 It is now time for oral questions. I recognize the Leader of Her Majesty's loyal opposition. Thank you so much, Speaker. Speaker, my first question this morning is to the Premier. We know that the surgical and diagnostic backlog has skyrocketed in this province. People are waiting in pain with growing worry and deteriorating quality of life. The Ontario Medical Association has said clearly that the backlog is about a million surgeries. The Minister yesterday claimed it's only in the matter of tens of thousands. One has to wonder if the Minister's number includes people who can't even get a scheduled surgery as yet. So my question is, can this Premier explain the massive discrepancy here? Why his Health Minister and the OMA are apart by about 942,000 surgeries? The Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. The discrepancy noticed by the numbers noted by the OMA included procedures, doctors' visits, other issues. Yes, they do. And we have done extensive review within the Ministry of Health. And what we have determined is that the number of patients that are actively waiting for surgery right now is approximately 250,000. Before the pandemic, it was 200,000. So the actual number of patients who are waiting for surgery right now as a result of the pandemic only is 50,000. Yesterday she said 58,000, Speaker. But look, the OMA was really clear. When you add in the surgeries and procedures, rather the procedures and screenings to the surgeries, it's 21 million. That's the backlog here in Ontario as per the OMA's report. So the government actually was called out yesterday by the FAO because his office revealed that the government is massively underspending in health care. They have not spent... Stop the call. I need to be able to hear the Leader of the Opposition. I need to hear the Ministers who respond. Please start the call. Leader of the Opposition. $1.3 billion on the health of Ontarians that they had planned to, that they were supposed to. Resources that could be and should be fixing that backlog, Speaker. The FAO said they spent less than they planned on COVID-19 public health programs, physician payments, hospital capital projects, hundreds of millions less on drug programs. If they aren't investing the funds, Speaker, it's clear Ontarians aren't getting the health care they need and want. With people worrying and waiting in pain, why isn't the government spending the money that they set that they would to fix the backlogs and get patients the health care that they need and deserve in our province? Minister of Health. Thank you, Speaker. Just a few comments on that. The number of 21 million mentioned by the Leader of the Official Opposition doesn't even make sense. There's only 15 million people in the province of Ontario. And yes, I did mention 58,000 yesterday and I'm mentioning 50,000 today because that's an updated number that I received this morning. So that is an accurate number. We know that absolutely and we have put the money and the resources into bringing down that number so that the people who've been waiting for procedures and surgeries will be able to get that faster. We've put a half a billion dollars into making sure that more surgeries can be performed on weekends and during the evenings. That is going to get people the relief that they need. As to the report that we're not spending enough, that is actually not accurate. We are spending the money. We have spent the money. Part of it is because some of the vaccine management and lab testing expenditures were reported under a different number. That is because we are having to move this around. Final supplementary. What's absolutely ridiculous is that a Minister of Health in a province like Ontario refuses to acknowledge that for every surgery there are many procedures that go along with that. Many screenings that have to take place. So the 21 million number that the OMA cites is accurate and this minister is inaccurate and the people deserve accuracy when it comes to their health care. The FAO made it very clear. Late times in this province are going up, not down. They're not making their targets at all. People aren't getting the health care they need. Knee surgery is double the weights versus the target. Hip replacements double the weights. MRIs only 38% of people are getting the targeted, the MRI in the targeted time. It's clear that this Premier, this government does not approve of, does not support good public health care in this province. Why are they sitting on over a billion dollars of health care money instead of fixing the wait times, getting people into surgery, getting people's pain dealt with and making sure they get the health care they need. Members, please take their seats. Our government absolutely believes in a strong public health care system. And we've demonstrated that by increasing our investments in health from 59 billion in 2020 before the pandemic to now almost $64 billion. We have made investments to create $5 billion to create over 3100 more public health care spaces in our hospitals. We've also invested a half a billion dollars in order to make sure that people get the care that they need. And I would also like to indicate that hospitals have not only worked to provide capacity for emergency and urgent MRI and CT care. They've had 97% of their urgent patients have been seen within clinically recommended times. We are also working on that 50,000 backlog that we have in addition to the 200,000 that we had before the pandemic. And we've made the investments to prove it in our public health care system. And with respect to the report that the member has been referring to, that is a moment in time picture that's taken. What's going to actually indicate what is real is at the end of the fiscal year and you could be sure that we will have spent the money on our public health care system by then. The next question, once again, the leader of the opposition. So much, Speaker. My next question is to the Premier. You know, after everything that residents and businesses went through in Ottawa, after this Premier's huffing and puffing about holding back vehicle licenses, holding back vehicles that his government was seizing from the occupiers, the Minister of Transportation in fact said that 39 vehicles were seized, but not even a month ago. On February 11th, the Premier said, and I'm going to say this straight from the quote that he said in this House, let me be as clear as I can. There will be consequences for these actions and they will be severe. He said there would be, and I quote, a maximum penalty of $100,000 and up to a year imprisonment. But after a single week of those vehicles being impounded after a single week, the Premier has given the keys to those occupiers back for their trucks. So how on