 Thank you, and before I ask for oral questions I want to acknowledge that we are met today on the traditional territory of the mississaugas of the new credit first Nations Oral questions the leader of Her Majesty's loyal opposition Thank you speaker, and I want to begin by welcoming all members to our first question period of This parliament and congratulate the speaker again on his his election to his important role Speaker my questions for the premier People deserve a premier not beholden to lobbyists and insiders and someone who tells the people of Ontario Exactly what he's up to but instead this premier is not even three weeks into the job And he's already telling Ontarians one thing and doing the exact opposite Opposite behind closed doors why did the premier say that the CEO of hydro one would get zero Absolutely zero when he knew that the CEO would walk away with millions Mr. Speaker congratulations and congratulations to the leader of the opposition If I could remind the leader of the opposition when we were out campaigning That we ran clearly on getting rid of the CEO and getting rid of the board as the news media Went around and said it cost ten million dollars. I'm here to tell you that there was zero Severance absolutely zero We were given a clear mandate the reduced hydro rates by 12% and that's exactly what we're going to do unlike the opposition leader Next month if you were in charge there'd be 7,000 people without jobs out in the Pickering hydro facility Thousand people wondering where they get their next thank you. Thank you Thank you speaker looks like this premier is going to be as honest in this house as he was on the campaign I have to ask the leader the opposition to withdraw Draw The premier said that the payout to Mayo Schmidt was zero Absolutely zero But now we know that mr. Schmidt will actually walk away with incentives worth at least nine million dollars Maybe even more speaker will the premier tell Ontarians Exactly how much his back room deal will end up costing hydro one great pairs Mr. Speaker Again, thank you for the question. I just want to remind you that the CEO of hydro is getting a zero severance in 2016 2017 and 18 under the liberal government with your support You prop them up to have stock options the stocks of options is what you're talking about But I can assure you the CEO had the same benefits as any other employee with their pensions and their benefits Again, the CEO of hydro is gone The board is gone. We're turning the page when it comes to hydro rates We have the highest Final supplementary let's remind the premier of this province that the new Democrats are the only party that has firmly stood against the privatization of Government speaker that started the privatization of electricity in our province when they were in government last time Premier wins six million dollar man speaker is now premier Ford's nine million dollar man and county Thanks to whatever secret deal the conservatives cooked up behind closed doors It's time for this premier to come clean with the people of Ontario How much does this secret deal really cost and when will he make it public? Mr. Speaker as I campaign throughout the province and you were side-by-side in many cases We said very clearly to the people that gave us the mandate that we're going to reduce hydro rates by 12% That's exactly what we're going to do We're turning the page at higher one and I want to remind the public God forbid you ever got elected They'd be looking at the high-grades double the cost of what they're looking at right now Recognize the leader the opposition for a second. Thank you speaker. My next question is also for the premier It's the job of the premier to do more than respond to lobbyists and Repay backroom deals speaker, but since taking office We've seen this premier making backroom deals that are driven by what's best for lobbyists and insiders Not what's best for Ontario instead of helping everyday families? He's quietly delivering favors for big polluters Ticket scalpers and his social conservative friends Why is this premier making backroom deals that help insiders and conservative friends instead of helping the people of Ontario? For you mr. Speaker. I want to remind the leader of the opposition. We're here for the people We're here to reduce taxes here to reduce taxes. We're going to create good paying jobs We're going to reduce the hydro rates and get this economy going in the province of Ontario once again We will be the engine of Ontario We will create thousands and thousands of great paying jobs and putting money back into the taxpayers pocket instead of the Government's pocket. I know the leader of the opposition believes in big government everything should go through government We believe in empowering the people When the premier cancelled cap and trade he was doing what is best for big polluters speaker the cost of ripping up Ontario's cap and trade agreements and reimbursing Companies for billions and billions of dollars in suddenly worthless credits will be Massive and the cost of inaction on climate change will hurt Ontarians today and for generations to come Which big polluters lobbied the premier to let them off the hook and stick families with the bill Mr. Speaker leader of the opposition we campaigned on getting rid of the cap and trade carbon factor Remind the leader of the opposition. We're going to save $790 million by doing that for the taxpayers of Ontario We're going to say $285 per family putting again money back into the taxpayers pocket instead of the big government's pocket We're going to start respecting the taxpayers for the next four years Question is how many billions and billions of dollars is it going to cost to cancel those contracts? Mr. McGinty told us it was going to cost 40 million dollars to cancel two gas plants and it cost $1.1 billion so we're very much looking forward to seeing what it's going to cost look Decision after decision is being driven by the premier's desire to deliver for his friends and for lobbyists The premier made a backroom deal with Tonya Granik Allen Charles McVidi and other far-right lobbyists to force out dated sex except curriculum on students rather and drag Ontario back to 1998 doesn't help students It doesn't help the safety of students