 It is now time for oral questions. I recognize the leader of the official opposition. My first question is to the Premier. Parents and students looking for a vision for education in last week's budget were sorely disappointed. While the Premier focused on the colour of license plates and easy access to booze, Ontario's children got cuts in the classroom. The chair of Ontario school boards was clear about what this meant. She said, and I quote, there is absolutely really not any increase here. School boards everywhere are warning of jam-packed classes, fewer course choices, and fewer teachers and education workers. Why is the Premier cutting support to our schools and our kids? Premier, on budget. Through you, Mr Speaker, what an amazing week for the people of Ontario. For businesses in Ontario, our team and our incredible finance minister, best finance minister I've ever seen, delivered an amazing budget. It was a budget, it was a responsible budget, Mr Speaker. It was a reasonable budget, but Mr Speaker, the most important, it was a thoughtful budget. And I'll tell you it was a thoughtful budget because we increased education by $700 million, Mr Speaker. $700 million to be put back into the classroom to make sure our great six students, half of them aren't failing math. Not one single teacher in this province is going to lose their job. I think it caught the opposition totally flat-footed. They didn't know which way to turn, Mr Speaker, because we're investing into education. We're going to continue to invest in education until our students can be prepared when they get out in the work world. How much the Premier wants to polish this budget, the facts remain the same. The Ford government is making cuts in the classroom. Just Friday, just on Friday, we learned from school boards in Hamilton, in Windsor, in Guelph and in Waterloo that have sent out 300 redundancy notices to teachers. And the school boards in the Education Minister's own writing says, maybe she doesn't want to hear what the school board in her own writing says, but what that school board says is that smaller schools will struggle to provide not only specialized classes, but, and I quote, even the core curriculum required to graduate. Is the Ford government ready to admit that these changes will leave students with fewer teachers, larger classes, fewer courses, and put students' ability to graduate at risk? To you, Mr Speaker, I can tell you the scare tactics aren't working anymore. The people of Ontario saw the figures, very simply, $700 million more into education, taking care of the students, taking care of the teachers, listening to the parents. That's what happens, Mr Speaker, when you consult with over 72,000 people in Ontario. It was a great budget because we're taking care of health care. Our great, great Minister of Health has put together an incredible program. Mr Speaker, we increased health by $1.3 billion with a B. $1.3 billion to make sure we end hallway health care. Mr Speaker, we're taking care of seniors. We're putting over $90 million into the dental program for seniors, Mr Speaker. We're taking care of education. We're taking care of health, and we're taking care of people in Ontario until they can thrive, and they can prosper. Stop the clock. Order. Order. Order. Restart the clock. Next, supplementary. Final supplementary. Thank you, Speaker. Well, what the Premier probably should do is go back to school to learn that, in fact, when you're funding below the rate of inflation, that, in fact, means a cat, Speaker. That means a cat. We have seen this before. We saw it the last time the Conservatives were in power. We saw cuts and chaos in classrooms. We saw it when the Liberals attacked educators with Bill 115. And now the government is launching a task force with the school boards, Speaker. The same school boards that have been raising concerns about the Premier's plan for larger class sizes, fired teachers and fewer courses. This government has already made it very, very clear, Speaker, that they will attack and threaten critics who challenge them. Is the Four Government planning to launch its next attack on school board, Speaker? I recognize the Premier. Member for King Vaughn, come to order. Minister of Economic Development, come to order. Member for Sault Ste. Marie, come to order. Premier, to reply. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'm not too sure about the math with the leader of the opposition. You know, we know we have some math issues here in the ledge, but I just want to refresh the leader of the opposition's memory here. We increased spending on education last year by 6.6%, a lot higher than rate of inflation. This year, we increased another 2.2%. That's 8.8%, Mr. Speaker. That's putting hundreds of millions, to be exact, $700 million more back into the classroom, supporting the teachers again, supporting the students. We want our students to thrive. We want them to be the best in the country. We don't want them to be at the lowest here in the country where they were at before we took over when it came to math scores. We want to make sure we support our teachers. Mr. Speaker, I've talked to hundreds and hundreds of teachers over the last few weeks. They were so happy to hear our budget. They were so happy that we actually are supporting the classroom. Thank you. Thank you. The member for Hamilton East, Stony Creek, will come to order. Restart the clock. Next question, leader of the opposition. My next question is also to the Premier, but I've got to tell you, there are teachers in the remarkable assembly this morning, and they certainly weren't saying the same thing as what the Premier said. The Arch Speaker to the Premier in a report in March, Ontario's independent financial accountability office, reported that health care costs would be increasing by 4% in the coming year. Hospitals in their budget submissions said their costs will be increasing by 3.4%. Both said that anything below that level of funding would lead to layoffs of frontline staff, cuts to care, and longer waits for patients. Can the Premier tell us why he failed to meet either of these targets in his budget? Questions from the Premier? Again, Mr. Speaker, we have a little math problem here, but I'll watch what I say for you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, again, our budget was incredible. We took care of childcare, childcare that if you have a child up to 7 years old, you'll get a $6,000 credit. From 7 to 16, you'll have $3,750, and if you have a child with special needs, you'll get an $8,000 credit. Even the Toronto Sun was shocked saying we're spending too much. So, you know, when the Toronto Sun's saying we're spending too much and the Toronto Star's saying absolutely nothing, I think we hit it bang on. Absolutely bang on. I said during the election, we'd find 4 cents on the dollar, and we were mocked by the opposition because they've never found a penny in their entire lives of driving efficiencies, Mr. Speaker. We found 8% efficiencies putting that money back into education, back into