Questions and answers?

Thank you to the member opposite for your inaugural speech. It was very good, so congratulations. Welcome to the House, and thank you for all your medical service. I really do appreciate it.

You did talk a little bit about amplifying voices and listening, and I think that’s important. For those that don’t know, here in the Legislature, above us, which the government is looking at, is the owl, which is for us to make sure we are wise in decisions we make. And on this side is the eagle, which is looking, generally, at the opposition, and a few of our government members because we have so many—to look to ensure that we are held to account and you keep an eye on us as a government. So we are certainly here to listen and to work with the opposition. I just wanted to make that point.

What I would like to hear about from you is a little bit about your riding and some of the highlights and attractions to your riding. I always like to learn about different ridings in the province, so maybe you could highlight a few great places we should visit in your riding.

I sincerely appreciate the question from the minister, and I’ll begin by saying as a physician that every member has a right to patient-physician confidentiality. I admire you for acknowledging me publicly, but it is my pleasure to serve both in a political capacity and, of course, if my services are ever required, in a clinical capacity as well.

One of the things that I hope to bring forward as a physician in this Legislature is the fact that I have a unique privilege: When serving in the emergency department, my patients tell me things that they don’t necessarily feel comfortable sharing with other people, because of stigma, because of things that have happened to them in the past. I hope that when I rise in this chamber, I can amplify those voices and tell those stories, and I would humbly ask if you would join me in listening, in helping me to amplify those voices as well, so that we can fight for every single person in this province, not just the ones who can be the most vocal. For me, that is one thing I would hope for.

A close friend of mine shared with me an account just last week of a young woman who had passed out, and so she came to the emergency department. It costs hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars just to register someone in the emergency department, to ensure that it’s adequately staffed and to pay for the services that are provided. Ultimately, after the consultation was complete, the reason that she had passed out was because she hadn’t been able to eat that morning. She couldn’t afford to do it.

Stories like this remind me that up-front investment in things like—sir, you spoke about food insecurity earlier. Investments in things like housing, in food, in making sure that disabled people can access the services that they need, can have profound and massive impacts on their long-term quality of—

Thank you so much. Nothing would give me greater pleasure than to speak about my riding. Perhaps one of the things that I admire the most about it, and it’s not a physical—I wouldn’t call it a physical attraction. One of the things that is unmistakable as you come through the riding is just the incredible diversity and multiculturalism. We have people in the north of my riding that have lived in Don Valley East for many generations, and then, in the south of our riding, we have people who have literally just arrived and bring incredible stories about the lives that they have lived elsewhere around the world. They bring so many different kinds of celebrations, religions, languages. It is a vibrancy that one can feel as you literally come into the boundaries of our riding.

Now, of course, I alluded to other things. I truly admire our world-class museums. We have the famed Ontario Science Centre. We recently were fortunate to get a new museum, the Aga Khan Museum, which is a bastion of celebrating multiculturalism. It has proven to be a place of community and sharing new things. So we certainly have that. We have incredible amounts of—we a fair amount of shopping. And then, what I admire the most is our incredible greenery as well, and the opportunity to run, bike and do all sorts of things—

One of the things that has come up in a previous government was HealthForceOntario, a public sector marketing and recruiting firm. In fact, it’s been very successful in bringing family doctors into northern regions, both in the summer and throughout the rest of the year. I would encourage more public sector initiatives like that. And then to continue celebrating the stories of so many of the incredible family doctors who have worked and inspired all of us in—

I want to congratulate the member for Don Valley East on your inaugural speech. You’re going to have to get used to the responses; they’re very quick and a minute goes by really fast, so do that. I also want to let him know that—I don’t know what style you practise in karate, but I practised Wado Kai; I got to my blue belt. I would love to see you in the dojo. I’m also really happy that I have back up, because it’s been known that I’ve saved a couple of lives here in the park, so I’m glad that you’re here and I can turn to you.

I was so impressed listening to you and your background, and the reason why is, being a northern member, one of the biggest struggles that we have in northern Ontario is the recruitment, retainment and getting doctors into our communities, particularly for primary care. Primary care is one of those things that can save a lot of the congestion, the hallway medicine that we see in our hospitals. I was wondering if the member can tell me, in the very short minute that he’s going to have: What are the benefits, first, of having doctors performing primary care in northern communities, and what can we do? What is the 30-second elevator version of what we need to recruit and retain doctors and get them to our northern Ontario communities?

