 It is now time for oral questions, the leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. My question is for the Deputy Premier. Mr. Speaker, each and every day Carol Milokovic wakes up and thinks about her husband, Robert, and her son, Daniel. She wonders if they would be alive if the roads had been properly maintained. She wonders if they would be alive today if your government, the Liberal government, hadn't chosen to save a few bucks and sacrifice the lives of Ontarians like Robert and Daniel. Carol Milokovic deserves answers from this government. Deputy Premier, will your government call for a coroner's inquest into the wrongful deaths of Robert and Daniel Milokovic? Deputy Premier. Minister of Transportation. Mr. Transportation. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question this morning. Certainly, Speaker, any time as Minister of Transportation that I hear of a fatality on any of Ontario's highways during any season, my heartfelt condolences go out to the friends and the family of the victims involved, Speaker. The auditor's report that was brought forward publicly last week contained eight important recommendations. I, as Minister of Transportation, accept responsibility and accept those recommendations, as was explicitly stated in that report, Speaker. Because the auditor's report does follow up on the 2013 internal review that the Ministry of Transportation conducted that was undertaken or at least initially launched by my predecessor in this portfolio. And, sir? There are a number of measures that were brought forward as a result of the internal review in 2013, and I'm sure I'll have a chance to discuss those, Speaker. Thanks very much. Thank you. Back to Deputy Premier, Mr. Speaker. The wind government ignored repeated warnings from staff and engineers that Ontario highways were unsafe. This Liberal government knew they were putting Ontario lives at risk. This Liberal government knew the contractors weren't doing their jobs. This Liberal government did not. This Liberal government turned a blind eye for five years. The deaths of these innocent Ontarians is on this government's hands. These families need and deserve answers. So, Deputy Premier, will you call for a coroner's inquest into these wrongful deaths? Thanks very much, Speaker. What I said last week, what I will continue to say and what I'll continue to focus on is making sure that, as Minister of Transportation, I take the responsibility, as I have, to make sure that we go forward, that we continue to work with our area maintenance contractors, that we pass the budget that the Minister of Finance presented here in this legislature last week, because that budget contains provisions that will provide us with the resources to make sure that we have, for example, additional anti-icing liquid that can be used on highways around the province, that we have additional equipment that will help in congested urban areas and also across Northern Ontario. I'll also mention, as I've said before in this House, that since 2013, since we conducted the internal review at the Ministry of Transportation, we've added 105 pieces of equipment. We have brought additional oversight to this entire undertaking, Speaker. There is more work to do. That's the work that I'm responsible for, and we're going to get it right. Thanks very much, Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Final Supplementary. Back to the Deputy Premier and Mr. Speaker. On Tuesday, January 4th, 2012, the families of Alyssa McEwen and Jessica Chamberlain were shattered. These two women did everything right. They waited an extra day after the storm to travel on Ontario highways. They had snow tires. They weren't speeding. They were not drinking. The only thing that went wrong was that the roads they were driving on were not property clear device and snow. That wrong-headed decision to sacrifice proper road maintenance in order to save a few bucks was made by this government. That decision shattered these families. So, Deputy Premier, will your government call for a coroner's inquest into the wrongful deaths of Alyssa McEwen and Jessica Chamberlain? Thank you very much, Speaker. And again, I thank the Leader for his question and for his interest in this important issue. I know it sounds like I'm repeating myself, Speaker, but I did say this in the Chamber the other day. Every single day, I've lived for 41 years in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton area my entire life. Every single day to this day, including this morning, I use highways. My wife uses highways. Everyone on this side of the highway, this side of the aisle does on that side as well. Very often my young daughters are in the car with us when we travel highways. I feel a very sincere and profound responsibility for making sure that we get this right. In addition to what we've done at the Ministry of Transportation since 2013, in addition, Speaker, to accepting all eight recommendations from the auditor, Speaker, we will continue to move forward. We will add more resources. We will work with our area maintenance contractors. We will continue to improve and enhance the winter maintenance program, Speaker. It's what the people of Ontario expect and deserve. Thanks very much. Thank you for your question. Leader of the Off-Mission. Here's the apology. The question is the Minister of Education. The parents of over 800,000 elementary students in Ontario don't know if their children will be in school on Monday. These parents don't know if they need to find alternative childcare options. Everything's up in the air. Minister, your response to those parents was you hoped, quote, it will be a work to rule and not a full withdrawal of services end of quote. Yesterday, when talking about negotiations, you said you saw a light at the end of the tunnel. Well, Minister, I have news for you. That light was the train. It's coming at you and it's going to wreck. So when are you going to get serious about negotiations before you wreck the school year for these children? Yes, thank you. And it might surprise you to know this, but I actually agree with something that you said at the beginning of the question. I don't agree with the way you ended up. But I too am very concerned that we know that the elementary teachers are in a legal strike position. They have not informed us officially. They have not informed the boards officially as to whether it will be a work to rule strike or whether it will be a full withdrawal of services. I know that the boards across the province, the English public boards, have been sending notices out to their parents and saying, you know, something's going to happen on Monday. Unfortunately, we have not yet been informed. And I would encourage the union to get on with informing the parents what will happen on Monday. Thank you. Supplement to the member from Sinclair. Thank