Good morning, Speaker. It’s great to see you in the chair.

Thanks for the question.

When we talk about what is happening down at Ontario Place, we talk about development, we talk about growth, we talk about opportunities. Those opportunities don’t come overnight. They have to be developed. Given Ontario Place has been sitting dormant for so long and there is still interest by industry to come down and transform Ontario Place into a destination not only for people within 30 or 40 miles but across Ontario and the United States—this is going to be a destination that is going to impact large, medium and small businesses that are part of tourism.

Tourism needs to continue to be supported, especially with what they’ve gone through over the last couple of years. They’re a strong, vibrant industry. They’re smart, and they’re making things happen. To do something like this for Ontario and for the rest of Canada and the people in the United States to come visit and have a destination like this is outstanding.

I’d like to welcome three amazing guests all way the from Northern Ireland: Connleth Gallagher and Barry McCarron, who are from a very innovative waste recycling firm called Kiverco. Michael Barton actually lives locally and comes from Invest Northern Island—just welcoming them to our beautiful home.

I would like to introduce Liza Tam and Joseph To from Markham–Unionville. Liza’s parents, Man Ching Tam and Yun King Yip, are also here today. They are celebrating their 60th wedding anniversary. Their loving families and close friends—in total, 16 of them—are up there waiting for their security check and are also joining them at Queen’s Park this morning.

Welcome, all.

I also want to welcome my legislative assistant, Florence Tsang.

I recognize the member from Waterloo.

The member from Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke will come to order.

Further questions?

Speaker, my question is to the Premier.

Conservatives have pushed Ontarians living with disabilities into legislated poverty. After Mike Harris’s callous cuts in the 1990s people are worse off now than ever, and part of that is due to Liberal neglect.

People on ODSP can barely afford housing, but especially now, healthy food. The Middlesex-London Health Unit is sending a letter urgently requesting that the province raise social assistance rates. The medical officer of health, Dr. Alex Summers, and CEO Emily Williams stated, “Food insecurity has a pervasive impact on health; and there is a need for income-based solutions.”

Will this government listen to experts and lift ODSP recipients out of poverty, yes or no?

My question is to the Premier. The Eglinton Crosstown P3 was supposed to open in 2020, then 2021, then 2022, and then 2023. The government’s inability to get an updated timeline from CTS suggests a complete loss of control.

Small businesses lost revenue or were forced to shut down. People have been stuck in traffic and lived with construction dust and noise for over a decade. There seems to be no attempt at accountability by this Conservative government.

What is the plan on wrapping up this project, and when can we expect to get moving?

We’re building a world-class destination, year-round. If we’d left it up to the NDP and the Liberals—we saw what happened for 15 years; it fell apart, it was decrepit, there are weeds growing up all throughout the ground. What we’re doing is, we’re building a new amphitheatre—no taxpayers’ money, through Live Nation—we’re building a beautiful water park and a spa for people to come and enjoy the day. We’re building a world-class science centre, 300,000-square-feet with exhibits. This is for the people.

We know what happens when the NDP and the Liberals get involved: Nothing happens. Rust happens, weeds happen. The last group that I’d ever listen to about being prudent fiscal managers are those two groups right there.

There’s a whole generation that’s never experienced Ontario Place. But now—and mark my words, Madam Speaker and every single person in this room—guess what? They’re going to be in the lineup to go to the science centre. They’ll be in the lineup to go to a Live Nation show, they’re going to be in the lineup to go to Ontario Place and the water park. That’s what they’re going to do—hypocrisy at its best.

Interjections.

My question is to the Premier. This government announced that the earning exemption for ODSP recipients will be raised to $1,000. While this was a step in the right direction, it still does not address the issues of clawbacks from other benefits, such as CPP disability.

After hearing about the government’s announcement about how it’s going to help his ODSP amount, a constituent, Shah Hamidi, reached out to our office with confusion. Our government is clawing back his CPP disability income to continue to keep him in poverty. My question to the Premier: Premier, you know the harsh reality that those with disabilities face. They’re barely surviving. Why is your government continuing to means-test ODSP and forcing people to live in legislated poverty?

The earning exemption does nothing for spousal income either.

Another constituent of mine, Thomas Robinson, receives lower monthly income payments because of the program’s cuts to his ODSP due to his wife’s income—who, by the way, works precarious hours—leaving him with just $300 to $400 per month. So instead of barely surviving with the insufficient disability benefits and his wife’s income, Thomas is punished because of his wife, who works precarious hours, and he’s trying to pay the bills.