earth could this Premier ever say that he took this occupation seriously when he's handing back the keys without a single penalty? Thank you, Speaker. And let me be clear, we are not letting truck drivers involved in the occupation off the hook. And I'm happy to clarify for the leader of the opposition who simply just does not have the facts. As with any major demonstration, the role of the police is to keep the peace and to protect the public. And the Ministry of Transportation's first priority in this occupation was to get trucks cleared off the streets of Ottawa as quickly as possible. Law enforcement. Order. Police needed measures to help them clear the streets as quickly as possible. The emergency tools that we provided law enforcement allowed the OPP on the ground to immediately suspend and tow vehicles. With a seven-day expiration period, the actions taken by the OPP to remove these vehicles could not be appealed and provided more certainty that would allow them to clear the occupation in short order. Speaker, if we'd gone further, the suspensions could have been bogged down by injunctions, hearings, and delays in our courts. Any suspensions processed remain on the vehicle record and could affect their... Thank you. The Premier does not care about what happened in Ottawa or what happened to the citizens and businesses in that community. He waited for days and days and days before doing anything at all. We said pull the licenses, pull the operating licenses. We said seize the vehicles. We said take action. Do something. Residents find out now that the $100,000 penalty that this Premier was blustering about were all for show, as usual. The occupiers are literally driving away in the very trucks they use to occupy Ottawa. He's sending a pretty dangerous signal speaker that the kind of lawlessness it took place will have no consequences. So my question is, what happened? What happened to the Premier's boasting about throwing the book at these occupiers? Minister of Transportation. We're very pleased with the role that the province played in assisting law enforcement to bring the situation in Ottawa to an end. With the additional tools that we provided to law enforcement, they were able to quickly suspend license plates and CVORs of trucks blocking the streets of Ottawa and the roads in Ottawa. Through these measures, we suspended 24 Ontario license plate and 13 Ontario CVORs. Speaker, we even went further to ensure that we reported out of province vehicles so that they received sanctions in their home provinces and jurisdictions. Mr. Speaker, we've been clear. We work swiftly with law enforcement to provide them with the tools that they needed. And in that, using those tools, they were able to clear the blockades in Ottawa and restore order in that city. And the final supplement, please. Speaker, by handing the keys back in about a week, this Premier is abandoning his responsibilities. The occupiers who caused residents in Ottawa, sleepless nights, who terrified seniors, who cost people jobs, who cost people wages, shuttered businesses, they deserve to have some accountability. They don't even get a slap on the wrist, these occupiers, for what they caused in Ottawa. No penalties, no fines, certainly not the $100,000 fines that this Premier Huffden puffed about. He's all bark and no bite when it comes to consequences for the occupiers. It is outrageous, Speaker. So I'm going to ask the Premier again to explain to Ontarians, explain to Ottomans, explain to Canadians why he's holding no one accountable, why he's handing the keys back after three weeks of a national crisis that happened in our province. With the greatest of respect, Speaker, people are still in jail because of the illegal occupation, because of their leadership in that illegal occupation. I think it's really important to remember what the Minister of Transportation said. Any suspensions processed remain on the vehicle record and could affect the renewal for licenses in the future. Look, at the end of the day, Ottawa was safely returned so that people could continue with their lives and their businesses. The occupation was removed safely. And why? Because we had an operational plan, a chief that was working with the RCMP, the OPP, and frankly an awful lot of police officials from across Ontario and indeed Canada were working together and did the right thing. Thank you. Thank you, Speaker. My question's also for the Premier. People in Ottawa this morning woke up to realize that there was a controversy caused by Mr. Robert Swayda, someone that this Premier appointed to the Ottawa Police Services Board. Mr. Swayda, Speaker, is a major PC Party donor. He has donated $8,000 to the Ontario PC Party since 2015. But media reports say Mr. Swayda joined the Ottawa convoy personally, attended the protest. While he was sitting as a civilian, as an appointee by this Premier on the Ottawa Police Services Board, I'm going to assume he received briefings from police about sensitive information about the security operation. So Speaker, through you, can the Premier please confirm? Did his appointee attend the occupation that was going on in our city while sitting on the Ottawa Police Services Board? And is that why he asked Mr. Swayda to resign? To respond, Mr. Secretary General. Thank you, Speaker. You know, there is some unconfirmed reports about the member referenced who attended the first weekend. I want to assure the member opposite that we have been working from the very beginning with the City of Ottawa. They have taken a new direction with their Police Services Board. We are supportive of that new direction. As you know, the three provincial board members have submitted their resignation and we have accepted their resignations. And we will move forward working with the City of Ottawa to put provincial police services board members in place as quickly as possible. Thank you. Thank you, Speaker. Back to the Premier. I really hope the Premier, because the people of our city in Ottawa really want an answer from him and to not see him hiding behind his ministers. The government had a chance to figure out Mr. Swayda's qualification before they appointed him to the Ottawa Police Services Board. My colleagues, including the MPP for Davenport, asked to scrutinize Mr. Swayda before he was appointed. This government refused. They would not let Mr. Swayda appear. They would not let Mr. Swayda be questioned. But now media reports are circulating suggesting that Mr. Swayda took part in the Ottawa occupation, took part in the convoy. Is it a coincidence, Speaker, that this gentleman is now resigned? Or did the Premier ask him to resign? Does the Premier know if Mr. Swayda shared sensitive information with the organizers of a three-week occupation? Is the Premier concerned about that? Is the Premier prepared to have accountability over that? Will he speak to the residents of Ottawa today, or will he continue to be silent? Thank you, Speaker. As I said in my previous answer, we are supporting the City of Ottawa in their governance transition of the Ottawa Police Services Board. It's important that the people of Ottawa have confidence in their police governance, and this will bring a fresh perspective to the Board as they address these recent events. Order. As you know, Police Services Boards are autonomous. They are working with the Chief and the City of Ottawa. Order. They oversee how policing is provided, but they are, to be clear, an autonomous Board. The Member for Davenport, come to order. The next question, the Member for Carlton. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We're training skills and skills development. Mr. Speaker, the gig economy is here to stay, and every gig worker deserves to be treated fairly and compensated fairly. Today, one in five Canadians work in the gig economy, and this number is predicted to rise. With this in mind, Speaker, these workers are counting on our government to show leadership and make every effort to protect and support our workers. Mr. Speaker, through you to the Minister, what is the Ministry proposing to rebalance the scales and support these workers? Mr. Blader, training and skills development. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the Member from Carlton for her leadership and always standing up for workers in her community. Speaker, no one working in Ontario should ever make less than minimum wage for an hour's work. No one working in Ontario should be dismissed without notice, explanation or recourse. No one should have to travel out of Canada to resolve a workplace dispute or sign a contract they don't understand. This is why our government introduced core rights for gig workers. Our Working for Workers Act II, if passed, would make Ontario the very first province in Canada to raise the floor for all of these workers. We want all workers to have the opportunity to earn a good living, have more workplace protections and more opportunities for even better jobs here in Ontario. Supplementary question. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Minister for that encouraging response. Mr. Speaker, the Minister highlighted some of the uncertainty that gig workers face. And I'm glad he did so because it shows that this government, under the leadership of Premier Ford, is listening to the people. Mr. Speaker, our government believes in working for all workers, including those who work in the gig economy. These workers are mothers, fathers and friends, and it is an injustice that they lack the necessary protections owed to them. So it's great to hear that gig workers will be granted rights and protections to rebalance the scales in their favour. Mr. Speaker, I know these workers want to know more, so through you, can the Minister please provide clarity on how our government will achieve this? Thank you. Mr. Labour. Thanks again to the member for this very important question. Mr. Speaker, if passed, our Working for Workers Act 2 will be breaking new ground here in Canada. We'll be ensuring that gig workers earn at least the minimum wage. These workers deserve bigger paychecks. Our legislation will also make sure that they have basic rights like a pay stub. Speaker, our policies are the beginning, not an end point. These core rights are a foundation in our mission to help all workers earn more and take care of their families so we can build stronger families here in Ontario. Our government believes that whether you work for a big company, a small business, or for a rideshare app, you shouldn't be left behind. And as we build back a stronger Ontario under the leadership of Premier Ford, we're going to continue putting our workers first. Member for Windsor to come see. Thank you. My question is for the Minister of Finance. Good morning, Minister. Speaker, in a good year, we have about 10,000 people working in Ontario's gaming sector. Land-based casinos return 55% of net gaming profits to the Ontario Treasury. That's more than $2 billion a year. The government has opened its doors to internet gaming. A recent study showed that this would lead to fewer people working and a huge loss to the net revenue from gaming. Speaker, what assurances can the government give the people of Ontario, especially those earning a living in our bricks and motor casinos, that this won't be the case? Mr. Finance. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you through you to the Member Opposite and your many years of public service since your by-election win in 2013. Thank you for your service. He's done a great job representing his constituents as we all do every day. Mr. Speaker, it's an important question, and I'm going to answer in part for the Attorney General who's not here today, who's leading the charge, who's leading the charge on internet gaming. That is a great market that exists today in the province of Ontario. It is not regulated. There are the first province in Canada to regulate the grey market in the internet gaming market. Mr. Speaker, extensive consultations occurred for over a couple of years with land-based gaming operators, with foreign operators, with First Nations, a broad consultation, including municipalities, including workers, including unions. Mr. Speaker, we're going to do everything to regulate this market so that we can create jobs, move our economy forward, and support the hard-working people of Ontario. A supplementary question. Mr. Speaker, COVID has left half of the casino workers in Niagara Falls out of work. At Woodbine, there are still 500 casino workers on lay-off. We have 1,000 unemployed in Windsor. Big promises were made to students at Humber College that the expansion of Woodbine would bring future employment. Internet gaming threatens those students in all of our unemployed casino workers. Speaker, what does the government think? How can we allow internet gaming if it means fewer jobs, less money to the provincial treasury, and no hope for those still on lay-off from the COVID cuts? Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And again, thank you for the question. Mr. Speaker, this government for the last two years has worked around the clock to make Ontario safe. And in fact, through the leadership of this Premier, the leadership of this Minister of Health, we inherited a health system that was broken, that needed to be fixed, and through their leadership, we're rebuilding Ontario. We're rebuilding the health of this province. And you know, coming out of this pandemic, we're going to be stronger. And let me tell you this, they're going to be jobs created right across this whole province, including the land-based gaming operations, including the internet gaming operations. In fact, when you look around the world where iGaming has been regulated, it's created more jobs. It's created more tax revenues, and it's good for the economy so that people can put food on their table. So thank you again for that question, Mr. Speaker. The next question, the member for Chatham Kent Leamington. Thank you, Speaker. Speaker, through you to the Premier. Earlier this week, you eliminated the vaccination passes that would finally allow people to experience some freedoms that they enjoyed pre-COVID. They could now show their support of small businesses and restaurant owners once again. But now I'm hearing reports that the provincial government is introducing a digital ID. It will contain personal and family contact information, access to financial and numerous government services, and access to medical records, including immunizations. Now, Premier, we both understand the need to speed up efficiencies in the government. With technology becoming more accessible, I do have some concerns. Medical records are personal and confidential. Respectfully, Premier, they are no one's business. In past, people had to show personal COVID vaccination status to go anywhere and to do anything such as to board planes, trains, or even automobiles, or even go to sporting events. But my question to you, Premier, is what this digital ID that your government is working on, will it be used against someone if they are asked to show their COVID vaccination status? Again, I repeat, Premier, once vaccination status is no one's business, it's personal. To reply, the Associate Minister for Digital Government. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the member opposite for the question. Mr. Speaker, we are saying yes to improving customer service for the people of Ontario by modernizing the way people can access services online. And I'm so proud of this Premier who truly believes in customer service and is doing everything possible to make sure that we as a government provide the best customer service possible to the people of this province. Mr. Speaker, we are saying yes to the people of Ontario by creating easier access to online services at their fingertips. Ontario's digital ID program will make it easier for people and businesses to securely prove their ID online, reduce the risk of ID theft, protect people's data, and expand access across the government services. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Premier. I'm not so sure I heard the answer with regards to vaccine passes and having to show that. But again, back to the Premier. Many are questioning the real reasons why you and other premiers chose to eliminate the vaccine passes. What is the main driving force that resulted in the cancellation of the vaccine passes? Lower COVID cases, fewer hospitalizations, high percentage of currently vaccinated people, on the surface, all are probably true. But now we've learned that the Prime Minister was secretly introducing a federally mandated vaccination pass for all Canadians. Which means Dr. Trudeau could put his limits on out-of-country travel access of Canadians who have not chosen to be vaccinated. Once again, Premier, this is an affront to our Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, that is, until the Prime Minister decides to rewrite it. My question to you, Premier, is will you explain your reasoning for canceling the provincially mandated vaccine passes and the emergency orders for Ontario now, and will you be supporting a federally mandated vaccination pass? Remind the members to please make their comments through the chair, not across the floor of the house, the Associate Minister of Digital Government. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I want to be very crystal clear about it. There is no health data or vaccination information being part of the digital idea. I just want to make it very clear to the member opposite. We are saying yes absolutely to convenience and choice. And Mr. Speaker, as Minister of Finance has said many, many times, digital first does not mean digital only. Ontario's digital ID program will be optional. The government is not eliminating or phasing out any physical forms of IDs, such as driver's licenses and health card. As I've said, Mr. Speaker, protecting Ontario's privacy is essential part of our Better Customer Service initiative. The Information and Privacy Commissioner has been engaged from day one, Mr. Speaker, and we will continue to consult as Ontario's digital ID program works move forward. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My question is the Minister of Labor Training and Skills Development. We are experiencing a historic labour shortage and unfulfilled jobs are costing Ontario billions in lost productivity. Our government under the leadership of our Premier and the Minister have already worked to remove unfair and discriminatory barriers against foreign trained professionals so that they can fill in-demand jobs in the province. Through you, Mr. Speaker, can the Minister please share with this House how his ministry is continuing to cut red tape and work to make it easier for skilled professionals across Canada to work in our province. It's a response. It's great, Owen, for your tireless service for over a decade. Thank you so much. Mr. Speaker, our government is building a stronger Ontario. To do so, it has never been more important to attract the skilled workers to do the job and in-demand jobs. Between July and September of 2021, there were over 330,000 vacant jobs in Ontario, which means hundreds of thousands of paychecks waiting to be collected. This is why if passed, Mr. Speaker, our Working for Workers Act 2 will cut red tape, make it easier for skilled professionals from across the country to work in Ontario. Our legislation will allow workers to get their credential process in less than 30 business days and make it easier for engineers, auto mechanics, plumbers, and many more to come to Ontario and fill in-demand jobs and drive economic growth. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the Parliamentary Assistant Member for Mrs. Saga-Balton and the Minister for the great work they're doing on behalf of workers here in Ontario. Data suggests that the need to replace retired workers in the skilled trades is imminent and real. In 2016, nearly one in three journey persons in Ontario was 55 years or older. We need more skilled tradespeople to come here. These jobs are in-demand and highly paid, and these workers will contribute to and participate in our government's plan to make Ontario the best place to live, work, and raise a family. So, Speaker, through you, can the Minister please tell us how our government is working to make it easier for skilled trade workers and apprentices to work and train in Ontario? Member for Mrs. Saga-Balton again. Through you, Mr. Speaker, I want to say thank you to the Member again for the great question and thank you for your mentorship and support in the last four years. Can't thank you enough, Mr. Speaker, because our Premier always say our economy is on fire. Ontario is leading Canada's economic growth, and all these workers will play a crucial role in our government's plan to build more roads, bridges, highways, homes. We are maximizing our participation in the Federal Red Seal Program, so that there is a common standard for apprenticeship training and certification. Ontario will be recognizing all red-sealed trades, and we are going further. Our new agency, skilled trade Ontario, is harmonizing training standards for the tourism of trade, so that apprentices who started training elsewhere can continue their training here. Mr. Speaker, all of our actions are focused on only one mission, to open our doors to so many people so they can call Ontario their home and we can prosper together. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. The next question, the Member for Mr. Minn-Paper. Mr. Speaker, my question to the Premier. Access to broadband is crucial for all Ontarians, and especially for rural Ontarians, for their families, for their businesses. We all know that. And as a result, the Ford government made huge announcements, and everyone was going to be connected by 2025. But we were surprised we were surprised by the financial accountability officer's report that your government budgeted 400 million in the 406, I believe, in the last budget. But actually, to date, you've spent 1.2 million of that. Whoa. So how are you going to get it done by 2025 when you're basically, it's all talk and no investment? Minister of Interest. Thank you very much to the Member for the question. And Mr. Speaker, through the Premier's leadership, we've invested 4 billion to make sure that every single end of 2025. Mr. Speaker, we've invested in 17 projects through ICON. We've partnered with the federal government for 58 projects across the province of Ontario, which include northern communities and First Nation communities. And Mr. Speaker, our focus right now is the reverse auction. It is underway, and it will connect the remaining 325,000 residents that are waiting to get connected. Supplementary question. Thank you, Speaker. There is a big difference between actually investing and announcing investing. And there's a pattern here. In 2019-2020, you budgeted 31 million and spent zero, zilch. In 2021, 2020-2021, 45.7 million was budgeted and you spent or invested 1.37% of that. So, again, and what's even more frightening, Speaker, is that as they come to this deadline, that they're going to make spending decisions with the big players and leave the little players, the small internet providers who actually are capable of providing the service to rural Ontario. You're going to leave them out and do the big infrastructure Ontario reverse bid, and that is going to leave a lot of people out. Thank you. Thank you very much for the supplementary. We are very anxiously anticipating the results of the reverse auction. It is going very well. But, Mr. Speaker, if I recall correctly, the member opposite didn't support the Building Broadband Faster Act. I want to ask the member opposite, what are you doing to help your constituents get connected across the province of Ontario? Mr. Speaker, it is my intention to present further measures so that we can construct high-speed internet infrastructure as quickly and efficiently as possible throughout the province of Ontario. And I'll ask the member opposite, what are you going to do to help? Once again, I'll remind the members to make their comments through the chair, not directly across the floor of the house. The next question, the member for Ottawa Stone. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Premier. In 2006, the Liberal Government of the day made traditional Chinese medicine a regulated health profession in Ontario. Until then, anyone in Ontario could hang up a shingle and say they were a practitioner of traditional Chinese medicine. Creating the college, it was in the public interest. We did it to protect patients. That's why we have regulated health colleges. It's their primary purchase. Patient safety, the public good. For 16 years, the college has protected patients in Ontario. Your government, you want to change all that. In Bill 88, you snuck in a section that eliminates the college, and most importantly, protection for patients. So, speakers through you. Will the Minister commit today to protecting patients by removing Schedule 5 from Bill 88 and commit to keeping the college of traditional Chinese medicine here in Ontario? And the Minister of Health. Thank you, Speaker. Our government is committed to protecting the safety of Ontario patients. And we also are committed to get more people working by reducing regulatory barriers to allow more individuals to get back into the business of practicing traditional Chinese medicine. The proposed legislation would repeal the Traditional Chinese Medicine Act 2006 and amend the Health and Support of Care Providers Oversight Authority Act 2021. As a result, the oversight of traditional Chinese medicine practitioners and acupuncturists will transition from the college of traditional Chinese medicine practitioners and acupuncturists to the Health and Support of Care Providers Oversight Authority, which is the same oversight authority which is overseeing personal support workers. This is a strong organization which will provide the necessary protection for the Ontario while still allowing more practitioners to become involved in the practice, which is what the people of Ontario want. Any supplementary question? Respectfully back to the Minister. Traditional Chinese medicine practitioners are not tattoo artists and they're not PSWs. They apply medicine and treatment. This change was done without any consultation, none whatsoever, literally out of the blue and buried in a bill. And so far we've heard no rationale from this government as to how this is going to make anybody safer or how it's going to affect people's access to care when their benefits plans don't pay for it anymore. How is this good for anyone on Ontario that any one of us can hang up a shingle and say we're a practitioner? Who told the government this is a good idea? Who whispered in the Premier's ear? There is no reasonable, rational reason to eliminate this college. None whatsoever. You're going backwards, not forwards. So Speaker, through you to the Premier, I'll ask once