healthcare, back into daycare. Thank you. The member for Essex will come to order. Start the clock, supplementary question. Thank you, Speaker. I just have to remind the Premier that the average childcare rip-off rebate is going to be about $1,250, so for a family that's got expenses of $20,000 for childcare, it's not going to make a hill of beans a different speaker. Stop the clock. The government side will come to order and allow the leader of the opposition to ask her questions. And you don't heckle the chair. Apologize to the leader of the opposition. Start the clock. Thank you, Speaker. Well, the bottom line is that the facts are clear. The Premier's budget bill will mean cuts to our healthcare system, notwithstanding that he promised during the campaign that he wasn't going to touch the healthcare system. We are already seeing the impact, Speaker, of the government's cuts. The Grand River Hospital now says more layoffs may be coming after cutting 40 nursing physicians earlier this year. And communities are reeling from the news that the government plans to shudder over two-thirds of public health units and cut $200 million from their budgets. Does the Premier understand that his budget will in fact lead to healthcare cuts? Premier? Mr. Speaker, finance minister. Mr. Speaker, the people of Ontario should be absolutely insulted by that last comment. Our care program is one of the most flexible childcare programs in the history of the province, providing up to 75% of childcare for 300,000 families in Ontario. It's designed, Speaker. It builds on the existing benefits while puts more money in the pockets of families who are especially families in need. I think you should be absolutely ashamed of that comment, and I hope you're going to stand up and retract that prudeness and that comment. Well, Speaker, here's what people are saying about the Premier's cuts. The chair of the Toronto Board of Health says, The chair of the Toronto Board of Health says, and I quote, these cuts are deeply concerning, and they are dangerous. The medical officer of Health for SIMCO, says it means, quote, huge disruptive change. The people of Ontario want schools and hospitals, Speaker, that they can count on. That's what they've told me for years now, and instead they have a Premier that's selling them on a new colour of licence plate, while he fires nurses and teachers. How can the Premier justify the cuts to hospitals and public health? Once again, the member for Sioux St. Marie must come to order. Some members are not always in their seats. I don't think I need to explain that either. Start the clock. The question has been referred to the Minister of Finance. Thank you, Speaker. The province is building a sustainable future. We're fighting for Ontario workers, and we're protecting frontline services. Every single air corner of the province of Ontario will receive economic benefits. Speaker, we are adding $17 billion in infrastructure into the healthcare sector. $13 billion of infrastructure into the education sector. We are adding $384 million into hospitals this year. $267 million into home care facilities this year. $1.75 billion to build 15,000 home care units and upgrade another 15,000. Speaker, these are reasonable, responsible, and incredible investments by this party, all while protecting frontline healthcare, frontline education, and frontline critical social services. Thank you. Thank you, Speaker, but the government's fantasy is going to hit people hard, and they're going to see it pretty soon. Families have a lot of questions about the Conservatives' government's first budget and rightfully so. Questions like what programs are going to be cut as a result of the $1 billion being taken out of the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services. Families are still being left in the dark about whether they can rely on special services at home. Notwithstanding the fact that the government promised them that they would have an answer in the budget, there wasn't anything there to give them that answer. And that's a program which supports families who are caring for children with disabilities. They don't even know if the waitlist for funding is still frozen, Speaker. So my question is why is the Premier cutting a billion dollars from the programs that support the most vulnerable children and families in Ontario, while cruelly leaving families in the dark about what will happen to them? Members, please take their seats. The questions to the Premier refer to the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services. The premise of that question, and it is irresponsible and once again, baseline fear-mongering from the official opposition. Let me be perfectly clear. The Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services is now the third largest spend in the province of Ontario. It was the fourth largest spend under the previous Liberal Administration. Funding has gone up by $300 million in this ministry, and the special services at home, as I told the members opposite last week, the week before, and the week before that, is going to continue to be funded. People are getting their letters and their allocation is happening now. But let me also be perfectly clear. After 15 years of reckless mismanagement by that Liberal Government that was there mismanaging the funds of this ministry, that is why we're dealing with a patchwork disjointed system where more kids are languishing on the waitlist just as they did with autism. Thank you. Well, Speaker, the sad thing is now the families in Ontario are ricocheting into reckless cuts, and that is something that nobody told me that they wanted to see. You know, parents were repeatedly told by this government that they would know more about funding for supports like special services at home after the budget. But the budget has been released, and families are still in the dark, Speaker. Since the Premier can't assure families that special services at home waitlists are no longer frozen, perhaps he can ease the anxiety of adults with disabilities who are feeling very, very worried about potential cuts to the passport program. Is the government cutting the passport program, Speaker? Yes or no? Member for Ottawa South come to order. Minister. No, we are not. This is the problem. The previous government left 5,700 kids languishing on a waitlist which began in January of 2018 after a three-year funding commitment ended in March of 2017 well before we took office. Our government for the people is protecting what matters most through the 2019-2020 budget, including the special services at home. Again, Speaker, this is a ministry who's increased its spending for $300 million this fiscal year, but we're reforming social assistance. We believe in giving people a hand up. We believe that people should be working where they can. And this is where the previous Liberal government and the current official opposition vehemently disagree with us. They would rather hold people down. We would rather lift them up. That's what this government is doing. That's what this budget