 It is now time for oral questions. I recognize the member for Waterloo. Thank you very much. My question is to the Premier. With more people being affected by COVID-19, this government's actions are weeks late, incomplete and contradictory. They are scrambling. They are chasing the second wave instead of being in front of it with clear and cohesive plan. Last week, the Ford government had to scramble to ration COVID-19 testing just a day after the Premier announced the scheme for asymptomatic testing. The Ford government had to scramble with new closing times for bars and restaurants. Four months after Toronto Mayor John Tory and Toronto Public Health called for that to happen. Four months late. When COVID-19 is moving so rapidly, why is the Ford government moving so slowly? The Deputy Premier and Minister of Health. Thank you, Speaker. Well, I would say that while the increase in COVID-19 cases is very unfortunate, it's also not unexpected. We have prepared for this throughout the several months. We knew that we were going to see an increase in cases. We know we're facing flu season as well, and we're trying to keep the number of scheduled surgeries and procedures also on track. That is why we developed our comprehensive plan, keeping Ontarians safe, preparing for future waves of COVID-19. And it is a six-pillar plan that comprehensively deals with the issue, first of all, maintaining public health measures, secondly, implementing the largest flu immunization campaign in Ontario's history, third, quickly identifying, managing and preventing outbreaks of COVID-19, accelerating efforts to reduce health service backlogs, preparing for surges in COVID-19 cases, and of course dealing with the health human resources that we need in order to keep Ontarians safe. That is a comprehensive plan. That is what we are putting into action right now. Thank you. Supplementary question. The Premier should be moving swiftly and making urgent investments, which is not happening. Yet the Ford government seems surprised by developments hoping to save a buck, especially in our classrooms. Nearly 200 schools now have reported cases of COVID-19. Public health experts, including the Hospital for Sick Children, have been very clear. It's impossible to safely distance in classes of more than 15. Yet the Ford government refuses to make the investments needed to safely cap class sizes, which is what needs to happen. How long will parents have to wait before the government takes the measures we know are needed now? Minister of Education. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I'm proud that the government has unveiled a plan endorsed by the Chief Medical Officer of Health of this province, $200 million in investment. Let me tell you what that investment is yielding province-wide. As of this morning, over 2,044 teachers have been hired because of government investment in ensuring the safety of our schools. Over 92 mental health workers, over 1,100 custodians have been hired. An additional 372 early childhood educators, another 162 education assistants, another 551 doubling the capacity of mental health nurses within our schools. This is investment, this is leadership, and it demonstrates that we will do whatever it takes to keep our students and staff safe from the problems of Ontario's speaker. The final supplementary. And yet COVID-19 is expanding in our school system. Parents and families are watching Ontario slide backwards. Cases continue to grow in our schools and long-term care homes. There is a backlog of 65,000 people waiting for test results. In over half of the cases, we don't know how people got sick and we lack the contact tracing in this province. And the Premier has spent the last week slowly rolling out one pillar at a time. Those pillars change day by day. So there is no confidence in this government's plan. Why, Mr Speaker? With the second wave of this pandemic upon us, is this government still scrambling to chase the crisis? Thank you. Well, I would say to the member that the plan has been in place for some time. It has already been in implementation for a long time. What we're doing is building on some of the basics that we started with testing, tracing, and isolation to make sure that we can reduce the community transmission. But specifically in terms of contact tracing, we are investing over a billion dollars, a billion dollars, to expand efforts to test, trace, and isolate COVID-19 cases. And as part of this, we are going to be bringing in more than 500 new contact tracers on top of the 2,750 already in place. And we are working with Statistics Canada. They are also providing another 500 employees of contact tracing. So we will have 3,750 contact tracers in place to deal with the increasing cases. So we were prepared for it and we are dealing with it. Order. The next question, the member from Nickel Belt. Thank you, Speaker. My question is to the Premier. In our long-term care homes, the need for action is literally a matter of life and death. Over the weekend, another resident of the for-profit extended care western villa in Ottawa died due to the COVID-19 outbreak that has now claimed 13 lives. And now the for-profit Northwood Nursing Home in Toronto report 18 new cases of COVID up from 12 just yesterday. For weeks, the four government has insisted these outbreaks were under control, even when staff were pleading for access to PPE and infection control. After all of the horrors that we saw in long-term care just this spring, why are these homes and this government still unprepared? Minister of Long-term Care. Thank you, Speaker. And thank you to the member opposite for the question. Again, our government's commitment is to the safety and well-being of residents and staff in our long-term care homes. That's the main thing that we are acting on to make sure that everyone understands the PPE that is necessary in our long-term care homes, getting that supply to them, making sure that our homes are connected with IPAC specialists. That is an ongoing effort. We have never stopped doing that. We went right from the first wave and have continued to develop an action plan and a fall preparedness plan with the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Colleges and Universities, the Ministry of Labor Training and Skills Development, the Minister of Seniors and Accessibility. This is ongoing. An outbreak in long-term care can mean no residents in the home. And in fact, the majority of our homes have absolutely no resident cases. So an outbreak is one staff or one resident case. And in the majority of our homes right now, there are no resident cases. Thank you. Supplementary question. Thank you, Speaker. On Friday, CBC Marketplace revealed that the Ford government knew the resident quality inspections help identify infection control concerns in our long-term care homes. But they cut them anyway, leaving nursing home vulnerable and unprepared for the COVID-19 pandemic. Facilities that are currently facing outbreak, like Extended Care West Envilla, like Northwood Nursing Home, have not had a thorough resident quality inspection in years. How can the government claim