 It is now time for the question period. The leader of Her Majesty's Law and Opposition. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Premier. Another week in the longest teacher strike in 25 years has passed, and still high school students in Durham, Peel and Sudbury are not getting the education they're entitled to. Durham is now in the 25th day of their strike, and those high school students have lost almost a third of their semester, Mr. Speaker. The Premier was a school board trustee. She shouldn't need an obscure commission to tell her what we already know. The school year is in jeopardy. So Premier, will you act today? Will your back-to-work legislation ensure that these students will finish their school year? And can you promise at grade 12 students that they will graduate in time to continue their studies next September? Thank you, Mr. Education. Yes, thank you very much, and we share the concern about the students. We understand that the students in Durham, in Rainbow, in Peel have been out of class far too long. That's why a week ago Friday I asked the Education Relations Commission for their advice on jeopardy. I'm pleased to report that within the last hour I have received the advice from the ERC, and they have in fact advised that the school year is in jeopardy in Durham. Would you like the announcement? A member from Renfrew, Nipissing Pembroke, come to order. The Minister of Government and Consumer Services, come to order. Please finish. Yes, they have advised that the school year is in jeopardy in Durham, in Rainbow and in Peel, and we will be tabling back to work legislation this afternoon. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and a follow-up to the question from the Leader. You know the provincial negotiations have been at an impasse. And we know that they broke down again over the weekend, and your government has now said that they will take appropriate action, and I understand just today you will table back to work legislation today. But two weeks ago you were going to light a fire, and still we should now proceed to spark until this very minute when we may see back-to-work legislation today. I don't know how long that will actually drag on for. So there has certainly, Mr. Speaker, there certainly hasn't been any sense of urgency on the part of the Minister or the Premier. The students are going to lose their entire school year if we do not get them back in the classroom. And take, for example, Durham students alone have been out 25 days today. That's 560,000 student days, Mr. Speaker, and Durham alone. And on top of that, there's only 25 days left in the year. So already we know there's a real problem with getting your school year. Thank you. So I guess what we're saying is we're... A reminder to everybody, I give you your queues and I stick with them. Minister? Yes, thank you. Thank you. The act that we will be introducing this afternoon is obviously designed to get kids back into the classroom. We want the kids back in the classroom as quickly as possible. Remember from Renfrew and Nipissing, Pembroke, second time. Carry on. In order to get the kids back in the classroom as quickly as possible, we need to pass the legislation. So I am writing to the leaders of both of the opposition parties to ask for their cooperation in getting this legislation passed this afternoon. But we need their cooperation to do that, Speaker. We can't pass the legislation this afternoon unless we have the cooperation of the other two parties. So I'm waiting to hear their response. Final supplementary. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I guess the problem is you asked the Education Relations Committee 10 days ago on May the 15th. They never even worked over the holiday weekend needed an Interior Labor Relations Board. So all of a sudden now, Mr. Speaker, they're going to table back to work. They want everyone to support this today. But the bottom line is where has the urgency been, Mr. Speaker? Where has it actually been on behalf of the students in the province material? We've been asking you for weeks now, for weeks to get this thing moving, to get this two-tiered disaster out of the way. So when can we expect the students to be back in the classroom? This is Mr. Minister. Minister? I couldn't quite discern the answer. So let's go over this again. A week ago Friday, I asked the Education Relations Commission for their advice. They consulted with everybody involved. I received that advice this morning. Within an hour of receiving that advice, I have informed the legislature that we will table back to work legislation this afternoon. And I have asked the opposition parties for their cooperation to give unanimous consent to passing second and third reading this afternoon so that we can get the kids back in the classroom. It's over to you folks. You get to decide. Speaker, today the ombudsman released his scathing report into the billing practices at Hydral One. There's Rebecca Carter who received bills despite her house having burned down. There's Shannon LeBern, who wasn't billed for over a year, then came home to find her power cutoff. There's Allen Skeacock, whose bank account was rated for $11,000 by Hydral One to make up for two years of their mistaken bills. Mr. Speaker, to say the least, the government should be embarrassed for its lack of action and for its gross mismanagement of this file. I say to the minister, we apologize to the people of Ontario, the tens of thousands of people that you ripped off and resigned today. Mr. Speaker, first I'd like to thank the ombudsman and his team for his comprehensive and thorough report and recommendations. As a result of the new IT billing system, others will be cut off quite quickly too. Please finish. Speaker, as a result of the new IT billing system, an unacceptable number of Hydral One's customers over an extended period of time received an unacceptable level of service. The CEO of Hydral One and the government have apologized to those impacted, Mr. Speaker. And while we know that Hydral One has been working hard to resolve the issues, the Hydral One has outlined that work in detail. Further work and remediation is still required, Mr. Speaker. I therefore ask the chair of Hydral One, David Denison, to report back to me within 40 days with a detailed action plan describing how Hydral One can further address the recommendations in the ombudsman's report. I'll say more in the supplementary, Mr. Speaker. Member from Renfrew Nipissing Pembroke. Thank you very much. Back to the Minister of Energy. Minister, the ombudsman revealed that the billing errors cost Hydral One, and therefore the