 It is time for a question period. To the member from Austin. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Housing. I've heard from many young families about their dream of buying their first home. Only to be outbid time and time again. Why has the dream of home ownership become so much more difficult? Because this government's burdensome regulation and red tape. The supply of houses doesn't meet the demand. In fact if no new houses went onto the market after today, the supply would be gone in one month. Mr. Speaker, it's time the government gets out their scissors and truly starts cutting red tape. Will the Liberals commit to slashing red tape and letting the housing market meet the demands we need? Thank you Minister of Housing. Well thank you Speaker and thank you to the member opposite for that question. Speaker, as we've stated repeatedly in the House, we really understand the concerns throughout the GTHA regarding the booming housing markets. We know that Ontarians are worried about homes. They want the peace of mind knowing that they'll all have an affordable place to call home. And I can say that we have been working and consulting across this province and in fact across Canada looking at solutions that we can use in Ontario. Some of those will be coming soon Mr. Speaker. We've been participating alongside B.C. and the cities of Toronto and Vancouver in a federal working group to look at housing. Speaker, the Residential Tendency Act we have been looking at we've been consulting extensively across Ontario over the past few weeks. Thank you. We're on it. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker this morning I was joined by Juan Rojas who is in the gallery with his wife today. Juan and his wife and three-year-old daughter are looking to move to a bigger house for their growing family. They've been looking for months in Etobicoke and based on their bids on the housing prices they saw the week before. They bid last week's price today and they didn't get it. They never seem to be enough. Mr. Speaker can the Liberals tell Juan why they're making it harder for him to buy a house for his young family. Thank you. Well, thank you Speaker. It's a very interesting very interesting question coming from the member opposite. I will tell you that the former leader of the opposition Mr. Tim Hudak recently said that he congratulated the government for taking positive steps to address affordability. We agree Mr. Speaker let me just reiterate a few of the things that this government has done you know we're continuing to work with our municipal partners to make secondary suites. Those are the self-contained residential units available more quickly helping communities better respond quickly to renters need. We recently passed legislation to provide communities to use a new tool called inclusionary zoning. Mr. Speaker we have a whole host of things we've done and I look forward to explaining more. Final supplementary. Well Mr. Speaker the Liberal government significantly increased my policies the government significantly increased municipal review times for our planning applications. They raised it from 90 to 180 days for amendments to the official plans and subdivision and condominium approval to make it 30 to 120 days for zoning and holding bylaws and 60 to 90 days for consent applications all of which make it harder to get foundations dug, walls put up and roofs over the heads of our young families. Mr. Speaker the dream of home ownership should be attainable for most young families. Why does the government insist on making it so much harder for the majority of the families? Minister of municipal affairs Mr. Speaker thank you very much I want to thank the member for the question. There is an interesting narrative I think that is beginning to take hold in the GTHA around housing affordability. We understand very clearly that this is a real issue but what I do want to say is from our perspective in our ministry we have been doing a significant amount of work on this file already Speaker and I would say we feel comfortable in discounting the following in any way influencing the price of housing in the GTHA. Number one is land availability. There is absolutely enough land available in the province of Ontario and in the GTHA to meet demand and number two there is absolutely enough service to meet demand. It is mandated three year supply required we have done a deep dive and in fact there is a three year supply of service land available Speaker we continue to work farther on this to see if approvals are part of what is holding up. Thank you. No question member from Halliburton Court. Minister of the status of women there is a sexual assault centre in Brampton it currently has 132 people on the waiting list and it takes nine months for survivors to get their first session that wait is about to get longer staff hours are being cut and the centre is closing on Fridays. Mr Speaker does the minister of the status of women believe that this is acceptable? Thank you. Thank you Mr Speaker and I am pleased to rise and talk to the member opposite about this important question. Absolutely sexual violence has a devastating impact on the lives of survivors and their families and it is far too prevalent in our society and it is absolutely unacceptable. That is why our sexual violence and harassment action plan we are addressing awareness we are raising awareness we are improving supports, we are making workplaces and campuses safer. We know that HOPE 24-7 does important work throughout Peel Region which is why we have provided them funding for sexual violence and harassment and prevention over the last 20 years and in fact of the 42 sexual assault centres in the province they now receive the sixth highest funding of any of the centres in the province I think that's amazing now I understand that their model of delivery is different and we are working with them to ensure that they get the funding that they are on track Thank you. Thank you. Supplementary question Well Mr Speaker Jay Paul Massey Singh the president of HOPE 24-7 Board had this to say unless the province is prepared to step up in a meaningful way we are really in a situation where we are going to fail our community Mr Speaker is the government prepared to step up in a meaningful way or whether liberals fail sexual assault survivors in Peel Region Attorney General Attorney General Well thank you very much Speaker and this is a very important question and this is an issue that this government and our premier has taken a tremendous amount of leadership our