 It is now time for a question period, the leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Premier. Mr. Speaker, the Auditor General confirmed what the PC Caucus has been saying all along that this government has made a mess of the energy file. The global adjustment tax is yet another grab at Ontarians' wallets cooked up by this government to cover the outrageous costs and losses of the Failed Green Energy Act. Ontarians have been duped out of $50 billion, that's five times the current provincial deficit, and hydro-brills are at record highs. Premier, the Auditor General has said the global adjustment tax has been a bad deal for Ontarians. Do you believe the auditor is wrong about this one too? Well, Mr. Speaker, I know that the Minister of Energy is going to want to comment on the specifics, but let me just talk about what we have been doing in the energy system for the last few years, because when we came into office, the energy system in Ontario was in a serious state of disarray. So what we've been doing is we've been modernizing the electricity system across the province. We've invested $11 billion since 2003 in systems across the province, Mr. Speaker. We've upgraded over 10,000 kilometres of power lines that had been neglected, work that had not been done, infrastructure that had not been upgraded, Mr. Speaker, and we've taken that on. We've rebuilt 12,000 megawatts of new cleaner power for Ontario, Mr. Speaker. The green energy strategy has created $24 billion in private sector investment, Mr. Speaker. So in fact, people in Ontario have the power that they need, Mr. Speaker. It's predictable, and at the same time, we have made it reliable across the province, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the Auditor General found that the global adjustment tax on electricity bills has increased by 1,200% since it was first introduced by your government. The Auditor General confirmed that nearly 60% of this $50 billion or $30 billion goes towards paying for wind turbines and solar panels in your outrageous subsidies to that industry. It's a double slap in the face to rural communities like the ones many of us represent. Residents are stuck footing the bill for wind turbines they never wanted in the first place while their hydro bills skyrocket. The Auditor General's report is further proof that the Green Energy Act has been a complete failure. Your global adjustment tax is the only thing that has kept the Green Energy Act on life support. And so, Premier, will you admit that the Green Energy Act is a failure and pull the plug under failed energy policy? Mr. Speaker, the global adjustment are calculations that are made as part of the pricing policy that exists in jurisdictions across North America and the world, Mr. Speaker. What it is is the real price of energy, Mr. Speaker, and by that I mean there are certain things that are not included in the market price that's out there day after day. For example, Mr. Speaker, the costs of the independent electricity system operator. They don't actually engage in the creation of generation, but they manage and operate the system, Mr. Speaker, and their costs go into the global adjustment as part of the cost of the energy system. Mr. Speaker, as well many of the costs are not relevant to the market price of electricity and the Ontario Energy Board approves those costs. The cost of the IESO, Mr. Speaker, and the other costs that relate. Thank you. Final supplementary. You know, since you brought this global, back to the Premier, since you brought the global adjustment tax, which is a tax that didn't exist when we were in office, you brought it in 2006. Ontarians, according to the Audit General, have paid $10,000 by this time next year. They will have paid $10,000. It's $1,000 a year extra on a new tax that you brought in, and the Minister says it's to pay for the OPA, the Ontario Power Authority, or the IESO, or new transmission. Those things were paid for in the cost of electricity when we were in power. We didn't have an extra tax. The reason you brought in the extra $50 billion tax is you needed a way, sneakily, to hide, I should say, the subsidy to your green energy policy. So when all of those things that the Minister is talking about were once paid for, the regular rate of electricity, you needed another, the auditor says, $30 billion to subsidize Mr. McGuinty's and now Ms. Wynn's Premier's plan. Thank you. Will you get rid of the... Thank you. Minister of Energy. So Speaker, renewable energy represents about 8% of the bill, Mr. Speaker. It is a smaller portion of the bill. We're from Oxford, come to order. There have been significant investments made in the energy sector, Mr. Speaker, because we had a deficit of electricity and we had dirty coal burning. Member from Huron, Bruce, come to order. And in order to rebuild the system, to make it clean and reliable, Mr. Speaker, we invested in hydroelectric. We invested in the tunnel in Niagara, Mr. Speaker. We invested in the Lower Metogamy River, $2.6 billion. Member from Renfrew, come to order a second time. And we have put in mitigation measures to deal with those. The steps that we had to take to invest $31 billion is the $31 billion in transmission and generation that the previous government refused to invest, Mr. Speaker, that created a deficit and a very dirty system, Mr. Speaker. The price prices come from their negligence in the past, Mr. Speaker, and to resolve them and enforce the opposition. Mr. Speaker, again, for the Premier, following the release of the Auditor General's report, your energy minister tried to deflect responsibility by discrediting the work undertaken by an independent officer of this legislature. His actions were outlawed. Deputy House Leader, come to order. They were also very unacceptable. On your minister's watch, Ontarians are paying billions of dollars extra for electricity thanks to a flawed smart meter program and above-market rates the province pays most power generators. And most of those power generators are under your Green Energy Act. Premier, you remain committed to the global adjustment tax. You refuse to take up, to tear up the Green Energy Act. Will you at least make one smart energy decision and fire your energy minister? Well, Mr. Speaker, as I said a number of times yesterday, the decisions that we have made around the energy system, including smart meters, Mr. Speaker, have modernized and upgraded the energy system. Mr. Speaker, we made investments in transmission lines. We've produced and invested in more clean power. And smart meters, Mr. Speaker, have allowed us to have data that we would not have otherwise. And Mr. Speaker, I know that the leader of the third party knows that people who work in the system and people who are experts in the system believe that the smart meters have given us data that's important and have allowed conservation to take place across the province, Mr. Speaker. The Environmental Commissioner of Ontario, another officer of the legislature, said about smart meters, they are necessary, absolutely necessary for the proper functioning and future functioning of the distribution system for electricity. And he goes on to talk about smart grid technology. Thank you. So, Mr. Speaker, we've made very good decisions on that. Thank you. Again, to the Premier, the Auditor General's report is tough medicine for the government. Sometimes you need to admit your mistakes, swallow the medicine and spend time in the penalty box. During my time as Senior Cabinet Minister, I had to make tough decisions and I stepped aside when it was appropriate and I did so voluntarily. The Auditor's report on Liberal government programs is loaded with examples of grossing confidence, waste and mismanagement costing Ontarians billions and billions of dollars. And nowhere is this more evident than in the Ministry of Energy. Premier, are you willing to take tough medicine