to know what is happening in these facilities when they cut funding and cancel the inspection that would have told them so much? Minister of Long-term Care. Thank you, Speaker. And thank you again for the important question. There is a lot of misinformation circulating surrounding inspections. And I want to make sure that this is clarified. Since January, my ministry has completed over 1,339 inspections. Every home in Ontario is inspected at least once a year. There were 2,800 inspections last year. And we also respond immediately to any reported information where there is serious harm or risk of serious harm to a resident by making inquiries and conducting inspections, processing thousands of intakes last year. These outbreaks right now are being assisted with through Public Health. We know that our inspectors are active in the homes that are affected. Public Health is engaged. The inspections have been done, and the Auditor General report back in 2015 caused a change to high-risk inspections and the focus to clear the backlog. This has been an ongoing effort, and we will continue to make sure inspections are done. Thank you. There is a difference between a full resident quality inspection and the inspection that the minister is talking about. But last week, the foreign government insisted that the outbreaks were under control in our long-term care. And just like last spring, they said that there was an iron ring around our long-term care home. Yet long-term care operators and families of residents have been pleading with this government for, first, a dedicated infection control consultant in every home which we don't have. Second, it guaranteed access to personal protective equipment which many of them still don't have. So why is it with over 700 new cases of COVID right here in Ontario today, the fourth government is continuing to try to save money by ignoring this expert advice? Minister of Long-term Care. Thank you, Speaker. I will take exception to the statement that we are ignoring expert advice. We have acted consistently and continually taking expert advice. All our homes are partnered with hospitals. The homes in outbreak, the majority, have no resident cases. And as we see communities spread and as we do testing surveillance, it's very likely we will see more outbreaks with a staff member isolating at home and no resident cases. This is a collaborative effort with Public Health Ontario, the Public Health Units, the Ministry of Health, Chief Medical Officer of Health, the experts at the command table, the science table, the public health table. These are the responsive ways that we make sure we get care to our homes. And in terms of testing, yes, the absence of rapid tests is something that the federal government could be assisting us with. And I think it makes a difference to Long-term Care. So I ask the federal government to please help us get those rapid tests. It's imperative. Thank you. Thank you. The next question, the member for Davenport. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This question is for the Premier. Speaker, while Ontarians wait for the government to bring forward a plan to contain rising COVID-19 numbers and we know today there are 700 more cases, many are wondering if there is a plan at all. We know of 36 more cases in 27 more schools, and 72 cases in schools in 137 schools across the province. It was reported over the weekend that almost one in five schools in Ottawa has reported a case of COVID-19. And as of this morning, an outbreak at an elementary school in Scarborough will see it closed until at least next week. Mr. Speaker, because the government has failed to keep class sizes under 15, it means that more of our children are exposed. More of their parents are left scrambling to take time off work or to stand in long testing lines. More of those grandparents are cut off from seeing their grandchildren. When will the Premier bring in a second wave plan to ensure schools can safely remain open? The Minister of Education. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. We have allocated well over a billion dollars of investment in locking it for school boards because we appreciate that the risk is real and we have a duty to work with our school boards and public health agencies on the ground to have every layer of protection in place to mitigate the risk of transmission. We know it is rising in our community. It's why the Deputy Premier and Premier have announced a suite of actions, $740 million just days ago to reduce the backlog, to increase the amount of flu vaccine for all students, 700,000 more, to increase testing capacity both in our school speaker. We are hiring more staff. We are ensuring every layer of prevention, including the doubling of public health nurses, additional custodians, improvements to ventilation, and, of course, speaker action to hire well over 2,000 net new teachers in a one-time investment to reduce classroom sizes, increase distancing and ultimatum that our students are safe in this province. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The Minister's repeated assurances just do not line up with the reality of what's happening in our communities and I think the members opposite know that. This money is a shell game. That money is not flowing and the proof is in, again, what we're seeing in our communities and in our schools. It is status quo class sizes in most schools in this province and the members opposite know that. When cases are identified in schools, it also means that teachers and other education workers, custodians, ECEs, EAs are out of our schools for 14 days. On Friday afternoon, the Ottawa Carleton District School Board wrote parents to warn them not to draft shortages. They wrote parents should be prepared for the possibility of school closures if we do not have enough staff available to safely supervise students. Speaker, we can no longer approach this Premier's wait-and-see approach to this pandemic. This is the situation now. Will they deliver funding and the plan to keep schools safely open? Mr. Speaker, we are spending more in this province than any province in the country. We have a new Democratic Party in British Columbia, which is quite telling. When the member opposite seeks evidence of the investment, let me just enumerate what we are doing, what so far midstream early in this process, early in the semester, we can see investments delivering. 2044 net new teachers. That excludes Toronto's speaker. That number will be much higher when that data is known. 2000 more teachers to reduce classroom in mental health because we appreciate the impact of the isolation of students from schools. An additional 1000 more custodians and the hiring is ongoing. There's challenges hiring more custodians, getting access to that skilled labour. We have over 162 more education assistants, over 372 early childhood educators. What we have done is put funding in place for boards to do the hiring they need to ensure our schools, our staff and ultimately our communities remain as safe as possible as we respond to COVID-19. Next question, the member for Mississauga East Cooksville. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Deputy Premier. Over the past week we have seen the number of cases increase. I know that you have stated that you are extremely concerned and have taken immediate action in response. This includes stronger penalties for breaking social gathering rules and closing down business that continue to ignore health requirements. We always knew that a second wave is coming and our government has been able to prepare for months, thanks to the efforts from our dedicated frontline heroes in my riding of Mississauga East Cooksville and across the province. Speaker, can the Deputy Premier please share with this legislature what our government has done to provide additional support to enhance our testing and contact tracing system in the future? Next question, the Deputy Premier. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you to the member for Mississauga East Cooksville for the question and for your continued advocacy. The member is correct that Ontario is a leader when it comes to responding to the COVID-19 crisis and that includes on the issue of testing. This is why last week we announced that we are investing over $1 billion in enhanced testing and contact tracing. That is $1 billion to support testing. And this investment is going to make a huge difference, Speaker. This month we've added 500 more staff for contact tracing and case management and we'll be hiring another 500 staff on top of that 500. We're investing $30 million to enhance our response. We have a robust surveillance and testing strategy for schools and for long-term care homes. We now have 151 assessment centres providing tens of thousands of tests each and every day in across the entire province. As well, we have up to 60 pharmacies that have also joined the assessment centres to help increase our testing. And this is a telemetric question. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. These numbers are incredible and speaks to our Government's commitment to fighting this virus and follows your strong creed that we will do whatever it takes to help the people of this province. This new funding will mean thousands of additional staff will be hired to support our contact tracing system. This builds on our Government's previous announcements of $30 million to fight outbreaks and $70 million for the largest flu vaccine campaign in Canadian history. As you have said, we need the support from the government during this time until we get health Canada's approval for new rapid tests, rapid testing that other jurisdictions are currently using. The health experts are telling us that we need to be more strategic with testing. Speaker, can the Deputy Premier tell the Legislature more about our continued advocacy to the federal government on this front? Thank you. I have a question that Health Canada and the federal government play a massive role in all of this. Just imagine if we had a rapid test so that we could do in place testing and we didn't have to send tests to the labs where that is where it can take 24 to 48 hours for the response to come back. If we could do it immediately that would certainly assist us tremendously with our testing. Right now there are a number of rapid tests that are available to the federal government to assist with this, to move this forward as quickly as possible while of course still maintaining the rigorous scrutiny they have to put these tests through. But that is something that we are going to continue to move with because we know that we have to move as COVID moves quickly we have to move faster in order to make sure that we can get the latest in testing to improve our technology and make sure that we can test, trace and isolate our technology and make sure that we can get the best results that we can. Thank you. Thank you. My question is to the premier. Speaker Sally and her family have been a main stay of London's food and hospitality industry for 35 years. They operate three local businesses including Mustang Sally's just down the road for my constituency office. In April Sally's landlord reluctantly would be due for July, August and September because the landlord had unilaterally decided to withdraw from Secra. Speaker Sally invested in PPE and was able to keep 20 staff on the payroll because she believed that rent relief would continue. She now feels like she has been tricked. Instead of relying on the good will of landlords, well the premier implement a stand alone emergency commercial rent subsidy to help struggling businesses like Mustang Sally's make it through the pandemic. The parliamentary assistant to the minister of finance. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And certainly we recognize the difficulty of small businesses in this province including Mustang Sally's and those in Willowdale and in every corner of Ontario, Mr. Speaker, this has been a challenging time as we know running a small business is hard even at the best of times let alone difficult times such as a pandemic and that's why Mr. Speaker this is a very difficult time. We have to work together to support the commercial rent relief program and we continue to collaborate with Minister Freeland and try to improve the program. But as the member officer will recognize this is a federally administered program so we need to continue to work with our partners at the CMHC to advocate to make sure that we do fill those gaps and our heart goes out to Sally in these difficult times. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. We have to work together to make sure that small businesses and businesses did not get any commercial rent relief at all like Jean Coles of Sport Clips because their landlords refused to participate in the program. Some landlords wanted to enroll but were not eligible. Speaker fixed overheads and soaring insurance cost coupled with a steep decline in revenues is putting many well established businesses at risk. Some have lost as patios close and COVID case counts rapidly rise. London restaurant owners like just Jay-Z Spolstra of Craft Pharmacy fear they won't survive the winter without additional government support. Speaker, why is this government sitting on the $6.7 billion that has been allocated to help with the pandemic instead of using that funding to save jobs and keep small and medium sized businesses afloat? The response to Parliamentary system to finance. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And certainly as this pandemic has progressed our government has recognized the need to bolster our supports for small businesses and that's why we announced an increase to the $17 billion in support to $30 billion in August Mr. Speaker and we recognize that these are incredibly challenging times. There have been however 54,482 tenants that have participated in the program Mr. Speaker and nearly 545,000 employees that have been assisted by the commercial rent relief program Mr. Speaker and we call on all landlords wherever you are eligible to participate in that program Mr. Speaker because we are all in this together. Speaker, I come from a background of small business and I understand how difficult small businesses can be and certainly Mr. Speaker we must continue to work together and advocate and collaborate with the federal government Mr. Speaker if only we have that level of collaboration imagine what we could accomplish in this house. Thank you. The next question the member for Cambridge. Thank you Mr. Speaker good morning my question is for the minister of the environment this government called Ontario's cap and trade scheme a job killing carbon tax. His predecessor the minister of finance said the government was opposed to any kind of carbon tax. The Premier said the carbon taxes days were numbered but last week they reached a deal with the federal Trudeau government to put in an industrial carbon tax that is just like cap and trade a deputy minister to Premier Alberta Premier Jason Kenny previously referred to this government's carbon tax scheme as being exactly the same as the federal plan can the minister explain why they promised to scrap the carbon tax when all they did was replace one carbon tax with another the government house leader to reply on behalf of the government. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker the member will know that the government actually moved forward very quickly with a made in Ontario plan to continue to cut emissions. Ontario has always been a leader when it comes to environmental protection this is something that we started frankly in a non-partisan way back in the 1970s before the premiership of Bill Davis our record is built on the backs of our nuclear sector the hard working men and women in the nuclear sector who provided clean energy for the province of Ontario have led us to the point where we have reduced emissions far quicker than any other jurisdiction in the country Mr. Speaker they are an example of what other jurisdictions should be doing to reduce their GHG emissions we will continue to build on that Mr. Speaker as we have always done in the province of Ontario we will meet our targets with a made in Ontario plan that tackles pollution that tackles litter Mr. Speaker and ultimately leads Ontario to being again continuing to be a national leader that others can look up to A supplementary question Thank you Mr. Speaker let me just be clear this government didn't scrap they replaced one carbon tax with another they received the blessing of the Trudeau government they blew their opportunity at the Ontario court of appeal to stop a carbon tax on fuel and today as a result of this amateur policy setting Ontario taxpayers are now paying two carbon taxes a carbon tax on fuel another by this provincial government on consumer goods the FAO reported in 2018 that by 2022 taxpayers will be paying twice as much for these two carbon taxes as they would have been paying under the cap and trade can the minister tell us why this government thinks that two carbon taxes costing twice as much are better than one it is true the federal government has forced a carbon tax on the people of not only the people of Canada but the people of Ontario we have done our part Mr. Speaker generations of Ontarians have done their part on the backs of our nuclear industry we were able to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 22% far in excess of what any other jurisdiction was able to do we should all be proud of that we continue to do that in a very non-partisan way whether it was conservative NDP to find ways that we could meet our environmental priorities but make no mistake about it Mr. Speaker we are not in favor of the federal carbon tax we do not believe that the people of Ontario should continue to be punished when we have done what we have been able to accomplish 22% we think that what we have done is an example by which other jurisdictions should look at and that's why this government is working with the governments of Alberta, Saskatchewan and New Brunswick to research our reactor Mr. Speaker which I think will have the potential to do great things for the entire country I'm very proud of the record we have but make no mistake about it we do not believe the federal carbon tax is in the best interest of it. Thank you very much. And the next question is the member for Scarborough Lakeshore. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Thank you Mr. Speaker public transit plays a critical role for many Ontarians and our government has taxed metro links with the most subway expansion plan this province has ever seen. When it comes to go transit metro links is always looking to enhance the customer experience that's why in recent years metro links has introduced programs like Kids Go Free, Sunday Fund Day and lower short distance fares which actually saved my taxpayers in Tobacco Lakeshore who take Mimico and Long Ranch some savings every day. Mr. Speaker I understand that as of today go riders will have access to Wi-Fi on board could the minister of transportation please tell us more about this exciting announcement. Minister transportation. Thank you Speaker and thank you very much to the member from Tobacco Lakeshore for the question. I am pleased to confirm that beginning today customers will be able to access go Wi-Fi plus on all go buses and about half of go trains. We expect a full roll out on all go trains to be completed by early 2021. Mr. Speaker we understand how important it is to stay connected this exciting news means that go riders will now have the option to stay online during their travels be it work or play customers will be able to check emails connect with family or friends or keep entertained with TV shows ebooks and podcasts by connecting to the on board portal. Speaker we're looking to make Ontario's transit network not only bigger but better. Go Wi-Fi plus is a step to address that. Well thank you very much minister for your response and for that fantastic news for riders of go transit. This is great news for riders of all ages. I understand that Metrolinx has done their due diligence to ensure that Wi-Fi access is both safe and reliable for their customers. I also understand that Metrolinx is working hard to protect their staff and employees during this unprecedented pandemic. I also understand that Metrolinx actually had first hand experience when I toured the site with the associate minister of transportation and our minister of finance. Could the minister please share with what Metrolinx has been doing to limit the spread of COVID-19 on our transit. Thank you again to the member from Etobicoke Lakeshore for the question. To date Metrolinx has taken a leadership role to help limit the spread of COVID-19 protective barriers on buses trains and at stations hand sanitizer dispensers on buses in stations and entry zones of train fleets deep cleanings on all vehicles and at all stations and health checks and screenings for crews and critical staff. Speaker these are just a few of the critical steps that Metrolinx has taken in order to keep their customers and their staff safe. I want to commend not only Metrolinx but also transit agencies across the province for doing their part to make their transit systems as safe as possible during this pandemic. Thank you very much. The next question the member for York Southwestern. Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the premier. This past Friday I was pleased to joined by the leader of the official opposition in a visit to my writing of York Southwestern for a much needed announcement of our plan to save mainstream small businesses in my writing and across Ontario have been clear they need direct support and they need it now. Why doesn't the government support the mainstream businesses in my writing who desperately are looking for rent relief now. Parliamentary assistant to the minister of finance. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker and certainly as I said in my previous answer I want to recognize the challenges that small businesses are going through this province. This is a very difficult time and our government has responded with the series of relief measures because it's not just the rent that businesses are struggling to pay it's the hydro and that's why we've provided $175 million in relief to cap rates at off peak hours that's why we've cut taxes for small businesses Mr. Speaker and I'll remind the member opposite that we are a 40% equity partner and we cannot change it without that collaboration so work with us to continue to collaborate with the federal party in Ottawa to make sure that we fill those gaps for small businesses up and down Main Street so we can continue to prosper as we move forward out of this pandemic thank you. Supplementary question. Thank you again Mr. Speaker my question is to the premier what I am hearing from small business owners is that many have been forced to close their doors or lay off their staff we need an economic recovery plan and we have suggested a number of ideas business owners like Jamie and Raymond have told me they are in a dire need of rent relief we have asked the government months ago for 75% commercial rent relief and utility payment freeze what is the government's plan Jamie, Raymond and the many other struggling small business owners in my riding of York Southwestern Parliamentary Assistant Thank you very much Mr. Speaker and we recognize the challenges of the businesses in York Southwestern and in Willowdale and throughout this province Mr. Speaker and that's why our government has responded Mr. Speaker by increasing the $17 billion in support we announced on March 25th to $30 billion in August Mr. Speaker when it comes to the commercial rent relief program $700 million in participation has been requested here in the province of Ontario and I'll remind the chamber that is 55,000 nearly 55,000 tenants and 545,000 jobs that have been assisted through this program Mr. Speaker having said that we recognize there are still challenges to small businesses out there that we must continue to work to support these small businesses Mr. Speaker the message to small businesses out there is that we have your back we're going to continue to work hard so we weather this storm together Thank you Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the premier Ontario is at a critical juncture it will be remembered as one of those life changing events with COVID-19 ravaging our province we are at a turning point the government's actions will determine whether we come out of this pandemic better or for the worse with the 700 cases today that are positive we're headed in the wrong direction the people of Ontario are facing immediate critical needs like housing food security, mental health employment and education if the premier keeps allowing the federal government to do all of the heavy lifting while he watches schools like Mason Road junior public school in Scarborough close because it has not received the investments that it needs Ontario will see serious trouble down the road Speaker, will the premier commit today in this house to keep the legislative election date that is fixed for 2022 yes or no Order Order The next response In the middle Order Stop the clock Minister of Education come to order Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing come to order Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry come to order Member for Ottawa South come to order Restart the clock The response Government host leader Mr. Speaker I don't even know what to say to that question we're in the midst of a global health and economic emergency the member prefaced that in her question and the leader of the Liberal Party has a former Minister of Education get up in this house and ask the date of the next election what it says to me is that the Liberals have learned absolutely nothing since being reduced to a party of seven people in the last election Order we have continued and we will continue what matters most to the people of the province of Ontario making sure that they are safe making sure that the economy continues to grow making sure that our students are safe in school Mr. Speaker making sure that our main streets remain vibrant and active Mr. Speaker I will let the Liberals worry about the next election Mr. Speaker I know that the people of the province of Ontario want us to continue to focus on what matters most to them Order Restart the clock The supplementary question Mr. Speaker, back to the Premier the fact of the matter is that this government is not rising to the moment it is not business as usual the Premier can't keep touring the province doing election style events when we are in the midst of a pandemic and what can the people of Ontario rely on because we have seen the consequences of the Conservative provincial Conservatives in difference to the provincial welfare before let me remind you in 1995 Mike Harris's deep cuts to programs and services that anchor young people in this province resulted within a decade in the government side will come to order government side will come to order restart the clock allow the member for Scarborough Guildwood to speak if we want to avoid poverty, crime and violence that followed the Harris years we need a Premier that will invest now in proper supports for education particularly for young people who are at risk we need supports in testing so that people in my riding don't have to line up for four and a half hours in the washroom will the Premier invest in the root cause of poverty thank you Government House Leader Mr. Speaker what the people of the province of Ontario know is that when that member was a minister in a government that led this province to the brink of bankruptcy they wanted a new government in place that would make those investments it has become even more challenging to fight COVID the minister that was the previous government they made no changes to healthcare they made no changes to social systems they closed hundreds of schools across the province of Ontario they left our transportation system in a complete mess they left our energy sector one of the highest rates member for Scarborough Guildwood will come to order from the province of Ontario in record numbers Mr. Speaker and what does this member come forward with when is the date of the next election what makes it even more ironic is that they fixed the date of the next election Mr. Speaker before they were