you. Back to the minister again. Well, over 800,000 children will be impacted on Monday. And all you could say was teachers have a general desire to strike. And that's simply not true. This liberal government introduced bill 122 and guaranteed a clear and consistent framework that works for all parties. And you know what? We know that's not working. The wind government said this process has clear roles and responsibilities. Apparently it hasn't been clear to you. Your role is to get a deal done and your responsibility is to keep them in the classroom. Minister of economic development. Step down or do your job. Will you promise these kids that they will be able to finish their school year? Let's do something. Thank you. And I repeat what I've repeated over and over again is that the only way that we will resolve this situation is by negotiating a collective agreement. I actually believe that the teachers would prefer to be in the classroom for those that are out. That those who are being told to work to rule and withdraw things like preparing report cards or refusing to do the QAO test, refusing to take part in math. I believe those teachers would actually really prefer to be doing their whole job. Certainly the children want to be in the classroom. Parents want them in the classrooms. But the only way we can fix this is to negotiate. Unlike you. Thank you. I do believe. Thank you. Final supplementary? Very, very good. Well, thank you very much. Take my speech to the minister. The Premier said she was going to light a fire underneath these negotiations. Well, apparently it's not hot enough yet. The students in Peel have been out for four days. In Rainbow Sudbury they've been out for nine days. This is your mess. Your mess. Many people seem to want to give a question and answer. So let's just settle down. Please, sir. So Mr. Speaker, that's 72,000 students out of the classroom right now. It is your mess. Okay. Another day goes by and the students are still out of the classroom. Over 800,000 students, Mr. Speaker, could be affected as early as Monday. Each day is a day closer to prom and graduation. And you have to quit using these students as pawns. Minister, why won't you resign? And if someone was willing to actually work, get the job done. You see it, please? You see it, please? Thank you. No, no, no. I will remind you that when I stand, I won't quiet. No last shots. I do need to remind the member opposite that their solution of how to manage the education system was to fire 22,700 education workers and teachers that they seem to not believe me. But I'd like to quote from a... Mr. Speaker, please? I'd like to remind... I can get my exercise. The next person that does it will get named. And I will make sure you hear that. You want to play that game? I will name you. Carry on. I would remind the member opposite of an exchange during the last election when the leader of their party was asked, will it mean fewer teachers? And the response was, it does. Remember from Prince Edward Hastings. It will mean teachers in our system. So I would like to remind you that that was their response. I have a totally different response. I want to negotiate a collective agreement, but I do need people on the other side to come to the table. Because it takes somebody else. Any questions? Leader of the Third Party. Thank you, Speaker. My question is for the Acting Premier. Yesterday I asked the Premier how many budget hearings she would schedule in Northern Ontario so that families and businesses from Northern Ontario can have their say. She didn't commit to hearing from Northern Ontarians. In fact, not at all. Not a single hour. Why is this Liberal government shutting down people? Why are they shutting the door on people from Northern Ontario who want to have their say on the sell-off of their Hydro-1? Thank you. Is that the speaker now? Well, Speaker, we really believe that it's important that Ontarians do have an opportunity to contribute to a budget, to let government know what they think should be included in a budget. They should have the opportunity to speak. And we also think it's important that members of all parties, opposition parties, have the opportunity to examine important legislation. The government house leader has presented a plan, a proposal to the opposition parties that would increase the standard for committee consideration to six days, Speaker. That's more committee time than almost any budget has had in the last 25 years. Wow. Let's just compare, Speaker, under the PC government 2002, zero days of committee. In the year 2000, two days in 1997, two days, 1996, two days, and under the NDP in 1991 and 1992, one day of committee consideration, Speaker. Thank you. The member from Hamilton East, Tony Creep will come to order. I will allow someone to withdraw. Withdraw. I apologize to the member from Hamilton East, Tony Creep. The acting premier is talking about is closure. And what closure is, is shutting down debate and shutting down the voices of Ontarians. So she's crowing about how proud they are about closing down the debate. Yesterday I asked the premier how many hearings was she scheduled in Southwestern Ontario, so that families and businesses in Southwestern Ontario could have their say. She didn't commit to hearing from the people in Southwestern Ontario either, not for a single hour. Why is the Liberal government shutting the door on people from the Southwest who want to have a say on the sell-off of their hydro system? Thank you. Thank you, premier. Speaker, I'm sure the leader of the third party would like to know that there were pre-budget consultations in Windsor, in London, in Cambridge, in Ottawa, in Toronto, in Mississauga. In addition, the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs held public hearings in Fort Francis, in Cornwall, in Toronto, in Sudbury, in Fort Erie, in London, and in Ottawa, Speaker. We have been very open and transparent about our plan to maximize the value of the asset, Speaker. It was included in the 2014 budget. It was included in the 2014 platform. The budget that was introduced twice, Speaker. Remember from Nipissing? Remember that the NDP ran on the very side of the plan. Now the member from Hamilton, East Tony Creek. In October, the advisory council released their interim report. That final report was made public before the budget. We've been debating this issue in this house for months. That will continue, Speaker. And as I say, there will be six days. Thank you. Final supplementary. Shame on the transparent liberals that they had all those meetings and not one single time were they coming clean with the people of Ontario about their plan to sell Hydro-1. Shame on them. Budget hearings, she would schedule in Eastern Ontario so that families and businesses from Eastern Ontario could have their say. She didn't commit to a single hearing to be set