premier is the one who stood up to make sure that we deal with issues around sexual violence and sexual harassment in a meaningful way not to just pay platitudes Speaker but to actually take action Minister please Thank you Speaker to take action that is going to ensure that there are supports available for victims of sexual violence and harassment Speaker to ensure that we change attitudes to sexual violence and harassment It's never okay campaign Speaker we are making a meaningful and substantive difference and in my supplementary I'll speak to the kind of supports we have available Thank you Hope 24-7 has the second lowest funding per capita of all sexual assault centers in the province Yet the government's tone deaf response to this crisis in Peel has been that they funded this center for 20 years but what's good is this funding if it doesn't meet the needs on the ground I know that the government doesn't believe in mandatory sexual assault training for judges but now it seems like they're not prepared to help the most vulnerable victims of sexual assault Mr. Speaker once again will the government respond to the cry for help from sexual assault survivors in Peel region Thank you I hope 24-7 does important work throughout the Peel region I think it's really important also to note the kind of support that we have been providing to this very important agency Since 2003 Speaker our funding for all sexual assault center programs has increased by 45% Speaker and in 2015 we increased Hope 24-7 budget by over $31,000 as part of our it's never okay action plan to increase funding to all sexual assault centers Speaker by 7% Hope 24-7 Speaker almost $500,000 the sixth highest funding allocation in all of Ontario Speaker Speaker we have committed to reviewing counseling services Remember from Dufferin Caledon who will come door Thank you Finish please, wrap up We have committed to reviewing counseling services across the province and we've asked Hope 24-7 to be part of this conversation this is important work and we will get it done New question the member from Toronto Danforth Thank you Speaker my question to the acting premier People living on the minimum wage will see their paychecks increased by 1.7% this year under the premier's peg to inflation minimum wage However, however if you happen to be the CEO of Hydro One you'll have seen your salary go up by 500% The people who need the least are getting the most and the people who are struggling hardest are getting the least Does the acting premier see anything wrong with that Minister of Finance You know in Ontario we've had the largest job growth in the past 10 years We now have more people working in the private sector than ever before these are high paying jobs Many of the workers that the member that makes reference to in relative number of sectors in our economy are now receiving more than they ever have before Minister of Labour Minister of Labour within this caucus who put forward an index on wages Now minimum wage is forever going to be increased as a function of CPI something that that side did not support and weren't even part of their official plans Supplementary Okay, so you're fine with that let's go on to the next question It's not just a million dollar raises that are unfair after 14 years of letting Hydro rates reach a crisis point the premier promised relief but she didn't mean for everyone the plan doesn't apply to hospitals large businesses or even municipalities Why is the premier only interested in helping some people not everyone Thank you So Mr. Speaker Ontario's prosperity its growth has increased we're now leading Canada and we're taking a number of steps to diversify our economy so as not to be reliant on anyone or anyone commodity we advance in a new age economy that's high paying jobs good paying jobs stable jobs Mr. Speaker and the member opposite seems to want to go back to the days of assembly lines and smokestacks we can't compete in low wages what she's trying to propose that we're losing to other economies around the world we are going to support our young people we're going to invest in our young people we're going to invest in jobs we're going to invest in businesses who create those jobs unlike that member who wants to increase our taxes push them away final supplement again to the acting premier the premier's priorities don't make sense she rubber stamps multi-million dollar raises for hydro executives who don't need them and leaves people living on the minimum wage struggling she's promising hydro relief but schools and hospitals could actually see their hydro delivery charges increase under her privatized hydro one she could take a step toward ending the runaway hydro salaries and runaway bills by stopping the sell off of hydro one will she do that Mr. Speaker we're balancing the books so that we can afford to pay and invest more in education Mr. Speaker we're balancing the books so that we can invest more in hospitals Mr. Speaker we're balancing the books so that we can invest more in our young people we're balancing those jobs we're balancing the books so that we can ensure that businesses invest and come to Ontario and they are Mr. Speaker they're creating jobs, good paying jobs stop talking down Ontario and the people of Ontario who are delivering for our province you see it please you see it please no question the member from Toronto done for thank you Speaker this weekend I received a letter from a senior and he and 31 of his friends and neighbors are facing a 31% increase in their rent does the acting premier think it's fair that a senior like Clarence living on a fixed income should be subject to a drastic increase in his rent at the drop of his landlord's hat acting premier Minister of Housing Mr. Speaker well thank you Speaker and thank you to the NDP for that question it's absolutely unacceptable that so many Ontario tenants are faced with housing costs that are rising so dramatically and that's why we're already developing a plan to address unfair rises in rental costs rental costs right across Ontario Speaker in the coming weeks we're going to be rolling out our plan for substantive rent control right here in Ontario it's going to be a very broad package of changes that will protect tenants we've been working on legislation since last June it's important that we get it right Mr. Speaker we've already taken as I said in a previous response we've already taken a whole host of things in regards to action we've introduced secondary suite legislation we've introduced inclusionary zoning we've frozen municipal