thrown out before until the next day of the election to do what's right for the people of the province of Ontario Government side come to order Minister of Natural Resources come to order we were doing so well let's try again restart the clock Mr. Speaker to the Minister of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture industries yesterday September 27 marked World Tourism Day that's created by United Nations World Tourism Organization to foster awareness of tourism, social, cultural, political and economic value Minister it would be an understatement to say that 2020 has been a tough year for tourism here in Ontario anywhere in the world really we've heard you say time and time again no other Ontario industry has been hit harder the sectors you represent were hit first the hardest and are expected to take the longest to recover Minister you have been a strong and vocal champion for this sector long before the pandemic hit before the pandemic hit Tourism is a key economic driver how is our government supporting this sector during these trying times Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture industries Thank you very much Speaker I'd like to also say thank you to my colleague the member from Haldeman Norfolk for his steadfast support of these sectors within his constituency many members may not know he's a bit of a historian himself and I had the opportunity to spend some time with him as well as the member from Brantford Brant over the summer to visit their constituency and in particular take in Indigenous tourism in their community and visit Her Majesty's Royal Chapel of Mohawks it was quite touching Speaker this year World Tourism Day has an obviously different context as we recognise Ontario is dealing with about 700 cases of COVID-19 and these industries have been impacted the member opposite to Scarborough Guildwood just made a joke about the Premier touring the province Premier's job, all of our job is to reconnect Ontarians and ensure that they have confidence in our small and local businesses he said that when I got a question today that this was not a response this is a 75 billion dollar suite of sectors that lost 20 billion dollars in four months that's serious business these are serious sectors and this year World Tourism Day Thank you, thank you the supplementary question Thank you Minister for your commitment to the tourism industry during these troubling times so this year's World Tourism Day has been designated as the year of tourism and world development to promote the potential to create jobs and opportunities in our rural areas rural Ontario is a place where it's easy to find some solitude to keep your distance, to reconnect with nature and to clear your mind the best part it's right in our own backyard Minister you mentioned your tour of rural Ontario that was a wonderful day at Mohawk Chapel you were able to see firsthand some of the not only some of the tourist attractions but also to observe the strenuous safety standards that the tourism businesses have been adhering to My question can you tell us about your experience visiting rural Ontario and explain what this government is doing to support the industry across the province an opportunity over the summer to announce over 14.2 million dollars in hyper local marketing to encourage Ontarians to safely reconnect with their loved ones their neighbours and their community and find out what was in their own backyard and we were able to do that particularly in your area in many parts of rural Ontario who did have an opportunity to salvage some of these rural jobs over the summer because of increased tourism during that period of time we invested over $600,000 to celebrate Ontario funding for 14 different festivals in southwestern region including 27,000 to the and $15,000 for the Haggersville music festival speaker we recognise that those festivals couldn't continue on but we want to make sure their position next year when we finally get out of COVID-19 that they're there the other thing speaker that we've done has made significant investments into the LGBTQ plus tourism the culinary alliance tourism support local as well as $100,000 into indigenous and I'm looking forward to the minister of francophone affairs joining me in Ottawa so we can make further announcements for arts and cultural funding for the francophone community thank you the next question the member for Scarborough thank you Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker my question is to the deputy premier Mr. Speaker parents educators and students are feeling more and more anxious about this government school reopening plan a constituent in my writing a single mother shared that her child is literally sitting in front of the computer without a teacher to teach him she said it is a shame that our government has placed so little importance on my son's education and I'm afraid that the ramification of this will impact him in the long term where he will fall behind in his academics and not be able to catch up up to what's expected of him Mr. Speaker for two weeks this mother has been struggling to find out when her son will actually start his classes she even reached out to the minister of education and has received a response Mr. Speaker will the premier tell the house what measures he will actually take to manage the chaos of virtual schooling so our students can finally start their school year thank you Mr. Speaker Minister of Education well thank you very much Mr. Speaker it was this government that announced 36 million dollars to hire principals to staff to manage and create accountability for our virtual schools let's just remind members opposite what we've done during this pandemic we've created a concurrent online learning program that has never existed in schools before the exception of high school online learning courses we've literally created a concurrent delivery of education in addition to in class that is something we should be proud of as a province not for government but for the people working in the front lines who are trying to make this work an extraordinary challenge of a pandemic and a recession that is impacting the ability of school boards largely to get access to supply the Ontario College of Teachers on Friday put out a notice to retirees to come back we need our educators to work with the school board and to come back to help us fill the shortages that exist within our board it is why we should all be pleased to note that over 2,000 net new educators have been hired hundreds in Toronto benefitting the in class and online experience and will continue to invest to ensure it is strong thank you Mr. Speaker in case the minister hasn't noticed they have created a mess in this province in our education system we have had months literally half a year to prepare and fund a plan that works for Ontarians as more and more schools are declaring Covid outbreaks including one in my writing as of this weekend parents are switching their kids from in person to virtual learning because they have no other option but parents are being told that they will be put on a wait list extending to next