and demand you figure Energy Minister resigns? Mr. Speaker, I know that the Minister of Energy is going to want to comment in the final supplementary, but as I said yesterday, you know, on the vast majority of the recommendations and the concerns that the Auditor General raised, we are in full agreement. We're working with the Auditor General or we have already begun to work on the concerns that she identifies. But, Mr. Speaker, as the Minister of Energy said yesterday, there was a professional disagreement on some very narrow aspects of the concerns that the Auditor General raised. Those have been expressed. The conversation between the Minister of Energy and the Auditor General have been just that. They've been professional. And, Mr. Speaker, it is not the first time in the history of this legislature that there has been a disagreement between a government and an officer of the legislature, Mr. Speaker. So I think that the leader of the opposition needs to look back in history and needs to understand that that kind of healthy professional dialogue actually is in the best interest of both the province. Again, to the Premier, the takeaway, Premier, from the Auditor General's line-by-line investigations are that Ontario can't afford to go on like this. From patients to pensioners, from families with children to our most vulnerable residents in need, hardworking taxpayers are not getting value for the essential public services they rely on. Spending continues to skyrocket and your government's watch, while accountability and service delivery continues to plummet. The Auditor General now joins the Conference Board of Canada, the Ontario Chamber of Commerce and the PC Caucus, who have all raised serious red flags about your government's out-of-control spending. Following the release of the AG's report, no one believes you will balance the budget by 2017-2018. Premier, if you aren't willing to fire your energy minister over the Auditor General's findings, would you give Ontarians a Christmas present and tell us who the heck is going to take responsibility for the match you made in this court? Minister? I'd like to address the Auditor General's report. There are some significant professional disagreements with respect to the report. And, Mr. Speaker, one of the areas of disagreement is the position in the report that most of the anticipated benefits of smart meters have not been achieved. Where the professional disagreement starts, Mr. Speaker, is with the Environmental Commission of Ontario that says smart meters are a shrewd investment that will benefit both individual consumers of power and society as a whole. Mr. Speaker, if you want to go to Anthony Haynes, President and CEO of Toronto Hydro, that smart meter program is the best thing we've done in the decades. I'm telling you, the smart meter program was a deal changer. That was the entry into intelligent use of energy. And he also confirmed at the press conference the other day, Mr. Speaker, that there is a 3% reduction in the use in the city of Toronto, which is a very, very significant savings. Thank you, Speaker. My question is for the Premier. Ontario's energy system is in a hot mess. Hydro bills are going up. The Auditor General says we're not reducing energy consumption. And it turns out the $1 billion smart meter plan, Speaker, was actually the Liberals' $2 billion not-so-smart meter plan. If a regular person went $1 billion over budget on a project, Speaker, that person would be fired. Why is this Liberal Minister getting away with this and able to keep his job? So, Mr. Speaker, again, I challenge the premise of the question. The fact is that the changes that we have made in the energy system mean that it has been modernized, that infrastructure that had been neglected has been upgraded, that we have a cleaner, more renewable energy system in the province, Mr. Speaker. It's more reliable. And people across the province have access to the power that they need, Mr. Speaker. In terms of the smart meters, the decision to have smart meters across the province has meant that there is data that is available to the system that was not available on the floor and that people are able to conserve in ways that they were not able to conserve before. 3% shift of power off peak time, Mr. Speaker, in the City of Toronto alone. That's the equivalent of the power needed for 97 condominium buildings, Mr. Speaker. That's a significant reduction in the use of power and we're able to do that because of the introduction of smart meters. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, the fact is the Liberals promised that smart meters would help people reduce their bills. Instead, even people who are doing the right thing or trying to do the right thing by doing their laundry at midnight are paying 114% more. This is incompetent, Mr. Speaker. There is no other way to describe it. People are paying the price for this incompetence. My question to this Premier is, why is her minister not paying the price for his incompetence? Mr. Ambassador, the floor is yours. Again, Mr. Speaker, I will once again just read into the record some of the comments that were made about the introduction of smart meters by people who actually know what's going on, Mr. Speaker, and are actually seeing. And there's no doubt, Mr. Speaker, that there have been increases in the cost of electricity as there have been in jurisdictions all over North America and the world, Mr. Speaker. But the fact is that we are taking steps to mitigate those increases, Mr. Speaker. We have renegotiated contracts, Mr. Speaker. We have made changes, including putting smart meters in place so that people can conserve. So Anthony Haynes, who's the President and CEO of Toronto Hydro, we've seen about a 3% shift off the peak here in the City of Toronto. 3% is 97 condominium buildings, 97 condominium buildings that came on the grid over the same period of time. We didn't have to make any additional capital investment because that shift of the 3% provided that capacity within our grid. That's a cost-saving, Mr. Speaker. That's power that didn't have to be built. Mr. Speaker, a member from Hamilton, East Stony Creek, bring it down. Please continue. Supplementary. Mr. Speaker, under the Liberals Watch, the electricity system in this province has become a colossal mess. The global adjustment charge has increased by 1,200% in 10 years. Ontarians are paying three times the market price for electricity. The Liberals are not reducing electricity consumption in this province. Mr. Speaker, one customer's speaker have received astronomical bills for electricity that they didn't even use. And the list, unfortunately, sadly, goes on and on and on. In the real world, people get fired for this kind of laundry list of failure. Will the Premier finally do the right thing on the last day of this session and tell her minister it's time to go and ask him for his resignation? Mr. Speaker, the leader of the third party obviously knows more than Anthony Haynes, who's the CEO of the second largest distribution company in the province, who came before the press conference two days ago, Mr. Speaker, and outlined that in the city of Toronto there's been a 3% reduction in consumption as a result of smart meters, Mr. Speaker, allowing a lot more money to be invested in the system. Mr. Speaker, as well, the Ontario Energy Board had the navigate study which showed that the cost per customer are estimated to be approximately $12 per year lower because of load shifting and conservation driven by smart meter enabled time of use pricing. Mr. Speaker, over three years that represents approximately $150 million in savings which have not been accounted for by the Ontario General. Mr. Speaker, we are saving dollars. Thank you. Thank you, Speaker. My next question is also for the Premier. This session began with an unprecedented display of arrogance and ended with an even