Question?

Further debate?

I am pleased and honoured to stand in this 43rd Parliament of Ontario and make my inaugural address—

Interjection.

Thank you, Speaker. I’m pleased and honoured once again to stand in this 43rd Parliament of Ontario and make my inaugural address to this Legislative Assembly. And specifically, Speaker, congratulations on your election as Deputy Speaker. Well done indeed.

Let me begin by stating that I have been blessed: blessed to be born in this country and in this province; blessed to have been raised by loving, disciplined and encouraging parents; blessed to have received a good education; blessed to have had a work ethic instilled in me from day one; and blessed to have been elected a member of this Legislature.

I’d like to start by thanking the people of Elgin–Middlesex–London for electing me as their new MPP. I commit to serving all of my constituents of EML with steadfast loyalty and dedication as we collectively build on the promise and on the potential of Ontario. This government has a dynamic agenda, and I am confident we will deliver our five pillars of growth and prosperity, all of which we were elected on.

Elgin–Middlesex–London is a magnificent riding on the traditional lands of the Anishinaabe, Haudenosaunee, Attiwandaron and Mississauga Nation. There are four distinct geographies that define Elgin–Middlesex–London: Elgin, which covers 122 kilometres along Lake Erie and is one of the most vibrant counties in this province; Middlesex, or now Thames Centre, includes our home in the village of Dorchester; the southern part of the riding in London, the Forest City, and now a UNESCO City of Music; and finally, the best-kept secret in Ontario, St. Thomas, formerly known as the railway capital of Canada.

Elgin–Middlesex–London was largely settled in 1803. Colonel Thomas Talbot—hence St. Thomas—opened the land for homesteading, leading immigrants and many nationalities to call southwestern Ontario their home.

Speaker, EML—Elgin–Middlesex–London—produces tobacco, ethanol, has a commercial fishery, breweries and wineries, has great beaches, and is home to one of the largest greenhouse propagators in Canada. We are a unique blend of farmers, agri-business, tourism, fishery, manufacturing and small business, with a robust and diverse economy. We are a riding of small towns and villages that all share passionate pride and belief in their communities. And, Speaker, we are a riding that is home to many Londoners, now the fastest-growing city in Ontario. We are also avid supporters of the greatest OHL franchise in the province of Ontario, the London Knights. Applause? No applause?

I’d also like to recognize former MPPs who served Elgin–Middlesex–London or parts of our riding. Jeff Yurek, my predecessor, served EML for 10 years. Steve Peters, a former Speaker of this Legislature, served from 1999 to 2011. Ron McNeil was a long-time MPP, serving from 1958 to 1987. And a former Liberal Premier, Mitch Hepburn, served as MPP and Ontario’s youngest-ever elected Premier from 1934 to 1942.

Speaker, Ontario spoke clearly on June 2, as did the people of Elgin–Middlesex–London. I remain humbled and in awe of the team we put together to get the job done. In particular—and please bear with me—I’d like to thank Bob Stanley, my campaign chair and manager; Alexandra Robinson, our campaign assistant manager; Vaughan Minor, our CFO; Ken Graves, Tanner Zelenko, Bruce Duncan, Beth Allison, who is here today, and Bill Fehr, my regional chairs; Doug Leach, Wayne and Chris Kummer, Fran Richardson, Rainey Weisler, Barb Gonyou and Patsy Brooks for their supreme canvassing and office administration; Mike Manary, Dan Fishback, Danny DePrest, Floyd Wills, Bill Blaney and Dick Nieuwland, my sign crew who painted EML blue; Zak Rahim, Scott Collyer, and Jason Ransom for their social media and communications skills; and to the multitudes of canvassers and those who donated to our campaign.

And finally, I want to acknowledge two wonderful mentors for their counsel and guidance. First is Dennis Timbrell, former member of provincial Parliament for Don Mills, who now lives in St. Thomas. He is a former Ontario Minister of Energy, Health, and Agriculture and Food, and a great mentor; and Betty Crockett, now 95 years young—I’m sure she’s watching—a resident of Dorchester and a mentor to many, and I have to say this: Simply put, Betty Crockett is the matriarch of Dorchester.

I’d also like to acknowledge my new and very competent constituency team: my executive assistant, Deb Ransom, who I know is watching; my case workers, Barb Gonyou and Shirley Slaats; and Tanner Zelenko, who is here today, my legislative assistant. We truly are a great team.