up for the people of East of Toronto, either, Speaker. Why is this Liberal government shutting down people? Why are they shutting the door on people from Eastern Ontario who want to have a say on the sell-off of their Hydro-1? Thank you, Speaker. Speaker, let me quote from the 2014 budget, Speaker. The 2014 budget says, unlocking the value of these assets through operational improvements or asset sales gives the government an innovative revenue source to reinvest back into the economy. Net revenue gains from the divestment of certain assets will be invested in... Thank you. Please finish. Wrap up. Even the leader of the third party today said on News Talk 1010... Answer. ...so there's no doubt we did talk in our platform... Thank you. ...about looking at some of the... Thank you. New question. The leader of the third party. Here are my next questions also for the Acting Premier. Well over 26,000 people have sent the Liberals a message that they don't want the Premier to sell Hydro-1. They know it's the wrong decision and they don't want to pay the price. That's not just me, Speaker. That's not just card-carrying new Democrats. That is Ontario families, the people who actually own Hydro-1. And they know that once Hydro-1 is gone, once it's gone, it is gone forever. Why is the Liberal government refusing to listen to the people who actually own Hydro-1? Thank you. Well, Speaker, we have listened very, very carefully and what the people in Ontario are saying is they want us to invest in the transportation and other infrastructure that is so vitally important to the economy and to the lives of people who are fighting that traffic every day, Speaker. So this budget is all about building Ontario up. It's about creating jobs. It's about increasing economic growth. We're going to build infrastructure. We're going to invest in people's skills and talents, create that business climate that businesses are asking for so they can flourish, and we want to move forward on building that retirement security, Speaker. We are increasing the move Ontario forward fund, Speaker, so that we can invest in much needed infrastructure, the largest investment in the province's history. Thank you. I'm hearing from people every day that they don't want the Premier to sell off Hydro-1. They don't remember hearing about this plan, Speaker, because there isn't a single liberal MPP who ran on selling Hydro-1. And I once again remind all the folks on the backbench that they are the ones, they are the ones who are going to have to defend this. Those backbenchers are the ones who are going to have to explain to their constituents why Hydro-1 is for sale and why Hydro bills are going up. And I know that because those liberal MPPs have been hearing from people through our website. Now can the acting Premier explain why liberals are refusing to the growing... Stop the clock. Expect the same on both sides. Please finish. Can the acting Premier explain why the liberals are refusing to listen to the growing numbers of Ontarians who say that Hydro-1 is the wrong thing to do? Thank you. Thank you, Premier. Well, Speaker, we ran on building infrastructure and that is what we are going to do, Speaker. Listen to what the leader of the third party said on the radio just this morning. She said, so there's no doubt we did talk in our platform about looking at some of the physical assets that the province owns. The leader of the third party on the radio just this morning admitted finally that they ran on the very same platform that we did on the same fiscal plan that we did. They took our budget. They took our assumptions. They cut and paste and put it in their platform. Whether they know it or not, Speaker, they ran on the same fiscal platform and that includes... Assets so that we can build this badly needed infrastructure. Premier's plan helps out Bay Street bankers. It helps out consultants. It helps out well-connected liberal speaker. Not surprisingly, because the liberals are listening to Bay Street bankers. They're listening to consultants and they're listening to their well-connected liberal friends. But they're refusing to listen to families and families are the ones that are paying the price. The Premier, you know, she keeps the budget hearings in lockdown. She's not prepared to hear from the people of Ontario. It's undemocratic, Speaker. It is not right. Now, will the acting Premier and the Liberal government listen to the owners of Hydro One, the people of Ontario, and stop the sale of Hydro One? Well, Speaker, I understand that the leader of the third party is heading west today. I hope when she's there, she will ask the people about whether 15-minute service from Union Station to Bramley is something that they would like to see. I hope when she travels through the province, she'll talk about regional express rail. Over 10 years, weekly GO trips will go from 1,500 to nearly 6,000 trips. Speaker, that is what the people of this province are asking their government to provide. There have been insufficient investments in the past. We are making the decision to build the infrastructure that individual people need and will benefit in their daily lives to say nothing to the economic benefit. We are spending billions of dollars, wasting billions of dollars because... New question. Member from Renfrew, Nippon, September. Thank you very much. For the past month, we've been talking about your government's sale of Hydro One, and you've justified it time and time again by saying it is needed for infrastructure. But we now know you've decided to give away shares of Hydro One to employees of OPG and Hydro One as part of their new contracts, and I've sent you copies of those contracts. You claim the deal, the tentative agreements. You claim the deal is net zero. But we know that in that deal, you're giving away stocks, shares to employees. You are providing wage increases over each of the next three years, you're increasing travel allowances, and you're adding in possible lump-sum payments. Minister, what are interions getting to make this a net zero deal? Question. Thank you. Let me just finish my last sentence. Billions of dollars are being wasted. Let's make no mistake about it. When it comes to the Power Workers Agreement, and I thank you for sending over, not copies of the contract, but actually what you've sent over is what the Power Workers Union is using to communicate with their workers, but whatever, this is a deal that is under ratification, Speaker. This is a deal. We are going through the ratification process. We will continue to respect the ratification, and it is actually a net zero deal, and over time it addresses the leak report recommendations. Thank you. This is a good deal. Very close. No, no, I will name. Carry on. Time was up. Supplement. Thank you, Speaker. Wage increases each of the years. Shares with nothing in return. Sure sounds