The government of Ontario has a responsibility to parents and students. This is a sacred trust. That responsibility includes the guarantee of top-quality education for our children and placing the most qualified teachers in front of our students.

We’ve heard many times about the need for students to remain in class and what students will learn in these classes. However, the individuals teaching these classes matter just as much as a subject’s content. From principals and vice-principals to math, art, music and science teachers, and the many more types of educators we have in this province, we need the most qualified individuals at the front of the classroom.

Speaker, to the Minister of Education: What has our government done to ensure the right educator is in front of our children?

In the last year, young educators and veteran educators across my riding have expressed their delight in this government’s revoking of regulation 274. They are grateful that our government recognized and provided a solution to the previous hiring practices that neither rewarded hard work nor gave the best chance of having the best possible educator in front of our children.

As our province’s population grows, our government must focus on the future to ensure we have enough educators in places experiencing that growth. Can the Minister of Education please explain how revoking regulation 274 encourages teacher mobility?

We have been clear: We believe children should be in the classroom. They have to be in school every day, after two years of disruption and the strikes that preceded it just a few years ago.

We brought forth a reasonable, fair offer to the union: 10% over four years, maintaining benefits and pensions and sick leave, which most people in this economy do not have. Even with that said, we told the union, “Rescind this strike on Friday that impacts every single—

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Mr. Speaker, it was over a decade ago that the former Liberal government consented in a union negotiation to a regressive regulation called O. Reg. 274, a regulation that permitted exclusive hiring and promotion in Ontario based on seniority—

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We believe new educators, young educators and those with the qualifications should triumph in hiring, not someone who’s simply been in the union the longest. This is about quality. This is about ensuring the best staff member could inspire a child. That’s why we removed this regulation, which even the former Liberal Premier agreed went too far. The Ontario Principals’ Council said they supported it, parents support it, and the government will continue to do everything possible to enshrine quality in the schools of this province.