property tax on apartments we've doubled the minimum refund for first-time home buyers we're continuing to collect data to better understand housing needs right here in Ontario and we're working with supplementary thank you Speaker Speaker again to the acting Premier and I quote we are all senior citizens living on a fixed income on our face with the problem of where the funds will be coming from to pay this substantial rent increase Mr. Bax wrote in a letter that he sent to him last week the Premier and her Liberal party voted against my bill which would have closed that loophole now that allows these devastating rent increases will she change her mind now will the government change its mind thank you Mr. Speaker well thank you Speaker as I said before I outlined a whole host of things that this government has already put in place I've talked repeatedly about the broad package of change that we're going to be moving ahead in the days and weeks ahead Mr. Speaker and you know the Premier and I both have been exceptionally clear that we're moving forward with a plan to address unfair increases in rental costs the NDP know that Speaker the NDP know that we appreciate that they are on the same page when it comes to helping families who are feeling the pinch but Mr. Speaker our plan will go further it will address a whole host of issues around tenant rights simply addressing rental a rent removal of the rental cap Mr. Speaker is a good first answer our plan will do that and it will do more final supplementary yeah if you want to be on the same page act now pass it now these seniors need the Premier to act and they tell her so in their letter quote we're asking you to support Mr. Tabin's R6 which would eliminate the derratic rent increases we and 150,000 Ontarians are facing they said will the Premier put aside partisanship put the interest of Mr. Bax his friends and thousands of other Ontarians are facing unfair rent increases will she put their interest first and agree to pass my bill today thank you Minister well thank you again Speaker you know Speaker what the NDP put on the table in that private members bill was pretty thin rule when it comes to addressing the needs of Ontario renters it's a you know dare I say one trick pony I will say again what we're bringing forward in the coming days and weeks ahead Mr. Speaker will be a more robust rent control more robust legislation regarding the Rental Tenancy Act we heard time and again Mr. Speaker as we travel to Ontario what is bothering tenants some of the issues facing landlords our changes are going to address a whole host of those things you know it's it's wonderful to hear the NDP standing up for seniors but I want to remind the member from Hamilton East Stony Creek come to order wrap up sentence thank you Speaker the NDP didn't even mention the word poverty in their last election platform new question member from Ford the member from Halliburton Corp. Speaker on March 8 International Women's Day I met with Ontario's long time commissioner for pay equity and had the opportunity to review the 2015-2016 statistics for the pay equity office while the pay equity office does what it can to support women it still lacks the tools and resources it needs to fulfill its mandate as usual this government loves to fight inequality but when it comes to actually getting to the work that needs to be done they are missing an action the government has yet to act on the gender wage gap steering committee's final report which was published almost a year ago in May of 2016 why has it taken the government so long and the minister so long to convene a working group to review the well thought out recommendations made by the expert committee Minister of Labor thank you very much and thank you to the member for that very important question Speaker we know the gender wage gap still disadvantages women right across Ontario and throughout every jurisdiction within Ontario Speaker the conversation that was started a while ago led to the creation of a working group Speaker they came forward with some recommendations and we didn't wait Speaker we implemented those things that we can implement immediately we put in place when any time any policy that goes through this government Speaker gets put through a gender lens we've been providing employers with this province very progressive employers in this province with the resources they need training materials on anti-discrimination developing other education products Speaker the task force is meeting on April the 13th this first meeting Speaker I'm expecting some pretty good recommendations out of that group I look forward to hearing from people we're determined to close this gap well back to the minister not only has it taken this government more than six months to even notice the report they have now decided to convene an invite only closed door session to discuss how to close the gender wage gap so why not bring this discussion to this legislature these are important issues that should be discussed publicly I remind the minister that when the pay equity act was adopted in this house in 1987 it was passed unanimously with the support of all three parties it's time for this government to do its right for women I call on the government to work with all parties in this legislature and establish a special legislative committee to sit this summer to work on strengthening the pay equity act can I expect the minister support for this kind of non-partisan initiative to improve the lives of hardworking women thank you speaker and thank you for the supplementary again we're determined to build on the progress we've already made speaker everybody knows that we need if a member from north-west glanbrook come to order thank you speaker all members of this house I think share the feeling that we need to do better on this so we need to close the gap speaker it's not just confined to that side of the house and I hear the member opposite demean and denigrate and dismiss the people that are putting the hard work into this the people we've appointed to the task force speaker we've got organized labor speaker we've got business we've got advocates we've got equal pay advocates coming forward the member knows how to adjust the member in house too wrap up speaker the member needs to pay a bit more respect to those people that are working hard on that issue speaker it's not just this side of the house that side of the house it's a women that have stepped forward to serve on this working group that are going to help us get to where we need to be new question members