greater display of arrogance by this government. It began with the Liberals using time allocation to shut down debate and to shut Ontarians of committee hearings. And it ended with the Liberals condescending and sexist attack on the Auditor General. Thank you. Please finish. I have to ask this Premier Speaker is that what we can continue to expect from her Liberal Government in the weeks and years to come? Thank you. So, Mr. Speaker, let me address the first part of the question first and then I'll speak to the second part. To the first part of the question we came back into the Legislature, Mr. Speaker, after the election we made it clear that legislation that had been on the order paper, that we had been working to get through, that had had hours and hours of discussion, Mr. Speaker, that we were going to work now in this Parliament to move through more quickly because there was a backlog and there was work that really needed to be done like the modernization of the child care system, Mr. Speaker, which resulted out of concern to keep kids safer in the system. So we have, I will not apologize, Mr. Speaker, for working very hard to move legislation through we have provided. A member from Timmins James Bay and the member from Leeds Grandville will come to order and if you do that again I'll jump right to a warning. Please. We have worked very hard, it's true, to get legislation moved through this Legislature, Mr. Speaker and I'm very proud of the amount of legislation that we've been able to move through the process. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, you know, throughout this session Liberals have been trying to whitewash the gas plant scandal, but the OPP Speaker is still investigating the deletion of gas plant emails. In fact, the OPP detectives yet again raided rather government offices just a few weeks ago in November, but Laura Miller and Peter Feis, two liberal insiders who for frankly at the center of this scandal are still being protected. As this session closes, I have to wonder, is this the brand, the liberal brand of transparency and accountability that we're going to continue to see from this liberal premier and her government? Thank you. So Mr. Speaker, you know again the questions are all over the map, but let me just pick up on the transparency and accountability because this is a member the leader of the third party who has been calling for increased accountability. Mr. Speaker, apparently that is what she wants to believe is her brand, but Mr. Speaker, her party sat in their place and did not support Bill 8, which is the accountability. The member from Hamilton East Tony Creek is warned. President of the Treasury Board will come to order. Now let me be clear, in case it wasn't heard, the member from Hamilton East Tony Creek is warned. Carry on. That accountability act, Mr. Speaker, will replace a patient ombudsman and would put caps in place on executive salaries. They voted against that, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Final supplementary. That was a yes, Speaker. While the premier continues to support rather to protect liberal insiders and the Liberal Cabinet ministers, she continues to support them and protect them from any hurting Ontarians, Speaker. She's slashing 6% out of nearly every ministry. She's cutting schools. She's cutting schools. She's cutting healthcare. She's cutting childcare. Families are paying higher hydro and gas prices while the CEOs in this province get new HST loopholes to take to the bank. And people on OW and ODSP are worried that the problems that the premier has created are still not fixed. The premier continues with the gas plant cover-up, Speaker. When will this premier start actually I would ask you to withdraw. Oh, okay. I withdraw. When will the premier continues to not be forthcoming on what the Liberal involvement was with the gas plant scandal? So my question is, when will the premier actually start standing up for the people of Ontario instead of the Liberal party? Thank you. Mr. Speaker, standing up for the people of Ontario building Ontario up, working to get legislation passed that is going to improve business and people's lives in this province, legislation like reduction of red tape, legislation like modernization of childcare, legislation like the Accountability Act that will put more accountability to Mr. Speaker, legislation like indexing the minimum wage so that the minimum wage will go up as the cost of living goes up. Pharmacy safety, blood donation safety Mr. Speaker, legislation that will remove costs from the auto insurance system so that auto insurance rates will continue to go down to the House Mr. Speaker. So it seems to me that that legislation all of that is legislation that the leader of the third party should have supported so that people continue to work to make sure that that kind of improvement is Thank you. My question is to the Minister of Energy Minister, yesterday we saw in this House a doubling down of your abysmal administration of the energy system and your unprecedented attack on the Auditor General. Today, the only thing piling up faster than the snow outside are your excuses for your failed energy policies. On Tuesday, we got confirmation from the AG that your smart meter fiasco will cost energy consumers double what you claim. Smart meters haven't cut consumption at peak times and often they don't even relay the information back to the Central Data Center. Minister, this is your chance to admit the errors of your government's policies and take responsibility for this smart meter scandal which is piled up on top of the scandal after scandal after scandal for your government. Will you take responsibility? Thank you. Minister of Energy Mr. Speaker, I do want to address some of the challenges in the electricity system. As I said, we've made major investments. Smart meters is one of the Mr. Speaker and we've provided all of those quotes. But where were the seeds of this challenge that we have in the energy sector? Mr. Speaker, Hansard December 1st and 3rd, Frank Cleese, former member from Aurora. Well, there's one reason that we accumulated that debt in this province, under the hydro ledger. And that is that people in this province for years have not been paying the true cost of electricity. It was in fact subsidized and a part on all the previous governments that allowed that to happen. That includes conservative governments. And Mr. Speaker a quote from the then MPP former Energy Minister Jim Wilson. This summer, when we didn't have enough electricity in this province because we had peak heat temperatures and all the air conditioners were running we had to buy power. I had to pay 7 million dollars one day. Thank you. Supplementary. As I said, Speaker, more excuses, no answers. Minister, your failure to accept responsibility for yet Both sides. Bring it down. Please finish. Minister, your failure to accept responsibility for yet another energy scandal leads me to believe that you're the one going to be receiving a lump of coal and you're stopping, stocking this Christmas. In another one of your boondoggles the auditor general found that from 2006 to 2013 the global adjustment. Now that is the difference between the price of energy and the cost of the energy contracts that have signed for expensive unreliable power. The global adjustment increased by 1200% while the average market price for energy decreased by 46%. That amounts to a 50 a staggering 50 billion dollar charge on the backs of energy consumers in the province of Ontario. Minister, since you won't accept responsibility for this scandal and all of the other scandalous policies of your government, will you finally do the right thing and resign? Thank you. Can you see it please? Can you see it please? Minister? Mr. Speaker, before the global adjustment wholesale market prices were insufficient to cover the cost of contract payments to certain electricity generators leading the government to accumulate billions of dollars in debt. Part of the debt I referred to earlier was accumulated by the previous government. This contributed to the stranded debt that Ontario consumers continue to pay pay off to the debt retirement charge. Mr. Speaker the global adjustment is allowing the cost of the system to be recovered. Previously they were accumulating debt Mr. Speaker and it's the stranded debt that is on our hydro bills today which we are going to remove two years earlier Mr. Speaker which that government voted against. Thank you. Mr. Speaker my question is to the Premier. Speaker thanks to the auditor general we now know that 74 infrastructure projects in Ontario could have been built for 28 billion rather than 36 billion that this liberal government spent using the P3 model. I want to quote the auditor general the very competent and qualified auditor general. Costs were estimated to be nearly 8 billion higher while alternative financing a procurement approach than they were estimated to have been if the projects have been delivered by the public sector. 