 Thank members for their introductions. It is now time for question period. The leader of Her Majesty's royal opposition. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier. The Liberals continue to claim they will eventually balance the budget, but their numbers simply don't add up. The budget projects $4 billion more in revenue than the financial accountability officer said is possible. The Liberals project $4 billion more in revenue than the FAO's best case scenario. Mr. Speaker, simple question. Whose numbers are correct? The Premier's or the financial accountability officer? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and I know that the Minister of Finance is going to want to comment on the deficit reduction. But the fact is, Mr. Speaker, that we are on track to eliminate our deficit by 2017-18. We've beaten our deficit targets for the seventh year in a row and will be balancing the budget next year in 2017-18, which is the target that we put in place, Mr. Speaker, and we are meeting that target. But, Mr. Speaker, you know, the budget is about the investments in this province. They're about the investments in students who are going to have more access to post-secondary education, Mr. Speaker, because of the changes we're making on tuition. Our budget is about putting in place a counter-trade system, Mr. Speaker, that is going to fight greenhouse gas emissions and fight climate change, Mr. Speaker. That's about the economic growth, innovation and the future. Thank you. Supplementary? Mr. Speaker, back to the Premier. It's all smoke and mirrors. The Liberals accuse the financial accountability officer of being wrong, but their shell game has already started. The Liberals are moving money around to lower their deficit this year. How? The Liberals rated the contingency fund. They took $850 million dollars of money that was meant for Ontario's rainy day. Mr. Speaker, that money is supposed to protect Ontario if we have another recession. Why is the Premier using Ontario's rainy day fund to temporarily fudge the bottom line? Talk about the investments that we're making in this budget. As I said, we are on track to eliminate the deficit by 2017-18. We've overachieved on our targets every year for seven years, Mr. Speaker, and the budget, the deficit, will be eliminated next year, Mr. Speaker. This is just the subtle start. If I have to go further, I will. Premier? Let's talk about what we've done, Mr. Speaker, in terms of investment in infrastructure. We're in our third year of $160 billion investment, which is creating 110,000 jobs a year, Mr. Speaker. We're increasing healthcare funding, which is one of the things that the leader of the opposition was talking about before the budget. I assume he supports it now, Mr. Speaker, including $345 million a year for hospital funding. That's something again that he was looking for. We're lowering hospital parking fees, Mr. Speaker. We're improving services for children and youth with autism, a $333 million investment over five years. That's something that we heard about, Mr. Speaker, during the budget consultations, and that will help children all over the province, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, back to the Premier. The numbers don't lie. The liberal shall gain to reduce the deficit is just that. For the last two years, the Liberals have said that the Hydro-1 fire sale was going to pay for infrastructure. How many times have we heard that? This budget proves otherwise. The Liberals have reduced the deficit by applying $2.6 billion, one-time departure tax, from the sale of Hydro-1, and using another $1.1 billion of revenue from the Hydro-1 fire sale. Mr. Speaker, it is a shell game. Will the Premier finally come clean? Is the Hydro-1 fire sale going for infrastructure, or is it paying for your years of mismanagement, waste, and scandal? Yes or no? Mr. Speaker, there's one thing that the member opposite did get right. The numbers do matter, and what matters here is that we are achieving our results. We're exceeding our targets. We're growing the economy, and, Mr. Speaker, we're balancing the books. When he made reference to the fact that numbers don't lie, that's exactly what's in this budget. And the Conference Board of Canada and others have made very clear that the numbers of Ontario and that the budget is one of the most transparent with the highest integrity. We've outlated very clearly in this budget where it's going, how it's being affected, and how we're coming to balance while investing in the things that matter to the people of Ontario. Mr. Speaker, I'm very proud of this budget, very proud of people of Ontario that make it happen. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier. No one believes this government. This government has no credibility. This government's idea of an affordable energy plan is offering $2 a month in energy rebates, $2 a month. The same day they announced $387 in increased costs. Premier, are you kidding me? How do you possibly think this makes sense? Mr. Speaker, let's just talk about what people are saying about the budget. Gabriel Ross Marquette of the Canadian Federation of Students of Ontario said students have a lot to celebrate today with this commitment to fairness, equity, and justice for students, particularly those from low-income families. Let's see what Spencer Nestico-Saminu, President of USA, the Ontario University Students Association, these are sweeping improvements that will dramatically improve financial aid for our students. Students will receive more grants and for many of them tuition will be free. I hear the heckling from the other side that it's a percentage of students. Yes, Mr. Speaker, it's low-income students, Mr. Speaker. It's students who don't have access to post-secondary. Those are students who will most benefit from the changes that we're making, Mr. Speaker. The Ontario Pharmacists Association, Ontario Pharmacists have long advocated for equitable access to need. Thank you. Supplementary. Mr. Speaker, back to the Premier. No one believes this government. I can't say that more clearly. We know the health tax did not go to health care. Hospitals are at their brink, nurses are being cut, and doctors are closing their practices. Smart meters were supposed to lower energy costs. They certainly didn't save ascent. Mr. Speaker, given this government's record, why should anyone believe their cap and trade will actually fight emissions and won't simply become another ugly liberal slush fund? The Minister of Tourism, Culture, and Sport come to order, and the member from Prince Edward Hastings come to order. Premier. Well, Mr. Speaker, you know, the member opposite obviously looks at the budget and looks at the changes that we're making, particularly on the cap and trade. The member from Prince Edward Hastings, Secretary. Which is, remember, a strategy to deal with climate change, to deal with the fact that we are living in an environment that has been changed by humankind, and it is being altered, Mr. Speaker, in ways that are going to degrade the economy, are already degrading the economy. There's an article this morning, Mr. Speaker, about