 Therefore, it's now time for a question period. The Leader of Her Majesty's Library. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier. I have heard story after story from students and parents that have been positively impacted by Ontario's demonstration and provincial schools. Just look at each and every family here today. They represent the countless success stories and soon-to-be success stories. Blind, deaf and learning disabled students are able to flourish because of these schools. I have heard a student say that the demonstration school actually saved their life. Mr. Speaker, this government can't play games with the education of these children. Mr. Speaker, my question is very direct, very straightforward to the Premier. Will you commit to keeping the Ontario Provincial Demonstration Schools open for years to come? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I want to welcome all of the parents and the families here today. It's very important that we have this conversation and you're very welcome. Thank you for coming to the legislature. Our government's committed to the success and well-being of every child in this province, Mr. Speaker. We're committed to giving every child access to the programming that they need. And I know that there have been successes in the programming in the provincial and demonstration schools, Mr. Speaker. And one of the challenges that we have is that there are children who are not in the provincial and demonstration schools who actually need access to programming, Mr. Speaker, such as is in the provincial and demonstration schools. So we launched consultations to better understand how students currently attending the provincial and demonstration schools are being supported, Mr. Speaker. And I know the Minister of Education will have more to say about that process. The member for Prince Edward Hastings. Speaker, back to the Premier. The Minister of Ontario got to meet Lexi. I had the chance to speak with 10-year-old Lexi a couple of weeks ago at my constituency office in Belleville. And let me tell you, this is one intelligent girl who is as cute as a button. When we sat in my office, she had prepared text that she read for me. It was in a large font spaced out and she did extremely well. But when I asked her to read something that I had on my desk that was in a 12-point font, she was so thrilled and she actually broke down in tears. And that's completely unacceptable that that should happen. She deserves a future just like other kids do, Mr. Speaker. She wants to go to Saginaw next year like her brother did and have the future that her brother now has. But there are kids like Lexi in every county and every city right across Ontario. Speaker, my question to the Premier is simple. Why does she think it's acceptable to put the education of students learning disabilities in year-to-year chaos when it would be unacceptable for any other student? Thank you, Premier. Education. Yes, thank you. And I too would like to welcome all the families that are here today from both the demonstration schools and the provincial schools around the province. And I want to respond to the member by saying we get it that the demonstration schools provide a wonderful program. The demonstration schools provide a very effective program. But what you're reporting, which is here's a child who needs the programming. There are thousands of children around Ontario who need the programming. And we need to figure it out how... We're going to start taking advantage of it. I'm going to start calling it. We need to figure out... Answer. We need to figure out how can we deliver program to kids all over the province who can't read because we want all the... Thank you. Final supplementary. Thank you and good morning, Speaker. My question is for the Premier. Marie de Rozier lives in North Bay and her daughter, Amanda, is rolled at the Sagan Asuka demonstration school. She wrote to our leader, quote, without these schools, students like my daughter would not be employable because they would never make it through high school. My daughter is 15 years old and was reading at a grade one level in September of this school year. Today, after six months at Sagan Asuka, she's reading at a grade three level with hopes of reaching age level reading within another year. She continued, the closure of these schools will mean that these students will never reach their full potential. Speaker, will the Premier stand here today and promise Marie de Rozier that these schools will remain open in the years ahead so that her daughter will have the opportunity to graduate high school? Thank you. Just to be clear, Speaker, I want everyone to be aware that the application process for the demonstration schools, the enrollment in the provincial schools for the deaf will be continuing. Those processes are starting up again for the 2016-17 year. So for any of the students who are currently enrolled at a demonstration school and are in year one of the program and who the school says require a second year, then those children would be able to complete that second year. It's the principles that actually designate whether the student should go for one year or whether they need to continue for a second year. But for those students who are in the first year of a program and the principal recommends they continue in the second year, they will be able to do that. A member from Leeds Grand Park. My question is for the premier. Parents from my riding with children at Belleville's Saganaska demonstration school are among the hundreds here today. They've been spared for one year, but their fight isn't over. They fought too hard to maintain these life-changing programs to risk what might happen after this year. As one mom in my riding told me, quote, this school will not leave my child, but will change the trajectory of his life. If the government was truly listening to these parents like her, they'd stop trying to close these schools and work to put more kids in them. Speaker, will the premier guarantee that these schools will be open after the 2016-2017 year? Will she assure parents with us today that the families won't be put in next year? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. As the Minister of Education has said, there was a consultation to better understand how students who are currently attending the provincial and demonstration schools can best be supported and beyond that to determine how we can support these kids and their families and how we can support the thousands of kids and their families. Member from Leeds-Grandville. Finish, please. We can provide access to programs that are much needed for the thousands of kids and families who don't have access at this point, Mr. Speaker, because surely that is a point that we can agree on. That, of course, the kids and the families who are here are extremely important. But, Mr. Speaker, there are thousands of kids outside of these schools who also need support and that's what we need to determine. We, as a society, provide access to all of the kids who need the programs. Supplementary, the member from Simple Grade. Back to the Premier. Mr. Speaker, my constituent Ruth Borosho's son, Nathaniel, struggles with learning disabilities. Last fall, Nathaniel was accepted to the Trillium Demonstration School in Milton. Ruth tells me he entered grade 7 this year with zero ability to read. Nathaniel surpassed kindergarten reading and is moving to grade 3 reading. Ms. Borosho states her son's success at Trillium is incredible and I agree. Speaker, Ms. Borosho told the Toronto Star yesterday and I quote, they can open the applications and close the door again. They haven't told the teachers they'll have their jobs back in September. They haven't told the councillors and support staff they'll have their jobs back in September. Please explain to educators why these issues remain unanswered and why she's leaving such uncertainty out there. Have a heart. Clean it up today. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, I know that the Minister of Education is going to want to speak to the logistics around the staffing, but Mr. Speaker, I just want to be perfectly clear. I understand how important these programs are to the children and the families who are here today. But Mr. Speaker, it is our responsibility to make sure that we don't stand in the way of a change that could actually provide more service and more programming to children across the province. So if the member opposite is asking me will we never change those opportunities will we stand in the way of other kids getting the program that they need know. I won't commit to that Mr. Speaker. I believe that the education system has to continue to evolve. My hope for this consultation was and I said this to the Minister of Education before it started my hope was that we'd be able to work with the families who have the programs and with the families outside of the programs to figure out how we can solve for the problem of the kids who do not have access to this program. Mr. Speaker. Thank you very much Speaker. Back to the Premier. Your government is failing students and families who rely on your provinces demonstration schools. Robarts and amethysts give young people opportunities to build their skills and their confidence and hope so that they can look ahead optimistically to the future. In a meeting just last Friday with families from my riding I learned of a young lady who so honestly said Speaker when she's sitting in a classroom full of classmates knowing she learns differently she never feels more alone. Premier, Speaker that's not the inclusion these young people deserve. This young lady wants to learn amongst her peers despite the short term solution that we heard the Minister announce yesterday the Liberals have done nothing to help families plan for long term. So we need to hear from the Premier today and we commit to all of the families from Huron and across Ontario today that she'll remove the cap and keep the school. Education. Yes, thank you Speaker and I just want to clarify the situation. The formal consultation process ended on April the 8th. I'm actually still having some meetings with various parties and so we haven't made any decisions yet in terms of how do we provide programming in the future as the Premier has noted we want to find a way that will provide good solid programming of the nature provided in a variety of locations but we haven't made any decisions about how we do that. But what I can assure is that we have also not just notify the media of the decision before we did that yesterday we notified the unions we notified the principals we noted Thank you. I stand you sit I'm trying to speak I stand you sit New question the leader of the third party Thank you very much Speaker my questions to the Premier for months families and students with exceptional learning needs have pleaded with this government to keep their schools open they've organized they've gathered thousands of signatures and rallied from Belleville to London today hundreds of families from across the province join us here at Queen's Park united for one reason and one reason only the future of our provincial and demonstration schools it boggles the mind of some of our most vulnerable children it all comes down to priorities children should always be our priority speaker they should always be our priority this Premier listen to families and commit to keeping these schools open long term or will she turn her back on our most vulnerable children Well Mr Speaker as I said our priority actually is all the children in this province it is absolutely fundamental that we provide the programming that kids need the supports that they need which is why Mr Speaker we value the programming in the provincial and demonstration schools we know that there are aspects of those programs that are very very successful Mr Speaker and we want to make sure that as we go through this process that we provide opportunities for the thousands of kids that don't have access to that program Mr Speaker to those programs that we provide those opportunities so that every child in the province gets the opportunity that they deserve Thank you Supplement You know Speaker the Premier has the final word when it comes to prioritization of what this government sees as important and I guess vulnerable children just don't check the boxes for the Premier when it comes to priorities Families should not be forced to fight for the opportunity for their children to throw Provincial schools for the deaf allow students to be immersed in an ASL or LSQ environment essential for individual expression demonstration schools boost reading comprehension and confidence for students with exceptional learning needs The Premier confirmed that her government has no plans to close any provincial or demonstration school in this year or next year or in the long term Speaker Thank you I cannot in good conscience say that we will never change anything about the delivery of programming and education which is exactly what the leader of the third party and the leader of the opposition are asking I cannot in good conscience say that as we see changes in society as we see changes in health Mr. Speaker I know that there's a huge debate about the programming for deaf and deaf blind children