Ontario rate pair, $88.3 million. But not to worry, Minister. You could get most of that back if Garrison, Petawawa, in my writing were to pay the $50.7 million bill it received in error. Or if the Beaver Valley Ski Club paid the incorrect $37 million bill it received. There you go. Minister, you're the Minister responsible for Hydral One. And throughout this entire fiasco, you have been asleep at the switch. It is time that you were unplugged. Will you take responsibility today and resign? I'm going to invoke my rule. Those that decide to have the last laugh when I'm standing will be named. Minister. Mr. Speaker, Hydral One's commitment to customer service will go beyond focusing on stabilizing the IT billing system, which is now well in hand. It will focus on a cultural change and continuous improvement. Mr. Speaker, moving forward with a broadened ownership will make a better company to serve Ontario rate pairs and unlock investments in infrastructure. The newly appointed Chair of Hydral One, David Denison, is overseeing a process, Mr. Speaker, to select the CEO and several other senior managers. Second time. Additionally, the Chair and the Minister of Energy are in the process of restructuring the Board of Directors. This approach will create a better company that will offer a better quality and better serve the interests of Ontario and the customers of Hydral One. And no, I will not resign. Final supplementary. Back to the Minister. You know, when there's nothing else left, it's resort to talking points. You know, I can only imagine how long this problem would continue if my colleague... Stop the clock, please. Minister of Transportation. Please finish. I can only imagine how long this would have continued if my colleague from Lanarkfront and Glenox and Anningdon hadn't asked the ombudsman to investigate Hydral One. In the future, the ombudsman or any other officer of the legislature won't be able to investigate Hydral One because your budget bill will remove that oversight. Minister, that is anything but transparent. Will you commit today to removing all references to Hydral One from the budget until a much more thorough study of this systemic problem can be completed? Mr. Speaker, the budget bill does have provisions, if passed, that require Hydral One to create an internal ombudsperson to protect consumers and ensure fairness. Mr. Speaker, we have retained former auditor general... Finish, please. Mr. Speaker, we've retained the former federal auditor general of Canada, Mr. Denny Desotel, to oversee the process to ensure it is established with transparency and accountability. We've also established a customer service advisory panel as an independent body to recommend service commitments across all levels of the organisation. The members of the university president, a well-known consumer advocate, a former Ontario Deputy Minister, the CEO of Credit Solutions Canada, and the former chief of the Sogine Ojibwe First Nation. I've asked Hydral One's board to work closely with Mr. Desotel and the advisory... Thank you. Do you have a question? The leader of the third party. Very much, Speaker. My question is for the Premier. Selling off Hydral One is the most radical policy change in a generation and not a single Ontarian voted for it. That's right. Now the Premier is trying to rush her Hydral One fire sale through without even consulting people and without even giving them a say. Will the Premier take Hydral One out of the budget bill so Ontarians can have their say on her sell-off? Thank you. Seated, please. Thank you. Premier. Mr. Speaker, so what the leader of the third party is asking is whether we will take our investment in transportation and transit infrastructure out of the budget, Mr. Speaker. We actually will not do that because we know how important those investments are. The leader of the third party knows that we put in our budget. We ran in our platform on a policy of investing in infrastructure, Mr. Speaker, because there's not a community in this province that doesn't need investment. Whether it's roads and bridges in our rural and small towns, Mr. Speaker, and in the north, or whether it's transit in our urban communities, Mr. Speaker, all of those communities need investment. That has been a cornerstone of our plan, our economic plan. So, Mr. Speaker, no, we're not going to take that out of the budget. Thank you. Terrians want their say on the Premier's plan to sell off their Hydral One. 451 people applied to present to the Finance Committee Speaker, but less than a quarter have been able to speak. Hundreds more wanted to present but couldn't, Mr. Speaker, because the Premier kept the committee on lockdown here in Toronto. Taking Hydral One out of the budget bill, Speaker, is a very reasonable request. The Premier can pass her budget, flawed though it is, and Ontarians can actually have a say on the sell off of their public utility Hydral One. Now, will the Premier make her Hydral One sell off a separate bill and hold hearings across Ontario so that people can have their say on what happens to their... I'm very pleased that there was the opportunity for people to come and speak to the budget bill, Mr. Speaker. I know that there were dozens of people who had that opportunity, and I just want to draw on some of that material. So, Mary Frances Turner, Regional Municipality of York, said, from the perspective of transit and transportation investment, this budget continues a long-awaited investment in public transit. The $16 billion in dedicated funds that are going to be made available for transportation and other critical infrastructure across the greater Toronto and Hamilton area through the Move Ontario Forward Plan will have enormous beneficial impacts on growth, sustainability, and the liability of this region for decades to come. That was Mary Frances Turner from the Regional Municipality of York, Mr. Speaker. Annette Fitzgerald enters door, Mr. Speaker. I think the redistribution of capital and getting capital to work in favour of Ontarians is really critical for this committee to consider. Many times in my career, we've had to reallocate capital to places that needed it. Mr. Speaker, people have helped. Thank you. Final supplementaries. Mr. Speaker, burying the sell-off of Hydro-1 in an omnibus budget bill is just the wrong thing to do. Ramming through a phase of hearings is the wrong thing to do. That's not enough time to debate the biggest change in public policy in Ontario in a generation, nor does it give people a chance to actually have their say. Will this Premier take her foot off the gas, Speaker? Listen to Ontarians, and take Hydro-1 out of