6.5 billion of this overpaid payment is a direct result of paying excessive interest rates on money borrowed from the highly profitable Canadian and international banks. Yesterday the Premier continued to defend this 8 billion dollar boondoggle despite overwhelming evidence that these projects should be built and financed through the public sector. I want to point out that the government that her P3 program is nothing more than a massive gift to some of the world's largest banks paid for by the hardworking people of this province. Minister of economic development infrastructure. I would have hoped that the member opposite was listening yesterday when I referred her leader to the heart of the auditor report where there's a graph that completely explains that you can't just talk about a cost. You have to talk about a benefit. When you talk about a cost of transferring risk of 8 billion dollars you've got to talk about the cost of the benefit to the taxpayer of a 14 billion dollar transfer of risk which means in the auditor general's report a 6.6 billion dollar savings to the taxpayer. It's not that complicated Mr. Speaker. It's right in the auditor general's report. I'm going to ask a page if I can to bring it over to the member opposite and I'd be happy to have my officials brief her to make sure Mr. Speaker that they understand when they talk about a cost. Thank you. Supplementary. It's interesting. The minister's right and it isn't that complicated. There is no factual basis no empirical evidence for that number that's attached to the retained risks. I have that document and the auditor wrote it and she was right. The minister or the premier can use any number that they want to defend their p3 giveaways because we know that they're all fiction anyway. I just want to return to the numbers because the numbers don't lie from my initial. Infrastructure projects cost 36 billion instead of 28 billion. That's a 20% premium. We cannot afford that Mr. Speaker. The fact is that the numbers being spun by the premier and the minister are every bit as made up of the so-called value for money audits that the auditor said there was no evidence for and we believe the auditor. Speaker this is another example of this Liberals government desperate and unconvincing attempts to spin the numbers when will this government admit that its p3 program is a colossal failure and end this massive drain from the public treasury. Minister Mr. Speaker under the AFP program to date 37 projects near completion or at completion 97% of those projects on budget Mr. Speaker 97%. That is an unprecedented record not only for Ontario everywhere Mr. Speaker in the industrialized world. So Mr. Speaker for her to suggest that infrastructure Ontario is failing is likely incorrect. A member from Kitchener Waterloo will come to order. Please finish. Mr. Speaker in terms of the value for money system of analyzing risk 19 of 20 OECD countries use that very same method Mr. Speaker methodology 40 countries have come here Mr. Speaker to learn from us we're the best in the world Mr. Speaker but we're going to get even better at doing this and that's why we do accept the new question from Davenport. Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the minister of transportation transit is incredibly important for those living in my community in Davenport those living in Davenport want to know that they have access to reliable and affordable travel options whether they are traveling to school the member from Hamilton East Stony Creek will withdraw the member from Hamilton East Stony Creek will withdraw but I withdraw Hamilton East Stony Creek will simply withdraw I withdraw Thank you Mr. Speaker as I was saying those living in Davenport want to know that they have access to reliable and affordable travel options whether they are traveling to school to work or even to the airport I know that yesterday the minister along with the premier joined Metrolinx CEO Bruce McQuade for the Union Pearson Express I understand that there has been a lot of discussion in regards to the UP express fares lately and I know that those living in my community are interested in learning more on this topic Mr. Speaker can the minister please provide members of this House with details on yesterday Thank you Mr. Transportation I want to thank the member from Davenport for this question and for all of our hard work and Speaker I also want to say unlike perhaps the member from Timmins James Bay those of us on this side of the house value the member who represents the community Speaker that member is quite correct there has been a lot of discussion regarding the fares for the UP express as we call it and that's why I was very happy to stand alongside the premier along with representatives from Metrolinx and the Greater Toronto airport's authority yesterday to discuss to announce in fact Speaker the other fares as people might know Speaker Metrolinx has proposed an adult fare of $19 for presto card users there are also a number of other variable pricing options that have been proposed including a $10 fare for airport workers a discounted fare for students and seniors variable fares for those getting on or off at different distations and free access to the UP express for children under the age of six this fare structure will allow us to balance revenue and capacity ensuring enough ridership to allow UP express to become self financing within three to five years Thank you very much Mr. Speaker I want to thank the minister for his response and I know that my constituents in Davenport have been very interested in learning more about the union pierce and express fare structure you mentioned that it is important that the UP express be self financing something which will ensure the financial viability of the service for many years to come but those living in Davenport will want to know how the UP express will be different than other options currently available like the TTC and taxis Mr. Speaker can the minister please provide members of this House with more specifics on how the UP express will help travelers in my community Thank you Mr. Speaker once again I thank the member from Davenport for her thoughtful question the UP express was designed as a dedicated express link for air travelers offering fast and predictable service this means a guaranteed travel time of 25 minutes for riders as well as trains arriving every 15 minutes 19 and a half hours per day the service will also provide travelers with amenities that make their journey easier such as airline check and kiosks luggage racks and up to the minute flight information travelers will choose UP express because it's faster more reliable and less expensive than any other direct airport to downtown modes of transportation they may be using TTC