Mr. Speaker the availability of ASL in our schools and LSQ Mr. Speaker it's something that I dealt with when I was Minister of Education and a former member here Gary Malkowski worked with me to change regulations so that there would be more ASL delivered in our schools I understand that there are debates that have to be engaged one of those debates is how do we make sure that programming that works for kids has the opportunity to work for all kids in the province who need it Mr. Speaker Final supplementary Speaker closing enrollment without notice to families and students for these schools was the wrong thing to do was a callous and inappropriate move for this government to take for what did this premier think was going to happen of course students and families rally to try to save the very thing that they need to make sure that their kids could reach their potential Speaker for months for at least a month New Democrats have been raising this issue in the house and for a while now this government has dodged any commitment to actually backtracking on their wrong decision so now here we are hundreds of people on the law of the legislature this afternoon this government has made a commitment in a small change of direction in September but what all of these families and all of these people need to know is that the change is permanent and they will not close the demonstrations and provincial schools Thank you I will say that what the leader of the third party is asking is that we determine that it is impossible to provide more programming and more opportunities for the thousands of kids who are not in these schools what the leader of the third party is saying is you cannot change the delivery of program in this province that's just not reasonable we have to be able to work with the families as I said before one of the conversations that the minister of education and I had was how do we work with the families to determine what's in the best interest of the kids who are here today and the kids who are in these schools and accessing these programs but beyond that what is the solution for the kids who are not in these schools so the enrollment has been very open but final decisions haven't been made we pray that we have the opportunity to work with families to come up with solutions that work for these kids and all of the kids in the province new question the leader of the third party I don't understand why this government thinks they need to rob peter to pay paul it seems they do that on every single file and it's the wronger who can admit when she's wrong and overturn some of her bad decisions whether it's backing off on a plan to double drug costs for seniors lifting the freeze on enrollment at the provincial and demonstration schools are backing off on bad regulation changes for child care when will the premier reconsider her undemocratic plan to change election financing laws and open the process to include non-partisan panel well Mr. Speaker you know I believe that the house leaders are meeting either today or in the very near future to talk about what the committee process will be Mr. Speaker as we move to bring legislation forward in the spring in the next few weeks so that we can move to getting legislation to first reading Mr. Speaker and have a broad consultation across the province after first reading and then again after second reading Mr. Speaker so I'm looking forward to that input I'm looking forward to that discussion that should take place into May and June and into the summer and into the fall Mr. Speaker and I look forward to all of that input as we together move to what I believe there's a fair degree of consensus in terms of the changes that need to be made to fundraising but we need that input in order to get it right Supplementary Speaker the premier is making a mistake by writing new election laws by herself without prior consultation with civil society other political parties of Ontarians at a time when people are increasingly cynical about politics one party changing election rules all by itself is only going to make people more cynical Will this premier respect the democratic rights of Ontarians to have a say in their own electoral system and open up the process Mr. Speaker the process that we're putting forward there is a broad consensus there are other jurisdictions that have moved on many of the changes that we're proposing the federal government some other provinces Mr. Speaker given that and given that we're proposing that we bring legislation we move to consultation after first reading across the province and then again after second reading that Mr. Speaker is quintessentially the democratic process that is how that is how this legislature works that is how decisions are made it's not one party that's the role of the legislature Mr. Speaker is to bring forward legislation to have a debate and to listen to that debate and then to make changes based on it and to move forward that's what we're going to do Mr. Speaker and I look forward to the input as you know I ask for input from the leaders of the opposition parties I hope I will hear from them Mr. Speaker as we draft the legislation but for sure we will hear from people across the province as we go into the consultation Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker what a difference a little bit of power makes members of the liberal front bench once called it anti-democratic to unilaterally change election law Speaker they saw rightly that changing election laws without consensus and public buy-in is bad for democracy people deserve to know that our democracy is fair Speaker and the party writing the rules doesn't have its thumb on the scale this premier who is instrumental in creating the system of ministerial quotas appearing to sell access to government decision makers and shaking the public trust is not one to be now changing the rules on her own will this premier open up the process of updating campaign financing to a fast moving independent panel and start to rebuild Ontario's trust in their government thank you Governor House leader well thank you very much Speaker I really don't understand Speaker why the NDP leader is undermining the role of the legislators we are exactly elected for the sole purpose of developing legislation that is exactly the job that is given to us by the people of Ontario Speaker you don't need a great 10 civic lesson to know that I hope I don't know what she tells her schools in great 10 classes as to what the role of the legislators is it is to bring forward legislation it is to hold public consultations it is to listen from Ontario it is to then make amendments through the