is doing. I'm going to ask the member for Waterloo to come to order. Start the clock. Next question, the member for Willowdale. My question is for the Premier. Last week we were all very excited to wear yellow and support our incredible Minister of Finance as he delivered our government's first budget. Mr. Speaker, we knew when we came into government we had our work cut out for us. The Liberals left behind a $15 billion deficit and a 15-year legacy of tax and spend policies with nothing to show for it. Thankfully, on Thursday we laid out our plan to show the people of Ontario exactly how we will clean up the mess the Liberals left us and protect what matters most to the people of Ontario, like our world-class healthcare and education systems. Could the Premier please explain to this House our government's responsible plan to return our province to balance while providing much need to families, individuals and businesses? Good question. I want to thank our incredible MPP from Willowdale and I'm sure the folks from Willowdale are happy. They're happy about the transit. They're actually going to have transit now in Willowdale that they would have never had under the previous government. They're happy with the healthcare, the education, making sure we're taking care of seniors, making sure we have daycare. But most importantly, Mr. Speaker, they're happy that we're putting $26 billion back into their pockets and businesses over the next six years to stimulate the economy to get the economy moving. Right now, our economy is on fire. Everywhere we're going, everywhere we're going, people are saying we need to hire more people. There's not enough people out there to fill the jobs because, Mr. Speaker, we've given business owners small, medium and large certainty. Certainty that we have a government that's going to make sure that we lower taxes, not only on individuals but on businesses, until they can reinvest in equipment, into their people and make... And I'll remind the members, when the speaker stands up, your microphone goes dead and you need to conclude your remarks. It is now, start the clock again, supplementary. The member for Willow... Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Premier for his response. It is really exciting to see the progress our government is making for the people of Ontario. And I'm confident that our government will deliver on our promises and bring relief to families and businesses after far too long. Just look at what we've already accomplished in 312 days. Our budget builds off of our early success and lays out our plan for the years to come. After 15 years of liberal inaction and broken promises, the people of Ontario finally have a government that will keep its word. Could the Premier please inform the House about the types of changes the people of Ontario will see through Budget 2019? The member for Don Valley East has to come to order. Premier, to reply. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And again, thank you for the MPP from Willowdale. My friends, when we came into office, there was a financial mess, a financial disaster that the Liberals and the NDP created. The NDP supported the Liberals 98% of the time. They believed in big spending, big taxes. We're turning the ship around, Mr. Speaker. But we're turning it around responsibly. We're turning it around thoughtfully. And I can tell you, the leader of the opposition and the Liberals were caught, as I said earlier on, flat-footed. Along with the Prime Minister, he was caught flat-footed. There was nothing more than they wanted to see the cuts. But you know, Mr. Speaker, I said over and over and over again, we're not going to be cutting. We're not going to be slashing. What we're going to be doing is investing. We're going to be investing into the great people here in Ontario. We have the smartest, brightest people in Ontario right here. We have turned the corner on jobs. We've created well over 100,000 new private sector jobs because, again, Mr. Speaker, the companies feel caught. Stop the clock. I've been here to take a seat. I'm going to ask, once again, the member for Don Valley East to come to order, and I'm going to ask the member for Essex to come to order. Start the clock. The member for Essex heads the floor. Thank you very much, Speaker. My question is to the Premier. Speaker, the Premier's love of self-promoting and self-promotion is not a really big surprise to any of us in this House. He slapped signs with his campaign slogan on them at border crossings. He slapped his party colors on license plates and billed it all to the taxpayer. Now we learn that not only has the Premier produced partisan stickers to slap on every gas pump in the province, but he plans to punish any business that refuses to go along with this plan with fines up to $10,000 a day. Speaker, can the Premier tell us how he and his team arrived at a $10,000 a day fine as an appropriate punishment for failing to post-campaign advertisements for Andrew Scheer? Questions to the Premier? Minister of Energy. Referred to the Minister of Energy. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. In this budget, Mr. Speaker, we were protecting what matters most, including the right for the people of Ontario to understand how this job-killing regressive carbon tax is going to impact them. You know, I was speaking to an Indigenous leader in my riding this weekend. He owns a grocery tree, a couple stores. One of his employees was increasing the price of everything in the store to reflect the additional costs of getting those goods to those stores out in northwestern Ontario. Mr. Speaker, let's make no mistake about it. This is a tax on everything. That $377 postcard that the federal government doesn't tell the whole story. It's going to cost school buses more to operate. It's going to cost ambulances more money to operate. It's going to cost small businesses more to operate, Mr. Speaker, and we're going to let the people of Ontario know about it at every turn. Stickers included. Thank you, Speaker. I would say that this is the sort of thing you'd see in a dictatorship, but I think even dictators would be embarrassed of an... Order. The member will withdraw. I withdraw, Speaker. Place your question. Speaker, not only is the Premier spending millions of public dollars on partisan advertisements for his federal counterparts, he's ready to find people of as much as $10,000 a day if they dare to tell him no. Even this Premier has to know this is completely wrong. Will he end his infatuation with stickers and withdraw this legislation today? The question has been referred to the Minister of Energy. Well, Mr. Speaker, we can hardly wait for those stickers to pop up in Essex and see that member explain that one of the members in his caucus wants one of the highest carbon tax... Or was it the highest carbon tax in the world, Mr. Speaker? I have heard from people from one end of the province to the other since we introduced this sticker, Mr. Speaker. The right to know the people of Ontario are going to be paying a price on everything, Mr. Speaker. Those buses that take sports teams from Dryden to Thunder Bay, Mr. Speaker. Government's side comes to order. Making choices is what programs and services they may have to cut is more than $27 million is compromised by paying this additional tax, Mr. Speaker. A sticker, our efforts, Mr. Speaker, to ensure that the people of Ontario know what this job-killing reclusive carbon tax is going to cost, Mr. Speaker, is a top priority for our government. And we're going to stop the clock. Stop the clock. The member for Carlton will come to order. The member for Sault Ste. Marie will come to order and stop pulling up props to taunt the other side. The next question is the member for Mississauga Lake Shore. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the great Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. Last week, the Minister of Finance tabled our budget. Our government planned focused on affordability and protecting what matters most. It has now been two weeks since the federal carbon tax came into effect and it's already clear that the tax threatens the affordability for families and impacting the Institute and services for the people of the province of Ontario. Speaker, over the last several weeks the Minister of the Environment has demonstrated clearly the true cost of the federal carbon tax on nursing homes, colleges and hospitals non-or exempt from this tax. The people of my riding of Mississauga Lake Shore has made it quite clear that this extra cost is simply unaffordable for them. Can the Minister tell this House what the next steps are in fighting the affordability of this province? The Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks. Mr. Speaker and thank you to the member for Mississauga Lake Shore, he's doing a fantastic job there. Mr. Speaker as my learned colleague the Minister of Energy, Mines and Indigenous Affairs said, we have been pointing out $27 million of charges for hospitals, $20 million for colleges and universities. Mr. Speaker, the cost for those on fixed incomes, the cost for businesses, the cost to families $648 for the average family in 2022. So Mr. Speaker, again as my learned colleague said, we will be, as we promised in the campaign, using all the tools at our disposal, including today beginning our court challenge to the unconstitutional federal carbon tax. We are joined Mr. Speaker in this by Saskatchewan we are supported by New Brunswick and we learned last week we will also be joined by Manitoba Mr. Speaker for provinces who stand against this unconstitutional tax and use every tool at our disposal to stop this job-killing, regressive carbon tax. Thank you Mr. Speaker and I thank that great minister for being a huge part of this fight to make Ontario an affordable place to live and raise our family. The people of my riding have been clear they cannot afford any new tax they look forward to a time where they are no longer worried about how far they have to drive their car how much it will cost them to keep their families or how they will put food on their table for too long the people of my riding and Mississauga went unheard while they were asked for lower costs and less taxes they were met with opposition it is time that the voice of the people of Ontario are heard and the actions being taken can the minister tell this house what actions our government has taken to ensure to make life affordable Good question Minister of life Through you to the member as this house knows one of the first things that we did a commitment by our leader and now Premier Doug Ford was to get rid of the job killing cap and trade carbon tax Mr. Speaker that put $268 back in the pockets of Ontarians the opposition and the former government are out of touch Mr. Speaker with affordability as is the federal liberal government they continue along the programs and the policies of the previous liberal government adding cost to a program that is not necessary to fight climate change we know you don't need a carbon tax to fight climate change our made in Ontario plan is building on the progress Ontario has made we will hit the target set by the Prime Minister we will hit the target set by the global community 30% reduction by 2030 but Mr. Speaker we will do it without a job killing progressive carbon tax Thank you next question Member for Waterloo Thank you very much Mr. Speaker my question is to the Premier I am anxiously watching this Ford government's actions they see a volatile Premier and it does not instill confidence the Premier is threatening businesses with fines up to $10,000 a day for failure to participate in his partisan ad campaigns and now buried in his omnibus budget bill are sweeping changes that will make it next to impossible to sue the government the Ford government has already been taken to court by businesses, by citizens, by children and the Premier tell us why he is seeking legal immunity for the actions of his governments Question is to the Premier Mr. Speaker I can't believe what I just heard that businesses don't like this government businesses love this government they love it businesses are one employee, two employees absolutely love it what they don't love Mr. Speaker is the socialist mentality that we've heard in here many a times they don't believe in socialism socialism does not work you put, empower the businesses empower the people put more money into people's pocket they're going to go out and spend it and stimulate the economy, stimulate jobs the last thing I need a lesson from the NDP about businesses Restart the clock supplementary Well this Premier certainly is putting the lawyers in this province to work This is making investment decisions are looking for reliable infrastructure a talented workforce and a predictable business environment government cut funding for infrastructure they cut support for post secondary education and now are saying that they don't want to be liable for their decisions that affect this people certainly the autism I apologize the member stopped the clock the government side has to come to order and allow the questions to be asked in the legislature that's what we do during question period speaker has to hear the questions restart the clock I apologize to the member for Waterloo Thank you Mr Speaker so after these cuts the people of this province are seeking justice and they look to the court system but what does this government do this government is saying that they do not want to be liable for the decisions they're making in this legislature they have a majority government they are overriding the rights of the people of this province this government will do what it wants when it wants and you won't even get your day in court does this government believe that you're above the law Premier to reply minister of economic development go get him I thought the premier had a pretty good answer in the first question from the member from Waterloo but I'll build on that we're doing everything that we can in Ontario to make it more affordable so that businesses in Ontario can be more competitive