 It is now time for oral questions, and I recognize the leader, the official opposition. Speaker, before I start, I just think it's important for us to send our thoughts and prayers and hopefulness to the people of Paris with the loss of much of the Notre Dame Cathedral. I'm sure it's a horrifying time for all of them, and hope that the rebuilding is able to go forward. My first question, Speaker, is to the Acting Premier. The Ford government's cuts in our classrooms continue to erode the quality of our children's education. This morning, we learned of new classroom cuts. The Peel School Board has announced 120 teachers will be laid off at the end of the school year, and in Peterborough, teachers say they're expecting 55 fewer jobs. Is the Minister still claiming there won't be cuts in the classroom? To the Deputy Premier. The Minister of Education. The Minister of Education. Thank you very much. And what I want to share with everyone in the House today is that, again, this is the time of year, that year in and year out, school boards across this province take a look at their roster. They take a look at how many people are retiring. They're taking a look at how many people are coming back into the classroom from coaching or other projects that the school boards may have drawn them from the classroom originally for. And, you know, I want to share an article that was in the Guelph Mercury, I believe it was, regarding Guelph's upper grand district school board on March 30th. And specifically, I want to quote Gundy Rabour. We've always been lucky. As long as I've been president of the local and even when I was vice president, we never had teachers go into this next school year without being recalled. So again, Speaker, that's proof in the pudding that this is an annual exercise that school boards embark upon year in, year out. As they take a look at their roster, rebalance based on the realities of retirement. Thank you. Thank you. Supplementary. Well, Speaker, the foreign government seems to be in denial about the impacts their cuts are having. I'd like to read a letter from a woman named Becky Hujanes that we received, a resident of the Minister of Education's writing of Huron Bruce. Quoting from Becky's letter. Today, my husband, a 38 year old with three children, was told that he will not have a job in September. My husband is a transportation tech teacher. If he's not working in September, that may mean young people choosing a career in the trades won't have access to the auto and farm equipment class that my husband teaches. Not sure who's going to fix your skid steer at your sheep farm. Hope you have a good shovel. Now, this minister has accused the official opposition of fear mongering. The question is, does the minister think her own constituent is fear mongering? Well, Speaker, I would like to share with Becky and her family and everyone in Huron Bruce and absolutely everyone across Ontario that they need to make sure they have a balanced approach to researching what exactly is going on. Because again, as opposed to aiding and abetting the fear mongering that is being perpetuated by the NDP party in Ontario, the realities are this is a regular occurrence that school boards undertake year in and year out. And it doesn't matter what school board says it, the truth of the matter is every school board has to take a look at their roster. How many people are coming back from maternity leave? How many people are retiring? How many people are going back into the classroom after doing a project for the school board? That's what's happening right now, Speaker. And no matter how the NDP party tries to colour it, what they're doing is absolutely shameful because they're perpetuating fear and it really should be stopping. This fear mongering is nonsense. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Government side, come to order. Start the clock. Final supplementary. Well, Speaker, no matter how loud or how often the Ford government denies it, school boards, teachers, parents and students are seeing these cuts every day. They don't want larger classes. Teachers fired and students unable to graduate because the courses they need aren't available. Like the tech course that Becky's husband is no longer going to be teaching. I'm going to quote Becky's letter again and in fact I'm going to send it over to the Minister via page when maybe she can read along. It says, this is not a province that is a place to grow right now. It's a province that is losing precious resources, ruining careers and killing opportunities for future generations. When will the Minister stop denying that her classroom cuts are really damaging and are really going to damage our students, Speaker? Minister. What I would like to know is when is this leader of the NDP party going to stop the fear mongering because what's damaging right now is the fact that this party opposite is absolutely doom and gloom and the fact of the matter is this is an annual routine. And you know, I want to put this party on notice actually, Speaker, when I think about it. This party, the NDP party of Ontario needs to be put on notice because classrooms and school boards should never be a place to play politics and that's really what's happening. That, Speaker, truth be known, they're just trying to play politics and we are not going to fall for it. We're focusing on making sure the learning environment in the classroom is as positive and as productive as possible, all focused on student achievement. So shame again on this NDP party for trying to perpetuate politics in an area where it never should be long. Thank you very much. Question? Once again, the leader of the opposition. Well, Speaker, my next question is to the acting Premier as well but I can say there is nothing routine about a government that wants to cut education to the point where it's going to ruin opportunities for the young people at this province. The four governments, one billion dollar cut to social services has left families across Ontario worried about their future. We're joined today by a mom from Toronto, Faith and her son Jeremy. Jeremy has autism and for the past year has been receiving supports through special services at home. This program has been a great help to their family but since their supports ran out over two weeks ago, Speaker, they've heard nothing at all from the ministry about whether or not they will still be receiving funding. So my question is to the acting Premier, will she tell Faith, Jeremy and families across this province what changes are coming to the special services at home program in Ontario today? Member for King Vaughan will come to order. Question is to the Deputy Premier. To the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services. Thank you. Appreciate the opportunity to speak to Faith and Jeremy directly about special services at home as I have done in the