like zero to me. Again, to the Treasury Board President, you're trying to buy labor peace with the sale of Hydro-1. Minister, you're giving away shares and massive increases funded by the sale. And I'm still looking for what is net zero about these deals, as are the people of Ontario. You're getting, you're setting a terrible precedent by having a fire sale to fund labor peace. We know taxpayers were paying the Power Workers' pensions at a ratio of about five to one. Now in this agreement, did you at least get those pensions contributions down to 1.1, like is the standard across the public service? And what is, will that make this deal net zero? Is that how it's going to be net zero? Because we're still trying to figure out how you get zero. We got all these numbers, but they all add up to zero. You are amazing with your math. Thank you. Speaker, we actually respect the ratification process. We will not be talking about details of the deal, because the workers are in the process of ratification and, Speaker, we will not jeopardize that by talking about the deal in any kind of detail. Speaker, what I can tell you is that it is net zero. I can tell you that over time it addresses the recommendations of the LEACH report. But most importantly, Speaker, what I'm really delighted about is that workers are being given the opportunity and we'll see how they decide. But we are excited that the workers will actually have a stake in the success of a company. Thank you. New question. Member from Tennis James Bay. Can the Deputy, to the Deputy Premier, can the Deputy Premier please tell Ontarians where in her platform or in her budget it said she was selling Hydro One shares to pay for a collective agreement? Well, Speaker, we have been many, many times in this house. We have talked about how we have talked about maximizing the value of our assets. It was in the 2014 budget that I just quoted. It was in our platform. It was in our second 2014 budget. It was in your platform, Speaker. We are pleased that the workers have the opportunity of actually participating in the success of their company. That's a good thing. And I think the NDP actually would support the notion that workers would have a stake in the success of their company. So we are moving forward, Speaker. We are planning to move forward with the plan to build the infrastructure across this province that is so badly needed. That is why we are making moving forward. Member from Brentford, come to order. Second time. Thank you supplementary. Here, nowhere in your platform, nowhere up until this budget, did you ever give an indication that in fact there would be a selling of shares as a way to negotiate a collective agreement. That's dollars that you're taking away that are not going to be invested into infrastructure. It's not going to be invested into transit. It's not going to do anything when it comes to achieving the goals that the government wants. So I ask you again, can the Deputy Premier explain to the people why the Liberals are giving away shares in Hydro-1 without ever asking the people of Ontario who actually own Hydro-1 what they think? Deputy Premier. Well, over and over and over again in this legislature, we have quoted from our budget, the 2014 budget, the 2015 budget, about the decision to actually maximize the value of the shares of our assets so that we can build the infrastructure that I think all of us would agree is badly needed. So let's talk about what we're getting, Speaker. We are getting very line electrified trips. We've got trips from 70 to over 200. The Kitchener line, and we've heard that from members of your own caucus. It will weekly trips from 80 to over 250. Quadrupling the numbers. The Lakeshore East line, the annual ridership will go from 10 million to 32 million, Speaker. The Lakeshore West line, annual ridership will go from 10 million to 33 million. These are huge improvements in our transportation infrastructure and across the province through connecting links, through Ring of Fire, through the Ontario Community Infrastructure Fund. Speaker, Ontario is building up again, and that's the decision we're making to keep building this province up. Thank you. Good question, your member from the Public Health Centre. Thank you, Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Children and Youth Services. Minister, I know that every year in May we celebrate Children's Mental Health Week. Doctors, mental health workers, parents and advocates take this week to increase awareness of the signs of children and youth facing mental health challenges in their lives. I work on ending the stigma around mental health issues and helping children and youth understand the places they go to receive treatment. In fact, Minister, this past Monday, I had the opportunity to join a number of leaders in Children's Mental Health from Etobicoke, Eva Dzynski from Etobicoke Children's Centre, Jane Bray from the George Hall Centre and Barbara McDonald at an event to celebrate Children's Mental Health Week. Minister, could you share with us how the government is recognizing Children's Mental Health Week this year? Thank you. Minister of Children and Youth Services. I'm very proud of the member during Children's Mental Health Week. Fantastic. I'm very proud of the attention that our government gives to the mental health of young people. Not only this week, but year after year. Our group of increasing investments in Children's Mental Health Services. In fact, more than $440 million last year. We are improving treatment to children and families so they get at the right time and close to where they live. And just yesterday, I was at Sketch, a creative space that gives opportunities to street-involved youth to announce our support for a program for the Toronto Homelessness Youth Transition Collaborative that will provide wraparound mental health services to some of our most at-risk youth. All of these things focus on getting children the right support where they need it. Thank you. Thank you, minister. In the program, you spoke about sounds like it will help vulnerable youth who may not have other supports really get the focus and care they need to get back on their feet. Mr. Speaker, it's been great to see the interest in Children's Mental Health Week this year. I can speak from that firsthand based on the event they attended on Monday. We know that when our children and youth are happy and healthy, they have the conditions to thrive. So let this house know of any other investments it has made this week for our Children's Mental Health Week. Thank you, minister. Minister of Health and long-term care. Minister of Health and long-term care. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. First, I want to thank all MPPs from all parties who came out Monday on the front steps of the legislature for the formal launch of the Mental Health Bus, which is an important service for youth in York Region, Mr. Speaker. But I want to also talk about that Minister McCharles and I joined on Tuesday to announce that we're investing more than $5 million to support a new facility within Youthdale here in Toronto that has inpatient beds specifically targeted for teens between the ages of 16 and 19. And once construction is complete, this facility is going to provide 10 additional beds and care for approximately 175 young people who are dealing with complex mental health challenges each year. And on top of that, we're also helping Youthdale provide a day program for youth with difficult mental health challenges that will help more than 6,000 youth annually through that facility. Mr. Spooker. Sometimes, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, through the mental health and addiction strategy, we're working I'm on a roll after the member from... Through the mental health and addiction strategy, we're working to ensure our children and youth have the support they need at such a critical time in their lives. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. To the Deputy Premier. Your government sacrificed people's safety to save a few bucks on winter maintenance. The simple fact is that in the Eastern Region, you caught the number of snowplows by almost 50%. When accidents and fatalities started to bounce, you blamed it on the weather. When your ministry engineers tried to tell you, you ignored them. When contractors asked for help, you punished them. Deputy Premier, how could you refuse to act when you knew it was your maintenance policy changes? There were the cause of increased accidents, personal injuries and deaths. Why did the Auditor General skate the report to finally get action? Is that why you're now limiting her powers? Thank you. Mr. Transportation. Thanks very much, Speaker. Again, I thank this member for this question. I know it's important to people living in his community as it is for people living right across the province of Ontario. Speaker, I've said this many times. I have no problem whatsoever repeating it. The Ministry of Transportation began an internal review in 2013. It is important to note that the auditor was actually asked by the Public Accounts Committee to come in during 2014. So, prior to the auditor being asked to conduct her review, the Ministry of Transportation had taken and upon itself as it should to take a look at the program to update it. As a result of the internal review, there were 105 additional pieces of equipment for both Northern Ontario for truck climbing and passing lanes but also for Southern Ontario for ramps and shoulders. I remember being in the riding of Northumberland, Quinty West to make the announcement last fall with respect to the other 50 pieces of equipment being used again for ramps and shoulders in Southern Ontario. I accept full responsibility and in fact all eight of the auditor's recommendations have been accepted by me as Minister and the Ministry. We continue to look forward to working on this program to make sure that it continues to improve. Thanks very much. Mr. Speaker, back to the Deputy Premier. The Auditor General's report on winter road maintenance should make this government hang its head in shame. In her report, the Auditor General suggested that the problems were quote, foreseeable and could have been avoided but it's more than that Mr. Speaker. The decisions taken by this government were careless, arguably even reckless and irresponsible. Winter road maintenance is not some kind of frill service. It's an essential government function because in the winter in Ontario if the highways aren't properly plowed safety is compromised and the lives of motorists are at risk. Will the government have the audacity to stand in this house and defend the indefensible? Thanks very much Speaker. I thank the member for that question. I think it's important to recognize and I understand that it doesn't fit entirely well with the narrative that the members opposite are trying to develop here and that's fine Speaker but in that same report, the report that contained eight recommendations which we've accepted the auditor did acknowledge that the additional resources that we brought to bear to turn our view in 2013 have had a positive impact. That same report along with other independent information does demonstrate that over the last 13 years the province of Ontario has ranked first or second in North America for highway safety. In fact Speaker, as I said the other day in 2012, the only other jurisdiction in North America that had a better record for winter, sorry for highway safety was the District of Columbia Speaker. That doesn't mean the work is over and in fact Speaker, following her report the other day, I asked the auditor to come back. Thank you. New question? The member from Toronto, Danforth. Thank you Speaker. My question to the minister of the environment and climate change. Mr. Speaker, yesterday we learned that a panel has signed off on this government's plan to bury nuclear waste near the shores of Lake Huron. 152 communities who share our great lakes are against this plan including London, Windsor, Chicago and Toronto. Resolutions have been passed in at least five great lake states to oppose this project. Ironically, this new threat to Lake Huron comes at the same time this government is introducing legislation to protect the great lakes. Mr. Speaker, does the minister of the environment and climate change support his government's plan to bury nuclear waste in the watershed of Lake Huron? Thank you very much. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. We have a very good process in this country around making these decisions and this is under federal regulation and a federal responsibility Mr. Speaker and I think it would be very inappropriate for me or other members of this House to weigh in and create any impression that there's bias in that process We have nuclear storage with a proper 30% of our energy generated by nuclear there is obviously an issue of nuclear waste and nuclear waste management Mr. Speaker and the government's biggest priority is to ensure public safety and that this is stored properly and safely to the highest standards in the world and to respect the regulation and jurisdictions of other governments that regulated have to make these decisions. Well Speaker this government may have faith in Stephen Harper we don't because full well that the federal government has got environmental oversight in recent years due diligence has become more like a rubber stamp we can't count on the federal government to do the right thing we know a similar waste dump in New Mexico has used similar technology and failed twice releasing radioactivity to the surface. Will the minister for the environment and climate change step in to fill the gap in federal oversight