clause by clause process Speaker I look forward to speaking with the other house leaders this afternoon to talk about how we can develop a process that will ensure that Ontarians from across this great province have an opportunity to provide the input experts to come forward to provide the input Speaker that is our role as legislators we should be doing our job by following suit thank you new question my question is to the Minister of Education this morning Minister today there are 5 families in Sarnia Lampton who are counting on the life changing education that their children receive at the Amethyst demonstration school in London there are dozens more whose children have graduated from the intensive program at Amethyst and are now thriving in this secondary and post secondary education there are even more families Madam Minister eager to apply for admission to Amethyst knowing in their hearts that the education their children receive from this school will change their child's future forever yet these families fear that this government is preparing to close Amethyst these concerned parents and students I have met with have contacted my office and described the Amethyst demonstration schools as essential a blessing Minister will you commit today to keeping Amethyst open not just for current students but also for future enrollment by students from Sarnia Lampton across Ontario I want to make it clear Speaker that we're concerned about all special needs students wherever they may be in the province and it's precisely because we're concerned about the students who are deaf blind or who have severe special learning disability needs it's precisely because of that that we started the consultations in the first place because we want to figure out how we can provide the best program possible particularly for all those students with severe learning disabilities and for all those students in southwestern Ontario or in eastern Ontario who are deaf or hard of hearing it's because we are concerned about those students that we entered into the consultations at this point no decisions have been made on the outcome of the consultations Thank you supplementary Member for Melvin Middle Sets London Thank you very much Mr. Speaker Minister you started the consultations but you shut down enrollment and you refuse to offer future employment for the teachers that are working at these schools and you're a master in this process but thankfully you realize you made a mistake and because of the parents are here in the protest you started the admittance process again I have a constituent of mine and due to his age, Josh this is his last chance to have a hope for his future but your government is only committing to one year for Josh and most students need more than that Minister the application process alone takes a year to start your actions today will deter students from applying for next year and due to uncertainty Mr. Speaker sorry the school system may not get the necessary applications leading to your argument that there's not enough students for the programs Mr. Speaker will the minister commit today to keeping the Robart school for the deaf the Amethyst demonstration school open in London beyond this coming school year or was her decision yesterday simply to shut her down the protest Minister as I noted earlier the formal consultations ended on April the 8th one of the meetings that we had with the parents the parents had said would we reopen the process for this years that people had already put together the binders put together the psychological testing and I committed to them at one of the parent meetings that once the formal consultations were over we would look at whether or not we would reopen the process for this year I followed through on that commitment when the formal consultation process was done we announced yesterday that in fact the application process is open again for the 2016-17 years that's exactly what I committed to determining I determined that the process is open for the 2016-17 years thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the Minister of Education the government keeps saying more children need access to specialized programming that's available at demonstration and provincial schools so why did the minister cap enrollment in the first place if more children need access to these programs why are they even thinking about closing them it just doesn't make sense children with exceptional learning needs deserve better from this government we know these programs are successful and the minister himself admits it will the minister tell families in the gallery and those that are at home today that the provincial and demonstration schools will remain open after the 2016-17 school year just said we're just in the process of completing the consultations we're reviewing the information that has come in and no decision has been made as a result of the consultations but we do respect the fact that these are highly successful programs and that's why we have reopened the admission to ensure that those who have submitted their applications for the 2016-17 year that that process will go forward and we are committed though to figuring out how do we manage to serve kids with severe learning disabilities from all across the province there are children from all across the province with severe learning disabilities who are not being adequately served right now and that's a problem we need to fix we need to make sure that students all over the province thank you supplementary thank you speaker back to the minister of education this government is failing vulnerable children their spin doesn't make sense in fact the minister's own briefing note that I obtained through a freedom of information request shows that the consultation process ends with a discussion with unions on details of staff impact that directly shows that they were considering closing these schools all along seems like the minister started consulting with the end goal of closing schools without actually listening to what was said and speaker that is shameful today the minister should listen to children and families listen to what these schools have meant to them children are begging the minister to listen again will the minister of education guarantee that these important schools will stay open beyond the 2016-17 school year will she make a long-term commitment to these worried families thank you thank you minister what I what I will commit to is that we want to find a way to serve all the children in the province with severe learning disabilities the fact that we have heard over and over again from children and families all across the province