at risk it ignores the responsibilities that we have to teach children about You clear young people and their safety Care more about the favors that he owes to social conservatives than he does about keeping young Mr. Speaker through leader of the opposition, we're gonna be very clear We're gonna govern for the people instead of for the government. We're gonna lower taxes for the people Taxes on small businesses that have been struggling absolutely struggling It makes us uncompetitive the cap and trade and carbon tax It puts a burden on the backs of the small businesses medium and large businesses It also puts a burden on the taxpayers of Ontario We're gonna make sure once we get rid of the cap and trade and carbon tax We're gonna reduce gas prices by 10 cents and leader Next question Leader the official opposition. Thank you speaker. My question is for the premier Nobody voted for businesses business to be conducted in secret and behind closed-door speaker Nobody voted for that and nobody voted for Ontario to be dragged backwards But that's what this premier is doing on July 3rd It was revealed that the premier had secretly slammed the brakes on the new special investigative Special investigations unit act now this particular law with the new oversight tools to help increase public trust and Accountability was the result of two full years of consultation and two rounds of committee hearings But the premier ignored all of that speaker and ignored the voices of Ontarians who lobbied the premier speaker to quietly scrap the rules on police oversight to the community services and Correctional services Minister minister for Community safety and safety and correctional services The basically the SIU is a matter that that's presently being looked at It's our understanding that I'm being briefed on it presently So I don't have any actual information on that but I will report back to the house when I have a response Well, it's pretty worrisome speaker that we have a minister Responsible who doesn't know the file at all enough to even give a semblance of a response to a question in the legislature new Democrats stand support for updating the laws that govern police oversight and Protect the public trust in policing the two-lock review took over a year and involves 17 public hearings and received 1500 submissions Including from police the previous government's legislation took another year and involved two rounds of public hearings and submissions Including from police. It wasn't perfect But even the head of the police Association of Ontario says that he accepts the need for police accountability and transparency so who lobbied the premier apparently Not but not be known to the minister who lobbied the premier to ignore Ontarians and stop these new oversight rules from coming into play I think the leader the opposition No The minister community safety and correctional services if he wishes to respond or he has to respond or or he has to refer it to Another I will refer it to the attorney general attorney general Thank You mr. Speaker, and I thank the leader the opposition for a question and congratulate her on her victory We pressed pause on this legislation so that we could take the time to conduct a full and thorough review of the legislation By consulting with experts police services and the public that is what we have done We have pressed paused on this we want to work with our frontline police officers to make sure that we do we have the Right answer on this issue the special investigations unit is still in place And so that unit the SIU is still doing its work, but we've pressed pause on that portion of the legislation Expression the member for Perth Wellington. Thank you speaker Congratulations mr. Speaker on your election. I know you'll be a truly dedicated and capable servant of this house Mike My question is through the minister environment conservation in parks And I also want to congratulate the minister on his new job Premier Doug Ford and the government for the people campaign on a plan for making life more affordable for families And respecting taxpayers that starts with scrapping the uncompetitive and unaffordable cap-and-trade carbon tax It didn't protect the environment Instead it only jacked up the price of gasoline home heating and everyday items like groceries and clothing Mr. Speaker could the minister please update the house on the government for the people's progress Scrapping this tax and tell the people of Ontario how much this will save families Thank you very much mr. Speaker. Thank you also to the member for his tough but fair question I'd like to congratulate the member from Perth from Perth Wellington For his reelection, and I know that he is an expert an excellent representative of his constituents As the premier has already stated today our government is moving swiftly to scrap the Liberals cap-and-trade carbon tax Cabinet has already taken measures to this effect and will be introducing legislation this session to finish the job Scrapping the Liberals cap-and-trade carbon tax will save the average family $285 a year and it's a first step towards our commitment to reduce gas tax by 10 cents We received a strong mandate from the people of Ontario to scrap this ineffective tax and we're delivering on that promise Promise is made promises kept. Thank you speaker back to the minister of environment conservation in parks I'm glad to hear that the government for the people is delivering on his promise When I went to door-to-door, I heard time and time again that life was harder and more unaffordable under the previous government And I know the people of Perth Wellington will be happy to hear we are scrapping the carbon tax Unfortunately other parties in this house will stop at nothing to impose another carbon tax on the people of Ontario One member opposite has even said he will fight to impose the highest carbon tax in North America onto the people of Ontario Raising gas prices by 35 cents per liter Could the minister please tell the people of this house what measures the government for the people is taking to protect Ontario families from future carbon taxes Thank you for the follow-up question through you mr. Speaker our government has been clear no carbon taxes now no carbon taxes ever People