good question you know Mr. Speaker there is something called the Canadian Constitution which both enables and limits the authorities of different governments and it is quite frankly beyond the the ability of any government to interfere with that and we're not about to start to Mr. Speaker what we have done Mr. Speaker is that we introduce the Clean Water Act and we have water protection plans developed by these communities that address those things we will ensure that within the jurisdiction and authority of the province of Ontario we will take all measures within our constitutional authority to ensure that always nuclear and others and Mr. Speaker I'm not sure whether the member right now is suggesting that the current storage practices are better than what's being proposed I'd like to hear his defense of the status quo thank you Mr. Speaker thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the minister of training colleges and universities Mr. Speaker Ontario's apprenticeship system is a key part of building the highly skilled workforce that the province needs to compete in today's global economy and I understand that our government has already made substantial investments in the apprenticeship training system last year our government invested 164 million in grants and loans that are providing critical training in state of the art equipment to both apprentices and employers and recently Mr. Speaker I was pleased to join the premier and the minister at Iron Workers Local 721 to announce additional funding for apprenticeship training as part of Ontario's renewed youth job strategy Speaker through you to the minister can the minister update the members of the House on how this new funding will benefit apprentices working in skilled trades across Ontario thank you thank you Mr. Speaker I want to thank the member for this question Mr. Speaker our government is committed to supporting Ontario's skilled trades and apprenticeship system I was proud to join premier Ren and the two members of this House my colleagues at Iron Workers Local 7721 last month Mr. Speaker to announce funding for three existing apprenticeship program Mr. Speaker our government investing 55 million dollars in three programs that will help the next generation of skilled trades people in the province of Ontario to access training equipment and facilities they need to get high quality jobs Mr. Speaker as part of Ontario's renewed youth job strategy we are investing 23 million dollars in new funding in the apprenticeship fund enhancement fund program and the 13 million dollars for new funding in the pre-apprenticeship training program we are also committed to additional 19 million dollars in the apprenticeship purchase program Thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you to the minister for that answer it's reassuring to know that our government remains committed to supporting a high quality skilled trades and apprenticeship system in Ontario Mr. Speaker almost one in five new jobs in Ontario over this decade is expected to be in trades related occupations and I understand these new annual apprenticeship registrations have grown from about 17,000 in 2002-2003 to more than 28,000 in 2013-14 it's imperative that our government continues to support Ontario's apprenticeship system in order to encourage young people to pursue apprenticeship and benefit employers who are seeking these highly skilled workers Mr. Speaker in my riding of Etobicole Lakeshore we are graduating a number of young people from Humber College from the iron workers of Etobicole they depend on having a strong apprenticeship system can the minister thank you minister thank you Mr. Speaker I want to thank again the member for that question Mr. Speaker I have two dozens of training centres and colleges across the province of Ontario and the same first hand the passion and pride that our skilled trades people take in their work these new investments Mr. Speaker apprenticeship training will help colleges the training institutions to train more apprentices by investing in equipment technology and the space and provide more in class training sessions and the work placements to people considering to enter a career in trades Mr. Speaker our government is also increasing the amount that all training delivery agents across the province of Ontario receive to train our apprentices this additional funding the pre-apprenticeship training program will target under-represented groups in the skilled trades including at-risk youth aboriginals, women's and newcomers to our country Mr. Speaker our government will continue investing in our young people by supporting a highly qualified apprenticeship program in our province of Ontario thank you thank you Mr. Speaker to the Attorney General former justice of the peace Santano Spadafora who appeared before the justice of the peace review council to face a disciplinary hearing for submitting false expense claims for over $16,000 before retiring by retiring before the hearing the charges were dropped and Spadafora has avoided his disciplinary hearing we will never know whether the $16,000 in expense claims were appropriate or false what we do know is by retiring the disciplinary hearing was dropped and Spadafora keeps his pension as a justice of the peace Spadafora asked and the justice of the peace review council agrees that his legal fees of over $15,000 should be covered you've had that recommendation on your desk since April 7 do you intend to pay Spadafora's legal fees thank you first of all Mr. Speaker you know the justice of the peace review council is an independent body that investigate complaints about the conduct of justice of the peace and determine appropriate sanction where it is necessary so the council is also the member for first Wellington recommendation of the government about compensation for costs associated with hearing if a recommendation is made you know and when it is made I can assure you that we will review the council recommendation carefully you're warned I missed it so the member from Wren from Nipissing Pembroke is warned and you have one wrap up sentence you know the recommendation are done by an independent body so when it comes to me you know we review it and I'll take the appropriate decision thank you very much the council is absolutely independent but the recommendations go to you for a decision minister the justice of the peace review council stated that and I quote we note that the allegations were serious this is not a case where the allegations of misconduct have been dismissed his worship Spadafora retired before the evidence was called the only reason the justice of the peace review council did not hold the hearing is because Spadafora retired and they no longer have jurisdiction minister the public will never know whether costs over $16,000 were false or true he obviously retired early