that children who have average or above intelligence who are in grade 7 or grade 8 or grade 9 or grade 10 are unable to read beyond a kindergarten or grade 1 level that says to me that we have a problem and there is a problem that we need to solve and that we need to make a commitment to all those students that we are looking at how do we design programs to best serve children with severe learning disabilities all over the province that is what the consultations are about thank you thank you very much my question is to the minister of children and youth services I am sure I speak for all members of this house when I say collectively that we were deeply saddened by the tragic news in Attawapiskat this weekend the First Nations community of less than 2,000 people saw 11 people try to take their lives on Saturday night this community has seen over suicide attempts since last September and the community declared state of emergency over the weekend and I know that the minister of children and youth services and the minister of health and long term care visited Attawapiskat yesterday can the minister of children and youth services please update this house on the visit and what was heard from the community of Attawapiskat minister of children and youth services thank you speaker and I want to thank the member from Prescott Russell for this very important and serious question and yes I did travel yesterday with the minister of health to the Attawapiskat community to speak not just the community but the youth themselves speaker and their leadership and we heard how we must all work together on short medium and long term solutions to address very serious challenges facing this community and their youth our government will be providing additional assistance to the community following the government's emergency medical assistance team also known as an EMAT assessment an EMAT reconnaissance team working with the local bound council as well as the Winnebago area health authority to determine how EMAT can best provide assistance in this community the assessment led to some very important action speaker our government will be taking which will be touched on in the supplementary thank you thank you very much speaker and it is an immediate action to address the crisis in Attawapiskat but speaker we've heard time and again that these under serviced areas face serious and chronic problems and a visit from the ministers while it's informative and important it's not enough if we're really going to address the epidemic problems the First Nations communities face like Attawapiskat Speaker through you did the minister come to any agreements with the community about the best way to move Attawapiskat will receive the full supports that they need Minister of health and long-term care Minister of health long-term care Thank you Mr. Speaker and we are actually right now deploying 13 healthcare personnel including mental health workers we're providing two million dollars in support but I want to speak to just how moved Tracy and I were in Attawapiskat yesterday the incredible leadership demonstrated by the local chief chief council we were accompanied by Perry Bellegard who is the national chief of the assembly of First Nations but the youth that we met and we met dozens of youth Mr. Speaker who are demonstrating such tremendous courage and determination all we need to do Mr. Speaker is follow the path that they themselves have set out for us to follow in terms of providing not just the immediate support that we announced yesterday but that long-term support to ensure their futures we stand side by side with those youth with the local leadership in the community and Perry Bellegard to make sure that we're working hard and with our federal partners to solve this crisis Mr. Speaker Thank you Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker my question is to the minister Christina please Thank you Member Minister of Education My constituents are concerned about the current situation regarding demonstration and provincial schools in Ontario Ontario has recognized its duty to provide education to deaf students for well over 100 years My constituents like Anne and Harold Wall are worried that without dedicated schools for deaf children these children will not have the full ability to participate in academic, social and extracurricular aspects of their education How can they learn when they don't have the opportunity to communicate? Minister will you do the right thing and eliminate the ongoing uncertainty, anxiety and the fear of closure of the demonstration and provincial schools in Ontario Yes or no Thank you Minister Thank you very much and you mentioned schools for the deaf and I believe that students who live in your riding would be going to the school for the deaf the Drury school for the deaf and Milton would be probably the usual placement or partly possibly at the east end side of your riding it might be Whitney and Belleville and I have said all along that we are operating the school for the deaf in Milton Drury and the school for the deaf in Belleville Whitney we understand that those are the schools that offer a program in ASL American Sign Language ASL is the teaching language those two schools for the deaf and we have committed right from the beginning that those are not schools that we have been consulting on that certainly those schools will continue to operate and that that is not Thank you Supplementary the members from First Wellington Thank you Mr. Speaker My question is for the Minister of Education Chris Sonderman from Shakespeare attends Amethyst demonstration school this specialized school environment has increased his confidence and his learning has progressed at an exceptional rate Without Amethyst his family tells me they don't think he could have graduated high school with a diploma and Speaker his mother said she says our students did not create Ontario's deficit and we should not jeopardize their future to fix it Speaker will the Minister please explain to Chris and his family why she is willing to jeopardize his future will she do the right thing and guarantee The Minister the Minister of Sport please finish Speaker will she do the right thing and guarantee that Chris's school will remain open Thank you first of all I want to assure everyone that this is not about money this is about how do we provide the best programming possible to schools to students who are deaf and to students who have severe learning disabilities and it's precisely because of people like Chris who have been able to attend the program and who have been successful in the program that they have graduated and gone on to employment