past number of weeks. If they are currently receiving support from SSAH, they're going to continue to receive that. If there is a dual diagnosis, which I expect that there is, I'm encouraging them on May 1 to be part of our online survey at ontario.ca forward slash autism, but let me be perfectly clear to the member opposite. She just accused the Minister of Education for cutting education. She has actually increased her budget by $700 million. She has accused the Minister, but instead it has been increased by $1.3 billion. And she has just accused me of cutting the social services budget by $1 billion. In fact, we've increased it by $300 million. That's at $2.3 billion. From the government side, come to order. Minister of Energy, Northern Development and Mines, come to order. Member for Carlton, come to order. Member for Waterloo, come to order. The Member for Northumberland will come to order. Where are we setting the bar today? Start the clock. Supplementary. Well, thank you, Speaker. I can't tell you how shocked I am that the minister who promised people that they would get information about special services at home in the budget are now told they have to wait until the 1st of May to participate in an online survey. Instead of getting services, they're reaching out many, many times. Faith still has no answers about what the next year or more will look like for her and her family. And she's not alone, Speaker. There's a wait list of 5,700 families that started in January all waiting for news from this minister. And the only news they've received is that the Ford government is planning a billion dollars, yes, a billion dollars in cuts from this ministry. If this government has a plan for special services at home, why are they leaving people in limbo? And when will they finally get the answers that they need? These families need to know what their future looks like. It's her responsibility to tell them... Minister to reply. She keeps pointing that finger. It might fall off, but, Speaker, let me be perfectly clear. I understand she's angry. She demonstrates that every single day in the House she will not accept yes for an answer. We've told her for the past three weeks that letters will be going out this week to the 28,000 families who are currently with on SSAH, and we're going to continue to support them. We have a wait list of over 5,000 people, but where the member opposite told this House it was in January, what she neglected was it was January, 2018, six months before this government took office. It's a time for a bit of honesty from the other side of the legislature to make sure that what they're talking about is the truth, and they're not fear-longing to help. I'm going to caution all members on the use of language. Obviously, we need to ensure that our language is parliamentary. I'm going to ask the minister to withdraw the unparliamentary comment. Sure, no problem, Speaker, but I want to be perfectly clear. We are... Get to simply say I withdraw. Withdraw? And could I finish my... Still have time? Is it time? Yeah, sum up your response. This ministry is increasing its budget by $300 million. If they can't take my word for it, take the minister of finances. Final supplementary for the opposition. Speaker, this government has put faith and Jeremy along with other parents and children across the province in a position where everybody is losing. In the absence of any communication from the ministry, faith has had to forgo registering her son for recreational activities like summer camp and a soccer team. This soccer team has been extremely important for Jeremy, and he actually wrote a letter to the minister that he's hoping that he won't have to miss out on his favourite activity. In fact, I'm asking Julia to send that letter to the minister in case she missed it the first time. And at the same time, faith is even looking at losing her respite worker because she can't secure her assistance without the support of special services at home. Speaker, no family deserves to be treated like this by their government. No children should be treated this way by their government. My question to the minister is does she have to say to faith and Jeremy and all of those other thousands of families today? Thank you. Response from the minister? The leader of the opposition, as she has been since she's become leader of the opposition, is once again fear-mongering with vulnerable families in the province of Ontario, and I'm not going to have it. I have indicated for the past three weeks those receiving special services at home will continue to receive it. They will receive their letters and they will receive that support, but we do have 5,000 families that we need to get support to as a result of the previous Liberal Governments Administration. We're going to try and fix that. We do have the care tax credit in place. All of these families will be eligible for up to $8,200 as a result of the decision by the minister of finance and minister of education for childcare. That's a great lift up and a great support. In addition, if there is a dual diagnosis, we are right now investing in an historic amount of money and we're about to double that and we're asking people to be part of that process at ontario.ca for more flash autism we want to hear from Ontario families. Restart the clock. Next question, once again, the leader of the opposition. Thank you so much, Speaker. My next question is to the Acting Premier. With each passing day, it's clear that the Ford Government's reckless and dangerous cuts to frontline health care are going to hurt families across Ontario. We've just received news that the Government plans to eliminate 42 of Ontario's 52 land and ambulance services. Will the minister confirm this today in the House? Deputy Premier, Mr. Health and Long-Term Care. Thank you. Well, as we've already heard in the House this morning, the Ministry of Health's budget is increasing by $1.3 billion for next year services but we're also modernizing the system. We've talked about modernizing the entire health care system. We're also modernizing emergency health services in Ontario by building a more integrated dispatch service and communication delivery service. It's going to make sure that Ontarians receive the care they need in a more timely manner. We are going to be upgrading the technology that's going to be used by ambulance communication centres better connecting ambulance communication centres, dispatchers and paramedics and introducing new models of care to make sure the patients receive the treatment that they need. This is going to help ease hospital hallway health care because it's going to make sure that they can get treatment to where they can receive treatment that doesn't necessarily have to be in an emergency department. It could be a mental health service in the community, for example. This is to ensure that we