to avoid the disciplinary hearing why would you reward that bad behavior by paying his legal fees do the right thing minister turn down Spadafora's request to have his legal fees covered thank you Mr. Speaker again like the the legal fees it is reviewed carefully by the justice of the peace or the micro recommendation that they make argument before the justice of the peace review council and then the recommendation the member from Lannark Fronten Atlantic and Eddington is warned and I'm not impressed with what you're saying carry on and then the micro recommendation and the ministry in this case the have to receive considering the council recommendation that it pays partial cost in this case so they are considering the council recommendation so I will take the appropriate decision in this case thank you very much no question the member from thank you speaker my question is for the acting premier as you know I represent an ordinance writing you know what has been on the mind of most northerners lately the move of our search and rescue helicopter from Sudbury to southern Ontario an hour and a half flights away the premier is in Sudbury today when asked about this risk to the health and safety of northerners she said she will have to make some sort of supplication on bent knees to her minister to see if he can help us keep our helicopter in north eastern Ontario speaker as far as I know the buck stop with our premier so we are all really worried where is the leadership on northern safety issues thank you thank you speaker and I do understand that the minister is working with the deputy minister to get some important answers to this decision speaker it is very important that we have the information about how Sudbury and the north are served by aircraft rescue operations and how this decision will affect service speaker the OPP are mandated to provide certain police services across the province including aviation support so speaker we are we are actively looking at this decision speaker thank you supplementary it does not stop there go gamma and metagamy are trying to cope with the worst rail disaster in Ontario history cars derail cut fire exploded dump their crude into the beautiful macamee river and minisawake lake it has been 82 long day speaker and our premier still has not fit to come and visit us to support the local to reassure them that the province is on their side that they will be there to help them to help them take on this multi-billion dollar company to get treated fairly to answer some of their question question as simple as pickle season opens next weekend can we eat the fish where is the leadership on northern safety I do want to thank the MPP from nick about for raising this issue I think you have heard from the minister directly that this is an issue that he is looking into he is actively pursuing needs to assure himself that this is in fact the right decision and if it isn't speaker that decision will be changed so I think again I thank the member for raising the issue and I thank the minister for actually doing his job when it comes to making sure this is the right decision thank you thank you Mr. Speaker my question this morning is for the minister of natural resources Ontario is home to about 71 million headtears of forest and about 75 billion trees this adds character to our province and the people of Durham know well the recreational spirit and sense of correctness with nature that this brings to rural communities but it's not just about character Ontario's forestry industry generates over 11 billion economic activity for our province and support over 170,000 jobs in 260 communities across Ontario in Northern Ontario allowing industry greater access to forestry resources would support jobs and drive growth for many communities could the minister please tell the house how the 2015 Ontario budget would support access to Ontario forest resources thank you minister of that for resources at forestry thank you very much and I want to thank the member very much for the question as a ministry we're very excited by the improvement in the growth that we are seeing in the forest industry we've gone from a low at the bottom of the recession of about 8 million cubic meters per year being harvested in the forestry industry now we're up somewhere in the neighbourhood of 12 to 14 million cubic meters being harvested on an annual basis there are still challenges in the industry this is still an evolving industry but speaker I'm very proud to say that this year's budget commits an increase from a total last year up to this year of $60 million for our resource roads access programs that will go specifically to helping the forest industry this announcement in this year's budget speaker brings to a total should the budget pass of over $600 million for the forest industry on this one program only since about 2005 2006 thank you speaker I would like to thank the minister for his answer and his continued advocacy for Ontario's forestry industry voices like his are important for those in our province who do not thrive in urban industry such as those in my writing I'm pleased to see that our government is making investments in infrastructure that would allow Ontario's forestry sector to gain more access to our province's forest resources but the forest industry is changing we are seeing innovative technologies come out of the pulp and paper sector new engineered forestry products biomass fuel and even medicine being generated from our forest could the minister please explain how our government plans to help the forestry sector make these important investments in Ontario communities thank you minister again I want to thank the member for the question as I mentioned in the opening answer the budget contains $60 million for resource roads access program another piece contained in the budget and another reason why I'm hoping we're going to get the support of the opposition parties on the budget is that for the first time forestry will now be eligible under our jobs and prosperity fund speaker to make applications in this is a very significant move for the forest industry we are going to work very closely with my colleague the minister of economic development employment and infrastructure to design a stream for the JPF through which forestry can make application will work very closely with the minister to make that happen as quickly as we can there is room for growth we've increased the JPF from $2.5 billion up to $2.7 billion that's in the budget as well so we're counting on the support of the other members to try to make this happen thank you for your question the member from Elgin Middlesex London questions to the minister of transportation minister over a year ago I raised an issue with the minister of transportation who is now the minister of environment regarding changes to the Glenworth underpass at the 