 It is now time for Question Period, the leader of Her Majesty's Royal Opposition. Mr. Speaker, my questions for the acting Premier, last Thursday's fall economic statement just goes to show there is no reason on Terrell should trust this government's numbers. The government took a billion dollars from the reserves and another 1.1 billion dollars from the sale of Hydro-1. The deficit is actually 2.1 billion dollars higher than this government is willing to admit. As the Toronto stars Martin Red Cohen said, the government under promises and then tries to claim they overperform. He said, I quote, on Terrell is a chronic underperformer and is an ongoing overspender. Mr. Speaker, will the government finally admit that they have no plan, no realistic expectation to balance their budget in 2018? Well Speaker, our plan is fundamentally different from their plan, although I must say I'm not even sure that there is a plan. Year after year, we have beaten our deficit. I'll be looking to both sides to start quiet. Finish please. We have beaten our deficit targets year over year. We will continue to do so, Speaker. We have been very clear that net revenues from asset sales like Hydro-1 IPO are being placed in the Trillium Trust, Speaker. We proposed an amendment to the 2015 budget in committee that would formalize that, Speaker, to formalize that all the net proceeds would be contributed to the Trillium Trust. And you know what happened? Both the PCs and the NDP voted against it, which was why it's in this fall. Thank you. Supplementary. Mr. Speaker, again for the acting Premier, and I've got some unfortunate news for the acting Premier, you can't spend the same money twice. You know, the foreign economic statement confirmed what the opposition has been saying all along. The sale of Hydro-1 was not for infrastructure. We've known all along the Liberals, you know, use this money to simply pay for their own scandal, waste and mismanagement. $1.1 billion from the sale of Hydro-1 went straight into general revenue. Awfully enough, that's exactly the same amount the Liberals wasted on the gas plant scandal. Mr. Speaker, why won't the government just come clean? The only reason they sold Hydro-1 was to make up for their own incompetence and waste. Come clean and make that what you did. Thank you. Deputy Premier. Speaker, I think it's really important to point out also that the contingency fund remains as what it was, Speaker, this notion that we somehow use contingency fund to bring down the deficit is simply untrue, and I would love to see the evidence you have that would demonstrate that has been a change. We are committed to spending more on infrastructure. This is a clear direction this government is going. We have a plan to get there. The plan does include asset sales, includes broadening the ownership of Hydro-1 because that's what the people of this province elected us to do, Speaker. We are moving forward on our mandate to build Ontario up. Thank you. Final supplementary. Mr. Speaker, the government's numbers just don't make sense. The acting Premier, everyone understands, everyone understands this is a shell game. Over the next three years, the government is predicting $8 billion in more revenue than the financial accountability officer has forecasted. I know who I trust. I trust the independent officer, not the government's spin machine. The gap is real, and the fall economic statement clearly says the Hydro-1 revenue will be used to fill the gap, an $8 billion gap. They expect to get $9 billion from the sale of Hydro-1. I hardly think this is a coincidence. We all know what's happening here. Mr. Speaker, will the government admit that they are using the next portion of the Hydro-1 sale to plug their $8 billion gap? Tell us the answer, please. Mr. Speaker, we have a non-tax revenue from capital gains on assets and otherwise. We have made it very clear that we are dedicating every dollar that is net result of these assets to the Trillium Trust. Furthermore, we have over $120 billion in revenue. We are not relying on assets to manage the deficit. We are relying on economic growth. That's why we are investing the money to create even more wealth for the people of Ontario. The member officer is actually double-counting when he talks about reserve. I think they need to get their act together in terms of the principles of accounting on this very issue. Thank you. Thank you very much. Speaker, good morning. My question is for the Treasury Board President. Last week, the Finance Minister, Rob, the sale of Hydro-1, intended for infrastructure monies to pay down the deficit. Unfortunately, that type of creative financing is unsustainable and, I dare say, dishonest. Don't just take my word for it. Take the... The member will withdraw. Certainly. Withdraw on speaker. Don't just take my word for it. Take the financial accountability officers. That means the Treasury Board President should be following the mandate letter assigned to her to reduce the size and cost of government. But that's barely mentioned in the fall economic statement. Why? Is it because the Minister of the Treasury Board has failed to hold the line on government spending? In fact, earlier this month, the Financial Accountability Officer affirmed our lower 2015-16 deficit target of $8.5 billion without factoring in the Hydro-1 IPO into his figure, Speaker. So we are at Treasury Board working very hard to keep programs spending low, Speaker. We have to make sure that we're getting best value for every dollar that we're spending. And what's fascinating to me, Speaker, is that what we're hearing from opposition over and over again is spend more. You want us to increase compensation to physicians, Speaker. You want us to... Every day we hear about expenditures you want us to make. And yet now we're hearing that we're spending too much. The fact is Treasury Board has gone through a line-by-line review of every ministry, every program and every ministry to ensure we're getting the best value for those dollars. Speaker, the Financial Accountability Officer actually said we were going through some short-term gain for long-term pain. That's what he said. I remember seeing it. You yourself said when you went through five, we're out of money. Now Ontarians can't afford any new taxes, so the only hope in order for this government to balance the budget and ensure sustainable healthcare and education is through a more efficient government and for you to actually do your job. But that's impossible when the government takes its so-called net-zeros in contract negotiations and applies that money to higher salaries rather than the deficit. There is no discipline on that side of the House. Will the Treasury Board President explain why her department has lost control of government spending and is not doing its job? Thank you. Well, Speaker, the member opposite is simply wrong. In fact, we are looking at an average of 0.9% increase in spending. That is significantly below the rate of inflation. I don't know where you would