create better, more connected, timely access to care for patients in Ontario. Supplementary question. Well, Speaker, the government's reckless and dangerous health care cuts are putting families at risk. Yesterday, Dr. David Mowit, described plans to eliminate public health units as dangerous. Now we're learning that the government has plans to dramatically cut land ambulance services. The Association of Municipalities of Ontario says they are shocked and deeply concerned by the news of this cut. Can the minister tell families across Ontario how long they will have to wait for an ambulance under this new reckless scheme cooked up by this government? In fact, under the new plan that we have coming forward, people will receive more timely access because they will be better communication between the dispatchers and the ambulance services so that they will know the situation they're dealing with by the time they come to see the patient. They will then be able to connect that patient with the services that they need, whether it's in hospital, whether it's in the community. And paramedics should not be concerned about this. I would anticipate that they would be happy about this because they're going to have better tools to do their job, that they can help their patients to make sure that every patient receives excellent connected care. So there's nothing for paramedics to be worried about. They will continue to do their excellent work and we will need more of them than ever. So we look forward to our conversations with them or with other service providers because there's a lot of miscommunication out there about what's actually happening when we have had the full discussion with the paramedic services and the other providers in care to encourage and be happy about what's moving forward with because it's going to be new technology, new tools. My question is for the Minister of Finance. For 15 years drivers in Ontario have looked for relief in our auto insurance system. Ontario's auto insurance system has gone through a series of ineffective patchwork reforms that have never resulted in lasting change and nothing quite compares to the broken promises and stretch goals of the Liberals and NDP. Auto insurance rates in Ontario are now higher than they were a decade ago and are consistently among the highest in our country. Our drivers deserve better, Mr. Speaker. Thankfully, our government is putting drivers first and listening to their concerns. Could the Minister please explain how the Putting Drivers First Blueprint Relief in last week's budget would put drivers at the heart of our plan to ensure fairness for our commuters. Thank you. Thank you, Speaker, and thank you to the member from Brenton South. Drivers across the province said it's a clear message. The auto insurance system needs to be more accessible and more affordable. Through our online consultations with 1,000 people across the province, 60% said shopping for and buying auto insurance is difficult and frustrating. 68% agreed. Insurance providers should have more electronic or online tools available. 55% said it was too difficult to tailor their auto insurance policy to meet their needs and 54% reported that insurance policies are complicated and difficult to understand. We heard their concerns and are putting forward a plan that will make the market more competitive, giving drivers more choice, encouraging innovation and ensuring that the needs of the driver are met. Supplementary. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you to the Minister for his response. It's exciting to hear that our government has developed a plan that puts drivers first and will make Ontario's auto insurance more affordable and affordable. The opposition tends to talk a lot about auto insurance and their disjointed and burdensome regulation that will only worsen the system. What drivers in Ontario need is a comprehensive plan to overhaul the entire auto insurance system. That is exactly what Putting Drivers First Blueprint proposes to do. We hope the opposition will support the government's plan to put drivers first and support our budget. There are nearly over 10 million drivers in Ontario who expect us to do everything we can to ensure the auto insurance system is working for them. Could the Minister please explain how Putting Drivers First Blueprint will bring change to the system? Thank you. Minister. Thank you, Speaker. Our government wants to create solutions to make the auto insurance system easier and more convenient to access. We want to allow for electronic proof of insurance and innovative insurance options that meet the drivers' specific needs and the ability for insurance companies to offer more discounts and options to consumers by encouraging competition and innovation in the auto insurance system. We are enabling to better meet the needs of Ontario drivers. Our proposed reforms give control back to the drivers by increasing the range of auto insurance coverage choices available to them by giving them the power to lower their premium cost. Speaker, we will continue to work with drivers and the insurance industry in order to ensure our auto insurance system is more affordable, accessible and puts the driver first. Thank you very much, Speaker. My question is to the Deputy Premier. The Premier seems unwilling or unable to provide details of his plan to force every gas station in the province of Ontario to display a sticker advertising for the Conservative Party of Canada, or they risk a fine up to $10,000 a day if they fail to pledge their allegiance. So, Speaker, maybe the Deputy Premier can help. How many inspectors does the Ford Department offer to put to work spying on businesses that failed to follow orders and display the sticker? And how much will Ontarians pay for paying for, pardon me, how much will Ontario taxpayers pardon me, how much will Ontario taxpayers be paying for sticker promotion and sticker display enforcement? Thank you. Question is to the Deputy Premier. We had one job and you couldn't stick that question, so here's the facts. This is a federal government that has imposed a job-killing regressive carbon tax on the people of Ontario. More and more people who own grocery stores, who run businesses, are talking about having to increase the prices of their products and of their services because of this tax. This needs to stick in the minds of the people of Ontario, not just because of what's being imposed by the federal government, but in the alternative the NDP would have the highest carbon tax in the world, Mr Speaker. These are the words of a member sitting in this legislature, Mr Speaker. I'll let the NDP explain and defend that, especially the Northern Ontario caucus who are hearing from across Northern Ontario how costly this is just beginning to be. Supplementary? Thank you, Speaker. I don't expect much from the minister, but I would expect