the budget bill so that it can have full and proper scrutiny and debate across this province? You see it, please? Thank you, Premier. Mr. Speaker, you know, the fact is that we put in place six days of hearings which is far above the average, Mr. Speaker. And the fact is, well, the third party says that it's four days. Yes, it's four days of hearings and two days of clause by clause. But, Mr. Speaker, I guess when they were in office and had one day of hearings, it was just clause by clause. Nobody would have been able to depute. Mr. Speaker, let's hear what the Cement Association of Canada says because Steve Morrissey had a comment to the committee. The billions of dollars invested in infrastructure are having a noticeable effect on the average age of the province's infrastructure and on the lives of the people of Ontario. These investments are helping transform the province while also enhancing competitiveness which is crucial in Ontario today. We also applaud the government's decision to expand the Moving Ontario Forward Plan to $31.5 billion. The investments in public transit, such as the Go Transit expansion which is helping connect communities in Toronto, Kitchener Water and Ottawa and many other public transit investments are helping us to move within our communities. The leader of the third party. Thank you so much. Ontarians have been packing town hall meetings. They have been signing petitions, Speaker. They have been on the lawn of Queens Park. They have been sending letters and emails to Liberal MPPs. They are sending a message, Speaker that they cannot afford to pay the price for selling Hydro One. Ontarians are the owners of Hydro One, Speaker and they deserve to be heard. Will this Premier do the right thing? Separate her Hydro One scheme? Put it into its own bill and actually consult with the people of Ontario who own Hydro One. So, Mr. Speaker, I bring those people together in her meetings around the province. I wonder if she tells the people in that room that they will continue to own 40% of Hydro One, Mr. Speaker. I wonder if she tells them that the price of electricity is set now by the Ontario Energy Board is the way it will be set after this change, Mr. Speaker. I wonder if she tells them that the regulatory controls that are in place now will stay in place, Mr. Speaker and that they will continue to have control of the board, Mr. Speaker. I wonder if she tells them that and then I wonder if she makes it clear to them that the reason we are doing this, Mr. Speaker is because we are doing this in the first place in infrastructure in their communities and every community around this province, Mr. Speaker. I wonder if that is part of this making note, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Supplementary. Ontarians are sending a very clear message. Stop the sale of Hydro One. Selling Hydro One will mean giving up a strategic control of electricity system, of our electricity system. Not all of the people of Ontario, not just some shareholders. Selling Hydro One will mean higher hydro rates for Ontarians. Ontarians who already pay some of the highest hydro bills in the country. New Democrats are proposing a very constructive way forward, Speaker. Remove Hydro One from this Harper-style omnibus budget bill. Let the sell-off stand on its own. Give people a say, Speaker. Will the Premier sever Hydro One from her omnibus budget bill today? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Well, the leader of the third party knows full well that the provisions that we've put in the budget bill are an integral part of the budget, Mr. Speaker. We've made it clear that investing in transit is a core pillar of our economic plan going forward, Mr. Speaker. And we ran on a plan to review the assets that are owned by the people of Ontario to maximize those assets in order to be able to invest in the assets that are needed for the future, Mr. Speaker. And to create jobs in the interim. And that is what we were doing. So, the leader of the third party is asking that we remove those provisions. We remove the ability to invest in transit and transportation infrastructure, Mr. Speaker. We're not going to do that because Ontario's economy needs those investments, Mr. Speaker. I don't expect this kind of undemocratic behaviour from Stephen Harper. They deserve better. She promised to lead the most open and transparent government in all of Canada. Selling hydro is a big deal, Speaker. Once it's gone, it is gone forever. Bills will only go up, Speaker. We will lose control of a strategic asset that supports jobs, that supports energy efficiency and conservation. Ontarians deserve better. I apologize for the interruption. I'm dealing with people on both sides having conversations. Thank you. Please finish. Students deserve better than ramming the budget through the legislature in a Harper-style omnibus budget bill. Will this Premier will this Premier do the right thing by the people of Ontario? Sever Hydro-1 out of her omnibus budget bill today. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, the opposition continue to attribute to this initiative the fact that rakes will potentially go up, Mr. Speaker. Before committee last week the CEO of the Ontario Energy Board, Rosemary Leclerc, made this statement. The OEB public hearing process is rigorous and requires utilities to provide comprehensive business plans. Proposals are examined and shown in an open, public and transparent process, which includes the active participation of repair representatives, as well as other stakeholders. In fact, the OEB is one of few energy regulators that provides significant funding to ensure that the voices of those impacted by our decisions are represented effectively in our proceedings. Mr. Speaker, and the record shows that they continually the member from LAD ARC, from Atlantic and Addington will withdraw. Thank you. Carry on. The OEB is reducing significantly, or in fact reducing in a significant way. Thank you. New question. The member from Nipissing. My question is for the Premier. In his first opportunity to travel as PC leader, Patrick Brown not only chose to go to Northern Ontario, he chose the Ring of Fire. I saw the excitement in his eyes. He saw the huge potential in the Ring of Fire. My statement still holds on all sides. Finish, please. He saw the huge potential in the Ring of Fire. An opportunity of a lifetime to create jobs and help turn Ontario's economy around. But what he didn't see were the hundreds of miners who used to work at the base camp. They're all gone. They're down to a half dozen workers, all because this government has done nothing for six... So let's put it to the test. It stops now. Wrap up, please. Thank you. We can tell this hit a nerve because they've done nothing for seven years. Premier Patrick Brown wants the Ring of Fire to be at the centre of the economic plan for Ontario. Why is it that Patrick Brown spent more time in his first two weeks on the job in the Ring of Fire than you? Thank you. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Well, you know, when I was paddling the Atto Office Gat River in the Ring of Fire area, opposition on the river with me, Mr. Speaker, when I met with First Nations, when I flew to Webequay, Mr. Speaker, and met with the community and talked about the training opportunities that are now in place, Mr. Speaker, so that people in Webequay could be part of the development of the Ring of Fire, Mr. Speaker. I actually didn't hear a comment from the opposition. When we were working, Mr. Speaker, to put together a framework agreement with the Matawah First Nations, when we were working to put together the member from Dufferin Caledon in the second time, please finish. The Development Corporation, Mr. Speaker, to ensure that First Nations and business and the provincial government were together. But, Mr. Speaker, where was Patrick Brown when he was the MP, Mr. Speaker? Supplementary. The scene called your strategy to pray and blame Ottawa. Well, that's your answer for everything. Blame Ottawa. But you haven't even made an application for a Ring of Fire. You're blaming them in advance, Premier. Quit pointing your fingers and actually get something done. Our leader, Patrick Brown, has already traveled to the Ring of Fire. He got his hands covered in nickel and chromeite dust. He looked into the eyes of the people. Final wrap-up part of the question. Seven years have passed since the discovery of the Ring of Fire. Premier, how many more years have to pass before you actually do anything? To brief Mr. Brown on how you get from Pickle Lake into the Ottawa area. You can actually canoe into the Ring of Fire area, Mr. Speaker. I'd be happy to brief him on that. And I hope that now that he is a provincial representative or he's not actually up, but now that he's with the provincial government, Mr. Speaker, that he will call on Ottawa to match the $1 billion that we have infrastructure, Mr. Speaker. It's extremely important that we build infrastructure to allow the Ring of Fire to be developed. That's why we've committed $1 billion. In case you didn't hear, the member from Nipsey come to order, please. You ask the question and the member from Prince Edward Hastings, warning. You are warned. Finish, please. The $1 billion to that infrastructure, Mr. Speaker, goes way beyond talk and way into action, the member from Toronto, Dan Forker. My question to the Premier. This morning, Ontario's independent Ombudsman released his findings into the 10,000-plus complaints around the billing practices of Hydro-1. 10,000-plus Speaker. The most of any investigation to date. Member from Eglinton, Lords. In his interim report, the Ombudsman pointed out that inquiries from his office around some of the most egregious these billings for Hydro-1 customers were already getting action. What the Ombudsman calls his moral suasion. Speaker, with the Premier's promises of gold at the end of the rainbow for investors and accelerated timelines by this government around the sale of Hydro-1, should Ontarians expect that the largest investigation ever undertaken by an independent officer of the legislature will just be shelved. Mr. Speaker, I've indicated earlier today that we take these very seriously. We thank the Ombudsman for his extensive extensive report, Mr. Speaker. We are going beyond what's already happened, Mr. Speaker. I've asked the chair of Hydro-1, the new chair of Hydro-1, David Denison to report back to me within 40 days with a detailed action plan describing how Hydro-1 can further address the recommendations in the Ombudsman's report. Mr. Speaker, as well, Mr. Denison is overseeing a process to select a CEO and several other senior managers. And additionally, the chair and the minister of energy are in the process of restructuring the Board of Directors. Mr. Speaker, we're changing the culture in Hydro-1 and moving forward it's going to be efficient, it's going to be a growth company and it's going to be benefiting the people of Ontario. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, again to the Premier. When the Premier was down in the States pitching the sale of Hydro-1 she knew the Ombudsman report was soon to be tabled. We're prospective investors told about the Ombudsman's investigation or did the Premier simply say don't worry, we're writing the Ombudsman out of the picture and if you back on us that report with its 10,000 complaints plus, that just goes away. Mr. Speaker, as we know the legislation contemplates an embedded Ombudsman being appointed for Hydro-1 and we have retained Mr. Speaker, the former Federal Auditor General Mr. Denny Dozotel, to oversee the process to ensure it is established with transparency and accountability Mr. Speaker, Mr. Dozotel a man of tremendous credibility and experience as Auditor General of Canada is overseeing the process for the IPO and is also overseeing the appointment of an embedded Ombudsman to ensure that it is in place with transparency and accountability Mr. Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Transportation. As the member for Halton and as a daily commuter, I hear often about how important public transit is to those living in my community. Every weekday, GO Transit has 18 daily trips and accommodates roughly 30,000 passengers on the Milton Line giving it the second highest ridership of the GO train lines on the network. As part of the budget 2015, our government included $13.5 billion in improvements across the GO Transit network. This will lay the foundation for regional express rail. This is great news, Mr. Speaker but those living in my community want to know exactly how these new investments will benefit them. Can the Minister please tell members of this House how these new investments will help those living in Halton region? Thank you, Minister of Transportation. Thanks very much, Speaker. I want to thank the member from Halton for her question and for the advocacy that she provides on a regular basis for her community. She is quite correct. This is a $13.5 billion investment to improve the GO Transit network which will help increase transit ridership and reduce travel times. This will result, Speaker, in more than a doubling of peak service and a quadrupling of off-peak service compared to today and reduced journey times for some cross-region transit trips by as much as 50%. The Milton corridor itself will have service every 15 minutes or better during the morning and afternoon peak travel periods and within the next five years, a number of weekly trips on the Milton corridor will grow from 90 to more than 100. Metrolinx will continue to work very closely with our government and CP who owns a portion of the track to find ways to increase and improve service for those living in Halton region. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the Minister for his response and his efforts. I'm glad to hear that those living in Halton can expect to see increased GO rail service through the Moving Ontario and my constituents want to know that our government is continuing to make critical investments in transit and transportation that will help keep my community moving forward. In fact, since 2003, Ontario has committed more than $278 million to improve transit in Halton including $5.1 million in Milton. But one concern that I continue to hear from my constituents and experience personally as a transit rider relates to parking at the Milton GO station. Some GO riders are concerned that they aren't able to find a space to park in the morning. Can the Minister please tell members of this House what our government is doing to address these concerns? Thank you. Thanks again, Speaker, and I want to thank that member for her question. We know that many of those who commute on GO transit rely on parking at GO stations. That's why we built over 3,500 spaces along the Milton line in the United States and in the United States of America, including 670 spaces in Milton alone. Metrolinx's parking plan has also identified the potential for an additional 6 to 800 spaces, 600 to 800 spaces at the Milton GO station. And we are undertaking feasibility studies to determine how those could be accommodated. In the meantime, Speaker, we're also moving forward with the GO Connect pilot project led by Milton Transit. This project provides an innovative way to learn from the Milton GO station through the use of a dial-a-ride web and mobile app, the first application of its kind in North America. We're committed to working with municipal partners like Milton Transit to address local needs and get people moving across our region. Thank you. Thanks, Speaker. My question is for the Premier. Premier, for months you've refused to hold anyone accountable for the allegations of bribery in the Sudbury by-election. Now you want to turn out the lights on a TVO documentary. Taxpayers spent over $114,000 for your infomercial that you want to shut down. It's an indictment to you and your government that even when trying to film a documentary the footage looks more like a crime drama. You personally invited the director to film you in Sudbury and it's obvious that there's something in that footage that you don't want to see the light on. Will you stop acting like a censor and direct TVO to air this documentary and turn over the raw footage to the OPP? Yes. Well, Mr. Speaker as I have said publicly we worked closely with the producer to determine what the parameters, what the scope of the film would be and it was to be behind the scenes look at the budget over the course of the filming. There was a discussion about the scope of the film. We shared these concerns with the producer that was our sole contact for the project not TVO Mr. Speaker. There was always a clear understanding that we wouldn't have editorial control that was understood. I have not seen any of the footage Mr. Speaker I've said that publicly that is true I've never seen any of the footage and we're really still hoping that the film can happen. Remember Thank you. That's enough. Please finish. Mr. Speaker, the reason that I and we agreed to this was that there is a film that was made under the Bill Davis here in Mr. Speaker explaining how government works and that really did need to be updated I hope that it will still go ahead Mr. Speaker. A few supplementary. You know once again the premier's story is there's nothing to see here folks. The problem is every time you say that the OPP and the chief electoral officer think differently if there's truly nothing to hide then prove it. Let's all have a look at the movie. I'll even buy the popcorn premier. Over the weekend you said premier that you hope the film will be aired. Well if that's the case I expect you to show some accountability by signing the release forms after question period. Will you sign those forms or will you force the OPP investigators to sign those forms for this scandal? Once again I will just say that we agreed to a scope of the film. I agreed to do this film Mr. Speaker because I thought there needed to be an update on a film that had been made in the Bill Davis era Mr. Speaker. A member from Renfrew Nipissing Pembroke is warned the member from Dufferin Caledon is warned. Could be now if you want. Finish please. Yeah Mr. Speaker you know we're hoping that the film will be aired. There is there was a discussion about the scope of the film my understanding up until until this became public Mr. Speaker was that the film was going ahead that we were going to be able to. I have not seen the footage and I hope that we'll still be able to we'll still be able to see it aired Mr. Speaker. Good question. The member from Windsor West. Thank you Speaker. My question is to the member. Mr. Speaker under this liberal government and a premier who dubbed herself a negotiator. Our schools have been thrown into chaos in an effort to save a few bucks to pay off their scandals. The liberals cut two hundred and fifty million dollars from education over two thousand fourteen two thousand fifteen and diminished special education funding across Ontario and we know there's more to come. Students for this government short-sighted cuts to education. Speaker will the premier admit that her reckless reckless cuts to education system have thrown our schools into chaos. Mr. Speaker let me first say that this is a question from a member of the party that I would have thought believed in the collective bargaining process as a start Mr. Speaker. Certainly the NDP used to believe in the collective bargaining process. We worked with our partners Mr. Speaker to put a collective bargaining process in place. That collective bargaining process has unfolded as it has Mr. Speaker and as the minister of education said today we have just received the advisory from the Education Relations Commission Mr. Speaker and I would just say that I hope if there is concern in the third party for the students Mr. Speaker that the third party will