from Niagara Falls thank you Mr. Speaker my question today is the acting premier I sit up in this house many times before to try and explain to you what your hydro crisis is doing to Ontario manor cleaners has 30 employees with locations in Niagara Falls and St. Cathlons there another example of business juggling to afford their hydro cut rates their hydro bills in 2017 have doubled they tell me that dry cleaners across Ontario can't raise their prices fast enough to keep up with their hydro bills and if they do they can't hold on to the customers who are struggling to pay their own hydro bill my question to the acting premier with the government commit today to make real changes to our hydro system to ensure that businesses in Ontario have the ability to stay open and equally important keep their workers employed thank you thank you Minister of energy and hydro cuts energy thank you Mr. Speaker thank you for the member Minister knows better let's withdraw that please thank you thank you Mr. Speaker very pleased to stand and rise and talk about how Ontario's fair hydro plan is going to help 500,000 small businesses farm right across the province Mr. Speaker not knowing the specifics of the business that the Honourable Member mentioned if there are a general service business Mr. Speaker as the 500,000 businesses right across the province are Mr. Speaker they'll be receiving a 25% rate reduction Mr. Speaker that is significant for small businesses right across the province I know Mr. Speaker we've been working with the Minister of Economic Development and Growth and also continue to have a very prosperous business climate in this province Mr. Speaker and that's something that we're going to continue to see here in this province our businesses are going to grow higher more people create more jobs and that's something we should all be proud of thank you Mr. Speaker thank you Mr. Speaker and I can tell you to the minister both ministers that manner cleaners called me I didn't call them about their hydro bill and it's absolutely disgusting and I'm asking about hydro when hydro in this province is at prices make no mistake about it it's disgusting and shameful that you do that I didn't call the employer they called me there's a real and serious problem in the hydro system in this province after setting the building on fire this government wants to hand business of pale water to put out the flames Mr. Speaker it's not putting out the fire and it's not stopping the closures of businesses right across the province of Ontario I ask the acting premier again will you commit to taking immediate action to help small businesses in Ontario by stopping the sale of hydro one and taking real action to lower hydro bills thank you thank you a member from beaches east York come to order minister of energy thank you Mr. Speaker pleased once again to be able to stand and rise and talk about how all businesses Mr. Speaker will be getting a 25% reduction when we bring forward Ontario's fair hydro plan Mr. Speaker that is actually relief that is coming for businesses right across the province unlike that party Mr. Speaker that puts forward a plan that's pie in the sky Mr. Speaker many of their proposals rely on vague yet to be determined expert panels to be convened sometime in the future I know the PCs Mr. Speaker don't even have time to think about a plan but on that side of the house Mr. Speaker they have no idea on how to deal with it this expert paneled theirs Mr. Speaker with the NDP have they heard back from anything yet Mr. Speaker they have not let's be honest Mr. Speaker the feds aren't even returning their call maybe that's why they're sending out the member from Bramble order order one wrap up sentence Mr. Speaker so to see action to help all businesses you look to this government Mr. Speaker to see no action look at the other side thank you Mr. Speaker my question this morning is to the minister of northern development and mines I know that our government strongly supports communities and business in northern Ontario we recognize that through strategic investment northern Ontario is on the right track to prosperity investing in the north is a critical part of this government's plan to build Ontario up by supporting job creation and creating a dynamic and innovative business climate I understand that through the northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation our government does exactly that Mr. Speaker can the minister please tell us more about supporting job creation in the north and the work of the NOHFC thank you Mr. Mr. Speaker thank you very much Mr. Speaker in the late 1980s the David Peterson Liberal Government put in place this fund a flagship program for northern Ontario called the northern Ontario Heritage Fund and it has served northern Ontario very well for almost 30 years now Mr. Speaker what I like to remind people about this particular fund is that in 2008 as the recession had taken hold and in northern Ontario we had already felt the effects of that in 0506 when forestry we made a decision not to scale back when the recession took hold but to actually increase funding in this program so historically at $60 million a year Speaker we took it from 60 to 70 from 70 to 80, 80 to 90 and now that fund Speaker sits at $100 million every year and has continued to enhance and facilitate economic development in northern Ontario ever since then it's a great program Speaker we're very committed to it and it's worth $100 Supplementary Thank you Minister Thank you Minister Remember from Tim and James Bay we'll come to order Supplementary Thank you Minister for setting the record straight in this house I know that northern Ontario is the top priority for our government and it is clear that the investments made through the NOHFC are having a direct impact on universities, communities investing in universities and colleges benefits everyone by creating jobs enriching society and stimulating culture Can the Minister please speak to other investments made specifically at colleges and universities in the north Minister Thank you again to the member for the question we recognize Speaker that in northern Ontario our colleges and universities have capacity to grow and to help our northern economies and the cyclical nature of many of the economies of many of our communities so one of the things that we've been doing Speaker through the northern Ontario heritage fund is invest in research and innovation and in knowledge based jobs that help our smaller communities ride out the cyclical nature of our economy just