it is precisely because we see that's at that success that we want to look at how can more students enjoy the success of the member from here on Bruce come to order it has nothing excuse me excuse me the second time today please when I stand you sit and the member from here on Bruce just kept right on going when I asked her to come to order you have one wrap up sentence let me just assure people that the reason that we are looking at the consultations is so that we can do a better job for our still children thank you new question thank you speaker my question is to the president of the treasury board two days ago more than 200 parents came to the legislature to make their voices heard on minister's autism funding mistake instead of properly investing to ensure all kids with ASD regardless of age or sports they need the minister decided to try to make a good news announcement out of kicking kids five and over off the list for life changing essential therapy in the end speaker this minister holds the responsibility for the books where are her priorities why are they not helping some of our most vulnerable kids why is she trying to balance the books on the backs of kids the minister explained to families of kids stop the clock well that's not endearing you to me please finish thank you speaker will the president of the treasury board please explain to families of kids with children with ASD over the age of five why she doesn't think they're worth helping this question demonstrates a very serious problem they voted against yesterday included $333 million $333 million to kids with autism and they somehow interpret that as a cut that's irresponsible it's a very unfortunate it is unfair to the parent of kids with autism to suggest that we are cutting services when in fact can you see that please and it's certainly not minister skills for independence or pay later the minister has to live with the fact that her funding decision according to the experts will leave kids with ASD with higher rates of behavior of difficulties and possibly worse institutionalization a life confined to a room or even their own bed we've seen what this looks like speaker and it's devastating this is not the future for kids with ASD that they deserve in this province with the stroke of a pen she can refer to this decision and ensure that kids with autism get the IVI that they so desperately deserve thank you you see that please thank you minister fairness to the kids with autism in Ontario and the parents and families of kids with autism the NDP should be recognizing that 16,000 more kids are going to get access to evidence based care for autism speaker only the NDP could characterize 330 finish please the NDP could characterize an additional $333 million as a cut but speaker that's not the only thing they voted against in yesterday's budget bill they voted against free tuition for low income and middle income kids free tuition and I should not mention this province and the NDP who used to be the champion for low income people has turned their back on them and voted against them thank you thank you speaker my question is for the minister of finance minister yesterday this house passed bill 173 the jobs for today and tomorrow act and this piece of legislation is of course adjacent to our 2016 budget which will help to make Ontarians everyday lives better as a business person minister you and I have spoken on a number of occasions and as a business person you know that I'm a passionate advocate to make sure that we're building a strong economy and supporting creation of jobs the jobs of today and tomorrow act also outlines the next phase of our government's plan to do just that while helping people to reach their full potential and succeed in an evolving economy speaker could the minister please inform this house about how the 2016 budget and budget bill will improve the lives of everyday Ontarians thank you thank you Mr. Speaker and I'd like to thank the member for the question as the member said yesterday our government passed the jobs for today and tomorrow act the 2016 budget is part of our government's economic plan to build Ontario up and to deliver its number one priority to grow the economy and create jobs the four part plan includes investing in talents and skills including helping more people get and create the jobs of the future by expanding access to high quality college and university education the plan is making the largest investment in public infrastructure in Ontario's history and investing in low carbon economy driven by innovative high growth export oriented businesses Mr. Speaker the plan is also helping working Ontarians achieve more secure retirement thank you thank you minister you know many of my constituents have expressed support for a number of very important elements of this budget in particular the record investment in public infrastructure the investment in community care palliative care the free shingles vaccine and as a member of treasury board minister I'm proud of the work that not only treasury board but you our premier all our cabinet our caucus have done to make sure that we're working towards a balanced budget by 2017-18 while protecting the services that everyday Ontarians value so much minister could you tell us what other measures were enacted yesterday by the passing of the 2016 budget good question thank you Mr. Speaker I'm happy to answer the question from the member from Etobicoke center who's been a champion on treasury board as well and as the member said Ontarians we consulted with many Ontarians about their priorities and their values which a government has planned which our plan has outlined in the 2016 budget unfortunately yesterday the commission decided to let politics get in the way of supporting these initiatives that will help Ontarians both today and tomorrow for example yesterday they voted against $400 million to the business growth initiative to invest in our plan to grow the economy and create jobs they voted against transforming student financial assistance to make it more upfront and affordable they voted against providing an additional $1 billion for health care and increasing hospital based funding for Ontario leads to the low carbon economy that will ensure $1.9 billion in reinvestment in green projects and worse yet Mr. Speaker they voted against making everyday life easier for Ontarians by eliminating fees and costs like a dry clean and lowering hospital parking costs thank you Mr. Speaker can you say that please your question the member from the team my question is to the minister of education in my family someone I love grew up with a severe learning disability