpful, to school mental health Ontario to provide a continuum of care. Mr. Speaker, we've called on boards to unlock all mental health workers, paraprofessionals, to do the best they can in the virtual environment. We have aided and enabled boards this summer to enable them to continue providing services through the summer. Normally they would end in June, so there's a continuity of service delivery for these kids. And, Speaker, we're providing more investments, special education, as well as more guidance to parents to help them through this difficulty. We'll continue to invest in mental health, continue to invest in our most vulnerable, and give them the path to success this year to graduate and in September when they return to class. The next question is from London Fan Shaw. Speaker, my question is to the Premier. The government spent months saying they were monitoring long-term care closely, but yesterday claimed to know nothing of the horrific conditions in our long-term care homes. The horrifying report from our armed forces comes after the government's decision to virtually eliminate proactive resident quality inspections in long-term care. The government insisted that this would have no impact on care. In fact, last April the minister claimed that Ontario has, quote, the most rigorous inspections in Canada, end quote, and didn't need resident quality inspections. Speaker, families are hurting today and they need answers. My question to the Premier. If Ontario actually had a system of rigorous inspections, how could they know, how could they not know what was happening in our long-term care homes? Minister of Long-Term Care. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you for the question from the opposition. Our government absolutely committed to long-term care and reforming healthcare. In our long-term care system, we are monitoring the homes. We are moving in the right direction. Our homes are improving. There are a handful of homes that have been under exceptional stress, largely due to staffing issues. We use certain criteria to identify red homes versus yellow homes versus green homes. We've been actively monitoring that all this way to characterize this as not knowing, is inaccurate, and it is insulting to all the people who are doing the work on the front lines. Our staff, the managers, the personal support workers, everyone is contributing. Everyone is doing what they can. We all have a role to play, and I acknowledge the anger that people are feeling from a loss and being in the state of emergency, but anger will not bring us solutions. It is dedication, everyday hard work, making sure that we put residents at the center of care, which has not been done. Our government is doing that, and when I was speaking at the homes that I was visiting for almost a year, I would talk about that, and nobody was interested. The media didn't come. Only at a time of death and devastation did people respond. It should not have taken that. It should not have taken that. A supplementary question, a member for Brampton Centre. It is difficult to believe that this government had absolutely no idea about the crisis in our long-term care homes. When conditions like the ones detailed in the Canadian Armed Forces report are happening across this province, including in cities like Brampton, the Premier said himself that he believes that there are also other homes that are impacted. Is the Premier and this minister going to keep pretending that they had no idea about the conditions in our long-term care homes? Thank you, Speaker, and thank you for the question. In fact, there was a crisis in long-term care homes. We knew that there was a shortage of personal support workers. That contributes greatly in a time of absolute crisis like COVID-19. Our government was transforming long-term care. We are in the process of doing that. The Ontario Health, Ontario Health teams, working with public health, working with all our partners and colleagues to get through this unprecedented devastating time. We are in a state of emergency. This is not in normal time. We acknowledge the shortcomings. That's why I'm here. That's why I'm doing what I'm doing. That's why our government has committed to reform and change. So to characterise this as the crisis is absolutely out of touch, absolutely out of touch, our government is committed and we will continue our good work. Thank you. The next question, the member for Ottawa South. Thank you very much, Speaker, and my question is for the Minister of Long-Term Care. So, Speaker, we're all very deeply disturbed by what we read in the Canadian Armed Forces report yesterday into the five long-term care homes in this province. So, Speaker, through you to the Minister, when was the Minister first made aware of conditions in these five homes and what led her to ask for the help of the Canadian Armed Forces? Minister of Long-Term Care. Thank you Speaker, and thank you for the question. We were actively monitoring these homes, as I mentioned, red, yellow, green. Homes that were particularly on the radar for staffing crises. We had been taking measures all along in terms of our emergency orders to understand and anticipate how government could move quickly. So, beyond all the changes and acknowledgement that our whole healthcare system needed to be improved for our most needy and our most