go transit personal vehicles taxis and limousines will all continue to provide a wide range of alternatives for travelers and those working at or near the airport speaker once again we are very excited about this service that's being delivered on time and on budget and we know that in the spring operating the people of this region will be excited as well thanks very much Mr. Speaker you have a question? Thank you Speaker my question is to the Minister of Infrastructure, Minister yesterday I attended both the technical briefing provided by your ministry as well as your announcement regarding the future of Myers phase 2. I was astonished that you accepted the expert panel's recommendation to sink an additional $86 million into the project what concerns me most about the mess you've made is the risk that you've put taxpayers at by spending an additional one third of the building's value. Your goal to have Myers replace your loan with a commercial loan is more wishful than realistic. Minister will you confirm to this House that even if lease stops the government will only receive repayment on the loan and not the $65 million bailout to ARE or the extra $86 million you blew yesterday. Mr. Speaker I want to begin by thanking Michael Nebrega and Carol Stephenson for the great work that they've done on behalf of Ontario taxpayers and on behalf of those of us in this legislature that want to continue to grow a strong economy who want to continue to invest in our bioscience cluster and want to continue Mr. Speaker to ensure that Ontario remains a global center for innovation and growth Mr. Speaker their advice which comes from many many decades of experience is advice that provides us with a very solid business plan to ensure Mr. Speaker that the investments we've made in Mars are fully secured fully protected to ensure Mr. Speaker that the loan that we have made will be paid back in full with interest and to ensure Mr. Speaker that this project will now be finished. The jobs have been created Mr. Speaker and this will continue to be an Ontario success story. I'm glad Mr. Speaker for that advice and I'm glad the governments decided Mr. Speaker Minister you can spell all you want about your positive vision for a building but at the end of the day it's our party over here that is the only one that cares about taxpayers. Your government has blown $400 million to build a building we never needed with even more government funded institutions. Minister your announcement yesterday confirmed what we've been saying all along the only way you would fill this building is by leasing it to government funded tenants. At the end of the day we are just funding them to pay you. That's not a good business model minister but we already knew there never was a business case for Mars. Minister will you tell this house today what percentage or those who have signed letters of intent are private companies that receive no government funding. On one hand we have the advice of two of the most esteemed people in our business community who have decades of experience in these kind of transactions on the other hand we have the advice of the member opposite Mr. Speaker call me crazy but I'm taking the advice of the expert panel and the opposition will be happy to do that Mr. Speaker. The opposition will be very happy to do that but I and this government are taking the advice of the expert panel Mr. Speaker because it's a good business plan, it's good business advice. Mr. Speaker the party opposite when this project was having challenges wanted to let a building at college and university rotten the ground. Wanted to let this potential building that's going to generate jobs and economic development will go to absolute waste. Mr. Speaker that would have been the wrong thing to do then. It would have been the wrong thing to do now. We're taking the advice of the expert panel and we're moving forward Mr. Speaker. The leader of the third party. Thank you Speaker. My questions for the premier. A tragic boating accident in the Sudbury area caused the deaths of three people last year. The only survivor was Rob Dorzik who lost his spouse and two of his close friends. The president of the Sudbury professional firefighters association has said there were quote major deficiencies in the emergency response system that evening. Mr. Dorzik the people of Sudbury and the professional firefighters have all asked for an inquest into this tragedy Speaker. Will the premier do the right thing and support the people of Sudbury by demanding an inquest into this tragedy. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker and I know that the minister of community safety and correctional services will want to comment on the supplementary. I want to ensure everyone here today that this is an issue that we take very very seriously. I understand that the minister of safety and correctional services met with the Sudbury firefighters association this morning and I had an opportunity to speak to two of the members there and I would like to thank the first responders for the hard work that was done for the province including in Sudbury to keep communities safe and my deepest condolences Mr. Speaker go to the family and friends of the victims of this tragic incident obviously it is a tragedy and while the regional supervising coroner decided not to call an inquest into the matter Mr. Speaker it's important to note that the family of the deceased may appeal this decision to the office of the chief coroner of Ontario Mr. Speaker and so thank you Mr. Speaker after meeting with your ministry representatives or with the government's ministry representatives Mr. Dorsik and the families involved still feel that they have been receiving conflicting stories on this matter these families and the people of Sudbury need assurances that they can actually trust their emergency response systems an internal report by the ministry of health and long-term care outlined an emergency response system that is rife with miscommunication and with confusion the people in the Sudbury area need to know that when they dial 9-1-1 they are going to receive the help that they need the chief coroner's office is under the purview of this liberal government instead of asking these families to go through more paperwork why will this premier not do the right thing and just call for the inquest minister thank you very much I thank the member opposite for the question and let me first of all share all our condolences in this house for the tragic incident that took place in Sudbury and those who lost their lives obviously our thoughts goes to the family I think the member opposite knows very well that I as the minister of community safety and correctional services of the government does not have the capacity to ask the corner to conduct an inquest it's an independent arms land decision making process and it's totally up to the corner to make the determination as the premier mentioned it is up to the family to avail the appeal process and my understanding is that the families may be doing this but speaker this is a very serious issue and we take it very seriously I had a great opportunity to meet firefighters and I look forward to continue to work with them to ensure that we restore the faith and confidence in emergency management in Sudbury thank you new question the member from new market world thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the minister of health and long term care speaker it's fundamentally important that our government protect the voluntary blood donation system every year thousands of Ontarians voluntarily give blood in plasma for other survive accidents surgery and life threatening conditions voluntary donation is an important pillar of our nation's public blood system in fact I know many of my constituents in new market Aurora are regular blood donors and have been asking about this new legislation