be supporting our legislation which would get kids back to school as quickly as possible. Supplementary. Thank you Mr. Speaker back to the premier. We learned that central table negotiations with OSSTF have broken down. The premier and her minister have not been successful in any level of negotiation with any board under this two-tiered system they so proudly introduced not long ago. Is this the new direction for relationships with teachers that the premier espoused as a leadership candidate? To make matters worse there is another liberal government is abandoning its commitment to keep class sizes manageable directly impacting learning conditions for our students. Speaker why is this government forcing students and families to pay the price for their mismanagement of the education portfolio in this province? Well Mr. Speaker let's just talk about what we have what we've been able to do in the last number of years for students in this province and for the education system but reminding the member opposite that the process that is in place right now is one that was developed in partnership Mr. Speaker with the education sector with the boards with the unions with the federations Mr. Speaker because we all knew that there needed to be a new process and that needed to have a provincial and a local component. So that process and Mr. Speaker it is the first time that the process has been used and there's no doubt that it's been a tough collective bargaining process but it is a process that everyone agreed to. But Mr. Speaker the fact is that our budget, our 2015 budget will protect the gains that we've made in education Mr. Speaker $120 million over three years to create thousands of childcare spaces $40 million in technology and innovation classrooms from K-12 experience Ontario Mr. Speaker which will invest $20 million over three years graduating high school students get experience. Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the minister of health and long-term care in my time as a care coordinator for CCAC I often heard from my parents patients their desire to receive quality care within the comfort of their own homes and communities rather than in hospitals or long-term care homes having more people receive care quickly and close to home not only in my riding of Cambridge but across the province is essential to providing Ontarians with the highest possible quality of care in the most comfortable and familiar setting for them currently home care is provided to over 600,000 Ontarians per year while community support services assist an additional $1.46 million many of whom are seniors Speaker can the minister please inform us what this government is doing to further improve our home and community care services throughout the province Minister of health and long-term care Mr. Speaker I want to say thank you to the member from Cambridge for this question and since 2003 our government has more than doubled the funding provided for home and community services in fact one of the four pillars in our government's patients first action plan outlines our goal of improving these services with a commitment to delivering better coordinated and integrated care within communities closer to home and building on this commitment earlier this month I announced our patients first a roadmap to strengthen home and community care it's the first phase in our plan to transform the way we deliver care at home and in the community and with a 2015 budget commitment of an additional $750 million over three years our government has put forth a roadmap for the future of home and community care and in fact our plan endorses all of the recommendations outlined in bringing care home a report published by the provincial expert panel led by Dr. Gale Donner. Thank you minister care coordinators patients and families in my community of Cambridge will be pleased to know about our government's plan to improve home and community care it certainly was improved over my years there our loved ones with needs that can bring their homes or communities will receive the support to do so and with high quality and consistent care across the province speaker we know that care at home and in the community often goes well beyond the patient themselves there's often a circle of family friends and other caregivers involved it's important that patients and their caregivers have control over what this care looks like and that we recognize the unique situations of patients across the province speaker can the minister let this house know other initiatives in the community and health care sector home care sector that meets the needs of patients and their caregivers alike. Thank you minister Thank you and mr. Speaker included in our $750 million investment to improve access and expand services for home and community care we are funding an additional 80,000 hours of nursing care we're expanding supports for family caregivers and personal support workers we're increasing choice for patients and their families regarding the palliative and end of life care they receive and mr. Speaker our government recognizes the vastly different needs of people across the province and will provide patients with greater choice and greater control to ensure that care plans are as individualized as possible that's why we're piloting different approaches such as self-directed funding to allow clients and their families greater autonomy over and our plan puts patients and their caregivers at the absolute center of our system and not only gives them the support they need in achieving the highest quality of care that they deserve but it allows them a greater say in what that care should look like. Thank you Mr. Speaker Thank you Mr. Speaker to the premier premier my family story is no different than thousands of other families here in Ontario we are a family of smokers it has been generational my parents smoked my brothers and sisters smoked my children smoked this addiction is not just generational it's also cultural and like most smokers we've tried gums and patches and they sell them work but since I've started using a vaporizer I've cut back significantly so has my family it's meant that we can spend more time with our grandsons it's meant that for the first time in generations we might end this trend it means my grandsons may not grow up as a family of smokers premier your government is making a tragic mistake will you please reconsider and spend more time investigating vaporizers before you rush to a decision that will prevent people like myself and my family and thousands of others from quitting tobacco once and for all with schedule 3 on bill 45 