 Thank you. It is now time for a question period. The member from Nipissing. Thank you. Good morning, Speaker. Good morning, Premier. My question is for the Premier. In the documents received during the gas plant scandal, we saw the confidential advice to Cabinet. We learned the path to balance you presented to the financial community was complete fiction. The numbers presented were, quote, never a real expectation and, quote, was a deliberate policy. It went on to say that, quote, over the medium term, we have notional targets that add up to the deficit numbers, but not yet full plans to deliver on them. It also divulged, quote, for the extended outlook, neither sector targets nor plans yet exist. Well, Premier, the time of reckoning is fast approaching. Do you have a credible plan to balance or is it still aspirational? Thank you, Premier. Mr. Speaker, well, I was tempted to say to the member opposite in response to his question about whether we have a credible path to balance. Yes, simply yes. However, I will elaborate because I know that the member opposite is very excited to see the budget that will be delivered this week, Mr. Speaker, and that he is leading up to and anticipating that event. So, Mr. Speaker, as the member opposite knows, our commitment to eliminate the deficit by 2017-18 remains in place, Mr. Speaker. We are overachieving on the targets that we have set, Mr. Speaker. In 2014-15, our government beat the deficit target by $1.6 billion, Mr. Speaker. And the member opposite knows that we have a plan that includes program review, renewal and transformation, Mr. Speaker. He knows that managing compensation costs, Mr. Speaker, is part of that counterbalance. And he knows, Mr. Speaker, that making sure that everyone pays their fair share of taxes. Those are components of our path to balance, Mr. Speaker. Supplementary. Thank you to the Premier. The once secret documents went on to say, quote, in order to hit the deficit targets, spending growth has to decrease dramatically. But they're not alone, Speaker. Moody's changed their outlook from stable to negative, concerned over your inability to eliminate the deficit. The Chamber of Commerce, in their How Bad Is It report, tells us we're in crisis and becoming increasingly dire. The Auditor General said, quote, Ontario's debt continues to grow faster than the province's economy. This is crowding out other spending, and we can expect another downgrade. Despite all this, you haven't changed a thing. Your numbers are going the wrong way. $9.2 billion, grew to $10.5 billion, grew to $10.9 billion. You haven't changed a thing. When are you going to provide a serious, credible and detailed plan to eliminate the deficit? Thank you. Again, Mr. Speaker, let me just repeat what I said. In terms of, in 2014-15, our government beat our deficit target by $1.6 billion, Mr. Speaker. It's nice that we made decisions in terms of investment in this province, in terms of investment in people's talent and their skills in our education system, Mr. Speaker. In terms of investment in infrastructure, public transit, roads, bridges across this province, we made those decisions as being very, very important to the future well-being of this economy, Mr. Speaker. So we're committed to that. At the same time, we've taken a balanced approach, and let me just expand on the plan in terms of the path to balance. When I talk about program review and renewal and transformation, we're talking about reducing overlap, Mr. Speaker. We're talking about improving efficiency. When we talk about managing compensation costs, we're committed to zero bargaining, net zero bargaining, Mr. Speaker. And that is a critical point. Thank you. Final supplementary. Mr. Speaker, well, beating your fluffed up numbers is no achievement, Premier. Over the last couple of weeks, our colleagues have presented you three budget asks. The first asks you to stop your planned pension tax as it will put a burden on business and cost us jobs. The second asks that your cap and trade tax not be adopted as it hurts families by putting a tax on everything. The third asks you to fix home care by reducing the number of agencies patients must deal with on a day-to-day basis. Today, Speaker, we make our fourth ask. Now, based on everything you've heard from all of the experts, including your own Ministry of Finance, Premier, we ask that you present a serious, credible, and detailed plan to balance the budget by 2017-18. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So let me just say to the member opposite on the fourth request, absolutely, I look forward to him reading the budget before he comments on it. And he will see the serious, credible plan that's in place, Mr. Speaker. On the issues around home care, Mr. Speaker, we are in the process of transforming the health care system. And I agree with him that there's more that we can do in terms of making sure that people understand the system, that they can access the system, and making sure that we've got the right governance in place, Mr. Speaker. His first two asks, what he's saying in terms of the first ask, Mr. Speaker, is make sure you don't work to have retirement security in this province. Well, we're not going to do that. We are absolutely committed to retirement security, Mr. Speaker. The member from the Pee and Carlton will come to order. The second ask, Mr. Speaker, is don't fight climate change. Don't do your part to fight climate change. We're not going to acquiesce to that, Mr. Speaker. We are going to fight climate change. Thank you. New question? You see that, please? You see it, please? New... Deputy Leader, come to order. New question. The Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Premier. On May 21, 2002, Dalton McGinney moved an opposition-day motion in this House and said, quote, what would possess the government, I mean any government, to sell this asset? Now we know, Mr. Speaker, what possesses this government. It's years of financial mismanagement and scandals and the fact that they don't know how to pay for their promises. By selling a majority stake in Hydro-1, Ontarians will lose control of this asset and prices will skyrocket to pay for the last 12 years of this government's this management fiscal... Minister of Economic Development. Premier, why are you selling a majority stake in Hydro-1 when you said yourself that you can't guarantee that Hydro rates won't go through the roof? Thank you, Premier. So, Mr. Speaker, let me just say to the interim leader of the opposition that in order for Ontario to move forward, in order for us to realize our potential as a province and a future economy that is solid, Mr. Speaker, we must invest in infrastructure. There's no option there, Mr. Speaker. You talk to companies outside of this country, they look at us, Mr. Speaker, and they say, well, we