 It is now time for Question Period, the leader of Her Majesty's Royal Office. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier. Mr. Speaker, last Thursday hundreds of families of autistic children came to Queen's Park to ask for help. I should be asking about that. Last month I learned about the closing of 16 beds in the cutting of 35 jobs at really a soldiers' memorial hospital. I should be asking about that. It's mining week and the government still hasn't invested a cent into Northern Ontario's Ring of Fire. I should be asking about that. But Mr. Speaker, unfortunately for a record fifth time the government is being investigated by the OPP. So I have to ask about that. Mr. Speaker, how has the Premier allowed five OPP investigations to take place under her watch? And Mr. Speaker, how is it possible that not a single member of her cabinet or staff has taken responsibility? Mr. Speaker, in terms of the decisions that we have made around investment in energy and investment in electricity, we have made very different decisions than the leader of the opposition would have made. I absolutely understand that. When we came into office, Mr. Speaker, the energy system in Ontario, the electricity system was degraded, Mr. Speaker. It needed investments. It absolutely is not false, Mr. Speaker. The fact is we have invested in over 10,000 lines across this province, kilometers of line, Mr. Speaker, across this province. We have shut down the last of the coal-fired plants, Mr. Speaker. We've invested in renewables, Mr. Speaker. And we have a clean electricity grid as a result of that, Mr. Speaker. No more days, Mr. Speaker. A reduction in the pollutants in the air. So, Mr. Speaker, we've made very different decisions than the opposition would have. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, again to the Premier. I asked a question about needing some level of apology or contrition on five OPP investigations into this government, on the watch of this Premier. And, Mr. Speaker, all I get is an example of deflection and dodging at its best. So, Mr. Speaker, I'll be a bit more specific. When Trillium Power did a Freedom of Information search looking for numerous documents back and forth with the Premier and the Cabinet Office on the offshore wind project, they turned up zero. Not a single document. In fact, between the fall of 2010 and February 11th of 2011, there was numerous correspondence. Unfortunately, all the correspondence on the government side completely disappeared. So, my question, Mr. Speaker, is were those documents deleted, double-deleted, or did the Liberals cancel the offshore wind program on a whim to save their own seats? Do you see the please? Do you see the please? Thank you. Premier? When the leader of the opposition is talking about the Premier's office, I will remind him that I became the Premier in 2013, Mr. Speaker, just as a reminder of the chronology. And as I have said in this House, Mr. Speaker, I was not aware of any investigation until of the media reports, Mr. Speaker. If we are contacted, we will as always cooperate fully, Mr. Speaker. We have made changes. We have made changes in the way we deal with documents in this government, Mr. Speaker. Under my watch, we have new rules in place, including mandatory record-keeping rules and staff training, Mr. Speaker. The Accountability Act prohibits the willful deletion of records, Mr. Speaker, and creates a penalty. And in fact, Mr. Speaker, we worked very closely with the Information Privacy Commissioner of the time to make sure we got it right, Mr. Speaker, and we implemented her recommendations as we put new rules in place, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, back to the Premier. And since the Premier has referenced the Privacy Commissioner, let me note that the 2013 report of the Privacy Commissioner detailed the deletion of the emails in the gas plant. The report said the Minister of Energy's Chief of Staff confessed to deleting all the emails. At the time, this was seen as an unethical attempt to hide evidence of the gas plant scandal from the public. Trillium's lawsuit now proves the Liberals didn't just delete evidence from the gas plant scandal, they also deleted evidence from the cancellation of the offshore wind program. These could be key pieces of evidence in Trillium's lawsuit. And if Trillium wins, the people of Ontario could be on the hook for $500 million. So Mr. Speaker, my question is, will the Premier explain to the people of Ontario in this legislature why they should pay for the potential illegal activities of this government? Can you see it, please? Can you see it, please? Thank you. Premier? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I will just say again to the Leader of the Opposition, when I came into this office, we changed the rules around record keeping, Mr. Speaker. And I will read from the information... Premier, come to order. Next step, individuals. I will read from the Information Privacy Commissioner's report, annual report from June 2014, and what was said there. I quote, Mr. Speaker, I have appreciated the cooperation I have received from Premier Kathleen Nguyen. The Premier issued a directive in accordance with the recommendations made in the report and committed the government to greater transparency and accountability. In addition, political staff received in-depth training on record retention responsibility. I applaud these developments. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier. This government runs self-congratulatory radio ads at the same time as closing hospital beds. They kick kids off... You're not helping. Please finish. Mr. Speaker, they kick kids off the autism treatment waitlist just to make the list look smaller at the same time they add them to another waitlist. They cancel the gas plant at the cost of a billion dollars just to save a few seats. They cancel offshore wind projects in liberal, held writings. Now the evidence has been deleted. Again, it's been a while since the Liberals were looking out for the best interests of Ontario. Mr. Speaker, because of that, life has got harder in Ontario. So my question, Mr. Speaker, for the Premier is, does every decision this government makes need to be about their own political surviving? We'll talk about the initiatives that we are involved in. Mr. Speaker, that includes investing billions of dollars in infrastructure across this province, Mr. Speaker. We're in year three of $160 billion in infrastructure. $160 billion over 12-year investment in infrastructure. That's roads, that's bridges, that's transit, that's hospitals, that's schools and universities, Mr. Speaker. We are in the process of putting in place a climate change policy, Mr. Speaker. A cap-and-trade system that is going to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Mr. Speaker. And