because of proper training he's now grown up to become a professor take a PhD and rise to very senior positions in the government of Canada I didn't fully appreciate his struggles until I heard Lexie a grade 5 student this morning who wants to continue to go to Saginawska read to us it was incredibly emotional she deserves to thrive just as those like her brother did before her responses from your government today have been less than reassuring their non-committal is increasing anxiety not just here in the gallery today but I'm sure across Ontario my constituent Kelly Foley son attended Saginawska she called the school life changing her son has been able to thrive because of that school I asked the minister to have some compassion today provide some long-term clarity to the people in this gallery make sure that those schools remain open without a cap and that there's a long-term thank you Minister of Education yes thank you very much and as I've said we're very concerned about kids who have severe learning disabilities we know that in the case of some of the children who are attending or who would like to attend the demonstration schools that there is a significant gap between their age level their presumed grade level and their access to reading we know that for some of the children they've been in special needs programs at their local school board and they've been unsuccessful and that the program that's delivered at the demonstration school is excellent and has been successful we know that there are others like your relative who have successfully had programs delivered in their local school boards so that they've been able to learn to read we need to figure out how can more students have success that's the purpose of the consultation is to figure out how more students can thank you minister of education this liberal government says it's for the people about the people but when put in the test nothing could be further from the truth they're cutting provincial and demonstration schools for children and students with special education needs and or blind or deaf blind the minister says it's not about money but they fired 50 education teachers and now they're threatening to close provincial and demonstration schools this liberal government's waste and management is seriously undermining special education services across and for parents of children with special needs it's catastrophic speaker why is this minister telling parents in my riding like Melanie Denny and dozens of others their children are getting more special education dollars when in fact she's cutting core special education resources and closing schools or threatening to close schools across the okay let me try and correct the list of bits of misinformation there somebody said there's not the minister will withdraw withdraw carry on firstly we are not looking at the schools for the blind the provincial school for the blind of which there is only one in Brantford we'll get the name of the city right is continuing the school at Brantford actually does the programming for the deaf blind at least in the English language side we are in fact have already said that we're not closing the AS schools for the deaf the the two big ones in Milton and Belleville so the idea that we are closing all these schools is just simply wrong what we are doing is looking at how we can provide better programming for for children who are deaf because we are concerned about the programming at some of the schools and how we can provide better good question thank you very much Mr. Speaker my question is to the premier the first line of the sunshine this law indicates very clearly that public disclosure is required for salary and benefits for anyone earning over $100,000 in the public sector for years new democrats have been calling for bringing public sector executive pay under control now according to the government sunshine list the CEO for OPG earned $787,000 however according to OPG itself that amount is close to double that and more like $1.4 million now on one hand we have the government disclosing one amount on the other hand we have the OPG itself disclosing another amount the question is simple how much did the CEO for OPG actually earn thank you Mr. Speaker Mr. Economic Development Employment and Infrastructure Mr. Speaker pleased to respond to the member on this behalf of our Minister of Energy and the fact is the current CEO Jeffrey Leash is earning 3% less than his predecessor Mr. Speaker and I've got to tell you when you look at this kind of position this is, I mean you're talking about a CEO that is in a position that you have to globally compete for that talent these are the folks Mr. Speaker that are running our nuclear units these are the folks that are running our entire energy production system these are not the places where you would go to get anybody that is anything less than the best in the world Mr. Speaker to ensure that Ontario Power Generation and our energy system is operating efficiently effectively and safely so Mr. Speaker this is not the place to go when it comes to trying to discount people's earnings this is the place where you want the best in the world and that's what we have supplementary in case anyone forgot the question was about disclosure and there was absolutely no answer to that question for more than a decade the Liberals have promised to bring public sector executive pay under control now in fact they passed legislation in 2014 to try to address this issue and now they're promising to do something on this issue again it was a stretch goal for the Liberals back 10 years ago and it's a stretch goal again right now on top of all that we have information before us that this government has not been disclosing the full truth in their own sunshine list now Ontarians deserve transparency that is something they have a right to have now my question is simple the lack of information provided by this government how many other public sector executives are earning more than what the government admits to the President of the Treasury board Mr. Speaker thank you Speaker and I think as the minister said the income reported for Jeff Liash on the 2015 Public Sector Salary Disclosure Act was $787,472 that included his entire signing bonus plus his salary for 2015 from August to December he started in his position as CEO in August when it comes to the broader question of executive compensation frameworks we are moving forward with developing those frameworks for executive compensation it is not a simple task it is not as simple as they claim just make it double the premier salary we are taking a thoughtful approach we started with the college