like the look of Ontario, but we're not sure that you have the plan to invest in infrastructure that's necessary. Well, Mr. Speaker, we have that plan. This is about investing in new assets that are needed for today. It's about 20,000 jobs a year, Mr. Speaker, that is critical to our... Remember, from Renfrew, in the long run, Mr. Speaker, we must make those investments. $16 billion in the GTHA, Mr. Speaker, and $15 billion on projects outside the GTHA. Those are necessary to the future prosperity of this province. Back to the Premier. In 2002, Dalton McGinty said, quote, this government should know that when you turn a natural public monopoly over, it is the consumer who ultimately pays the price. Rates would go up. Rates could in fact go up dramatically, and there's nothing consumers could do, end of quote. Premier, you're not only giving up majority control, but you're taking $4 billion that by law is supposed to be used to pay down the hydro debt and lead to lower electricity prices for everyone because we'd have less debt to pay off. Even with OEB oversight, Mr. Speaker, customers are already facing a 42% increase over five years in their hydro bills. Premier, if you can't guarantee that the sale of a majority in hydro one won't increase rates any higher, why on earth would you expose the hardworking people of Ontario to even more hardship? Thank you. Mr. Speaker, let me just say to the member opposite that as we have made this decision to make investments in infrastructure, in the transportation infrastructure within the GTAJ and beyond, the transit, the roads, the bridges that we know are necessary, Mr. Speaker, we are being very careful not to make the mistakes that the PCs made, Mr. Speaker, when they sold off the 407. In fact, Mr. Speaker, that is exactly the model that we have looked at to say, well, we know that that is not what we can do, Mr. Speaker. So making sure that the protections remain in place for people in this province, the regulatory protections, Mr. Speaker. As I said last week, if there's a transmission line that needs to be built in northwestern Ontario, we will make sure that that transmission line is built. The way that rates are set, Mr. Speaker, by the OEB, that's how they're set now, that's how they will be set in the future. Those protections are in place. I'll supplement it. Premier, in 2012, former energy minister Chris Bentley said, and I quote, we need to keep the whole asset in public hands. Public control, working for families and businesses. End of quote. Premier, you're now selling a majority share of Hydro-1 to pay for your scandals and irresponsible management of Ontario's finances. The government I was part of came to understand that losing control of a public asset like Hydro-1 is a mistake. Up until recently, the Liberal Party seemed to agree with us, Mr. Speaker. Premier, will you stop this foolhardy decision and keep a majority share of Hydro-1 in the hands of the people of Ontario who own the company? Thank you, Premier. So Mr. Speaker, again, let's talk about exactly what it is we're doing rather than the fiction that the member opposite is putting forward, Mr. Speaker. We are making a decision to invest in enhancements to the go-line, Mr. Speaker. A foundation for regional express rail that will allow us to have service, 15-minute service, Mr. Speaker, across the system. We are looking at projects like the Hamilton RT and the here on Ontario LRT, Mr. Speaker. Outside of the greater Toronto Hamilton area, Mr. Speaker, we're looking at programs like Connecting Links and I would hope that the party opposite that seems to talk about their concern for small town and rural Ontario would understand that having a Connecting Links program that supports the maintenance and the upgrading of roads, Mr. Speaker, that are necessary connections between those small towns and provincial roads that having a program like that is critical, Mr. Speaker. That's the kind of infrastructure that we're investing in because we know our economic prosperity relies on it. Your question, the leader of the third party. Thank you, Speaker. My question is for the Premier. And can she remind Ontarians did she run on a plan to sell off Hydro One, remove Ombudsman Oversight and hand away control of this minister of Aboriginal Affairs? Thank you. Premier. I would remind the leaders of the third party that we both ran on a plan to invest in public transit the third party seems to have forgotten that she also seems to have forgotten that we need badly to invest in transit and transportation infrastructure, Mr. Speaker. I would suggest that her new deputy leader could tell her how important it is to invest in transportation infrastructure, Mr. Speaker, because he lives in the 905 and he knows how critical it is that we make those investments, Mr. Speaker. And to do that, we were very clear in the last election and in the last budget that we needed to look at the assets that were owned by the people of Ontario in a responsible way, not in the way that the Conservative Party did at Mr. Speaker which was to give away a provincial asset with absolutely no return, Mr. Speaker. We were going to do this in a responsible way so that we could make those necessary investments. Supplementary. Mr. Speaker, the Premier is planning to sell off a majority of Hydro One. It's a plan she didn't run on no matter how she protests she did not run on that plan and before last week the Premier hadn't even actually talked at all about a plan to sell off the majority of Hydro One. She hasn't shown Ontarians the respect that they deserve and even asked them what they think about this plan. Does the Premier honestly believe that she has a mandate to sell off Hydro One to Bay Street? Thank you. Mr. Speaker, what I believe that our mandate to do is to invest in the future of this province to invest in the transit and transit, Mr. Speaker. I will admit I will freely admit this is not about ideology for me it's not about ideology for us. It is about ideology for the lead of the third party but our position is that we must make these investments, Mr. Speaker. We had a former MP cabinet minister Francis Lankin who was a member who was advising us, Mr. Speaker. The power workers union who are supportive of our plan understand that. They understand that it's important to make practical decisions. The building trades, mayors and councillors understand that those investments are critical, Mr. Speaker. If we don't make those investments which is exactly what the leader of the third party is advocating then we will not be prepared to be competitive on the global stage, Mr. Speaker. Well, Mr. Speaker, it's kind of funny Conservatives and new Democrats both think this is a really bad plan but somehow the Liberals think it's a good plan. I don't see how that has anything to do with