Thank you Mr. Speaker Thank you Mr. Speaker I thank the member opposite for his question but I really hope his red bill 45 I know he sat on the committee and if he fully understood the bill he would know that we're not banning electronic cigarettes all we are doing is we are regulating electronic cigarettes to make sure that we balance the potential benefits which we recognize against the potential risks but it continues to be perfectly legal for adults and I'm sure the member opposite agrees that we shouldn't have 16 year olds being able to buy an e-cigarette or be able to go inside a classroom and that is what we are doing all we are doing is regulating but there's nothing in the regulation that stops a potential smoker from choosing to use an electronic cigarette if that's what they want to do thank you Mr. Speaker Supplementary Speaker I have read the I have read the bill and I did attend the committee at hearings all Premier there are only two groups that benefit from you passing schedule 3 of bill 45 and it's not children or the general public two of the most vocal opponents and the two groups set to gain the most from this bill are big tobacco and big pharma by demonizing vaporizers you are helping tobacco companies regain a market share that has been devastated by vaporizers you're also going to have a lot of people who don't have a lot of people who don't have vaporizers you're also allowing pharmaceutical companies to continue to market cessation products over the counter that are proven less than effective than vaporizers Premier how can it be that myself and others who are addicted to cigarettes are fighting big tobacco will you and your government are actively protecting and defending big tobacco thank you Minister I believe this government's commitment to anti-smoking is the gold standard so I don't know where he's coming from when you say that we're supporting big tobacco on the issue of schedule 3 on the issue of electronic cigarettes if you've read bill 45 clearly the way we have drafted bill 45 is to make it very flexible shouldn't ever come to pass that health Canada says that e-cigarettes are a legitimate cessation device we have regulations in place that would actually allow us to very quickly change regulations and ensure that it's treated exactly the same as any other cessation device in the interim while we evade better evidence all we are doing is regulating electronic cigarettes you can continue to use them thank you Mr. Speaker thank you your question my question is for the Premier since 2013 the workers at Crown Holdings Inc. have walked the picket line in an attempt to stop a steep rollback of their pensions, their benefits and their wages 21 months now two winters the government promised an industrial inquiry but so far there's been no action this is an untenable situation and the government should be stepping up to the plate will this government finally take some action on this long standing dispute thank you thank you thank you Mr. Labour thank you Speaker and thank you to the member for the very important question we have indeed acted on this and it's a very rare step that we've taken in the province of Ontario over 97% of collective agreements are reached at the table in this case we have one, we have an outlier we have a very exceptional circumstance the reason that we took the unusual step of appointing the industrial inquiry commission was to make to make sure that we got to the bottom of this, to make sure that we understood exactly what it transpired over this period of time to allow this to go on for so long without an agreement I meet on a regular basis with Mr. Mort Mitchnick who is a very well respected individual that has a huge huge background in the field of labour relations law bringing back his findings to me in the very near future Speaker well Speaker time's the ticking people should be able to go to work and be paid a fair wage and not have to walk a picket line for nearly two years in the province of Ontario people should not have to live on strike pay for two years and have to appeal to their union to make a mortgage payment it's time for the Premier to stop looking the other way will this Premier will this government force binding arbitration in the crown holding situation and ensure that all of those that are now out on the picket line will be able to return to work with a fair deal thank you you see it please thank you thank you Speaker our government's preference is always to encourage the parties to resolve whatever differences that we have we have a very good conversation with them if they need assistance with that Speaker we've got excellent arbitrators we've got excellent mediators that we bring to the table to ensure that every single avenue is explored in search of that agreement Speaker this morning I met with some of the steel workers in front of my office from Crown Metals had a very good conversation with them I was very committed to them that we would get to the bottom of this and we would find a resolution that suits their needs and their desires thank you thank you my question is for the Minister of Labour Minister a local constituent from my riding at Brampton Springdale just landed her very first job at a grocery store she's very excited but at the same time nervous she's afraid that she may not understand what she's entitled to what she won't get breaks when she's asked to stay late Minister we know the Ministry requires all employers across the province to inform their employees about the Employment Standards Act usually this is done by posting a copy of the Employment Standards poster where some were accessible in the workplace outlining employee rights including overtime, minimum wage breaks, vacation pay public holidays and amongst others outlined in the ESA my question is for the Minister how can it be assured that current employees of the constituent are aware of their rights and what steps has your Ministry put into place to ensure that the employees have access information about their ESA rights thank you Minister of Labour thank you Speaker and thank you to the Honourable Member from Brampton Springdale for what I think is a very very important question Speaker this government works hard to ensure that all Ontarians are treated with the dignity and the respect they deserve at work in order to do that to assist in that last fall Speaker this government has passed the Stronger Workplaces for Stronger Economy Act it introduced two very important changes to the Employment Standards Act as of May 20th Speaker Ontario law now requires employers to distribute copies of the latest version of the