vulnerable and those in need at their time of need, we understood the critical nature of the staffing issues which had been a long time festering many, many, many years. Looking at how we address that, we had labour inspectors, we had our own inspectors from Long-Term Care, we had public health risk assessments, we had infection prevention and control teams, we had rapid deployment teams from the acute care system and everything was being monitored. COVID takes over homes very quickly. We anticipated that these homes would be in a dire need and that's why we brought in the military. Supplementary question. Thank you, Speaker, and I was hoping that the Minister would provide a more direct and specific as to when she knew. I'm trying to understand when the Minister knew and would led her to call in the military in the first place because I know that residents, their families, staff, organizations that represent them, MPPs in this house, have all alerted the government and her ministry and her to these concerns and I think for all of us it's important to establish a timeline here. The situation must have been pretty bleak to make the request that the Minister did. So, Speaker, I will ask once again when was the Minister first made aware of the condition in these five homes and what led her to ask for help from the Canadian Armed Forces. Thank you. Minister of Long-Term Care. Thank you, Speaker. We have numerous eyes watching the homes and monitoring and making sure that they're in close contact with the homes, looking at the red, the yellow and the green. These homes were having difficulties. There was no doubt about that and as we called in the military it takes time and so that's why I can't give you a precise date. We looked at how we initiated that. There were other ministries involved in that process until we could actually get the military in and as you know there are other provinces that are also affected. Our neighbouring province has needed military help in a vast way. We understand the limitations of what our military can do and that's why as we speak we're understanding our next measures to take because the military, we've asked them to stay. We're hoping that they will stay. We're asking the federal government to help us. We need that support now but as our homes stabilize there will be further measures taken to support them. Thank you. Supplementary question. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker and my question again is for the Minister of Long-Term Care. So given the disturbing report from the Canadian military into the conditions in these five long-term care homes and like these five homes there are dozens of homes with double digit deaths across this province and given that the ministry's most prominent response to the Gillespie report was to only do resident quality inspections in nine out of 626 homes full inspections last year. Speaker through you how can the minister assure Ontarians that what was reported today isn't happening in other homes in this province. Ministered Long-Term Care. Thank you Speaker and if you look at the devastating effect of COVID-19 on our homes that were already in a crisis situation with staff and going into this pandemic our government and my ministry were taking every measure possible to address that. We were looking at volunteer portals the nursing associations were assisting with volunteers we were looking everywhere for support and our long-term care homes need to be places where people want to work how we integrate our long-term care homes with the acute care system into a new form a new way of doing things that the previous governments leading up to this point never did all these years leading to this point by being hit by COVID these homes were being actively monitored there were investigations ongoing we had increase in terms of calls to our action line we had almost three thousand inspections and numerous other inspections so let's be honest about this supplementary question Speaker why did it take us a month to raise the wages of the lowest paid workers in long-term care like other provinces did why do we take a month not to have workers working in more than one home to stop the spread of disease why do we wait months and months to give ourselves the power to take over long-term care homes and then actually do it so my colleagues from Ottawa Vanier or leans and many members of this house have been raising concerns with the ministry and the minister about homes in their writings and these concerns are genuine they're coming from families and families are telling you and staff members are telling you and unions are telling you everybody's saying this so learning of yesterday's reports it's natural for Ontarians to be concerned about their parents and the grandparents so through through you speaker to the minister how can the government assure Ontarians that seniors living in other long-term care homes across this province are not experiencing similar conditions to what we heard reported yesterday minister of long-term care thank you speaker and thank you for the question i share concern over our vulnerable people in society and our government has embarked on a transformation of care because it it understood the need Ontario health teams integrating long-term care into our acute care setting and into the community these are absolutely