passed yesterday I'm very proud of our voluntary life saving blood donation system and I'm also proud of the healthcare professionals in Ontario provide patients every day I encourage all Ontarians to donate blood if they're able to do so through you Mr. Speaker I ask the minister of health and long-term care to tell us about the importance of protecting the integrity of our voluntary blood donation system and why this bill was so important to pass minister of health long-term care thank you Mr. Speaker and it's true yesterday our government passed bill 21 safeguarding health care integrity act 2014 and this bill combines our government's actions to safeguard our voluntary blood and plasma donation system in the province as well as the regulation of hospital pharmacies to strengthen oversight and improve patient safety now Health Canada had received licensed applications from at least one private for-profit company seeking to open plasma collection sites in Ontario that would pay people for their plasma a component of blood Canada has left the decision to permit or prohibit payment for blood or plasma donations to the individual provinces and territories so our government took action and we heard from many health care organizations advocacy groups and individual Ontarians who were opposed to private for-profit plasma collection and as a government we agree and we stand firmly against payment for blood or plasma donations in Ontario and that's reflected in the legislation that passed yesterday on this report. Supplementary? Yes it did pass with the unanimous consent congratulations I heard the minister of health and long-term care reference the second part of the bill that I've not yet had the opportunity to ask about my constituents in Newmark and Aurora were shocked by the news last year that over a thousand patients in Ontario received weaker doses of chemotherapy drugs than had been prescribed by their oncologist that was a very serious incident and they should ever have to go through what those cancer patients and their families went through I know that Dr. Jake Thiessen was appointed to review the incident and to lead a third party review of the cancer drug system Dr. Thiessen bought forward a report and recommendations my constituents in Newmark and Aurora want to know how these recommendations are captured in bill 21 Through you Mr. Speaker I asked the minister of health addressing Dr. Thiessen's recommendations to prevent a tragedy like this from happening again Thank you to the member from Newmark and Aurora for this very important supplementary question and the member is correct when stating that no one should ever have to go through what the affected cancer patients and their families went through in this tragedy following Dr. Jake Thiessen's report our government accepted and endorsed all of his recommendations and our legislation Safeguarding Health Care Integrity Act now enables our health regulatory colleges to share more information with hospitals and public health authorities so that we can prevent future incidents from affecting patient care and Mr. Speaker our legislation also reflects Dr. Thiessen's recommendation to authorize the college of pharmacists to inspect and license all our hospital pharmacies operating in Ontario as a means to ensure that medication management and processing systems in hospital pharmacies are standardized I'd like to thank every member in the house for supporting this very Thank you Thank you My question to the minister of transportation Speaker the previous minister was so concerned last man about being unable to produce his high speed rail pre-feasibility study he pledged quote one of the first things we want to do if we're reelected is get those studies out there end quote maybe one of the first things he wanted to do but apparently the current minister didn't get that message I had to wait two months after asking this house for the study to be produced before making an FOI request I'm happy to report that we now have the study through FOI but we found about 20% of it has been redacted Speaker in the spirit of openness and transparency will the minister provide the missing information from page 48 under the heading could there be an integrated solution in the spirit of openness and transparency Thank you Mr. transportation Thanks very much Mr. Speaker as I always begin by saying I want to thank the member from Kitchener for his question I was really thrilled to have the opportunity just a number of days ago late last week to be in London Ontario wonderful community that is very lucky to be represented by the deputy Premier and President of the Treasury Board and at that particular event we were jointly with the mayor of London Mayor Brown announcing the launch of the environmental assessment process for the high speed rail project which is very exciting news for London for Kitchener Waterloo of course for Windsor in fact great news for all of south western Ontario as I said that day at the announcement this is an environmental assessment that will take place over the next four to six years it will help build on the work done in the pre-feasibility report with the opposite referencing it will discuss items around technical requirements, technical options the routing, the number of stations but the bottom line speaker is that the people of London the people of Kitchener, the people of Windsor the people right across south western Ontario are very happy about You know you must need like a special pair of glasses to see what's written in here but anyways I know you want to talk about the EA for 2015 the same EA the Premier announced was already underway a few months ago the fact is the wind Liberals were so eager to label themselves as bullet train champions before the election they got a London England firm first class partnership to do a rust job to provide them high speed rail credibility in fact FCP's Michael Shabas told CVC quote we did in two weeks what normally would take three to four months they didn't even have time to examine the railroad in person so FCP relied on Google Earth this was nothing more than a pre-election bid to get votes with $115,000 of taxpayers money will the minister tell us why we should take direction for a multi-billion dollar high speed, high risk transit project from a Russian dollar thank you very much speaker I thought I heard that member at the beginning of his question suggest that somehow the EA was announced previously in fact it wasn't we launched it last Friday it's understandable from my perspective that that member would be confused about all the good news coming from this government particularly for Kitchener Waterloo for London for Windsor and for all of Ontario because of the very ambitious, robust transportation and transit infrastructure plan that we have speaker but don't just take my word for it speaker let's actually look to see what the mayor the new mayor of London Matt Brown said about the launch of the EA just last week this is fantastic news for London high speed rail will benefit many vital economic sectors in London and we look forward to working with the province on this initiative speaker I would have thought that that member would want to work with us today for Kitchener because that is the work that we are doing thanks very much speaker thank you speaker my questions to the premier seven months ago the premier went to Walkerton where seven people died 14 years ago due to drinking water contamination she said there was a failure of oversight a failure of enforcement cuts have consequences in 2006 the government promised to protect our drinking water from contamination at this source this was a key recommendation of the Walkerton commission and yet when the auditor general checked in eight years later the government had approved plans to protect the drinking water of only five percent of Ontarians how hypocritical