This question is to the Premier.

Hamilton is currently exceeding its housing targets for this year despite the greenbelt fiasco. Hamilton city council and many organizations such as Environment Hamilton have been loud and clear in saying that we need both more homes in our urban centres and to preserve our farmland.

Will this government let Hamilton get on with its plan to build the new homes we need, stop creating chaos and enriching favoured speculators, and reverse the forced expansion of Hamilton’s urban boundary?

Thank you to the member for the important question. Also, I’d like to thank him for the incredible tour of his riding this summer.

I’m proud to say that because of our government’s unprecedented actions to strengthen the health care workforce through expanding education for those on the front lines, almost 2,600 students have started classes as part of the first ever Ontario Learn and Stay Grant cohort. This means that thousands of students have entered into nursing, medical lab technician and paramedicine programs in priority communities at over 20 institutions across the province, with full, upfront funding to cover the cost of tuition, books and other expenses in return for working locally and caring for the people in the region where they studied for a term of service after they graduate.

Mr. Speaker, we inherited a health care crisis thanks to the previous government, but through our work, alongside the Premier and the Minister of Health, our government is taking meaningful and concrete action to improve the health care system today.

To the member from Chatham-Kent–Leamington: I’m proud to say that in your region of southwestern Ontario alone, there are over 1,000 confirmed students beginning their studies as nurses and medical lab technologists—students who will go on to make immediate impacts in local hospitals and health care facilities like Windsor Regional Hospital and Chatham-Kent Health Alliance.

In eastern Ontario, there are almost 800 enrolled nursing students across six institutions, like St. Lawrence and Algonquin College.

And in northern Ontario, there are over 700 students enrolled in nursing, med lab tech and paramedicine programs.

Speaker, this means that in regions ranging from Thunder Bay to Chatham-Kent to Ottawa, students are beginning to pursue critical degrees across Ontario, which will directly address the health care shortages felt in Ontario’s underserved regions, the ones that need the support the most.

These outstanding numbers speak for themselves. Students are eager to begin lifelong careers in the health care sector, and our government is supporting them every step of the way.

My question is for the Minister of Colleges and Universities.

September marks the beginning of a new academic year, and our post-secondary students are already well into their studies at campuses across Ontario.

With the continuing demand for professionals in the health care human resources sector, students enrolled in health care-related programs are needed in communities across the province.

Our government has a strong track record of making meaningful investments that prepare students to enter the workforce with rewarding, good-paying jobs right here in Ontario. That’s why our government must continue to prioritize measures that support students and prepare them for careers which will strengthen our entire health care system.

Can the minister please share what actions our government is taking to prepare Ontario’s post-secondary students to enter the workforce?

Financial supports available through this grant program are a positive step in building up our workforce. However, Ontario’s health care system is in desperate need of more health care professionals to provide this essential care.

In my riding of Chatham-Kent–Leamington, my constituents are looking for connected care and services closer to home. Our government must continue to take decisive steps to educate and retain more health care workers across our province—something I heard loud and clear at my health care round tables that were also co-hosted by the amazing member from Newmarket–Aurora.

Can the minister please explain how the investments made by our government into the Learn and Stay grant program will benefit communities across Ontario?

My question is for the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing.

My fundamental belief is that the key to our democracy—indeed, the guiding principle of everything we do here—is truth and integrity. There are still too many unanswered questions about how this government allowed a small group of insiders to obtain a significant financial advantage.

Not long ago, my colleague from Beaches–East York put forward a motion to the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy asking for a full parliamentary investigation into the dealings of the $8.3-billion greenbelt land deals. The motion called on government ministers and staff to testify before a committee and for a report to be tabled. It was an opportunity for this government to be fully transparent with Ontarians, but unfortunately, the government members defeated the motion.

Will the new minister do the right thing and allow a committee to investigate the entire truth?

I’m not going to overrule a committee. That’s not the job of the executive, and I don’t think that is the job—that parliamentarians would expect how their committees would work. We’ll let committees decide what it is they want to study and when they want to study it.

I know in the fullness of time, the report of the Auditor General will make its way to public accounts. That is the process that happens here. That will be studied, in fact, here at the Legislature. Public accounts does actually review reports of the Auditor General. They are mandated to do that work. They will do that work, regardless of whether there is a motion or not.

My question is for the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry.