critical pieces as we move forward we've done work over the last year we've prepared for COVID COVID has hit the global vulnerable populations of those over 80 and in long-term care homes if you bother to look if you bother to understand what's happening globally in other countries you will understand that and all these measures the emergency orders to have government work faster because government does not work quickly the processes we have in place are not a time that is not COVID time and we've adjusted for that our homes are actively being monitored we know the situation in our homes thank you member for Davenport thank you mr speaker and my question is to the premier Mr. Speaker back even as the pandemic was just unfolding sadly many in the sector and some of us included predicted that this was going to be a result in a massacre of the vulnerable and the old and I for one wish that was not true and I know we all do but it has come to be the premier said yesterday that he was shocked by these this report from the armed forces but Mr. Speaker he and his minister have known what was coming and that's very clear I want to just point out on April 28th I wrote to the minister of long-term care outlining issues just issues that have been raised in my own constituency in my own writing by members of my in my community including the lack of testing people who had family members in long-term care around oversight in long-term care personal support workers who were not allowed not allowed to have protective equipment I have yet to receive a response to this letter Mr. Speaker the minister is right question that the situation was in crisis for a long time but this minister and this government have failed those families they have failed the workers who have lost their lives in those homes and across this province and I want to ask Mr. Speaker why the minister has not yet offered her resignation and why the premier has not thank you Mr. Long-term care thank you speaker and I appreciate I appreciate the anger that you have and I appreciate your frustration I look back in the last few months dealing with our long-term care system in this COVID world we live in and it is absolutely heart-wrenching gut-wrenching and as a physician who spent 30 years not only looking after our vulnerable people but looking after members of my own family to insinuate that I sat there and did nothing is absolutely incomprehensible to me when I know the truth I know the reality I know the commitment that our government has had I know the commitment that I have had and that is why I am here and that's why we took every measure every tool all the emergency orders everything was on the table we acted swiftly and decisively and COVID is a beast and years of neglect by the previous government supported supported by the NDP has led us to a precarious position for our long-term care homes COVID-19 is a beast it's been a beast around the world and our government has been committed it is committed now it will be committed in the future to making sure that we transform healthcare and long-term care for our most vulnerable the supplementary question the member for Waterloo Mr. Speaker to the Minister of Health that answer though was not good enough for the people of this province in Waterloo Region we've seen the painful fallout from declining standards in long-term care like Rivera's Forest Heights home 50 residents 50 have died from COVID-19 in this home scared and angry families have reached out to myself in the MPP for Kitchener Centre why? Because before COVID-19 families were spending up to six hours a day caring for their loved ones they knew that there were no minimum standards of care they knew that the staffing ratios were poor they knew that they were reduced in-person inspections families were holding this broken system together the health minister was also patient ombudsman she would have heard these serious concerns and the pain from these families and the pain in the suffering of these residents is not subject to cabinet confidentiality to the Minister of Health we agree that the former government neglected our long-term care system but it's this government who looked the other way when the pandemic began there was no iron ring around these homes why did this minister not act decisively? Thank you to apply the Minister of Health as the Minister of Long-term Care has stressed repeatedly today we have taken this seriously from the very beginning putting in place protections for people in long-term care making sure that we had the personal protective equipment that they needed it might not have been used by the management in some of these places but the personal protective equipment was there in addition to that as things were worsening I have had discussions with the Minister of Long-term Care and we have had the arrangement made where hospitals can consider long-term care homes work sites with the result that people were asked at hospitals to go and help in long-term care homes over 40 hospitals have stepped up to do that they are continuing to assist in providing care and they will continue to do so until this COVID-19 threat has been dealt with Next question the member for Simcoe Gray Thank you Speaker and my questions for the Minister of Infrastructure Speaker I'm frequently contacted by constituents about the need for