want to cut more, Speaker, where the member opposite would want to cut more. As I've said, every day we hear about ... Member from Brucecray or South. That they want us to spend more on their particular projects. We have a very clear path to balance. We are on that path, Speaker. We are making difficult decisions, but we are determined to achieve balance by 1718. They will take a variety of approaches to get us there, but we are committed to doing exactly that while we protect the services that matter to the people of this province. Thank you. Final supplementary. Clearly not protecting the services that matter the most to Ontarians. Look at the illegal strikes in education. Look at the health care cuts that my caucus has been raising in this assembly. If you want to talk about who's wrong, I want to know if you were right or if you were misquoted on W5 when you said, and I quote, we're out of money. You can't have it both ways. Your inaction and your lack of discipline speaks for itself. It is not leadership. It is reckless. This government has specialized in mediocrity. You have compromised the province's credit rating and you've made life unaffordable for Ontarians, and only you have yourself to blame. The budget will not balance itself. Will the Treasury Board President admit here today, in this place, that the lack of discipline in her department and across government is what really is in store for Ontarians? Thank you. President, Treasury Board? Speaker, I think this is a question that maybe should go down in history as taking two paths in one question. You've got to choose a length. On one hand you're saying you're spending too much, and on the other the very same question you're saying you're not spending enough. So I really do think that the party opposite needs to get their act together. There was a time where we knew exactly where they stood, and that was slash and burn 500,000 people. We're hearing about a kinder, gentler party speaker, but at the core there's nothing that's changed over there. Thank you. New questions from the Liberal Democrat Party. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the acting Premier. Page 100 of the fall economic statement shows that the money from the Hydro-1 sell-off is going towards government revenue. But the Premier promised that selling off Hydro-1 would build transit in infrastructure speaker. Of course we know that selling off Hydro-1 was never about building anything. The Liberals have counted the money once for transit in the Trillium Trust. And a second time against the deficit will speaker ask any Ontarian, and they'll tell you that you can't spend the same dollar twice. You can only spend a dollar once. Can the acting Premier explain how the Liberals are taking a dollar and counting it twice? Thank you. Mr. Finance. Mr. Finance. So Mr. Speaker, let me explain that we have capital gains on assets, and we have a number of initiatives that happen throughout the budget cycle. Over $124 billion in revenue occurs. In this particular case you have an asset that creates a gain. We have to reflect it as a non-taxable revenue. We have also put a dedicated Trillium Trust that ensures that the values, the net gain is invested into that trust, to be reinvested into new assets, Mr. Speaker. We're not relying on assets in order to manage our deficit. We are what we are doing is growing our economy and enabling us to have more revenue, more activity, and we are controlling our spending, Mr. Speaker. We're the leanest government in all of Canada because of the efforts that we are taking. And the President of the Treasury Board has been acting all this time. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Mr. President. The government's own fiscal update says the increase in revenue, quote, largely reflects the recent Hydro-1 IPO. The money from the sell-off of Hydro-1 isn't going towards building transit and infrastructure. It's going to actually balance the books for one year. The sell-off of Hydro-1 isn't raising the money the Liberals promised. Minister of Economic Development. The only infrastructure that they promised to the people of Ontario. Will the acting Premier and her government be breaking the promise they made to Ontarians to build transit just so they can balance the budget, Speaker? Thank you. Minister. Mr. Speaker, we've just enacted further regulation around the Trillium Trust in order to ensure that the lands from the Seed and then Lakeview, that head office buildings that are also not as productive, that we look at initiating those gains to be invested into the Trillium Trust. We stipulate it very clearly into the Act. And that is exactly what's happening, Mr. Speaker. The member opposite may want to talk about the fact that she doesn't like the notion of us taking an agency or a company that's underperforming, making it better, creating greater value, netting tremendous gains for the province of Ontario, dedicating its gain into the Trillium Trust for reinvestment into our economy. That's her choice. But, Mr. Speaker, we're going to continue to invest in our economy, to grow our economy and enable for us to have greater revenues overall and greater productivity and prosperity for all people of Ontario. Thank you. Final supplementary. The Liberals promised the Hydro One money would go into the Trillium Trust to pay for infrastructure. Instead, it's going into general revenue so that the Liberals can show a one-time smaller deficit in this year. Will this acting premier finally admit that selling Hydro One was never about infrastructure? And can she tell us, which of the transit projects that the Liberals list off continually in this House, will she be cancelling in order to balance the budget? Thank you, Minister. Mr. Speaker, we have stipulated that we're going to be spending over $134 billion into infrastructure. We've identified in the fall economic statement a number of projects that are well underway. Over 200 more projects have occurred. And Mr. Speaker, this transaction also enabled us to pay down debt by a billion dollars. So Mr. Speaker, we're acting prudently, we're taking assets, making it certain that we're able to gain or achieve greater value of those assets and reinvestment. And of course you have to recognize that gain as a non-taxable revenue. It's exactly what we've done in this budget. We've been very upfront throughout and going forward. We're going to continue doing everything that's necessary to invest in our economy to create even more value. That is what we're doing. And Mr. Speaker, let me say again, we're not relying on assets to control our deficit. We're relying on $124 billion of other revenue that's generating wealth for the province of Ontario. Thank you. Thank you. New question. The Leader of the Third Party. New question is also for the acting Premier Speaker. On the very first page of the fall economic update it says, if revenue growth is slower than expected, quote, the government will need to consider other tools. Does other tools include