at least an answer from the minister on this pretty simple question. Speaker, the Ford cabinet seemed pretty embarrassed yesterday as they tried to defend this. I don't blame them, Speaker. The off-the-books personal pleasure wagon was hard to defend, but spending millions of public dollars to produce partisan ads and millions more to force private businesses to either display them or pay fines up to $10,000 a day. Speaker, it's pretty indefensible. There is no gray area here, Speaker. It's just plain wrong. Will the Ford government pull this ridiculous plan today? Members, please take their seats. Minister of Energy to reply. Well, thank you, Mr Speaker. We're actually not the only ones that are going to be putting a sticker to remind people about the price of the carbon tax. Stores across the province are going to have new stickers on their products and their services, and they're going to restore the cost of this job-killing carbon tax. Now, Mr Speaker, the rhetoric from across the floor is embarrassing for them. Ontario has the right to know, Mr Speaker, how much this tax is going to cost them at the gas pumps, how much schools are going to incur increased costs, how much hospitals are going to incur increased costs, Mr Speaker. Everything that we can think of because this is a tax on everything, Mr Speaker, and we're not going to stand for it. We're going to stick it to the Liberals and remind the people of Ontario how much this job-killing aggressive carbon tax. The House will come to order. Both sides of the House will come to order. The Member for Essex will come to order. The Member for Hamilton East, Stony Creek will come to order. Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry will come to order. Start the clock. The next question, the Member for Publical Centre. Mr Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Government and Consumer Services. Yesterday we saw the official launch of Ontario's new exciting license plates. As many members of this House know, there have been numerous issues with the current stock of license plates peeling and delaminating. Mr Speaker, this is not only a frustration for constituents, it could also cost them money if they need to replace them. They should be getting the best value for money possible. Similarly, peeling plates can make it harder for police to identify drivers on the road. Mr Speaker, can the Minister explain how our government is dealing with these peeling plates and how we're ensuring that our government is getting the best product for the lowest cost to Ontario's taxpayers? Thank you very much, Mr Speaker. I want to thank my Honourable colleague from the Topical Centre, for her excellent question and her great representation on behalf of her constituents. Starting February 1, 2020 our passenger license plates will showcase that Ontario is a place to grow and our commercial plates will showcase the world that Ontario is open for business. At no cost to taxpayers, the license plate renewal process enhances the quality, design and production while saving taxpayers millions of dollars each year. The plate will feature high definition sheeting that is stronger lasting than Ontario's current license plate technology. Ontario will guarantee your license plate won't peel or flake for the useful life of the plate. Save insurance, time, hassle and money. And this will also help our law enforcement officials do their job safely. Mr Speaker, we're putting the people back at the centre of everything we do. From license plates to government services to respect for taxpayers and we're just getting started. Mr Speaker. Supplementary. Mr Speaker, back to the minister. For the better part of 15 years it seems the previous Liberals mandate was to spend well beyond its means. Last week we heard more about their wasteful spending when we found out that instead on focusing on improving government services the Liberals placed their focus on spending over 2 million in diluting their own brand. This is shameful. The people of Ontario deserve better and that's why they elected our government for the government to restore accountability and trust in government. Can the minister please tell us what the government is doing to restore respect for taxpayer dollars and improve the accessibility of government programs and services that the people of Ontario depend on? Minister. Pleasure board. Thank you. And thank you to the member from Atopico Centre. Mr Speaker, we made a promise to the people of Ontario to protect their taxpayer dollars and with this new brand identity system we're keeping that promise. Now Mr Speaker I've been waiting for a long time to say this the three men in the tub they're gone, they're done waiting a long time. Mr Speaker this is about saving millions of dollars in future costs this is about bringing back the iconic Trillium logo so that we can have efficiency we don't have multiple spending in sub-brands like the two million dollars done in marketing costs for multiple brands within the previous government. Mr Speaker let me tell you if the previous level government had done the license plate logo and the tag line supported by the NDP I'm sure it would have said Ontario a place to owe. Mr Speaker a place to grow. Restart the clock. The next question the member from Roshkegawak James Bay. Thank you Mr Speaker Welcome to the Minister for Francophone Affairs. Today the French language commissioner tabled it's his last report the report says clearly that the ombudsman will not be able to continue his work that is because neither his mandate or the nature of his work asks to consult communities proactively the minister said last week that the work of the commissioner will keep going within the ombudsman's office the minister also said that the recommendation work will keep being done by the ombudsman given what the commissioner has said does the minister believe that the ombudsman will be able to put forward francophone rights yes or no Thank you Mr Speaker I would like to take the opportunity to thank the commissioner and thank him sincerely for his last report and I would also like to thank his team for its work on francophone rights we have complete trust within the ombudsman to make sure that he keeps putting forward francophone rights in the province and the ministry of francophone affairs will keep working with the ombudsman and provincial ministries to make sure that Franco Ontarians have access to quality services in the language they choose to obtain them the commissioner's position and his mandate to make sure that there are language services and to report on them is not going to be changed under the ombudsman there is no provision that will change this thank you very much Mr Speaker I would like to ask the minister to stop telling Franco Ontarians that the ombudsman will keep doing the commissioner's work as she said on Friday it's not the