Speaker, one cannot venture into public service without the support of their family. My wife, Denise, again here today patiently waiting, is from Lakefield, Ontario, a great community in central Ontario. She’s the third of 11 children of Frank and Julie Leahy, better known today as the band Leahy. They are a Juno-award-winning family band who have had a significant impact on the North American music scene for decades. Denise Flack is a woman of substance. Her faith and her fortitude in seeking truth and wisdom, and her love of me—thank God—and our daughter, Emily, is the foundation of my life. Without Denise, my life journey simply would mean little.

Our daughter, Emily Jean Flack, is also a musician of notable talent and a teacher. She is our pride and joy. Like all of us, we want the best for our children. I am so proud of the woman Emily has become: strong, independent, ambitious and ready to tackle life’s opportunities.

I was raised on Plainsmen Road in Streetsville, Ontario, now part of Mississauga. I’m the oldest of four boys. My brothers, Paul, Jimmy and Kelly Flack, are all accomplished in their own rights, and my parents, Jim and Esther Flack, came from two different parts of this province.

My father, Charles James Flack, was born and raised right here in Toronto. He’s a Parkdale boy, who still, amazingly, knows his way around the city, which I cannot get over. His father, Charles Lincoln Flack, fought for Canada in the First World War and felt the ravages of war the remainder of his life. Sadly, I never got to know my father’s parents.

My mother, Esther Jean Fraser, hails from the Ottawa Valley as one of the two founding families of the city of Pembroke, Ontario. Her forefathers were Canadian pioneers who forged a life as early settlers on the Ottawa River, dating back to the early 1800s, predating Confederation.

Our family continues to have strong connections to Renfrew County. In fact, we have a cottage on the beautiful shores of Lake Doré and operate a beef cattle farm aptly called Dorbay Polled Herefords.

I’d like to acknowledge someone who unfortunately wouldn’t come today, and I’ll tease him when we’re done: the MPP for Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke. He affectionately now refers to me as his associate MPP for Renfrew–Nipissing–Pembroke, and, for the record, Speaker, he’s already complaining that he’s not getting enough work out of me.

My parents were teachers and very skilled at their trade. I believe the most noble profession in the world is that of an educator. Nurturing fertile minds is a calling that needs to be celebrated, not criticized. As my father, now in his 91st year, states, “If we could only put children and young adults first, we would avoid needless and costly disruptions.” I totally agree.

I’d like to identify two key community leaders who gave me “the political bug,” both people I admire very much. The first is Hazel McCallion. Hurricane Hazel was the mayor of Streetsville when I was a young boy, and we all know her accomplishments in building Mississauga as its mayor. I vividly remember helping her get out the vote in grade 13.

Next, William Grenville Davis was my political hero. He was our local MPP for Peel, and I remember when I was a young boy, I went to school on that Monday morning and reported during—some might remember this—social studies that Mr. Davis was now our very own Premier from the county of Peel.

Speaker, my love of agriculture and rural life began at a very early age, travelling from farm to farm with my grandfather, Wallace Fraser. I was able to spend my youth and teenage years working on farms in the Ottawa Valley. After graduating from the University of Guelph in 1979, I began my business career with Masterfeeds. I simply loved working with local farmers and farm supply dealers in my territory of Wellington, Peel, Halton and Wentworth.

During what I thought would be a few years of training before I moved on to life as perhaps a dairy and/or beef farmer, I realized I was thoroughly enjoying my business experience. So like many I started on the ground floor, worked hard and was given tremendous opportunities to grow.

As they say, time flies. As of June of this year, I retired from Masterfeeds after 43 years of service and 29 years as president and CEO. I had a tremendous team over my years as CEO, where we grew the footprint of the company right across this country, almost quadrupling the scale of this national agribusiness. I had a tremendous career with Masterfeeds, thanks to my many customers and friends spanning over four decades.

Speaker, the lessons I learned from my business career were plentiful, and I hope I can bring some of these lessons to Queen’s Park. The first would be to lead with your heart, but never at the expense of your head; I think Richard Nixon said that once. Hire the best, and do not be afraid to hire people who are smarter than you—in my case, that was easy to do. Have a sense of urgency and have a bias for action, and believe in the words of Benjamin Franklin: “Well done is better than well said.”