Speaker, my question again to the Premier is why has this government done nothing for people like Thomas and Hamidi who are unable to survive on a program designed to fail people with disabilities and their families?

Ontarians are shocked to find out that their government has signed a 95-year lease with an Austrian corporate conglomerate to build a massive, seven-storey private luxury spa on public parkland, a century-long lease that this government insists must be kept secret. Yet, in 1999, the last Conservative government handed over a 99-year lease for Highway 407 for $3.1 billion. That’s about $4.4 billion in today’s numbers. Today, Highway 407 is worth $40 billion, a nearly 1,200% increase in just 24 years. What will it be worth when the lease finally ends in 75 years?

This government is making the same mistakes the last Conservative government did and it is costing Ontarians millions of dollars. The people of this province have a right to know the terms of the lease and the business case for these decisions. Release the lease, if you’re so proud of it.

Back to the Premier: Tomorrow is the Day of Mourning. My community has been in mourning ever since the explosion at Ssonix Products in St. Catharines that claimed the life of Ryan Konkin.

Over 200 workers die in the workplace every year in Ontario. That’s 200 sisters, like Nicole, who will never get to see their Ryans again; 200 fiancées, like Natalia, who will never get to hear their Ryans say, “I’ll love you forever and a day.”

Speaker, the Conservative government is responsible for ensuring the Criminal Code in Ontario is enforced. Will the Premier commit to consulting with the community to establish a consistent policy that utilizes the Westray law to hold bad bosses accountable—when they exist—for the death of Ontario workers?

Thank you very much, Madam Speaker, and congratulations to you in your role today.

I want to thank the member opposite for this very important question. Tomorrow is the Day of Mourning in the province of Ontario, and our number one priority as a government is to ensure that, when workers go to work, they come home safely to their families at the end of that day. That’s why we’re investing historic amounts to ensure that we have more health and safety inspectors out there, and those new health and safety inspectors that we’ve hired have backgrounds in the industries that they’re inspecting.

That’s why we’ve increased the health and safety action centre. If there’s a worker out there concerned for his or her health, they can call the Ministry of Labour and we’ll investigate as quickly as possible.

We’re going to continue every single day working with our partners like the United Steelworkers union and others across the province to ensure that every worker comes home safe to their families at the end of the day.

To the member opposite, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Frustrations with respect to the delays on the Eglinton Crosstown are more than understandable, especially by those who live along the line and the businesses that have been impacted.

This contract has been in place for over a decade and our government is very focused on making sure that we get the system open as soon as possible. I would very much like to be able to stand here today and provide a date to give the people of Toronto an idea of when this will open, but unfortunately, Madam Speaker, we are working with a contractor who has to provide us with a credible schedule. It is essential.

My number one priority as Minister of Transportation is to ensure that our transportation network is safe and reliable for everyone to use. Whether it’s a bridge or a road or a transit system, it must be safe. So while I would like to be able to provide a date, I cannot do so until the contractor provides us with a credible and reliable schedule. As soon as they do that, we will provide a date.

As Minister of Transportation, my commitment to the people of Ontario is that we will deliver a system when it is safe and reliable to use. Madam Speaker, it is important that we get this right. We have been transparent with the people of Ontario. We are focused on making sure that the system is safe. More importantly, going forward, we’re learning the lessons from Ottawa, we’re learning the lessons from the Crosstown and we’re moving forward with our priority projects in a way that’s different. Unfortunately, the members opposite voted against that, they voted against—

Back to the Premier: The Eglinton Crosstown LRT is a mess. Sadly, I’ve seen this movie before. Its budget has doubled, using the same P3 consultants that built Ottawa’s struggling LRT. Phil Verster from Metrolinx noted 260 deficiencies in this project at a press conference with the minister this morning but gave the public no details at all. That is not acceptable. The newly built Sloane station had to be ripped apart this week. Metrolinx has paid out hundreds of millions of dollars to the P3 consortium building this project already, but the project is falling behind and creating deficiencies. Will the government tell this House and the public what is wrong with the Crosstown LRT, yes or no?

My question is for the Premier. Across our province, we’re seeing more and more reports about an alarming rise in violence and major crimes impacting our communities. Our government must act now to improve public safety and provide greater protection to the people of Ontario.