Over the last decade, the number of active wildland fires has increased in Ontario. Unfortunately, forest fires are unpredictable, costly and resource-intensive. These fires have devastating impacts on our communities, putting people, property and livestock in danger.

Wildfires also negatively affect economic activity and create unsafe conditions. That’s why it’s crucial for our government to continue to dedicate the necessary resources and planning measures to ensure community safety.

Can the minister please update the House on what steps our government has taken to enhance wildlands fire management?

This year has been Canada’s most severe forest fire season on record, with wildfires impacting many provinces and territories. We saw that our government worked collaboratively with other provinces and international partners to mitigate these fires and respond to crises quickly that occurred across our country.

I know that many people across the province are reassured to know that our government is making significant additional investments into Ontario’s wildfire preparedness strategy. However, it is crucial that our government has a plan to deploy sufficient resources and supports to ensure that Ontario’s fire rangers and our communities are safe.

Can the minister please inform this House about the additional measures that our government is implementing to ensure preparedness for future national wildland fires?

Ma question s’adresse à la ministre des Affaires francophones.

Notre gouvernement doit soutenir la population franco-ontarienne. Celle-ci représente un atout inestimable pour notre province, et notre détermination à soutenir la francophonie ontarienne ne doit jamais fléchir, notamment en mettant sur pied des initiatives permettant de pérenniser leur succès pour les années à venir.

La ministre évoquait l’importance de la prospérité économique pour assurer la vitalité et le bien-être des communautés francophones de l’Ontario. Est-ce que la ministre pourrait nous informer de la progression et des retombées de cette stratégie au niveau de l’amélioration de la qualité de vie des francophones ontariens?

Thank you to the member from Peterborough–Kawartha for the question. Of course, this is an issue that we take very, very, seriously.

We have the very, very, best wildland firefighters here in Ontario. We are so very proud of them and the work that they do. They are internationally recognized. I want to take a moment to say thank you for the great work that they have done through this fire season and previous fire seasons—the men and women on the ground, those who are in the air, those who are doing all the logistics and supports to supply everything that is needed to keep communities safe, keep people safe.

We continue, as a government, to make the investments that are needed—$135 million in base budgeting. That’s a 92% increase from the previous Liberal government, to make sure that our communities are safe from wildland fires.

We’ll continue to invest in the men, the women, and the equipment needed to get the job done here in Ontario every single year.

I had said we are internationally recognized, in my previous answer, for the great work that we do. That’s because our firefighters have been to other countries and other provinces to provide assistance when needed. Sometimes we provide that assistance, and sometimes we require that assistance. That’s the great thing about wildland fire prevention—we all work together.

I want to thank Minnesota, Manitoba, the Northwest Territories and the great firefighters from Mexico who have assisted us during the 2023 season.

I also want to say thank you to our firefighters for being in Nova Scotia when they needed help, being in the Northwest Territories when they needed help, being out in Alberta to help our friends there, being in British Columbia to help citizens there.

We all work together to make sure that people and communities remain safe.

We have a new agreement with Portugal coming online to provide mutual aid assistance.

Mr. Speaker, we will continue to work together to keep people in Ontario and other jurisdictions safe from wildland—

Thank you to the honourable minister.

The government has admitted that mistakes were made, and I do appreciate that. But critical to making sure that these mistakes are not repeated and that individuals are held accountable is to thoroughly investigate everything that happened. Yes, the reports by the Auditor General and the Integrity Commissioner have helped shed some of the light on these issues, but there are still questions that are unanswered.

Ontarians deserve transparency from this government. If we really want to regain the trust of Ontarians, this government needs to hear testimony from those directly involved.

I will ask again: Will the minister allow the committee to discover what parliamentary processes and procedures were or were not followed, by whom and when, so that all Ontarians can learn the whole truth about the $8.3-billion greenbelt land deals?

Supplementary question?

To reply, the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport.

Thank you for the question.

I don’t believe that was my answer. I believe my answer, when we talked about the GTHL, was that there was an independent study going on and an investigation being led by a retired judge and a retired police officer who was involved in investigations throughout his career. That’s where we were going on this.

My answer to that is, I’ll wait for that report to come back. We will talk about what that report says, and we will stop suggesting and making allegations when we haven’t got the facts. Facts are important. If we’re going to step out and do something about anything—anything—then we’re going to make sure we have the facts. It isn’t about timing; it is truly about the information and the facts, and that’s what we’ll react on.