truth also it is difficult to understand how the minister can pretend to translation member will withdraw I withdraw it is also difficult to understand how the minister can pretend defending francophones when the funding of this ministry has been cut and is now 5.8 million and that the budget only mentioned francophones three times the minister explained several times that transferring this commissioner was being done because of budgetary reasons however the report explains clearly that the economic reasons that were given by the minister are unfunded thank you very much hands up your microphone goes dead sit down the response from the minister thank you Mr Speaker I know the member opposite does not want to accept the reality however the position in the role of the commissioner including the mandate of making sure french services are being given to francophones hasn't changed under the ombudsman all of the of his oversight is also maintained to ask the member opposite to stop telling francophones in Ontario that the commissioner's work and services will be stopped it is important for francophones in Ontario to know that the commissioner's work will keep going if they have complaints they can do it to the ombudsman and he will do the work and give recommendations to the provincial government and so Mr Speaker I'm asking the opposition to stop telling us francontarians that the commissioner's work is going to stop because it is not the reality order start the clock next question the member for Ottawa South thank you very much Mr Speaker my question is for the deputy premier today is advanced care planning day across Canada it's an important day for people to think about what's important to them at the end of their lives we don't want to think about it but it's very important we love the people who live with us so when I look at this year's budget I see that alcohol, beer or wine is mentioned about 50 times and the words palliative care and end of life aren't mentioned at all what I do know is we don't all drink but we're all going to die and I know that there was money put forward in the 2018 budget to support advanced care planning very leveraged money it was in the hundreds of thousands of dollars that money has never flowed will you commit today to flowing that money for advanced care planning deputy premier well I thank the member very much for the question I know the member from Ottawa South has done a lot of work on palliative care and end of life care that's important to you it's important to me as minister of health and long term care but most importantly it's important to the people of Ontario no one wants their loved one when they've been deemed to be in a palliative state to spend their last days in hospital in a clinical setting they don't want them to be in a warm comfortable place where they can receive appropriate pain medication whatever else they need for their last few days we have flowed significant money into creating more hospice care spaces in Ontario that is expanding across the province in many communities it's important for all of us because not everyone can die at home the hospices are performing great work to visit a number of the hospices and they do whatever they can to make a person's last days comfortable including bringing in animals in some cases whatever it is that makes that person feel comfortable and safe and spend their last days in comfort so I will say thank you very much supplementary thank you minister for that answer and I do have to say I appreciate that the work is continuing on from the work in 2017 and 2018 to invest in palliative care in hospices so I'm glad the government did not stop that work I appreciate it very much I do want you to commit to that money for advanced care planning I think it's very important it's very highly leveraged money there's also a movement that's across Ontario in about 11, 12 cities called compassionate communities and that's in my city of Ottawa former mayor Jackie Holsterman largely a volunteer actually a totally volunteer based organization are trying to make our communities more friendly not just for people at the end of their lives but for frail elderly seniors and there's an investment in the last budget as well to support that that investment has not flowed it did not move I would like you to make a commitment to do that as well it's very important very leveraged money that supports people at the end of their lives or when they're at home I would like you to commit to both of those things thank you what I can say to the member is this continues to be a very important issue to us at the ministry of health and long-term care we are going to continue to invest in hospice care funding but we're also going to invest in home care funding we're spending an additional several hundred million dollars in home care funding and what I've heard in my travels as I've been visiting communities that are already providing integrated health care that there is a big commitment to making sure that we can also provide palliative care at home so the home care workers are very keen to do that they want to make sure that they can help people spend their last days at home if they're able to and many families can do that some cannot but for the ones that can we want to make sure that the home care workers have that additional training to be able to provide those services and that is truly patient-centered care that's what we're trying to build in Ontario so we're going to continue to do that thank you very much this question is for the member for Old Hill North thank you speaker my question is for the minister of training colleges and universities speaker with students currently in the midst of exam season I know that many students will be looking for a job after graduation it's becoming far too common for students to work hard and receive their diploma or degree and yet they are unemployed after graduation at the same time speaker businesses in my riding of Oakville North Burlington are constantly saying that they have vacancies for high quality, high skilled high paying jobs can the minister tell us what our government is doing to address this skills gap and ensure that students get the skills they need to ensure that they find high quality jobs Minister of Training colleges and universities in Burlington for her great work students and their families make great sacrifices to attend university and college and they make those sacrifices because for years they've been told that if they work hard that they invested in university or college education that they could find a high quality job this is increasingly not the case and that is why our government is taking steps to ensure that our universities and colleges the current system is not based on how university or college education benefits students but on how many students institutions can enroll that is