As has been said, to whom much is given, much is expected. I was taught to always give back to my community. That is why I am proud to raise needed funds for the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation, Camp Trillium and St. Peter’s Seminary Foundation.

As well, Speaker, I’d like to give a shout-out to two organizations that are near and dear to my heart. Having served on the London International Airport board for 12 years, I am proud of what the airport leadership team has accomplished for London and surrounding communities. As southwestern Ontario’s premier airport, serving a market of 1.5 million people, the London International Airport now provides $623 million of economic impact for the city of London.

And of course, Speaker, I have to stand here and recognize—I know my colleague below me here will appreciate this—the renowned Royal Agricultural Winter Fair. The Royal, as it is affectionately called, is celebrating its 100th anniversary this fall. The Royal has survived world wars, depressions, recessions and, most recently, this COVID pandemic, so I am asking all members of this Legislature to attend this wonderful tradition that takes place the first week of November every year. Come and enjoy the sights, the sounds and the smells of the Royal, where the country truly does come to the city.

As the parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, I’m excited to advocate for our province’s farmers, farm suppliers, food processors, supply chains and food retailers.

We all know that Ontario will have an influx of more than two million new people in the next 10 years; as such, we need to build 1.5 million new homes as soon as possible, and our government has a plan to do just that. It is why this government is investing in key infrastructure like roads, highways, hospitals and schools, and it is why this government is creating an environment for our industries and businesses to grow, creating good jobs, particularly in the skilled trades.

Now, Speaker, while more jobs, skills training, and new and better infrastructure and homes are vitally important for all Ontarians, I respectfully submit that the most important resource we need to nurture and grow is food. Farmers feed cities, and this government is the voice of rural Ontario and will remain so. Agriculture and food is the most sustainable and renewable industry not only in Ontario, but in Canada.

From southwestern Ontario to central Ontario, from eastern Ontario to parts of northern Ontario, we truly live in a Garden of Eden. We have some of the most fertile soil in the world. We have advantageous growing conditions thanks to our proximity to the Great Lakes. We have an expanding food processing sector. We have a talented workforce. We have proven research and technology from our own University of Guelph. We have highways, rail lines and airports that can transport our food locally and internationally, and we sit beside the largest-consuming nation on earth.

We are a growing population in Ontario, where thankfully—I want to make this very clear—we can continue to feed ourselves while exporting goods and services, with limitless potential to grow. In fact, our Garden of Eden provides Ontario with an abundant harvest that may surprise some members of this House. Did you know that in 2021, the province’s food and beverage processing sector had the largest share among other Ontario manufacturing industries in terms of GDP? In fact, it was at 18%. Did you know that one in 10 jobs are related to the agri-food sector? Impressively, Speaker, did you know that in 2021, Ontario’s overall agri-food industry, from the farm gate to the consumer’s plate, contributed $48 billion in GDP to our provincial economy? Impressive indeed.

As the iconic and recognizable brand Foodland Ontario exemplifies, good things really do grow in Ontario, and we plan to keep it that way. I look forward to working with the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, the member from Huron–Bruce, and my fellow parliamentary assistant, the member from Chatham-Kent–Leamington, as well as our collective team as we help build a stronger agri-food sector, supported by our rural villages, towns and cities.

Again, Speaker, to whom much is given, much is expected. That is why I’ve had a lifelong interest in our political process. I have always had a desire to serve but waited for the timing to work for my family and my career.

We all seek public office to make a difference. We all seek public office to advance the interests and opportunities of our constituents, and we all seek public office to help build a more prosperous Ontario. That we all have in common. That being said, I admittedly say I am a partisan. I am a Progressive Conservative partisan. I believe our party and our government, led by this Premier, is on the right strategic path that will get it done for all of Ontario. However, as has been said today, and I agree, we need to work together in this House, and I am confident that we will.

We are in proving the words I quoted earlier of Benjamin Franklin: “Well done is better than well said”—a smarter, leaner more proactive government that is investing in the future while being fiscally responsible. That is what Ontarians voted for, and that is what Elgin–Middlesex–London voted for.

In conclusion, Speaker, I believe that government is the servant of the people, all of the people, and exists to balance the principles of nation-building, social order and enterprise. May God continue to bless Ontario and our country, Canada.