further sales of revenue generating assets and even deeper cuts to health care and education? Thank you. Mr. Speaker, it's prudent, of course, for us to take consideration of all the tools that are available to the province and to a government. And frankly, Mr. Speaker, Ontario has a lot of flexibility, frankly. We have more arrows in our quiver than other provinces because they have taken some of those tools already into action. We are relying only on going after those that don't pay appropriately. We're going after tax avoidance measures in the economy. We're going after the underground economy, which, by the way, has net an additional $224 million more as a result of those initiatives, Mr. Speaker. We're also controlling our debt. We now have our paying $140 million less than what he had anticipated because we're borrowing $25 billion less as a result of the actions that we're taking. Mr. Speaker, those are the initiatives that we're taking. Those are the tools that we're looking forward to enacting and ensuring that everybody pays their fair share. Thank you. There are so many arrows in the quiver, they should have skipped over the sell-off of Hydro-1 because virtually nobody in Ontario wanted them to use that quiver. Thursday's fall economic statement shows job creation projections are down by 70,000 jobs over the next four years, Mr. Speaker. That's like the entire city of Sarnia not being able to find a job. With a competitive dollar, we should have actually seen some job growth by now, Speaker, not less growth and fewer jobs. Selling Hydro-1 is not going to create jobs here in the province of Ontario. Privatizing other assets will not create more growth, Speaker. Will the acting premier rule out selling more revenue-generating assets? So, Mr. Speaker, let's be clear, Ontario and Ontarians have been doing a tremendous job of promoting our economy. In fact, Ontario now leads Canada in economic growth and our unemployment rate is down 6.8% below the national average. Furthermore, we have over 560,000 new jobs since the depths of the recession because of the diversified economy that we've been employing and initiating. Furthermore, I said very clearly that when we look at our assets, we look at those that are underperforming and are not creating greater value. That is why LCBO and OPG and some other assets are not being used because they provide greater value. Hydro-1 had an opportunity to make more value for the province of Ontario, and it did, Mr. Speaker, well beyond every expectation that most have had. The market bear a strong valuation. We still own 84% of that for our operation, which is now greater in value than it was even three weeks ago. We'll continue to do that to promote more value for all Ontarians. Thank you. Speaker, the value went to their friends. It didn't go to the people of Ontario. That will slow revenue growth, Speaker. That is a fact. Ontario shows that starting next year, the sale of Hydro-1 will start costing us money. That's going to slow revenue growth for this province, Speaker. And the fall economic update says that that's exactly what's going to open the door for the necessity of new revenue tools or more revenue tools to be undertaken by this government. So why is the Liberal government setting up Ontario families for more sell-offs and deeper cuts in the future? Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, the majority of Hydro-1 is still owned by Ontarians. The government of Ontario owns 84% of this company still today. And as we proceed forward, 40% of this last IPO went to Ontarians broader in the retail sector. And pension companies, of which the member opposite staff and others are relying upon, also are owners of some of these shares. So going forward, the people of Ontario indirectly or directly still own a great part of this company, which has now been improved because of the actions that we've taken. And that's exactly what we're talking about. More importantly, it's about reinvesting into our economy, reinvesting in new assets, reinvesting in transit, in Hamilton where the member opposite is from. And she would actually probably cut those very initiatives if she did not find sources of revenue and capital to make it so. That's exactly what we've done. We've stipulated that and we've actually rolled out a whole list of projects underway. Thank you. And Mr. Speaker, that's what this is about. Thank you. A new question. The member from Prince Edward Hastings. Thank you, Speaker. My question this morning is for the acting Premier. For months now, the government's climbed onto its high horse and said that the Hydro-1 sale was going to pay for infrastructure. Right up until last Thursday, though, when they couldn't hide the truth any longer, a background document the government handed out for the fall economic statement said, and I quote, the improvement in the deficit projection for 2015-16 is mainly the result of the government's progress on the asset optimization strategy outlined in the 2015 budget related to the recent Hydro-1 initial public offering end quote. Mr. Speaker, the only thing they've sold is Hydro-1. Yep. Speaker, the Premier, the Minister of Energy, and the Deputy Premier have all just been contradicted by the Finance Minister. My question is, would they like to correct their record, or are they saying the Finance Minister wouldn't tell them what he was using the Hydro-1 money for? Oh, good touch. We have assets, we have ongoing operations of government, we're trying to maximize value, we've very clearly stipulated that the asset gain from Hydro-1, which is greater than even anticipated, is being reflected as a non-tax revenue as it must. These are basic accounting principles, Mr. Speaker. We've also went further and said that we're dedicating all of that gain into the Trillium Trust, which to dedicate those revenues to create even more by reinvesting in new infrastructure projects. That being, public transit, including those opportunities. Mr. Furrier, you're going to sound second time. It talks about roads and bridges and expansions to various communities that will benefit from the redeployment of these assets to create new value for Ontarians, and that's what we've done, and we've been very clear about that as the case. Furthermore, it also talks about the fact that we're paying less interest. It talks about the fact that we are collecting more revenues in other areas, and that is ultimately how we're getting to now, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Furrier, the flakes of snow haven't really even started to fly here in Toronto yet, but there's been a snow job going on for months over on that side of the house. Finance tells us one thing, but we get another here in the house. Even the Finance Minister couldn't quite explain how money could be going to the deficit when Ministers of the Crown repeatedly told the House it would be spent on infrastructure. Maybe he's just sick of playing Pinocchio to Ed Clark's Geppetto. Withdraw, Mr. Speaker. Speaker, all the