we only have to look around the world to recognize that climate change is the single most important threat that we are facing as a globe. Now that I've got quiet to make sure I don't have to be too loud, the member from Leeds Grand will come to order. You have one wrap-up sentence. And, Mr. Speaker, we are investing in the post-secondary education of the young people of this province, Mr. Speaker, in a way that has not been done before. Supplementary? Back to the Premier. Last week we learned of the fifth OPP investigation into the Liberal government. This time the government is accused of deleting key evidence in a $500 million lawsuit. The Premier claimed that she knew nothing about it until the media reported it. But Trillium's lawyer, Morris Cooper, doubts that could be possible. He is quoted in an article in the Ottawa Citizen by David Reevely that he spoke to the government lawyers about it several times. Speaker, we're not talking about a nuisance lawsuit here. We're talking about a lawsuit that has the taxpayers at risk for a half a billion dollars. Will the Premier admit to the legislature that she was aware of it? Or is the normal way of doing business in her government just deletions, denials, and cover-ups? Which one is two? Withdraw. Premier. Mr. Speaker, I have been very clear that I knew nothing about the investigation until I read about it in the media. The Attorney General has sent a statement to the Ottawa Citizen, Mr. Speaker, and if the member opps it has further questions, we can absolutely make sure that he gets a copy of that statement. Thank you. Final supplementary? About a half a billion dollars she should have known about it. Thanks to David Livingston and Laura Miller, we now know that all evidence in the Premier's office and Cabinet Office about the Trillium Project were wiped away. Well, what about the other ministries? Energy and environment? Well, according to the Trillium lawsuit, in January of 2011, just two weeks before the offshore wind program was cancelled, the government decided to give the offshore wind file a code name. No surprise, Mr. Speaker, the gas plant file Project Vapor. What's shocking is that this government gave orders to quote, encourage all email records and documents except for Ohio and Sweden. Mr. Speaker, will the Premier tell us what code name was assigned to the offshore wind file and will she release all the documents saved under that code name? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Well, as I said, I knew nothing about this investigation until I read about it in the media, Mr. Speaker. It is an investigation that is taking place outside of this legislature, Mr. Speaker, as it rightly should. And, Mr. Speaker, I will read from the statement that was sent to the media last week by the Attorney General. The only information we have is what we have read in the media, and if what we have read is accurate, you should address any questions you have to either the OPP, including this matter, or to the Public Prosecution Service of Canada, PPSC, whose counsel has been quoted as saying they have not received any disclosure on this. So, Mr. Speaker, I would advise the same to the member opposite, and I would then again refer back to my earlier answer, which is, Mr. Speaker, we have instituted training, we have instituted changes in terms of the... Thank you. Member from Nipissing, second time. Being sorry is not really meaningful if you continue to do it. New question, the leader of the third party. Thank you, Speaker. My question is for the Premier. More than 1,440 nurses have been fired since January of 2015. With those kinds of cuts, it's no wonder that healthcare is the silent crisis of this government. This morning, I stood with nurses from Toronto to call for an immediate moratorium to nursing cuts in Ontario. On the first day of nursing week, will the Premier agree to stop firing nurses? Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Well, I know that the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care is going to want to comment, and I want to acknowledge nurses and nursing students who are here today, Mr. Speaker. Nurses obviously play an essential role in our healthcare system, Mr. Speaker. And what the leader of the third party doesn't talk about is the nurses that have been hired, Mr. Speaker, because there are two sides to this equation. There are more than 26,000 nurses in our system than there were in 2003, Mr. Speaker. And that includes 11,000 registered nurses. So I know that there has been a distinction made between different kinds of nurses, Mr. Speaker. The reality is there are more nurses, and there are more nurses, whether they're registered or whether they are RPMs in our system now than there were in 2003, Mr. Speaker. And there's a clear trend line in terms of increase in nurses in the system, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Supplementary. The trend line is 1,440 nurses fired since January. Cross Ontario know that nurses are there to care for them. Nurses like the ones from Windsor who've made the long drive to Queen's Park to be in the gallery this morning. When people are at their most vulnerable they count on nurses to be there for them. And after four years where hospitals didn't receive a single increase and now with increases failing or a growing population hospitals are being cut yet again. For the last 16 months that meant 90 nurses a month. Three nurses a day being fired, Speaker. Over 1,400 of them since the start of 2015 alone will this Premier agree that no more nurses in Ontario should be fired. Thank you. Minister of Health, long-term care. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I also want to thank our nurses who are here at our ends and also welcome the RNAO report that came out this morning as well that provides us with exceptional guidance on the way forward and how we need to look at the nursing mix and our contribution that our nurses make across this province. But Mr. Speaker, it is important to set the record straight because we can't look at gross changes like the third party wants to do. We need to look at the net changes and every single category of nurses whether it's our ends, RPNs, nurse practitioners we've seen since 2003 an increase to date of every single whether you measure it on a per capita basis Mr. Speaker or the absolute number of nurses there are more nurses in every category working in this province since 2003 and that continues today and I'm exceptionally proud of that Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, the way you thank nurses is certainly not to fire them is actually to make sure they can clean in three all he wants. I'm talking about what's happened in the last 16 months in this province and that is 1,440 nurses fired by this government. After four