ideology, Mr. Speaker. It's about the fact that the Liberals are doing something wrong. Order. Please. Femir is ignoring Ontarians and to add insult to injury she's actually their advocate at Hydro One. Let me talk about page 26 of the Clark report. I quote it to say, we are also proposing that Hydro One will no longer fall under the scrutiny of the Ontario Ombudsman. So not only will Ontarians no longer have control of Hydro One, when they have a problem they won't even have a champion to stand up for them. Does the Premier really think, Speaker, that along with less control Ontarians want less oversight as well? The Leader of the Third Party knows that publicly traded companies have a different set of oversight mechanisms and I'm happy to talk about those, Mr. Speaker. I'm sure she will give me another opportunity but the fact is, Mr. Speaker that we need to be clear about what the Leader of the Third Party is saying. The Leader of the Third Party who has no plan about how she would invest in the infrastructure within the GTHA and outside of the GTHA she has no plan, Mr. Speaker and in fact, she ran on the plan to review assets, which is what we have done, Mr. Speaker. So the fact is that what the Leader of the Third Party is advocating is not to make these investments in transit, not to create 20,000 jobs a year, Mr. Speaker not to make us competitive on the global stage, Mr. Speaker, to say to companies in other parts of the world, actually, because of ideology we're not going to invest in roads that would make us competitive. We're not going to create those jobs that we Thank you. Any questions? Leader of the Third Party. Mr. Speaker, let me get this straight. Ontarians are going to get an ombudsman to complain about flat beer but when it comes to the hydro system they're not going to have any ombudsman whatsoever. It makes a lot of sense to me. Ed Clark admits that the first part of the Liberal Hydro One Sell-Off will cost Ontarians $3 million annually. That's annual stable income that could fund hospitals, schools, and heck, even infrastructure. By the time you sell off a majority of Hydro One, how much is it going to cost Ontarians each and every year, Speaker? Thank you. The Leader of the Third Party understands full well that what we are proposing and what Ed Clark has proposed to make this into a stronger company, Mr. Speaker that we retain substantial ownership, Mr. Speaker that we have controls in place in terms of government influence but in fact, Mr. Speaker that the company become more efficient and that we realize the funding we realize the dollars that we need to invest in the assets that we know are needed right now and into the future, Mr. Speaker and as I said, the Leader of the Third Party has no plan to make those investments she has no plan for investing in transit and transportation infrastructure that are needed in communities across the province, in our urban centers, in our small towns in our rural communities and across the North. She has no plan to do that. We do, Mr. Speaker and that's why we are going to make this decision, we are going to make sure that the protections are in place for the people and we're... Thank you. Supplementary. The Premier knows that this plan will have hydro rates through the roof but she's putting all of her trust in the Ontario Energy Board to keep rates under control. Now that's the same Ontario Energy Board Speaker that allowed a 40% increase in rates for Enbridge just last year. Now can the Premier give Ontarians any guarantee that her privatization plan will not leave them paying even more on their hydro bills once it's implemented? Mr. Speaker The leader of the third party knows full well that the OEB does approve rate increases and the OEB approves rate decreases and forces rate decreases Mr. Speaker and the leader of the third party has chosen to pick part of the report and part of the quotes that Ed Clark made Mr. Speaker and so I want to just be clear that in terms of what we can predict going forward when Ed Clark was asked about whether rates would go up Mr. Speaker he said this we don't think so. In fact we believe the opposite will be the case that there will be a favourable impact on hydro rate over time Mr. Speaker so Mr. Speaker I know that this is a concern and I'm not going to seed this ground to the leader of the third party I understand that people are concerned that's why we are making sure that the controls remain in place the controls that are in place right now will remain in place. Mr. Speaker selling hydro one is going to drain needed provincial revenue it is going to cost Ontarians more it's going to mean higher bills and less money for infrastructure it will mean less control and less oversight it is a bad bad bad plan Mr. Speaker and the premier knows it so will this premier do the right thing by the people of this province and pull the plug on this short-sighted plan today. Thank you premier Mr. Speaker it is the job of any premier of this province to look into the future Mr. Speaker and make sure the decisions that we make today are going to be in the best interest of the province going forward and I can tell you Mr. Speaker with the infrastructure deficit that was left by the previous government and quite frankly governments before that we are digging ourselves out of that hole Mr. Speaker we started in 2003 and we have to continue to make those investments and so my commitment to the people of Ontario when I ran in the election last June was that we would make those investments that we would make sure that we looked at the people and that we invested in the infrastructure whether it is bridges in Kenora Mr. Speaker or whether it is roads in our small towns or whether Mr. Speaker it is transit in the GTHA that we would make those investments that is why we reviewed our assets Mr. Speaker and that is why we have made this decision Good question the member from Central North Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the minister of education 24,000 students at the Durham District School Board were met with a picket line today 24,000 students won't be in a classroom today the parents of 24,000 students are wondering how their children will spend that day the parents of 24,000 students are worried that their children aren't learning the skills they need these 24,000 students and their parents are just the beginning of a measure 12 years of liberal fiscal mix management has created Minister what do you say to those students who want to learn and what do you say to those parents who want to see them succeed in the classroom Thank you Minister of Education and obviously we're very concerned about the students and the parents in Durham but I think it's important to understand that what is happening in Durham is a local strike between the local board and the local union and we know