of Ontario can't afford one. They can't afford one now and they can't afford one in the future So they won't have one our government will be introducing legislation to scrap the Liberals cap and trade carbon tax once and for all Our government will challenge any efforts from the federal government to impose a carbon tax on the people of Ontario While the members opposite may fancy themselves as carbon tax crusaders the government will be standing with the people Ontario families as I said will save $285 a year will lower gas taxes by 10 cents a liter and put more money in their pockets. It's real change for the people Next question member for Toronto Danforth. Thank you speaker. Beaker my question to the premier late on Friday the energy minister announced that he was ripping up 758 renewable energy contracts These particular projects were chosen the decision was made behind closed doors We do know that many of these projects Are owned by municipalities public utilities local farmers school boards and first nations and the premier says he will pass legislation To download the cancellation costs from the province on to these local communities Will the premier tell us how much cost and disruption he will force on local communities First nations households and farmers as a result of his back room decision Mr. Speaker and on my first occasion to rise in this place I want to thank my wife and children for their love and support and the constituents of the great canora rainy River district for Mr. Speaker to fill with humility the shoes of the great Leo Burnier the former emperor of the north as he was fondly Known from the canora rainy River district for the past couple of weeks. Mr. Speaker There is a palpable excitement across Ontario as projects that represented wasteful spending by the previous government Have been cancelled. Mr. Speaker make no mistake about it This is not about anything more than a savings of $790 million to It represents the first in a number of steps that we're going to take to make sure that every Ontarian sees a savings on their energy bills moving forward. Thank you, Mr. Speaker and back to the premier one of the affected communities is the small northern Ontario town of Blind River in the riding Algoma Manitoulin eight years ago the Minister of Energy the current minister Applauded the town's decision to take out a massive federal loan under the federal conservative government to build a solar energy project Under the Green Energy Act the deal went bad and the town of 3,600 is nearly 50 million dollars in debt with nothing to show For it instead of helping the town recover the minister is making things worse Instead of making backroom decisions forcing unknown costs onto small towns and first nations Why won't the premier review these contracts in a transparent process that is based on evidence and the public interest? Interesting question about northern Ontario coming from a member from downtown Toronto, Mr. Speaker, let me tell you after years of working for the people across northern Ontario What they were talking about an expensive way of life longer winters than most colder than most People making choices between heating and eating mr. Speaker the goal of this and the promise of this platform and Premier Ford was to reduce hydro weights rates. That's what northern Ontarians were focused on That's what they told us on June 7th, and that's exactly what we're going to deliver The member for Brampton South Mr. Speaker my question is to the Minister of Health I would like to start by congratulating the Minister for being tasked with this important responsibility I know that she will do great work for her constituents and the people of Ontario I was proud to see that the government for the people wasted no time getting to work Rolling up its sleeves and finding ways to ensure taxpayers are getting value for money and Programs are run as effectively and efficiently as possible This is evidenced by the government's for the people's positive changes to the OHIP plus program Saving hard-earned tax dollars without compromising the services families depend on mr. Speaker Could the Minister of Health please update the members of this house on the government's changes to the OHIP plus Mr. Speaker and thank you to the member for the question I too would like to congratulate the member for Brampton South for being elected by his constituents and for the trust that they have in him But within days of being sworn in our government announced our intention to fix the OHIP plus program By focusing on drug benefits for those who do not already have prescription drug benefits Children and youth who are not covered by private benefits would continue to receive their eligible prescriptions free Mr. Speaker I repeat Children and youth who are not covered by private benefits would continue to receive their prescription drug benefits free More efficient the new system will save taxpayers money and the new system will dedicate precious resources to those who need them the most Most importantly this ensures that children and youth who still need the prescription drug. Thank you. We'll need them and get them when they Mr. Speaker back to the Minister of Health Thank you for those kind words. I am proud the people of Brampton South put their trust in me I will not let them down and thank you very much for the important update I am glad to see that the government for the people is getting to work saving taxpayers money without compromising the services Families and children depend on it's great to hear that children and youth will continue to receive the prescription drugs They need could the minister of health update the members of this House on how they are working with insurance companies to make these changes and save taxpayers money Insurance plans can cover thousands more drugs than the 4400 covered on OHIP plus children and youth would have more access to medications than under the current program Private insurers had previously given some The government a grace period for some medication which was set to expire in july 1st And that's why we needed to move quickly We asked those insurance group to extend that grace period which they have kindly agreed to do And i'm proud to say that the canadian life and health