Good morning. Let us pray.

Prières / Prayers.

Today we are honoured to remember and pay tribute to a former member of our provincial Legislature, the late Mr. Ron Hansen, who was the MPP for Lincoln during the 35th Parliament.

Joining us in the Speaker’s gallery is Mr. Hansen’s family: his son Marc Hansen; his daughter-in-law Catherine Burke; his granddaughter Mary Jane Hansen; his brother Robert A. Hansen; his sister-in-law Elaine Hunter; his nephew Rob Hansen, and his niece Rica Hansen; cousins Margaret Hansen and Janice Boyd; and his caregiver Korreen Bennett. Also with us in the Speaker’s gallery is Mr. David Warner, who was the Speaker during the 35th Parliament. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

I recognize the member for Don Valley East.

Mr. Speaker, I’m honoured to rise and speak in the memory of Mr. Ron Hansen. Though he is a man who I never had the privilege of meeting, it is incredibly clear that his career reveals so many important lessons that all of us would do well to heed.

Born in Welland on May 27, 1943, Mr. Hansen was not a career politician—not at all, and to me, this was one of his most admirable attributes. He worked as a stationary engineer for General Motors for 35 years. Throughout his life, it is clear that he was devoted to service and activism, with participation in important organizations such as Greenpeace, Boy Scouts, Big Brothers and the Camrose International Institute, an educational organization promoting conservation over consumerism. As though this was not enough, he served as an auxiliary officer in the Ontario Provincial Police as well.

Public service is not just about the things that we do for this generation. It is about the things that we do for future generations, and in this regard there is no doubt that Mr. Hansen’s action to protect the environment was exemplary. He was a staunch advocate for the environment. In addition to his membership in Greenpeace, he was also founder of not one, not two, but three environmental groups, including Niagara Residents for Safe Toxic Waste Disposal, the Ontario Toxic Waste Research Coalition and the Citizens for Modern Waste Management. Additionally, he travelled all around the world, speaking about toxic waste management. His work in this Legislature, which I will touch on shortly, continued this work as well.

Mr. Hansen would later come to be nominated as the candidate for the New Democratic Party and to be successful in the general election in 1990. He had the honour of being member of provincial Parliament in the riding of Lincoln from 1990 to 1995.

As MPP, Mr. Hansen was known for voting with his conscience and not along party lines. This highlights another lesson that can be taken from his life of service—that he wasn’t afraid to speak truth to power.

Ron was the only MPP to speak up against the Ontario Waste Management Corp.’s plan to build a toxic waste treatment plant in Lincoln. While all three major parties seemed to support the proposal made by that crown corporation, Ron was instrumental in shedding light on what was truly going on in the riding. He brought multiple petitions into the Legislature signed by thousands of residents standing against the proposed toxic waste plant. He explained that it would threaten farmland, waterways and the fruit belt. He is an inspiration.

He represented and fought for his riding even when he had to go that route alone. He educated and inspired those around him. Make no mistake about it, he made a difference. It is what we all should aspire to do during our time in this Parliament.

Mr. Hansen passed away this year on March 9 at the age of 78 and will be missed by his many children, siblings, nieces, nephews, extended family and many friends. Today we honour his memory, and we thank him for his legacy. May he rest in eternal peace.

Mr. Speaker, if you seek it, you will find unanimous consent to allow members to make statements in remembrance for the late Mr. Ron Hansen, with five minutes allotted to the independent members as a group, five minutes allotted to Her Majesty’s government and five minutes allotted to Her Majesty’s loyal opposition.

I rise today to pay tribute to the former MPP for Lincoln, Ron Hansen, a servant of the people of Ontario from 1990 to 1995 in the 35th Parliament of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.

Ronald Cooper Hansen was born in Welland, Ontario, on May 27, 1943. He studied production planning at Erie County Technical Institute and stationary engineering at Niagara College, of which he was always a strong supporter.

He was a loving and devoted father to Marc, Chris and Eric; a grandfather to Amanda, Benjamin and Mary Jane; and a great-grandfather to Lucas; a long-time employee of General Motors in St. Catharines and a strong voice for workers; a servant of the people of Niagara; and a man of conviction, integrity and passion.