that in order to resolve this I remember from Renfrew, Nipissing Pembroke has warned please continue and I understand that the board has indicated in Durham that it's willing to come back to the table I would encourage the union to do the same because we know that ultimately the resolution is to come to a local agreement so that's absolutely the way that we will resolve this is to come to negotiated Thank you Thank you Minister you know that there's a number of local boards that are prepared to go out right now and this weekend we all heard from students the message was clear they don't want another spring break they want to be in the classroom on the sports field and going to their field trips your years and years of liberal mismanagement are putting all of that in jeopardy there's just no negotiations taking place students are worried that they won't be able to improve their grades before the end of the year parents are worried that they won't see their children's graduation ceremony Minister can you guarantee these students will be back in the classroom and their parents will actually see them graduate this year I need to correct one of the statements that the member opposite made he said there are no negotiations going on we were very distressed last week when OSSTF walked away from the central table I want to report to everyone in this house that we worked very hard with a provincial mediator over the weekend and as a result of that hard work with the mediator by all parties that the central negotiating table has in fact resumed negotiations and negotiations are going on and what that means speaker is that because central negotiations are occurring we have an opportunity to do what we all know we need to do to resolve the situation so students are in the classroom is to make sure that we reach a negotiated settlement a negotiated collective agreement and that's what we're doing any questions the member from Toronto Danforth thank you speaker my question to the premier the premier insists that no company is going to be able to buy more than 10% of a privatized hydro one but does the premier realize that if she sells 60% of hydro one to private owners the private companies will outnumber the province in every vote every board meeting to the member opposite does he realize if we do not invest in transit in transportation infrastructure in this province and particularly from a riding like Toronto Danforth I would expect that the member opposite would recognize that those investments are critical and I hope that the member opposite also recognizes that there is no plan being put forward by his party in terms of how he would make those investments so what I have said and what I made crystal clear in my conversations with Ed Clark and with his team is that the protections the de facto control over the decisions that are made Mr. Speaker would rest with the government that's why we have proposed that there would be substantial ownership Mr. Speaker that's why we have proposed controls over the chair and so on Mr. Speaker that this would be a broadly held company Mr. Speaker and it will be a strong company and the price control protections would remain supplementary the premier wants to keep 40% of hydro one privatized 60% and I want to remind her that 60 is more than 40 we'll be looking for one thing profits and dividends that's what they're supposed to do but you know where the money is going to come from it's going to come out of the pockets of the rate payers can the premier explain how she can say the province will have de facto control of hydro one when the public will be outnumbered three to two by private investors let me just talk about those protections that were absolutely fundamental to our decision making in this and I'm going to talk about the Ontario Energy Board because as the member opposite knows full well right now the Ontario Energy Board sets rates so let's look at what the premier carry on in March of 2015 Mr. Speaker the OEB decreased rates by $100 for Enbridge and Union customers Mr. Speaker in 2010 Ontario Hydro asked for a rate increase for distribution by the OEB and was ordered a 9% in 2010 a 9% reduction for its capital request in 2012 Hydro asked for a rate increase for transmission but the OEB ordered a 3% reduction for its capital request Mr. Speaker when OPG applied for a 6.2 rate increase in 2011 the OEB denied the request and lowered rates by 0.8% Mr. Speaker that's the protection that remains in place Mr. Speaker the member from Cambridge Mr. Speaker my question is for the Minister of Finance Minister last Thursday the Premier's Advisory Council on Government Assets released its report on how to modernize beer sales in Ontario Minister Grand River Brewing is located in my right riding of Cambridge and their craft beer is very well known Mr. Speaker quite a while now that craft brewers like them have a difficult time in getting access to the market that there's an inherent unfairness when it comes to the beer retail system in Ontario Ed Clark and his panel made several recommendations which I understand that our government will be acting on Speaker through you to the Minister could you please explain how the proposed changes will help our local beer producers by restoring fairness to the system Thank you Minister of Finance Thank you Mr. Speaker and I'd like to thank the member from Cambridge for the question and her continued advocacy as well on behalf of her community I'm proud to say that the changes that we'll be introducing represent the biggest shakeup of the sale of alcohol in Ontario since the end of prohibition 450 grocery stores in Ontario will now be able to sell beer and the beer store will return to its cooperative roots by opening up ownership to all breweries with facilities here in Ontario so far the feedback we've heard has been overwhelmingly positive Cam Heaps the Chair of Ontario Craft Brewer said this, this is a monumental day for craft brewers and for all consumers in Ontario we believe that this package of fundamental changes will unlock craft brewers true growth potential allowing us to quickly double or triple our direct brewery jobs and Irvin Weinstein the President of Mill Street Brewery said greater access to consumers and stability in our relationship with the beer store will make it possible for us to plan for, invest and make future confidence in our store Thank you Thank you Speaker and I'd like to thank the minister for that answer Speaker, our government has a strong track record when it comes to creating jobs I'm glad to hear that modernizing the beer system Ontario will create jobs not only in my riding of Cambridge but all across the province I'm also happy to hear that we've listened to consumers and we're convinced of our convenience and expanded choice however any plan that expands the sale