I was proud to serve my community as a front-line OPP officer, and I will always support my fellow officers and encourage anyone interested in joining this rewarding profession. In order to better support our police services, it is essential that our government provide improvements to the recruitment process so we can get more officers in our communities. Speaker, can the Premier please explain how our government is removing barriers for police services across the province to recruit and train more front-line officers?

Local police services are in urgent need of more officers who are trained and equipped to respond to the ever-increasing complexity of calls. Among the many people considering a career in this profession, some may not have attended a post-secondary institution, but they still have valuable skills and valuable life experience to contribute and to serve their communities.

Speaker, can the Premier please elaborate on the actions our government is taking to remove barriers for a career in policing?

The employers of Westray coal mine deliberately ignored safety concerns until the day it exploded and killed 26 miners. This preventable incident resulted in Bill C-45. The Westray law allows criminal liability of bad bosses for preventable workplace deaths and injuries. Unfortunately, Westray is nearly 20 years old and is rarely used, Speaker.

The OFL and the Steelworkers have worked with police forces across Ontario, and they agree that there’s a need for Ontario to develop a standardized C-45/Westray law investigation policy. This policy would include the training, awareness and resources so Ontario’s police officers can be successful in investigating preventable workplace deaths.

My question is, will the Premier commit to providing Ontario with a standardized C-45/Westray law investigation policy and direct the chiefs of police to implement consistent protocols across Ontario?

Response? I recognize the Minister of Transportation.

Thank you so much to our great member from Chatham-Kent–Leamington. I also want to thank him for serving his community, putting his uniform on every single day and getting out there to make sure he has a safe community.

He is leading the charge when it comes to bail reform, when it comes to making sure that we take care of the cost of basic training at the Ontario Police College. He understands it. There’s no one in this chamber who understands it more than the member from Chatham-Kent–Leamington.

Madam Speaker, we have decided to make sure that we take care of the complete cost of having these young people, these young women and men, go to the Ontario Police College without having the burden of $15,000 or $16,000. This is going to attract more recruits to serve the people of their community.

Madam Speaker, across Ontario we’ve seen crime go up; we’ve seen crime go up an unprecedented amount right here in Toronto. People are scared to go on the subway. People are scared to walk out their door at nighttime and take a stroll down the street.

I have a clear message for all the bad guys out there, all the criminals: You cause problems in our town, we’re coming to get you; we’re going to throw you in jail, and you’re going to be in there for a long time.

My question is to the Premier. In 2019, this government put out a call for development for Ontario Place. The call for development document warned prospective bidders, “Participants should consider the adequacy of parking for their development concept.” The document made it clear to bidders that their proposals must work with the parking available and not to expect additional parking. Yet, after Therme had won the bid this government announced that it was building a $450-million parking garage that was not mentioned in the call for development.

Why is the Premier giving Therme a publicly funded $450-million benefit that was not offered to competing bidders?

Again to the Premier: According to Ontario’s lobbyist registry, starting in September 2018 PC Party insiders have been lobbying the Ford government on behalf of Therme. These lobbyists include Amir Remtulla, Mayor Rob Ford’s former chief of staff, as well as prominent PC Party activist Leslie Noble. It looks like Therme has gotten its money’s worth because it is now benefiting from a publicly funded $450-million parking garage that was not offered to its competitors bidding for the right to redevelop Ontario Place.

Prior to awarding the Ontario Place contract to Therme, did the Ford government or anyone else give Therme reason to believe that the Ford government would later sweeten the deal with a publicly funded parking garage?

Interjections.

Thank you for the question. I’m not sure which one they want me to answer. As far as someone from out of town supporting and coming into Ontario, I don’t think that’s a bad thing.

With respect to the growth, I think adjustments have to be made in any type of project. When you make adjustments, you base it on what’s going on around you. The business case, in many situations, regardless of whether it’s building or developing or, let’s say, moving a science centre from one spot to another because it’s going to be better not only for the people who have a chance to go visit—maybe up to a million people who are going to come down there. You have to be able to accommodate what you plan on building. To do that you have to adjust and certainly swing one way or the other based on what is going on. I think this is a great example of development looking into the future, at what’s going to happen down at Ontario Place and the great advantage that we will have as a destination, one of the best in the world to drive tourism in our province.

From my perspective and all the great people that I’ve met in my tours and tourism around this province—they’re excited at what this government and our Premier are doing to help support tourism, drive business and drive the economy.