I want to congratulate the new member for Elgin–Middlesex–London on his inaugural remarks. It was a pleasure to listen to a bit of your history that brought you to this place, and it’s been a pleasure to get to know you since you first arrived, since we do share part of that boundary in the city of London.

You talked about the diversity of that riding, taking in part of the city of London, the city of St. Thomas and many of the rural areas in Elgin county. I wondered if you could just elaborate a little bit about how you approach representing a riding that is so varied, that brings together both those urban and rural communities within Elgin and London.

To the member from Elgin–Middlesex–London: Clearly, you absolutely have a passion and heart for the agri-food sector. Thank you for recognizing the significance that the agri-food sector plays in the overall GDP. But I have a fun question for you. When it comes to celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair, SuperDogs, horse show or the Hereford show—what’s the top one in your mind and what else should we go and visit while we’re there?

Questions and answers?

Well, the first thing you do, to the member opposite, is drive 10,000 kilometres during the election. It’s a big riding. It’s a lot of geography. The one thing that I’ve really enjoyed so far about my experience in this provincial Legislature is being here and learning about here. I just wish in these early days we had more time to be at home because I’ve got a lot of people to see and a lot of things to do. We’ve got one constituency office, we’ve got a great team, but it’s really about being out, not sitting in the office. It’s like what I did for a living: Get out, be seen, be heard, listen and learn.

The Royal, folks—I’m serious when I say this—is just a wonderful thing to experience. If you’ve not been to Toronto the first week of November, please go. It’s down at Exhibition Place. You’re going to learn so much. You’re going to appreciate so much about where our food comes from, and the exhibitors. It’s fun. Grandparents are one of the number one exhibitors.

What’s really fun is to just be there, and I said it—the sights, the sounds, the smells. Go be part of it. Take your family. You’re really going to enjoy it—all of it, every little bit of it.

For instance, let’s really encourage further development of our beef sector, of our pork sector. It’s wonderful how this industry continues to produce, but it’s consolidated. When I got into this business, there were nearly 22,000 dairy producers; there are less than 4,000 today. There were 23,000 hog producers; there are less than 400 today. It’s consolidated. We still produce a lot more food and it will continue to grow, but we have to get out of the way of their everyday activities and let them do what they do best and produce food.

That being said, we can’t take our foot off the gas. I think this is a fair stat: OMAFRA calculates that the amount of primary agriculture GDP generated per acre actively farmed has risen 45% since 2016, and 208% since 2001. So it’s been on an escalating curve, as has our population. We just have to continue to make sure that happens.

Amazing speech. It’s always great to hear everyone’s stories. And congratulations on your win.

I’m really interested in the agriculture component of your riding and of your beliefs. I’m very worried about food security, and in my former life I helped start a few farmers’ markets in my riding. I’m a big supporter of Ontario farmers and reminding people to support them—because otherwise, where’s our food coming from?—and the supply chain, as well. Actually, one of my markets ran over dinnertime, and we were worried about our farmers coming in from some three hours away, from Markdale and whatnot. So we fed the farmers who fed us, which was great.

I’m just wondering about what you would like to do to support farmers further, and what we can do at Queen’s Park for that.

I want to thank the member from Elgin–Middlesex–London for his speech, and congratulate him on his election and welcome him to the House as well. It was a great speech and I listened intently.

One of the things I think you spoke very passionately about is your background, the work that you do and who you are. Sometimes we don’t really know what our backgrounds are. One of the things that my friend from Timiskaming–Cochrane and I talk about all the time—my grandfather was a farmer, so it’s in my blood. When we talk in this House, sometimes we just have the idea of who we are in this House, but the fact is there are so many different ways that we can relate to one another and learn from one another and actually connect with one another.

My question is simple. As I learned from you when you spoke, I also want to hear a little bit about what you want to accomplish in Ontario’s agricultural sector in terms of how you want to grow and build on the different agricultural sectors that we have in Ontario and what you hope to accomplish in your term here.

I want to thank the member from Elgin–Middlesex–London for sharing his story. I also want to thank him for feeding Ontario, because that’s such an important role. So many of us forget where the items we put into our mouth come from. I actually want to applaud you for doing that and being part of that process.

My friend across the way asked a similar question, but could you further explain your thoughts respecting food production in Ontario? Particularly, how can we ensure that we can continue to keep up with this, with respect to our growing population, and make sure that everyone is fed?

A quick question.