of alcohol distribution needs to take into account the impact it will have on social responsibility any changes that we make must uphold our province's strong record when it comes to the responsible sale of alcohol Speaker through you to the minister how have we ensured that the proposed changes to the sale of beer uphold social responsibility Minister I'd like to thank the member from Cambridge for her advocacy our government has a strong record when it comes to job creation and she's right when she says our plan will create more jobs in the craft brewing industry in fact John Hay from the Ontario Craft Brewers Association has this to say this is a game changer, this is a fundamental change we can create a couple of thousand jobs directly and all kinds of indirectly in smaller communities right across the province and the member from Cambridge is also right she says it's important that we balance social responsibility and to do so will maintain strict controls over how beer is sold in grocery stores in fact Andrew Murray the CEO of Mad Canada said this we are pleased that the council has listened to our concerns throughout this process given the good relationship to date we have confidence in the council's continued commitment to work with Mad to ensure that beer is introduced to grocery stores in a socially responsible way Thank you Thank you very much Premier last week the sorry state of your government's handling of the province's finances was once again confirmed when you told Ontarians that Hydro One was going on the auction block your claim is that the revenues generated from your fire sale are going to liberal election promises including public infrastructure but Premier the people don't believe you your record on accountability give them every reason to not trust you Premier I asked your minister this question before and now I'll ask you will you put any deal for Hydro One in front of the auditor general and a financial accountability officer and subject it to a value for money audit so that people of Ontario can know whether or not they're getting value for their money Thank you Mr Speaker and I appreciate the question the principles that the council is guided by is about incremental value for Ontarians and for consumers it's also about ensuring that we provide greater investment opportunity thereafter and we've always said that we'll be transparent and open in our discussion so absolutely what we're doing will be open for discussion we'll be reviewed there's going to be a process over the next couple of months prior to broadening the ownership of Hydro One and Mr Speaker it's going to be in the best interest of all concerned because we've mandated that and we'll continue to do so Thank you I'll go back to the Premier imagine all of the roads bridges and subways you could have built if it weren't for all of the scandals and mismanagement over the past 12 years eHealth $2 billion Orange $1 billion and the Hydro Plant scandal $1 billion and that's just to name a few Premier your record on openness transparency and accountability is how can I put this in a kind way abysmal ratepayers need to know that the proceeds from the sale of Hydro One are going to go where the law directs they should go namely the $27 billion of Hydro Debt when you sell off 60% of that asset the revenue fees are going to drop as well it'll drive up Hydro so I'll ask you one more time will you subject this deal the auditor general and the accountability officer thank you oh Mr. Speaker imagine if they applied the same principles to the sale of the 407 we recognize the mistakes they made and we're ensuring that we don't make them again and that is why we're broadening ownership that's why we're insisting on integrity of dividends that's going to be assumed by the ownership still of Hydro One that's why we're reinvesting it into the Trillium Trust which is going to be legal because we recognize we're also applying a portion of that to the debt of OEFC and consolidated debt Mr. Speaker we recognize the importance of investing the member across has just admitted that he would not invest in those transit projects because he feels that the return on equity or return on investment is greater by holding an operation that is not as an insert should be Mr. Speaker we're doing both we recognize the incremental value that comes from it thank you thank you new question the member from Winsor West Mr. Speaker my questions to the premier this morning I joined education workers on the picket line in Durham and it felt a lot like 1997 while this premier claims she cut her teeth in education the actions of her government are throwing our publicly funded schools into chaos liberal cuts to education are undermining the ability of students to learn by forcing community schools to close reducing in classroom supports and limiting access to special education it's frankly not surprising that we are seeing Harris air labor unrest with the first group of OSTF teachers in Durham on strike as of today and Sudbury potentially joining them next week Speaker why is it that when the liberal insiders need a leg up it's no problem but when it comes to our educators and our community schools the liberal say the cupboard is bare yes thank you and I really do have to challenge the premise of this question because once again the third party keeps trying to promulgate the idea that we cut education funding we didn't cut education funding it's stable this year it's exactly the same as it was last year and there's actually less students in the system than there were the year before so that means we're actually spending more per student than we did last year and if you look at our record over time we've increased education funding by 8.1 billion dollars that's 56 completely I absolutely deny the premise of the question we have not cut education funding back to the premier premier when you cut 6 million in special education when you provide 36 million dollars less for textbooks in classroom support and supplies when you close 88 schools across the province since 2011 you simply cannot act surprise when Ontarians speak out this government's right wing austerity plan means 21 fewer early childhood educators in Windsor Essex 118 fewer education workers in Peterborough and 50 fewer educational assistants in Toronto it means students in Durham and Sudbury need to worry whether or not they will actually be able to finish their school year with grade 12s wondering if they will be able to transition into our post secondary system New Democrats and Ontarians know that this is not progressive to cut 500 million dollars question when will this government stop cutting education dealing out pink slips and closing community schools all well calling it progressive once again the facts are just simply wrong we have not cut funding for special