insurance associations Welcome to these changes to OHIP plus and extend at the transition period beyond july 1st We are currently working with the insurance association to make sure that their transition period is seamless And that young people who need the drugs will be able to get them free of charge Yeah Next question the member What's your bourgeois hello, mr. Speaker my question is uh to the premier Why did the government drop a conciliation from the mandate of the ministry of indigenous affairs? And what is behind the decision to have the minister share his time between northern affairs mining energy And indigenous affairs The minister Thank you, mr. Speaker and miigwetch to the member i congratulate him on winning a region of northwestern ontario That's near and dear to my heart as i had served it in my former capacity as The member of parliament for the great kanora riding and spent several years there working as a nurse and a lawyer In those communities campaign that reflected the needs for all ontarians, and we appreciate the truth and reconciliation Represents a dark chapter in canada's history Moving forward mr. Speaker we intend as a government to honor the principles of truth and reconciliation But focus mr. Speaker on the things that indigenous communities are asking for a piece of the prosperity that all ontarians have come to expect In their communities and moving forward whether it's resource revenue sharing mr. Speaker for municipalities and indigenous communities in this province But particularly in northern ontario We're going to make sure that those indigenous communities have access to the kind of prosperity that we all expect from a government supplementary question Thank you. Again. It's all momo cough from a q. Aduk writing Speaker first nations are concerned about the government's step Backward away from reconciliation This is not basking nation grand chief alvin fiddler said It is difficult to see how progress can continue to be made when first nations are reduced to only On how they relate to the government's ability To access the resources within our lands During the campaign the the premier famously said he would Get on the boat dozer himself to get the ring of fire underway And he also said that he would stop talking and start doing But from the from the perspective of first nations The only way you can start doing anything And their territories and our territories Is to start talking to our territory Speaker, how does the premier propose to do this with the part-time minister? Thank you Thank you, mr. Speaker, and I can assure the member op is said that there's nothing part time about the devotion and the skill that I bring to this portfolio Stands this ministry stands alone with a minister who has spent more than eight years of his life living and working in indigenous communities Mostly in northwestern Ontario, but in fact across canada, mr. Speaker I have a keen sense and great relationships with indigenous leaders Some of these folks are some of my closest friends across the region, mr. Speaker We're going to ensure that first nations have prosperity the member mentioned ring of fire Those communities are doing more than just talking. They're working with the private sector, mr. Speaker Creating economic opportunities and creating jobs for those isolated remote communities It's high time. Mr. Speaker, and we're going to deliver on those promises for prosperity for indigenous communities Recognize the member for Ottawa south Thank you very much, mr. Speaker. Congratulations on your election and my question is for the premier Premier congratulations on your election and your government's mandate And congratulations to all the members of this legislature on your election Our caucus looks forward to working with all of you in the best interests of ontario families premier During the campaign we heard nothing about a plan from the conservative party for climate change Do you believe that it's important for your government to have a plan for climate change? Yes or no Premier minister environment Mr. The environment so mr. Speaker and thank you to the member for the question Our priority is of course to return Return our economy to the vibrance that it once had but we absolutely understand That climate change is real and we understand that man has played a role in that And so we will also be bringing forward a plan to make sure that the ontario economy is is Vibrant and is is strong, but also understands the impacts of of our own impact as as as human beings on climate That plan will not include a regressive carbon tax Thank you for your response Premier if the environment and climate change were important to you It would have been in your throne speech Climate change is the challenge of our generation It's what we need to do For our kids and our grandkids and our great grandkids And it is possible for a conservative to have a plan for an environmental challenge In the 80s, there was one conservative prime minister Brian Mulroney and he teamed with another conservative you may know Ronald Reagan On their environmental challenge of the time Acid rain they worked together. They understood they had a plan Premier I want to ask you What is your plan for climate change? You can't just tear something down and not put something in its place There is not an option not to do anything. Premier. What is your plan? Thank you Mr. Speaker through you, we appreciate the members confidence in in previous conservative administrations This government will will bring forward a plan a plan that that understands the importance of climate change But we will do so in a way that preserves the economic growth that's required that that understands that a regressive tax On individuals that that telling people that they can't drive their cars anymore is not an effective or a sincere way to approach this issue But a plan will be coming When gary press thought Thank you, mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker my question is to the minister of economic development job creation and trade First of all, I'd like to congratulate the honorable member on his reelection and his new role I know That he'll do a fantastic job in putting our economy and businesses first and ensuring that good jobs are created