last week or two weeks ago Speaker I was at Lakehead University for a $5 million announcement on the center for advanced studies in advanced engineering sciences a major project that will create over seven jobs over about five years and very soon Speaker will be a confederation college in Thunder Bay for the ribbon cutting on their new technology hub which will prepare students very well for the jobs in the future so it's very focused some of the programs in the NOHFC to help us ride out and change our economies in northern Ontario Thank you, a new question for members from Florida Thank you very much Mr Speaker My question is to the Minister of Children and Youth Services we've had three days of hearings which is looking to overhaul our child welfare system for the first time in over three decades I've attempted five times to put forward a motion in order for the committee of justice policy to formally request the minister present himself at the committee I'm sure the NDP member from Hamilton Mountain can vouch for me since she agreed that she'd like to hear from the minister as well Mr Speaker would the minister please explain why his colleagues on the justice policy committee are blocking the committee from inviting him to speak Mr Speaker I'd be happy to take a question here today on this bill the legislation is a very comprehensive piece of legislation that I believe will give young people the best start to life that they possibly can have we know that here in the province of Ontario we want to make sure that young people can transition into adulthood and find success here in the province and we also need to make sure that young people get the services that they need when they need it so this piece of comprehensive legislation that I'm very proud to that it's being debated here in the legislature and I'm proud that it went to committee for the three days is something that I believe will be a big game changer here in the province of Ontario and in my supplemental we'll talk about some of the highlights from that proposal legislation thank you very much Mr Speaker there were five attempts and I even tried to set up a phone call with the minister after three days of hearings many questions were raised questions only the minister can answer for example our indigenous communities are expected to join the integrated child welfare data system known as C-PIN yet they have not been told how this will be possible without the proper internet infrastructure in these communities I'm baffled as to why the minister responsible for child welfare would not want it to address the concerns raised at the hearings for a government that claims to be open and transparent why in this case does the minister refuse to be accountable to the elected members of the justice policy committee thank you thank you very much Mr Speaker Mr Speaker the member knows in the Westminster system the member has an opportunity to ask questions here in question period that's why you can ask any question you want during that time period we have an hour money to Thursday where members can stand up and ask members on this in the legislature questions Mr Speaker I'm so proud of this piece of legislation Mr Speaker I will remind the member opposite and all the members opposite that this is their opportunity if they have questions we have something called question period and we're here today use the opportunity to ask questions and any member the member is not helping me the member from Renfrew, Nipissing, Pembroke Minister of Infrastructure new question member from London, Fanshawe thank you speaker my question is the acting premier today we see more and more evidence that this liberal government has driven long-term care to the breaking point carp which represents 300,000 older Canadians pulled its members and found deep dissatisfaction with long-term care facilities seniors are not happy with long-term care today they are worried about their loved ones they have little confidence in oversight and they see that staff are overworked and just don't have the supports they need after 14 years in power after 14 years to improve long-term care after 14 years of inaction when will this liberal government finally admit it has spent 14 years failing Ontario seniors Minister of Health long-term care thank you Mr Speaker I appreciate the question and there is nothing more important to us as a government and a healthcare system than providing a safe, secure and compassionate environment for our seniors wherever they reside including a long-term care homes and Mr Speaker that is why since coming into office we have almost doubled our funding for long-term care from $2 billion to more than $4 billion today and we have also invested in healthcare personnel Mr Speaker that since 2008 in the last decade we have added 4,600 new staff into our long-term care homes Mr Speaker and that includes more than 2,000 nurses we have built more than 10,000 new long-term care beds we are in the process of redeveloping 30,000 new ones in fact we are almost halfway toward that target already we are investing in behavioural supports because we recognize the care prevalence of dementia we are making all those investments for that reason to have the best quality care seniors want to see big improvements in long-term care not more excuses from this Liberal government Wanda Morris the Vice President of CARP says these findings should be a wake-up call for this minister seniors have little faith in the oversight of long-term care and they want standards of decency to protect every resident yet this Liberal government refuses to back the NDP call for minimum standards of care why is this government refusing to listen to seniors and refusing to do the right thing to protect the safety and the dignity of every long-term care resident in Ontario thank you Mr Speaker we require long-term care homes to develop a staffing plan which is specific and reflects the unique characteristics and need of the population they serve so we think rather than an arbitrary minimum number of hours of staffing which in fact was investigated by Shirley Sharkey several years ago and she did not advocate for that approach rather she felt and others have felt to this day that it is most appropriate to recognize that one part of the province may have a completely different population than in another part of the population and some arbitrary staffing number is not nearly as helpful or important as ensuring the development of which they are required to by law and the implementation of a plan, a human resource plan that