the effects on the North, and you only have to sit with colleagues from across the country, particularly from the North, to understand that the way of life in terms of ice roads, Mr. Speaker, the ability to get supplies into the North has been completely changed because of climate change. It is our responsibility to take action, Mr. Speaker. That's what we're doing. That's what cap and trade is. We will make it a transparent system, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, back to the Premier. Ontario families and seniors will not be fooled. They will not be tricked. Nothing in this budget gives without taking away from something else. Hospitals get a 1% increase, but this government took away $107 million in gaming revenue that was previously targeted to hospitals. Some seniors get a free vaccine, but then the Liberals nearly double the cost of all other medications. You offer students a tuition grant, but you take away their tax credit. Mr. Speaker, why is this Premier Robin Peter to pay call? Let's talk about the supports that we're putting in place for seniors just to take that part of the question. So an additional $250 million to expand capacity to deliver high-quality home and community care, $75 million over three years in community-based residential hospice and palliative care. In fact, Mr. Speaker, the member's colleague from Nipissing actually said, Vic Fidelli, PCMPP, I was really pleased to see the hospice money come through. We have a hospice in North Bay and it's such a huge need. When I saw that, I thought that was excellent. So Mr. Speaker, in fact, there are supports being put in place for people across this province, every corner of this province and every age group, Mr. Speaker. I think the Leader of the Opposition needs to look at the budget as a totality. Does the Premier really believe, as has been reported, that a senior earning $19,500 a year is affluent, say to the Leader of the Third Party, that the objective of the change in the budget was to ensure that fewer Ontario seniors have to pay any annual deductible on their prescription drugs? That was the intention. We want to make sure that we got it right for other seniors as well, though, Mr. Speaker, and I understand that. We're going to look carefully at this regulation that is out for consultation, and if we didn't get it right, Mr. Speaker, then we will make a change in terms of that threshold. So I would say to the Leader of the Third Party that I would ask her to work with us, and the objective was to make sure that more seniors had free access to prescription medication. If we didn't get that threshold right, Mr. Speaker, we will correct that in the process of the consultation on the regulation. Senior living on $19,500 a year in a city like Toronto or Hamilton or Ottawa, Kingston or London isn't rich, but they will see their drug costs nearly double. Can this Premier explain why she's nearly doubling drug costs for seniors across Ontario, including seniors living on less than $19,500 a year? I know that the Leader of the Third Party had the second question written before I answered, but I hope that she understands that in answer to her first question, I said that there were 170,000 more seniors who will have access to free prescription medication. That was the intention was to make sure that more seniors had that access. In the consultation on the regulation, we determined that we didn't get that threshold right, and I think what the Leader of the Third Party is saying is that she doesn't think we did, and if we can find some consensus on that, and we need to change that threshold, we will change it. So I hope the Leader of the Third Party understands that that is our intention as the consultation is ongoing. A number from Renfrew and Nipissing Pember come to order. Final supplementary. Speaker, this Premier put out a budget threatening seniors with nearly doubling their drug costs, and now she's trying to back away from that, Speaker. This Premier did not consult with seniors at all prior to putting that piece of information out there in the budget, Speaker. And so new Democrats do listen to seniors across this province, and you know what they're telling us? They can't pay the bill, Speaker. They can't pay their hydro bill. They can't keep the lights on. They can't keep their homes heated and their apartments heated. And this callous Premier is about to double their drug costs. She is out of touch, Speaker. She needs to dial this back and do the right thing by the seniors of this province. Is she the case for her? Well, Mr. Speaker, I assume because as I have listened to seniors as well across the province, Mr. Speaker, as has the Leader of the Third Party, that she would understand that 170,000 more seniors having access to free prescription medication, that that would be a good thing. That's in our budget, Mr. Speaker. I don't know if she missed that part, but that is in our budget. That was the intention of the change that we made, Mr. Speaker. We also are increasing funding to palliative care, Mr. Speaker. We're increasing funding in terms of the shingles vaccine so that it will no longer cost any senior. And I don't know what the Leader of the Opposition was talking about when he was talking about some seniors, but any senior, it will not cost them $170 to get that vaccine now, Mr. Speaker. So we have made those changes. The 170,000 more seniors who will have access to free medication. I heard that. Answer. That's why it's in there. If we didn't get the threshold right, Mr. Speaker, on the other part of the change, then we will change that. Thank you. Another question. The Leader of the Third Party. Also for the Premier. Communities are seeing their neighbourhood schools closed. Kids who need special supports are seeing those supports cut, Speaker. Students are having to wear winter jackets in their classrooms because there isn't money to fix the heaters, Speaker. Can this Premier explain to students, their parents and their educators why it is that she's cutting another $430 million from education this year and over a billion since 2014? Thank you, Premier. Mr. Speaker, in fact, in the budget, the Leader of the Third Party will notice that we are increasing funding to education by $350 million. And things that we are doing, Mr. Speaker, is we are putting $333 million more into autism funding, Mr. Speaker. And you know, students with autism are some, children with autism are some of the most vulnerable in the society, in our province, Mr. Speaker, making sure that we increase funding and that we do it in a way that allows those kids to get access to the treatment that they need early, Mr. Speaker, when it makes a difference to them. That's why that $333 million is extremely important, Mr. Speaker. And on top of that, we continue with the investments in capital $11 billion in the education system over the next 10 years, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, supplementary speaker. The budget cuts $430 million out of education. But that's not all. The Premier is cutting $1.2 billion out of other programs, Speaker. But there are no details about what those