than other jurisdictions across North America which we are competing with Mr Speaker and that's why we have eliminated the wind, cap and trade, carbon tax Mr Speaker that's why we have lowered business taxes that's why the minister of finance brought in a great step yesterday or last week I should say depreciation for capital investments that's what businesses wanted Mr Speaker the NDP governments of the past the current NDP government in Alberta has seen $75 billion in losses to the economy there that's exactly what we don't want in Ontario Mr Speaker we want an Ontario government that's going to make this the most competitive place in North America to do business we're well on our way to do that 123,000 jobs created under our watch Mr Speaker it's been your seat to vote order start the clock next question thank you Mr Speaker my question is for the minister of finance last Thursday was an exciting day the minister of finance stood in this house and presented our government's first budget a plan to protect what matters most a plan to get these young people working a plan to turn the page and turn the corner after a decade of liberal mismanagement a plan to deliver relief for families and seniors and a plan that instills confidence and hope in the future prosperity of this province could you outline how our government will protect the jobs protect the pocketbooks of families and those for the people of Ontario good question to the minister of finance well thank you Speaker and thank you to the member of King Vaughan for the question and for having us up at the Chamber of Commerce this morning our government has developed a responsible path back to balance while creating jobs and protecting what values most healthcare and education we are ensuring value for money and putting people first in every decision that we make this has allowed us to find savings of approximately 8 cents for every dollar spent in doing so we are able to provide 26 billion dollars in much needed relief to individuals, families businesses, seniors and students through our lift credit our care credit and as the minister of job creation said the job creation investment we are balancing the budget in a responsible manner without introducing any new tax increases yes beautiful supplementary thank you Speaker and thank you to the minister for his leadership and for sharing our plan in Vaughan this morning with the Vaughan Chamber of Commerce Speaker accountability is at the centre and at the heart of this budget that is why Budget 2019 proposes the fiscal sustainability transparency accountability act to ensure political leaders fall through on their word to the people this act penalises politicians who break their word to the people it requires the premier, the minister of finance to pay 10% of the ministerial salaries for each missed public reporting deadline as required by law minister accountability has been absent on Trails Government for too long had such a requirement existed the previous government would have been forced to pay tens of thousands of dollars and that is ensuring transparency and accountability is for all Ontarians so to the minister could you affirm our somber commitment to keep our word and deliver on our promises by restoring accountability and trust back in government once again the minister can ask for a point thank you Speaker the premier is offering an iron clad guarantee as part of the proposed legislation the act would include a premier and a ministerial accountability guarantee the guarantee would require the premier and the minister of finance to pay 10% of their premier and ministerial salaries for each missed public reporting deadline and the minister would also need to publicly explain why the deadline was missed and when the report would be released now this accountability has been missing for far too long in fact had such a guarantee been in place in the previous liberal government the previous premier and the minister of finance would have been required to pay a combined $115,000 in fines for their missed deadlines our government speaker is committed to putting people first restoring transparency and accountability and how we spend every single taxpayers dollar very good next question the member for Stadina very good my question is to the premier last Thursday the premier made it clear that students pursuing post-secondary education are not a priority for this government by cutting over 700 million from colleges and universities the majority of these cuts were to non-repayable OSAP grants leaving low and middle income students to struggle to afford post-secondary education and forcing them to seek more private loans the liberal government doubled tuition fees and flatline per student funding for more than a decade this government can't even manage that why does the premier think students should be settled with even more student debt questions to the premier minister of municipal affairs referred to the minister of municipal affairs and how thanks speaker and I want to thank the honorable member for the question students and their family speaker make great sacrifices to attend university and college they make those sacrifices because for years they've been told that if they work hard and apply themselves and invest in a university or college degree that they're going to find a high-paying job and increasingly speaker unfortunately in our province that hasn't been the case students and their families know that many young people are graduating with great degrees but they're either they don't either have a job or they're underemployed or frankly there are a number of industries that are starved they desperately need skilled workers our current system is clearly not working for Ontario students or for our economy we're embracing embracing changes to our post-secondary system based on outcomes and I'd be pleased to provide more details so what I heard is the minister saying that the family should make even more sacrifices and take on even more debts the $700 million cuts to colleges and universities will have a devastating effect on student affordability but to make matters worse this government intends to tie as much as 60% of college or university's funding to meeting some unspecified and undisclosed performance targets up from 1% now having 60% of funding determined by the premier's whims creates instability and makes long-term planning impossible taking money away from institutions makes it more difficult to achieve those targets in the following year creating a downward spiral is the premier trying to create a crisis in our colleges and universities just as he is with our elementary and secondary schools the member opposite from Spadina Fort York called our plan frightening and I think the NDP need to clarify what's so scary about ensuring that students have quality jobs in Ontario after they graduate frankly speaker what's frightening is the fact that the NDP are opposed to ensuring that tax dollars are actually delivering the results for students and for their families we're embracing changes