 It is now time for a question period. The member from Nipissing. Thank you very much and good morning, Speaker. My questions are for the Premier. Good morning, Premier. Our resolve was tested today, but by us being here, Premier, we have passed. So thank you for carrying on. I know that you and I agree that governments must focus on delivering prosperity, a better quality of life, and accountability in government. I believe that you and I both entered politics and public life to deliver on those goals. But Ontario isn't what it could be or should be. Under your government, Ontario is home to Canada's largest deficit, larger in fact than the federal government and all other provinces combined. Despite that, you continue to say you will balance the budget by 2017 and that budget targets would be imperiled if the province had to sacrifice investments in jobs, growth or families. Premier, why do you believe that fiscal prudence is inconsistent with strong jobs, strong growth and strong families? Thank you, Premier. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Speaker, and I actually believe that fiscal prudence and a strong economy are connected. I think that they are absolutely connected and that's why we have remained committed to our elimination of the deficit by 2017-18. That's what we ran on, that's the plan that we have in place, that's the plan that we are executing. At the same time, Mr. Speaker, we know that making sure that communities have the infrastructure that they need to be able to thrive, understanding that their need to continue to be investments in people's talent and skills, and quite frankly, Mr. Speaker, partnering with business to make sure that business has the opportunity to flourish, that all of those things have to be in place in order for the economy to thrive. So those things are integrally connected in our plans and I believe that is the best course, the best balanced and practical course for the province. Thank you, Supplementary. Thank you, Speaker. Premier, you continue to protect your deficits, your deficit of ideas, your deficit of vision and your deficit of hope. We know that you peaked your deficit at $19.3 billion. And incredibly, you have 61% of your deficit reduction left until the end. At the rate you're going, Premier, you won't balance for another 15 years. Premier, it's time to come clean. Your $9.2 billion deficit grew to $10.5 billion last year and is forecasted to $12.5 billion this very year. Frankly, no one believes you're going to balance. So Premier, when will you get back to balance and make Ontario first? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. As we have committed and as we are on track to do, we will eliminate the deficit by 2017-18. Mr. Speaker, in terms of the party that presented a hopeful option, a hopeful vision of this province, Mr. Speaker, I think that is the vision that we brought to the people of the province, Mr. Speaker. That is the vision that we ensconced in our budget when we introduced it in this past May and then we ran on that budget and we brought that budget back to the legislature, Mr. Speaker. That is the plan that we are implementing at this point and that is exactly about the optimism of this province. It's why, Mr. Speaker, I will be traveling with a delegation to China, Mr. Speaker, to meet with our friends and partners in Jiangsu province but also in Beijing and Shanghai to talk about how we can increase that relationship and increase our trade relationship. That's part of our economic growth. Final supplementary. Mr. Speaker, Premier, the people of Ontario are suffering under the rigid ideology of this government. We yearn for an approach that is pragmatic. Stop the talk, please. Stop the talk. I'm giving you some quiet and it will stay that way. Finish, please. Premier, when you addressed the Canada 2020 conference, you praised your government for, quote, rejecting strict ideology but rationalizing waste and scandal from the gas plants as an example during a stalled economy is purely ideological. You threaten Ontario's prosperity, our quality of life and our place in the world. Your government is on a dangerous path. Our debt is five times as large as California and we're piling on $11 billion in interest every year. Our credit outlook is negative and the credit agencies don't believe in your reduction timelines. Premier, how are you going to get us back to balance and make Ontario first? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Well, the same bleak view of the world that his party, the member opposite party brought to the people of Ontario was the same bleak view that he is espousing again this morning, Mr. Speaker. And in terms of an ideological response to the economic situation, I can't think of a more ideological response than cutting 100,000 jobs and slashing services across government, Mr. Speaker, which is exactly what that party proposed to do. We are committed to eliminating the deficit by 2017-18, Mr. Speaker. We are investing in the talent and the skills of our people, Mr. Speaker. We are investing in infrastructure that will foster economic growth in the long term and will create jobs and create prosperity in the short term, Mr. Speaker. That's the plan that we ran on. That's the plan that we're implementing and that is the plan that holds hope for the people of Ontario. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. My new questions are for the Premier. I believe that Ontario is the land of opportunity because it has been fostered by a spirit of free enterprise. Premier, this week is Small Business Week and I'm sure you know that small businesses are how we make Ontario first. In towns and cities across our province, small businesses are the private sector job creators. I know the struggles of these men and women as I'm a lifelong entrepreneur, opened my first company when I was 16 years old. But Premier, under this Liberal government, you have driven out small business. There were 2,700 fewer small businesses in Ontario last year than there were the year before. Speaker, my question is simple. Why are you so keen to drive out small business instead of helping build themselves up? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. So I know that the Minister of Economic Development is going to want to comment on what's actually happening in the province, Mr. Speaker. But what I want the people of Ontario to know is that we are very focused on partnering with those very businesses, creating an opportunity for more of those small businesses to start. That's what innovation is about. When we talk about innovation, we talk about start-up companies, we talk about commercializing, we're talking about creating an environment where there's enough capital to invest, where there's the opportunity for those businesses to grow. It's why, Mr. Speaker, it's very important that when we go on trade missions, when we travel internationally, we open doors for and make connections for small businesses that otherwise might not be able to develop those relationships in other countries. That's exactly what we are doing when we go to China, Mr. Speaker, when we take this trade mission. So fostering an environment for small businesses, medium enterprises to grow. That's exactly what we're doing, Mr. Speaker. Supplementary. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Premier, entrepreneurship is often a hard road. There are going to be lean times. In my early years, I recall taking the Chamber of Commerce first dollar of profit certificate, cracking it open and using that dollar to buy lunch. That's the reality of being in your own business. Entrepreneurs have an unwavering dream. We dream of creating something that wasn't there before, hiring more people, creating jobs. But here in Ontario, you have created something different. You have created the highest cost business environment. And now you're going to hit business with a new pension tax. One that business say will force them to fire employees and reduce the wages for those employees who are left. Premier, why don't you listen to the advice of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business and offend in this new pension tax? Minister of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure. It's a long name, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. I have trouble with the two sometimes. But I have to correct the member opposite. He's talking down the advances our small business community has made in this province. I don't know if the member is aware of this, but small business jobs have grown since from 2012-13 by over 87,000 jobs. So the story you're telling is absolutely, patently false. Jobs are growing in our small business community. And the Premier touched on something very, very important. Just yesterday, Mr. Speaker, he asked where they are. Just yesterday, I was meeting with a small business start-up, Mr. Speaker, that's coming to China with the Premier and the Minister responsible for trade and myself called Chip Care, Mr. Speaker. They've developed an incredible technology that's going to make blood testing. Actually, it's a lab almost in a box, Mr. Speaker, in a handheld. They're coming to China with us because they're going to build those devices here. They want to market them in China and they want to attract investment. Those are the kind of companies, Mr. Speaker, that our initiatives are supporting. Those are the kind of companies that represent our next generation economy. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The facts hurt. I understand that the facts hurt, but Premier Small Business would love to hear some good news from you. Instead, your own Ministry of Finance tells us that growth was actually less than forecast and you raided the piggy bank to make your deficit look even smaller. Instead of incentives to grow, you promise a new payroll tax. Instead of making Ontario first, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business ranked Ontario eighth out of the 10 provinces when it comes to tax policies. Instead of growing this valuable sector, as the facts showed, there are 2,700 fewer small businesses today. Premier Small Business owners have the answers. When are you going to stop punishing them and start listening to them? Minister? Let's talk about the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, Mr. Speaker. The high ranking that they've given this province as a result of the work done by my predecessor, and actually when I was in this post before, our efforts to reduce regulatory burdens across this province by 17%, that focuses very much on small businesses, Mr. Speaker, earned us, I believe, what was an A or an A- highest in the country, Mr. Speaker, when it comes to reducing regulatory burden. We're working very hard with our small business and medium-sized business community. We know that they're the backbone of our economy. That's why we're pleased that there are up 87,000 jobs since 2012-2013. We're not going to take the members' advice and talk down those small businesses. They're working hard to grow our economy. We're proud of what they're doing. We're proud of the growth that they're experiencing in Ontario, and we're going to keep working with them, Mr. Speaker, to keep creating jobs and build a strong economy in this province. Thank you, Speaker. My question is for the Premier. Whether it's cancelling gas plants or bailing out Mars, this Liberal Government likes to keep its secrets in Cabinet's cone of silence, and yet this Premier says she's different. She insists that she's going to lead the most transparent government in all of Canada, Speaker. So has the Cabinet actually been briefed on the privatisation of Ontario's local hydro-utilities, and will Cabinet be discussing that today, Speaker? Premier, you all have. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And as the leader of the third party knows, we asked Ed Clark who is a well-respected expert to lead a group of people including Francis Lankin and Janet Ecker to look at how to optimise the assets that are owned by the people of Ontario. He has indicated publicly the direction that he thinks we should go. Obviously, we have been in close contact with him as he prepares to release his interim report and we look forward to his advice and the advice of his council. Supplementary? On Monday, the Premier laughed at Ontario's concerns that she's privatising assets, but Ed Clark was crystal clear the Government plan is to sell the distribution network, quote, bring in private capital, sell down interest in public utilities and public hydro utility, Speaker? Is the Premier going to keep denying that her Government is privatising hydro? Premier? Mr. Speaker, what I am going to keep emphasising is that we have to take practical and sensible steps in order to make sure that the assets that are owned by the people of Ontario are working to their highest capacity in order that we can then take the benefit of those assets and reinvest it in assets that are needed for the future, Mr. Speaker. That is what we put in our plan. That is what we said we were going to do in our budget because we know that if we don't find the funding to invest in transportation and transportation infrastructure today, then we're not going to have that infrastructure for the future. And so it is responsible and practical that we look at the way these assets, whether it's Hydro-1 or whether it's the LCBO, to make sure that they are working to their greatest benefit of the people of the province. That's what Ed Clark is doing, and I look forward to his interim report. Thank you. We have records that show that besides meeting with the Premier, Ed Clark met with ministers Shirelli, Dugud, Matthews and Sousa. But the section of the memo that lists the key themes of those meetings have been removed. Now, when the Premier and the members of her inner circle met with Ed Clark, did they talk about selling off our shared public assets like our public hydro utilities? Well, Mr. Speaker, I hope that those conversations were wide-ranging because if you don't have a wide-ranging conversation, if you don't look at what all the options are, then you're not going to come up with the right answer. And so to only look