It’s a great honour today to say a few words in tribute to our colleague and our friend Daryl Kramp, member for Hastings–Lennox and Addington in the 42nd Parliament. He also served for 11 years in the House of Commons and was a deputy reeve and municipal councillor for Madoc. He also served as a member of the Ontario Provincial Police, and when you look at Daryl’s life, it’s clear that his life was a life of service. He understood what it meant to serve others, to put others first.

I never met Daryl before he arrived here in 2018, although I knew of him. Because in 2004, he won an election in Prince Edward–Hastings against a very dear friend of my wife Linda, Bruce Knutson. And those of you who know my wife Linda would know that she is a fierce partisan and competitor, up there with the best. So the first reports I had of Daryl—well, let’s just say that they weren’t glowing. Close elections have a way of doing that.

I don’t remember exactly when I met Daryl here in 2018, but I do remember thinking, “What was all the fuss about?” He, in some ways, reminded me of my father. He was kind, he always seemed to have time and he listened. And while I’m sure he could be partisan, I just never got that sense. He always showed a genuine interest and was a thoughtful person. He was patient. And that was clear from the Select Committee on Emergency Management Oversight. The Minister of Health and the member from Ottawa Centre would know that that committee sometimes became a little—I won’t say hard to handle, but a bit contentious, let’s say.

Daryl had the most important quality we need to have as politicians: authenticity. With Daryl, what you saw was what you got. He knew what he stood for, whether he agreed with his party or not. And, most importantly, I know, he always remembered where he came from, who sent him and what they sent him to do.

I just want to thank the Kramp family for being here today and for sharing your father with us. It does come at the cost of families, but he was a great member here and served his community very well.

It’s an honour to rise today to pay tribute to my friend and former colleague Daryl Kramp, the MPP for Hastings–Lennox and Addington. First and foremost, Daryl was a kind and decent person, representing all that’s right and good about politics, somebody who went out of his way to check in on you and made sure you knew that he cared about you.

Daryl reached out to me shortly after we were elected in 2018 and he wanted me to know that he might be new to Queen’s Park, but he was not new to politics, and if I needed advice, I could reach out any time. We both agreed that we would work across party lines, and that’s a promise Daryl kept. It was during our time on committee that we really got to know each other, before and after committee meetings, having many conversations about how we could make Parliament work better. And it was when I was down, after losing a vote on what I thought was a reasonable amendment, Daryl would walk up to me, give me a pat on the back and a pep talk.

Daryl and I formed a stronger bond when it was my turn to reach out to him and say how much I enthusiastically supported his private member’s Bill 216, the Food Literacy for Students Act. I, along with many local food and farming advocates, were strong supporters of Daryl’s bill, and it was my turn to repay the favour whenever he got down and needed some words of encouragement when he was frustrated that his bill was hitting some roadblocks.

Our last conversation was about Daryl’s health and Daryl’s bill. This past December, I was walking through the hallways just before we were going to rise, and the light was weird and this tall gentleman started walking towards me and I couldn’t quite see who it was. And this voice said, “Mike, it’s Daryl—Daryl Kramp. Do you have a minute to talk?” And in my mind, I didn’t, because I was late. I knew I was late, but something told me to stop and have a conversation. We talked about his health. Most of all, we talked about his family. We talked about our relationship and how much he appreciated my support for his bill. But most of all, he wanted to ask me how I was doing. In the midst of his health battle, he was more concerned about how I was doing. So, Speaker: Daryl, a kind and decent man indeed.

I want to say to the Kramp family, thank you for sharing such a remarkable person with us. His legacy lives on in our hearts.

The Minister of Energy.

It is a tremendous honour to speak and recognize my friend and colleague Daryl Kramp, and I want to thank my colleagues from across the aisle for their heartfelt tributes to Kramper as well today.

Three quarters of our caucus would love the opportunity to stand here and tell stories about Daryl Kramp, because there are so many, and I will try and limit it to just a few here today.

Welcome to the family. I’m not going to look there, because I won’t be able to get through this; this is going to be one of the hardest tributes that I’ve ever had to deliver. But again, I am extremely honoured to do so. His family is here, his friends, his campaign workers, his staff. And Denise Gray is here. I don’t think she was introduced, Speaker, but Denise is here.