401 the minister in committee he promised to listen and incorporate suggestions from local farmers and businesses in the final decision minister your ministry did not incorporate a single idea and are now favoring an option to eliminate the underpass completely forcing heavy slow moving farm equipment onto a busy highway your ministry seems intent on putting the public at risk minister will you direct your ministry to select the option that listens to farmers and businesses and keep the public safe he sounds familiar thanks very much speaker I want to thank the member from Elgin Middlesex London for that question be happy to have a conversation with him either ourselves one on one or staff to staff about the specific item that he's raising here today I know obviously of great importance to him in his community happy to have that conversation and I appreciate him raising it here in the house this morning thanks very much supplementary all minister we've been exchanging letters back and forth for over a year now and nothing has changed minister your ministry promised to work with the local community and not a single concern it's been addressed it's obviously the ministry is trying to save money however the option the ministry is favoring is going to endanger lives we've seen with your winter maintenance what happens when your ministry cuts corners to save money it puts people's lives at risk will you intervene listen to the concerns of the farmers and businesses and municipalities who also agree with the options of the local businesses and farmers and make the changes necessary and make the highway safe in the London area thank you thanks thanks again speaker and I thank the member for the follow up question as I said I'm happy to have that conversation the continued conversation with that member to do our best to make sure that we are moving forward with the plan on that specific project that reflects what's best for the area but also best for the entire transportation network with that we have speaker of course because the member alluded to safety I will say once again that over the last 13 years here in the province of Ontario we have had the first or second ranked highways across all of North America as it relates to highway safety that's a standard that's a record of which we're proud work needs to continue with respect to making sure we maintain that standard but I am quite quite happy to have the conversation with the member following question period or in the hours or days ahead thanks very much thank you thank you speaker my questions to the acting premier yesterday children's mental health Ontario released their first ever report card on the state of child and youth mental health programs in Ontario the findings are very concerning 6,000 kids wait more than one year for mental health treatment by next year it will be double 12,000 kids something must be done will the acting premier step in and immediately eliminate the wait list for child and youth mental health programs in Ontario thank you minister children youth services thank you speaker and I appreciate the question from the member opposite and I appreciated meeting with the executive director of children's mental health Ontario Kim Moran earlier this week and the efforts that are reflected in their report card saying youth and families are being engaged to build a system that meets their needs and I commend CHMO recognizing the progress we've made in the mental health and addiction strategy with the ministry health and I appreciate their input as they walk me through that report card speaker as I mentioned earlier our investments are very significant in children and youth mental health and that's why we as a government introduced the Ontario comprehensive mental health addiction strategy more than 50,000 children and their families are benefiting from quicker and easier access to the right mental health services. We've supported the hiring of 770 mental health workers across the province and we have the tele mental health service which provided 2,800 consults to kids last year and that specifically recognized in the CMH thank you supplementary speaker simply by announcing money for mental health means nothing if we don't know where that money is actually going we know that 70% of the money is going to emerge by adolescents and without help these kids spiral downwards the report cited that one parent who explained that his daughter tried to end her life while she was waiting for help speaker I think it's unconscionable that kids have to wait for life threatening treatment will the acting premier immediately eliminate the wait list for child and youth mental health programs in Ontario or that can be done to help children who are facing mental health issues but we are very proud of our investments and we know exactly where those investments go speaker and as minister Hoskins said just on Tuesday we announced the 5.2 million dollars for the youth deal treatment centre to expand a very innovative compassionate mental health centre there 10 bed facility as well as a day program for 150 youth but as I said there's always more that can be done and we want to make sure that children and youth access mental health and addiction services where and when they need them so that's why we're transforming the sector speaker and through our lead agency model to coordinate the care that children youth and their families receive and I'm proud that our government has the buy-in from partners like CMHO who said the lead agency model places the community sector at the centre thank you the member from Leeds-Grenville on the point of order thanks speaker point of order my party has a convention this weekend so I would just ask that all members thank the member for Simcoe Gray the leader of Her Majesty's official opposition here we go listen I'm standing I'm still going to name somebody I thank the member from Leeds-Grenville for stealing my thunder because I had written a note for myself so I do want to say this as speaker it's just I want to take the opportunity just in case we never know what happens but just in case I want to compliment and thank the member for his conduct his service and his decorum when it came to being the official leader of Her Majesty's loyal opposition I enjoyed our time so thank you very much sir point of order the member from Simcoe Gray I'll just say thank you to all sides of the house it's a pleasure and I'm not dead yet I'll be back Monday member from Beaches East York on a point of order from our side of the house I've known the member from Simcoe for many years attending his golf course his golf tournaments up in Nautilus Saga and I'm delighted to encourage the respect you brought into this house I appreciate and admire your work thank you thank you knowing that you're still going to be around this house today 1pm this afternoon