again will the Premier commit to removing Schedule 5 from Bill 88 and keep the traditional Chinese medicine college here in Ontario and keep protecting patients? The Minister of Health. Our government has always been dedicated to protecting the health and well being of the people of Ontario and this is no different. This authority, the health and supportive care providers oversight authority is already overseeing personal support workers who also provide health care to the people of Ontario. Traditional Chinese medical practitioners will be under the same authority. They will be provided with that safety and as well acupuncturists will be protected by local personal health units. So there will be that authority. It will also allow for more people who have faced significant barriers to being admitted by the college to be able to practice traditional Chinese medicine. That is what the people of Ontario want. We are dedicated to protecting their safety and making sure more people can have access to the care that they need and deserve. Thank you Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Economic Development Job Creation and Trade. When the COVID-19 pandemic started, our government was quick to help pivot our businesses to produce the critical PPE needed to keep our health care workers and businesses safe. I recall for example, Speaker joining the Minister at the VodKow distillery just outside of Ottawa who were pivoting to create hand sanitizer for my local hospital in Ottawa West Napien. We saw businesses of all types step up to help the province get through the pandemic. And so Speaker, can the Minister please tell us what has been done since to support businesses in establishing domestic supply chains? Minister of Economic Development Job Creation and Trade Thank you Speaker. We are so proud to see thousands of businesses pivot their operations to help fight the pandemic. They really showed what Premier Ford calls the Ontario spirit. And we knew they needed our financial support and that's why we announced $50 million Ontario Together fund which helps support these businesses to retool and make that critical PPE. Virox technologies in Oakville was the very first recipient. They invested $1.7 million to manufacture disinfectant wipes and the province invested $850,000. Sterling in Concord invested $2 million one of the first to make face shields in Ontario and the province invested $1 million in these critical products that simply were not being made here in Ontario. Speaker, these are just two of the thousands of Ontario business success stories showing that Ontario is getting stronger. Again, the member for Ottawa West Napien Supplementary Well thank you and through you Speaker, thank you to the Minister for that response. Clearly the Ontario Together fund was instrumental in establishing domestic supply chains here in Ontario and many businesses will have benefited from the funding provided through the Ontario Together fund but we were very disappointed on this side of the aisle to see that the members opposite chose not to support these critical investments in Ontario businesses unlike the opposition and Liberals, our government will continue supporting businesses by making the right investments to ensure Ontario remains the economic engine of Canada and so through you Speaker can the minister please provide some further examples of companies that Ontario has supported Minister of Economic Development Thank you as the pandemic continued throughout 2021 we provided an additional $50 million to the Ontario Together fund Ontario manufacturers continued to step up. Abatement technologies in Fort Erie invested over $18 million to build a new facility to manufacture their infection control filtration systems the province invested $2.5 million in this company so that hospitals and long-term care facilities had this life-saving equipment Greenfield Global in Johnstown, Canada's largest producer of ethanol invested $75 million to produce high-purity alcohol to make hand sanitizer. The government invested $2.5 million to support local manufacturing create good-paying jobs and ensure that we have the vital PPE literally at our fingertips these are two more of the thousands of Ontario business success stories showing that Ontario is getting stronger next question Thank you Mr. Speaker to the Premier the Conservative government likes to claim that all of Ontario's problems are because of the Liberals and we in the NDP agreed that after 15 years empowered the Liberals left us with hallway medicine in our hospitals with a $15.9 billion maintenance backlog in our schools and a massive housing crisis but this Premier's developer friendly policies have done nothing to address the housing crisis which is making it nearly impossible for the average person to even rent in Ontario let alone afford to buy a home. Rent since Toronto rose 14.5% last year to an average of $2,315 a month. The government removed rent controls from new buildings and as a result tenants in my writing are now facing rent increases of $500 a month. In my writing average rent in Harbour Plaza increased by 37.7% last year and 36.1% of the playground condos at Garrison Point these condos are all exempt from rent controls because of this government's actions why is affording a place to live so difficult in this government's Ontario? Thank you Mr. Speaker Thank you When we took government in 2018 we inherited a huge housing crisis in this province enabled by the Liberal government and the NDP before who supported them all the way through Young families, seniors and hardworking Ontarians are desperate for housing that needs the needs and our government priorities put affordable housing ownership in the reach of Ontario families and provide more people with the opportunities they need to live closer to where they work and that's why in 2019 we introduced more homes, more choice Ontario's housing supply action plan by increasing supply of full range of housing options and our action plan put Ontario first we cut red tape and are helping build the right time homes in the right places making housing more affordable and building them faster more homes, more choice includes a broad range of measures to address the speed of development approvals that makes the housing types the cost of development and the supply of rental and ownership housing and other innovative ideas increase housing supply and in December we asked the housing affordability task force to look and explore measures to address housing Thank you I don't know what province the member opposite is living in but if he thinks he's been making housing more affordable Ontario he is not trying to rent something he's not trying to buy a home in Ontario your housing plan bulldozes over