 It is now time for a question period. The member from Lantan Kent, Milisex. Well, thank you very much, the Speaker, and this morning my question is to the Premier. Premier, during his fall fiscal update, your Minister of Finance revealed that his revenue projections from just four months earlier were short by more than half a billion dollars. Your Finance Minister then tried to reassure Ontario taxpayers that he had the discipline to eliminate the deficit over the next three years. Then on November 18th, we saw his real plan revealed when he refused to rule out once again raising taxes. Premier, can you commit here this morning that your government will not be raising taxes yet again over the next three years? Thank you. Well, Mr. Speaker, the plan that we are implementing... I'm going to start right off. Anyone interjects, I'm going to stop them. Please carry on. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. The plan that we are implementing is a balanced one and it's been laid out clearly. It was laid out in the budget when we introduced it in May. It was laid out in our platform, Mr. Speaker, and it was laid out in the budget that we had. We brought back to the legislature after the election, Mr. Speaker. So it's very clear that we are limiting our spending, but at the same time we are investing in Ontario. We have committed to balancing and eliminating the deficit by 2017-18. We're on path to do that, Mr. Speaker. We've over-achieved on our targets and the reality is that there is a revenue challenge that we're facing, Mr. Speaker, but that's all the more important. That makes it all the more important that we make those investments so that we can see that economic growth. Well, Mr. Speaker, back to the Premier. Your Minister of Finance's fall fiscal update clearly stated that should revenues fall further, he would look at other tools to balance the budget. Later, when asked by reporters five separate times if he would increase taxes, he avoided answering the questions entirely. A responsible government should have a plan to balance a budget by living within its means. Your government appears determined to go ahead and raise taxes on hard-working Ontario families one more time. Premier, is your finance minister committed to balancing the budget without raising taxes? Mr. Speaker, as I said, our plan has been quite clearly laid out in the budget. We are implementing that for five years in a row. Ontario has exceeded its deficit targets, Mr. Speaker. It's one of the only governments in Canada to have achieved this level of success, and by exceeding our targets, Mr. Speaker, our accumulated deficit is $25 billion, $25 billion lower than it would otherwise have been. Let me talk about some of the other tools. Cracking down on the underground economy, and that includes contraband tobacco, Mr. Speaker. Managing compensation costs, and we know that the President of the Treasury Board is actively engaged in that. Making sure that businesses are paying their taxes, Mr. Speaker. Making sure that we're getting all of that revenue. Correcting the vertical imbalance with the federal government. It's very important that we work with the federal government to make sure that Ontario is getting its fair share, Mr. Speaker. Answer. We are working to maximize the value of our assets, and that's the work that Ed Clark and his commission have done, and we're doing a program review across government. Those are the tools that we're using, Mr. Speaker. Final supplementary. Well, Premier, we have seen this act before by your government. Promising a plan to balance some budget when no such plan actually exists. Shifting the blame for the incompetent handling of Ontario's fiscal situation on everyone else, but those responsible. And then copying the irresponsible behaviour off with a tax increase on hard-working Ontario families. When your Minister of Finance was asked if you would commit to avoiding further tax increases, he dodged the question altogether. Premier, again I ask you, will you commit to a plan to balance the books without raising a single tax? Thank you, Premier. You are great clearly, and the member opposite has chosen to ignore the answer. I just went through six initiatives that we are taking. One of them does talk about the federal government and the relationship with the federal government, Mr. Speaker, but there are five others that are tools that we are using to work our way to eliminating the deficit by 2017-18. So I have answered this question in terms of the path that we have laid out. That is the path that we are on. Those are the initiatives that we are taking, Mr. Speaker, and that is the way we will get to eliminate the deficit by 2017-18. Mr. Speaker, my second set of questions this morning is to the Finance Minister. Minister, on numerous occasions you have been asked to clarify your plans to utilize what you have called new revenue tools in order to meet your campaign pledge to balance the budget within three years. Just this morning I asked the Premier three straightforward questions on the same subject which he obviously refused to answer. So let's distill this down to something even more basic, Minister. Minister, you recently refused to rule out raising taxes to fix your government's failing financial position. But, Minister, can you answer this simple question? Will you commit that you will not raise the HST before the next election? Mr. Speaker, this is great. The man who wants to be the leader of a party is looking at trying to show vision before the public and before the people of Ontario. And he is now trying to make things up as he goes, Mr. Speaker. We put forward a budget. We've laid out very clearly what it is that we need to achieve by building a path to balance that talks about integrity of our revenue, ensuring fairness in our tax system, making certain the underground economy is addressed. Look at those that are evading. Look at the leakage in our system. At the same time, Mr. Speaker, we're looking at maximizing our assets to increase our dividends. We're continuing to do our savings, finding ways to improve our overall expenses, which, by the way, has made Ontario the lowest-cost government in Canada because of the measures that we've taken. We're going to continue doing that, and we'll continue, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Final supplementary? Minister, hard work contains. Paris and Ontario already pay their fair share of taxes. You owe it to them and everybody in the province to be crystal clear. Minister, will you today rule out raising personal income taxes on Ontario workers between now and the next election? Thank you, Minister of Finance. Mr. Speaker, the member who's asking the question when he was the labor critic, his only plan was to fire 100,000 people. That is not what we're doing. We're trying to ensure that we support the system and invest. So we talk now about... The member from Simcoe North will come to order. Please finish. So as the member talks about right-to-work legislation and forcing people into lower... And if it happens again, you'll be warned. Carry on. So as the member of office that talks about right-to-work legislation, putting people in vulnerable positions in the lowest wages that are possible, we're trying to find ways not only to control our expenses by making our path to balance effective. We're also