reflects the needs of those patients that reside in that residence Mr Speaker thank you well thank you Speaker my question today is to the minister of infrastructure now our government recognizes that making smart investments in public infrastructure is one of the best ways to stimulate growth in our economy, create jobs and enhance quality of life and for decades Speaker previous governments including both opposition parties have failed to keep our infrastructure up to date and we want people in every corner of the province to share in the stronger communities that we are building whether they live in big cities or small towns and I am so proud to be a member of a government that is investing directly in communities through programs like Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund which supports priority projects in ridings across the province and I know Speaker that our government is making an exciting announcement today regarding this year's OSIF funding so Speaker through you to the minister will you share the details of today's announcements with the minister thank you minister of infrastructure Speaker my thanks to the member from beaches east York yes our government created $100 million OSIF fund to provide all communities in Ontario with a population of 100,000 or less with funding for critical projects and every eligible municipality allocation is reliable formula-based funding but they can also all apply for additional support through OSIF top-up component Speaker today our government is pleased to announce the approval of 55 OSIF projects for $60 million bringing the number of top-up projects funded by our government to 200 since 2015 and after listening closely to stakeholders like AMO we are also tripling the size of the program from 100 million to 300 million answer OSIF supports smaller municipalities in a bigger way and makes a real difference for the resident Speaker well thank you Speaker the minister for the great work he is doing building Ontario up because addressing this infrastructure deficit is a major priority of our premier and this side of the house and I know that the 60 million will go a long way to addressing municipal infrastructure needs and I also know that the changes to the structure of OSIF will maintain the program's role as a major support for Ontario's small communities so our infrastructure investments are being made on a truly province-wide scale and we are fighting benefiting from the 160 billion this government is investing over 12 years but Speaker while we invest in our communities the opposition seems focused on taking down this largest infrastructure investment in Ontario we fear and the people of Ontario fear that they will cancel the OSIF program should either party opt to form the next government so Speaker through you to the minister could you please outline exactly the difference between our government and the party's opposite it's that we have a plan and they don't Speaker and our plan is making a positive difference for their constituent Speaker the leader of the third party should know that Hamilton is eligible to receive nearly 33 million dollars in clean water and wastewater funding to say nothing of the billion dollars we have committed to their LRT and the leader of the opposition should know that in his writing of Simcoe North communities will benefit from 8 million dollars in OSIF and clean water funding to say nothing of the 474 million dollars we invested in a mental health center in his writing Speaker communities in NDP held Tim and James Bay will benefit from 5 million dollars in combined OSIF and clean water funding communities in PC health Simcoe grade will benefit from 12 million dollars Speaker our government is working extremely hard to support all of our residents in every part of their lives Speaker my question is to the minister of health I've written and spoken to the minister many times regarding the opioid crisis in Ottawa a crisis which is called almost as many overdoses in the first three months of 2017 as we saw in all of 2016 I'm in daily contact with the parents and youth who are struggling with this addiction these parents have taken matters into their own hands organizing support groups holding information sessions and raising funds for a youth center because they feel that their government isn't listening to them I've received correspondence from the minister on the high level things that the minister says they want to commit to but the opioid strategy is either not working fast enough or it's not working at all will the minister visit Ottawa during the constituency break next week to meet with these families and myself to see their struggle and commit to the action that they need thank you minister thank you minister speaker I first want to express my sympathy for and compassion for the families that the member opposite is referring to the families in canada and the Ottawa area that have experienced such tragedies and particularly I think of the 14 year old who lost whose life was lost tragically because of an opioid overdose minister speaker but that's why we are taking the measures that we are in an extremely comprehensive way from ensuring appropriate prescribing of opioids to providing the appropriate treatment and life saving medications like naloxone to ensuring that individuals including youth have access to the supports that they need we announced just a couple of months ago $140 million of new investments including in cognitive behavioral therapy that will reach individuals who are at risk that can support in such situations supplementary I again extend my invitation to the minister of health to join us in Ottawa next week I know he says that there's a lot of money out there but there are still many people that are left behind and falling through the cracks here's an email I received from one parent dealing with this crisis firsthand this has been a terrible week in and out of hospital he was staying downtown in a drug house we found him Thursday he was amassed totally out of it marks all over his face and his mouth feet so swollen from either his heart condition or from injecting between his toes we called the police they took him to the ER and they released him 6 hours later this mother was devastated and she finishes with this and I want to leave this with you minister the system isn't doing anything about this why spend money on addiction most will relapse over and over again why spend $5,000 a week in a hospital minister answer this mother whose son is falling through the cracks and whose