I think the biggest thing we can do—and it goes back to an earlier question—is continue to ensure our food production keeps up to and expands beyond the growth of our population. I’m confident we will do that. I know we’re advocating the minister, and the parliamentary assistant and myself are very active along with our team engaging stakeholders. I’m going to come back and say what I said earlier: listening and learning, not telling. We don’t have all the answers here, but out in the industry they do. That’s the one thing I learned in my business career: If you’re going to succeed, be a good listener; if you’re going to succeed, hire really good people. That’s what I think this ministry is doing and this government is doing.

Hopefully, at the end of the day, you’ve got to really love what you do, and I think that was part of my success. I know everyone here has their story—I enjoyed the member opposite’s. Your success was because of passion. You’ve got to love what you do. Educators: There’s a young educator up there. She’s great. She loves it. She’s passionate about it. If you’re passionate about it, you will do well at it. I promise.

I have to say that it’s been a real pleasure to hear the speeches this afternoon, to hear so many new members share their life stories. Sometimes there were jokes and laughs, and sometimes there were tough times and emotional times. We heard about losses of people dear to them.

Unfortunately, we lost an hour of it. And that’s part of what it means to be a legislator; things like that happen here. An hour of it was lost, and in turn we heard a lecture from the House leader. I must say, and I say this humbly and with greatest respect, he’s an incredible speaker. And I do enjoy those lectures. They make me laugh sometimes. But I would like to offer sincere, humble advice, and my advice is directed to the new members in this chamber, particularly the Conservative ones. Because I’m a new member too: I’ve just been here a term, just got re-elected. I remember what it was like for the last four years. And I know why every government, not just yours, wants to silence the opposition: because we make your job harder. And sometimes you may feel like you want to take it personally, what we say. And I’m sure for those members that were here—I don’t know how many are in the chamber were here under the last government—I think you know what I’m talking about. And again, I am a new member.

I watched after the last election how there were standing ovations for literally everything. Sometimes I felt that you guys were up on your feet—well maybe not the new members—more than you were answering questions at all. Constantly, the Speaker would have to get up and say, “Stop the clock.” There was a lot of boasting. We hear it. “We won! We won! You lost!” We heard that a lot. We continue to hear it. And you know what I saw? I watched the polling numbers just like you, and this is what I saw, just like this: Eventually the government, your government, about three years ago reached the popularity of the government before you, the team you called the minivan party. And then the pandemic happened and things changed. That’s where you were.

I think there’s something we should all address and consider: We have gone through an election where people felt hopeless. They were filled with despair. I know you know this; you heard it. There were not many people rushing to vote. They felt like the future was very scary to them and their loved ones, and so we saw the lowest turnout per capita in Ontario’s history. You won. You won a majority and you gained seats, and you did so with 18%—with a loss of half a million votes. And sure, we lost votes. We lost more than you. But what is out there is a feeling of disenfranchisement that I’ve never seen before, not to this level. And it’s scary. All of us need to consider this, and I hope that you consider it, too. I hope that despite what we hear sometimes in this chamber, when you’re in your caucus rooms talking and thinking about it, that you actually think about what’s actually going on.

I know that it is difficult for you as a government. It must be very hard for ministers. All I’ve ever known is opposition; I’ve been here for just one term. To get up and have to answer questions when we bring out stories of individuals that are not the exception, because in many cases the exception is the rule—people suffering in many different ways, and you have to get up and scramble and give an answer. I know it’s not easy. I get it. I know your job is hard.

Listen or don’t listen, but people out there are suffering. I want to say, you might want to shut us down and keep us quiet, but we have options and ideas to help. You will hear those amendments when things get to committee. I think a third of all the material may, in fact, go to committee. We can fix a lot of the things that you are dealing with. We can help you. It is your choice to listen to us or not.

Your throne speech doesn’t go far enough. I can’t match the words of the member from Spadina–Fort York. And to your credit, the questions that were asked of him and the compassionate speech that he gave were very respectful. How can people live on a 5% increase in ODSP when we are facing this inflation? It is impossible. I know you know this.

You look at the throne speech, and I get it—I did a Ctrl-F on the word “environment.” I found it three times. Two times, it had to do with the business environment.

Health care crisis: Each day we get up and we say, “We need to deal with this. Let’s call an emergency discussion and debate on it. Unanimous consent.” It fails every day. Why do we criticize you? I know it’s not easy to hear. Because there are things that we observed—at least, I observed—in the last four years that could have been done so much better.