at the most narrow, ideologically correct version of possibilities is not going to get you to the right answer. So I hope, Mr. Speaker, that those conversations were very broad. We know because of what Ed Clark has said publicly, the direction that he is going to be suggesting we go. And I am very interested in hearing and reading his interim report because I think that he's done exactly what we asked him to do. And that is look at the assets that are owned by the people of Ontario and figure out how you can make them work better for the people of Ontario. The next question is also for the Premier Speaker. The same records that we've obtained show that Ed Clark hired multiple consulting firms to put together his plan for selling off shared assets like local hydro utilities. My question is a simple one. Who are these consulting firms, Speaker? Well, Mr. Speaker, again, we have asked an expert in the field of financing to look at the assets that are owned by the people of Ontario that are very valuable, Mr. Speaker, and we've asked him to, with his panel, give us some advice on how we could optimize those assets. Well, we didn't do, Mr. Speaker, we didn't make a back of the napkin decision as was made by a previous government to sell off an asset like the 407 to no long-term benefit of the people of the province, Mr. Speaker. We've taken a very thoughtful and practical approach because we know that we need to be able to make investments in assets that are needed today and into the future and we know that we need the funding for that. And that's why Ed Clark has done the work that he's done and I look forward to his interim report. Thank you. Supplementary? Well, Speaker, the government was hiring private consultants to help out with the Liberal Files Fire Sale and privatization of Ontario's shared public assets like our public hydro utilities. That's clear. So if the Premier is not prepared to be transparent with the people of Ontario about who those consultants are, perhaps at least she can tell the people of Ontario how much they've been paid. Mr. Speaker, I mean, it's very interesting to me. We have committed to invest $130 billion in roads and bridges and schools and transit over the next 10 years, Mr. Speaker, because we know that that kind of investment is what is necessary. But we also know that we have to be responsible as we move forward. We know that we have to make decisions that are responsible for the long term. And in order to do that, we have to talk to people who understand the world of financing who understand the world of investment who understand the world of infrastructure, Mr. Speaker. So that's what we have done. We asked Ed Clark with his council to come up with some advice and I hope, again, I will say to the leader of the third party, I hope he's talked to who he needs to talk to to get the very best advice so we make the best long term decisions for the people of this province. Can the final supplement please? Well, Mr. Speaker, we know that when it comes to producing business cases, the Premier keeps saying that the dog ate her homework. Ontario deserves to know, Ontarians deserve to know whether any of these consulting firms produced a business case for the fire sale of their shared public assets. Now, will she make the consultants reports available for the public immediately, Mr. Speaker? Thank you. So, again, Mr. Speaker, the interim report and then the final report of the group that Ed Clark has been working with are not yet finalized, Mr. Speaker, but I'm looking forward to those. I just want to step back and talk about why we are doing this. You know, our plan to maximize the value of the assets that are owned by the people of Ontario is not a whim on our part, Mr. Speaker. It's actually a very important part of our plan to make investments. And the investments that we want to make are investments that will have long-term benefit, Mr. Speaker, and so investing in regional express rail, investing in 15-minute Go service, full-day two-way Go service, investing in the Brampton Queen Street Rapid Transit line, Mr. Speaker, investing in the downtown relief line, the Hamilton Light Rail Transit, the next phase of the LRT in Ottawa, expansion of highways like number seven, Mr. Speaker, to make sure that communities are able to thrive. That's why we're doing this. That's why this is so important and it's so important that we get it right. Thank you. New question? Member from the Latter Apprentice, Lennox and Addington. Thank you, Speaker. Speaker, my question is to the Premier. Since 2011, your government has known the details of the loan agreement with Mars phase two. It has never found the right time to be either open or transparent about it. In 2008, the economic recession hit Alexandria ARE and their share value plummeted at over 60%. After three years of stall development in 2011, your government provided Mars a $224 million loan to complete the project as ARE could no longer meet their obligations. No financial institution was willing to back the project with only 10% of the building pre-leased. 30 to 40% lower than industry standards. Premier, at the time of the loan, what terms of the contract between ARE and Mars were amended to protect this risky taxpayer investment? Question? Thank you. Development, employment and infrastructure. Minister of economic development, employment and infrastructure. Well, thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I've made it very clear. In the legislature, I've said it outside of this legislature that we're doing everything we can to bring forward requests for information and anything that's not commercially sensitive will absolutely be shared. That's fair, Mr. Speaker, it's what we can do and it's what we should do and we're happy to be transparent as transparent as possible about all of that. But the fact of the matter is, Mr. Speaker, this is the difference between that party and our party. Yes, Mars is a project, Mars Phase 2, that ran into some trouble during the recession. Yes, we were there, Mr. Speaker, to support them to try to do everything we could to see this project through. Unlike the PCs, Mr. Speaker, whose position quite clearly was to let that project rot in the ground. Mr. Speaker, we're talking about a sector with 51,000 high paying jobs. That contributes $39 billion to our economy. This is an important sector, Mr. Speaker. We're going to keep working to create jobs in the sector so that we can get the tourists out of this land wall. Back to the premier that your minister failed to answer. ARE originally took all the risk with Phase 2 by supplying both the capital and the management of the project. The only contribution from Mars was providing the land valued at $15 million. Understandably, ARE was in line to receive the lion's share of revenue from the leasing of Mars 2. Until 2011, Mars was only due $715,000 per year from the total leasing revenue from Phase 2. When you provided Mars alone, what did you forget to amend in the Mars ARE agreement that is now costing us an additional $65 million? Or did you just forget that ARE continued to be in line for 