communities, wetlands and heritage properties but does not address the financialization of the housing market or money laundering and it does not reduce the cost of housing last year under your watch home prices in Toronto increased 16% to 1.7 million dollars and by the end of the year an average condo will be over $750,000 in Toronto people are leaving the province because of the cost of housing, business owners in my writing tell me that the housing costs are now Ontario's biggest advantage you've had four years to make housing affordable rent is out of reach and the dream of buying a home has been crushed will you admit that your affordable housing strategy has been an abject failure and it's time to change course or are you saying to the people of Ontario that the only way they are going to get the homes they can afford is if they vote you out in the next election again a remind members to make the comments to the chair order, the premier through you Mr. Speaker I want to thank the opposition for the question I just find it very ironic that the inaction of the Liberals and NDP for 15 years put us in this spot and we're digging out of this spot rental housing and affordable home ownership are even further out of reach for hard working Ontarians because of 15 years of doing absolutely nothing Mr. Speaker governments housing supply action plan are working to increase supply and make it easier for Ontarians to find the right home for them in 2020 Mr. Speaker the year after the housing supply action plan was implemented Ontario had over 81,000 housing starts the highest level in a decade and over 11,000 rental starts the highest level since 1992 Mr. Speaker these are the trends continued last year Ontario had over 100,000 housing starts the highest level in 30 years since 1987 Mr. Speaker and more than 13,000 rental starts the highest level since 1991 we're built thank you the next question a member for Cable thank you Mr. Speaker good morning my question is for the Minister of Energy and the Financial Accountability Office released a report confirming that after almost four years in office this government and I quote isn't going to be reducing electricity bills another broken promise from this government 2018 election campaign promises not only did the FIO state electricity rates aren't going down in fact under this government average residential electricity rates have increased by 4.3% this is a shame Mr. Speaker to see Ontarians pushed further into energy poverty at a time when the economy has suffered through lockdowns and thousands have lost their jobs why has this government broken its promise to voters to lower electricity rates to respond Minister of Energy to the member opposite for that very important question Mr. Speaker and I want to thank the financial accountability officer for the report that he tabled last week we all remember the way that electricity rates were soaring under the previous McGuinty win liberal government sometimes a double digit percentages year over year and what the financial accountability officer stated in his report last week is that our government is on the right track to flattening those soaring rates here in Ontario as a matter of fact under the liberal fair hydro plan over the next decade those electricity rates were anticipated to rise 6 to 7% each and every year Mr. Speaker what the FAO confirmed last week is that our plan is working our plan is the best we're flattening the rate of increase at lower than the rate of inflation much lower than the rate of inflation Mr. Speaker across Ontario we are keeping the price of electricity and we're lowering the price at the pumps as well Mr. Speaker our premier got rid of the cap and trade dropping gas prices by 4.3 cents a liter the liberals stepped in federally and rise the price by even more Mr. Speaker supplementary Speaker the largest factor driving electricity rates up in this province are the unsustainable costs of wind turbines they produce little electricity for an exorbitant cost the premier said when he was running for leader of the party and campaigning for premier that he opposed wind turbine projects but under this government they're building the largest wind turbine project in Ontario's history in the writing of storm at Dundas south glengary somehow this government finds the power to shut down local businesses for two years with mandates but can't find the power or the will to cancel wind turbine projects that are increasing electricity costs and are a rip off taxpayers and rate payers can the government explain why it is allowing the largest wind turbine project in Ontario's history to be built under its watch Minister of energy Speaker I know that the member opposite will remember this because she was a member of this caucus when she voted in support of lowering electricity rates in the province of Ontario by cancelling 790 unnecessary overmarket solar and wind energy projects Mr. Speaker that saved electricity customers almost 800 million dollars on their electricity rate we've taken great steps Mr. Speaker to stop those projects in their tracks because all they were going to do was continue to drive up the price of electricity what we have done through the Ontario electricity rate saving program and the comprehensive electricity plan is move those prices we've moved those overmarket costs that were put in place by the previous government Mr. Speaker to give industry a break to give farmers a break and homeowners a break Mr. Speaker of 15 to 17 percent each and every year on their electricity bill we're finding ways to save money we know that the liberals and the NDP would only cause those prices to skyrocket Mr. Speaker and next question Thank you Speaker my question is for the premier yesterday the financial accountability office released their latest report on this government spending and their findings were unsurprisingly disheartening they were supposed to spend 600 million dollars on the Ontario autism program but they only spent 334 this is disgraceful many constituents have contacted my office trying to get the support and the funding they needed for their children and I have written multiple letters on their behalf trying to find some kind of relief for them and nothing this government has done nothing my constituents have had to jump through hoops just to get even half of the funding their children need to access programming and yet this government only spent 56 percent of the allocated budget can the premier explain why he and his government continue to underfund the Ontario autism program for children community and social services Thank you Speaker and thank you to the member opposite this is obviously a very important issue for our government and it's exactly why our government doubled the