being fair by ensuring that we stimulate economic growth, Mr. Speaker. That's why we're investing in people and their skills. That's why we're investing in modern infrastructure, creating over 100,000 jobs last year. Member from Chatham, Kansas has come to order. Thank you. Final supplementary. Minister, as you know, my background is in small businesses, in small business. Minister, small businesses employ the majority of workers in this province. Indeed, small and medium-sized businesses are the cornerstone of our local communities. They're also the backbone of Ontario's economy. Minister, will you today rule out raising taxes on small businesses between now and the next election? So, Mr. Speaker, again, we have been supporting small businesses. In fact, it was that party that delayed the implementation of the elimination of the employer health tax for 90% of all businesses in Ontario, Mr. Speaker. We have just passed the Business Climate Act that will reduce red tape. In fact, CFIB has applauded the step that we're taking in the right direction to support small business. As I was saying just a moment ago, we have maintained the lowest and most dynamic tax system... Member from Renfrew... Mr. Speaker. A member from Renfrew is warned. Carry on. Because of our attractive dynamic tax system, we have now become the top destination for foreign direct investment. More startups are happening in Ontario than anywhere else in Canada combined. And we will continue to support businesses. We'll continue to do what's necessary to provide that integrity. And, Mr. Speaker, we'll continue to do so even though the members opposite have actually voted against those measures. Thank you. My question is for the Premier. Affordable childcare spaces in Ontario are closing. And the response of the Liberal Minister was I'm really quite... I'm not really quite sure what the problem is. Healthcare is being cut. And the response of the Liberal Minister was quote, we're not making cuts. People and social assistants have been left without support that they rely on, Speaker. And the response of the Liberal Minister was this is making, quote, a mountain and of a very small molehill. The Liberals are looking more and more arrogant in terms of touch by the day, Speaker. Will the Premier acknowledge that people are being hurt by her budget and her minister's incompetence and insensitivity? Well, Mr. Speaker, I obviously reject the premise of the question. But what I will say, Mr. Speaker, is that I acknowledge that there are people in Ontario who are struggling. And looking for childcare, I understand that, Mr. Speaker. That's why it's very important to me that the legislation that moves through this House, Mr. Speaker, is going to make childcare safer and has the potential to create 6,000 new childcare spaces, Mr. Speaker. I know that there are people in this province who are looking for care for their loved ones, Mr. Speaker. That's why we continue to increase the support for community care. We continue to increase the budget for community care so that people will get the healthcare that they need when they need it. Mr. Speaker, I know there were families who suffered because they didn't get their checks as quickly as they should have. And that's why the minister is working very hard to rectify that situation. That's what I will acknowledge, Mr. Speaker. The Liberals actually don't seem to get it. Healthcare cuts are real, Speaker. Childcare spaces have been closed in this province under their watch. And the Liberal Social Assistance has been a gong show, Speaker. These have had real impacts on the people of this province. Does the Premier get that people and families are suffering under her watch? I understand that there is a complexity in making sure that 13.5 million people have the services that they need. I understand that there are thousands of children, Mr. Speaker, in this province who have access to full-day kindergarten because of the policies that we put in place, Mr. Speaker. 470,000 children have benefited from full-day kindergarten as of this year, Mr. Speaker. So what I know is that that has helped families. That has helped families in every riding across this province. Are there still people who are looking for the right childcare arrangement for their children? Absolutely. And we're going to continue to work, including the legislation that was just passed to 6,000 new safe childcare spaces. You know what, Speaker? There's an old saying that you're entitled to your own opinion but you're not entitled to your own facts. Healthcare services have been cut even though the Minister of Health denies it. Whether it's cuts to home care and Windsor Speaker who are reducing the access to operating rooms by half in local community hospitals, these are cuts. Full stop. Is the Premier going to continue to stand with us and deny that the healthcare services are being cut in Ontario? Thank you, Premier. Yes, I am, Mr. Speaker because that's not the reality. The reality is that we continue to invest more money in healthcare. We continue to invest more money in the reduction of wait times for people across the system and we continue to invest more money in community care. Is it complex to run a healthcare system with 18.5 million people? It absolutely is, Mr. Speaker. Is it necessary that we make changes so that we can transform that system so that it will be the best that it can be for the long term? Absolutely. So we're going through a transformation, Mr. Speaker, and if we were not to do that then we would not be responsible. It is easy for the leader of the third party to stand up and pick on a particular issue in a particular community. We have to rectify that, but our responsibility is also to deal with the whole system and make sure that it is functioning at the right time. Can you see it, please? New question, leader of the third party. When Coronation Park Day Nursery in Starnia shut its doors because of liberal cuts the minister said she didn't understand the problem, Speaker. Well, I went there. The problem is simple. There are no children at Coronation Park Day Nursery in Starnia. The minister doesn't seem to get what this means to families in Starnia. Does the premier understand if her minister doesn't... Minister of Agriculture, come to order. At least understand why cutting childcare spaces is a problem... Minister of Culture and Sports, come to order. Thank you. I don't know the specifics of that particular situation. I know the minister of education will want to comment. Mr. Speaker, there is no doubt there is no doubt that there is a transition that is happening in the childcare system. We understand that. Four and five year olds who would have been in childcare are now in full day kindergarten. I might add, saving those families thousands of dollars a year so that they can have those kids in full day kindergarten. What that means is in the childcare system there is a transition so that children who have been on the waiting list who will be younger, Mr. Speaker, they are now finding their way into the childcare system. That is a change. It is a transformation. But Mr. Speaker, it is a very good thing that 470,000 children have had full day kindergarten. Thank you. Family relies on social assistance but not only did the minister insist that the problem was a very small molehill she refused to even apologize, Speaker. Why