Ron enjoyed fishing, bowling, travelling, technology and photography. Prior to his election, he was a member of Greenpeace, Camrose International and helped found three local environmental action groups: Niagara Residents for Safe Toxic Waste Disposal, the Ontario Toxic Waste Research Coalition and Citizens for Modern Waste Management. He also helped with Big Brothers Big Sisters, Kingsway Bowling, Women’s Place, the community resources and action centre, the soup kitchen, community legal services, the co-op nursery, Niagara Peninsula Homes and the Niagara Regional Youth Home. He did all this while serving as an auxiliary OPP officer—a busy man.

Ron was elected to the Ontario Legislature in the general election of September 6, 1990, representing the former riding of Lincoln as the government member for the New Democratic Party.

I spoke with another former MPP for the riding of Lincoln, Phil Andrewes, who recalled the election night that Ron won. Now, Phil spoke very highly of Ron, though, as a Progressive Conservative, he would say that Ron was philosophically misguided. Apparently, the NDP campaign office was in a house at the end of Ontario Street in Beamsville, directly across from the PCs’ campaign office. The NDP had had little to no signs in the riding leading up to election night, and as the results came in at the PC headquarters, they saw that Ron had won. An hour after the results had been declared, the PC campaign manager and team decided to go across the road to congratulate Ron and his team, but when they showed up to congratulate him, apparently Ron didn’t know that he had won.

As the former Premier of Ontario and ambassador to the United Nations Bob Rae recalls, “Ron Hansen was a hard-working, caring and diligent servant of the people. All of us who served with him remember him with great affection.” This echoes the words of local constituents I spoke with from across the political spectrum. They all emphasized that he always listened, worked hard and wanted what was best for the area.

Ron was an MPP who was not afraid to represent local values and the concerns of his constituents, even if it meant breaking with government ranks. Ray Konkle, who served as the mayor of the town of Lincoln at the same time that Ron served as MPP for the riding of Lincoln, said that Ron could be like “a dog on a bone”—in a good way—when he got it into in his head that something had to change.

As an MPP of conviction, Ron faithfully and consistently shared the concerns of his constituents at Queen’s Park rather than compromising with the status quo. Ron voted his conscience on controversial issues. He presented petitions, promoting faith-based values and concerns, advocated for locally sourced government contracts and businesses and fiercely defended local farmers and community advocates against the interest of the political establishment. When Ron made a promise, he kept his word, and he was known for always getting back to his constituents, whether or not they agreed with him.

As a passionate MPP, Ron was also a fierce advocate of local issues and concerns in Niagara. From his private member’s bill seeking to amend the Ontario Water Resources Act to promote responsible water usage, to advocating for local grape growers and pork producers—including my father—perhaps no other political issue demonstrated Ron’s passion than his fight to protect source water and tender-fruit lands in west Niagara in a battle against a proposed waste disposal facility that was successfully defeated—in fact, when I was speaking yesterday with former mayor Ray Konkle, he said that many of the rallies were actually held at his constituency office because he was right along Victoria Avenue, which was one of the truck routes for the toxic waste that would have been planned, so they were able to hold them in front of his constituency office.

He repeatedly championed the concerns of local residents in Niagara who opposed the proposal from the Ontario Waste Management Corp. to build a toxic waste facility in Lincoln.

In a question addressed to Ruth Anna Grier, the Minister of the Environment, during a heated session of question period on December 2, 1991, Ron noted that he had spent over $10,000 of his own money to fight the proposal as an active member of the Toxic Waste Research Coalition. Jim Bradley, the former MPP for St. Catharines, cited Ron’s integrity the same day in question period when he noted that the member for Lincoln was willing to lose his title as Chair of the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs to “exercise his right to vote against a government bill which in fact was bad for his constituents from his point of view.”

Ron’s fight to preserve source water and tender-fruit lands in the west Niagara area has helped to preserve the legacy of current greenbelt protections for prime agricultural and environmentally sensitive areas in Niagara to this day.

On November 28, shortly after stepping down as Chair of the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs over this matter of principle, Ron stood in this chamber and he said, “I have to take a look. Here at Queen’s Park I have not found one person who sits on this side of the House or that side of the House who voted for me in the last election.... I have told the people in my riding that I will take the message of what they want to Queen’s Park, not what Queen’s Park demands of my constituents.”