He would always say his staff don’t work for him; they work with him, and it’s one of the things, one of the many lessons, that I learned from Daryl Kramp. He was a tremendous role model. He was a mentor for me. He was certainly a mentor for this guy, MPP Bresee, who holds the Hastings–Lennox and Addington seat that Daryl held in this Legislature for the four years that he was here.

While he certainly was steadfast in his service to community, Kramper always maintained his priorities were faith, family and friends—in that order—and your presence here today is a testament to just how he lived his life.

When we speak about political legacies, and we do it all the time, we often talk of community leaders as giants, and Daryl was a giant. He was quite literally a giant, most often a friendly one—I’ve seen him get mad a few times, however—a larger-than-life personality, an uproarious laugh. I look back at some pictures of us together in our time as MPP and MP, and I think, in three quarters of the pictures, we weren’t just having a laugh; we were having all of those all-out belly laughs, because he was just one of those guys. He made everyone around him welcome—and that’s regardless of their party affiliation, Joel. It might not be what you’d expect from one of the most imposing fastball pitchers that Hastings county has ever seen, a hardened cop or a hockey promoter who brought the big, bad Russians to town on more than one occasion.

He and Carol Ann, the love of his life, hosted people at Moira Lake. His entire family lives on that lake, south of Madoc.

He loved watching his grandkids. Some of them are here today. It was funny; when Bill Walker and I had a chance to go out for chicken wings and beer with him a couple of weeks ago, he was wearing a Yale baseball cap, because that’s where his granddaughter Anna Belle was a goaltender, playing hockey. We made fun of Daryl wearing an Ivy League baseball cap, as you can understand. But he loved watching kids play hockey and volleyball.

And he enjoyed music. His favourite song, I think, was the national anthem. If you ever heard him—I’m still a little deaf in this ear from standing next to him while he was singing the national anthem, because he really belted it out.

He was a real treat. If you had the pleasure of visiting his former restaurant, Two Loons, right across the lake from where he lived, Daryl would cook up his famous chicken wings, and quite often, they had the infamous Friday-night seafood buffet. The whole family worked there. Daryl was just an incredible host, just a friendly guy, and quite often, he would be holding court at the restaurant as well. Of course, they continued that tradition at their home, with people coming in all the time, day or night.

I remember 2018, when Daryl came out of his short-lived retirement to run provincially, owing to his sense of obligation to see the books balanced and wanting to be a part of Team Ford or Ford Nation here in Ontario. He took that new Hastings–Lennox and Addington riding with 50% of the vote. I’m told he was beaming as his girls updated him throughout the night on the polls as they were coming in.

I was busy in Bay of Quinte that night, so I wasn’t there, but I’ve seen this team in action on election night before. It was 2004 when Bruce Knutson was running. Former Chrétien Agriculture Minister Lyle Vanclief decided that he was going to retire. He was a Prince Edward county farmer. He didn’t reoffer for election, so Bruce stepped up for the Liberals. I was a news reporter at Quinte Broadcasting at the time and I was assigned to cover the Prince Edward–Hastings riding. The Liberal and Kramp campaign offices were literally across the grocery store plaza parking lot—like, Liberals on one side, Conservatives on the other. So yes, while it was a long walk that night for Mr. Knutson, it was actually a very short walk.

But the funny part of the story is, expecting to see another Liberal victory, because it was a Liberal stronghold for quite a time, I was positioned at the campaign office of the Liberal candidate. The early poll results started to come in and they were quite favourable for the Grits in Prince Edward–Hastings that night. So I listened to, and recorded on my tape recorder, a victory speech from the Liberal candidate. I walked across the parking lot to get what I thought was going to be a concession speech from Daryl Kramp. And there was a lot of scurrying going on. The family was there, of course. They decided, “You know, we’re going to wait until the north votes come in.” Kramp was the king of the north in Hastings, and he cruised to victory and really started the political legacy in Prince Edward–Hastings. A lot of those team members are here, and they’ve been introduced by you, Speaker, and they’ve stuck by Daryl Kramp all these years. So, that night, I recorded two victory speeches and a concession speech as well.