years of cuts is anything Ontario doesn't The member from Durham come to order. I thought you apologized. Leader. If anything, Ontario doesn't have enough nurses. There's an old saying that if you find yourself in a hole, the first thing you do is stop digging, Speaker. Patients have watched as nurses have been fired across Ontario. But let's be clear, fewer nurses doesn't improve healthcare for people and hurts patient care. Will the Premier instruct your minister to order a directive today or rather to issue a directive today to stop firing nurses in the province of Ontario? Thank you. Well, Mr. Speaker, I implore the leader of the third party to begin talking about the whole change in the nursing sector. There are from time to time nurses which because of a variety of reasons where the jobs are lost but other nurses are hired and she doesn't have to believe me again and I would ask all nurses who are listening to this and others concerned to look at the College of Nurses of Ontario it's all there for everybody to see and you'll see that in the past year there were 2,799 additional nursing positions across all nursing categories. First, Mr. Speaker, from 11 to 2015 there were net increases in nursing positions in our hospitals, Mr. Speaker and the majority of those new hires, those net increases were RNs, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Good question to hear of the third party. My second question is also for the Premier. As I mentioned, nurses from Windsor are joining us here today. Under the Premier's watch, Windsor Regional Hospital is grappling with a $20 million budget shortfall. In January the hospital announced that 166 jobs would be cut and now in fact we know that 169 registered nurses positions will be eliminated. Will the Premier make that basic commitment today, Speaker, to stop forcing hospitals like Windsor Regional to cut frontline nursing positions, Speaker? Thank you so much, Mr. Speaker. And I would just go back to what the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care just said which is between 2011 and 2015 the reality is that most net new nursing positions in the hospital sector were filled by registered nurses, Mr. Speaker which is I know one of the issues that the leader of the third party has been concerned about and Mr. Speaker the hospital's concerns about the fact that they hadn't seen increases that's why there's $345 million new dollars, Mr. Speaker going into hospital funding as a result of our budget that's in the context of a billion dollars of new funding going into the health care system, Mr. Speaker so we understand that there was a need for that and Mr. Speaker we look forward to continuing to work with our hospitals as they work with all of the community providers as we transform the health care system today and into the future. Mr. Speaker, the Liberals have been cutting hospitals to the bone and they've been doing that for years and years, Mr. Speaker 1400 and 40 nursing positions have been cut over the past 16 months. Hospitals across this province are making deep cuts to nursing care to respond to the cuts that the Liberals are making to their budgets and since January hospitals in Kitchener Hamilton, Ottawa, Toronto Windsor have all been forced by this Premier and this Government to cut nurses. Let's be perfectly clear, Speaker we cannot afford to lay off another nurse in this province whether you're a registered nurse a registered practical nurse a nurse practitioner no more nurses should be handed a pink slip in this province and issue a directive that no more nurses will be fired in Ontario. Thank you Mr. Speaker and again we need to talk about net changes because as programs disappear even as nurses move from one part of the hospital to another part of the hospital necessarily layoffs have to occur but in many if not most cases those individuals are rehired in the case of Windsor they are undergoing a skill mix review and some changes Windsor is one of the very few hospitals remaining in Ontario that has a 100% RN workforce and I just don't subscribe to the view of the leader of the third party that our RPNs are registered practical nurses have no value or have no value in our hospitals I don't subscribe to that view I believe that sometimes there is a role and it's up to the hospital and more nurses based on good evidence and directing their administrations to focus on the quality of care and outcomes that that skill mix needs to be determined. Final supplementary leader? Instead of throwing mud this minister should look at the thousands of petitions that are going to be tabled in this house today because he is firing nurses the hospitals are firing nurses that's why they're here on nursing week speaker is to say stop firing off of their family is their number one concern and so it should be but it should also be the number one concern premier. Ontarians deserve a government that is committed to making sure that the healthcare system is there for them when they need it but that's impossible when the government keeps firing nurses speaker why won't this premier and her minister of health face up to the silent crisis that they are creating in the healthcare system and put a stop to nursing cuts right here and right now. Thank you. Minister? For the member opposite the leader of the third party to somehow suggest that we are doing the opposite of what we are doing we have increased the number of RNs in this province in the last decade by 11,000 but you need to look at the net changes you need to look at the net changes for example when the NDP were in power Minister please. When the NDP were in power the net change from beginning to end to a relatively short period of time in government 3,000 RN positions 3,000 registered nursing positions were lost. The percentage of nurses that were working full time was reduced under the NDP we've done the opposite Mr. Speaker however you want to surgery it I'm proud of that record it's worth it investing under nurses the front line they do the most important work. Thank you. New question? It comes to remaining silent on workplace harassment the government's ad campaign says it's never okay. In last Friday's Niagara Falls review we now learn that a former female employee of Kim Crater said she was bound by a non-disclosure agreement. When asked about the harassment allegations made against Crater she said I just can't say anymore about this. Can the Premier tell us was the non-disclosure agreement tied to the settlement of the sexual harassment complaint or are these women free to come forward to tell their stories? Thank you. Well Mr. Speaker as the member opposite knows one of the women did come forward and talk to the media which is why Mr. Speaker I then made a statement I have made tackling the issue of sexual violence and harassment as a