education we've increased funding for special education just as we have increased every other line in Ontario's education budget it's going up not down however we do have this sort of myth that the NDP keeps trying to sell to us is that we should ignore the fact that we have declining enrollment it is absolutely true that the enrollment in many boards has gone down the order as many boards have gone down by 5, 10, 15 sometimes almost 20% of course that means they're going to have to change when the enrollment goes down that adjustments will have thank you new question from new market Aurora well thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the Minister of Economic Development Employment and Infrastructure Minister in the recent election our government ran on a plan to review the provinces assets in order to invest in vital long term infrastructure last week Ed Clark and his council released their recommendations on how to unlock the value of our provinces assets in order to make these important investments we know that by investing in infrastructure we can spur economic growth and create jobs through you Mr. Speaker to the Minister could you please inform this house how Ed Clark's review will allow our government to invest in transportation infrastructure and create jobs Minister of Economic Development Employment and Infrastructure well thank you very much Mr. Speaker in the last election we ran on a plan to invest $29 billion in infrastructure and other critical infrastructure transportation and other critical infrastructure thanks to the recommendations from Ed Clark and his council will now be able to invest $31.5 billion in transportation and critical infrastructure over the next 10 years our government has committed to making the largest infrastructure investments in Ontario history and the response has been very positive. John Tory the Mayor of Toronto said and I quote I think it is a significant day a significant step forward for transit in Toronto. Jan De Silva President and CEO of the Toronto Regional Board of Trade has said and I quote this funding will create good jobs improving our regions productivity by modernizing our infrastructure to reduce congestion Mr. Speaker these are critical investments we are going to be making in it thank you supplementary well thank you Minister for that answer I know that constituents in my writing will be glad to hear that our government is increasing investment in transportation infrastructure they know that our plan will create jobs spur economic growth and allow them to spend more time with their families. I was thrilled last Friday when we announced that thanks to these investments there will be increased service on the very go line constituents in my writing were delighted to hear that the go line will increase from 70 to more than 200 weekly trips. The people in Newmarket Aurora will directly benefit from the government's unprecedented investment in infrastructure Minister can you please inform this house on how communities across the province will benefit from these investments as well Mr. Speaker our government is making an unprecedented investment in infrastructure as part of our plan will invest 16.5 billion dollars in transit in the GTHA alone. Over the next 10 years it will expand weekly trips across the entire go rail network from 1500 to nearly 6000 that's a lot unlike the opposition we know the importance of investing in infrastructure we know it's important to our economy it's important to keeping Ontario competitive in a joint statement a number of organizations, Civic Action Code Red TO, David Suzuki Foundation, Evergreen City Works and Pembina Institute said and I quote we applaud the government's announcement of more than a billion dollars and new dedicated funding for transit service and new capital projects in the GTHA we look forward to seeing the government move forward on the implementation of this important initiative. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. Premier you've already admitted that your pay to pollute plan is a tax but what you have failed to mention is that this tax on everything will be one of the biggest taxes in Ontario's history. The cost of groceries, heating your home, raising a family and doing business in Ontario is on the rise. The most recent stats Canada numbers show that food costs have increased by nearly 4% since last year while rent, property taxes and electricity have also increased. People are struggling to keep up with these rising costs Premier and your pay to pollute tax on everything hasn't even begun yet. Premier why are you making the people of Ontario choose between heating or eating? I know that the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change is going to want to speak to this issue but Mr. Speaker let's just be clear what the member from the opposite side is saying Mr. Speaker she's basically saying we don't have to worry about climate change there's nothing that Ontario has to do Ontario has no responsibility to either take advantage of the innovation opportunities that come with climate reduction Mr. Speaker or do our bit to reduce our footprint Mr. Speaker to make sure that we take part in a global move to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions so that Mr. Speaker we can cut down on the extreme weather events that I know are taking place in the members riding because they're taking place all over the province the flooding, the wind Mr. Speaker the drought in some parts of the continent Mr. Speaker what the member opposite is saying is don't do anything to address that we have no responsibilities on Terrians we reject that go back to the Premier what I'm saying is if you would have taken into consideration the consultation ideas that were suggested a tax on a carbon tax on everything probably would not have happened but you ignored the public across Ontario stats Canada numbers show that Ontario has the greatest cost increases across Canada since last year and what is the Liberal plan to help Ontario families all about it's about putting a carbon tax on everything to fund your sorry government's mismanagement Ontario's cannot begin to save for retirement when they're worried about how they're going to afford to heat their home the Green Energy Act already takes $1,100 out of a household's yearly income and your approximate 3 cent increase on the cost of gas will cost drivers another $100 per year Premier how are people going to afford to live in Ontario if you keep the cost of everything climate change I don't know where to start it's very amusing all across Canada prices weren't going up as fast A that's not true, B, B, C, Albert and Quebec which is most of Canada all have a price on carbon so the members just proved our point she's wrong, second of all food prices went up because apple