95% of the leasing revenues from Phase 2? I was available instead for 10 and a half hours in Estimates Committee and answered all the questions that the opposition had for me. I think what's important now is to speak about how important Mars is to our economy. Let me say something that either comes from the opposition or the government. This comes from Life Science Ontario which is made up of the 1600 companies that work in the bioscience sector. This is what they had to say and they released this yesterday. The Government of Ontario's support of Mars is an example of Ontario's leadership and with leadership comes risks. Now is not the time to second-guess the commitment that our government has shown by investing in innovation. Lest we rather seek to be followers and late adopters in this new global economy and live with the associated economic fallout. This bold, long-term vision behind Mars and has enabled the Discovery District to become an international icon for innovation. Mr. Speaker, that was the vision of Ernie Yves in her previous government. That's our vision today. We stand by it. We're going to keep creating jobs. We're going to continue to grow a strong biosciences cluster in Ontario. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Premier. Mr. Speaker, the government promised annual quotes, unquote dedicated funding for transit and transportation and in fact set up the Trillium Trust Fund that can only be used for infrastructure. But here's the catch. There's no legal guarantee that any money will ever make it to the Trillium Trust or make it to transit and infrastructure. This is a Premier who insisted she was going to be different. But the Premier's quotes, unquote, dedicated plan doesn't actually dedicate anything. Does the Premier have a different definition of dedicated than anyone else? Mr. Finance. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And it is as it's been stated in the budget in a fall economic statement in the creation of the Trillium Trust to ensure that funds that are associated with the sale of specific assets or any of the initiations that we put forward go to the trust dedicated to transit. We made that very clear and that's how we'll proceed, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Thank you, supplementary. Thank you. Back to the Premier, Mr. Speaker. Without long term a dedicated funding of which there is none there is no long term transit planning. That's left people in my riding across Ontario packed into overcrowded public transit waiting for an actual solution. There is a loophole in the Premier's quote-unquote dedicated transit funding plan so big you could actually drive a bus through that, Mr. Speaker. Will the Premier close that loophole and actually make dedicated funding dedicated? Would you answer my question this time? Thank you. Mr. Speaker the third party has put forward their proposals that includes the very issue that they are now denying. They have put in their program, they copied exactly what we put forward in terms of assets they look at optimizing, maximizing the values and ensuring that any of the assets that are sold are then dedicated to the Trillium Trust that was developed for that purpose. They ran on that premise and furthermore they said they would even do more. Now they're afraid to talk about the very issues to look at ways to do just that. Mr. Speaker, the Trillium Trust was established, funds that are sold, any assets that are sold will go to the trust dedicated to transit. We have a plan for transit, we have a plan for public infrastructure that's going to help grow our economy and we're going to need to do just that. Thank you. Thank you very much Speaker and my question this morning is to the Minister of Northern Development and Mines. Speaker, under Premier Wynn's leadership our government has placed strong emphasis on supporting small, rural and northern communities across Ontario. Our government's economic plan is targeted to create jobs and spur economic growth and we're focused on investing in people, investing in infrastructure and supporting a dynamic and innovative business climate. Speaker can the Minister inform this House on how our government is investing in our northern Ontario communities to ensure they have the tools they need to be competitive in the global market. Thank you Mr. Thanks very much. I want to thank the Minister for the question and certainly one of the programs that I am really proud to share my capacity as Minister of Northern Development Mines is the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund and although recently when the opposition was belittling the important work of the NOHFC, particularly with our partnerships with the private sector the facts absolutely speak for themselves. Speaker, over the last decade the NOHFC has supported over 1,200 projects creating or sustaining almost 24,000 jobs in northern Ontario and may I say benefiting every single community across the north so the fund has also invested over $950 million over that time frame, leveraging $3.5 billion in additional investments for our province. Speaker our government remains absolutely committed to creating strong partnerships with businesses, communities and people to help foster continued economic growth with certainly a very strong emphasis on Northern Ontario. Thank you. Thank you Speaker. It's clear that the hardworking minister is a strong advocate for Northern Ontario communities through work with the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Agriculture is one industry that plays an important role in every community across the province whether it's small, rural, urban or Northern Ontario and including my great riding of Glen Gary Prescott and Russell I know that Northern Ontario holds a lot of potential when it comes to agriculture and identifying and acting upon opportunities to support the agricultural industry is critical in building a prosperous Ontario. Speaker I think we can all agree that the efficient and modern infrastructure is the cornerstone for a strong Northern economy I'm just going to ask the minister again to please inform the House on what our government is doing to support a strong, sustainable agricultural industry in Northern Ontario through the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund. Thank you Minister. Well thank you very much and again thanks for the question I mean certainly one of the exciting things about the economy in Northern Ontario is indeed the agricultural sector we were the board was recently in New Listard actually and we were able to announce close to 2 million dollars there in funding for the through the Northern Ontario Farm Innovation Alliance for to install tile drainage and clear land infrastructure and may I say Mr. Speaker the general manager of that alliance is Stephanie van Hoff the daughter of the member for just being Cochrane so this tile drainage this tile drainage program is remarkable and I know that many members have spoken about this this allows farmers to get out on the land weeks if not a month earlier than they were expecting it's dramatically increased