priority Mr. Speaker. When I've been faced with an issue of sexual harassment I've led by example I made a statement on Friday if a sexual harassment complaint is made against a liberal MPP an independent investigation is undertaken Mr. Speaker and if that independent investigation determines that serious misconduct has occurred then that MPP will no longer serve in my caucus Mr. Speaker that in that process there are confidentiality issues that arise Mr. Speaker and I was not prepared until one of the women had come forward to breach that confidentiality and I would think that the member opposite would understand. Thank you. Supplementary before you stop the clock I heard something very unparliamentary but I could not assign a person I hope it doesn't happen again Please finish. Mr. Speaker, back to the Premier I would be shocked if the Premier's office were found to have muzzled victims of sexual harassment but the media does beg the question It looks like the silence that the Premier has obtained is not meant to protect victims it's meant to protect the Premier If I'm wrong Mr. Speaker then Michelle Tavano and all the other victims would be free to tell her stories It is a sad day for women in this province to learn that the Premier has nothing to save her own political career So Mr. Speaker Stop the clock Deputy House Leader, second time Come to order Please finish So Mr. Speaker, when it comes to silencing the voices of victims why is it never okay except when you're the Premier Let me just say that if the member opposite thinks that removing an MPP requiring that an MPP is removed from office, that that protects me and that that protects my party then she doesn't understand how politics works It is the complainant and the victim's choice whether they retain confidentiality And again, I would say to the member opposite that I would think she would understand that in order to create an environment where people feel free to come forward they need to know that their complaint will be confidential Mr. Speaker and it is my responsibility and quite frankly I would say that there has not been an environment in our culture that would promote the coming forward by people who have been sexually assaulted who have been sexually harassed Mr. Speaker it is my responsibility to create an environment so that more people will come forward and confidentiality and the respect for confidentiality is part of that Mr. Speaker please Mr. Speaker please Thank you New question to the member from London West Thank you Speaker, my question is to the Premier Speaker on Friday the Premier revealed that she asked former MPP Kim Crater to resign because of allegations of sexual harassment In response Crater said and I quote I do know that the party paid them meaning the victims to keep the allegations quiet and had them sign a non-disclosure agreement not to talk end quote A former staffer in the MPP's office has confirmed that she was bound by non-disclosure Speaker women should not be forced to go public with allegations of sexual harassment but they should not be muzzled either Did the Premier require the complainant to sign a non-disclosure agreement and did she pay her to keep quiet about the allegations I have to say I am really surprised by both of these questions I really think that these questions demean No I do, I think that they demean the experience of women who make complaints Mr. Speaker Order please And someone is tiptoeing around a request that I have made many times about using names Thank you Premier Mr. Speaker when a complainant suggests that a confidentiality agreement be part of a resolution then of course we agree to that Mr. Speaker and I respect I respect that I respect that right of victims to ask for confidentiality Mr. Speaker I spoke out on Friday because one of the women in this particular case came forward and spoke to the media Mr. Speaker and that is why I made the statement that I did but otherwise Mr. Speaker I was respecting the agreement of confidentiality that was in place Supplementary Thank you Speaker An editorial today rightly points out that secrecy about sexual violence and harassment does not serve the public good rather it signals to victims that there is something to be ashamed of requiring victims to keep quiet making them sign non-disclosure agreements and paying them for their silence does nothing to help survivors heal instead it often protects perpetrators and in this case it prevents embarrassment to the liberal party so again to the premier were victims paid to keep quiet about allegations of stop the clock please Minister of Education second time member from Durham second time please finish if so who ordered the payoffs and where did the money come from Mr. Speaker the confidentiality agreements that were in place were mutually agreed upon and I'm going to our policy Mr. Speaker because I don't know whether the opposition parties have workplace discrimination and harassment prevention policies that they operate by Mr. Speaker but I'm going to read from ours the section on confidentiality and it says this policy recognizes that it can be difficult for a complainant to bring forward a concern of discrimination or harassment individuals making complaint of discrimination or harassment are assured during that investigation consideration of a complaint and following its resolution all information relating to the complaint will remain confidential however both complainants and respondents must have access to sufficient information about the allegations and responses of other parties and witnesses to allow for a fair and effective participation in the resolution process that's the process that we followed Mr. Speaker and I am not prepared to breach the confidentiality of victims and re victimize them Mr. Speaker new question Member from Trinity Spadak Thank you Speaker My question is for the Minister of Education You see it please If it happens again when I sit down I'll deal with the individual New question Member from Spadak My question is for the Minister of Education Investing our youngest learners has always been a priority of all the government in 2014 Ontario budget the province made a commitment to invest $750 million for four years to support school capital projects that reduced access space and last year the province announced $120 million over three years in new funding dedicated to building safe high quality licensed child care space in our schools across the province Minister last Friday you made an announcement about funding for new project under these programs Speaker through to the Minister can she tell this House about the new renovated school infrastructure announced thank you Minister of Education Yes and I want to thank the member for Trinity Spadak for the question and every year Ontario funds local school infrastructure