term one family wrote to us and I quote right now it feels like we are left on our own the government didn't ensure that families like ours are able to start school and give our child the education that every child in Ontario deserves Mr. Speaker, parents who are trying to return to their jobs are now being forced to deal with this virtual mess created by the government parents should not be on a wait list to see if their kids will be able to get an education will the minister tell us when will he start listening to parents and educators in the province with a funded plan with enough resources like educators for our children thank you Mr. Speaker Minister of Education well thank you speaker we did listen to parents the basis for why this province uniquely has an online learning option where we've set a standard that is rather high 75% of all classes that 300 minutes of instruction must be delivered live, synchronous learning zoom style learning a method of education delivery that was fundamentally and philosophically opposed by all members and it is an element of curiosity they've come around to online learning they oppose in the negotiation they oppose in the spring and now when parents expect that they're on the bandwagon trying to champion it you should have been there for parents in the spring and this government will insist we will raise the bar expect the best and defend the interests of all students who expect the very best of learning we will be there for students importantly that the quality of learning remains sound in all parts of our province the next question the next question the next question the next question my question is for the minister of education speaker parents in my riding speak to me regularly about the importance of access to affordable child care spaces it can be a significant pressure on young and growing working families especially during this unprecedented time and after 15 years of neglect from the former liberal government this government is putting the needs of families and kids first can the minister of education please tell this legislature what our government is doing to support accessible and sustainable child care across this province minister of education thank you very much mr. speaker I want to thank the member from the typical lake shore for her leadership and advocacy for affordable and accessible child care in this province we understand how important child care is to getting moms and dads back to work and their confidence as we all respond to COVID-19 we've seen great disruption in the labour market we know that we have to do more to ensure child care is available for parents it's the basis for why I joined the member in her riding with the federal minister to announce the safe restart agreement an additional investment of $234 million to ensure sustainability I'm proud that as of this morning over 93% of all child care operators have reopened to this province demonstrating that our investments and our protocol is very much in the best interest of the staff of the students and of the operators and we will continue to do whatever it takes working across party lines and with the federal government and municipal government to ensure they remain open for decades to come supplementary question thank you speaker and I'd like to thank the minister for that answer it's heartening to know that our government is taking child care so seriously speaker COVID-19 has brought challenges that few could have imagined including the temporary closure of the majority of child care centers across the province it's great to see so many centers reopening following the difficult period of closure child care centers in my riding and as the minister mentioned the learning garden center which we both visited with the federal minister they are doing an excellent job at keeping our kids and staff safe can the minister please share some of the ways that child care centers are keeping everyone safe and healthy thank you speaker obviously the safety of our youngest learners is our most pressing priority as we respond to this pandemic we have had child care open for our first responders, emergency workers essential workers really since the very beginning of this pandemic and I want to you know on behalf of I would argue I think all parliamentarians express gratitude to our DCEs and our staff and our child care centers who rose to the challenge and did something that I think was very important to support our front line staff women and men who served our province at a difficult time speaker our child care program our protocol informed by the chief medical officer of health endorsed by the chief medical officer of health ensures we've established a COVID plan with strict cohorting with a mask policy for staff stringing screening of the children and staff before they enter thorough cleaning enhanced cleaning an additional PP for all staff training and of course attendance records for rigorous contact tracing we have done this following the medical and we will continue to respond to the risk as it emerges working closely with the chief medical officer of health of this province the next question the member for Thunder Bay at a coconut thank you speaker my question is for the premier 200 workers at the Bombardier plant in Thunder Bay are losing their jobs this fall Toronto needs new street cars and subways and we can make them in Thunder Bay what is this government doing to keep the plant running and put Bombardier staff back to work to reply on behalf of the government minister of transportation thank you mr. Speaker our government has unveiled and put into motion the most ambitious subway expansion program in the history of this province part of our subway extension program mr. Speaker enables the city of Toronto to fund the purchase of new vehicles that can be built and will be built at the Thunder Bay plant I've had the opportunity to speak directly to the mayor of Thunder Bay about this who is who understands that through our negotiations with the city of Toronto we have provided the ability for the city of Toronto to then put in orders with the Bombardier plant in Thunder Bay mr. Speaker we are working very hard to execute on our plan to get such shovels in the ground and to get vehicles built so that people across the GTA in York Region can be riding subways sooner thank you and the supplementary question well the mayor of Toronto says he has his share of the money put aside so I hope that this government will come forward and have theirs over a thousand people were working at the Bombardier plant last summer and now that number is way down more layoffs are coming and the province needs to get that plant running at full capacity soon when will this government ensure the Bombardier plant has the transit orders it needs so workers can get their jobs back thank you mr. Speaker and I'm so happy that the member opposite talked about funding our government has been very clear that we are supporting and investing in much needed transit infrastructure in the GTA and across this province what we need mr. Speaker is we need the federal government to come up with their 