won't the premier acknowledge that in addition to fixing this problem Ontarians deserve an apology? Mr. Speaker, I believe that the minister did apologize to the families who were affected by this, Mr. Speaker. I am very sorry and I say it to the families who were affected by this but the reality is the system that is being put in place is a better system than was there before. The system will allow more time for case workers to work with families and that is a very good thing because that relationship is extremely important. The minister has been in touch with municipalities she is working to make sure that wherever there was an impact on a family that that is being rectified. But Mr. Speaker, I go once again to the responsibility of government responsible that will improve service to people over the long term. This is about a very large system 500,000 checks a month that go out, we better make sure we've got a system that works for people in the long term. What this is about is services that are being cut and people that are feeling it that's what this is about but an arrogant out of touch liberal government seems to believe that they just need to deny deny deny and somehow not being true. Can the premier tell us, Speaker why her arrogant liberal government is denying what everyone else can see as a plain fact? Well, Mr. Speaker, I understand that when a question is written down and the supplementaries are written down that you read the question and then the supplementaries but the fact is I have not denied that there are people who are struggling. I have not denied that there are impacts that come about because of the changes that we are making and the new deny, Mr. Speaker is that we are cutting services for the sake of cutting services. That is not the reality. We are going through whether it's in the implementation of a new technology for making sure that people on social assistance have more time with their case workers or whether it's the implementation of full day kindergarten which does have an impact on childcare or whether it's making sure that people have the health care those are system changes, Mr. Speaker. They are necessary for the long-term well-being of the 13.5 million people in Ontario. I don't deny that that change is necessary. What I'm saying is that we must make those changes and that's what we're doing. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Community and Social Services. Minister in Estimates Committee, your office testified that the new SAM system, software built by CureM and now owned by IBM is a modern commercial off-the-shelf application. My question about CureM's serious software flaws experienced by legislators in Minnesota and Maryland. Your Assistant Deputy Minister Martin Thune testified that it failed in those states because and I quote, they didn't do the testing they needed to do before they implemented. End of quote. Minister, few there was no rush to implement. In fact, you had four years to test the system and get it right. You extended the roller deadline twice and you still didn't stop until you rolled out. You just steam rolled through, Minister. You now wear this failure. You had all the time in the world. What's your excuse, Minister? Minister of Community and Social Services. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Speaker and thank you to the member for Bruce Gray and Sound for the question. I think we need to go back to understand why in fact we implemented SAMS in the first place. You will perhaps recall that we had a very outdated system. It was one that was brought in under the former PC government in 2002. In 2009 the Auditor General put together a report on ODSP and Ontario Works and raised a number of issues with respect to the old system to SDMT. There was security and access control issues. There was a lack of user satisfaction on the part of the frontline workers and there were long standing system errors. So our government recognized the system was outdated and no longer tenable. That is why we decided on this investment in a new system that will better support staff at the Social Assistance and ultimately Mr. Speaker will better serve the people who rely on our programs. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Back to the Minister of Community and Social Services. The old system at least made sure that those checks arrived in time and your government is averse to doing proper research. You failed to do it on Mars, you failed to do it on Orange and you certainly failed to do it on eHealth. It's evident you also failed to do your research on this new computer system. You had four years of multiple warnings from Minnesota, Maryland, Opsu, your frontline staff, our PC members in estimates committee. Yet here you are left with a $20 million mess that is a combination of overpayments, missed and delayed payments. People are going to lose their jobs. Mr. Speaker, though the party opposite may feel it's acceptable to allow the needs of Ontario's most vulnerable citizens to go on address, we in the PC party do not. The Premier said sorry. If she's really sorry, Minister, what you will do and we're asking you the same question I asked yesterday. Will you bring those people from the frontline back to the estimates so we can get to the bottom of this and those people that are the most needy don't suffer one thing straight. Our government has, as its number one concern, the help and assistance for those most vulnerable members in society at the core of the values that our party stands for. And it's truly ironic to hear the member opposite who under their government there was a cut of some 22% of social assistance rate. We remain committed to working closely with our frontline staff and we will implement SAMS and we will continue to provide support to our clients. Our focus in the near future relies on us all working together. This is case workers on the frontline, the support staff that is there to assist them whether they be in municipal settings or in ODSP offices and we have confidence that SAMS will be a better solution for both the case workers and the people we serve. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Do you have a question? My question is to the Premier. On Monday the minister told the source that the government has a contract with IBM to assist us with the transition of going live with SAMS. Will the premier release that contract today? Thank you. Premier. Minister of Community and Social Services. Minister of Community and Social Services. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. And yes indeed the government through proper channels obviously engaged a vendor of record to implement this particular system. It is something that we've been working on and with the vendor and QRAM now owned by IBM for the last three and a half years. Clearly technical support is provided and is continuing to be provided through this particular transition and working closely with our partners in the field to ensure that they get the kind of support they need pursuant to our agreement with them and through the provision of these services. Thank you. Thank you. According to the reports the government has found 65 defects in the SAMS program which have led to the massive problems with social assistance of money reaching the most vulnerable Ontarians. Apparently we can deal with these problems. When the State of Minnesota had problems IBM sent at least 80 technical workers to fix the problems. Have any IBM workers been dispatched to solve these problems and how much are we paying them to actually fix the defects in their own software? Thank you. Minister. Well Mr. Speaker we continue to work with a very active technical support team available to municipalities in my conversations with the mayors of such cities as Hamilton Sudbury, Ottawa and Windsor I've made it very clear that this kind of support is available to them. We've actually set up some dedicated hotlines wherever the payment issue is identified and so these issues are prioritized. I would like to mention though at this point that we still are finding it very difficult to validate some of the anecdotes that we're hearing and have been printed in the media. Member from Kitchener Waterloo come to order. Member from Kitchener Waterloo come to order. And that as we've stated has been corrected by the technical team. Thank you. Thank you Mr. Speaker. New question to members from Fumblin, Quinkey West. Well thank you Speaker. My question is the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry. Mr. Speaker Ontario forestry industry is a critical part of our economy. In fact, the forestry industry employs over 160,000 Ontarians in about 260 communities across this great province. And although most Ontarians believe that forestry industry is only in Northern Ontario it may surprise you Mr. Speaker that I have a mail in my own writing in North Thumblin, Quinkey West. However, the best part about this industry is that sustainability of the resources with approximately 25.6 million hectares of forest certify a sustainable more than twice the size of the state of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, through you to the Minister, why are you doing to ensure the government of Ontario is a growing forestry sector? Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for the question. It's my understanding that it is sweet Lou Rinaldi's birthday today, so I want to wish the member a happy birthday. Speaker, he is right when he suggested the sector has gone through some very challenging times not just here in Ontario, but right across the country, Ontario, BC and Quebec as the major forestry producing jurisdictions in the country. Our government stepped up to the plate. We've invested over 1.3 billion in forestry since 2005, including about $570 million speaker for a roads program, a program that the state was downloaded onto the backs of the forestry companies by the NDP when they had their turn in government. Also including $130 million in stoppage relief, $170 million in electricity relief, $22 and a half million grant to Resolute Forest Products for their mill in Fort Francis is one of the investments that we made on the capital side. Speaker, when the industry faced challenges related to global competition, a rising Canadian dollar, a global recession and a decline in the US housing market, it's a real supplement. Thank you Mr. Speaker and thank you to the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry for his response and leadership on this important issue. Mr. Speaker, my constituents have been listening to the acquisition from the third party over the past few weeks regarding a mill in Fort Francis. A mill that's very important to the town, like many mills in small towns across Ontario. And though a private company owns the mill, I know it is that this mill be heated through the winter to ensure there remains a viable asset in case a buyer comes forward. Mr. Speaker, through you, could the Minister report to the House what he has done to ensure that this mill remains heated throughout the winter months. Thank you, Minister. Speaker, again I thank the member for the question. It is accurate that over the course of the last several weeks, our office and our ministry has spent a great deal of time trying to work forward on a plan program with the owner of the mill, a privately owned asset, to see that that asset could be preserved should a new potential buyer step forward to purchase the asset. We did not come to a successful conclusion on a deal with Resolute so there is no formal deal between our government and the owner of the mill, but we have publicly heard that the owner of the mill Resolute Forest Products has indicated that they will heat the asset in what they're calling asset protection mode. I had a long conversation with Mayor Mr. Ford Francis. I indicated very clearly to him the language that Resolute is using in terms of what they will do in the asset and we're hopeful that that means that it will be maintained in a state that should a potential buyer come forward that asset protection mode would reflect an asset that somebody would still be interested in buying. Thank you, Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport. Minister, you've been mandated by the Premier to be the most open and transparent government in the country. Time to start. Yet, 14 agencies under your watch have not tabled their annual reports in the House. The Ontario Place Corporation, which falls under your watch, has not tabled an annual report since 2010. So Minister, why has it taken three years and still no annual reports for Ontario Place have not been tabled in this House? Thank you. Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport. Mr. Speaker, we are committed to responsible fiscal management and accountability and transparency in our government. And that's why the annual reports and expenses for ministry agencies are available publicly. There's a process in place for these reports before they're made public. They must be submitted by the ministry. They must be approved by the minister, approved by cabinet and tabled within the legislature. And my ministry has received the 2012-13 annual reports from the House agencies. And these reports are still in the approval process and will be available for the public once they're tabled in the legislature. Thank you. Supplementary. So in the case of Ontario Place, the financial reports are now listed online in public accounts for 2011 and 2012 just to update you. But the ministry has sat on those reports for almost a year. And in them, the Auditor General notes concerns the closure of Ontario Place. So in fact, last year an additional four million was spent on unforeseen closing costs according to your former deputy minister. So minister, what are you trying to hide and when will the annual reports for 2011, 2012 and 2013 in respect to Ontario Place be tabled in this legislature? Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I personally signed the 2011-2012 annual report for Ontario Place and I expect them to be tabled within the legislature very shortly. We're excited about Ontario Place. You know, Ontario Place was built in the early 70s. And Mr. Speaker, it is a great facility that we've invested time and energy into and we plan to bring back that public asset to the public so they can access it the same way I was able to access it with my family when I was a young guy. Thanks a lot. Thank you. New question? The member from Toronto. Thank you, Speaker. My question to the Premier. Two weeks ago, we were told that Ontario had joined with Quebec to set seven conditions for approval of the Energy East Pipeline. But last week the Premier called Alberta Premier Jim Prentice and reassured him that Ontario had not set any conditions at all. The seven principles, as the Premier describes them, are more like suggestions. They are weaker and narrower than Quebec's seven conditions. In particular, Quebec has committed to a provincial environmental assessment of the Energy East Project. Ontario so far has not. Will the Premier follow the lead of Quebec and commit to a full provincial environmental assessment of the Energy East Pipeline? Mr. Speaker, I know that the member opposite has listened to what both Premier Cuiard and I and this morning Premier Prentice have said in the public realm, Mr. Speaker. We've been very clear that the principles that we put in place are things that we believe need to be considered, need to be part of the discussion at the National Energy Board, Mr. Speaker. We recognize that the NEB has jurisdiction over this decision, Mr. Speaker. The Minister of Energy through the Ontario Energy Board has put a process in place that will gather input, Mr. Speaker, that will form the body of intervention with the National Energy Board. But, Mr. Speaker, I have been working very hard with Premiers across this country to put in place a Canadian Energy Strategy. I believe that having a Canadian Energy Strategy that looks at how we can all do our part, Mr. Speaker, whether it's on greenhouse gas emissions or whether it's on clean renewable energy, Mr. Speaker, we all have a role to play and that's the work that I've been doing. Well, Mr. Speaker, as you sometimes say, I heard a no. Unlike Quebec, Ontario refuses to conduct a provincial environmental assessment of Energy East. The Premier says the federal process is good enough even after Stephen Harper gutted the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act. But provinces like British Columbia and Quebec have refused to leave their fate in the hands of Stephen Harper. Their said pipeline projects in their provinces will not proceed unless it is in their provinces interests. Will the Premier make the same commitment to the people of Ontario? Minister of Energy. Mr. Speaker, the member would know that the National Energy Board has jurisdiction over this issue. That's number one. The province of Ontario and all the other provinces can only go there as interveners and provide assistance. By the time we're ready to make the submissions, Mr. Speaker, there will not be enough time to complete an environmental assessment. That's number one. Number two, we were ahead of the game almost a year ago by asking the Ontario Energy Board to consult across the province of Ontario. There were technical inputs. There were sociological inputs. There are all kinds of inputs that we received in our consultation. The consultation is not yet completed, but we're going to open up the consultations once again. So all the environmentalists, all the businesses, the gas companies, Mr. Speaker, who are opposed to TransCanada, they will have input into our consultation. It's thorough. It's complete. We're ahead of the game, and I don't know how Quebec is going to do it. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of Economic Development Employment and Infrastructures. As you're well aware, today is the United Nations International Day of Person with Disabilities. Today the world is promoting a deeper understanding of disability issues and mobilized support to foster inclusive society. Here in Ontario, I'm proud of our government for passing the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2005, which helped to create a more inclusive Ontario regardless of ability. Ontario recognizes a world leader in accessibility. We are first in the world to move a more modern regulatory regime that mandates accessibility. We are the first in the world that requires staff to be trained on accessibility. We are first in Canada with legislation that clearly outlines the goals and timelines. Speaker, through you to the Minister. Can the Minister responsible for AODA please inform the House about the progress of our government has made to make Ontario more accessible? Thank you. I want to thank the member for joining myself and a number of our colleagues this morning here in the legislature and getting together with Community Living in March of Dimes to celebrate the UN International Day of Persons with Disabilities. It is a great time to thank accessibility champions across the province of the important work that they've done in the great progress that we've made. Together we've made Ontario not just accessible but one of the most accessible if not the most accessible leader in the entire world. What a great competitive advantage. Something to be very very proud of. Not just for us but for accessibility champions across the province. The 2010 Martin Prosperity Institute outlined that having an inclusive Ontario would see a $7.9 billion investment in gross domestic products. This isn't only good for our society it's not only good for people with disabilities. This is something that's crucial to our competitiveness as an economy. Thank you. I want to thank the minister for giving up an update about the steps that Ontario government is making to make Ontario accessible. I know that PAN and Parapanam Games are putting strong focus on accessibility in our province next summer. The games will showcase Ontario's para-athletes to the world. We are hosting 200 para-athletes and team officials and broadcasting for the first time ever para-PAN sports on TV live. The games are helping to grow para-sports world. In conjunction with the games, the first ever Canadian wheelchair basketball academy was created by wheelchair basketball Canada. Today, a high performance wheelchair basketball athletes are trained on the University of Toronto Scarborough University of Toronto. We have already begun using the world's first full-time year-round daily training centre. Through you to the minister, can he please explain the very strategy our government is taking to make para-PAN games more accessible. Minister? The minister responsible for the para-PAN games. Minister responsible. I would like to thank the member of the PANAM and the PANAM games in 2015 are the most accessible games ever. In every planning stage of the games, we thought about how to make this experience available to all people of all abilities. All existing sporting venues are completely accessible and every new build was designed with accessibility in mind. If you go out to the Scarborough Aquatic Centre, you will see it is perhaps the most accessible facility in North Australia. When you go inside you can see a custom build accessible ergo meter that gives athletes in wheelchair the ability to alter their force and power while training. In the centre there is a heat treatment recovery system that rehabilitates athletes called the Hydroworks 2000 and it has an underwater treadmill resistant jet technology in many other state of the art features. We are working to make sure that these 23,000 on turns will be trained in accessibility training to accommodate everyone. My question is to the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. I think he was on the list to leave early. Let me check please. I'm still going to provide the question. Can you remember with an opportunity to redirect if you could do that for me please. Thank you, Speaker. Perhaps the Premier then. In Manitoba, beekeepers have recently experienced higher than normal bee immortality and to assist with this financial burden of these uncontrollable losses Manitoba has an insurance program to help their bee colonies. The higher losses exceed the coverage deductible premium costs for this program are shared 40% by the insured beekeeper, 24% by the province of Manitoba and 36% by the government of Canada. So, Premier, we in the PC caucus, we are asking your government has had 11 years, why have you not implemented a Manitoba type insurance model to help our Ontario beekeepers. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Well, we have implemented an Ontario program, Mr. Speaker. And the reality is that we have put in place supports for beekeepers who had the winter losses that we saw last year, Mr. Speaker, and we are working with the industry to make sure that we have an appropriate and balanced approach going forward. And part of that is to prevent the bee deaths. That is what we are aiming at, Mr. Speaker. And I know the Minister of the Environment and Climate Change will want to comment on the specifics around those changes. But we know, Mr. Speaker, that it's very important that we support the beekeepers who have had these winter losses. And at the same time, we put a cautionary approach in place that will allow us to prevent the bee deaths going forward. Thank you. You know, our beekeepers, they need a very practical approach. Government does run insurance programs. I've had bees on my farms for 38 years and I have seen the losses over the years, well before Neonix for that matter. But Manitoba they have an insurance program that's up and running right now. Alberta has a similar program. Now we see that Saskatchewan has started a bee mortality insurance POTA project which runs through the Saskatchewan crop insurance corporation to cover loss of honey bees over the winter. They have tough winters as we know, just like we had last winter. The POTA will run for three years before being evaluated to decide if it will continue. And it will bring Saskatchewan in line with the bee insurance programs that are already there in Manitoba they're already there in Alberta. You haven't followed Manitoba's lead over the last 11 years. You didn't follow Alberta's lead. Well, Ontario at least consider the pilot projects that Saskatchewan is in place to provide risk insurance again to help our beekeepers in Ontario. Thank you. Thank you very much Mr Speaker. First of all, I want to thank the member opposite for the question and I have great respect for his work as a producer and as a beekeeper and we'll hope he'll take the time to have a coffee with me later to discuss this because I think this is not a partisan issue. But Mr Speaker, we are moving forward you don't talk about the truth my friend. Mr Speaker, we're working right now on a very similar program to the other provinces as well but we're focused on the priority of actually reducing bee losses Mr Speaker because we don't think that's good for the environment or for beekeepers or for crop producers because bees are such a critical part on their own the managed bee population of our farm economy and they're important Mr Speaker. So I hope the member opposite will support measures that will reduce the need for the people of Ontario to actually have to pay out for losses I assume that would be comfortable with my friends and the official opposition of reducing the cost of government. Thank you Speaker to the Premier. Since 2003 the domestic violence death review committee corner has reported on deaths due to domestic violence in the province and each year makes recommendations to various levels of government. In their report release this morning ARC points out that while some progress has been made on those recommendations much more needs to be done. Shamefully not all ministries and agencies contacted for this report bothered to respond to each of the recommendations and worse not all agencies and ministries have bothered to implement the recommendations made in the coroner's domestic violence reviews. Speaker 251 women have died as a result of domestic violence in the 10 years since the DV DRC started examining this issue. Just last week members in this house were purple scarves in recognition of violence against women so I know that it's a priority for the legislators in this legislation. Question. Premier what will this government do to establish monitoring mechanisms and implement these recommendations. Thank you. Minister responsible for children and youth services. Thank you Speaker and I want to thank the member for this very important question and we all I think want to thank the domestic violence death review committee for the report and we'll all be reviewing the recommendations very carefully. I think at the end of the day speaker we all have the exact same goal which is an Ontario free of domestic violence and of course my heart goes out to the family that was highlighted in the media I think just today a terrible domestic tragedy that affected an entire family and as the minister responsible for women's issues it is a priority for me and all of us that Ontario women and everyone feel safe in their homes their workplace and their communities while Ontario has some of the lowest rates of domestic violence across Canada we absolutely know there's more work to be done speaker and that's why our government has increased funding for community services that help victims of domestic violence that has been increased by 48 percent speaker since 2003 more work to do. Thank you. Supplementary. Speaker unfortunately just today there was a report of a mother and her two children who were murdered in Toronto on the weekend having struggled to find housing in order to flee a violent situation. Access to emergency housing is one of the recommendations that is in the coroner's report. Access to emergency housing remains a problem in the province of Ontario. One of the recommendations is that shelters and second stage housing continue to receive support and funding that keeps pace with inflation. Speaker what this group wants is to return to the legislature next year to give this government an A for implementing the recommendations in the coroner's domestic violence review. Why won't this government do everything in its power to ensure that all ministries and agencies comply with the coroner's recommendations to end violence against women and to implement these very important recommendations. Thank you minister. I think we'll all agree that one domestic violence act is one too many. One death associated with domestic violence is too many. And that's why we have to keep making investments we've been making last week. My colleague the minister of community social services announced an additional 14.5 million over the next three years to support women's shelters counseling agencies and transitional housing. And our government started making these investments at a time when the former government in fact was cutting funding to women's shelters and support. I am pleased that next week I'll be making an important funding announcement with the neighbor friends and family immigration refugee campaign that will help women and their families affected by domestic violence access to supports that are culturally and linguistically relevant and accessible. We remain