why our government will modernize post-secondary education by funding institutions based on the outcomes they create for students and the economy thank you speaker supplementary thank you speaker speaker I know that students and their families have already heard that our government is working to ensure that post-secondary education is focused on students and outcomes that will help them get jobs it's clear that for 15 years the previous liberal government defended the status quo under their watch they spent billions of hard-earned tax dollars without ensuring measurable results for the students of this province speaker I know that the minister of colleges and universities on the metrics used to measure the outcomes for students and Ontario can the minister update us on how she is working with institutions on these plans thank you thank you for the report that colleges and universities have expressed support and eagerness to work with our government Mary Lynn West Moynes president of Georgian college said I think it's just good business it's fair that colleges are responsible to people who fund us and that's the taxpayer the council of Ontario university said universities are committed to working with the government to ensure accountability within the public sector on the strategic mandate agreement process to advance transparency, accountability and outcomes linked funding meanwhile the leader of the official opposition has said that institutions are going to be very very concerned and the NDP critic for universities and colleges said our plan was quote frightening speaker it is clear that the NDP are engaging in another fear mongering campaign that is out of touch with reality speaker the NDP need to clarify why they oppose getting students jobs thank you speaker thank you next question the member for Brampton center my question is for the attorney general the government has buried sweeping provisions in their budget bill that will to quote one legal expert place the forward government beyond the reach of the courts and make it difficult and in many cases impossible to sue the government even when it acts in bad faith and breaches duties of its office and quote speaker why is the forward government trying to give itself legal immunity she's to the attorney general thank you Mr. Speaker we have proposed within my ministry legislation that will streamline the process for lawsuits moving involving the government and it will clarify the scope of government liability this law the proceedings against the crown act has been on the book since 1963 and case law has evolved significantly since then so principles of law that have been emphasized over and over again the Supreme Court of Canada are now being codified into our law we are streamlining and clarifying the process for Ontarians who want proceedings against the crown and that means that more time and money can be spent on the things that they need to do money on like lowering hydro bills and helping parents with childcare helping seniors get the dental care they need but Mr. Speaker this is about clarifying and codifying established principles of law supplementary the law will give the government immunity from being sued and for people worried about this government plans that's a very frightening thought only a government that plans on being sued looks for immunity from lawsuits whether it's victims from walkerton or juvenile inmates this government is denying people their right to see a day in court why Mr. Speaker obviously the opposition doesn't understand or hasn't read closely what is contained in the budget bill the proposal if adopted will enshrine the Supreme Court of Canada's decision the government policy decisions cannot give rise to liability for negligence this is an established principle of law Mr. Speaker the purpose of our amendment of our proposed legislation Mr. Speaker is simply to clarify and codify established principles of law against can bring proceedings against the crown on other bases Mr. Speaker we are clarifying and streamlining the process the next question the member for Orléans thank you Mr. Speaker to the Attorney General yesterday legal aid Ontario announced that they are no longer accepting new immigration and refugee clients as of today they made this decision as a result result of this government cuts to legal aid due to the government slashing 30% of the legal aid budget starting in 2021 you know Mr. Speaker it is not in the interest of Ontario to have people without status in our economy and unable to represent themselves this may be the first casualty of these governments cuts to legal aid but it will not be the last so Speaker why does this government believe that providing legal protections to our most vulnerable is not something that matters most to Ontarians Questions to the Attorney General Thank you Mr. Speaker legal aid provides vital services for lower income Ontarians as well as to new Canadians and that's why our government is continuing to fund all provincial legal aid services to immigrants and to refugees within our provincial courts because we care that I have called on the federal government to fund legal aid services for people with cases before federal immigration and refugee board and people with cases in the federal court Mr. Speaker I have called on the federal government I wrote a letter to the federal government and did not receive a response Mr. Speaker the Attorney General made very clear last year in her report that the lack of federal funding was putting the sustainability of legal aid at risk and the lack of funding that has been sent to the federal government and the federal government has failed to own up to its responsibilities and so I asked the member opposite to ask for federal counterparts to answer our letters and work with Stop the clock I say to the government members I had to stand up and interrupt the Attorney General was trying to answer the question because of the audible heckling from the government side and the opposition will come to order Start the clock Supplementary Thank you Mr. Speaker as I said I don't think it's in any interest of Ontarians the way you're responding you do have a responsibility as a government but my question furthermore Mr. Speaker will be this government's reckless cuts to those most vulnerable actually extends to victims of crime Thursday's budget there's legal aid budget by 30% but it cuts funding to support those who are victims of crimes buried in the budget bill and there is a repeal of the compensation for victims of crime act along with this the government will be capping the compensation for pain and suffering for those who have been victims of violence crimes such as sexual assault at $5,000 Speaker and Mr. Speaker I ask the Attorney General how is cutting compensation for victims of crime protecting what matters most the Attorney General well