Privatization: We don’t have to raise it. You raise it. You call it “innovation.” Conservative governments have a pedigree, a history, of ripping apart and tearing down public services and institutions. You did it to hydro and we saw the rates go up. You sold the 407. I get it. That wasn’t you, new members; it was the government before. But last year, when the 407—the people that own it—owed a billion dollars to you and the taxpayers, this government said, “Keep the change. We don’t need it.” Imagine.

The list goes on and on, and sometimes it feels—and we all know that there are people out there always waiting to turn a profit on a crisis.

Long-term care: I’d like to talk about long-term care a little bit more. I must say, and it is not an insult, that until the pandemic happened, I do not believe it was a priority for this government. We tabled bills like the Time to Care Act where we said, “Give at least four hours to our loved ones to take care of them.” It was ignored. You heard, just like I did, PSWs and nurses come in, file into our offices and, through tears, tell us that they had to help residents—dozens, for one nurse, one PSW, dozens who needed to be changed, who needed to be fed, an impossible task. It’s not just about creating the beds. It’s about hiring the workers and giving them the time, the respect, to be able to help the people who are entrusted under their care.

In 2019, before the pandemic: 626 homes. How many proactive inspections do you think happened under this government? Nine. Most of the inspections happened because it was a phone call—someone in a crisis. You would have heard it: nine proactive inspections. And during the pandemic, those proactive inspections were suspended, I think, as far as into last fall. I’d have to do a little more research to see if it’s still happening as we speak right now.

What a past government did—I don’t blame you who are sitting in this chamber—was open the doors to privatization. I’ve heard the stats: For every dollar invested in long-term care, 49 cents in private long-term care goes to direct patient care, but in non-profit public, it’s 79 cents. Is the solution to continue to build private beds, private beds, private beds? We all know that the majority of people who were suffering the worst during this pandemic were in those facilities.

If there was more attention spent in that first year, PSWs—having multiple shifts, rushing in and out of long-term-care facilities, some of them with full outbreak going place to place—would that have happened? Would the training have been there? Would the PPE have been there to save lives? I’m not putting this all on you individually, but as a system the people have been failed.

I’m going to talk a little bit more now about my own portfolio as NDP auto insurance critic. I have to say that I think so much more could have been done in the last four years. It’s unbelievable. When the pandemic started, there was—and I did the math; I reached out to Toronto police—a 74% reduction in automobile accidents in the city of Toronto, and the government’s response at the time when it came to auto insurance was what? Let them give rebates. In fact, what did these insurers do? Since most people couldn’t even drive, a lot of them just parked their cars at home. They switched their coverage to things like fire and theft, and what happened as a result of that? Of course, in those instances, they paid less. Again, what did the government do? It felt like PR. The former finance minister, your guy, came out and it felt like he was doing PR for the automobile industry. They were giving out peanuts, if anything, to drivers.

What else happened? We would always wait on the quarterlies when the auto insurance companies would report if rates were going up—rates were going up. Well, this government hid it. Your government—not you new members—hid that fact, and about a year later we learned they were preapproving auto insurance increases. I honestly think sometimes that right there in that nice green space, the government should plop a chair and sit an auto insurance executive right here because sometimes I feel what this government does around automobile insurance—there’s got to be executives watching on TV, just nodding. I want to see them sitting there in the room, nodding their heads. It’s just unbelievable. What did they tell the last government? They said, “Reduce automobile insurance accidents and we’ll reduce rates.” Guess what? Rates went up.

I see in the government’s Bill 2 that you talk about fraud, and that’s something the insurance companies will always tell you. They’ll say, “Why are the rates so high? It’s fraud. It’s all fraud. Everybody is lying.” That’s why, if a person is catastrophically injured, they will be getting lawyers out and telling them they’re lying; for sure, they’re lying.

It’s in here, and it’s hard to not be cynical. It says that you want—or this government, it seems, wants to authorize that your regulators will be able to get more information when it comes to the issue of automobile insurance fraud. It’s hard to not be cynical and think, are you going to use this information to help drivers or not help drivers?