When he was first at Queen’s Park, I had an invite from Paul Miller, the long-time NDP representative from Hamilton, to come up to his office and join him for a couple of cocktails, which we tend to do from time to time. Because Daryl was new here, I asked if Daryl could come up. I wanted him to meet some of the members opposite. It turned out that Daryl had worked in Hamilton East–Stoney Creek as an OPP officer when he faced off against some of the toughest biker gangs in the Hammer and organized crime down there. It turns out that Paul Miller knew all the same people that Daryl did. I remember sitting there just listening to the two of them go on for hours and hours telling stories. That was Daryl Kramp; that really was Daryl Kramp. Needless to say, he got to know a lot of the people on the opposite side of the bench just as well as in his own caucus.

This isn’t to say that Daryl couldn’t be tough when he needed to be. You always knew where you he stood with him. When he believed in something, he fought hard for it. He was crucial—and Don Bonter is going to put a big smile on his face here—to the construction of a two-lane bridge joining Prince Edward county to Brighton. They were going to build a one-lane bridge; can you imagine that? Don Bonter and Daryl Kramp went toe to toe on that one and they fought for that bridge.

He dug in his heels for equitable rural funding, better broadband, the Eastern Ontario Regional Network. A large part of Daryl’s legacy, as you say, is he built large parts of Belleville and Prince Edward–Hastings.

He also travelled to China a lot, which wasn’t mentioned this morning. He negotiated a number of trade deals on behalf of Prime Minister Harper. As a matter of fact, Daryl Kramp is responsible for bringing the pandas from China to the Toronto Zoo. That’s actually a fact. They had a 10-year stint as residents at the Toronto Zoo. They’ve since had to be returned. But often, and Carol Ann will know this, when Daryl would be in China, and sometimes the Prime Minister would be there, they could care less about seeing the Prime Minister. They only wanted to see their friend Daryl Kramp.

His work with local agriculture producers and Minister Lecce ensured that food literacy will be on Ontario’s education curriculum. He secured long-term-care beds across his riding, including in his beloved hometown of Madoc, and the reconstruction of what’s known as “Kramp crossing,” which is an old train track that joins the trail system to the village of Madoc across Moira Lake.

One could argue, though, that his biggest challenge here at Queen’s Park was keeping our massive caucus that was elected in 2018—as our caucus chair. There’s now a big guy here, his dear friend Will Bouma, who’s filling that chair, and I know he learned a lot from Kramper.

Kramper’s leadership tied with his well-curated motivational quotes—he loved his quotes, we all know that—and I’m going to wrap up shortly, but I hope you’re entertained.

It was a different caucus meeting where one of my greatest memories of Daryl Kramp came to pass. Now, I wasn’t there, but Minister Calandra and Minister Rickford were there. And it happened in his last year of an 11-year run on Parliament Hill as part of the Harper government. We all remember the day, October 22, 2014, when a masked gunman fatally injured Corporal Nathan Cirillo. He moved west uphill on Rideau Street, entered Centre Block just below the Peace Tower. The gunman and security guard sparred. There were gunshots ringing out in the hallway, and just to the left was the Conservative caucus meeting that was under way in that caucus room. And I’ve heard this from many people, Daryl put his training, put that booming voice to work in a power of persuasion. He ordered that the Prime Minister be put in a closet in that caucus room. He barricaded the doors with his colleagues, and they had flagpoles as spears ready just in case the perpetrator came through that door.

He’s quoted as saying, “We didn’t have any idea what was there, if it was one or more, or what the armament was. Once the whole myriad of shots started to ring out, believe me, the activity of barricading the door stepped up quickly—almost instantaneously.”

Daryl and his colleagues were actually heroic that day. He said that returning to the House of Commons the next day was very difficult because they were in lockdown for hours and hours the day that that happened. But he said it was “probably one of the finest days” as all parties came together and rallied as Canadians first—and that’s how he lived his life.

And so, how proud he must have been following that to see his daughter Shelby, who’s with us today, take her place in the House of Commons in 2021 as he was deciding to finish his lengthy political career.

And as was mentioned, Daryl battled cancer in his later years as he served, and I know he had some really, really tough days. Most mere mortals probably wouldn’t have survived the 12-plus-hour surgery that he underwent and then the ensuing radiation treatments. But it was his faith, his family and his friends that pulled him through. He recovered. He was the same gentle giant with the big personality, smiles and laughter.