is it for the premier to stand in Walkerton and say the member will withdraw a withdrawal how shameful is it for the premier to stand in Walkerton and say cuts and poor oversight cause this tragedy when our own government is planning deep spending cuts thank you very much Mr. Speaker and I appreciate the question from the member opposite Ontario is one of the only jurisdictions in North America with source water protection plans Mr. Speaker and these plans are one element they're just one element in a robust water protection system that was put in place Mr. Speaker that ensures Ontario's drinking water is among the best protected in North America so let me be clear despite what the auditor general alludes to in a report another Walkerton will not happen in Ontario Mr. Speaker following the Walkerton inquiry Justice O'Connor made 121 recommendations on areas related to protected drinking water Ontario is acting on all 121 recommendations every single one of them Mr. Speaker including the source water protection plans by the end of this year half of the water protection plans and the end of next year all 22 plans will be improved supplementary Speaker the government has still not approved the plan to protect the drinking water of the credit valley Toronto region and Central Lake Ontario area representing more than half of the people in Ontario this plan includes provisions to protect against pipeline spills because the government refuses to approve it Enbridge has refused to follow the plan for its line 9 pipeline the auditor general wondered why this government's water safety plans did not protect against industrial spills perhaps it's for the same reason the government refuses to approve a water safety plan that would regulate pipelines why won't the government put public safety ahead of private interest and approve this plan to protect the drinking water of more than half of Ontario the plans are in the process as I said by the end of the year half of the water protection plans will be implemented and the end of next year all 22 of the plans will be implemented so they are in process that work is underway and they have to be finalized in order for them to be approved and it's measures like these that are making us a leader in source water protection and quite frankly all over the world there are jurisdictions that are looking to us for our clean water technology when I traveled to China there were businesses that were coming with us who have developed clean water technology because of the regulation because of the system that we've put in place in Ontario so Mr. Speaker we are leading the pack on this not all the plans are approved yet that is absolutely true and in terms of the pipeline the member opposite will know that just a couple of weeks ago we signed an agreement with Quebec they are putting some principles in place to make sure that environmental protections are put in place around the pipeline Mr. Speaker the member from Scarborough Scarborough is big South West is a nice place to go Mr. Speaker my question is to the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs according to 2011 census almost a quarter of first station people in Canada live in Ontario more than any other province 70% of the average Aboriginal population in Ontario lives off reserve with 62% residing in urban centres Aboriginal people living in urban centres experience lower social economic status and poor quality of life than non-Aboriginal population in Toronto Approximately 37,000 Aboriginal people are living in Toronto alone including Scarborough South West and other large populations Ottawa, Sudbury, Thunder Bay and through Toronto Mr. Speaker through to the Minister what is our government doing to support urban Aboriginal communities across the province Thank you Thank you for the question Aboriginal people living in urban areas face unique challenges like higher unemployment rates lower health status compared to non-Aboriginal peoples Over the past years past two years the Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs has undertaken a variety of initiatives to understand and alleviate some of these challenges We have established the off reserve Aboriginal policy engagement table with the Ontario Federation of Indigenous Friendship Centres the Ontario Native Women's Association and the Métis Nation of Ontario All this with the view to support policy development fostering sustainable healthy and resilient urban Aboriginal communities We will work with partners to closely develop and identify the work going forward and for the 2014 the table's priority will focus on exploring policy opportunities related to literacy supports to urban and off reserve Aboriginal peoples Thank you Speaker Supplementary, I apologize to the member from Scarborough South West Thank you Mr Speaker, I appreciate it very much Scarborough South West very gets mentioned in this House but it's nice to hear you say that today Thank you Minister It's great to hear such good news This really points out that the whole Government approach that Ontario is taking to support the Aboriginal community is being done properly We know that a constructive, cooperative relationship with Aboriginal people in Ontario leads to improved opportunities for better future not only for Aboriginal people but for all people living in Ontario including Scarborough South West I am aware that this year we launched the Urban Aboriginal Action Plan I just want to ask the Minister could you please inform the House on how the action plan will continue to support the Urban Aboriginal People in Ontario Thank you Minister I want to thank the member from Scarborough for that follow up question Look, the Urban Aboriginal Action Plan will support Urban Aboriginal communities by providing two and a half million dollars in funding over the next three years to develop strategies that reflect local interests and lead to the improvement of local socio-economic outcomes and we will coordinate an engagement strategy with Aboriginal peoples, municipalities and the federal government if they'll ever come to the table to better deliver programming directed towards Aboriginal communities we also have selected two demonstration projects for community development initiatives in the next year we will be partnering with the North Bay Friendship Centre to implement its strategic plan and we will also be working with the Bury Area Native Advisory Council to conduct a community-driven needs assessment plan to research and develop a strategic plan Minister Nice answer New question Minister Housing Services Corporation makes their money from charging affordable housing providers at premium on gas and insurance In 2013 the CEO earned over 300,000 double what the CEO made four years ago plus expenses of $65,000 that's enough to reopen seven affordable housing units that are boarded up because of this repair the chair of the board gets $375 per conference call Minister, these are just two examples this money was designated for affordable housing will you ask the auditor general to perform a value for money audit to find out where this money is going Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing Mr. Speaker I appreciate the question I'll tell you exactly what I want No no no no I want to bring it to your attention first the member from Renfrew will withdraw I withdraw I think there's a W behind your name on my list I'm pleased to respond Mr. Chairman when the Housing Services Corporation was set up by the previous government there were no accountability provisions at all in 2013 we brought in accountability provisions including the requirement to file full reports with us reports that I read when I read the report and discovered some anomalies I wrote to the board the board chairman wrote back to me that they will be complying with the expense regulations of cabinet to the other bodies here and one of the