Employment Standards poster to all employees by June 19th of this year for new hires such as your constituent that the Honourable Member mentioned this information must be provided to them as a new employee within 30 days of their hiring so it's not sufficient anymore Speaker for employers to simply post this information in the workplace Employment Standards now have the authority to require employers to conduct a self-audit any failure to post an interview will be met with Enforcement Speaker Thank you Mr Speaker back to the Minister of Labour who I'd like to thank for his reply for addressing this important issue before the House today these new requirements under the ESA will help employees further understand their basic workplace rights however Minister in my writing of Brampton Springdale there's a large ethnic community and I'm worried that many of my constituents may have difficulty reading and understanding their basic rights listed on the poster Mr Speaker through you to the Minister what steps has the Ministry taken to ensure that all employees regardless of ethnicity or language will be able to read and understand their rights under the ESA and employees being accessed to the latest version of the poster Thank you Minister Thank you Speaker we all know I think in this House that knowledge is power and people who know their rights can actually stand up for those rights so to answer the question from the Honourable Member the requirement for the new version of the ESA poster outlines it must be it must be displayed in English unless the majority of employees speak another common language maybe in this example the employer is then required to post a translated copy of the poster right next door to the English version the ESA poster must also be provided in other languages if an employee requests a translation these translated version speakers are available from the Ministry of Labour right now the poster is available in English in French Arabic, Chinese, Hindi Portuguese, Punjabi Spanish, Tagalog Thai and Urdu the poster can be downloaded free of charge it's printed on a standard 8.5 8.5 by 11 piece of paper that makes it very simple for employees to distribute to the staff Speaker helping employees and employers understand the workplace rights and responsibility Thank you New question from the Honourable Member Minister of Energy Minister Rex G is the kind of person we want to see more of in the province of Ontario he's a Chinese Canadian immigrant that came to this country to work hard provide for his family and give back to the new country he loves he opened up a greenhouse in Smithville Ontario running for 15 years this January he visited his ailing parents in China and he missed a bill for $362 29 days later the utility Niagara Peninsula Energy cut the cord they disconnected his power the consequences were entirely predictable the boiler shut down the pipes burst his entire crop and the greenhouse was wiped out the cost to him $150,000 Minister would you agree with me that Niagara Peninsula Energy went way way way too far and they owe Mr. G compensation for the destruction of his livelihood Thank you Mr. Speaker I appreciate the question from the member from Niagara West Glandbrook and appreciate that he has been here regularly and pleased to receive a question from him the issue he raises brings brings to question the role of the regulator the Ontario Energy Board because we have I think something like 5 million electricity customers in Ontario they do need a place to go with their complaints Mr. Speaker the Ontario Energy Board has a report card and they do follow up in fact the member brought this to my attention and the constitution has followed the appropriate process bringing the issue to the attention of the Ontario Energy Board the independent regulator with the mandate to protect Ontario rate payers I understand that the Ontario Energy Board has no utility and is currently awaiting their response there is accountability Mr. Speaker Thank you In your right we did through my office lodge a formal complaint with the Ontario Energy Board on behalf of Mr. G but I think we go a step further and I've known you Minister for a long time I know in your heart you know the company did wrong it was externally damaging $150,000 in losses for a $362 bill Mr. G had never messed a single payment he paid his bills and he paid them on time not only this was a massive screw up it was cruel you play a unique role you occupy as Theodore Roosevelt said the bully pulpit you are the minister you carry a lot of weight I know it's with the OEB and the local utility but Minister will you join me tell the Ontario Energy do the right thing and pay Mr. G for his damages Mr. Speaker I definitely will join him on this particular file Mr. Speaker it is apparently a very significant injustice that has happened in this particular case I know that the Ontario Energy Board now is actually working with the utility to try to resolve this particular issue certainly any information that I have I will share with the member and I will work with the member to try to bring this to a positive resolution Mr. Speaker Thank you to the Premier last year on the eve of the election the Premier showed up in Waterloo to announce an agreement to give $120 million to open text to create 1200 jobs now we see that open text will be cutting 5% of its workforce and claims the job cuts are in line with the Liberal government Premier your own press release from the announcement states that support is contingent on the company meeting job targets and since you claim to be committed to openness and transparency will you make that agreement public so Ontarians can judge whether or not the 1200 jobs you took credit for creating are actually going to be created Can you give a round of applause for the economic development and infrastructure I'm really surprised Mr. Speaker that a member from the Kitchener community would get up and criticize the investment that we've made with open text to create 1200 very important high tech jobs and bring $2 billion of investment into this province that was on its way going elsewhere Mr. Speaker what open text is doing is they're creating an R&D hub here in Ontario instead of somewhere else in the world so that those 1200 high tech jobs will be here in Ontario in your community and you're getting up to criticize that investment Mr. Speaker I'm proud of that investment I'm proud of the 1200 jobs we're creating in Kitchener and I'm proud of the $2 billion that we're bringing into our economy you should be too There being no deferred votes this house stands recess until 1pm this afternoon