So we will remember Daryl Kramp, and it seems only fitting that I end with a quote. That’s what Kramper was all about. This one is Ernest Hemingway: “Every man’s life ends the same way. It is only the details of how he lived and how he died that distinguish one man from another.”

Daryl lived an incredible life. He fought off death as long as he could, and he was dignified in doing it. And why wouldn’t he with the love that he had all around him: Carol Ann at his side, an adoring family of daughters and sons-in-law and grandkids and an entire community in his corner. It was a well-lived life.

We thank his family, of course, for sharing him with us. He made a mark not just in Madoc and in Prince Edward–Hastings or Ontario, but in Canada. He indeed made the world a better place.

Applause.

I want to thank the members for their heartfelt and eloquent tributes as we have given thanks for the life and public service of Daryl Kramp.

It is now time for oral questions.

The Minister of Health.

The short answer is, we have and we will. We will continue to rebuild our health care system to make sure that people are not languishing on wait-lists.

When we made a small change in cataract surgeries, expanding in four different communities, we now have 17,000 Ontarians who are back at work, back with their families, back in their communities, reading to their children. Those are the kinds of quantitative changes that are making a difference, that are impacting the lives of Ontarians, and I think at 4 o’clock, you will see additional exciting news coming from the Minister of Finance.

What people want, Speaker, is to remove themselves from those wait-lists and actually get the critical surgery that they need. This is what those investments are doing. This is how we are rebuilding a health care system that, frankly, had been ignored for far too long from the Liberal and the NDP parties of Ontario. We will make that rebuilding. We will continue to make those investments, and we will continue to get it done in the province of Ontario.

That’s the type of innovation that we are going to encourage. That’s the type of innovation that we are seeing coming forward from hospital leaders, from physicians, from surgeons across Ontario, who say, “I have a better way. We know we can improve the system, and I’m going to embrace that change. We are going to embrace that change.”

If the NDP want to sit on the sidelines and continue to say no, that’s fine, but we’re going to get it done in the province of Ontario.

Let me start by extending my condolences as well. Thank you to MPP Daryl Kramp’s family who are here with us today.

I’d also like to start by congratulating our deputy leader, the MPP from Kiiwetinoong, on a truly historic change to the standing orders. I look forward to hearing him speak in his language more often in this place.

My question is for the Premier. Today, Ontarians will be watching as this government lays out its priorities for the upcoming year. People are looking for hope, for a commitment that things are going to get better. One thing they don’t want to see is more of their hard-earned dollars going towards private, for-profit health care.

Last year, the government doubled funding for private, for-profit clinics while public operating rooms were collecting dust. To the Premier: Will you finally properly fund our existing public operating rooms, or are we going to be seeing the government handing over more contracts to for-profit clinics?

People are looking for reliable health care; for accessible mental health supports; safe, comfortable long-term and home care. How can people trust this government to deliver on their health care when they’ve clearly prioritized private profits over public needs?

So my question to the Premier is: Does he understand that Ontario’s economic prosperity depends on a strong public health care system? And can he commit today that not a single health care dollar in the budget is going to go to for-profit health care?

Interjections.

We want innovation too. We just want it in the public health care system, not something that you have to pay for through your credit card.

Speaker, everybody in this province should have access to a family doctor, period. But under the Conservatives, 2.3 million people in Ontario do not. And that number is expected to rise to 4.4 million—that’s a quarter of Ontario’s population—by 2026. That means more people without regular checkups, more people missing a chance for early diagnosis or just putting up with pain and discomfort.

Instead of dealing with this, this government said no to our proposal to fund health teams and shared administrative support to get more people in front of a doctor.

So my question to the Premier is, will we see a change in approach in today’s budget or will it just offer more of the same?

I want to know if this is how the Premier sees the future of this province. Is it going to be like Netflix for health care? Are we going to have to subscribe to have basic health care needs met?

Speaker, people deserve to get health care that’s close to home and available when they need it. Instead, they are seeing their rural emergency rooms close; 600,000 women can’t get mammograms. It is not the reality in Ontario anymore.

The Liberals opened the door to privatization of health care in this province. We watched it, we saw what was happening and we fought it. But this Conservative government is doubling down and throwing the doors wide open.

So Ontarians want to know: Today, in this budget, is it going to be more of the same or can they count on this government to protect their public, not-for-profit health care system in the province of Ontario?