other programs might be. What services people might be losing, Speaker. Is it road safety? Is it food inspections? Is it water safety, Speaker? Exactly what is that $1.2 billion coming from Speaker? And how many people are going to lose their jobs? Congratulations. Yes, thank you very much. And I'm delighted that you asked about this because in fact we spent $325 million more on renewal last year than the previous year. But what happened as a result of that was school boards spent more money on more big projects. Do you know what happens, Speaker? What happens is if you spend on a project over $10,000, it's counted as capital and it's counted over 25 years. So yes, it looks like the spending went down. But in fact, there were more big projects, $325 million worth of more big projects. And of course the other reason, other reason that the spending went down is we don't pay people who go on strike. We didn't project a strike. We didn't pay the people who went on strike. Okay, final supplementary. Speaker, on page 256 of the budget, Ontarians will see when they look because they can go online and look at the budget and they will see, regardless of what these ministers and this Premier says, $1.5 billion cut from education, $50 million cut from colleges and universities, $1.2 billion slashed out of just about everything else, Speaker. Cuts like this hurt people, they hurt young people, they hurt seniors, they hurt parents, they hurt people in cities, in rural Ontario, in the north, in the south. What the Premier doesn't seem to get, Speaker, is that people are counting on public services and the Premier is failing, failing at providing Ontarians with their most basic needs. Will this Premier start listening to Ontarians and take the cuts out of her budget? Well, I would actually ask, please, that the Leader of the Third Party go and look at the actual projections in the budget because what the budget quite clearly says is that the spending on childcare, elementary and secondary education is increasing on an average of 1.2% per year. It isn't being cut, it's going up every year. We are managing our costs but it is going up every year, Speaker, just like the spending for healthcare, just like the spending in all the other areas of our budget. Moderate growth, not dramatic growth, but moderate growth and that's how we're going to come to balance, Speaker, is by careful moderate growth that does a better job of educating our students so more students are graduating than ever before in Ontario. Thank you and good morning, Speaker, my question is for the Premier. In 2014, the Auditor General warned that liberal mismanagement of our finances is, quote, crowding out the services we need in Ontario. Because they did absolutely nothing about it, the Auditor repeated herself almost word for word in the 2015 report and now we see from the 2016 budget that life in Ontario has gotten even more expensive. This is because of the cancellation of the children's tax credit, the cancellation of the healthy home renovation tax credit and almost doubling of the cost of drugs for most seniors, all because of 13 years of liberal waste management and scandal. Speaker, my question to the Premier is why are the Liberals balancing the books on the backs of children, families and seniors? Thank you. Mr. Finance. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I appreciate the question from the opposition critic and I hope he takes in a supplementary recognizing what we have done to increase support for seniors, to increase support for our children, to increase support for tuition so that more of those most vulnerable have an opportunity to go to post-secondary, to increase support for hospitals and health care by a billion dollars a year, all of which is enabling everybody to be at their best, including social programs. And at the same time, Mr. Speaker, we're investing, investing heavily in infrastructure, investing heavily to stimulate economic growth. And Mr. Speaker, with our measures that we are taking, we are also balancing the books. Mr. Speaker, in the end, Ontarians expect us to manage pudently while still ensuring that we support the services that are so valuable to all Ontarians. Thank you. Supplementary. Back to the Premier, we believe this budget was a real opportunity for the government to show the people of Ontario that they were listening. While all parties traveled throughout Ontario, all read the hundreds of letters and all heard about the pain people are feeling under this government. Families warned they can no longer make their hydro payments. Steve and Cheryl Siglin from Trout Creek said their hydro bill was $904.23 last month, even though they were away for a whole week and their furnace was off for five days because of a power outage. Their small business folks, Speaker, are ready to hire another person, but now they can't because not only did this budget not help them with their hydro bill, it brought more cost to their businesses. Speaker, I asked the Premier, what do you say to the Siglins who see only higher costs for their family? Thank you. So, Mr. Speaker, the member opposite make reference to consultations. Of course, it was the first time that Mr. Finance actually invited members of the Finance Committee to appear and have a discussion on these matters. We all did consultations across the province, over 20 cities, and I was very proud of the work that everyone did. And, Mr. Speaker, they said, no, why don't you come meet with us? And I did, Mr. Speaker. And I thank the member opposite for sending his email memorandum to that committee to advise us of don't make any cuts, oh, furthermore, spend more. And then he goes on to say, you know what, don't increase revenues, oh, yeah, and balance the books. Mr. Speaker, I don't have the luxurious finance minister to live in their fiscal fantasy land. I live in the hard currency of reality to balance the books and to ensure that we do what says to say to the people of Ontario. And that's what we are doing, Mr. Speaker. Do you see it in place? Do you see it in place? I'm going to ask for a little bit of civility and a reminder. Mr. Speaker, you mentioned that we in this house mention only the person's writing or their title. Let's raise respect. New question. Member from Kitchener, Waterloo. Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Finance. It's interesting that the 2016 budget is called jobs for today and tomorrow. What this government fails to realize is that people are actually seeing fewer jobs today. And according to this government's budget, fewer jobs tomorrow across Ontario. For the second year in a row, this government has failed to meet its job needs. Member from Trinities, Medina. For the 60,000 jobs. If the government had listened to the people of this province during the pre-budget consultations instead of undermining the process, they would have heard that Ontarians are struggling. And no, I'm not referring to the Premier's well-connected friends. I'm talking about the rest of Ontario who are having a harder time making ends meet and finding good-paying permanent jobs. Minister, what do you say to the Ontarians that feel this Liberal government has left them behind once again? Thank you. Minister of Finance. Mr. Speaker, let me clarify some things for my finance critic from the NDP. Ontario and Ontarians have produced 608,000 net new jobs since the depth of the recession. Ontarians are continuing to work hard. And 320,000 additional jobs are being achieved over the next 36 months, all of which are primarily full-time high-paying in the private sector. And I compliment the tremendous amount of work that's being done by the people of Ontario. And we did listen, Mr. Speaker. We went across the province as well. In fact, I compliment the member opposite, who actually provided some tangible ideas as to what we should do in this budget, which we included, Mr. Speaker. In fact, one of the direct funding of that attendance, Kefia said, we need three billion dollars for bio-industrial innovation. And we put that on page 10, Mr. Speaker. There was an additional request for pregnancy and infant logs support. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Just before I commence, I have already noticed that some members have been advised hanging the scarves over their desks is not conducive to our place. So if you just fold them and put them on your desk or put them on, that would be appreciated. Thank you. Supplementary. Thank you very much. Minister, it's almost like you're talking about a different budget. And perhaps it's because Mr. Clark probably wrote this budget. Speaker, everyone in Ontario knows that this is a stretched-goal budget during the pre-budget consultations. Order, please. I'm standing first of all. And second of all, let's just stop. Please finish. Speaker, everyone in Ontario knows that this is a stretched-goal budget. During the pre-budget consultations, it became crystal clear to new Democrats that this government doesn't understand the priorities of Ontarians. Why else would a government fail to provide Ontarians with better healthcare, better jobs and a stronger education system? Why else would a government sell off a revenue- generating asset like Hydro-1 and leave Ontarians stuck footing the bill? It just doesn't add up, Mr. Speaker. Minister, when will this government stand up for Ontarians and get the fundamentals right? So the numbers speak for themselves, Mr. Speaker. We do aspire to do more and to do better for the people of Ontario. That, I agree. In fact, we agree to be fair in the determinations of what we do. We continue to support tuition and our education by increasing funding. We're supporting our seniors and our healthcare by increasing funding there as well. And Mr. Speaker, we all went through the province. I reflected very seriously on the submissions made to Scaffia. Their priorities and their values are very much reflected in this budget. And I am very proud of that. And one of their requests was ensure that you continue to invest in our future. Ensure that you don't leave anybody behind. We're investing $160 billion over the next 12 years to support infrastructure and the needs of all communities across Ontario. Some of it with permanent funding so that those municipalities can plan as well. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Any questions for the members of Trinity Spedana? Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is also to the Minister of Finance. Minister, last Thursday our government tabled the 2016 Ontario budget, jobs for today and tomorrow. The reviews are in, stakeholders from each corner of the province and from every sector are applauding our government's plan. The constituents in my writing of Trinity Spedana have already told me about their excitement in our government's solid approach to growing the economy and creating jobs, especially the students of University of Toronto and Okai University. Mr. Speaker, it is now clear to all that we will be balancing our budget by the year 2017 to 2018. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister of Finance please tell us more about this historic budget? Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I'd like to thank the member from Trinity Spedana for his question and for participating today in a major announcement about supporting more jobs. Mr. Speaker, our government's number one priority is growing the economy and creating jobs. Our economic plan supports good jobs today in communities across Ontario by investing in infrastructure and in a low carbon economy by innovative, high growth, export oriented businesses. The plan also helps all Ontarians achieve more security. Ontarians are worried about the state of the economy. I understand, we understand that and that's why we've taken measures in this budget to ensure how it might affect them and their families. And that's why we have table of budget that invests in jobs for today and tomorrow. And Mr. Speaker, that's because our biggest advantage is our people. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I want to thank the minister for his answer and what a great job on the budget. Here, here. Minister, you're quite right that Ontario's best attribute is its people and they know that our plan will make their everyday life easier. Minister, there are a number of key investments that we are making in this budget and I know that this house would like to hear more about what we are doing. So Mr. Speaker, can the minister of finance please inform this house about our plan to continue to create jobs for today and tomorrow? Good question. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I thank the member for the awesome question and a great reflection on the value of this budget. I know that my colleagues will want to speak about specifics but I'm happy to outline the things I am most proud of in this budget. A major newspaper over the weekend, its headline went, this budget says there and reflects that there's room for everyone. And it's so true, Mr. Speaker, transforming student assistance to make average college and university tuition free for students with financial need from families with incomes of less than 50,000, Mr. Speaker, by taking action on climate change and investing all proceeds from cap and trade into cream projects, by making the biggest investment in infrastructure on Ontario's history, 160 billion over 12 years starting in 2014-15, and Mr. Speaker, by making everyday life for people across the province by lowering costs and enhancing convenience and choice. Mr. Speaker, we're in this together for the benefit of the people of Ontario. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the minister responsible for seniors. For decades, Ontario seniors have worked hard to make our province great. But now, thanks to the Liberal budget, their retirement years are becoming completely unaffordable. Will the minister please explain what the Liberals have against seniors of this province? Thank you, minister responsible for seniors. Thank you very much. I want to thank the member for the question, Speaker. I knew it would be coming. I didn't know when. So I'm really delighted to under the question with respect to our seniors, where we have done so much, not only on this budget, Speaker, but previous to this budget. And whatever we've been doing for the seniors prior to, Speaker, will continue after the benefits our seniors are receiving in this new budget. As never before, Speaker, no one has done more than the previous and the existing government when you come to the benefits of our senior Speaker. And I will add more with respect to individual benefits that our seniors are receiving. And they will continue to receive afterwards, Speaker. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, I received a letter from a retired couple. They had to sell their home because they could no longer afford the Liberal cost of living. The cost of hydro was going up. Food is going up. And now the government is piling on higher gas taxes at home and at the pumps. What are seniors getting out of it? Nothing new for long term care beds. Nothing new for seniors physiotherapy. At the same time, they're making it more expensive for seniors to buy their medication. My question is this. When the Minister of Finance said he was increasing seniors drug benefit deductibles by 70 percent, where was the Minister for Seniors? Why didn't he speak up when he had the chance? Mr. Speaker, this is what our seniors' benefits are now. And I'm going to give them individually so the member will know. And that's the benefit for a member of this House, Speaker. $500 saving for the Ontario tax property grant, Speaker. $500 a year. Up to $1100 and 31 cents for the Ontario energy tax credit. $287, Speaker, for the Ontario sales tax credit. $1,500 up to the home renovation tax, Speaker. Over the 65, Speaker. $3,800 free drug, Speaker. Ten percent saving on hydropower. $173,000 people, Speaker. They are not paying any $100 co-payment after this new budget, Speaker. What else we can do for Speaker, for the senior Speaker? We'll do even more. $173,000. But we have also increased the age bracket where the seniors are getting the benefit. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care. Speaker, years of frozen high school budgets have had severe consequences for healthcare in Ontario. Today, patients face long-wait time in ER, cancel surgery, or they get admitted into hallways. Beds have been closed, hospital services moved to private clinics, and 1,200 registered nurses have been cut in just over a year. And now, for the seventh straight year in a row, hospital funding falls way below inflation. A 1% increase won't cover the cost of population growth or aging. It won't fix the damage that the Liberals have done to our hospital, and it won't stop even more cuts to frontline care. How can the Minister defend another years of cuts to our hospital care that families rely on? Well, Mr. Speaker, I'm not even sure how to begin to answer that question, Mr. Speaker, because to suggest that an extra $1 billion into our healthcare system, $345 million new for our hospitals, which is a 2.1% increase, actually. It's more than the rate of inflation. And I was just at an announcement with the Finance Minister this morning at University Health Network, and we were surrounded by patients, advocates, healthcare workers, Anthony Dale from the Ontario Health Hospital Association, Peter Pisters, the head of University Health Network as well, to celebrate this significant investment in our frontline healthcare workers in the hospital system. So how she somehow manages to twist that good news announcement into something else, Mr. Speaker? I just am flabbergasted. Thank you. Supplementary. Thank you, Speaker. The 1% increase to the budget of our hospital will do nothing to cut wait time, and he knows it. They will do nothing to improve access. They will do nothing to open any new beds, or rehire the full-time nurses that lost their job. Nothing to stop the layoff of hospital in Windsor, Hamilton, North Bay, or... Please finish. The damage that has been done by the layoff in hospitals like Windsor, Hamilton, North Bay, and so many other communities, and it's not just us saying this, Speaker. Nurses and physicians know that a 1% increase to our hospital will mean more cuts coming this year. At St. Joe's Healthcare in Hamilton, he says, the Liberals budget changes nothing. They still need to cut $26 million, and they still need to lay off 136 workers. People want to know why is this Liberal government doing so little to fix the years of damage that they have done to Ontario hospitals? Well, Mr. Speaker, the Nurse Practitioners Association of Ontario are thrilled with Premier Winds and Minister Hoskins' commitment to nurse practitioners. The RPNAO as well, the Registered Practical Nurses, were encouraged to note some of the much-needed healthcare investments outlined in the 2016 provincial budget. And it's not just the $1 billion of new money in healthcare overall. It's the $12 billion over the next decade for new and improved hospitals. $50 million more to annual funding to assist hospitals in maintaining their facilities and good repair. Of course, $85 million for our community health centers and for our family health teams to invest in our nurse practitioners and other allied health professionals. $75 million over the next three years on top of the existing funding and a total of $155 million over three years for hospices, Mr. Speaker, which is something I'm sure she's heard a lot from her constituents in terms of the importance of all these investments. Thank you. New question from the members of Scarborough Rouge River. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities. Minister, post-secondary education is a big investment for Ontario families. Many students in Scarborough Rouge River heavily rely on the Ontario Student Aid Program to cover the cost of their post-secondary tuition. I understand that more than $380,000, more than half of all full-time students, received financial aid last year alone. Minister, many of my constituents were very happy about the many changes our government made to OSAP in last year's budget. I was particularly pleased to see that, as part of this year's budget, we are once again making monumental changes to the way student financial aid is delivered in Ontario. Minister, can you please inform the members of the House on how our government is making post-secondary education more affordable and accessible for students across Ontario in the 2016 budget? Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I want to thank the member from Scarborough Rouge River for that very timely question. Mr. Speaker, our government strongly believes that all students, regardless of background or circumstances, should be able to afford to go to college or university in Ontario. That's why, as part of our 2016 budget, Ontario is moving forward with the single largest modernization of OSAP ever. Mr. Speaker, we listen to student leaders as we are responding by combining existing assistance programs into a single upfront grant that is more generous and the more straightforward. Mr. Speaker, the new Ontario student grant is transformative. I am pleased to say that the new grant will make tuition free for low-income students in the province of Ontario. I will also ensure that mature students, married students and the students who have been out of high school for more than four years, will have access to this grant. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, the Ontario student grant is a supplementary. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and thank you to the Minister for that answer. It is reassuring to hear that our government continues to keep the best interests of Ontario students at mind at all times. Minister, despite the significant improvements in the province has made to student aid since 2003, there remains a direct correlation between family income levels and post-secondary education participation rates. I understand that the rates of participation in full-time post-secondary education increase with family income. Furthermore, because of the complexity of how OSAP is structured and delivered, many students and families do not have a clear understanding of how much financial aid is available to them. This has led to the perception that Ontario has the highest tuition in Canada. Minister, can you please tell us more about how the new Ontario student grant will help more students access post-secondary education and understand how much financial aid they can receive? Thank you, Minister. Mr. Speaker, again, I want to thank the member for that question. Mr. Speaker, our government is working hard to break down the barriers that are preventing Ontarians from getting a post-secondary education. That's why by September 2017, all college, university and career college students who come from families with income less than $50,000 will have no provincial tuition debt. Not only that, the majority of students whose parents earn $83,000 or less will also receive grants more than the cost of tuition. Mr. Speaker, under the new Ontario student grants, more than 125,000 students will have more non-repayable aid and approximately 250,000 or 80% of OSAP eligible students will have less debt than they would have under the current OSAP system. Mr. Speaker, not only is this a smarter policy that will help, that will support economic growth, it is the right thing to do. Mr. Speaker, no one believes that government's projections on cap and trade, we all know that the Liberals cap and tax scheme will force Ontarians to pay much higher prices, much more than the Premier is willing to admit. Mr. Speaker, in fact, long-term projections show that Ontario families can expect to pay nearly $900 more every year just for gasoline and home heating alone. This Liberal scheme is just another example of how this government is making life more on affordable for all Ontarians. The minister had the chance to come clean, Speaker, with Ontarians last Thursday, but he chose not to. Speaker, why won't this minister tell the truth and finally reveal the true cost of the Liberals cap? Very much, Mr. Speaker. It's very fascinating watching the opposition on this. They have no position on climate change. They won't acknowledge that over half of the global GDP, half of the world's economy right now has a carbon price. They won't acknowledge that right now in British Columbia and in Quebec the cost of living is going up slower rate than any other province and the Canadian average since they were the first to introduce a carbon. They won't acknowledge those simple facts, Mr. Speaker. So I'm trying to figure out what their position is. It's a mixture of climate deniers and climate ditherers. They sort of tell you they care about climate change, but when it comes to actually telling us what they're going to do, Mr. Speaker, we're about to put $1.9 billion a year into people's heating systems. They're cool. They're cars and they're public transit to lower their cost of living. What is the opposition going to do with other than dither? I could tell you what the opposition is going to do, Speaker. We're going to put these guys to the door in 2018 and government's own numbers show that each household in the province can at least grow nearly $400 more every year. And again, that's just for gas and home heating. And that still doesn't account for the long-term impact on families, which could more than double that number. Speaker, the truth is the government's cap and tax scheme will increase the cost on everything. And what's it going to do? It will leave families who are already struggling to make ends meet with much higher prices for everyday essentials like groceries. Speaker, why won't this minister finally admit that this government's real motive for cap and trade is to pay for years of liberal scandal and mismanagement and not protect the environment? So, Mr. Speaker, I just want to ask the member from here on Bruce one more time. Why, if that is true, if her assumption or fundamental assumption is true, why does Quebec and BC that have had a carbon price BCs at twice the rate of Ontario's approximately? And they've had the lowest cost of living. Why, Mr. Speaker, because they're only looking at one pint of the balance sheet. They don't realize all of the efficiency this drives and the economy, that it overall lowers and slows the rate of growth and cost of living. And they don't look at the fact that we are about to make massive investments in people's vehicles, in their home heating cooling systems, in insulation, in public transit, that people will not have to use carbon-based fuels because we're going to switch. We're going to renovate and retrofit every building in Ontario. Answer. And the reason that, Mr. Speaker, the reason that they will not be thrown out in 2018. Order. New questions. The member from Toronto, Danforth. Thank you, Speaker. My question to the minister of the environment and climate change. Last week, I asked the minister whether revenues from the cap and trade system would flow into a special purpose account and not into general government revenues. Last Wednesday night, we got our answer. The money will flow into general revenues and the rules for spending this money are so lax and flexible it could be spent on pretty much anything. Will the government tighten up the rules for spending the cap and trade revenues and place this money into a separate account that pays for verifiable greenhouse gas reductions? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I look forward to working with the member from Toronto, Danforth because I know he cares about these issues very much. So all of this money, Mr. Speaker. Member from Timmins, James B. All of this money, Mr. Speaker, goes into a singular account, reported in, reported out. We know the auditor general as well as the minister of the environment and the entire legislature will pay very close attention as we publicly report. The environmental commissioner will also be reviewing that. The legislation, if you compare our legislation to Quebec or B.C. or California, is about the most stringent that you can. We also have to report, Mr. Speaker, on four other things. One, the impacts relative of every measure we take, how much greenhouse gas addition is being answered. I will leave it. I'll wait for the supplementary, Mr. Speaker. I'm sure there'll be some questions. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Speaker, in the fine print of the government's cap and trade bill, we learned that the so-called greenhouse gas reduction account is not actually a special purpose account. It is an accounting fiction, Speaker, that gives the government total flexibility in how it spends the cap and trade revenues. Programs only have to be indirectly related in some way to greenhouse gas reductions. The money can be used for expenditures that have already been made. It can even be used on programs that have already been funded. The NDP supports cap and trade, so we want the system to be fair, transparent and effective. Will the government stop playing accounting games and make sure the cap and trade system revenue flows into a special purpose account? Thank you. So, Mr. Speaker, it's very clear to me that the official opposition singularly doesn't believe you need a price on carbon to reduce emissions, with is a fantasy that only they hold. I'm still waiting for the third party to explain what is your position on cap and trade. Do you support it? Do you not support it? No. Because, Mr. Speaker, on page 278 of the budget, the exact expenditure program is laid out, and I'd just like to add five things that we have to do in this process that I think should give some comfort to them. One, the estimated amount of funding for each action if it is funded on the greenhouse gas reduction account, a specific account, has to be explained, allocated and demonstrated. There also has to be a timetable for implementation. There has to be an estimate of the potential greenhouse gas reductions achieved, and the cost per ton of potential emissions, and a public progress report on all actions, and a five-year action plan. If the member can find a higher standard anywhere in the world for accountability and transparency. Thank you very much, Speaker. My question is also to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, who's very busy this morning. Speaker, last year I brought forward a motion before this House to acknowledge that climate change is real and the need to address it. And Speaker, I was proud again to see our government is once again leading in the fight against climate change. Climate change is humanity's greatest challenge, and the debate on that is over. The impacts of climate change are expected to increase costs significantly in our lives, including human health, health care costs, tourism, infrastructure, as a result of flooding, and agriculture as a result of drought, Speaker. As part of our 2016 budget, we announced the details of the proposed cap-and-trade system, the cap-and-trade program, as well as introducing comprehensive legislation and posting a draft regulation for public input. Can the Minister please speak to the strict rules and regulations that we put forward on the reinvestment process? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and I want to thank the Legislature today for such great interest in this topic. It's reassuring to me that I sit in the Legislature. We may have different views, but people do care about this. Mr. Speaker, I just do want to take a second to talk about what the cost of inaction may be and what we're facing in Ontario. Southern Ontario, where the member for Heron Bruce is, your constituency will be four degrees Celsius warmer than it is today. The entire southern half of the province, in every one degree Celsius, means seven percent more water is absorbed into the atmosphere. What that means to our capacity for farms and for the farm and agro sector is terrible. In Northern Ontario, where a bunch of our forestry industry is, it will be eight degrees Celsius warmer, Mr. Speaker, and the impacts on forestry are devastating. The impacts on eight metres of our go transit line cost us six hundred. These costs will drive costs. A carbon price actually not only allows us to fund supplementary. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and thank you, Minister, for that answer. And I know myself it's clear that the reinvestment of the proceeds will be done in a public and transparent manner and will only be used to deliver on combating climate change. And, Speaker, personally I'm concerned, and I think I'm baffled, Speaker, on the decision of Heron Bruce and the third party on climate change. Neither party and neither leader has offered a credible plan on climate change as the Minister has alluded to. Speaker, it's our Premier, our Minister and our Government. It's once again taking the lead on climate change and on policy issues in this province of Ontario. And I understand that as part of our plan we will be introducing a climate action, climate change action plan that will further detail how we will plan to reinvest proceeds and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Speaker, can the Minister inform the House on what we can expect from that action plan? Question. Thank you, Minister. Mr. Speaker, I just want to be clear about this. We have had a climate strategy. We have a climate bill now in the House. We have climate regulations that were released last Thursday. We had a budget that outlined it. We will soon have an action plan which will detail the next five years of how we will spend what our objectives are to meet our 2020 target, which because of the cap part of cap and trade guarantees we will get there. We also have more public reporting mechanisms on how each project and overall expenditures are measured. To my colleague, the basically a polluter pay system, which means that if you don't pollute and will help you do the things you don't pollute, and she was her position is the same one that Mr. DiCaprio expressed yesterday, which is within the next 30 years we have to solve the problem or we won't be able to solve it again. New question to members from Renfrew, Nippon, St. Timber. Very much speaking of my questions for the Minister of Energy. This month we in the official opposition have asked the reasonable request for this government to finally address in their 2016 budget unsustainable hydro rate increases. They have completely failed to do so. To add salt to the ratepayers' wounds, government ministers were crowing about two dollars a month off ratepayers' hydro bills despite the fact that they have increased more than a thousand dollars in the under their tenure. Speaker, will this government finally admit to the people of Ontario that their budget last week was nothing more than a token, a cup of coffee shall we say, and that hydro rates will continue to become more unaffordable under the Liberal plan? Thank you, Minister of Energy. Mr. Speaker, they left us a 20 billion dollar loan to deal with and we're dealing with that Mr. Speaker. And Mr. Speaker, we recognize that the price of electricity can be difficult for those that pay a higher share of their income towards the bill, particularly low income families and seniors on a fixed income. That's why we launched the Ontario Electricity Support Program and removed the debt retirement charge on January 1st of this year, Speaker, saving many families $430 annually. And we also know that bills can be even harder for families and seniors in rural and