projects to provide students with better places to learn and give young children and their families increased access to safe high quality licensed child care in schools and over the past few weeks I've had the pleasure of visiting various communities in Ontario and make capital announcements but on Friday we did the wrap up and announced that this year Ontario is investing $137 million to build new schools expand or renovate existing schools and create new child care spaces across the province this year that adds up to 20 such projects including four new schools and 16 additions and retrofits additionally families in Toronto, Kingston and Oshawa will benefit through the construction of 19 new custom built child care Thank you Supplementary Minister it's great to hear our government continues to improve learning environment for our students we know that schools are hubs for our communities they are spaces where children gather to learn and play and for programs that benefit children and community I know students and parents in my writing opportunity Spadina are excited to have the funding approved for St. Raymond's Catholic School and the addition attitude St. Luke's Catholic School Minister can you tell us how a project qualifies for capital funding under this program Good question Yes thank you Speaker and these projects are actually part of the largest investment in public infrastructure in the province's 160 billion over 12 years that will support 110,000 jobs every year across the province with projects such as roads, bridges transit systems, schools and hospitals in terms of qualifying for the funding we consider funding projects under the school consolidation capital program that allow a board to reduce their excess capacity projects need to generate sufficient savings to warrant the investment in new space or renovated space and where required need to have completed the corresponding accommodation review Our government is very proud to invest in these capital projects that bring students together and bring communities together and provide better buildings New question Thank you Speaker to the minister to the minister of government and consumer services the minister like his colleagues has an obligation to ensure in person services at service and terry outlets are there for enterians who need them Instead he plans to close nine service and terry outlets forcing residents of my riding and other rural communities to drive long distances to get the services their tax dollars pay for the minister doesn't appear to be making any attempt to guarantee in person interaction with other communities Speaker decisions over planning agriculture energy and others have last small town rural Ontario behind Is that just is this just the latest cut just another scheme to make enterians pay for your government's mismanagement Thank you Minister of government Thank you very much Speaker and appreciate the question from the member opposite and obviously understand his concern about 50 million transactions each year Speaker we are proposing to continue to maintain 277 offices across the province the one the individual is referring to in fact has one staff person in it and there are a number of other alternative locations we wanted to make sure that customers in Ontario and all enterians would have good quality service in fact customer satisfaction surveys about 98% are very satisfied with the service we are also moving more services online Speaker more than 40 services are moved on are online right now and continue to see an increase in that area Speaker happy to add more in the supplementary Thank you supplementary Speaker well you may want to cut cost the minister is no excuse for cutting in person services for enterians who can't and shouldn't be expected to drive to another county to get the service Speaker the auditor general warned that the interest of this government's reckless debt will crowd out public services Is this what the auditor general warned us about or will the minister commit to reserving existing in-person public services in rural Ontario Thank you minister Thank you Speaker and there obviously continues to be services in rural Ontario in these areas I know it's a thoughtful approach I know it's difficult but it was one that was evaluated and analyzed for well over a year to determine how we could modernize and make more efficient the services delivered through our ministry and we continue to take a responsible approach with this regard guiding principles speaker in these decisions we're preserving the quality of customer service and ensuring that the capacity could be absorbed in surrounding areas that are no more than 28 kilometres away in every location and those top three services, drivers license renewal val tag stickers, health cards will continue to be available in all of these surrounding locations speaker this is a difficult decision that we've had to make in our ministry it's part of our modernization for a service in Ontario and we continue to see more services online new question to the member from Toronto thank you speaker my question is to the minister of finance instead of fixing Hydro-1 so that it delivers affordable, secure and green power for all Ontarians this government has prioritized making money for shareholders while at the same time driving up rates for customers last Friday it was announced that Hydro-1 shareholders will be paid more than $36 million in dividends the first electricity prices in the province went up yet again this is the 8th time in a row that rates have gone up by more than 9% over the previous year speaker my question is simple when will this government start putting the interests of Ontarians first thank you I appreciate the question and I think the member opposite fails to recognize that the majority of that dividend are for the people of Ontario are for the taxpayers we're the major shareholder as a result of the improvements that we've made to this corporation it now operates more effectively the dividends are increasing and it's contrary to what the member stated earlier that this deal is in fact better for the people of Ontario better for the ratepayers in the end as we reinvest where necessary at the same time we're reinvesting a new infrastructure that wouldn't otherwise be available to us they deny that opportunity we will not continue to invest in Ontario and we're investing to make it even better supplementary speaker Ontarians don't need to be convinced that this government is mismanaging the electricity file don't need to be convinced 85% of Ontarians want the province to stop the sell off of Hydro 1 85% the accountability officer says that the sell off of Hydro 1 will make Ontario worse by a half billion dollars a year every year businesses say that sky high electricity prices are damping