government has done here is temporarily plug a $1.1 billion hole. It's going to reappear again next year, just in time for them to sell more Hydro-1 shares. Will the acting Premier just admit that the money was never going to go to infrastructure, or is she just waiting for Ed Clark's latest memo, too? Good talk, Minister. Mr. Speaker, the only people that are double counting here are members of the opposition when they claim that the reserve is being used twice. Well, in fact, that's not the case, Mr. Speaker. Furthermore, we've been clear that non-tax revenue has to be reflected as revenue. That's exactly what we've done. Further, Ed, we said that we're going to invest it, and we are. Listen, Mr. Speaker, on pages 27 and 28, we offer just a small amount of those projects that are underway for the benefit of communities like the members own, so that we can greatly appreciate the value for our economy and for our families and our communities. By the way, let's be clear that Ontarians and Ontario still holds a substantive amount of Hydro-1, which is more valuable than it was before. And we made it very clear that no one person or company can own more than 10% of Hydro-1. We will still retain a greater degree of ownership, greater opportunities for revenue that's being sourced from a better company, and we're generating further revenue from reinvesting in our economy. Mr. Speaker, we stipulated that very clearly in our feds in that regard. Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Acting Premier. In the last fiscal year, the government forced Ontario's electricity consumers to pay $956 million in debt retirement charges on their electricity bills. These charges were supposed to pay down the residual stranded debt left over from the old Ontario Hydro. But instead, last week, we found that these charges paid down only $400 million of the residual stranded debt. What did the government do with the remaining $556 million? So, Mr. Speaker, as the member opposite may know, there is stranded debt, that's the legacy debt that was left over from the dismantling of the old Ontario Hydro. And that conservative legacy left $20 billion in stranded debt. We've been paying that down regularly over time and it will continue even still, Mr. Speaker. Notwithstanding that, we've taken amount from the IPO that's being applied to the residual stranded debt. The other components of it goes to actually pay direct debt from the OEFC and we will continue to do that as we must and as we will. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, supplementary. Again, to the Acting Premier, Mr. Peter Kormos would have said horse feathers to that, Mr. Speaker. Rather than be upfront with Ontarians, this government is rewriting the laws just so that it can play accounting games. First, they change the law so that they can give IOUs instead of cash to the Ontario Electricity Financial Corporation to pay the hydro debt. Then, they rewrote the law so that they can put $2.2 billion in non-cash benefits into the Trillium Trust, so-called benefits that don't provide a single penny and actual spendable cash for infrastructure. Finally, they rewrote the law so that they continue collecting $600 million a year in debt retirement charges without putting it towards debt. Instead of rewriting laws and playing accounting games, why won't the government just admit that the Hydro-1 sell-off has nothing to do with infrastructure or debt repayment? Why is the Liberal government taking money from the electricity rate pairs to play accounting games with its books for political purposes? So it's interesting, Mr. Speaker. The member opposite now does not cite the FAO and his explanation of residual stranded debt and the stranded debt. He very clearly outlines that the government of Ontario has been paying it down, that there is a great degree of uncertainty as to what will happen next. We have applied all of those debt retirement charges directly to residual stranded debt, and that's what's happening, Mr. Speaker. It has been going down, and as a result of what we've done more recently, we've been able to garner even more opportunity to pay down debt. We've paid down debt by another billion dollars. So we will continue to apply debt to the OEFC and the component of stranded debt as required. We'll continue to go down for the sources that we are applying, but we are very, very clear that the retirement charge for residential will be eliminated by this year and we're eliminating it for all industrial and businesses in 2018, nine months ahead of schedule so that they have certainty and further reductions in their costs overall. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry. This ministry has to balance the priorities of communities, industry and our natural heritage, which includes the important role of environmental stewardship. The forests in this province are important in the fight against global warming. We know that forests capture, convert and retain carbon dioxide, a greenhouse gas that significantly contributes to climate change. Ontario's forests have an important role to play when it comes to our fight against climate change as nearly 70% or 93 million hectares of our province are covered in forests. Mr. Speaker, could the minister please tell us what steps Ontario is taking to preserve our forests while balancing the need for wood products? Thank you. I want to thank the member from Kitchener Centre for the question. The stewardship of Ontario's forests is a core component of my ministry's responsibilities. Through legislation like the Crown Forest Sustainability Act, we require that forests are managed to meet the economic, social and environmental needs of present and future generations. Our province works with the forestry industry of the province's forests. We do so by setting annual limits on how much industry is allowed to harvest as well as ensuring that forestry on Crown Lands takes place within areas designated for managed forestry. Even within the managed forest speaker, 6 million hectares are protected areas where forestry cannot occur. And beyond the managed forest, we've protected an additional 225,000 square kilometres of Northern Ontario through the Far North Act. Speaker, we also protect Ontario's forest biodiversity increase in forest capacity to sequester greenhouse gases. The renewal of forest is a priority between 03 and 13 licensed holders have planted more than 1 billion trees. Thank you. I'd like to thank the minister for showing us how Ontario is working to preserve this very important resource while supporting an industry that directly and indirectly employs nearly 170,000 people in this province. While it is important to maintain the forest Ontario already has, I think most Ontarians would agree that meeting the challenges of climate change requires great leadership. Now, our newly announced climate change strategy sets a long-term vision for this province that calls for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions to 80% below 1990 levels