remote areas that heat with electricity or use medically-assisted devices. That's why we doubled the monthly benefit these families can access up to $100, Mr. Speaker. Speaker, it's important to remember that the average Ontario household is paying around $5 per day, which represents incredible value for money, Speaker. Particularly given the 90% emissions-free system this pays for, a system which is no longer available to the Black Outs and Browns. Thank you, supplementary. More shell game gobbledygook from the minister. Back to the minister. The minister knows that this insulting, stipend, won't even begin to come close to covering the cost of the latest increases that went into effect on January 1st. Ironically, with the tune they receive, they can treat themselves to a small cup of coffee. Once a month, how fitting. Ontarians need to hear about substantial relief in their electricity bills, yet the minister seems unwilling to acknowledge the harm he's caused families. Speaker, it is interesting that the minister had finally found out what a cup of coffee is worth after increasing hydro bills by hundreds and hundreds of dollars. Will he stand up and acknowledge that their budget will do nothing? Nothing for families, hydro bills, or does he simply not care? Mr. Speaker, as I was saying before, the government knows that there are families in Ontario that need assistance with their bill. That's why we provide the Ontario Energy and Property Tax Credit, the Save on Energy Home Assistance Program, and the Northern Ontario Energy Credit, which can save families more than $1,000 annually, Mr. Speaker. But, Mr. Speaker, as I was also saying, the average family in Ontario was paying about $5 each day for clean, reliable electricity. For this price, Ontarians know they can light their homes, they can power their computers, they can charge the cell phones, and they can run their dishwashers. This is very good value for money, Speaker, especially when you consider that our system is no longer powered by the dirty coal-fired generation that used to make our kids sick, which they expanded, Mr. Speaker, and now save us $4.4 billion annually in health care costs. Mr. Speaker, for $5.26 per day, I stand you sit. Good question, Mr. Minister, to Ms. Kimmy Cochran. My question is to the Premier. Early in your mandate, you challenged the agri-food sector to create 120,000 new jobs in Ontario. That's on top of the 750,000 jobs that already exist. Farmers are the foundation of the agri-food sector. They grow the crops and raise the livestock on which the sector depends. Farmers have repeatedly told you that the cap on risk management needs to be lifted so they can continue to drive the agricultural sector. But once again, in this budget, you have chosen, you've chosen not to do so. Premier, how can you set targets for farmers and jobs while we're fusing to give them the tools to do so? Well, thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and I know that the member opposite recognizes that we are the government that brought in the risk management program, Mr. Speaker, that we worked closely with farmers and have helped, Mr, the farmers have helped us design the risk management programs, Mr. Speaker, because there are a number of them as the member opposite knows. We will continue to work with farmers, and I know that the Minister of Agriculture and Food has a very close connection. And as we work, whether it's with the corn-fed beef farmers, Mr. Speaker, or the grain and oil seed farmers, where there are slightly different risk management programs, we'll continue to work with them in the meantime, Mr. Speaker. We are investing in food processing in the Jobs and Prosperity Fund, Mr. Speaker. There's a particular carve-out for food processing in the agri-food industry, Mr. Speaker. We know how important it is, and we continue to invest in support growth in that sector, including, Mr. Speaker, for example, craft brewers and fruit wines, Mr. Speaker, who are going to be able to grow their businesses. Thank you, supplementary. Thank you, Speaker. Once again to the Premier, it was farmers in the government that designed the risk management program. They designed it to be bankable and predictable. May I also remind you that it was your government that kept it, making sure that it was no longer bankable and predictable. The risk management program is one of the best programs this province has ever had, but it doesn't work when you go to the bank and you can't guarantee that your risk is covered. The farmers have completely told you this is the way to make sure that we can continue, that they can continue to create the jobs in which this province depends. Agriculture is either number one or number two in this province, and this government refuses to acknowledge that the farmers with the risk management program, they need that cap lifted. Premier, why have you chosen again not to do so? Well, Mr. Speaker, we continue to make investments in rural Ontario, and it's why we increased the budget for agriculture, food and rural affairs by $138 million last year, Mr. Speaker. And as I said, we continue, we continue to work with the farm sector to make sure that we design those programs, those risk management programs, which we put in place in consultation with the sector, Mr. Speaker, in response to the sector, in direct response to the need for farmers to have that predictability. We will continue to work with them. We will also invest in their communities, Mr. Speaker. We will also invest in the infrastructure that benefits businesses across the province. We are putting more money in terms of the small communities fund, Mr. Speaker, more money in the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund. We're tripling the money in the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund, Mr. Speaker. And you know that rural communities, farm communities, need those infrastructure investments as much as our urban community. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Ministry of Finance on the point of order. Mr. Speaker, I beg your indulgence and recognize a tremendous individual, a captain of industry, a major philanthropist in our community, a founder of a museum celebrating cultural roots in Ontario. He launched the Portuguese-Canadian Walk of Fame, recognizing the likes of singer-songwriter Deli Fritado, a major financier in our community, Michael Nobrega, and a pioneer, a businessman as well as a midi volunteer, my old man, Antonio Souza. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Manuel Bacosta to this legislative. Thank you. Point of order, senior. Very much, Mr. Speaker. I just want to clarify and correct my record. When I was talking about the shingles vaccine, Mr. Speaker, all seniors between 65 and 70 years of age, Mr. Speaker, will be able to access the shingles virus free. Team. I got it. And as indicated earlier when he wasn't in the house, I'd like to bring attention to a visitor, the former Speaker of the Ontario Legislature, Steve Peters. He and I are going to write a book. Anyway, there are no deferred votes. This house stands recess until 1 p.m. this afternoon.