down growth in this province and the OPP is once again once again speaker investigating the government for deleted documents over the cancellation of a multi-million dollar energy contract minister sorry speaker when will this government stop making Ontarians pay the price and self-serving actions minister minister of energy speaker further to the minister of finance's answer what I think the member fails to realize is the proceeds that came from the IPO Mr. Speaker five billion dollars goes towards reducing the province's debt already speaker we are using our interest payments already by 100 million dollars a year speaker as a result of this transaction so not only are we getting investments for infrastructure Mr. Speaker and the trillion trust we are also bettering our fiscal position by reducing the interest we pay on our debt by 100 million dollars a year and as we do the next tranches Mr. Speaker the reduction in interest payments will be higher Mr. Speaker so we are very very happy with a better run company and we also Mr. Speaker are providing many mitigating programs for people including Mr. Speaker tax deductions which represent 400 million dollars a year new question the member from Barrie thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the minister of Aboriginal affairs last week we recognized children's mental health week in Ontario now more than ever the well-being of children, youth and families is in the spotlight indigenous communities in Ontario face challenges in accessing supports for mental health child welfare, specialized services and youth justice I understand that our government is working with First Nation Métis, Inuit and urban indigenous partners to develop a strategy to support indigenous children and youth in Ontario through you to the minister our government is engaging with indigenous partners in the development of this strategy thank you Mr. Speaker our government is committed to helping First Nation Métis Inuit and urban indigenous children in Ontario get the best possible start in life that's why the work that we are doing together with the First Nation partners on the Ontario indigenous children and youth strategy is now more urgent than ever last week during children's mental health week I had the pleasure of joining minister of children and youth services for a very important round table with First Nation leaders from across Ontario including First Nation youth we heard from First Nation leaders and youth about the tragedies, the challenges and the solutions of these issues the involvement of First Nation leaders and youth is the key to the development of our strategy it ensures that they have a voice in the development of community driven integrated and culturally appropriate supports for First Nation youth and their families here in Ontario thank you speaker thank you, supplementary thank you minister for that response my supplementary question is for the minister of children and youth services it's great to hear about the hard work that the ministers are doing to improve outcomes for indigenous children and youth in Ontario I would like to thank both ministers for the initiative in bringing First Nation leaders to discuss how we can work together to develop solutions to these important issues I understand that the work our government is doing to address jurisdiction over child care is just one part of the Ontario indigenous children and youth strategy can the minister of children and youth services tell us more about the significance of last week's round table meeting thank you minister minister of children and youth services minister of children and youth services thank you speaker and I want to thank the member from Barry for this very important question and last week's round table did highlight the many ways we're working across our government to improve mental health and well-being of First Nations children, youth and their families one of the topics we talked about speaker was the need for a critical path forward advancing jurisdiction on child welfare which our government is committed to working with our partners and the federal government on this honouring First Nations jurisdiction over the well-being of children is a vital step going forward in this process that's why jurisdiction over child care is one of the pillars of our government's Ontario indigenous child and youth strategy it's also why we will also be engaging with Métis, Urban Indigenous and Inuit partners to develop solutions to the unique challenges that they too face in addressing issues surrounding child welfare thank you the member from Helleburton the former employee of Kim Crater told the media I just can't say any more about this the premier said she disclosed Kim Crater's name because this woman came forward will the premier set aside the non-disclosure agreement to tell her story well again Mr. Speaker as I said the woman came forward and she is free to talk and tell her story as she sees fit Mr. Speaker confidentiality agreements that are in place are mutual Mr. Speaker I'm not prepared to reach a confidentiality agreement Mr. Speaker I'm trying to create an environment where people feel free to come forward and that when they tell me or they tell someone in our government or they undergo an investigation Mr. Speaker and they are assured of confidentiality that that confidentiality is kept in place Mr. Speaker it's clear Michelle Tavano wants to tell her story I'm sure the premier would encourage all women who want to speak to tell their stories is Michelle Tavano free to tell her story without fear of being sued or having to pay the money back thank you well Mr. Speaker the the the member from Renfrew Nipissing Pembroke second time I don't need any other armchair quarterbacks either premier my first concern is for these situations and I hear the heckling from the other side but it's actually quite the contrary my concern is for the victims my concern is for the people whose lives have been so negatively affected by these situations Mr. Speaker and it is up to the victims it is up to them what they choose to talk about publicly or not and Mr. Speaker I will always respect the confidentiality of the victims Mr. Speaker I will not engage in a process that will re-victimize them and I would have thought that the member opposite would have felt the same thank you member from Lanark come to our second time new question the member from Hamilton Mountain thank you speaker my question is to the premier on Sunday an editorial was published telling the premier that the way she is reducing the wait list for autism therapy is and I quote all wrong this decision has left parents devastated hopes for their children have been crushed the editorial argues that kids already on the wait list and in the program should get the treatment they need