The GTHL is the largest amateur sport or hockey in the world, I believe, and I’ve got a number of people, some in my staff—their kids play there, and they’re enjoying their opportunity to play within the GTHL.

Back to the point: We will find out when we get information, and we’ll examine it when that information comes. There is no flopping on this. This is about facts and information coming to us so we can respond—

As I said, the expansion of the urban boundaries in Ottawa and Hamilton, in and of itself, does not make any changes. It is up to those two councils to decide what happens in those expanded urban boundaries. It’s up to those councils to decide if those lands should be serviced. It’s up to those two councils to decide when that should happen. It’s up to those councils to decide if it should happen. I trust that our partners will always work collaboratively to ensure that we have housing.

I can say very clearly to the member opposite that we are going to do everything in our power to make sure that we do build homes in those areas where land is available. We have recommendations through the Housing Affordability Task Force. I have written letters to each of the mayors, and I’ve asked them to double down and to ensure which of those recommendations we can move on very quickly.

You can bet your bottom dollar, Mr. Speaker, that we are going to be going in every single riding across the province of Ontario and we’re going to be saying, “We need you to build up, we need you to build better, and we need to get the job done.”

I say to the member opposite that he can actually help. because right now his federal partners in Ottawa are supporting a Liberal plan that would reforest farmland. The NDP in Ottawa are supporting that. What they’re talking about is removing farmland and reforesting it. The NDP are supporting that policy, like they did when the Rouge National Urban Park was created—class 1 farmland. The NDP position was that it should be reforested and that land should be taken out of production. We know that the Liberals actually did it. They’re the only government to actually evict farmers from the lands in the Rouge Park to build a park.

I can guarantee you that we’ll always stand up for farmers, but help us. Have the federal Liberals and your NDP partners there turn their backs on that policy, which would—

The Internet is an integral part of the daily lives of Ontarians, providing numerous opportunities for learning, communication and entertainment. However, it can also be used for cyberbullying, online grooming, exploitation and trafficking—those are just a few examples.

By proclaiming September as Kids’ Online Safety and Privacy Month, we prioritize the need to raise awareness about online safety and privacy for children.

Mr. Saunderson moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill Pr29, An Act to revive Hillsdale Land Corp.

This bill would eliminate the 6.1% basic tax on all 100% Ontario VQA wines sold at Ontario winery sites—at the winery—on the retail sites.

I want to say the Ontario wine sector supports 23,000 jobs in the province of Ontario, protecting small and medium-sized wineries. I put this bill forward twice before.

There’s a new report that has come out, the Uncork report, that says how important the Ontario wine industry is, not only to Niagara where 90% of the grapes are grown, but also right across the province of Ontario. I’m hoping my colleagues support it.

Supplementary question.

Deferred vote on the motion for second reading of the following bill:

Bill 54, An Act to amend the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997 / Projet de loi 54, Loi modifiant la Loi de 1997 sur la sécurité professionnelle et l’assurance contre les accidents du travail.

The division bells rang from 1138 to 1143.

On September 26, 2023, Mr. Fraser moved second reading of Bill 54, An Act to amend the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997.

All those in favour will please rise and remain standing until recognized by the Clerk.

Second reading negatived.

The House recessed from 1147 to 1500.

Mr. Saunderson moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill Pr28, An Act to revive South Simcoe Developments Inc.

First reading agreed to.

Mr. Gates moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill 132, An Act to amend the Liquor Tax Act, 1996 to exempt certain wines from the basic tax on wine / Projet de loi 132, Loi visant à modifier la Loi de 1996 sur la taxe sur l’alcool et à exempter certains vins de la taxe de base sur le vin.

First reading agreed to.

Madame Collard moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill 133, An Act to proclaim the month of September as Kids’ Online Safety and Privacy Month / Projet de loi 133, Loi proclamant le mois de septembre Mois de la sécurité et de la protection de la vie privée des enfants en ligne.

First reading agreed to.

First reading agreed to.

Mr. Saunderson moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill Pr31, An Act to revive Geranium (Hillsdale) Limited.

First reading agreed to.