to our post-secondary education system that are modern that are forward thinking that actually lead to an outcome of a well-paying job what we're trying to do is shift the funding to universities and colleges that are more dependent on student outcomes and it's clear right from the start right from the start that what's frightening in this province is the fact that the NDP continue they continue to speak for the status quo and they don't embrace actually trying to connect that student with that Thank you my question is for the minister of finance our government's first budget takes clear action to protect what matters most for years to come while providing relief to families and individuals today we're also balancing the budget in a responsible manner without introducing any new taxes this budget puts people first after 15 years of liberal waste and mismanagement we have put forward a plan to restore trust in government and put more money in people's pockets an example of our government's commitment to spending money responsibly and bringing relief to those who need it most is the childcare access and relief from expenses tax credit could the minister please explain the importance of the care tax credit and how our government is supporting parents in Ontario great question Mr. Finance thank you to the member from Cambridge for the question we believe that parents not government should make the decisions that are best for their children that is why we are proposing the childcare access and relief from expenses tax credit or thankfully care for short the care tax credit would be one of the most flexible childcare initiatives ever introduced families could receive up to $6,000 per child under 7 $150 for children between 7 and 16 and up to $8,250 per child with severe disability regardless of age care would provide about 300,000 families with 75% of their eligible childcare expenses choosing appropriate childcare is among the most important decisions a parent will ever make our plan puts parents not bureaucrats not politicians at the centre of that decision thank you supplementary thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you to the minister for his response we are so excited to see our government proposing thoughtful solutions that respect parents and provide them the support that they need under the previous government parents were too often forgotten suffering under the weight of increasing taxes and increasing expenses with no relief in sight thankfully our government is reversing this trend and bringing relief to the people of Ontario we are supporting parents and putting them in charge of making important decisions for their children and we are helping those who need it most could the minister please explain how the care tax credit will bring the greatest relief to the public the minister of education referred to the minister of education I am pleased to share with you today that the tax credit that care tax credit will build on the childcare expense deduction which will continue to provide provincial and federal tax relief towards eligible childcare expenses while the CCED provides greater relief on average to higher income families I am so pleased to share with everyone that the care tax credit will provide a higher credit rate to families with lower incomes filling the gap in support for these families we cannot understate how important this support for lower income families need to be in some cases the care tax credit might mean a parent will join the workforce or decide to work more hours by proposing this flexible support we are empowering parents to make their children and best for their families the next question the member for Brampton center my question is to the minister of health and long-term care last thursday the conservatives revealed their scheme to cut $200 million in health care funding by dropping from 35 public health units to just 10 public health units protect us and our communities in a very cost effective way they administer vaccines that help us keep us from getting sick that can help us avoid expensive stays in the hospital they inspect restaurants to ensure hygienic practices are being followed and they make sure that our water is safe to drink public health's bottom line is to keep us safe and that's a hard job to do when more than 25% of their funding is cut does the minister know that her cuts to public health will make us all less safe minister of health and long-term care well we can certainly agree that the role of public health is very important and that's what we're trying to do with modernizing our entire system of health care our public health care system to make sure that people can receive access to better more connected services that's what we're doing with public health allowing it to be more responsive by having a smaller number of units being able to mobilize in case there's a public health emergency that's the goal here and we have had lots of support from that and Ottawa is certainly in favor of our plan and points out that smaller health units have long had problems with recruiting staff so we want to make sure that our health units are going to be appropriately staffed and are going to be ready to respond quickly in cases of emergency supplementary we've been here before under the last conservative government and the results aren't good we know what happens when public health is not funded even worse Mr. Speaker it is this government's plan to cut the number of public health laboratories as well Ontario has 11 public health laboratories all over this province the labs test for infectious diseases and help public health officials identify disease outbreaks in our province our public health laboratory system is one of the best systems in the world we should be investing in the system not cutting it can the minister tell us if her government will allow public health agencies to our public health laboratories to for profit companies our public health units and public laboratories will continue to be well funded and will continue to do the great work that we're doing we want to modernize the system so that we can be responsible and responsive to any public health emergencies that come forward and as the member will know there are situations in Ontario where we're having outbreaks of things like viruses and viruses people not getting their children vaccinated that is an important role that public health will continue to play and as we develop our local public health teams public health is going to be a key component of that so we greatly value the work that they're going to do and we want them to continue into our modernized transform system of health care that's what we're working on and that's where we will end up with public health in the forefront as it should be thank you very much and the member for Hastings, Lennox and Addington thank you Mr Speaker my question today is to our truly compassionate capable and caring minister of health and long term care Mr Speaker last week Minister Fidelli delivered our government's first budget and