This afternoon, I and colleagues of mine that are here in this chamber, the member from Scarborough Southwest and the member from Davenport, introduced a bill, a bill we voted on unanimously before the election happened and it said, “Let’s deal with postal code discrimination in the GTA.” Drivers in Ontario, especially the GTA, pay not just the highest rates in Canada, they pay the highest rates in North America. All the while, last year, do you know what the return on premiums was for the auto insurance industry? 23%. Can you imagine the amount of money? So if someone on your side gets up and says, here’s a person who saw a rate decrease or not—and I’m not hearing it. The proof is in the premiums. Ask the people in your constituency. If you represent an area in Scarborough or Brampton or Vaughan or many of the areas—in fact, the Premier’s own riding in northwest Toronto, my neighbour—people in our communities are getting crushed in this affordability crisis when it comes to automobile insurance.

Home warranties—and we’re going to hear a lot about it. They’re going to build a million homes, right? And this government I don’t think has ever seen a bad development. Those of you who’ve been on a city council have. Sometimes it’s great—we all, for the most part, unless we built our home, live in a development—but sometimes there’s a little bit more work that needs to be done to get it right.

So if you’re going to build a million homes, wouldn’t you want to get the warranties right? We had an opportunity to fix new home warranties in Ontario. It was an honour and a privilege to travel this province when the government said they had a plan to do better than the Liberals before them. And the consumer protection advocates, many of whom were not facing problems with a new home warranty, but were so traumatized by things that may have happened even as far as 20 years ago that they’re fighting for people, gained nothing. They put in time and money to help others after them.

We travelled the province, and I’ll tell you this: Every single consumer advocate, everyone going through or suffering from a new home that has gone wrong, said that this legislation didn’t go far enough. Do you know who liked what your government was doing? Just one: the representative of the development industry. They said, “Keep the status quo.”

The Auditor General—and again, I get it; it’s not easy to get those reports, right? The Liberals didn’t like it. You probably don’t either. She pointed out—it felt like literal absurdity—the level that the development industry was controlling the regulator of the time. I mean, think about this. I travelled to Ottawa, to a subdivision that is still experiencing difficulties to this very day. People who bought new homes as a dream—beautiful homes, when you looked at the brochure. I went into a person’s home, a family’s home; their entire basement was ripped up. It looked like a bomb had gone off in their home.

Hundreds of thousands of dollars of repair, fighting Tarion, trying to get lawyers, all of it—it’s so many people, and when people do this, because this is a huge investment on your part, it’s a big risk. Because when you go and tell everyone, “My home is in bad shape,” what do you do? Some people see it and sell, and another person picks that up, and they’ll never know until, years down the road, something absolutely terrible can happen.

There was an opportunity to change it. Still, I sat in on the last Tarion board meeting, and it’s same old, same old: the same old complaints. And so when I hear targets that the government talks about, I can only hear them as aspirational: “We’re going to fix home warranties. We’re going to build these homes. We’re going to fix it.”

Long-term care: Now, all of a sudden, because it’s a big issue—I’m not going to get into all of what we’ve heard recently. Of course we have concerns. Where are you sending people? You’re now, all of a sudden, going to charge them for a bed unless they get out of hospital? Why do you think, under this system of long-term care, people want to stay in a hospital?

I brought up the question of a gentleman named Vibert. I brought it up last year, before the election: a poor gentleman in a hospital bed. The only person advocating for him is his dear sister. He had bedsores that looked like horrific wounds. I brought images—they were very difficult to see—and I shared them with some of the ministers on your side. Months later, it’s the same situation, if not worse, and where is Vibert? In and out of the hospital. People there don’t have time. They don’t have the luxury of time to wait. They need solutions now. It’s life or death for them.

And I get it. We bring it up; don’t throw a dart at me and put it on my back and blame me. I know you don’t want to hear it, but it’s life or death for people. People don’t need aspirational targets in a year or two, three, four, five or six years. They need the help now.

I’m the critic for consumer protection, and the last thing I’m going to talk about is this: I don’t believe there’s the kind of consumer protection that we need in Ontario, that people here deserve. If you face—

I know there’s not much time left. So I just wanted to congratulate the member from Elgin–Middlesex–London. I had the opportunity to meet you before the election, and what a wonderful career you had with Masterfeeds—the youngest-ever president and CEO in 1993. I just want to say to the member, when are you inviting us to your Dorbay cattle family operation?

Seeing the time is now 6 o’clock, this House stands adjourned until 10:15 a.m., Monday, August 29, 2022.

Debate deemed adjourned.

The House adjourned at 1800.