high-speed internet in many areas of my riding One recent email was from as a township counselor Keith White who is concerned about a resident who may lose her internet service Like many residents Keith wants to know what the province is doing about improving service not removing it The government recently released up to speed Ontario's broadband and cellular action plan with the intent of expanding broadband and cellular access to rural remote and northern communities Well, Speaker, we've been hearing these big-dollar announcements from provincial and federal governments for years but there still seems to be a problem, particularly in the rural areas in my riding In fact, I have to admit I made similar announcements some 20 years ago when I was Minister of Energy Science and Technology and I'm hoping today maybe this Minister can do a better job than I did So can the Minister tell the people who have the township when they will receive up to standard broadband services? Minister of Infrastructure Well, thank you, Mr. Speaker and thank you to the member opposite for his question While our government has been a steadfast funding partner for broadband projects in Ontario like the southwestern integrated fibre technology project known as SWIFT and I'm sure the experienced member opposite knows providing reliable and affordable broadband service is a responsibility of the federal government but with that being said I have raised this issue on countless calls with the federal minister responsible urging her government to join Ontario and our municipal and private sector partners in closing the digital divide the COVID-19 epidemic has brought to the forefront on this side of the house we are not about lip service Mr. Speaker and sure the member opposite we are about action and our $315 million action plan has the potential to expand access to up to 220,000 homes of businesses and it includes $150 million Ontario-led broadband plan and nearly $64 million to SWIFT which includes the communities in simple grey Mr. Speaker I'll have more to say in the supplementary you the supplementary question well thank you speaker thank you to the minister I know everyone in the house can agree that high speed internet is not only increasing or the need for high speed internet is not only increasing during this time of the COVID-19 virus because people are working from home and because of the e-platform for education Michael Burke who lives just three minutes outside of Tottenham says the lack of internet options has become particularly problematic during this crisis his household is trying to run two essential businesses from home and his two children are completely frustrated trying to access e-learning platforms and Gary Wilkinson who lives five minutes away from Collingwood told me that when the COVID crisis began all the internet companies said to him that they would wave coverage fees and give everyone unlimited data everyone it seems except for folks in rural areas how Gary asks is it that in this day and age proper reliable and affordable high speed internet is not available to rural areas so speaker can the minister elaborate on her first answer and maybe tell me when the rest of the areas or the areas the rural areas of Simcoe Gray will actually receive internet services I'm counting on you minister to be a better minister than I was and to actually deliver rural internet services to Simcoe Gray there's a challenge for you thank you minister of infrastructure to reply well Mr. Speaker I thank you and accept that challenge as someone that has been born and raised in rural Ontario and represents those rural communities I understand the frustrations raised by the member opposite and his constituents very well while we're all working remotely to adhere to physical distancing I too have dropped phone calls been like faded out on zoom calls and download speeds just aren't what we need so Mr. Speaker that's why we've made infrastructure a marquee part of our mandate we are stepping up to the plate we're taking a whole of government approach to bringing Ontario up to speed and I want to commend my colleague the minister of education for his work and connecting more students to e-learning platforms during the COVID-19 outbreak assuring every high school will have high-speed internet up to this fall and the minister of northern development and minds for making investments and delivering broadband to indigenous communities and in northern Ontario so uh Mr. Speaker I do have more plans coming out shortly and I want to encourage the member opposite to join me in asking the federal government to help us bring Ontario up to speed response more than ever we need all these partners together and we can make it happen thank you Mr. Speaker thank you the next question the member for Algoma Manitoulin thank you speaker my question is to the premier Ontario's no these problems are not you just a few months ago I sat here in my chair and looked at my leader along with made them my colleagues where we were accused of the fear mongers well the fear is rear Mr. real Mr. Speaker families have been hurting for years because of liberal and conservative inactions in January 2018 it was revealed the former government kept a secret list of high-risk facilities all these facilities the government knew the long-term care private operators were often