board the member from Hallman Norfolk in point of order Speaker this is I know it's not a point of order I do wish to introduce the members gallery Graham Lloyd and also Bill Emma the sixth year chair dairy farmers of Ontario the right it's not a point of order but he's from my writing so I let it go the premier on a point of order thank you very much Mr. Speaker and as this is our last opportunity to have our morning chat between 1030 and 1130 in 2014 I just want to take this opportunity to wish everyone in the house and staff and everyone who's here a very happy holiday I know that members are going back to their writings and there's a lot of work to be done between now and the real break but I do hope that you will have the opportunity to spend time with your friends and families and thank you very much all of you for the service that you provide to the people of Ontario I'd like to recognize the leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition Thank you Mr. Speaker and I too want to join with the premier and I'm sure the leader of the third party and wishing everyone a merry Christmas and a happy holidays and if possible some prosperity in the new year and on behalf of the caucus and of course happy holidays and happy Hanukkah to all the people of Ontario may you enjoy the warmth of the season and the gathering of good friends and family as you celebrate the birth of Christ and on that note premier if you're thinking of giving me a Christmas gift which I hope you are all you have to do is pass my Christmas tree day out I'd also like to I'd also like to recognize the leader of the third party on the same point of order Thank you very much speaker you know the holidays are a time for friends and for family for cherishing our relationships for rekindling old relationships and perhaps establishing new ones I think that on behalf of new democrats I want to express our desire that everyone who is involved in this legislature whether it's as staff as members as pages and in fact all Ontarians we want to wish you all some peace some joy some prosperity for the future and most of all I want to say that I hope everyone has a safe holiday season speaker one that has a lot of joy but one that is also a safe one season's greetings happy holidays to everyone thank you I do know the member from Prince Edward Hastings has a point of order and I opened up a Pandora's box I believe oh Christmas greetings but I do wish everybody a merry Christmas and a happy holidays I just received a note from a former colleague of ours here at the legislature Rob Milligan the former member from Northumberland Quinney West was bringing his grade 10 civics class along with Mrs. Carolyn Campbell down to view our question period this morning but they're stuck on the 401 in the winter storm out there so I'm sure that the crew when they arrive will be visiting the transportation minister just wondering where that extra equipment is on the the spirit of the house and the cringing of the table because I'm actually supposed to be moving right into deferred votes I want to announce to the members a very special and sorrowful note that this is the last day for our pages and I think we should say to them I'm sure that you join me in saying thank you very much to our committee still some business there still is some business to do we do have deferred votes on the motion a third reading of bill 7 an act to enact the burden reduction reporting act 2014 in the partnerships for jobs and growth act 2014 calling the members this will be a five minute bill first please take their seats please take your seats three times in a row on December 10th Mr. Leo moved a third reading of bill 7 all those in favor please rise one at a time be recognized by the Mr. Dugan Mr. Dugan Mr. Nackney Mr. Bradley Mr. Shirelli Madame Mayor Mr. Sousa Ms. Win Ms. Matthews Mr. Hoskins Ms. Sander Ms. McCharles Mr. Mouridi Mr. Coteau Mr. Flin Mr. Zimmer Mr. Delaney Mr. Dixon Mr. Prack Mr. Wong Mr. Hunter Mr. Dalduca Mr. Donnerla Mr. Anderson Mr. Bauer Mr. Don Ms. Kuala Ms. Molly Ms. Martin Ms. McMan Mr. Milch Mr. Nidoo Harris Mr. Rinaldi Mr. Arnaugh Mr. Hudak Mr. Hardiman Mr. Wilson Mr. Yacobusky Mr. Clark Ms. Jones Ms. Thompson Mr. Barrett Ms. Monroe Mr. Scott Mr. Hillier Mr. Smith Mr. Harris Mr. Nichols Mr. McDonnell Mr. Pettipies Mr. Gates Mr. Vanthoff Mr. Miller Hamilton Mr. Stony Creek Ms. Sattler Ms. Taylor Ms. Fife Ms. Forrester Mr. Mantha Ms. Gretzky Ms. French All those opposed, please rise one at a time and be recognized by the clerk. The nays are zero. The ayes being 88 and the nays being zero, I declare the motion carried. Third reading of the bill. Be it resolved that the bill do now pass and be entitled as in the motion. We have another deferred vote. We have a deferred vote on the motion of third reading of bill 35 an act to repeal the Public Works Protection Act amended by the Police Services Act, amend the Police Services Act with respect to court security and active security for electricity generating facilities and nuclear facilities act 2014. Calling the members, this will be a five minute bill. Same vote? No. On December 10th, Mr. Flynn moved third reading of bill 35. All those in favor, please rise one at a time and be recognized by the clerk. Mr. Nakvy Mr. Bradley Mr. Shirelli Mr. Sousa Ms. Matthews Mr. Hoskins Mr. Sandole Mr. Dugard Mr. Dillon Mr. Gravel Mr. Chan Mr. Moriti Mr. Coteau Mr. Flinn Mr. Zimmer Mr. Delaney Mr. Balcos Mr. Albanese Mr. Dixon Mr. Manga Mr. Crack Mr. Wong Mr. Hunter Mr. Morrill Mr. Kuala Mr. Mollie Mr. Malkin Mr. Mcman Mr. Milchin Mr. Nidu Harris Mr. Rinaldi Mr. Reneal All those opposed, please rise one at a time. Mr. Thompson I will withdraw. All those in favor, please rise one at a time and be recognized by the clerk. Mr. Hardim Mr. McLeod Mr. Wilson Mr. Kler Mr. Miller Mr. Thompson Mr. Barrett Mr. Monroe Mr. Hillier Mr. Smith Mr. Harris Mr. Pettipies All those opposed, please rise one at a time and be recognized by the clerk. Mr. Bissau Mr. Horvath Mr. Miller Mr. Hamilton Mr. Taylor Mr. Natascha Mr. Armstrong Mr. Forest Mr. Hatfield Mr. Gates Mr. Gretzky Mr. French The Ayes being 73 and the Ayes being 15. I declare the motion carried. Third reading of the bill. Opposed to the law. It resolved that the bill do now pass and be entitled as in the motion. We have another deferred vote. We have a deferred vote on the motion by Mr. Gravel respecting Sir John A. McDonald calling the members. This will be a five-minute bill. Mr. Gravel has moved that on the occasion of the upcoming bicentennial of his birth, this House commemorates the contribution to Canada of its founding father and First Prime Minister, Sir John A. McDonald. All those in favor, please rise one at a time and be recognized by the clerk. Mr. Gravel Mr. Gravel Mr. Bradley Mr. Shirelli Mr. Sousa Ms. Win Ms. Matthew Mr. Hoskins Mr. Sandals Mr. Dugard Mr. Audrey Mr. McCleek Mr. Chan Mr. Moriti Mr. Kotow Mr. Leel Mr. Flynn Mr. Zimmer Mr. Delaney Mr. Dixon Ms. Manga Mr. Crack Ms. Wong Ms. Hunter Mr. Baker Mr. Ballard Ms. Kowala Ms. Mollie Ms. Martin Ms. McGarry Mr. Miltjen Mr. Potts Mr. Rinaldi Mr. Wilsen Mr. Arnaugh Mr. Hudak Mr. Hardiman Mr. McLeod Mr. Miller Ms. Jones Ms. Thompson Ms. Monroe Ms. Scott Mr. Healyer Mr. Smith Mr. Neckles Mr. McDonnell Mr. Pettipies Ms. Horvath Mr. Vanthoff Mr. Miller-Hamilton Ms. Sadler Mr. Natashack Ms. Armstrong Ms. Forrester Mr. Mantha Mr. Hatfield Mr. Gates Ms. Gretzky Ms. French Opposed, please rise one at a time and be recognized by the clerk. The ayes being 89 and the nays being 0 I declare the motion carried. There are no further deferred votes I do want to take liberty and indicate to you that I wish all of you Merry Christmas, seasons greetings Happy New Year, take care of your families make sure that they are taken care of because they take care of you and I thank all of you for the work that you do in this province. Thank you very much.