40% during the election the federal government the liberal party said that they supported our transit plans transit plans that have been endorsed by city council by vote of 22 to 3 by your regional council and by our government mr. Speaker what we need now and what I would ask the members opposite to do is to go to the federal liberals the federal government and say you need to show up at the table now we have been waiting for a response for our request for funding mr. Speaker we are confident that the federal government will get there but we could use the help of all the members in this house to call upon the federal to support Ontario's transit next question member for mr. Saga Malton mr. Speaker mr. Speaker as we know the COVID-19 has placed an incredible burden on business sector across Ontario and when we talk about northern Ontario it has put an incredible burden on businesses across all the sectors ecotourism for an example and the indigenous tourism had 622 million dollars contributed to GDP around 13,000 jobs over 550 businesses in 2019 and they have seen the losses over 300 million in revenue they have seen the losses of 4,000 jobs loss of around 150 businesses this is an example mr. Speaker COVID-19 restrictions and border closers made it almost impossible for this tourism outfitters to have a successful season can the minister please tell the how what our government is doing to support northern Ontario businesses during this difficult times thank you mr. Speaker the associate minister of small business thank you mr. Speaker and thank you to the member for mr. Saga Malton for his question especially mr. Speaker the member is absolutely right northern Ontario has been hit hard by COVID-19 and this pandemic that's why today our government launched the northern Ontario recovery program the NORP will deliver targeted funding to help businesses get back on track and adapt to the new normal businesses can apply to NORP for assistance immediately until the end of the year there will be new projects that help them adjust to the unique impacts of COVID-19 this includes projects like buildings and new construction customer employees safety installations or marketing for new business initiatives this has been a challenging time for many of us response but it is a true northern resiliency that has and will carry us through longer than ever before the supplementary question thank you mr. Speaker and thank you minister Sikarya for a wonderful answer and I would like to say thank you to our minister of energy northern development and mines for doing an incredible job I know that the companies across the north will appreciate the support being offered through the northern Ontario recovery program mr. Speaker we know that business owners are facing challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic many are adapting to new normal to keep their businesses open it is important that as a government we adopt adapt with them and offer them the support that they need will the minister please tell us why it is so critical to create these new funding programs for northern businesses thank you mr. Speaker thank you mr. Speaker the NOHFC has been a critical source of targeted investments in northern Ontario we have heard from many stakeholders like David McLaughlin the executive director of destination northern Ontario who stated recovery for northern Ontario is $1.6 billion tourism industry depends on the sector's successful adoption of new operating protocols to keep visitors, employees the northern Ontario recovery program goes a long way to assist northern Ontario's tourism entities with the cost to implement these new safety protocols we thank minister rickford and the northern Ontario heritage fund corporation for their continued support of the sector and in this special time of need and Debbie Nicholson the President of the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce also stated the Sudbury Chamber of Commerce welcomes northern Ontario recovery program announcement made by minister rickford as another opportunity to help it thank you very much next question thank you my question is to the minister of education parents of children with special needs always had to fight for the supports that they need in schools now education workers who help these children are stretched even more thinly and special needs students are supported they spoke with one parent whose child was held back in kindergarten instead of moving to grade one because the school cannot support the transition stories like these are all too common both before covid and now speaker when will this government make children with special needs a priority minister of education well thank you very much we're obviously very concerned about the impacts of covid 19 on children with mental health and special education needs of the province we appreciate that the lack of continuity and the disruption of covid has really impacted them it's the very basis speaker why this government has invested over 42 million dollars of net new funding to hire more EAs, to hire more ECEs and to provide more special education educators in the classroom in fact speaker we have well over 162 new EAs supporting special education children in our schools that is the hiring so far supported by 72 early childhood educators we appreciate speaker there's more to do it's why this province uniquely invested in mental health more than doubled mental health funding and we recognize speaker as we see the impacts we hear the feedback of parents and stakeholders we'll continue to be there as we've demonstrated to all schools and to all parents of the province of Ontario thank you speaker children with disabilities in our school system were already treated like an afterthought one parent in the Ottawa region shared that their child who has a hearing impairment has had their class collapsed into a much larger one and due to the added noise and masks is having a very difficult time understanding and following along this parent is upset about the lack of accommodations for children with special needs speaker when speaker why does this government always forget children with special needs particularly in our education system speaker minister of education speaker I take exception to that positioning because the investments because the investments the additional staffing and the new programs in place would demonstrate that this government is very much seized with the improvement of the quality of learning and also the mental resiliency of these children speaker I joined the minister just last week at Sir James Whitney school for the deaf in Belleville really a beautiful school an example of a community that is embracing the very best and embracing a message of inclusivity providing the highest standard of educational supports for those very kids we are fully committed to ensure that they succeed they are going to benefit from the additional 162 EAs funded and hired by the province by our investment and will continue to be there for all students in the province of Ontario thank you very much so further business this house stands in recess until 1pm