breaking the rules failing to comply with directives and not doing their job for taking care of our loved ones speaker the premier had a list of high-risk facilities why did it take the military report to see he's shocked by the system when it's been known for years how bad things really are Mr. Blank long-term care reply thank you speaker and thank you for the question when I look at long-term care in Ontario and you you know you probably heard me say Justice Galli said it was a system that was strained COVID came along and broke it I cannot speak to any any list because I I do not believe that that list is applicable now if you look at COVID it affected some homes in in a more disastrous way others were unaffected over 70 percent of our homes are not in outbreak and our outbreaks are resolving the military being called in was in anticipation of the monitoring and knowing that these homes were in dire situation I wish I could have been able to pull a lever and have them show up the following day the processes don't work like that and I am grateful to the Canadian forces for being there for our residents being there for our homes and for our families and staff so the red the yellow the green were in continual interaction with our homes and COVID makes things change very quickly the speed with which COVID takes over a home when you speak to people that are in homes it it is shocking and that's why the military was there in anticipation of these homes having issues thank you supplementary question a member from Mishke Gowat James Bay here the previous government and this one has been slow to fix the problem with long-term care back in 2017 the auditor general found the government cuts its inspection after it did a cost-benefit analysis of them and found inspection to be too expensive that change in the inspection result in backlog of over 3,000 complaints and critical incidents this government kept a new system which has meant the quality of inspection of Ontario's long-term care facilities have dropped why did this government keep a fail inspection system rather than change it the minister of long-term care thank you speaker and thank you for the question issues surrounding inspections have been have been raised from the beginning of this pandemic we have multiple types of inspections we conducted almost 3,000 inspections as well as inspections on homes every year inspections will not have solved the staffing crisis that we experienced with COVID-19 the staffing crisis was apparent for years and our personal support workers were on the front lines the inspection doesn't matter how many inspections you would have done it would have not provided the care that residents needed it was a staffing crisis which is exactly why we called in the military with staffing getting sick with COVID having to isolate and being perhaps afraid to come in we know that the military was needed at that time and I am grateful to the military it is not an issue of inspections we need to make sure that we understand what's happening in our homes and that will be ongoing thank you the next question the member for Thunder Bay Attic hoping thank you speaker my question is for the premier experts have been sounding the alarm on the crisis in long-term care for decades the premier cannot pretend that this is the first tease hearing of it or that is shocked because workers represented by SCIU sent out a cry for help to the government and several times since asking the government to set a step up and ramp up and care when private operators turned them away just in January of 2020 UNIFOR commissioned the Ontario Health Coalition to produce a detailed report that they gave to the government called caring in crisis workers have been alerting the government for years about this situation why has the premier and this government ignored cries for help from workers on the front line for two years when we know how bad families have been hurt Mr. Long-term Care thank you speaker and thank you for the question and I do value all these questions I think they are important important times to address the stress and strain that long-term care has been under I would like to read you a short message from Miranda Farrier the national president Opswa since the onset of COVID-19 pandemic the Ministry of Long-term Care has demonstrated capable and understanding leadership the Ministry of Long-term Care has been diligently receptive to the needs of the frontline PSWs and I I want to emphasize how incredibly important it is our frontline staff in our long-term care homes and that is why our government has been conducting an expert panel for to study and inform a comprehensive staffing strategy going forward when we inherited the situation in long-term care we understood the need to address the staff which became a crisis under COVID that work is ongoing we will continue that work it's essential thank you Member Katrona center both registered nurses both the registered nurses Association of Ontario and the Ontario Nurses Association have been telling the Minister of Health in long-term care and the Minister of Health about the kind of conditions detailed in the CAF report for years now they both say that they begged for this government to improve staffing and funding in long-term care the ONA even said that after calling in the Ministry of Labor to try and fix