Mr. Speaker thank you for the opportunity to correct the member opposite first of all right now in this province victims of crime who need compensation need to hire a lawyer and often times they have to wait up to 3 years to get a compensation award in 2007 the embusement identified the 3 year wait times for compensation for victims of crime at the criminal injury compensation board and the previous government failed to take action to provide immediate relief for victims of crime Mr. Speaker we are increasing the overall compensation award from $25,000 to $30,000 and Ontario is still one of only 3 provinces in this country that awards pain and suffering we are trying to make sure that victims of crime get the compensation they need faster and without having to come door later the opposition has to come door start the clock next question the member for Mississauga East Cooksville thank you Mr. Speaker my question is to the minister of transportation Mr. Speaker just last week the premier and minister of transportation and infrastructure alongside many of my great colleagues made an historic announcement that my writing of Mississauga East Cooksville is very excited about Mr. Speaker after much anticipation our government for the people announced as part of our new subway transit vision we are building the Eglinton crosstown best extension this will greatly benefit not only the residents of Etobicoke but also the eastern parts of Mississauga and Mr. Speaker I know the premier and minister are working hard to ensure this line connects with Pearson International Airport this is an important connection with the airport being the second largest employment center in the country Mr. Speaker can the minister of transportation share with this house more details about the Eglinton crosstown west extension thank you Mr. Transitation thank you much Speaker and thanks the member for Mississauga East Cooksville for that question he's been a strong advocate for improved transportation Mr. Speaker the member was correct in announcing that we made a historic investment in our budget of 28.5 billion dollars to get the subways expanded and get people moving throughout Toronto and the GTHA region as part of this plan we're investing 4.7 billion that will see the Eglinton crosstown extended further west into Etobicoke and east Mississauga this is exciting news for the people of Etobicoke Mississauga and of the GTHA in general Mr. Speaker I'd like to also commend my friend for the work she's been doing transportation wise her dedication and leading the file on the Eglinton crosstown extension and I'm going to share some more on my supplementary Mr. Speaker supplementary thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you to the minister of transportation for the great response our government for the people was elected on the promise to get the people of Ontario moving our government puts people at the center of every decision we make Mr. Speaker whether it's program policy or service congestion in the GTHA and the region are crippling our economy the people of Ontario have waited long enough and they just want transit built and we are doing just that this is a transit plan for the 21st century Mr. Speaker because these are critical investments that would not be possible without the subway Mr. Speaker can the minister of transportation recommit today that this government will finally deliver the Eglinton crosstown west extension Minister Thanks again for that supplemental Mr. Speaker part of this exciting news ensured that the voices of the area residents were heard Mr. Speaker and I'm proud to tell the people of Etobicoke and Mississauga that the vast majority of this line will be underground just what it should be we will not be ripping up one of the busiest streets in Toronto to build surface rail along Eglinton the people of the community deserve the best and they deserve to ensure the roads are available to get goods moving Mr. Speaker in the 15 years of liberal government Mr. Speaker they were only able to build one extension Mr. Speaker we're going to get to work and we're going to start building building building in this province Mr. Speaker I can tell you that fixing this mess of transit is not going to be easy but we're dedicated as a group as a government to ensure that we get the proper investments in place to expand the transit system to create a truly GTHA regional transportation network that interconnects with one another tries to integrate the system to ensure that we get people and goods moving Mr. Speaker because this is a government that's going to keep its promises promises made promises kept restart the clock member for Kitchener Center Mr. Speaker my question is to the Attorney General last week the government announced their plan to cut 30% of legal aids budget legal aid helps people to obtain social security benefits it helps tenants get necessary repairs done to their homes and workers to get the wages that they're owed it helps victims of domestic violence pursue justice and it helps single parents get the child support that they deserve legal aid ensures that everyone in Ontario has access to justice regardless of their status or their income why is the minister doing everything in her power to reduce people's access to justice question is to the Attorney General would you take your seats thank you Mr. Speaker well I agree with the member opposite legal aid provides vital services for lower income Ontarians in all sorts of areas but for the last five years Mr. Speaker we have seen the provincial government spend more and more money on legal aid while fewer and fewer people have been receiving service that Mr. Speaker isn't access to justice Mr. Speaker we believe that the Auditor General which did a complete review of legal aid proposed 15 worthwhile recommendations and so we're calling on legal aid we're calling on legal aid to implement those 15 recommendations we will work with legal aid through this transition to make sure that those in need of legal aid services are able to get it but Mr. Speaker we're asking legal aid to find 5 cents on every dollar in savings to implement those it means it's responsibilities and funds legal aid services for immigrants and refugees before federal courts and tribunals thank you Mr. Speaker Thank you Mr. Speaker and back to the Attorney General the minister must recognize that these cuts go much much deeper than their cruel abandonment of people seeking asylum from war and persecution this cut will hurt tenants seeking redress from negligent landlords it's going to hurt people living with disabilities who have been denied ODSP coverage and it will hurt parents who are trying to get the child support for their kids lawyers legal experts across the province have expressed serious concern about this government's gutting of legal aid through this budget the Law Society of