Merci à la ministre pour sa réponse. Je suis très heureuse d’en savoir davantage à propos des réalisations de notre gouvernement au niveau de l’appui à la communauté francophone de la province. Il est crucial d’épauler le développement économique francophone dans différents secteurs pour contribuer à la prospérité de l’économie ontarienne.

Tout récemment, la ministre annonçait que 51 nouveaux projets ont été sélectionnés pour recevoir un soutien dans le cadre de l’édition 2023-2024 du Programme d’appui à la francophonie ontarienne. Valor et Solutions, qui se trouve dans ma région, figure parmi les organismes et entreprises dont le projet a été retenu. Une somme de 49 000 $ leur a été accordée aux fins de la formation aux groupes et organismes qui offrent des services en français dans l’est de la province et à travers l’Ontario.

Monsieur le Président, est-ce que la ministre pourrait donner à cette Chambre un aperçu des autres réalisations anticipées grâce à la présente édition du programme de subventions?

Je remercie ma collègue pour sa question. Depuis notre arrivée au pouvoir, notre gouvernement sait que la prospérité de l’Ontario est intimement liée à la vitalité de notre communauté franco-ontarienne. C’est pourquoi nous avons mis sur pied le Programme d’appui à la francophonie ontarienne.

Depuis 2017, ce ne sont pas moins de 283 organismes à but non lucratif et des petites entreprises qui ont reçu un soutien dans le cadre de cette initiative, dont l’objectif est la livraison de produits et de services à la clientèle franco-ontarienne. Nous assurons ainsi la promotion et la vitalité de la langue française, ainsi que de la culture et de l’économie francophones. Cette initiative se démarque notamment par son caractère structurant, puisqu’elle répond à des besoins du milieu et que la réponse à ces besoins est articulée par des organismes du milieu que nous soutenons.

Monsieur le Président, nous sommes très fiers de bâtir une communauté franco-ontarienne forte et dynamique.

Deux millions de dollars sont consacrés à l’édition 2023-2024 du programme, et 51 projets ont été retenus, dont 45 sous le volet communauté et culture et six au niveau du développement économique. La liste des organismes et des petites entreprises récipiendaires serait beaucoup trop longue pour énumérer ici, mais elles ont en commun de renforcer les communautés francophones. À cet égard, chaque projet retenu doit avoir un impact mesurable et positif sur la communauté francophone de l’Ontario.

La francophonie est un atout économique indéniable et important pour la province. C’est pourquoi nous misons sur l’entreprenariat, l’innovation, une main-d’oeuvre qualifiée bilingue et des outils efficaces de promotion de la francophonie ontarienne. Monsieur le Président, les francophones savent qu’ils peuvent compter sur notre gouvernement pour poser les jalons d’un avenir prometteur et florissant, et nous allons continuer de travailler sans—

The next question.

Colleagues, I’m delighted to see everyone here again for the fall legislative session.

Today, I stand before you to recognize Gender Equality Week, which was marked last week in Ontario and across Canada.

Gender Equality Week, marked every fourth week in September, is an important opportunity to celebrate our progress in advancing gender equality as well as the significant achievements of women and gender-diverse people, recognize the barriers to gender equality that still exist and highlight Ontario’s action to identify and remove those barriers and create more social and economic opportunity for women and girls.

While Ontarians value diversity, inclusion and equal opportunity for all, women and girls in Ontario continue to face disproportionate barriers to achieving their full potential compared to their male counterparts. While women make up almost half of Ontario’s workforce, they are more likely to be employed in minimum wage and part-time positions, having represented nearly 60% of Ontario’s minimum wage workers and nearly 25% of Ontario’s part-time workers—almost double the proportion of men—last year.

Women continue to be under-represented in higher-paying sectors like the skilled trades and STEM. While women account for nearly 40% of enrolments in post-secondary STEM programs, they make up less than a quarter of the STEM workforce.

Women also continue to be under-represented in management. In 2022, men accounted for 62.7% of senior and 64.2% of middle management roles. In comparison, women only accounted for 37.3% of senior and 35.8% of middle management roles.

As Ontario’s Associate Minister of Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity, I am determined to see these statistics improve. I am determined to see this not just because it’s good for women but because it’s also good for business and good for Ontario. A McKinsey and Co. report found that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity in their executive teams were 25% more likely to experience above-peer average profitability than companies in the bottom quartile.