things they've also had to take this government and some long-term care homes took court because directives weren't being followed Speaker the government knew about the horrors happening in the halls of these homes because they were told by the experts and the staff on the front lines why why did you refuse to listen to them Minister of long-term care thank you speaker and thank you for the question we have been listening and taking action and when we look at the long-term care homes every operator every home is required to meet the standards of care and to follow the directors of the chief medical officer of health they are held to a standard there is that is not negotiable we have worked with our experts our scientists our medical officers of health the chief medical officer of health the assistant medical officer of health and we have issued their directives and provided guidance and we did that very very early back in February we have been working all along with our partners in long-term care this must be a collaborative process the long-term care ministry the government of Ontario does not operate response long-term care homes and this is why that collaboration is so incredibly important all the people that are doing the good work that's necessary to move us past this horrible time I value I value that effort thank you the next question the member for Ottawa venue see Mr thank you Mr Speaker my question is for the minister of long-term care yesterday's Canadian Armed Forces report on those five long-term care residents is very alarming and we cannot tell ourselves that these are five isolated cases I wrote to the minister almost three weeks ago with alarming concerns about three long-term care residents in my writing I then urged the minister for immediate action and I highlighted the concern that personal protective equipment was not being changed frequently enough to stop contamination that there was insufficient staff and that there was cockroach infestation this is simply unacceptable clearly the traffic light green yellow red method is not working we need to stop monitoring and we need to start following up on these reports can the minister commit to actually following up with every long-term care residents that report the need for any type of support thank you the minister of long-term care thank you speaker thank you for raising that and we have we have heard from you and others and that's why we have an integrated system with Ontario Health with local hospitals to be engaged in what's going on in those long-term care homes with their infection prevention and control teams what we need is an integrated system and that's what our government has been doing with Ontario Health the Ontario Health Teams the integration of the acute care expertise infection control in our long-term care homes the rapid deployment teams the SWAT teams and that is exactly what we've been we've been doing and it's important to understand that this is not a normal time all hands on deck everyone has to contribute everyone has a role to play and we've been working with our partners working with the teams that have come to support the home that you've mentioned and others this must continue this is an opportunity to say our long-term care system needs the support of our communities our acute care centres our research centres our academic centres this is absolutely critical and necessary and I appreciate your voice in this I appreciate all of your voices we must emerge from this having supported our vulnerable this must not be in vain thank you the supplementary question thank you Mr. Speaker I want to emphasise the fact that this cannot wait we cannot wait for an investigation into what's happening in our long-term care homes now seniors have been living in these horrible situations for too long now what will the minister do right now to ensure that no other long-term care is going through the same situation as the ones brought up in the Canadian Armed Forces Report thank you Mr. Long-term Care once again thank you Speaker and thank you again for the question we've taken decisive actions over the last months with many ministries with in collaboration with the experts we are doing that now and we'll continue to do that this requires investigation inspections that they'll require a lens to be put on this to understand how we move forward from this it's infection control it's shoring up staffing it's making sure that everyone involved is accountable and responsible I cannot be I cannot be accountable for COVID but I do take ownership of what is happening and it's incredibly important that we take ownership that we solve these issues so looking at how we can support these homes that are in crisis we continue to do that whether it's through SWAT teams rapid deployment teams working with Ontario Health working with Public Health we will continue to do everything including the military and we are asking the military now to stay we do need that federal support we are asking the federal government to support us it's going to take all levels of government everyone to find the solutions going forward and to support our homes and our residents thank you the next question the member for St. Catharines thank you Mr. Speaker this is to the premier long-term care is serious issue for our veterans the Royal Canadian Legion of Ontario