government is failing her yes minister well minister we are taking action including directly in Ottawa and the premier and myself we've committed to a meeting with municipal leaders specifically on the opioid situation but this year alone we invested and I know the member opposite is well familiar with this treatment center 1.5 million to the Dave Smith youth treatment center in Ottawa to support the construction of a new 30 bed youth residential treatment facility helping more young Ontarians including and especially young Ontarians youth in the Ottawa region and providing support to their families and helping them to overcome substance abuse and related issues this new center is not a panacea but it is part of a comprehensive approach where we have to touch tragedy at every possible location that we can geographically and whether it is with regards to avoiding individuals from becoming addicts in the first place or providing the necessary supports to leave that addiction thank you thank you speaker my questions to the acting premier it has now been over a month since workers at the Canadian Hearing Society were forced off the job after working without a contract for four years this means people who are deaf and hard of hearing don't have access to the 227 interpreters speech language pathologists counsellors literacy instructors and audiologists they depend on to thrive the deaf or hard of hearing community should be forced to go without service period will the acting premier stand up for all clients of the Canadian Hearing Society insist that no scab workers are used during the labour disruption and ensure all parties return to the bargaining table immediately thank you premier good it's our community and social services good it's our community and social services well thank you very much mr speaker thank you for the question because as the member knows contract negotiations are a matter between the agency as the employer and the union and I'm sure the minister of labour will want to follow up on the supplementary we certainly encourage the union and the agency to get back to continue contract negotiations because we certainly hope that the matter will be resolved for as quickly as possible because of course the Canadian Hearing Society does please certainly the agency does provide very valuable services to the deaf and hard of hearing community my ministry has been advised that there is a contingency plan in place so that there is continuity of services to these individuals served by this agency and that is my ministry's primary concern thank you supplementary what the minister should know is that the government plays a large role in ensuring that no scout workers are used during a labour disruption and since you funded the CHS you have the ability to force the employer back to the table to actually bargain for a fair contract again to the acting premier late last month Mount Sinai permanently shut the doors to their audiology clinic for people who are deaf or hard of hearing the scarcity of services in the Toronto area has just increased exponentially but it's not just Toronto workers at the Canadian Hearing Society are on strike in Windsor, Ottawa Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie and throughout the province many of these workers are deaf or hard of hearing themselves I ask again will the acting premier acknowledge the importance of these services to a vulnerable community insist no scout workers are used during this labour disruption that includes management and their families and returns to the bargaining table to negotiate a fair deal immediately consider peace consider peace thank you minister minister of labour thank you for the supplementary speaker during labour disputes which nobody likes to see speaker collect your bargaining it's tough by its nature to see disputes drag on for too long it's assured responsibility to get people back to the table the province of Ontario has some of the best mediators in this country speaker and you see the track record they have over 98% of collective bargaining is reached without an agreement is reached without a strike or without a lockout speaker in the province of Ontario so we're involved with this we want to see an end to it speaker but we'll take no lessons from the NDP last year 18 work stoppages NDP were in power 139 speaker that record speaks for itself thank you your question and a member from your from Quinkey West thank you speaker my question is to the minister of labour over the past few weeks I've seen some local coverage about the minister of labour surprise visit to Peterborough the minister was there to visit and for workers who previously worked at GE my friend the member from Peterborough Jeff Fleel also stopped in to meet the workers the media coverage I've heard from constituents in my writing North and Quinkey West have been extremely positive these workers and their families felt as though people were there to listen to them and to help them work through some of the troubles they have encountered as a result of their worker compensation claims so please explain more about purpose of the information clinic next steps in dealing with these important questions thank you minister of labour speaker thank you very much and thank you to the member from North humbling Quinkey West for his question and the involvement he's had in this issue today speaker it was a pleasure to work with the NPP for Peterborough my seatmate the minister of agriculture and food and roller first speaker for the support that he had in this issue but was just incredible great volunteer speaker there was Heather Brooks Hill there was Marion Burton Kathy Drake up Harris ordinary people who stepped to the forward of this as a result of them stepping to the forward the end of the March my ministry organized a three day information clinic all the parties came forward that are involved in this very complex case and we started an information clinic the officer of the worker advisor he's three days he's organizations were able to sit down face to face with workers in Peterborough and we're able to help them through I'm proud of the work that's been done speaker there's more to come well thank you speaker and thank you to the minister I agree with him that this information clinic was an important first step it was an opportunity to bring guidance on a complicated issue to the community all in one place I will certainly be following the minister I know the minister of labor is working hard to transform workplace health and safety in the province keeping people