Speaker, I believe that the words of the MPP for Lincoln continue to speak to this assembly today and to serve as a humble reminder why each one of us is here: To perform the duties of a member honestly and justly, and to faithfully represent the people of our ridings in the best interests of all Ontarians.

Ron was a champion of the working people of Lincoln, and I know I speak for all the people of Lincoln, and Ontario, when I say that we all give thanks for the life and legacy of Ron Hansen.

Good morning. It is a distinct honour to stand here today and pay tribute to a proud New Democrat and former member of provincial Parliament for Lincoln, Mr. Ron Hansen.

I am pleased to acknowledge many of Ron’s family and friends who are here with us today in the gallery: His son Marc; daughter-in-law Catherine; granddaughter Mary Jane; brother Robert; sister-in-law Elaine; Ron’s caregiver and very close friend, Korreen; niece Rica; cousin Margaret; cousin Janice; nephew Rob; and Mr. David Warner, former Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario.

Ron’s son, daughter-in-law and granddaughter are visiting all the way from Ireland this morning, and his cousin travelled from British Columbia, our fine west coast of Canada. Thank you all for taking this special trip, and welcome.

Ronald Cooper Hansen, born in 1943 in Welland, began his education journey at Niagara College, studying stationary engineering and production planning at Erie County Technical School. In true Niagara fashion, Ron worked for 35 years as a stationary engineer for General Motors in St. Catharines, and he served as the member of provincial Parliament for the riding of Lincoln from September 6, 1990, to June 7, 1995.

A large focus of grassroots groups and advocates in St. Catharines and Niagara is the need to have clean, waste-free spaces to live, work and play; spaces our children and our grandchildren can call home for generations to come.

Ron was an integral part of this local movement in the early days as a founding member of three environmental groups: Niagara Residents for Safe Toxic Waste Disposal; Ontario Toxic Waste Research Coalition; and Citizens for Modern Waste Management.

He put the minister’s feet to the fire in 1991, fighting against Ontario Waste Management Corp.’s plan to build a toxic waste facility in West Lincoln, and worked to explore progressive waste management strategies. Ron once presented a 720-foot-long petition in this House, containing more than 6,000 signatures of residents against the decade-long proposed waste plant. At a time where society was slow to modernize, Ron took hold of the situation and worked to produce modern waste systems.

Ron’s contributions did not stop there, as he was also active with Boy Scouts groups, Big Brothers of Niagara and an avid bowler at the Kingsway. He assisted in establishing important resources, such as Women’s Place, the community resources and action centre, the soup kitchen, community legal services, Niagara Peninsula Homes and the Niagara Regional Youth Home.

Ron’s enthusiasm to help his constituents was very, very clear. His commitment to serve those who needed it most was top priority. Ron’s initial efforts in establishing these support networks paved the way for the incredible work that these organizations do today, helping thousands of low-income, marginalized and vulnerable residents.

Ron was a strong and vocal advocate for GO Transit service to the Niagara region—well, Ron, I’m happy to say we did it; almost three decades later, but we finally have regular GO Transit service that extends all the way to Niagara Falls.

An MPP under Bob Rae, Ron called for the establishment of a rural affairs ministry, citing the need for an effective voice for all of rural Ontario, a sector of advocacy that had gone by the wayside at that time. Ron wanted to establish ministry field officers as a liaison between the rural communities and policy-makers right here at Queen’s Park to talk about issues such as housing density, transportation and ambulance services. He recognized that rural communities had unique needs not being met by the conventional solutions applied to urban areas, something we can all keep in mind as MPPs even in 2022.

Ron was known for leading with his conscience, refusing to toe the party line. He asked bold questions and voted on bills in a way that reflected his personal values. Ron’s ideals and his willingness to fight against large corporations who didn’t care about the “little guys,” as he called them, is truly inspiring.

Ron Hansen passed away on March 9, 2022, at the age of 78. Not many people can say they served their community, served their province, as a member of provincial Parliament. It is a privilege to serve our constituents, and I know that Ron felt that joy as well.

To Ron, thank you for your dedicated service to the residents of Lincoln and for igniting that fight in all of us here at Queen’s Park.

Applause.