by the year 2050. Mr. Speaker, there are few initiatives that match that kind of ambition, both in long-term thinking and capacity to address greenhouse gases as trees do. Could the minister please share with the house his ministry strategy to explain forest coverage in Ontario and explain our global contribution in capturing current dioxide? Thank you. Mr. Speaker, again thanks to the member from Kitchener Centre. Our ministry is doing its part to contribute to the global efforts of our partnership with Forest Ontario and over 65 conservation agency partners across Ontario to deliver our government's 50 million trees program. This program will see the planting of 50 million trees and the establishment of new forests on suitable private, rural and urban lands across Ontario by 2025. By doing so, we anticipate being able to remove 6.6 million tons of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere by 2050. We've planted a variety of settings across the province. Our goal is to plant 1 million trees in urban areas, working with municipalities and other partners. We've planted nearly 20 million trees since we started this program. With the continued support of our partners and Ontarians at large, we're on target to meet our goals. On a final note, I encourage Ontarians to look into helping us through one of those partners. The program offers subsidies. Yes, thank you, speaker. To the Minister of Transportation, last week we learned that since the scathing auditors reported into the Liberal government's substandard winter road maintenance contracts that risked the safety of Ontario motorists, four of those contracts have now failed. Since I asked earlier this month about the two contracts that had failed in Canora and Sudbury, there are now two more. One in the Ottawa area and now we hear whispers that they've walked away from the Niagara contract as well. Will the Minister now admit the performance-based substandard winter road contracting they settled us with in 2009 is a complete and utter failure and restore the pre-2009 former progressive conservative system of winter maintenance that ensured motor safety? Thanks, very much, speaker. I thank the member from Kitchener Conestographer's question. I know that he referenced the auditor's report from earlier this year on the winter maintenance file, as every member of this House knows, including that MPP, we accepted all eight of the recommendations that flowed from her report. He referenced the new contract that we have in the Canora area, speaker. That is a contract that was actually awarded to a company from British Columbia that has a long-standing and strong track record of delivering winter maintenance, year-round maintenance, in fact, speaker in British Columbia. We continue to work with all of our area maintenance contractors. I've had the chance to speak with all of them between last winter season and this winter season. People in this legislature have heard me say that we've added more equipment, speaker, both in the north and the south, that we've added more opportunities for anti-icing liquid. We'll continue to work on this file, speaker. I said this earlier just a few weeks ago. We expect that this winter season that our contractors will perform according to their contractual obligations. Thank you. Thank you, speaker. Back to the minister. I'm glad he brought that additional equipment up in his answer. Speaker, I'll remind him, in fact, of the auditor's finding that in one case the Liberal government's incurred an annual cost of $1.7 million for additional equipment, equipment that should have been there in the first place. The ministers said himself that taxpayers have purchased over 100 new pieces of equipment for highways both in the north and the south, just like you heard. The minister has now walked away from four contracts in the north and in the south. Will the minister tell us how much of that equipment was bought to support these four failed contracts? How much? Thank you. Speaker, I'm not quite sure exactly what the member of us is getting at with this supplementary question. He suggests on the one hand that we have a challenge in the winter maintenance program. He cites the auditor's report, then he criticizes us. I think, if I understood it correctly, for moving forward aggressively to make sure that we address for both the northern communities and southern Ontario communities and bring more resources to bear. Everybody in this chamber has heard me say this before. Our winter maintenance, winter highway maintenance action plan, which is now being deployed to support the development of equipment and material that we have on the highways right across the province, again both from the north and the south speaker. In addition, we have improved the Ontario 511 website. We have launched a track-by-plow program both in the Owens Sound and Simcoe areas and we anticipate further expansion of that program. We are increasing the use of anti-icing liquids before winter storm speaker and we continue to work with all of our area maintenance contractors to make sure that we have the resources to the people of Ontario. Speaker, my question is to the acting premier. Each and every resident of long-term care deserves to live in safety and dignity. But today, for too many seniors and vulnerable Ontarians, that's just not the case. We know that the government has failed to provide the behavioral supports that seniors with dementia need. As new democrats revealed earlier this month, there is an urgent and pressing need to tackle violence in long-term care homes. And when rights of patients are violated like the Thompson's, like the Cuthberts and like the carriers, families are left in the dark. Seniors, their families and frontline staff want to see action now. When will this liberal government actually step up and implement the coroner's recommendations to improve care for all Ontarians long-term care residents? Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Associate Minister of Health and Long-term Care. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I thank the member opposite for her question. I also thank the coroner and his team for his report. There are many valuable recommendations in that report. And what I have committed to, Mr. Speaker, is I have asked my ministry to look at the recommendations that the coroner has come forward. In particular, the recommendation around striking a committee or a task force to look at resident-on-resident abuse in long-term care homes in the context that we already have a province-wide dementia strategy. So I've asked them to report back to me and let me know whether the existing dementia strategy is enough and will address the concerns raised by the coroner or do we need to strike another? I look forward to the recommendation. Thank you. Mr. Speaker. Again, Speaker, to the acting premier. The minister gives us the same old answer, but the families want to see action. The coroner's report on long-term care confirms what Ontarians have seen for years. They are simply not enough staff and not enough dedicated supports to ensure that every resident receives the care they need. This liberal government needs to take responsibility and fix the problems in long-term care, not by cutting services, but by investing in our public health care system. Will the acting premier commit today to tell Ontarians before the end of the year how this liberal government will respond to each and every recommendation from the coroner's report to improve long-term care and if not, why not? Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And I again appreciate the question and, Mr. Speaker, here are the facts. We have been investing in long-term care. We have increased by almost $2 billion since coming to office operating funding and 2% increase in 2015-16 for resident care needs. We've opened 10,000 new long-term care beds since taking office. 30,000 beds are being redeveloped on top of 13,000 which have already been redeveloped and we continue to invest in long-term care homes. Some more examples. We've hired 900 new nurses and personal support workers. The first 30 of 75 new nurse practitioners are being brought online, Mr. Speaker. Our government has made it mandatory for a home to notify the ministry immediately and contact the police when there's an alleged suspected or witnessed incident of abuse. We are committed to the safety and we look forward to working with all of our partners. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Energy. Minister, last Monday the government unanimously passed the ending coal for Cleaner Air Act 2015. With this important piece of legislation now in place we can now ensure that Ontario never return to the days of using dirty coal-fired plants to generate electricity for the province. This is a significant milestone for the province. I know that when Ontario phased out coal-fired generation it was not the only it was not only the single largest climate change initiative undertaken in North America but also provided significant health benefits to Ontarians. Mr. Speaker, true you to the Minister could you please update the House on the benefits of eliminating coal and our electricity mix? Mr. Speaker, I thank the member from Scarborough Rouge River for the question. We are proud that our government has passed the ending coal for Cleaner Air Act ensuring that Ontario never used dirty coal generation again. Getting off coal was the single largest climate change initiative in North America, saving approximately $4.4 billion a year and avoided health costs. Ontario has made significant progress in reducing emissions from the energy sector through the phasing out of coal-fired generation and shifting to non-emitting energy sources. I would like to recognize that the Ontario Lung Association is here with us today and they have been great advocates for the health benefits of Ontario's coal phase out. Getting off dirty coal allows for a better quality of life for people with asthma and less children suffering from air quality related illnesses. Thank you. Thank you minister. The ending coal for Cleaner Air Act 2015 clearly demonstrates Ontario's leadership in the fight against climate change. My constituents will be pleased to hear about our government's foresight and leadership in reducing electricity system emissions in Ontario. Minister, climate change is an issue that is not going to disappear and Ontario needs to remain a global leader going forward because if nobody takes action it will be impossible to avoid its catastrophic consequences. With the elimination of coal I understand that Ontario has become a leader in the generation of clean energy. Mr. Speaker, true you to the minister could you please provide the house with some examples of Ontario's clean energy generation. Thank you minister. Mr. Speaker, our government has committed and in fact remains committed to investing in a clean, modern and reliable electricity system that reduces greenhouse gas emissions and provides cleaner air for today and into the future. 90% of the power generated in Ontario during 2014 came from clean sources of energy such as water nuclear and non-hydro renewables including solar, wind and biomass. Ontario has approximately 15,200 megawatts of wind, solar, bioenergy and hydro electricity energy online. Ontario has firmly established itself as a North American leader in the development use and manufacturing of clean energy and now has the fastest growing clean tech sector in Canada with firms that employ 65,000 without creating $8 billion of annual revenue. Today Ontario has served the cleanest and most modern electricity systems creating a healthier population. Thank you. New question? The member from Nipissing. Thank you. Good morning my question is for the Deputy Premier. While I'm standing here in the legislature, hundreds of people are standing out in the cold on Memorial Drive in North Bay. They are rallying today to protest the cuts of 350 frontline healthcare workers at the North Bay Regional Health Centre over the past three years including 100 nurses who were fired. Healthcare professionals and patients in my riding are concerned that the quality of care we're getting in Nipissing is in jeopardy and it's creating turmoil in my community. Recently the Ontario Council of Hospital Unions stated that the Ontario Council needs an additional $23 million in funding per year just to meet the Canadian average for a similar facility. My question is will the Deputy Premier commit to restoring proper ongoing funding to the North Bay Hospital? Thank you. Mr. House. Mr. House will turn care. Well thank you Mr. Speaker and I appreciate the question and I want to start out by saying how the hospital, relatively new hospital built just a few days ago because with our investments and Mr. Speaker, did I say a few days ago? A few years ago. We're not that quick Mr. Speaker but I want to say that as a result of our funding increases which for North Bay Hospital it's almost unprecedented. In fact $100 million increase since 2003 that's an increase in funding to that hospital of 128% Mr. Speaker and as a result of those investments we're seeing the quality of care go up, we're seeing wait times go down dramatically in fact 9 out of 10 patients have seen wait times go down at that hospital including for example cataract surgery where the wait time has gone down by a dramatic 81% we know there's more work to do we know this hospital and the administration is working closely with their Linn to address any financial pressures but we're working closely to make sure there's great accomplishments. Back to the Deputy Premier yes it is a new hospital how do you explain closing 60 beds in this brand new hospital and the hospital cuts come at the same time the government has locked out 200 workers at Ontario Northland for more than 2 weeks now they're still hoping the Premier will act on their request to send the dispute to mediation or arbitration as I have stated many times in this legislature North