confirmed our commitment to building a connected and sustainable public health care system for the people of Ontario and it's imperative that our budget protects the core services that matter the most like health care while restoring of course fiscal sustainability to the people of Ontario this budget also acknowledges the importance of supports for low income seniors and the minister please inform the house as to what our government is doing to help low income seniors with their dental care Minister of health long term care thank you very much to the member from Hastings, Lennox and Addington for this important question and no senior in Ontario should go without quality dental care and we know what the figures are Mr Speaker preventable dental issues lead to more than 60,000 emergency visits per year in our hospitals a significant portion of which are led by seniors that's why we're going to be investing nearly 100 million dollars per year in the dental care for low income seniors so that they can receive the high quality dental care that they deserve this new program will assist Ontario seniors by increasing funding for dental services in our public health units in our community health centers and Aboriginal health access centers and investing new dental services in under serviced areas with mobile dental buses Mr Speaker we are building a coordinated connected public healthcare system that puts the needs of Ontario's patients first thank you Mr Speaker well thank you Mr Speaker and oral health is vital for everyone and I thank you for recognizing that minister because poor oral health can make day to day tasks like speaking and chewing very very difficult especially for our seniors Mr Speaker two thirds of low income seniors in Ontario do not have access to dental insurance that's two thirds of Mr Speaker of seniors who cannot even properly digest their food Mr Speaker this is totally and simply unacceptable can the minister explain how our government dental program will enhance the lives of Ontario seniors thank you Mr Speaker through you I'd like to thank the member very important question as the member stated two thirds of low income seniors in Ontario do not have dental issues I just cannot believe Mr Speaker that the Liberals supported by the NDP when government for last 15 years created a huge debt an incredible deficit and yet they did not allow our low income seniors to fix the income which debt could get the proper dental care that they needed Mr Speaker champion our leader now our premier doctor promised cancer care for low income seniors and this government I could not hear the minister who had the floor because of the ovation from the government side had to stand up and interrupt them cut them off start the clock next question the member for University Rose Day this is a question to the minister of transportation before the election the premier promised to double the transit transfer to municipalities on Thursday the premier gave himself a standing ovation for breaking this promise this cut to plan transit funding means the city of Toronto will lose $1.1 billion over 10 years that was going to be spent on investments like repairing buses, making stations accessible ensuring the subway air conditioning works and reducing delays and breakdowns on our transit system now the city will either have to raise fares raise taxes, cut service or allow the system to crumble why did the premier break his promise to Toronto transit riders questions to the minister of transportation thank you very much Mr. Speaker and thanks member opposite for that question this government has come out with some great transportation announcements throughout this province we are investing $28.5 billion for expansion throughout the Toronto area the GTA area we have expanded from $1.2 million to the Ottawa LRT we have promised $1 billion to Hamilton we are promising to rebuild the 401 between Tilbury and Elgin County Mr. Speaker we are making investments necessary and Mr. Speaker just last year with regards to the gas tax program we gave out over $364 million in gas tax funding to 107 municipalities to provide public transit service to 104 communities across Toronto the member opposite made reference to the TTC and I am glad she did because we are in the middle of a terms of reference agreement to create a new partnership with the city of Toronto that would upload the maintenance cost of the subway system to the province so I hope she will be supportive as we move forward with this upload Mr. Speaker thank you Mr. Speaker back to the minister of transportation the premier cut over $3 billion in planned funding that was promised for municipal transit systems over the next 10 years over 100 municipalities lost the transit funding they were promised money that these municipalities were counting on they were counting on this additional funding to begin flowing this year not years down the road this year people will feel the impact of this cut immediately if the premier can applaud himself for breaking this transit promise why should anyone believe that he will keep his other transit promises Minister thank you again for that question for the member opposite Mr. Speaker I just invested heavily throughout the entire province with regards to transit and infrastructure Mr. Speaker I just announced the $28.5 billion investment in subways but on top of that we just recently announced $1.3 billion investment in the upgrade of highways and provincial bridges throughout the entire province the minister of infrastructure has a number of funds out there that are going to help small municipalities with their infrastructure needs and possibly create new transit opportunities Mr. Speaker we maintain and gave $364 million to 107 municipalities I don't know why that's bad news to the members of the opposite side Mr. Speaker we're committed to the gas tax program Mr. Speaker and we're going to continue to support all the municipalities throughout this province including Toronto thank you thank you and good morning Mr. Speaker my question is for the minister of education last week it was great to see a budget that invests in our education system in a responsible and measured manner I know many parents in my writing of Mrs. Saga Streetsville were relieved to hear about how we're building on our plans for education and to hear about the investments we're making can the minister of education tell us about what she's heard since the government rolled out a path towards responsible and impactful spending in our education system Minister of Education I have a question very much from the member from Mrs. Saga Streetsville because I was actually in Mrs. Saga on Saturday seeing what we're embracing come to fruition first hand with excitement that absolutely filled the arena as we I attended the first robotics provincial championships and I'm so pleased to see that our investment in this type of initiative is paying dividends and again the first robotics provincial championship was held this past weekend schools from across Ontario participated