all across our province Minister we know that our jobs across ontario that that depend on trade and our american friends and neighbors Mr. Speaker from the steel workers in hamilton and in so saint marie to our world-class auto sector So many industries and so many of our communities depend on trade with our american partners Mr. Speaker can the minister please tell us some of the steps He's taking to protect those jobs and to stand shoulder to shoulder with hard-working ontarians all across this province Mr. Economic Development job creation Congratulations, mr. Speaker and congratulations To the honorable member and thank you for the question. I know you'll you'll do a great job for the people at Mr. Speaker ontario is open for business once again Premier ford and one of his first acts is premier actually premier elect indicated that we will stand shoulder to shoulder with our federal cousins cousins On the trade issue I better clarify that for everybody And and one of the first things that he did and I did was get briefed by the federal government and the canadian ambassador On the NAFTA negotiations One in five jobs in ontario or 1.3 million jobs in ontario Depend on good relations with the united states and our trade relations And in the united states and we want to go down there this week and make it clear that nine million jobs depend on a good NAFTA Negotiations in the united states and that's what i'll be doing at the end of the week Thank you, mr. Speaker mr. Speaker back to the minister of economic development job creation and trade minister over the past 15 years ontario's economy has struggled under the weight of punishing red tape skyrocketing hydro rates and unfair taxes that have put our province at a competitive disadvantage Under the last government there was a steady flow of both jobs and investment out of our province Minister i'm sure that you and your ministry have been hard at work Taking early steps to not only keep good jobs in ontario, but to attract more investment and jobs creation Mr. Speaker, can the minister please explain how his government for the people is ensuring that ontario is once again open for business Well, I said Thank you as I said, mr. Speaker at the end of this week I'll be heading to the united states to prepare here before a commerce committee It's unprecedented that ontario is a sub-national government has this opportunity And we're going to make it clear we're open for business and the way we're open for business is to keep that border open between the united states And and ontario and canada 85 percent of our cars for example Go to the united states an auto park for example could go across the nafta region borders Seven times before it's finally put into a car either on the us side or the canadian side If we don't get this trade relationship right Some 900,000 cars might not be made in the next three years in ontario right now We make two million a year that will be thousands and thousands of families who can't put food on the table So we're counting on good relations with the us premier ford has already set that in motion Thank you. He's working on with the governors and we're going to open those borders Good job member for ashua Thank you very much mr. Speaker and congratulations and nice to see you in the chair And my question is for the premier Collapsing the ministry of citizenship and immigration into an afterthought in the middle of a global refugee crisis is wrong Although the ministry has been erased the issues have not Ignoring the fact that most asylum seekers and newcomers are not breaking any laws This government has continued to use divisive and inflammatory language Calling those who seek refuge or asylum illegals is appalling and it doesn't absolve this government of responsibility This government's rash decision to cut provincial refugee resettlement services forces our cities to shoulder the cost of housing And leads to greater cost down the road Neglecting this humanitarian crisis is not in line with ontario's values and it puts the 11 million dollars from the federal government in question Conflicting reports leave many wondering who this government is working for what the plan is So let me ask the premier clearly Who are you working for and are you walking away from 11 million dollars? Thank you Thank you very much for the question and welcome back to the house and as well to you speaker It's great to see you in that chair Um, I'd also like to thank the people of napien for once again for a fifth time sending me to this legislature It's the most diverse riding inside the city of Ottawa where people from um live raise a family and retire I'm also proud to be an ontarian and i'm proud to be a canadian And i'm proud to be a conservative party where we for the first time elected two tamil mps Logan canapathy and vj fang silliam. I re-elected the first korean mpp in reyman show the first Coptic egyptian canadian mp syarif sabi and the two persian canadian mpps Goldigamari and michael parsa and many many more complimentary the member for osha Thank you speaker Again to the premier Report after report shows that across ontario there is a growing and long-standing housing crisis And instead of fixing the crisis this government has chosen to fear monger and place the blame on people seeking asylum But let me be clear to this premier The premier is making things worse speaker just days before being elected Mr. Ford had a backroom conversation with meritori and councillor john cambell Urging them to stop the city from building a temporary homeless shelter two kilometers from his house This homeless shelter could have provided much needed temporary housing aid for asylum seekers So does this premier think it's appropriate for the premier of ontario to intervene in municipal plans for personal gain? We've been perfectly clear speaker that the federal government has an obligation to pay for its failed federal policies This is a situation where we have 800 people in college dormitories on august the 9th that need to be vacated So students can go back into those locations. I asked the member opposite. Where does she think they should go? We have a 175 million dollar crisis in order to pay for toronto housing costs, which are 75 million dollars Ottawa city's