Bay is a community in disarray the situation at our hospital could get even worse without immediate one time funding the hospital is seeking another 50 jobs will be lost in North Bay that would be devastating especially as the holidays approach what message from the government do you have this morning for the hundreds of people standing on Memorial Drive in North Bay looking for an answer Mr. Speaker my message would be thank God that party isn't in government after claiming that they would fire hundreds thousand people many of them health workers so what we're doing is still working closely with the Linn and with the hospital and I have to say when the member opposite talks about closing beds he should get his facts right because in fact many of those beds about 30 of them are actually beds for mental health patients and outcomes that those individuals those vulnerable people can actually be cared for better in the community so those residential supportive opportunities actually have been and are being created in the community so those beds and that support is actually being transferred out to where they can get better outcomes I would hope the member opposite would support that kind of good evidence thank you very much speaker my question is for the acting premier last week families in Oshawa learned that yet another 21 workers will be laid off because of this government's cuts to health care Ontario Shore Centre for Mental Health Sciences says it is quote increasingly challenging to grapple with the Liberals five year freeze on hospital funding the Liberals decision means that less care for patients is taking care of a place more worry for families speaker and lost paychecks and layoffs for dedicated workers today families in Whitby have a straightforward question and they deserve a straightforward answer will this Liberal government step up and stop the layoffs of 21 hospital workers in Whitby yes or no Minister of Health Minister of Health, long term care well thank you Mr. Speaker and again I'm proud of the hard work that those healthcare workers and other facilities in that area of Whitby the good work the important essential work that they do every day so Mr. Speaker we're making changes to our healthcare system I have to admit we're transforming it we're reforming it we're making those bold decisions including investing more money $250 million this year next year the year after new money in home and community care because we know that's where people want to be that's where we can care for them and provide the supports that they need to be cared for appropriately the outcomes are better so Mr. Speaker I do admit that sometimes that requires shifting resources around if we want to invest more in mental health services in the community that those funds we do continue to increase the healthcare budget year after year but we need to be prudent and we need to make responsible decisions and reflect science and evidence and good outcomes Mr. Speaker well Mr. Speaker I would suspect they would rather this government save their jobs than be proud of the work that they're now pulling out from underneath them Speaker 21 layoffs at the hospital in Whitby are just the latest cuts to hospitals on a long long list the Liberals are forcing 84 jobs in hospitals in Belleville and Trenton and at noon today families in North Bay as has already been mentioned will rally against the staggering 150 job cuts at their local hospital every one of those workers in our hospitals plays an important role Speaker they help provide care to patients in their most vulnerable moments but that doesn't seem to be a priority for this Liberal government Speaker when will the Liberals start listening to people in Whitby in Oshawa, North Bay, Toronto right across the province Speaker and stop cutting the hospital supports the hospital care that families rely on Thank you Mr. Speaker and you know this is part of a process where I know the opposition parties like to talk about the gross numbers they like to talk about what's being proposed as part of a plan to reduce one number of jobs in a particular health facility but often those jobs are empty to begin with their unfilled positions or their jobs that may be transferring to another part of the hospital to another program or maybe that a different type of health care professional of which we have 30 different types it may be that it's a job that's better held by a different kind of health care professional you need to release the first job in order to create the second but we're also making those important investments that are that Ontarians are asking for we are listening and they're telling us that they want more home and community care we are hiring people, nurses healthcare workers, PSWs in the home and community care system back 24,000 more nurses in Ontario all those nurses may not be in our hospital Mr. Speaker but they're in our community Thank you. Well thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs. Last week the Premier the Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and many ministers met with First Nation leaders here in the legislature I was privileged to present in one of those meetings this annual gathering of Aboriginal leaders is an important part of our government's to ensure our relationship is a modern and mutually beneficial one. I'm proud to be part of a government that's committed to building and maintaining good relationships with First Nation partners. Can the Minister please tell us more about last week's meeting with First Nations leadership Thank you. Minister of Aboriginal Affairs I'd like to thank the member for a new market Aurora for that question. Mr. Speaker earlier this year our government signed a historical political accord with the Government of Ontario. It provides a platform for First Nations in the province to work together on common priorities. Our government is committed to continuing to build positive relationships with First Nations allowing us to work with them in a spirit of mutual respect and collaboration to improve the quality of life in First Nation communities. Regular meetings with First Nation leadership are an important step towards achieving this progress. We will develop policies and initiatives that will lead to improved outcomes for First Nations. Last week's meetings extended over three days here at the legislature and at various offsite locations and they considered a whole host of topics of particular interest to First Nations and to this government. Thank you Speaker. Thank you. Well thank you Speaker. Thank you Minister. I'm proud that our government is building such close ties between Ontario and First Nations leadership. I understand that having the chiefs at the legislature provided an opportunity for them to meet with a record number of ministers 19 in total to discuss a wide range of issues such as remote infrastructure, justice poverty reduction and Aboriginal education. These are important issues Mr Speaker that profoundly impact First Nations