and university sector the frameworks are now out for consultation we are moving forward with agencies so it is important that we get this right we need to find the right balance between attracting the right people and having reasonable levels of compensation thank you Speaker my question is to the minister of training and universities minister yesterday the PC and NDP caucuses voted against budget bill 173 that will serve to relieve the financial burden that many families faced in poor secondary education many of the students in my writing of Durham rely on the interior student assistance program to help pay the cost of tuition my constituents were very pleased about the many changes our government made to OSAP in the 2016 budget minister would you kindly inform members of the house how our government is making poor secondary education more accessible and affordable across Ontario in 2016 thank you thank you Mr. Speaker and I want to thank the member from Durham for that excellent question Mr. Speaker our government strongly believes that all students regardless of their background or circumstances should be able to afford to go to college or university in our province of Ontario and that's why we have decided to transform OSAP in the 2016 budget that will lead to more students receiving more generous upfront grants and in many cases help students receive grants that exceeds our institution Mr. Speaker the student associations poverty reduction groups and the colleges and universities have praised the introduction of a simpler and upfront Ontario student grant the new Ontario student grant is a smarter way to allocate taxpayers dollars and the help of students who need it the most Mr. Speaker it is unfortunate that the members opposite said no to the 2016 budget bill and therefore said no to real action to break down the main barriers to post second education in our province of Ontario Thank you Thank you Speaker and thank you to the minister for that response it is disappointed that the members opposite voted against bill 173 but it is reassuring to hear that this government places such a high priority and providing access to education so many people can get good jobs and actively contribute to the economic growth in this wonderful province Minister despite the significant improvements the province has made since 2003 there remains a direct correlation between family income levels and the likelihood of attending college or university Minister you have spoken a great deal about the needs of students could you talk further about the impact of student financial assistance will have Thank you Minister Thank you 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 second education which is why in September 2017 all college university and career college students who come from families with household income of less than $50,000 will have the Ontario student grant that will cover their tuition in addition more than half of the students whose household income is below $83,000 will receive grants that will cover or exceed the average cost of tuition Mr. Speaker under the new Ontario student grants more than 150,000 students will have upfront grant that will cover more than the cost of average tuition and 250,000 students will have less debt than they would have under the current OSAP program I am pleased Mr. Speaker that this government under the leadership has broken down the barrier I deferred vote on the motion for closure of the motion of second reading of bill 100 an act to enact the Ontario Trails Act 2015 and to amend various acts calling the members this will be a five minute bill First, please take your seats On February 18, 2016 Mr. Plotow passed a second reading of bill 100 an act to enact the Ontario Trails Act 2015 and to amend various acts Mr. Crack has moved that the question now will be now put all those in favour of Mr. Crack's motion please rise one at a time be recognized by the court Mr. Crack Ms. Wynn Mr. Matthews Mr. Hoskins Mr. Sandals Mr. Dugas Mr. Delaney Mr. Gravel Mr. McMeacon Mr. Chan Mr. Moriti Mr. Couto Mr. Leel Mr. Flynn Mr. Zimmer Mr. Albinese Mr. Dixon Mr. Manga Ms. Wong Ms. Hunter Mr. Fraser Mr. Anderson Mr. Baker Mr. Baller Ms. Hogan Ms. Kuala Ms. Molly Ms. Martin Ms. McGarry Ms. McMahon Mr. Milch Mr. Nidoo Harris Mr. Potts Mr. Rinaldi Ms. Scott Ms. Thompson Mr. Monroe Mr. Houda Mr. Bailey Mr. Walker Mr. Smith Mr. Harris Mr. Nickles Mr. McDonnell Mr. Pettipies Mr. Cove Mr. Bisson Mr. Singh Mr. Taylor Mr. Natashack Ms. Armstrong Mr. Monta Mr. Hadfield Mr. Gretzky Mr. French Mr. 52 the Nays are 42 The eyes being 52 and the nays being 42 I declare the motion carry Mr. Couto has moved a second reading of bill 100 an act to enact the Ontario Trails Act 2015 into amend various acts is it the pleasure of the house of the motion carry I heard you know all those in favour please say aye Aye All those opposed please say nay In my opinion the ayes have it Calling the members this would be a 5 minute bill was moved second reading of bill 100 an act to enact the Ontario Trails Act 2015 into amend various acts All those in favour please rise one at a time be recognized by the court Mr. Couto Mr. Nacky Mr. Bradley Mr. Bradley Mr. Wins Mr. Hoskins Mr. Dugas Mr. McCharles Mr. Quinter Mr. Kohl Mr. Tukar Mr. Brardinetti Mr. Dillon Mr. Gravelle Mr. McMeekin Mr. Chan Mr. Moriti Mr. Leal Mr. Crack Mr. Wong Mr. Sergio Mr. Jasek Mr. Dahmerla Mr. Fraser Mr. Anderson Mr. Baker Mr. Ballard Mr. Don Mr. Kowala Mr. Mollie Mr. McMan Mr. Milch Mr. Arneil Mr. Arneil Mr. Fadela Mr. Miller Mr. Miller-Parisal-Moscoka Mr. Scott Mr. Walker Mr. Smith Mr. McDonnell Mr. Miller-Hamilton-Estony-Cree Mr. Miller-Hamilton-Estony-Cree Mr. Singh Mr. Horvath Mr. Besson Mr. Taylor Mr. Natascha Mr. Armstrong Mr. Montha Mr. Hatfield Mr. Gretzky Mr. Gaines Mr. French All those opposed, please rise one at a time to be recognized by the clerk. Mr. Hardiman Mr. Willson Mr. Brown Mr. Clark Mr. Yakibusky Mr. Thompson Mr. Monroe Mr. Yurek Mr. Harris Mr. Nichols Mr. Marteau Mr. Pettipi Mr. Koe The Ayes are 77, the Nays are 17 The Ayes being 77, the Nays being 17 I declare the motion carried. Bill de Semélection du Président de l'Oise The bill will be ordered for third reading Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport The Senate to the Standing Committee on the Legislative Assembly As requested There are no deferred further deferred, sorry Point of order of the member from the committee We would like to introduce long term family and friend of ours who is in the visitors gallery today Mr. Kermil Sadkou Thank you for joining us at Queen's Park We will defer the votes to the South Stance recess until 1pm this afternoon