production was down 80% stands 60% we want to be able to grow apples in Ontario because apples are a good thing drought in California where 30% of our food comes from now is going up prices went up in grocery stores the members should know because of climate change the member from here on Bruce will come to order as you ask the question I'm sure you wanted to hear the answer one sentence wrap up thank you very much for making the government's case maybe we can give the member another question thank you thank you Mr. Speaker and good morning to you my question is to the Premier Speaker across the province Liberal cuts to healthcare have been having a devastating impact on patient care on Friday the Ontario Health Coalition held a day of action in front of the sub-re-MPP's to Liberal cuts to healthcare in Northeastern Ontario Speaker the number speaks for themselves 75 positions are being eliminated in North Bay hospital in the Sioux area hospital we are seeing the closure of 56 beds and 59,000 nursing hours in Sudbury it's 42 nurses who are being cut in nearly 40 positions is lost in Timmins Speaker will the Premier finally take responsibility for the cuts to healthcare in Ontario Premier Minister of Health and long-term care well thank you Mr. Speaker and I think the member opposite knows that we continue to make substantial investments in healthcare the budget the envelope for healthcare each year has been going up it will continue to go up in the years forward and a significant portion of that funding goes to Northern Ontario now Mr. Speaker from time to time we believe these important decisions to the hospitals themselves as well as the local health integration networks at that local and regional level to make the decisions that they deem most appropriate to ensure that the outcomes that we want to see in our healthcare system the highest quality of care a timeliness in terms of provision of that care and the appropriate staffing to deliver that care that that's provided we feel that it's important that that decision be made locally by our independent healthcare facilities in conjunction with all parts of the province including in the north thank you supplementary again to the Premier Speaker in March a Northern healthcare worker was quoted as saying we will probably be in front of Glen Tebow's office eventually and look on Friday they were even though this government tries to please blame on hospitals for the cuts Ontarians know better in fact the president of the medical staff at the Health Science North recently said I don't blame the hospital because it's the Ontario government that's making them do it after decades of downsizing Ontario hospitals have been cut more deeply than anywhere in Canada and now have the fewest beds left in of any province in this country Speaker will the Premier tell the people of this province how many more cuts her government plans is coming in regards to her healthcare plan Minister well Mr. Speaker the fact is that we've increased our hospital funding across this province by more than sorry it's risen from 11 billion when we came into office in 2003 to over 17 billion now and that's a 50% increase in hospital funding Mr. Speaker and it doesn't include the increased investments that we're making in community care as we continue that shift of patients that can be adequately or even often better cared for at home or in the community we're increasing our funding to that sector by 5% this year 5% next year and 5% the year after that and this year alone it's about $270 million as an increase but even in Sudbury and the greater Sudbury area the reality Mr. Speaker is that our investments have been increasing and greater Sudbury has gone up by 62% since 2003 more than $100 million Mr. Speaker thank you new question thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the Deputy Premier and President of the Treasury Board in the past election we ran on a plan to maximize the value of our government assets in order to make critical investments in infrastructure based on their review Ed Clark and his advisory council have recommended that we broaden the ownership of Hydro One we've seen the mistakes speaker that have been made including that of the previous conservative government when they imprudently gave away the 407 gave it away and because of their impudent actions constituents in my riding who access the 407 regularly now have to pay high tolls to foreign owners any time they want to use the highway Deputy Premier how are we ensuring that we don't repeat the mistakes of the previous conservative government with our plan to sell shares in Hydro One thank you well thank you Speaker and thank you to the member from Burlington there are several fundamental differences between the selling of highway 407 and our plan for Hydro One let me highlight just three of those fundamental differences one Hydro One does not now and will not in the future have the power to set its own rates rates will continue to be set at Ontario Energy Board in stark contrast when highway 407 was leased the governor of the day made a deal that lets the owners charge whatever they want two the province does not receive any ongoing revenue from the highway 407 lease as it would retain an ownership stake in Hydro One the province will continue to receive income from Hydro One three the use of the proceeds of the lease of Hydro One was not tied to any government investment at all it was used to pay the bills the game for Hydro One will be used to thank you supplementary thank you Mr. Speaker and I'd like to thank the Deputy Premier for her response it's comforting to know that our government has a comprehensive and well thought out plan when it comes to broadening the ownership of Hydro One we'll be able to make much needed investments in transportation infrastructure including GO train service enhancements for my community and my residents however it's important that any action we take doesn't have an adverse effect on electricity rates some are saying that our plan to unlock the value of Hydro One would drive rates up Deputy Premier is that the case or will electricity rates actually come down thanks to Hydro One's improved performance President Treasury Board thank you Speaker and it's important to reiterate that Hydro One does not and will not set its own rates rates will continue to be set as they are today by the Independent Ontario Energy Board so that's not changing Speaker the OEB's mandate is to protect the interest of rate payers and to set just and reasonable rates now additionally our government intends to introduce legislation that would strengthen the regulatory oversight of the OEB to protect rate payers including increasing the penalties for non-compliant companies enhancing the oversight of utilities and more protection for consumers who sign energy