shelter costs, which are 11 million dollars and in my own department 90 million dollars on the welfare role So we're going to continue to welcome people to ontario and we're going to continue to support them We reckon we brought in 36 000 refugees in the last two years alone outside of the syrian refugee crisis But somebody's going to have to pay for all of that and it's going to be the federal government We love your support in the ontario pc party Next question the member for durham Mr. Speaker my question is for the minister of energy I congratulate the member from canora rainy river on his appointment in this important role I know he'll make the people of the great riding of canora rainy river proud The legacy of the previous government was the mess they made in the hydro system Ontario was home to some of the highest hydro rates in north america When I went door to door in durham during the election campaign I heard from families that had to choose between putting food on the table and paying their hydro bills Families should not be forced to choose between heating and eating I heard from small businesses who were forced to close their doors and shutter their windows because of skyrocketing rates Meanwhile insiders and friends of the previous government got rich and lined their pockets This is a mess started with the green energy act passed by both the liberals and the ndp And this is a mess that needs to be cleaned up. Could the minister of energy? Please tell me what the government for the people has done and thank you Thank you, mr. Speaker, and I want to congratulate the member from durham on her outstanding victory and her representation She'll bring to her constituents. There's no question Mr. Speaker The previous government made it their mission to expand renewable energy at unsustainable rates and unaffordable contracts industrial wind turbines and solar power mr. Speaker that constituencies communities Found unfavorable for them. Mr. Speaker. We're canceling them because imagine this mr. Speaker And this will be a new kind of concept for the ndp certainly unknown to the other one We're going to protect the interests of ontario taxpayers ontario people mr. Speaker that shareholder Called the ontario rate pair who owns 47.5 percent of hydro one mr. Speaker, so Over the past couple of weeks. We've had a lot of excitement and activity. Thank you. We're going to reduce those hydro rates Thank you, mr. Speaker. Thank you Mr. Speaker back to the minister Thank you very much for that update I'm glad to see the government for the people is moving swiftly to clean up the hydro mess This is yet another promise made and yet another promise cat But cleaning up the hydro mess will not be easy Nowhere is there more evident than at hydro one After 15 years of liberal scandals waste and mismanagement the people of ontario have lost trust in hydro one I heard it every single day when I went door to door in durham The government for the people will need to move swiftly and act fast Could the minister of energy please provide the members of this house with an update on what is being done to restore public confidence in hydro one Mr. Speaker and thanks to the tremendous leadership shown by premier ford mr. Speaker We we took uh an opportunity to renew the leadership of hydro one and we're taking important steps in the coming weeks and months to ensure That the ontario rate pair the ontario taxpayer colleagues is going to be protected and this Including another a couple of other important steps with my colleagues here today are going to ensure that hydro rates Come down mr. Speaker the renewal of the leadership at hydro one is going to represent a cost savings But that's not enough for us. Mr. Speaker. We want to cancel contracts that put an unfair burden On rate pairs here in ontario and ensure that moving forward. We're not subsidizing and punting that debt down the road to our families We're cutting it now. So families have real savings on their hydropower Thank you speaker. My question is to the premier speaker this government's dangerous decision to repeal the updated sexual health curriculum Is dragging ontario backwards? It is a harmful decision that puts children and youth at risk Speaker the people of ontario understand that this was a back room decision To appease a small circle of socially conservative insiders at the expense of our children's safety Will the premier admit that repealing the sex ed curriculum was about advancing his own political career Without any regard for the health and safety and well-being of young people in this province Thank you speaker and again It's great to see you in that chair and as I stand for the first time in the 42nd parliament I want to thank the residents and the voters of curing brews Not going to change and in that spirit speaker I would like to share with you today that contrary to what was reported last week We are going to stand firmly in support of students and the realities they face in 2018 We know they need to learn about consent. We know they need to learn about cyber safety We know they need to learn about gender identity and appreciation But we all the former liberal government's consultation process was completely flawed And that's where we're going to focus in and we're going to respect parents And allow them a chance to once and for all have their voices heard in a very fulsome thoughtful inclusive consultation Thank you speaker the repeal of the 2015 curriculum requires schools to teach an outdated sex ed curriculum from 1998 A curriculum written before same-sex marriage was legal Before texting and google and social media It denies the existence of lgbtq youth and families and the reality of our modern diverse society It does nothing to provide young people with the accurate up-to-date information They need to protect themselves about cyber bullying about sexting about healthy relationships most of all about consent Why does the government want to take away the critical information and tools young people need to keep themselves safe? Thank you Thank you very much speaker as I said before contrary to all the spinning and what was reported last week We the premier myself and our entire colleagues in the pc government stand with students and the fact that they Consent