amount going to the Ontario autism plan when we began the innovation the necessary innovation to bring a world class program for children with autism and their families as of last week 95.5 million has flowed to 8,682 families through childhood budgets 380 million has flowed to 34,099 families through interim one time funding that's real support to children with autism and their families and I will remind this house that approximately 40,000 children are receiving supports today that is almost five times as many children and families receiving support than the previous government we are making good progress on our target to enroll more children and families into the core clinical services and we are reaching the milestones that we set out in other facets of the program like the entry to school program and the independent intake organization we are projecting increased spending in the last quarter of 2021-22 Thank you Thank you very much I have stood in this house far too many times actually far too many years too many years I have been standing in this house to try to get the government to hold themselves accountable for their failures regarding the autism funding and the supports for Ontarians countless children are sitting and I believe it's over 50,000 children are waiting for real services not piece mail services that your one time funding gives them they are waiting for those services to access the Ontario autism program which quite frankly doesn't really exist parents and loved ones are struggling to pay for services that their kids needs we need to see more investments in the autism program from this government so that families can have access to quality needs based care the FAO report has demonstrated that this government just doesn't care to fund the Ontario autism program or quite frankly other critical services for that matter will the premier commit today to spend the rest of the allocated budget increase the Ontario autism program get that money out the door to families and kids that need it will they commit to that today Thank you Minister of Children's Community and Social Services Thank you and once again I think it is important to deal with facts we are confident that we will spend the full $600 million that is what we are projecting to have increased spending in the last quarter of 2021-22 on the Ontario autism program and for the facts we have approximately 40,000 children enrolled in this program we have doubled the amount of funding to $600 million we have five times as many children receiving supports under the previous government and let me give you some numbers children and youth enrolled in behaviour plans 3,665 children payments issued for interim one-time funding 32,056 payments families enrolled in the launch of core clinical services 650 families who access foundational family services 12,914 children engaged in the caregiving mediated early years program 1,126 in the entry to school program this is ongoing this is our commitment we are listening to the recommendations from the advisor panel and the implementation working group and we are continuing on our thank you the next question the member for Scarborough thank you speaker my question is to the premier good morning premier in 2018 the Ontario Liberal government was on track with investments to the Scarborough hospitals after an expert panel including committing to the expansion of emergency room departments to three times their current size which would include Centenary and Birchmount sites supporting the bridal town community hub as a modern community based dialysis facility in Scarborough as well as funding five million dollars for stage one master planning for new hospital facilities in our 2018 budget the Liberals committed to 1.1 billion dollars for SHN speaker why is this premier sitting on this funding four years later why has it taken four years for you to commit to Scarborough minister of health thank you very much well our government has made significant investments to support the healthcare needs of the people of Scarborough in 2021 we increased there 2021 22 we increased their base budget by 2.5% giving them an additional 12 million dollars we also provided 9.46 million dollars for an additional 20 acute medical surgical beds for the Scarborough health network and as part of our government's historic 1.8 billion dollar investment in hospitals we invested 4.64 million for 20 transitional care beds for the Scarborough health network year over year we continue to invest in Scarborough through our health infrastructure renewal fund with a 5.9 million dollar investment in 2019-20 4.6 million in 2021 and a 4.7 million dollar investment in 2021-22 our government is committed to ensuring that the people of Scarborough have the healthcare that they need and they can work on a metric question and back to the premier as you know capital is a specific ask and I understand that it does take time but we all want to be treated equally in this province and that includes the services that we receive in our healthcare why is Scarborough last when Scarborough has some of the oldest hospitals in the province including operating rooms that are still being used that were built in the 1950's last November the Scarborough health network submitted a plan to invest $1.9 billion in Birchmount and Centenary hospitals that would result in a 30% increase in bed capacity in Scarborough Speaker yesterday the Ontario Liberal Party committed to SHN and the people of Scarborough that we will say yes to investing in Scarborough and our hospitals and that we are asking the premier also to join us and to say yes and show the people of Scarborough a little bit of love commit premier to the $1.9 billion that SHN has asked you for since last November would you commit today The House will come to order Minister of Health can reply Thank you Speaker Well Speaker I've already indicated the significant investments that our government has made in the Scarborough health network over the years since 2018 I have great respect for the member opposite and I know she's a great advocate for Scarborough but look at the facts the former Liberal government promised an expansion to the Scarborough hospital for over 10 years they left the project lingering in planning for years operating rooms were the oldest in the province with little to no investment they're half the size they should be medical equipment lines the hallway because it doesn't fit inside our government has invested an additional $12 million in 2021 2022 for Scarborough health network's base budget we've also added beds now take a look the former Liberal government and the current Liberals talk a good game but have delivered nothing we have made the investment that concludes our question period