return on investment for farmers this is great for all across the North a number of farmers told me directly when we were in New Listard that with the addition of tile drainage they were actually able to double their yield so this is a great program a good example of economic development and support for the Minister of Agriculture for this is great economic development in Northern Ontario. Thank you Mr. Speaker my question is for the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry Minister Miller released his report Managing New Challenges where he recommends closing Algonquin Provincial Park to commercial timber harvest in his report Mr. Miller stated that closing the park to timber harvesting could some will be done without negatively affecting the local economy everyone in the industry understands that the commissioners completely flawed in his premise furthermore just last year your ministry released a report on timber harvest in the park the people of my riding across the province need assurances from your government that it will continue to allow Algonquin to be a multi-use park. Minister will you stand in your place today and pledge to the people of Ontario that you will reject the commissioners recommendation for Algonquin Park. Thank you very much and I want to thank the member for the important issues related to Algonquin Park are to him as a member and to his entire constituency. Having said that speaker I will also say in the house here today that we very much respect the work of the environmental commissioner he has made commentary on the work that I do within my ministry and commentary on the work that other ministries do as well and so we respect his work we take his report and we will thoroughly review what he has recommended to us. He has recognized my ministry's transparency and openness on a variety of issues and we're thankful for that and in the supplementary I will respond more directly to the members question and speak about what we have done very recently through the park management plan and the amendment that came into that plan and the work that will be going on in relation to this park on a go forward basis. Well I hope to hear that I'm looking forward to administer because this is an important part of the implementation of the Timber Harvest in Algonquin Park is vital to the thousands of people in my riding across eastern Ontario that rely on that for their livelihood. In addition it has been demonstrated time and time again that Algonquin Park has the most stringent and comprehensive management system in the world. The multiuse function of Algonquin Park makes it a world leader in responsible resource management and the millions of people. Minister I'm asking you again to do the right thing and unequivocally dismiss the commissioner's recommendation. Will you do that today? Thank you and I thank the member for the supplementary. Of course I have no intention of the minister of natural resources and forestry of shutting down forestry within Algonquin Park. Having said that the member will also be aware that that park management plan and the amendment within it did take a year ago into protection. The important point for me to make to the member and to his constituency is that in no way shape or form that that extra environmental protection impact the forestry operations that are going on in Algonquin. In fact we can confirm that everybody who relies on forestry for their economic sustainability affected with logging in the park is still whole. There's plenty of work. As the member from Thunder Bay Attic Oak and I went through the process of the process. We're seeing a rebound in forestry right now. All of the people that are making an economy for the logging in the park are still able to do that. We're proud of that. We think we've landed it. It's a multi-use facility where a park has been for 150 years and we see it remaining so on the first day. Yes, my question is to the Premier. Premier prior to the last election, you promised that PSW workers in this province would be in support. The problem however is, is a number of PSW workers are not getting nervous. Imagine the surprise, the shock and the sense of betrayal that the workers at the Canadian Red Cross and my riding found out when they got this letter and it reads, the wage increase does not apply to every personal support worker. Our low acuity programs and all day programs are not included and the list of approved functional centres for the wage increase of 2014. Based on Ontario, your wages will not be changing this year. So, Premier, why did you break your word to these PSW workers? Premier? Minister of Health, we want to care. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Again, I find it pretty rich coming from the NDP. So this was an initiative and I have to say, Mr. Speaker, an important one by our government that was in the platform during 2014. It was in our budget as well where we committed to quite frankly respecting our PSWs across this province by increasing their wages by $4 an hour over the next three years. As I said, Mr. Speaker yesterday, our PSWs, our personal support workers and there are literally thousands of them working hard as we speak at this moment helping people, helping our seniors in our homes, helping others in the community. We made a commitment so that they are respected for the hard work that they do every day but also to engage on a program for sustainability of the sector and make sure that they're not only valued but that they have the supports in place so that they can succeed and provide that important care that they do every day. Thank you. The problem is like most promises made by Liberals, there's a bud to it. In this particular case, a number of workers or PSW workers are working for other PSW workers around this province. So my question to you is a very direct one. Will you fund all PSW workers are working in the home care sector? Yes or no? Mr. Speaker we've worked closely with the sector, with the stakeholders and our partners in the sector to determine a program which will guarantee the sustainability of the sector and increase the wages. And again, I just have to reiterate they not only didn't have it in their platform Mr. Speaker Reminder for members on this side not to talk about the answers being given and a reminder on the opposite side to listen to the answer. So Mr. Speaker, they not only didn't have it in their platform Mr. Speaker, they voted against our budget that contained this measure and catalyzed an election which allowed us, fortunately Mr. Speaker to continue this process. We've added in fact 2,500 PSWs in our long-term care centers since 2008. Three million additional PSW hours over the last three years. We're committed to this. I'm going to take lessons from the NDP party on this. This is the leadership of the Government of Ontario and the Liberal Party. Thank you. New question? Member from Davenport. Thank you Minister. My question is for the Minister of Community and Social Services. In my writing of Davenport, many of my constituents rely on the support that the social assistance