Interjections.

Speaker, where was this party when we announced a $110-million expansion of primary care multidisciplinary teams? They were silent. They would prefer to bring forward motions that talk about ensuring that we have more administrative staff.

We are laser-focused on making sure that we have sufficient health human resources, whether those are expanded seats in two new medical schools in the province of Ontario—the city of Brampton, the city of Scarborough—where we are seeing expansions of medical residency seats in the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, over 100 new seats.

And I may say that the numbers show that while your government was in government for a very short period of time, you actually cut residency seats in the province of Ontario, as did the Liberals when they were in government.

We are the party that is rebuilding our health care system, whether it is through expansions in education, opportunities for people to join multidisciplinary teams and—

Can we do more? Absolutely. But I want to be clear: Ontario leads Canada, and we will continue to make those investments to ensure that we continue to lead Canada in all access to health care services, including, of course, primary care multidisciplinary teams, which are the backbone of our health care system.

I want to continue to invest in our publicly funded system. It is unfortunate that we do not have opposition members who understand how critically important this is to the people of Ontario.

My question is to the Premier. The Conservatives are on track to lose $357 million in federal funding because this government is failing to meet its own affordable housing targets. This government has two choices: Submit a credible plan to the federal government to build more affordable housing by Friday or explain to Ontarians how this government plans to account for the loss of $357 million earmarked for affordable housing in this year’s budget. Which choice are you going to make?

Premier, can you commit to submitting a better housing action plan by Friday so we don’t miss out on this federal money?

Interjections.

The choice that we made is to overachieve targets by 170% when it comes to renovating and upgrading old housing stock. The choice that we have made is to ensure that we’re at 60% of the target that we are asked to achieve. What is happening is that the federal Liberal government, supported by the NDP, is unilaterally cutting funding to the province of Ontario of over $357 million, on top of the $400 million that they have already shortchanged the people of the province of Ontario.

Our municipal partners agree with us that this is a unilateral cut by the federal government. We remain at the table. We are not going to make up some program because the federal government—the Liberals and NDP—have decided to change the goal post. We meet a target, they change the goal post.

What this is is an immature federal government doing what they do best: pitting one region of the country against another. They’re treating Ontario differently than every other province. We won’t stand for it. We’ll continue to make investments that are right—

What is happening here is classic Liberal and NDP. Because we are meeting our targets—170% of the target; because we are meeting 60% of the target—we’re still months, years away from having to hit the 100% mark. We’re crashing through those targets for the people of the province of Ontario.

What they’re doing is pitting one region against another region. We saw it with the carbon tax. We’re seeing it on housing. You know who can help make a difference? It is the NDP in Ottawa, who hold the balance of power. Instead of supporting a $700-million unilateral cut to the province of Ontario, take down an immature government that pits one—

Interjections.

My question is for the Minister of Finance. Across the world, economic challenges continue to grow, and we know that Ontario is not isolated from this geopolitical uncertainty. Families, workers and business in my riding of Windsor–Tecumseh and throughout Ontario are feeling the financial pressures that have been caused by ongoing supply chain disruptions, inflation and high interest rates, and with the federal Liberals proposing a scheduled 23% carbon tax hike next week, Ontarians are looking to our government for much-needed support to make life more affordable.

Speaker, we know the people of Ontario need and deserve more relief. That’s why our government must continue to demonstrate through legislation, investments and other initiatives that more financial support will be provided to Ontarians.

We have a strong plan for the future. Speaker, will the minister please tell this House how our government is keeping costs down and putting money into the pockets of the people of Ontario?

On April 1, the long-delayed Community Safety and Policing Act will come into force. Under the CSPA, First Nation laws are exempt from being enforced.

The chief of the United Chiefs and Councils of Manitoulin Anishnaabe Police Service told us last week that criminal behaviour on-reserve has gotten worse while Ontario delays the changes needed to enforce laws on-reserve.

Speaker, fixing it will only take a simple amendment. Will the Premier commit to making that amendment immediately?

The Ontario Regional Chief said, after his meeting with government members, “We didn’t hear any commitments to reach a timely resolution.” April 1 is six days away.

Will the government work with the chiefs and amend the Community Safety and Policing Act?

Interjections.

Parliamentary assistant and member for Oakville.