communities and communities across the province. Can the minister explain some of the key issues discussed during last week's event? Thank you Minister. Meetings like this play an important part in maintaining the ongoing dialogue with First Nations and I'd like to thank my cabinet colleagues for taking the time to meet with First Nation leadership and to be a part of that dialogue. One of the major themes discussed last week was the environment with the Premier in Paris this week about climate change. It is important to acknowledge that it could have a very real impact on many First Nations communities who depend on our ecosystems for food supply and economic opportunities. Let me say this Speaker First Nations have an important role in the advice that they offer on climate change issues and that's why these dialogues are so important. Through cooperation and consultation with First Nations we can work to find solutions to the problems that benefit both Ontario, Canada and First Nations. Thank you Speaker. Thank you. New question? Member from Perth, Wellington. Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Health and Long Term Care. It concerns this government's lack of consultation before cutting family doctors and specifically the new graduate entry program or NGEP. I've given the minister a copy of the letter he received from the Department of Family Medicine at Stratford General Hospital and the President and CEO of the Heron Perth Healthcare Alliance and here's what they had to say about the government's changes. They will almost certainly spell the end of the involvement of family physicians at Stratford General Hospital. So I have to ask the minister can he see how seriously this would damage healthcare in communities like ours and how it concerns. Good question. Thank you. I really appreciate this question because I need to first of all stress that earlier this year we made some changes to incent our family doctors to join family health teams in the high needs parts of this province and I think all of us would support that laudable goal. However, we also saw that there are family doctors who have done their training in a family health team environment and maybe it's an opportunity for a variety of reasons to practice in a high needs area. So we created this program as an opportunity but I want to stress that it's 100% voluntary this program. It doesn't force any physician to do anything and in fact it's just specific to those areas which aren't high needs but it does point out a very important challenge that we face because many, many, many months ago and repeatedly we shared our ideas with the OMA Medical Association in great detail in terms of what we were thinking Mr. Speaker and throughout those many, many months and repeated efforts we did not get a single response, a single piece of advice, any advice for the OMA whatsoever. Supplementary. Speaker, the HPHA is very clear policies designed for large urban centers very often have unintended consequences in small and medium sized communities. We're told that in our local hospitals family physicians may no longer be able to care for inpatients because of this government's changes. We're told this could add millions of dollars to our hospitals budgets budgets that haven't seen an increase for four years. We need to know this minister is listening when it comes to the NGEP doctors and hospitals and small communities do not want it and did not ask for it. Good question. Mr. Speaker we created this program for new grads because we were listening and we were listening to medical students and new grads and family doctors but I want to emphasize that we repeatedly and for many, many months shared our proposal and it was simply a proposal at that stage since late last spring with the Ontario Medical Association they obviously didn't share with their membership so we were actually doing a program and we after a significant stakeholder consultation but without any input or advice whatsoever from the OMA, fortunately Mr. Speaker the Ontario Council of Family Practitioners were not going to be part of that silence and they came forward with a number of recommendations including specific recommendations that I'm confident are going to address the specific concern from the Huron Perth Health Minister. Thank you Mr. Speaker. My question is to the acting Premier. Acting Premier a recently released report on food bank usage in Ontario shows that since 2008 food bank usage has risen nearly 15% Speaker the numbers speak for themselves. 90% of food bank users are rental or social housing tenants 12% are senior citizens living in poverty 27% of single seniors are now living in poverty in Ontario. Will the acting Premier admit that her government is absolutely failing, vulnerable and impoverished Ontarians? Thank you. Acting Premier, Mr. responsible for poverty reduction. Thank you Speaker and our work on poverty reduction is strong, it is thoughtful and it is strong. Thank you Mr. Speaker. We acknowledge there is more to be done but we have started along a path that is showing real results for people. Take the example of a single mom with two little kids working full-time at a minimum wage job when we took office her income was less than $20,000 a year she was better off on social assistance than she was working full-time at a minimum individual has an income of close to $30,000 a remarkable increase in the well-being of that family we are focused on a number of measures we are measuring our progress Speaker and we have recently announced a new poverty reduction strategy that we are focused on eliminating chronic homelessness in 10 years. Thank you, supplementary. Speaker, we recently learned that 48.6% of food banks in Ontario are reporting an increase in use 34% of food bank users are children a third of people living in poverty are senior citizens those numbers are nothing to be proud of this government has had 12 years to act on poverty Speaker, vulnerable Ontarians are falling further and further behind will this government finally make fighting poverty a priority not in more years now that is exactly what is happening and I know that the member opposite has read that report from the Ontario Association of Food Banks as have I and many others on this side and we were very very pleased to see that this year there was a drop of about 4% a drop in visits to food bank Speaker that is not the only way to measure progress but that is a very encouraging statistic speaker as I say we have taken several steps and we now have a willing federal partner something we have not had for the past decade we have a federal partner who is making the commitment through the Canada Child Benefit that will exceed our target of reducing child poverty by 25% we always knew we couldn't do it alone we always knew that we needed support across governments and finally we have that support and that is our thank you time for question period has ended there are no deferred votes this house stands recess until 1pm this afternoon