system provides both through Ontario Works and the Ontario Disability Support Program. These programs offer support for some of the most vulnerable people in our communities and it is very important to my constituents that we provide the assistance to their neighbors in times of need. However, I have heard from some constituents who receive social assistance that they find it difficult to afford the costs of living. In my writing of Davenport, the Abrigo Center and the Davenport Perth Neighborhood and Community Health Center provide and offer a number of important services such as employment linking programs and crisis services for women. They've also told me that some social assistance recipients have trouble making ends meet. Minister, can you tell us what your ministry is doing to support our most vulnerable citizens? Good. Thank you. Thank you Mr. Speaker and I'd like to thank the member for this question because of course continuing to reform social assistance is a very important part of our government's work. We want to improve the social services system and make sure people in need can participate fully in our communities and in the economy. So it is to that end that over the past two years our government has increased OW rates by $50 per month for single adults with no children. This year we increased our investment in social assistance by continuing to lift up the lowest rates and increasing support for individuals with disabilities. The rate increases announced in the 2014 budget are now in effect including a 1% increase for families receiving Ontario works and for individuals with disabilities who rely on ODSP. Those individuals living out of the 50th parallel are getting an additional $50 per month for the first person in their family and $25 for each additional family member. So in summary. Sorry. Supplementary. Thank you very much Minister. I'm sure my constituents will be very happy and very pleased to know about the rate increases that are coming into effect this fall and the government's commitment to continue to transform the social assistance system. My constituents often mention their desire to become financially independent and move off the social assistance system. I don't want to choose to be dependent on social assistance. However they need support to order in order to establish the right skills so they can successfully find employment. Through you Mr. Speaker Minister can you please inform this house that the actions your ministry has taken to assist these recipients of social assistance fulfill their desire for employment. Thank you Minister. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Good afternoon. Let me tell you about funding outcomes and encouraging work. For example, all social assistance clients will have access to a simple flexible employment benefit that helps with their costs. Now people can own up to $200 a month without affecting their assistance and for earnings above $200 assistance rates are now reduced by 50 cents for every dollar earned. This allows clients to gain a foothold in the labor And our government has also made significant progress on the employment supports available for people receiving social assistance. And these positive changes include people who leave social assistance can go back to work and keep their drug, dental and vision care benefits if they don't have comparable benefits from their employer. ODSP recipients who leave the program for a job can return to ODSP quickly if their job does not work out. We believe these are all very positive changes. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Transportation. Minister, after a decade of misdeadlines, the Highway 404 extension was built on the assumption that the project would use an asphalt surface instead of a concrete surface. However, the Highway extension is in fact a concrete surface. This means that residents whose properties back onto the 404 extension are not sufficiently protected from the noise of the highway, as they expected they would be. Concrete surface... Remember from Eglinton, Lawrence will come over. ...as asphalt surface absorbs sound. It sounds like a jet taking off, constantly 24-7. This is not what these neighbors agreed to. My constituents want to know what you are going to do about it right now, not in a year's time. Right now. Thank you. Minister of Transportation. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I want to thank the member opposite for that question regarding the Highway 404 extension. I also want to take a quick moment to thank her for being there on that very special day for York Region and for her community when I was in a position to stand alongside the new member from New Market Aurora and the new member from Barrie and the member who is in fact, Speaker, asking me this question today, to be together there with all of our municipal partners from that area to celebrate the 13-kilometer extension of Highway 404. Speaker, that's a $100 million investment in crucial transportation infrastructure that that member stood at the announcement for, though the official opening for, and the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities and Research and Innovation was there that day as well, Speaker, and we all witnessed the member who's asking this very question, being there with us to celebrate that opening. So I'm a bit confused, Mr. Speaker, because I know in lots of communities across Ontario, a $100 million investment in crucial public transportation infrastructure would indeed be celebrated. Thanks very much, Mr. Speaker. It's fascinating that the Minister doesn't want to deal with the actual issue because, of course, people have been waiting, as I said, this had been decades that people had been waiting. There was no question about that. What they didn't know was that the wrong assumptions had been made in the analysis of the kind of road that was to be built. What they didn't know was that until there was traffic on the road, what had in fact taken place. And so now we have a concrete road which, at the very least, needs to be addressed. The assumptions built that the road was built on was that it would be asphalt. So Minister, my question is simple. Do you think that a chain-link fence is going to do it? We don't. Question. Thank you, Minister. I appreciate that follow-up question, of course, on this same topic, around this $100 million investment that our government has made to extend Highway 404 by 13 crucial kilometres in that part of York Region, Speaker. I have had the chance since that day that I referenced in my initial answer when that member opposite stood beside me and my colleague to celebrate the official opening for this 13-kilometre extension, Speaker. I have had the chance to speak with Mayor Hagson from East Willenbury. We have had a great conversation. The Mayor is aware of the fact, as I believe the municipality is, that the Ministry of Transportation is undertaking a follow-up noise study for that particular area and we will have those results over the next number of weeks. But I think it is also important to note, Speaker, that the new Highway 404 lane extension is taking 22,000 vehicles a day off local roads, making the community safer while reducing travel times for commuters and commercial vehicles. It is no wonder, Speaker, that the member asking that question was so happy on the day of the opening to stand alongside us and celebrate this investment. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Premier. The Premier met with the parents in the community of Niagara on the Lake and promised to listen to their concerns and demands about keeping Parliament Oak Public School open. Two of those students are here today. They told her how much Parliament Oak School means to the children, the families and the community. It is the heart of the old town and it should be part of the future too. Instead, the community is having to raise $100,000 for legal expenses to try to save the school because this government will not grant them an appeal of the accommodation review process that led to the decision to close the school. Why won't the Premier help the people of Niagara Lake save their school? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. And I know the Minister of Education is going to want to speak to this. I want to just welcome your constituents to the house today, Mr. Speaker. And I just want to reassure them that it is very important to us that school boards have the opportunity to make decisions about their communities. I don't think that it is in the best interest of education in this province that every local decision be made at Queens Park. I think it's very important that elected school trustees work with the community to make decisions about the best delivery of program to the students in their constituencies, Mr. Speaker. And I know the Minister of Education will want to speak to this specific situation. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, the Premier will be in Niagara on the lake Thursday and Friday. She needs to explain to the community why she will not stand up for their school, why the government has divided communities across the province with a policy of closing schools. Over the summer, the Lord Mayor of Niagara Lake, Dave Eak, met with the mayors and the councillors from across the province. So it's not just a Niagara Lake issue. They were looking to join forces and oppose this government's policy of closing schools in smaller rural communities. Why is the government forcing communities across the province to defend their local schools instead of doing its job to protect them and make sure we uphold high quality education for the students that are here today? Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yes, thank you, Speaker. And I do need to confirm what the Premier just said, which is that it's local school boards that make decisions about which school kids go to, why are the school boundaries, whether or not a school is open or closed. The community did ask us for, to ask for the ministry to review the school accommodation, the park process that went before the school closure. And the authority that we have to review is to look whether the prescribed procedure was followed. The prescribed procedure was followed and I have no authority to override the decision of the local school board, which is the way it should be, Speaker. It's very important that as we have local elections coming up on this next Monday, which includes local elections for trustees, that people all across the province understand how important it is because there are many decisions that are made by local trustees. Thank you, any questions? A member from Beaches D. Shor. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And the last speaker, sorry, the very erudite guardian of knowledge acquisition for the province, the Minister of Education. Minister, I know that improving educational outcomes is a top priority of our government. And after speaking to constituents, I know and I've heard that our investments in early childhood education are very important to them. Full Day Kindergarten is the most significant transformation in our education system in over a generation. Students in Full Day Kindergarten are now better prepared to enter grade one and will be more successful in school. Specifically, Mr. Speaker, a recent study compared students enrolled in Full Day Kindergarten and those in half-day programs and it showed that overall these students were better prepared when they went into grade one. So Minister, can you please tell us, tell this House what you are doing for sure that all students have access to Full Day Kindergarten? Thank you. Mr. Speaker, and thank you very much to the member from Beach has each yours for his question. He is absolutely right. FDK implementation is an important milestone and we're very proud of our Full Day Kindergarten program, which is the biggest transformation of our education system in a generation. The member opposite who was just tackling may be very interesting to know that we have spent $1.5 billion on implementing Full Day Kindergarten plus $1 billion in capital improvements to schools to allow for the implementation of Full Day Kindergarten and this positions Ontario as a North American leader in the provision of education for our littlest students. It positions Ontario as a leader in education and I do want to confirm what the member has said is we have a study conducted by Queens and McMaster which shows us that the students in FDK Thank you. Supplementary? Mr. Speaker, and I'm very excited to hear of these dollars that have been well spent in our schools, which I understand will benefit 265,000 children who were enrolled in Full Day Kindergarten at 3,600 schools across Ontario. This is a great initiative that will not only benefit these children but also the families and the teachers across the province. Minister, can you please elaborate on some of these other benefits that Full Day Kindergarten brings to Ontario? Thank you. Minister? Yes, thank you very much, Speaker. You know, we want to give kids the absolutely best start in life and not only are the kids benefitting from the Full Day Kindergarten program so are families and teachers across the province. So, Ontario families who enroll a child in Full Day Kindergarten save up to $6,500 per child on childcare costs. With the funding that I mentioned previously, we've built about 3,500 new kindergarten classrooms. We've got 3,800 additional teaching positions and 10,000 ECEs who are working with little children in Full Day Kindergarten. The studies from Queens and McMaster have shown that students with two years of FDK have found to have significant improvement in social competence development, language and cognitive development, and communication skills in general knowledge development. This is a great program to give our children the best start and future success. Thank you. Good question. Mr. Speaker, my question is to the Minister of Environment. Minister, for months we've been trying to get air quality data for the Beechville area from your ministry. People who live there want to know the test results since the last public report was issued in 2003. But all your ministry has given us is six months of data. Now we're being told that we need to file an FOI request which will cost $600 in order to get the information. Minister, are you honestly telling me that the people of Beechville need to pay your government $600 to find out if the air they are breathing is safe? Mr. Speaker, the environment and climate change. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I think the member for Oxford and I have been working very closely on this file. I'm glad he's reintroduced the subject today. I was under the impression that the ministry was cooperating fully with the member opposite in the community. I'm disappointed to hear that there are some outstanding concerns, but I will certainly take them to heart as I have before and I will look into them and promise him an answer as promptly as possible within a week. I hope. Thank you. Supplementary. Thank you very much for that answer, Minister. I appreciate that. I appreciate that your minister may not have been as forthcoming with the information as he might have been. The problem is I did receive a letter with your signature on it. This is where this question comes from. Your government claims to be open transparent, but the people are being refused information about the quality of the air they're breathing because that whole span of time is missing. It isn't classified business information which the letter suggested and it's not protected. The operations manual for air quality monitoring in Ontario produced by your ministry in March of 2008 says very clearly that monitoring data as well as quarterly and annual reports are to be made publicly available. All the people of Beachville want is to know that the air that they have been breathing is safe. They started the FOI process. Minister, will you do the right thing and refund the FOI fees and release the air quality monitor data from 2003 forward? Thank you, Minister. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. What are the matters that does concern me is we have the application of regulation 419 which, whether you're in Sarnia where we have concerns or in Oxford this is very top of mind to me. I'm working very closely with the deputy. The Premier has asked us to up our game both in being more transparent and more responsive. I will be the first to say that while I think there's great efforts being made by the ministry, they are not at the standard of responsiveness that we want. I would caution the member opposite. You are from a party, my dear friend, which suggested we could do with 100,000 less public servants. I would argue that the Ministry of Environment is not an overly funded ministry and resources are scarce. So I will take that to be a spend question, not a cut question and would ask as we move forward in budget deliberations that you will have some empathy for my ministry. Thank you. Thank you. Good question. Member for Messick. Thank you very much, Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Community and Social Services. Minister, one of the most important aspects of a person's life really is the fact that they have a job, a job that is meaningful and is fairly compensated. In Ontario today, we have 70% unemployment rate for people who have a disability. For every 100 people we take off of ODSP and put into the workplace in meaningful and competitively paid jobs, we're saving the economy about a million dollars. Minister, a 70% unemployment rate for people with disabilities in the province of Ontario is frankly unacceptable. What action will this government take to lower this unacceptable level of unemployment? Thank you. Minister for Community and Social Services. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I want to point out to the member that in our 2013 budget our government established the Partnership Council on Employment Opportunities for People with Disabilities composed of government and corporate leaders to champion the hiring of people with disabilities. In fact, this initiative is led by the Minister of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure so I will be referring the supplementary to him. However, in general, I'm very encouraged by the interest that this member from Essex is showing in this very important topic. It seems that we share a very similar concern and so, Mr. Speaker, I'm really puzzled why the member did not support our budget in 2014 because very specifically we are investing $810 million over three years to help those with disabilities and in that funding, Mr. Speaker, there is a very important Employment and Modernization Fund to address the issue that he is speaking to. Thank you, Speaker. I repeat, a decent job with decent pay is what we all aspire to. It's what we want for ourselves. It's what we dream of when we grow up and it's what we expect for our children as well. The Ontario Disabilities Employment Network has long been an effective advocate for people with disabilities who want the very same thing we all do and they believe much more can be done. A 70% unemployment rate for people with disabilities simply unacceptable. Why is this government missing in action when it comes to creating good jobs for those people in our problems with disabilities? Minister of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure Minister of Economic Development, Employment and Infrastructure I followed everything in the member's question with interest until his final statement which I think went in a totally different direction. The fact is, Mr. Speaker, we're a leader internationally when it comes to building accessibility into Ontario and that's good for people with disabilities, Mr. Speaker. It's also good for our economy and I think that's something that the member and I can agree on. We have an incredible wealth of talent, Mr. Speaker that currently is facing barriers to employment. We fully recognize that. It's a priority for us. Studies have shown that you're looking at $7 to $10 billion over time that's being lost to our gross domestic product as a result of this lack of accessibility. So we're as determined as you are, Mr. Speaker and in fact we have a piece of legislation that's a groundbreaking piece of legislation here in the province of Ontario, Mr. Speaker. We're working with people with disabilities. We're working with leaders in that community to remove those barriers and, Mr. Speaker, it's a priority for us from a social perspective but it's also a priority from an economic perspective. Thank you. Member from Ottawa, self on a point of order. Point of order. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I can beg your indulgence for a little bit late for question period but I'd like to introduce three members of the Ottawa Police Service. Brian Samuel, Dan Brennan and Jim L. They're here on behalf of the Police Association of Ontario. I'd like to welcome them to Queens Park and to thank them and their colleagues for all they do to protect us in the city of Ottawa especially given the circumstances that we find in our community today. Thank you. For the third votes this House stands recess until 3 p.m. this afternoon.