The Solicitor General.

The Minister of Energy may reply.

Thank you to the great, hard-working member from Windsor–Tecumseh.

Members of the Legislature, today is budget day. This is a big day. We are excited about rebuilding Ontario, continuing that path and to make life affordable for the people of Ontario.

Speaker, just yesterday, under Premier Ford, our government announced an extension of the gas tax cut, now saving the average household $320 per year. This represents the largest tax cut this century in Ontario. And yet, while we are cutting taxes and putting money back in the pockets of the people of Ontario, the federal Liberal Party is set to implement a 23% tax hike on the carbon tax in less than one week. The Liberal plan to tackle affordability is to make life more expensive for the people of Ontario and Canada. That’s why we continue to call to scrap the tax and stand with our government as we make life more affordable for the people of Ontario.

Speaker, I am proud to say that in just a few hours, our government will deliver the 2024 budget, our plan to build a better Ontario. Even for my great colleague the member—I know we can’t reveal too many details yet. But what I can say is our government has a plan. It has a plan that supports Ontarians through these difficult times of high inflation and high Bank of Canada interest rates, and it’s a plan that will help keep costs down. This is a budget that will continue our government’s plan to build up our province without raising taxes on the people of Ontario.

Thank you to the parliamentary assistant for that response. It’s great to hear that our government is consistently introducing measures that will provide real financial relief for Ontarians.

I know the people in my riding will be thrilled to hear that we are extending the gas tax cut. Obviously, we’re the automotive capital of Canada, and they look forward to seeing our government continue to find more ways to reduce costs and make life more affordable. That’s why we must continue to show leadership and demonstrate a strong economic vision that that will help families during this challenging time. Unlike the members opposite, who refuse to stand up for Ontarians on this carbon tax, our government must remain committed to investing in what matters to most people as we build for a stronger future.

Speaker, can the parliamentary assistant please explain what our government is doing to help Ontarians during these challenging economic times?

I want to thank the member for the question. The Community Safety and Policing Act, which will come live on April 1, replaces a piece of legislation that’s 35 years old. And under both the old act, the Police Services Act, and the Community Safety and Policing Act, police can enforce municipal and First Nations bylaws equally. Our government, as the member knows, takes public safety very seriously all over Ontario.

But I want to say one other thing. Thanks to the Chiefs of Ontario, who made a suggestion to establish a collaborative table under the Ministry of the Attorney General, we did just that. The collaborative table is an excellent table to table ideas for us to consider. That’s exactly why it exists.

Mr. Speaker, we take public safety seriously all across Ontario.

Just two weeks ago, I was at the Ontario Police College. This was my sixth march past ceremony. I made a point of meeting with all of the cadets that are going to First Nations police services. It was over two dozen.

We take public safety in the four corners of Ontario very seriously. That’s exactly why the Community Safety and Policing Act, that will come live on April 1, will provide an unparalleled opportunity for communities all across Ontario to feel that the legislation brings them up to the times that they’re in.

One more thing: It is very important to know that I stay in regular contact with the police chiefs on a regular basis, including those serving First Nations communities.

My question is for the Minister of Energy. Families in my great riding of Newmarket–Aurora are concerned about the ever-rising cost of living. They are paying more for everything from their energy bills to groceries.

The carbon tax is only making things worse. While our government continues to advocate and fight for Ontarians, the federal government continues to disregard the people’s concerns by ruling out any future pauses or exemptions on this carbon tax. That’s unfair to Ontarians who work hard to make a living, to raise a family and to support their young children and their aging parents.

But despite the affordability struggles many people in our province are facing, the NDP and the Liberal members opposite continue to remain silent. It’s shameful that they refuse to join us in calling for the elimination of this disastrous tax.

Speaker—

We’re five days away from the federal carbon tax increasing by a massive 23%.

Interjections.

Bonnie Crombie was out last week announcing the new hand-picked members for her advisory committee. Kathleen Wynne’s environment minister Chris Ballard helped design the Liberals’ multi-billion-dollar cap-and-trade program; he’s on the committee. And before being voted out by rural voters for this giant-slayer right here, Lisa Thompson, the new agriculture minister, Carol Mitchell wanted to impose a carbon tax on farmers, and she was the agriculture minister. Let’s scrap the tax while we—

Interjections.