very committed speaker in Ontario free of domestic violence and sexual assault and sexual violence because we firmly believe that every woman has the right to feel safe and secure. Thank you. Thank you Mr. Speaker and my question is for the minister of health and long-term care. The members of my riding in Davenport have been asking me about the new mental health and addictions leadership advisory council and its plan to provide better access better quality and better value. The minister announced an important expansion of our mental health strategy that would help us improve access to services reduce wait times and close the gaps in our system. To help guide the implementation of this plan our government announced a new mental health and addictions leadership advisory council. The council will provide advice on the strategies investments, promote collaboration across sectors and report annually on the strategies progress. The council will be chaired by Susan Pigott and the members of the council and the people who have had experienced a mental health and addiction challenge as well as leaders from across different sectors that serve people with mental health or addiction. Through you Mr. Speaker I ask what are the priorities of this council and what do they plan on achieving? Thank you minister of health long-term care. Well thank you and thanks to the member from Davenport for this very important question. The council that she's referring to the members will provide the government with important advice as we move forward and addictions strategy phase two's top five priorities and these priorities include promoting resiliency and well-being for all Ontarians by expanding proven programs in schools and in the workplace as well as drawing on public health expertise on mental health promotion and addiction prevention. Mr. Speaker we're going to also as a priority ensure that early identification and intervention is available for those with mental illness and addictions. We're going to the third priority expand housing employment supports and initiatives to reduce contact with the criminal justice system providing the right care at the right time and in the right place through initiatives such as better service coordination gaps in the system and improving transitions. We're also going to be establishing a new funding model linked to population equality improvement and service integration. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Thank you supplementary. Thank you minister we know that approximately one in five young people in Ontario that's more than two million are dealing with mental health issues like anxiety depression and eating disorders and approximately 70% of mental health and addiction problems begin in childhood and adolescence. Nearly 30% of my constituents in Davenport are below the age of 25. The promotion of overall healthy well-being is absolutely crucial for these young people. Many community organizations help young people to increase self-esteem such as the Dover Court Boys and Girls Club and others which provide support through services such as counseling like the Abrigo Centre and the Davenport Perth neighbourhood and community health centre. However many are looking to our government to take an active leadership role in supporting these Ontarians struggling with mental illness. The first phase of the mental health strategy was focused on children and youth. Minister how will you continue your commitment in the second phase? Thank you Minister. To the Minister of Children and Youth Services. Minister of Children and Youth Services. Thank you Speaker and I too want to thank the member from Davenport for raising this very important question. As she said the first three years of our mental health strategy has been focused on children youth and that's because it was the right and the smart thing to do Speaker. Today more than an additional 50,000 children and youth and their families are benefiting from these initiatives and programs and while we are proud of our accomplishments we know there's more to do. My ministry will continue to work with our partners and transform the child and youth mental health system through our moving on mental health plan and promote community mobilization as we move into year two of our youth suicide prevention plan. Together we will help young people with the mental health with mental health illnesses and while grieving. Thank you Speaker. Thank you very much Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Transportation. In June of 2013 the county of Rentfruit published a business case for accelerating the expansion of Highway 17. In that report it called on your ministry to identify the continued expansion from Shield Drive to the town of Rentfruit in the provinces five year capital works budget. Furthermore it allowed us to roll out a predictable and multi-year program to fund the planning and implementation of environmental assessment updates, property acquisition and budget allocations of the continued expansion. The people of my riding understand that the expansion is not only essential for the local economy but also one of driver safety. Minister it's been over a year and a half since the county released its report. Will you tell us what can you give us about the expansion? Thanks very much Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the member from Rentfruit for that question. I also want to commend him for his advocacy with respect to this particular issue and also to say to the county of Rentfruit for putting the business case for the accelerated extension of this particular Highway forward I want to make sure that they understand that it is obviously some great work that's taken place. I know there have been conversations with the member opposite would know the ministry understands the importance of this particular expansion and we are committed to continuing to make improvements to this particular Highway. So for example in 2012 as the member would know we did finish the first phase of expansion from Regional Road 29 to Division Street. Phase 2 from Division Street to Shield Drive is currently under construction and it's expected that this work will be completed in 2016 and beyond that speaker in the next few years to expand and repair Southern Ontario's highways and bridges. I look forward to continuing to work with this member and his county on this important project. Thank you very much. Thank you for that reply minister but we're speaking to Beyond Shield Drive and I will say that your predecessor did identify this as a priority project and I'm hoping that you will consider it the same. For a decade now I've received a steady stream of emails letters and phone calls to my office around the issue of Highway 17. This is a key infrastructure project in Eastern Ontario. It's about local economic development. It's also an issue about public safety. I'll ask you again to accept the findings of the county's report for the accelerated extension of Highway 17 and give us a date when you'll be implementing them. We need to know what's going to happen beyond 2016 when the expansion to Shield Drive is complete. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker and for his supplementary question. What I didn't get to say in the opening answer was that the environmental assessment for phases 3 and 4 have been updated. Property acquisitions and designation has been initiated. Timing of construction will depend on a number of factors including detail design, property acquisition and additional environmental approvals. I understand why this is important for this member, for this county and for this part of Ontario Speaker. I referenced in my initial answer what I've heard not only from this member but a number of members on that side of the House, the member from Wellington Halton Hills, the member from Perry San Muskoka and others about the importance of investing in crucial infrastructure. It's why Speaker, we have the Moving Ontario Forward Plan $29 billion over 10 years for transit, transportation and other crucial forms of infrastructure. It is encouraging to hear members on that side of the House understand the enlightenment of our plan. I look forward to hearing from members from London West. Thank you Speaker. My question is to the Premier. Speaker, it's not easy being a student in Ontario from studying and working fuller part-time jobs to paying the highest tuition fees in the country but nothing makes it harder than trying to do all that while going hungry. Today post-secondary students are one of the fastest growing groups of food bank users. There is not one college that doesn't have some kind of food relief program and many local food banks are setting special hours for post-secondary students. Does the Premier think it is acceptable that increasing numbers of students must rely on food banks in order to afford post-secondary education? Well, Mr Speaker, I don't think it's acceptable in as rich a society as we live in that people would go hungry Mr Speaker. It's why we are the first government Ontario to have a poverty reduction strategy Mr Speaker. It's why the focus of our post-secondary policies has been to increase accessibility to make sure that there are grants in place to make sure Mr Speaker that we reduce tuition so that students would be able to access post-secondary so no Mr Speaker. I don't accept that young people should go hungry in this province and Mr Speaker we are working very hard to make sure that young people and families have everything that they need in order to be able to thrive. Mr Speaker, this year's hunger report released yesterday by the Ontario Association of Food Banks points out that hunger is rampant on post-secondary campuses because university tuition has increased nearly 40% in just 7 years. Students budgets can't keep up with the rising prices of rent, tuition and food. This government could change that. The liberal sky-high tuition policies are forcing more and more students to choose between going hungry while they are studying or abandoning higher education altogether. Why is this government making hunger another cost of higher education in Ontario? This is for economic development and infrastructure. Well thank you Mr Speaker and this government understands the challenges that students face across this province, a number of different challenges and the member raises some good points but she's wrong Mr Speaker and a number of different categories as well. We brought in a 30% off tuition program Mr Speaker that's providing thousands of dollars of savings across this province to students. A student today that's receiving the 30% tuition grant is paying the same amount of tuition today they would have been paying 10 years ago. That's the fact that doesn't mean we're done that doesn't mean we're going to keep working with students and post-secondary institutions to do everything we can to improve education through our universities and colleges and to ensure we keep a cap on tuition which we've lowered the amount that post-secondary institutions can raise tuition. Thank you Mr Speaker we'll continue to address the challenge. Thank you Mr Speaker my question is for the Minister of Energy Bob Shirelli. I was pleased to learn of the recent Health Canada study on the effects of wind turbines which found no evidence to support a link between wind turbine noise and self-reported illness stress or impacts on sleep. This scientifically grounded study which included participants from communities across southwestern Ontario and PEI is considered to be an international class study the most comprehensive investigation to date. Health Canada study supported Ontario's Chief Medical Officer of Health conclusion that there's no direct causal link between wind turbine noise and adverse health effects. Minister with the results of these studies now confirming that there are no adverse health effects for wind turbine noise will our government be relaxing its rules with regards to the effect of wind energy project? Mr Speaker I thank the member from Etobicoke North for the question and our government's priority continues to be ensuring that renewable energy projects are developed in a way that respects communities and is protective of human health and the environment and we appreciate Health Canada's work on building the science around wind projects. It found no link between wind turbine noise and adverse health effects and our decision making and health continue to be our top priorities going forward Mr Speaker sighting continues to be as important as ever our government has set standards for renewable energy projects including noise limits to protect Ontarians and we continue to have the toughest setback standards in North America at a minimum distance of 550 meters. Our government is committed to continuing to improve the sighting of energy infrastructure in Ontario. Thank you Mr Speaker we have a deferred vote on the motion for allocation of time on bill 35 an act to reveal the public works protection act and amend the police services act with respect to court security and act security for electricity generating facilities and nuclear facilities act 2014 calling the members this will be a 5 minute bell. All members please take your seats. All members please take your seats. On December the 2nd Mr. Nackley move government notice a motion number 12 all those in favour of the bill 35. All members please rise 1 in the time to be recognized by the court. Mr. Sousa, Ms. Winn, Ms. Matthews, Mr. Hoskins, Ms. Sandals, Mr. Dubin, Ms. McCharles, Mr. Cole, Mr. Tukar, Mr. Tukar, Mr. Dillon, Mr. Dillon, Mr. Quadri, Mr. Murey, Mr. Patau, Mr. Flynn, Mr. Zimmer, Mr. St 부� recap, Mr.ested, Mr. Dixit, Mr. Dixit, Mr. Phraisah, Mr. Dixit, Mr. dips me get from right Mr. Imah indication that you would not be there if please have a look at the 19 eagerly sprouts. You have to call All those opposed, please rise one at a time to be recognized by the people. Mr. York. Mr. Bailey. Mr. Bailey. Mr. Helyer. Mr. Helyer. Mr. Walker. Mr. Walker. Mr. Nichols. Mr. Nichols. Mr. Merteaux. Mr. McDonald. Mr. McDonnell. Mr. Pettipis. Mr. Pettipis. Mr. Bissone. Mr. Harve. Mr. Vancon. Mr. Tavins. Mr. Miller Hamilton East Stony Cree. Mr. Miller Hamilton East Stony Cree. Miss Sattler. Miss Taylor. Mr. Nateshev. Miss Armstrong. Miss Armstrong. Mr. Singh. Miss Fife. Miss Forestry. Mr. Samantha. Mr. Hatfield. Mr. Cappie. Mr. It's Camber. It's Camber. It's Gates. It's Gretzky. It's Gretzky. It's French. It's French. The ayes are 50. The nays are 41. The ayes are 50. And the nays are 41. I declare the motion carried. There are no deferred votes. There are no further deferred votes. This house stands recessed until 3 p.m. this afternoon.