and I'm so pleased to say that we're going to have great representation in the world competition in Detroit while I was at the provincial competition I saw so many amazing things happening speaker the students were working hand in hand professionalism and grace were part of the two founding principles that the teams were evaluated on and we have a team this type of initiative does not discriminate children of all ages in high school thank you supplementary and thank you to the minister for that response it is refreshing to hear that we finally have a government that will put our students first and focus our dollars directly on benefits to students I know the previous liberal government left in a state of disrepair while at the same time failing to support our students I know the minister has taken steps towards modernising our classrooms but can the minister tell us more about what the government will do to invest in our schools and ensure our students are successful Minister absolutely thank you so much this budget that we shared on Thursday is great news for the education system in Ontario we're talking about modernising our education system in order to update curriculum to better utilise technology and give students the skills they need to succeed and you know with the budget and our plan for education that works for you we're introducing new measures that will help make Ontario students leaders in education around the world once again by investing more in education every year we're going to be focusing on key pieces to improve our schools due to the previous government's extreme mismanagement of this file there aren't too many schools in Ontario we're frankly left in a state of disrepair that's why over the next year we're going to be committing another 1.4 billion dollars in renewal of repairs opposition come to order thank you next question thank you speaker my question is to the premier speaker the concern of governments first budget is bad news for the north ministries that are dedicated to the development of the northern economy like the ministry of natural resources and forestry, the northern development and mines has been cut by hundreds of millions of dollars there wasn't even lip service to the billion dollars in funding needed to build the roads to the ring of fire even the governments announced their own intentions to interfere with the successful northern Ontario heritage fund instead of investing in the north why is the premier choosing to cut funding for northern Ontario economy development questions in the premier through you Mr. Speaker I'll pass this after I answer this question over to the great minister of northern affairs as he told me this weekend he travelled in the car 840 kilometers all over the north he's an absolute champion but Mr. Speaker today this morning went to the prayer breakfast with everyone from all different parties there was no political stripes as I said when it comes to prayer we're all of the same stripe so Mr. Speaker I thought I'd do the right thing and it wasn't the leader of the oppositions fault she had another event and I respect that so I did the right thing Mr. Speaker I did a prayer for it I did a prayer considering the leadership reviews coming up in a month so I prayed for the leader now voted in and she stays on for the next three years thank you Mr. Speaker supplementary again to the premier Speaker quite frankly I was there this morning and yes we need prayers but with this premier we need a miracle Speaker to make matters worse this government made deep cuts to infrastructure spending which will mean less funding to improve northern roads bridges schools and hospitals but once again refuse to commit to reinstating the Northlander passenger rail service the short line between Sault Ste. Marie the Sudbury the line in regards to the connector between Hearst and Sault Ste. Marie and as we all know the cuts to education will hit rural and northern schools the hardest Premier why are you making life harder for those that live in northern Ontario Questions to the premier referred to the minister of energy northern development thank you thank you Mr. Speaker in a marked if not complete departure from the truth the member opposite has chosen to mislead and misguide the people of Northern Ontario the member will withdraw oh withdraw end up and audibly say withdraw withdraw please respond thank you Mr. Speaker as I have heard from folks across northern Ontario over the past several days they appreciate the fact that it was actually a minister of finance from northern Ontario who authored this plan supported of course by our entire caucus Mr. Speaker creating new opportunities through the northern Ontario internship program Mr. Speaker creating new transit opportunities for all of northern Ontario Mr. Speaker responding to the forestry and mining sector Mr. Speaker sending incentives so that northern Ontario can flourish Mr. Speaker I'm pretty sure they got the message loud and clear it was good feedback Mr. Speaker and I appreciate that thank you thank you Mr. Speaker to the minister of health and long-term care Mr. Speaker our first budget takes a responsible approach to balancing the budget it restores confidence in Ontario's finances while protecting what matters most our health care and education systems are part of our government's plan to end hallway health care and build a modern, sustainable and integrated health care system starts and ends with the patient I'm proud to be part of a government that is investing in the front lines of our health care system can the minister please inform the members of this house what our government is doing to support Ontario's hospitals and front line workers questions to the minister of health and long-term care we are building a health care system for the people a public health care system we are taking a comprehensive approach to modernizing and by relentlessly focusing on the patient experience and on better connected care we will end wait times and end hallway medicine that's why we are investing in the front lines of our health care system with an extra $422 million for Ontario's hospitals which will receive on average an increase in funding including $384 million as new investments we are building a connected and sustainable health care system that will meet the needs of all Ontarians for now and well into the future thank you thank you that concludes our member for Hastings thank you Mr. Speaker a number of years ago I got engaged in politics and at that particular time one of my first staff here today on behalf of the automobile organization of Ontario Andrew Wallasek thank you thank you to inform the House of pursuant to standing order 71B the member for Hamilton West and Caster Dundas has notified the clerk of her intention to file notice of a reasoned amendment to the motion for second reading of bill 100 an act to implement budget measures and to enact amend and repeal various statutes the order for second reading of bill 100 may therefore not be called today this House is in recess until 1pm