that they were promised because it's the right thing to do the fair thing to do and I believe the premier knows it capping treatment based on age is not only wrong but it's discriminatory as former liberal premier McGinty once said will the premier do the right thing and immediately remove the age cap for children receiving access to intensive therapy behavior thank you I know that the minister of children services is going to want to comment I had the opportunity when I was in Ottawa last week to meet with members from the alliance against the Ontario autism program which is the group that has been talking one of the groups that's been talking to us over the last number of days Mr. Speaker and I had an opportunity to talk about this change Mr. Speaker is intended and is being implemented in order to get children whether they are getting whether they just started getting service whether they've been sitting on a waiting list for years and haven't had any service but to get them to the right intensity of service Mr. Speaker to move them into service right away that is the whole point of this Mr. Speaker because it is unconscionable that we would keep kids on a waiting list not getting service Mr. Speaker to move them into the right level get them an assessment Mr. Speaker and help them through that transition so they'll get a tailor made program for themselves this premier is moving them from one list onto another that's what's unconscionable it's not just parents who are concerned it's experts too and the school words are wondering how they will support an influx of autistic kids who haven't received therapy as the editorial states quote to suddenly strip children and families of hope to which they have clung sometimes for years is too cruel a way to save money end of quote Speaker I agree it's cruel to try to balance the books on the backs of kids with ASD another article about autism changes says changes says that in this premier's Ontario it's become abundantly clear that some special interests are far more important than others and will the premier finally admit that she got this one wrong will she remove the age cap from children with ASD receiving evidence based intensive therapy immediately services thank you Speaker well from the same articles I've read from talking to groups experts and parent groups there is a lot of agreement Speaker there is agreement that $333 million is a wonderful historic investment there is agreement Speaker that 16,000 new spaces for children with ASD is very important and it's very important I encourage again the opposition to be very clear in what they're saying because we are not removing children from the IBI wait list into nothing and they will get service immediately with the payment of the $8000 as for schools Speaker the minister of education is very actively engaged on this file we already have children with ASD in schools and we have programs and services to support them is there more to do yes in fact I'm meeting with the minister tomorrow thank you thank you Mr. Speaker I'm meeting with the minister responsible for the poverty reduction strategy I know that the local poverty reduction fund or LPRF is an important component of our government's renewed poverty reduction strategy the LPRF funds community organizations providing innovative and local solutions to poverty in their area I read it in the budget that last year the LPRF funded an impressive 41 projects in 20 communities across our province meaning that hundreds of lives are being impacted by these solutions an exciting number to see however I wanted to know more about the projects that were supported through the LPRF Speaker through you to the minister can you tell us more about the local poverty reduction fund and what kind of initiatives were supported through the first round of funding Thank you Thank you Speaker and thank you to the member of Burlington for the question and her ongoing commitment to this issue to the local poverty reduction fund investment initiatives that help break the cycle of poverty for children and youth member from Hamilton East Stony Creek and homelessness in Ontario one such great example is Up with Women Speaker Up with Women is one of the organizations that received a grant from the first round of local poverty reduction funding and they're here today and they starred in the national news last night Speaker they're all about helping recently to build sustainable empowering careers with the goal of helping them permanently exit poverty so today they've joined us we celebrate them I celebrate them on Mother's Day Speaker and since working with Up with Women these moms have been able to access support and transition supplementary I'd like to thank the minister for her answer Speaker I'm delighted to hear that Ontario is investing in frontline community organizations like Up with Women Thank you and I would also like to welcome our guest here today we applaud you for all of the challenging things that you've done and for the exciting work you're doing now we're so pleased to welcome you to Queens Park I'm also very pleased to hear that the first round of funding for the LPRF has distributed funding to such valuable programs but I know too that the fund is a six year 50 million dollar total investment there is definitely more to come Minister I know that all members of this house are interested in the fund's potential for their communities so could you please share with us the next round of funding when it will be available and how interested organizations can apply thank you minister information on the second round of the local poverty reduction funding is available on the Ontario Trillium Foundation website and on Ontario.ca we'll be accepting proposals until early June for this year's round of funding we're dedicating up to 10 million dollars total target for projects related to homelessness the dedicated funding will help reach this government's bold goal of ending chronic homelessness in 10 years we've also dedicated at least 2 million dollars in this round to support projects in indigenous communities and by indigenous led organizations I want to say thank you to my parliamentary assistant speaker the member from Newmarket Aurora for his work engaging with a variety of indigenous leaders and community members and ensure the program is more responsive to indigenous communities thank you Mr. Speaker thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the minister of community and social services the minister's office was informed that her seamless rule out of SAMS was flawed from the get go but she plowed ahead anyway and inflicted chaos on the system chaos that came with a hefty price take of almost 300 million dollars now municipalities and service providers have been left to foot the bill for significant overtime costs