that includes texting sexting that includes even new elements like luring catfishing And we need to take a look at that and open up a consultation to make sure That every person who wants to share their perspective has an opportunity to do so And I am committed to a consultation that will absolutely ring true across this province And stamp out any misconceptions that this opposition party is trying to perpetuate and will improve upon what the liberal curriculum has done in the past Thank you very much Next question the member for whitby Thank you speaker. My question is to the minister of energy I'd like to congratulate the honorable member on his being named the minister and the Excellent work he is doing to make life more affordable for everyone in the in Ontario Speaker the pickering nuclear generating station is vital to Durham region 4,500 jobs in the region depend on the continued operation of this plan an additional 3,000 jobs across the province also depend on the continued operation of the plant That's 7,500 good paying job speaker across the province However, throughout the election campaign the future of this plant plant was under constant threat Radical special interests in downtown Toronto and opposition parties tried to shut this plant down in august And put 4,500 Durham region families out of work Speaker could the minister of energy, please tell the members of this house What action this government is taking to protect 4,500 jobs in Durham region? Thank you, mr. Speaker, and I want to congratulate the member from whitby on his reelection. I appreciate his contributions Mr. Speaker i'm proud that premier ford was able to Join the minister of environment conservation and parks the president of the treasury board the member from whitby and the member From durham to stand up now. Here's another here's another concept The opposition is going to get have to get used to to promise made promise delivered mr. Speaker Stood proudly with those workers mr. Speaker who were concerned about what they they could do to provide for their families moving forward If this facility was shut down mr. Speaker by an ndp government imagine that mr. Speaker We're going to move forward on an effective plan that offers safe and efficient delivery of hydro energy mr. Speaker And that's the promise we made But back to the minister of energy Thank you very much minister for this great news for the people of whitby and durham region Speaker keeping the pickering nuclear generating station open Not only protects thousands of good paying jobs across the province It's also great news for entero ratepayers family small businesses and entero job creators who will save hundreds of millions of dollars in their hydro bills Speaker, unfortunately radical special interests in downtown, toronto and opposition parties in this house Wanted to shut this plant down and jack hydro bills up making life harder and more unaffordable Could the minister please tell the members of this house? How much the government for the people expects keeping the pickering nuclear generation station open will save entero hydro ratepayers I pre i appreciate the member uh speaking out for another important principle that will guide this government's decision making mr. Speaker making responsible decisions That saved taxpayers money imagine that mr. Speaker premier ford as government commitment to uh govern for the People and keep the pickering Generating station open till 20 24 will in fact save ontario ratepayers 600 million dollars It will ensure that 60 percent of our electricity that comes from nuclear power will include this important asset And as importantly mr. Speaker speaker, it will ensure that 60 000 people in ontario Will have work in nuclear power now this represents a wide range of skillset people that we want working in our province mr. Speaker What does the end do if you want to do? They want to shut it down. We'll take no lessons from that party when it comes to the back Take your seats Please take your seats Recognize the member for nickle bell. Thank you. Mr. President. Thank you. Thank you, mr. Speaker. My question is for the premier The premier's decision Let ties ohib plus will not fix the gap in drug coverage It will not help the millions of people who can't afford their prescription And it will not lower the cost of prescription drugs instead It is a huge step backwards from the universal public pharma care program that family needs How can the premier defend his decision to privatize pharma care When it will leave the people of ontario with higher drug costs and lower drug coverage Premier Thank you very much mr. Speaker and thank you to the member for the question That is not what's happening What we're trying to do is use the very limited resources that we have in ontario right now for the people that actually need it That's what we're working with the insurers to do and that's what the people of ontario want Thank you The minister seems to be ignoring the facts The decisions to privatize pharma care is not fiscally responsible Economists and health care leaders all say privatizing pharma care is the absolute wrong thing to do In fact, the leading economist on pharmaceutical costs in canada Dr. Stephen Morgan says the premier's drug plan costs will hit the middle class the hardest He says this cut and I quote Benefit narrow interest at the expense of the majority of ontario's businesses and households So my question to the minister is simple Which back room insiders and lobbyists are telling the premier to privatize pharma care? And why is the premier listening to them? Why In fact what is happening is a common sense solution and what we're doing is reversing a decision that was made by the previous government That made no sense to anybody at all Access to more drugs than currently exist so that people can get access to those prescriptions So right now there are situations under the previous ohib plus which we're changing Where people couldn't get access to the medications they needed because a formulary was so old So we need to move forward. We need to make sure that the insurers continue to cover as the first line So that the money will be available for the people that need it to do not have prescriptions Next question member for sue