Ontario the Refugee Lawyers Association of Ontario Amnesty International and other legal experts have all come out against this government's attack on our constitutional right to access our justice system will the minister listen to the experts who warn that the government's deep cuts are going to put people's lives at risk and reverse her callous decision please take your seats Attorney General to reply once again Mr. Speaker I will repeat what I said in my first answer for the last five years legal aid has spent 86 million dollars more and fewer almost 100 more than 100,000 fewer people have received access to those services that doesn't make any sense what legal aid needs is historic fundamental reform lawyers are over-billing with no transparency and no oversight I don't know why the member opposite doesn't think that Ontario taxpayers deserve a system that works for lower income Ontarians by respecting the money that is invested into this program and also has necessary oversight it is a $400 million program that should be working at a very high efficiency level that has not been working well the auditor general spent a lot of time going through the different initiatives at legal aid Ontario we are calling on legal aid to implement those recommendations and my ministry will work closely with them to make sure that lower income Ontarians continue to have the access to justice that they need thank you thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the Minister of Infrastructure last month the minister was in Germany with a clear message from our government that Ontario is a place to grow and put your money and expand your business he made it clear that Ontario is open for business and that our government is taking steps to make it even better by lowering taxes, cutting red tape and reducing regulatory burdens Mr. Speaker this is encouraging to hear and put this province back to balance and fiscal responsibility the minister also announced an infrastructure Ontario a ground agency known around the world for developing public partnerships we'll be consulting we'll be able to expand its horizons and offer consulting services beyond this province could the minister please tell us more about this exciting announcement the minister of infrastructure thank you very much Mr. Speaker I'd like to thank the great member from Stormont for that excellent question for this morning Mr. Speaker last week our budget highlighted our world class infrastructure plans we're committed to promoting Ontario globally as being open for business and open for jobs Mr. Speaker when I was in Berlin last month I announced our proposal to offer infrastructure Ontario services the I.O.'s reputation and skills will generate new revenue for our province create opportunities for our businesses to work abroad in markets where they have confidence in I.O.'s systems and reach out to international markets to attract more competition to Ontario Mr. Speaker that's what our budget is about we're finding efficiencies enhancing the scope of our capabilities and finding value for money so that we can protect the people of this province Mr. Speaker as a stable and thriving market Ontario is a great place to invest we're open and ready to conduct business with the world supplementary question thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you for that answer minister it sounds like a fantastic initiative generating revenue for the people of Ontario while simultaneously creating opportunities for Ontario businesses it's the kind of creative thinking that's going on in the budget while also growing the economy Mr. Speaker infrastructure Ontario is responsible for many files and I'm sure the people of Ontario would like to see this program rolled out effectively can the minister tell us what steps this ministry has taken to ensure the new program enhances the important work that I.O. is doing for the people of Ontario Minister well thank you again to the honourable member it's true that I.O. is doing important work procuring infrastructure for Ontario's future including our transit plans for the G.T.H.A. announced last week with our premier and the fantastic minister of transportation Mr. Speaker the work that I.O. is doing to deliver critical infrastructure for Ontario comes first but we know the experts at I.O. can and want to use their experience on this new initiative we're going to strike the right balance starting this program with two pilot projects during these I.O. can learn how best to allocate resources among their existing work in Ontario and the new program under this program if I.O. wishes to take on a new mandate they must submit a business case to our ministry if there isn't a good case we're not going to do it we're taking a responsible approach to this project making sure we're putting the people first and helping to restore Ontario's fiscal responsibility so that we protect what matters most next question the member for Tamiskaming Cochrane thank you my question is the minister of agriculture food and rural affairs the ministry of agriculture is probably seen as the lead minister in rural Ontario and quite frankly when I opened the budget I was shocked that it's taking a 20% cut to its budget 20% speaker a lot of people think well that's just going to impact farmers it impacts crop insurance it impacts risk management but it also impacts food safety inspections it impacts animal health and welfare that's why we were so shocked that supposedly the lead ministry for rural Ontario has such a massive cut can the minister please tell this house exactly where those cuts are going to happen because he's the only one here who knows what it is thank you thank you very much Mr. Speaker and thank the member opposite for the question and obviously he will be aware that when we were elected to government we had a $15 billion deficit and I'm sure the member opposite as a farmer would know that you can't keep spending more money than you're taking in or eventually you're out of business and I know you know that member when we were elected I started to look at our ministry to make sure that our ministry was focused on food safety and programs that our rural community was depending on and of course as you mentioned food safety is the number one we also want to make sure we have the programs in place that farmers need to stay in business and to stay profitable we're really pleased and I want to say that we're really pleased with the government that we are protecting the things that are important such as health care education and the thing farmers need to stay in business and I want to say rural Ontario is just as much in need of the health care and the education and the quality of it as any other part of the province of Ontario and I want to say thank you thank you very much and that concludes our question for today this house is recessed until 3pm