retail contracts Ontarians can rest assured that rate payers will continue to be protected as we move to unlock the value of our assets and invest in much needed infrastructure Speaker across this province thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the Premier Hydro rates are out of control rate increases are forcing cuts in the classroom, hospitals and long-term care homes and the heights are leaving businesses and households in the dark 60 families in my riding of Bruce Gray Own Sound alone had their utilities disconnected last fall because they could not afford your rates but bills are about to get a lot higher after you sell off Hydro One and expose Hydro's blockbuster debt and billion dollars so I ask you Premier how much more out of control will the rates get how many more families will have their utilities disconnected so Mr. Speaker let me just reiterate some of the points that I have already made and the first one is Mr. Speaker that the way rates are set today is the way rates will be set going forward Mr. Speaker and I gave some examples and I will do that again Mr. Speaker what I want to make is that finish please I actually believe Mr. Speaker and this was one of the points that was put forward by Ed Clark I actually believe we can see a better company Mr. Speaker I actually believe that we can see a better company in the broadening of the ownership of Hydro One but let me go back to the way rates are the way rates are set in March 2015 the Ontario Energy Board decreased rates by 100 dollars for customers Mr. Speaker the Ontario Energy Board sets rates sometimes it approves increases and sometimes it requires decreases Mr. Speaker that regime will continue Supplementary This Premier and her Energy Minister are clearly out of touch let me reiterate that rates 42% higher over 5 years is not the direction we should be going in the 60 families in Grey Bruce whose lights and heat and Hydro are coming from the province under your watch you have failed to look after the cost of living for low income interns but the question underpinning all of this is what is this Premier's advice to low income families, frail seniors and public institutions who can't afford their rates anymore where exactly should they cut to make up the impact of your Hydro That's right good question There is no doubt when we came into office in 2003 there was a degraded energy system there had not been investments there had been neglect and we have built up the energy system 10,000 is a cost associated with that because that was not done in an ongoing way by previous parties it had to be done and we have done that there are programs because we recognize that there is a cost associated with that upgrading Mr. Speaker and we have put in place programs to keep Hydro rates down I hope that the member opposite makes sure that his constituents are aware of those programs whether it's the low income energy assistance program or whether it's a save on energy home assistance program those are programs designed specifically to do what the member opposite is talking about I hope you will make sure Thank you new question the member from London West Thank you Speaker My question is to the Premier Speaker today is Equal Payday how much further into the next year a woman has to work in order to earn the same salary a man earned the year before each year in this province women's average earnings are about one third less than a man's and injustice that is both a human rights issue and a major barrier to Ontario's economic and social well-being Speaker eliminating the gender pay gap is a multifaceted challenge but we know from other countries that it can be done given the right government legislation and a real commitment to act Speaker I would like to ask the Premier after more than a decade in office how can you justify allowing the gender wage gap to widen under your watch instead of to close Thank you Thank you Speaker and thank you to the member for this very very important question very appropriate for Equal Payday our government is committed to developing a wage gap strategy that is going to close the gap in earnings between men and women that's part of the Premier's mandate letter to me as Minister of Labor and I'm pleased to say that today we're announcing the creation of a wage gap steering committee this steering committee is going to develop recommendations going to help create a strategy that's aimed at closing the gap through the actions of business of government of labor and of all Ontarians to external advisers of being appointed Linda Davis Dr. Singh they're going to be joined speaker by Ontario's Pay Equity Commissioner Emmanuel Heineck and Nancy Austin the wage gap strategy executive leave will be representing the Ministry of Labor the opportunity speaker is to make progress on this issue you see it please supplementary Speaker it's embarrassing that we have yet to remedy this situation in 2015 after more than a decade of liberal government the problem is getting worse the gap has widened to 31.5% from 28% simply talking about the issue appointing another panel is not enough women's livelihoods are at stake Speaker it is not progressive to allow the gender pay gap to widen it is not progressive for the government to refuse to comply with its own pay equity laws for female dominated professions like midwifery and community service Speaker when can Ontarians expect real action from this liberal government to close the gender pay gap you see it please thank you minister thank you speaker the minister is responsible for women's issues responsible for women's issues so our Ontario Pay Equity Act continues to be recognized across Canada and internationally as one of the most progressive pay equity statues in the world Speaker I do want to highlight on what this government has done to make sure we have a fair society for women and make sure they're paid the same as men in similar jobs there is more work to do you've heard from the minister but there's been a number of programs the women's director has supported to help low income women and women who experience and help people get new skills and careers more than 2,200 women have participated in training through the women and skills trade and information technology program we have a micro lending program speaker and be assured that our government is very very determined to close the gap in Ontario thank you point of order point of order I would like to introduce some guests who are in the members east gallery the parents of myolip Craig as well as a friend of mine thank you President I know everyone would love to welcome Ian to the legislature today a very fine retired member of the London police services and a great friend of all of us welcome Ian thank you there are no deferred votes this house stands recess until 1pm this afternoon