st. Marie Thank you, mr. Speaker my Thank you. My question is for the minister of natural resources and forestry Firstly, I want to congratulate the honorable member on his reelection and on the important role He has taken in our new government Mr. Speaker last week many residents of tamagami faced the scare of their life when a mandatory evacuation order was placed on them Due to the intensity of active wildfires in the region At the height of the blaze over 70 fires were burning and over 600 brave firefighters were putting their lives on the line to bring These fires under control Can the minister please tell the house what steps his ministry has taken to ensure support for first responders and the safety of the local residents Thank you Thank you speaker and I'd like to thank the member from sue st. Marie on that question and Welcome back to our caucus and I look forward to continue working with you as we go forward Speaker I first of all like to thank all the firefighters and their families from across the province And across this country has answered the call to help those in tamagami Our wildline fire and emergency response personnel They're working closely with the Ontario provincial police local authorities and agencies to fight the fire near the town of tamagami And to make sure that people are moved to safety People in communities threatened by this fire responding in a calm and orderly way And I want to thank them for supporting their neighbors incorporating with local officials during this emergency Their continued cooperation with emergency personnel will help keep people safe in areas affected by the wildfires Thank you supplementary Thank you again. Mr. Speaker back to the minister. Thank you minister for your answer The intensity of these fires has required a tremendous amount of effort from first responders all across Ontario I understand in fact that we have asked for and received support from other provinces as well It takes an incredible coordination of efforts between first responders fire rangers support staff and teams from other provinces to respond In such a timely fashion to help execute execute an evacuation in this period of time without injury Mr. Speaker, can the minister please provide this house with more details on the responses and the actions taken to battle these fires In order to keep the residents of tamagami safe Speaker we have requested and received support from Provinces from across the country and on behalf of premier florida and the Ontario government We want to thank those premiers from these provinces for helping Ontario in our time of need by sending Aircraft and fire rangers to help fight these fires in a significant another other active fires throughout the province I also want to thank the tremendous effort of our fire rangers and support staff have been working tirelessly to protect this community For the sons and daughters and partners of these first responders I wanted to give them my full promise That we will do everything and give them full support in battling these fires in tamagami and across north of Ontario To ensure their safety and I want to give personal thanks to each and every one of them I would also like to assure the house that our government is continuing to monitor the situation closely And we will continue to provide updates on a timely basis. Thank you Thank you very much. Mr. Speaker. I have a tough but fair question for the premier One of the first actions your government took was a hiring and wage freeze on the broader public sector What you don't seem to understand is when you freeze the public sector and And prevent people from working for the people of this province You shut out the public services for those people The hiring freeze was followed by a firing of a string of high-profile senior bureaucrats Ontario's first chief scientist. We don't know what the premier has against fax Ontario trade representative in washington dc the list goes on Already we see a pattern with your new government get rid of anyone who might be critical of your agenda Did the premier impose a hiring freeze and fire senior civil servants so that you could replace them with your own bureaucrats Who will tow the conservative party line? Thank you Thank you, mr. Speaker for the question and uh the member opposite I also would like to thank my family who supported me in my election And the great people of the riding of Pickering Uxbridge Mr. Speaker our government is committed to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of government Spending in all sectors and bringing a balanced budget to the people for the people A public service hiring freeze is the first step towards a balanced budget and bringing real change to the province of ontario To that end one of our first acts has been to direct all ministries to implement a hiring freeze until we can get a true look at the picture Of the state of ontario's finances Mr. Speaker, let me be clear the hiring freeze does not apply to our frontline workers like nurses and teachers The freeze will be implemented in a manner that ensures the government remains able to deliver the high quality public services The people of ontario depend that concludes the time we have for all questions today But i'd like to remind all members That when you're speaking in the house when you have the floor of the house when you've been recognized by the speaker You address your comments through the speaker And you if you're speaking of other members you speak about them respectfully and you speak about them in the third person Point of order the member for bruce gray owens out Thank you very much speaker I'd like to introduce furg devins chair of bladder cancer canada and a survivor and a proud resident of canora in northern ontario Who's in the members gallery? Thank you? Minister of education on a point of order. Thank you so much speaker I would like to share an appreciation to all of our pages welcome back and thank you for helping us out during And I would too would like to express my thanks to the staff of the ontario legislature for all the work that they've done To prepare for this special summer sitting at the house. They've worked very very hard There being no deferred votes this house is in recess until 1 p.m. This afternoon