extra staff to handle the problems with SAMS and in some cases even new equipment in order to run SAMS speaker municipalities are not responsible for paying for this government's mistakes will this minister finally take responsibility for the SAMS faster and reimburse municipalities for their expenses thank you minister of community and social services thank you very much Mr. Speaker and as I've said many times in this house we do acknowledge that the roll out of SAMS posed many many challenges for frontline staff and I want to take the opportunity yet again and I met some just last Friday actually in terms of the challenges that they faced and they worked very diligently through those challenges as the member has alluded to I was given assurances that in fact we would not be facing those types of challenges however as he's referencing assistance to municipalities to date we have helped municipalities with an additional payment of some 15 million dollars to assist them through the transition and I know that this has made a great deal of difference to those municipalities thank you Mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker many of the government has already provided comes nowhere close to meeting the need Brantford and Brant County require $600,000 to cover the problematic roll out of SAMS Ottawa has estimated they need $4 million in Waterloo region the costs add up to more than $1 million Hamilton needs at least $820,000 Stratford passed a resolution calling for a permanent fix to SAMS as they estimate they spend $875,000 in the months after SAMS release and the list just keeps going it has come to the point where legal action is being considered to recoup these expenses will the minister do the right thing and reimburse municipalities and their taxpayers or is she going to add millions in legal fees to the massive SAMS bill Mr. Minister well thank you Mr. Speaker and of course we've been having ongoing discussions and conversations with municipalities including the ones that the member referenced and I'm in an ongoing discussion with those particular locations and the dialogue continues apart from the $15 million that I referenced earlier we are looking very specifically at those centres if they have some additional costs I know I and my officials are very open to looking at their particular concerns in fact it was the city of Oxford where I visited early on and I was pleased to have the opportunity to talk to frontline workers in that city they did have some particular difficulties that were unique to their location and so the conversations will definitely continue and we will try and see what we can do to mitigate their concerns as we go forward just one last piece I think we all remember that the SDMT situation introduced by that party cost $400 Thank you New question, the member from Parkdale High Park Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the Premier Mr. Speaker in December 2013 the Premier apologised to the survivors of Heronia and said we will protect the memory of all those who have suffered, help tell their stories and ensure that the lessons of this time are not lost yet in discussions on the future the Premier's apology are empty words if the survivors of Heronia are not part of these discussions how can the survivors expect to be consulted about the future of the Heronia property when last fall the Government did an investigation of the sewage pipes of the institution cemetery and didn't share the results with the survivors I've had several conversations with the Minister of Economic Development and received no answers they want to know if any bodies were disturbed in the cemetery will the Premier commit to honouring the survivors and engaging with them in discussions about the future of Heronia Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the question from the member opposite and I had the opportunity to express to her last week that I'm very concerned that we do work with the survivors as any changes are made to this site I think it's a wonderful site I visited it very early on when I was an MPP because I had constituents whose children had been there from the time they were two years old and they were 50 year old men at the time when I visited the Mr. Speaker so it was a very poignant visit that I made and so with that I pressed upon me how important it is that as we go forward to the site that we are very sensitive to the grounds and we're very sensitive to the usage going forward so we are we commit to working with the survivors Mr. Speaker and I know that there is a more involved discussion going on with people in the community who have ideas for how they'd like to see the site used in the future I just want to introduce in the members gallery that are known as ASBI Wadiwala, Jimmy Yu, Julia Cosby Amira Hashabi, Sheriff Sabawi, Daniella Shiv Wu Welcome and be a venue Mr. Speaker on behalf on behalf of the member from Ottawa Centre and the Minister of Public Safety and Correction I'd like to introduce in the gallery Matias Faulkner and Bert Mering who were here to watch Page Benjamin Faulkner Thank you Mr. Speaker Thank you Thank you very much Mr. Speaker I'd like to take this opportunity to wish my wife Diana a happy anniversary for putting up with me for 39 years Thank you Mr. Speaker I'd like to welcome constituent Damian Walsh, father of Page Leah Walsh to Queens Park today Thank you We have a deferred vote on the motion of second rating of bill 186 an act to establish the Ontario retirement pension plan calling the members of this will be a 5 minute bill All members take your seats please First take your seats please Thank you On April the 20th 2016 Mr. Bradley moved second rating of bill 186 All those in favour please rise one at a time be recognized by the clerk Ms. Hunter Ms. Shirelli Ms. Wynne Ms. Matthews Mr. Hoskins Ms. Sandals Ms. McCharles Mr. Quinter Mr. Cole Mr. Tukar Mr. Burardinetti Mr. Delaney Mr. Delaney Mr. Delas Mr. Grovelle Mr. McMeacon Ms. Manga Mr. Crack Mr. Morrow Ms. Jassett Mr. DelDuca Mr. Frasier Mr. Anderson Mr. Baker Mr. Ballard Ms. Hogarth Ms. Koala Ms. Moly Ms. McGarry Ms. McMahon Ms. French Ms. Horvath Mr. Vantog Mr. DeNovo Mr. Tabas Mr. Miller-Hamiltonie-Stonecriep Ms. Sattler Ms. Taylor Ms. Janadisha Ms. Armstrong Ms. Fyte Mr. Monta Mr. Hatfield Mr. Gretzky Mr. Hartam Mr. Wilson Mr. Brown Mr. Clark Mr. Fidella Mr. Hillyer Mr. McNaughton Mr. Scott Mr. Thompson Mr. Bailey Mr. Walker Mr. Smith Mr. Harris Mr. McDonnell Mr. Kool The ayes are 68, the nays are 24 The ayes are being 68, and the nays being 24 I declare the motion carried. Second reading of the bill. Pursuant to the order of the house dated May 5th, 2016 the bill is ordered to refer to the standing committee on social policy there being no further deferred votes this house stands recess until 1pm this afternoon