safe work begins with creating a culture in Ontario where health and safety of work is paramount speaker through you to the minister what else is our government is doing to ensure that we are working to prevent occupational disease in the province minister thank you speaker and thank you to the member from Northumberland for that question speaker it's critical to my ministry that all occupational diseases are treated with the same seriousness that we bring to physical injuries which we've done so well on speaker the ministry's developed a proactive strategy for detection and prevention it includes regulation speaker it includes enforcement and includes research education and awareness the cornerstone of this speaker is going to be a dedicated response team that's being put in place this very year this new unit is going to examine it's going to respond to all aspects of occupational disease exposure and that goes from the initial report speaker to enforcement to helping the workers themselves speaker everybody in the province of Ontario who goes to work each day deserves to work an environment that's safe and to return home at the end of each day speaker I'm committed to ensuring that Ontario remains one of the safest places you can work on the entire planet speaker thank you thank you speaker to the minister of energy when the Ontarians were facing disconnections in the middle of winter the premier said to this house the hydro one was already complying with a no disconnection policy so it's obvious that once again this government does not know what's going on in hydro Steve and George in my riding were disconnected on February 20th and 21st and had to deal with flooded basements and buying generators to avoid frozen pipes as hydro one had silently disconnected their service both had no arrears the minister of energy says and I quote that the one thing they've been doing Mr. Speaker's enhancing public service customer service speaker is this government made of hydro salespeople or are they actually made of ministers who will provide proper oversight thank you Mr. Speaker thank you Mr. Speaker and I know lately the opposition have been bringing stories to this house about individual customers Mr. Speaker what's frustrating Mr. Speaker is that often the member hasn't contacted me directly about this issue or apparently hasn't even contacted the local utility to try and resolve the issue before bringing it up here in question period Mr. Speaker last week for example member opposite raised the story of someone electricity bill after their house was tragically lost in a fire Mr. Speaker if the member had talked to me or hydro one we could have gotten the issue resolved right away Mr. Speaker when they learned of the mistake hydro one immediately reserved reversed the charges Mr. Speaker and has promised the customer four months of free credits but apparently helping this customer wasn't really that priority of that party Mr. Speaker I get it Mr. Speaker what's the plan on electricity that makes sense to try and focus on the problems Mr. Speaker thank you Mr. Speaker back to the minister and minister we have resolved the problem but they shouldn't have happened in the first period Mr. Speaker the government promises modest compensation and in hydro one we see outrageous salaries the government promises no disconnections yet hydro one disconnects anyway when this customer service comes to hydro one up to the house all the government could say is well we'll look into it or that we're becoming customer focused or hydro one is becoming a better company empty problem how long will take this government to realize this pattern is it's a pattern and it needs to be broken as a majority shareholder hydro one is in the minister's duty and obligation to act in the public interest and fix these problems take some long needed leadership and executive pay transparency and customer service while they are still the majority shareholder thank you thank you Mr. Speaker always happy to rise up and talk about the great work that this side of the house has done on the electricity file Mr. Speaker for decades Mr. Speaker for decades the member from Renfrew second time never too late to get warned or named finish please thank you Mr. Speaker so it's interesting that member from Thorn Hill I didn't even get to sit down let's try this again thank you Mr. Speaker so we're happy to actually provide solutions for the people of Ontario that's what we do Mr. Speaker we act on that on that side of the house Mr. Speaker they have no plan they have no idea on what to do and that's why they come to us Mr. Speaker to actually get things done and that's what we've done with the Fair Hydro plan that's what we've done on these issues and we'll continue to do that as we build this province up Mr. Speaker we have with us in the Speaker's gallery a delegation from the National Council of Austria they are led by Carl Heinzkopf the second president of the National Council welcome that would be the deputy speaker for those that know the translation we have a deferred vote on the motion of bill 59 to enact a new act with respect to home inspections and to amend various acts with respect to financial services and customer protection calling the members this will be a five minute bill all members please take your seats all members please take your seats unable to fourth 2017 Madame Lalonde moves third reading of bill 59 enact to enact a new act with respect to home inspections and to amend various acts with respect to financial services and consumer protection all those in favor please rise one at a time be reckoned quite a bit Mr. McCharles Mr. Bradley Mr. Del Ducat Mr. Sander Mr. Shirelli Mr. McMeakin Mr. McCarr Mr. Cole Mr. Dillon Mr. Murray Mr. Chan Mr. Maridi Mr. Covey Mr. Dixon Mr. Crag Mr. McGarry Mr. Zimmer Mr. Zimmer Mr. McMan Mr. Ballard Mr. Baker Mr. Don Mr. Molley Mr. Pot Mr. Rinaldi Mr. McDonnell Mr. Arna Mr. Hardiman Mr. Wilson Mr. Clark Mr. Fidelli Mr. Hillier Mr. McDon Mr. Thompson Mr. Monroe Mr. Eury Mr. Bailey Mr. Ostra Mr. Smith Mr. Pettipies Mr. Singh Mr. Bissant Mr. DeNovo Mr. Tabbins Mr. Taylor Mr. Armstrong Mr. Hapfield Mr. Gretzky Mr. Gates Mr. French All those opposed, please rise, one at a time, and be recognized by the clerk. The ayes are 86, the nays are zero. The ayes being 86 and the nays being zero to declare the motion carried. The election due per se is in the law. Be it resolved that the bill do not pass and be entitled as in the motion. There are no further deferred votes. This house stands recess until 1pm this afternoon.