Women entrepreneurs also continue to face challenges accessing financing to grow their businesses. In 2020, only an estimated 19% of small and medium-sized enterprises in Ontario were majority women-owned, and these women entrepreneurs find themselves having to launch with 53% less capital on average than men.

In 2022, women earned 87 cents for every dollar earned by men—a 13-cent gender wage gap, 11 cents of which is due to wage inequality within the same occupations. These statistics are even more pronounced for Indigenous, Black, racialized and immigrant women, as well as women living with a disability and 2SLGBTQQIA+ individuals.

That’s why, under the leadership of Premier Ford, we are taking a whole-of-government approach to increasing women’s participation in the workforce to support their economic security and prosperity, especially in sectors like the skilled trades and STEM, where the need is greatest.

Our actions include signing a historic $13.2-billion agreement with the federal government to lower the average child care fees to $10 per day for children under the age of six by September 2025, allowing nearly 100,000 more women to enter the labour market and countless others to stay—and thrive. I am so proud to share that we are already seeing positive impacts of our agreement. Last year, labour participation rates for Ontario mothers reached the highest on record since 1976, and the labour participation rate for mothers with children under the age of five increased by 2.4 percentage points.

Our government has also modernized the curriculum, increasing exposure to STEM, skilled trades and apprenticeship pathways at an earlier age to better prepare students to succeed in the labour market and lead the global innovations of tomorrow. In fact, the Minister of Education is positioning Ontario as a leading jurisdiction in this area. Changes include mandatory learning on coding, scientific innovations and emerging technologies and how they are enhancing trades as early as grade 4; de-streamed high school science and math course, an improved computer studies curriculum and a new technological education curriculum. These will ensure that more girls are considering and prepared for careers in sectors that they have not been historically encouraged to pursue and where they are traditionally under-represented.

We are also making workplaces safer and more welcoming for women in the skilled trades by requiring employers to provide access to at least one women’s-only washroom on construction sites, as well as properly fitting equipment like safety harnesses and PPE.

Colleagues, our government is on the right track. Last year, Ontario achieved a historic increase in skilled trades apprenticeship registrations, including an almost 30% increase in registrations amongst women. We are also offering targeted training, skills development and employment opportunities for women experiencing social and economic barriers, including poverty and gender-based violence, in high-demand, high-reward sectors that feature competitive benefits and pay equity. This includes programs to train more women for careers in trucking and construction, to name a couple.

One of the initiatives I’m most proud of is the expansion of the Investing in Women’s Futures Program through my ministry to 33 service delivery locations across the province, as well as our continued support of the Women’s Economic Security Program, which features general employment, information technology, skilled trades and entrepreneurship streams.

Over the next three years, we are investing $30 million in these programs to help more women facing social and economic barriers increase their wellness and gain the skills, knowledge and experience they need to enter or re-enter the workforce, achieve financial security and independence and provide for their families. And these programs are backed up by real results. In 2022-23 alone, the Investing in Women’s Futures Program helped 1,300 women secure employment, start a business or pursue further training and education.

Finally, our government also recognizes that women are disproportionately affected by gender-based violence and firmly believes that no person or community should experience violence because of their gender identity, gender expression or sexual orientation. That’s why, last year, we invested more than $250 million in violence prevention initiatives and supports to help survivors rebuild their lives.

We know that Ontario is facing the largest labour shortage in generations. Every day, roughly 300,000 jobs are going unfilled in Ontario, costing the province billions in lost productivity. But we also know that women are a part of the solution, and that’s why we are taking such decisive action to increase their participation in the workforce and make great strides towards achieving greater gender equality in Ontario. Because when women succeed, Ontario succeeds.

My question is to the Premier.

Report after report has stated that there’s more than enough land within existing urban boundaries to build the housing that we all know we need, yet this government is forcing those urban boundaries to enlarge. Do you know what’s going to happen then, Speaker? Some of the most fertile farmland in North America is going to be exposed to exactly the same speculators who are going to profit from the greenbelt.

It took two investigations and the resignation of high-profile ministers to make the Premier realize the importance of the greenbelt to Ontarians. What is it going to take to make him realize the importance of all farmland in this great province of ours?

I would like to thank the farmers of Ontario for uniting and telling this government how important farmland is.

When is the government actually going to realize that we need farmland to feed the cities? The people who are coming are going to need farmland. It’s the greatest gift we’ve ever been given.

Interjections.