Command has been one of the louder voices to this government demanding a public inquiry into long-term care on deaf ears now long-term care crisis is also affecting our Canadian Armed Forces members currently deployed in Ontario 35 members in county not only have military personnel contracted the deadly COVID-19 while rescuing Ontario's broken long-term care system now military sources have told reporters that they are worried they are truly worried about PTSD among the troops stationed here in Ontario long-term care homes what does it say about the state of our long-term care homes Canada's troops trained to face combat all over the world and they were traumatized by what they have found here in Ontario's long-term care home this government needs to listen to their voices and an independent public inquiry must happen now when will you say it will Mr. Long-term Care thank you Speaker and thank you for the question my heart goes out I have great gratitude for the Armed Forces that have come in to support our homes it was in our time of need Ontario's time of need and they were there and I've said before we are in a war against COVID-19 we are in a state of emergency and for the Armed Forces to be there in Ontario's time of need I am very very grateful for that an independent commission will have public hearings it will have public input and it will have a public report and that is the most expedient way that we can achieve the answers in a timely way the Premier has said everything is on the table the Premier has been committed to this I am committed to making sure that we move forward with the truth and understanding and transparency this is not a time for politics it is not a time for politicking it is a time for care response and compassion transparency and that is what we will do we will we will move forward with that transparency that concludes our question period for this morning we have a deferred vote on the motion for second reading of Bill 159 an act to amend various statutes in respect of consumer protection calling the members this will be a five minute bell we can ask the members to please take their seats on March the 5th 2020 Ms. Thompson moved second reading of Bill 159 an act to amend various statutes in respect of consumer protection all those in favor of the motion will please rise one at a time and be recognized by the clerk Ms. Thompson Ms. Thompson Mr. Bethan Fawley Mr. Bethan Fawley Ms. Surma Ms. Surma Mr. Puccini Mr. Puccini Mr. Colander Mr. Colander Mr. Sarkaria Mr. Sarkaria Mr. Cho Willardale Mr. Cho Willardale Mrs. Martin Mrs. Martin Ms. Elliott Ms. Elliott Mr. Phillips Mr. Phillips Ms. Fullerton Ms. Fullerton Mr. Cousetto Mr. Cousetto Mr. Yacobusky Ms. Hogarth Ms. Hogarth Mr. Tobolo Ms. Dun oppressed Ms. Tangry Mr. Tangry Mr. Walker Mr. Walker Ms. Smith Ms. Beat dazzling Mr. Clark Mr. Clark Ms. Jones Ms. Jones Ms. Wade Ms. Donning Ms. Martele Ms.ATH Ms. Scott Ms. Scott Mr. Mcnotten Ms. Mcnotten Ms. Cand decoration Mr. Bailey Mr. Bailey Ms. Leche Ms. Mal crowning Ms. Malini Mr. Rashid Mr. Rashid Mr. McDonnell Ms. McDonnell Mr. Cramp Mr. Cramp Ms. Parapan Mr. Parsa Mr. Co Madam Ms. Elsamard. Madam Ms. Elsamard. Madam Coulard. Madam Coulard. Although as opposed to the motion, please rise one at a time and be recognized by the court. Ms. Sattler. Ms. Sattler. Ms. Singh Brampton Center. Ms. Singh Brampton Center. Ms. Horvath. Ms. Horvath. Ms. Fife. Ms. Fife. Mr. Hatfield. Mr. Hatfield. Ms. Shamonta. Ms. Shamonta. Ms. Armstrong. Ms. Armstrong. Ms. Morrison. Ms. Morrison. Ms. Stiles. Ms. Stiles. Mr. West. Mr. West. Mr. Stevens. Mr. Shriner. Mr. Shriner. The ayes are 56, the nays are 15. The ayes being 56, the nays being 15. I declare the motion carried. The motion is a little wide. Shall the bill be ordered for third reading? Recognize the Minister of Government and Consumer Services. Yes. No. Good general. The bill's referred to the standing committee on general government. We have a deferred vote on the motion for second reading of Bill 184. An act to amend the Building Code Act 1992 and the Housing Services Act 2011 and the Residential Tenancies Act 2006. And to enact the Ontario Mortgage and Housing Corporation Repeal Act 2020, call in the members. This is another five minute bill. On May the 26th, 2020, Mr. Clark moved second reading of Bill 184. An act to amend the Building Code Act 1992, the Housing Services Act 2011 and the Residential Tenancies Act 2006. And to enact the Ontario Mortgage and Housing Corporation Repeal Act 2020. All those in favour of the motion will please rise one at a time and be recognized by the clerk. Mr. Clark. Mr. Clark. Mr. Bethan Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. Mr. Barney. All those opposed to the motion will please rise one at a time and be Mr. Morrison, Ms. Singh Brampton-Center, Ms. Sattler, Ms. Horvath, Ms. Haatfield, Ms. Armstrong, Ms. Stiles, Mr. West, Ms. Burns McGowan, Ms. Montieth Farrell, Ms. Stevens, Mr. Fraser, Mr. Schreiner, Ms. Al-Samar, Ms. Kullar, the ayes are 56, the nays are 18. The ayes being 56 and the nays being 18. I declare the motion carried. Shall the bill be ordered for third reading? No. Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing? To social policy. Referred to the Standing Committee on Social Policy. There being no further business this morning, this House stands in recess until 1 p.m.