October 16, 2018

Queen’s Park Today – Daily Report October 16, 2018

Today at Queen’s Park ...... 1 Today’s events ...... 3 Topics of conversation ...... 4 Appointments and employments ...... 5 Question period ...... 6

Quotation of the day “Climate change is real, and we are addressing it, but we are addressing it with an effective made-in-Ontario plan … Our plan will deal with the impacts, unlike the previous government’s.”

In question period Environment Minister Rod Phillips boasts the government’s forthcoming plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, ahead of the Tuesday release of an FAO report on the cost of cancelling the Liberals’ cap-and-trade program — and smack dab in the middle of public hearings on the legislation that kills it.

Today at Queen’s Park

On the schedule The House will convene at 9 a.m.

The government could call any one of the following pieces of business in morning debate:

• Bill 32, Access to Natural Gas Act; • Bill 34, Green Energy Repeal Act; or • The government’s motion amending the standing orders.

In the afternoon the government is scheduled to call Bill 36, Cannabis Statute Law Amendment Act, for third reading debate. Bill 36 cleared clause-by-clause committee at the Standing Committee on Social Policy Monday afternoon.

Only one amendment from the majority-Tory side was moved and carried; it clarifies individuals can have up to 30 grams of dried cannabis on them, which is outlined in federal legislation. 2 October 16, 2018

Monday’s debates and proceedings PC MPP Parm Gill and NDP MPP Gurratan Singh held back-to-back press conferences Monday morning to announce competing private members’ bills. The Brampton MPPs want to put an end to the automobile insurance industry’s practice of charging drivers different premiums based on where they live, otherwise known as “postal code discrimination.”

The move will likely appeal to drivers in Brampton, who pay the highest auto insurance rates in the province.

“Ontarians pay the highest auto insurance rates in the country,” Gill said, adding that should his bill pass, it will “ensure drivers will not be unfairly targeted based on where they live.”

Singh — whose brother, federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, championed the issue during his MPP days — said his bill would amend the Insurance Act to prevent insurance companies from charging drivers in the Greater Toronto Area different premiums solely because of where they live.

“In the last year alone, my community of Brampton has seen premiums increase at a rate nearly five times higher than the average driver in much of Toronto,” Singh said.

Singh said he was open to collaborating with the government on the legislation but wouldn’t commit before seeing details of Gill’s bill.

Gill’s Bill 42, Ending Discrimination in Automobile Insurance Act, was granted first reading Monday afternoon. He told the House the legislation will “enhance the marketplace to encourage more consumer choice in the area of automobile insurance.”

Singh’s bill will likely be introduced later this week.

Bill 34, the Green Energy Repeal Act, was debated at second reading for the first time on Monday afternoon. If passed, the government bill will eliminate the former Liberal government’s green energy program, a centrepiece of former premier Dalton McGuinty’s political career, and restore municipal authority relating to the siting of green energy projects.

In the park In the morning, OPSEU’s Mental Health will host a breakfast reception for MPPs.

In the evening Advocis, the Financial Advisors Association of Canada, is hosting an evening reception in the dining room. Advocis recently praised Finance Minister Vic Fedeli for opposing a proposal from securities regulators to ban certain embedded mutual fund fees.

Chief Electoral Officer Greg Essensa was spotted at the pink palace Monday afternoon. Essensa told Queen’s Park Today he meets with rookie and veteran MPPs from all parties after elections to help inform recommendations in his post-event report, which is expected in March.

Ontario Colleges was also at the legislature Monday for its lobby day.

Investigative committee begins hearing testimony against former Liberal accounting practices

Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk was the first public servant to be grilled by PC and NDP MPPs on the Select Committee on Financial Transparency Monday. The AG reiterated her concerns over the past government’s move to fund hydro rate cuts by borrowing billions through Ontario Power Generation, as well as her accounting of pension assets, which the Tories have accepted, effectively bumping up the deficit.

Lysyk detailed her initial attempts to talk to people at all levels of government, including deputy ministers, top staffers, members of the executive council and the premier, to explain their pension accounting was not the norm and to raise flags over rate regulation under the so-called Fair Hydro Plan. She also said she had wondered if her message was being properly communicated through the provincial controller in the Treasury Board office.

Her points weren’t “even acknowledged as reality,” Lysyk said, adding that she walked out of many meetings thinking, “What was that about? … It was very tense, the meetings were very intense.”

PC MPP Ross Romano led questioning from the government side and repeatedly attempted to get Lysyk to name the specific people in government who shared her concerns. Lysyk refused each time, saying that outing people would compromise her ability to do her job.

She did concede that there were eyebrows raised over the hydro plan by some of the same individuals who helped craft it.

NDP MPPs on the committee said they want to make sure the hearings don’t turn into a “dog and pony show” or a “witch hunt.”

Romano said his mandate was clear. “We need to figure out where the money is. The people have been really clear, they want to know what happened to their money,” he told reporters before committee.

On Tuesday the committee will hear from Cabinet Secretary Steve Orsini and deputy ministers from the transportation and environment ministries and Treasury Board.

Today’s events

October 16 at 9 a.m. – Blue Mountain Premier Doug Ford will address the OPP Association’s annual general meeting. The premier’s remarks will be live-streamed and media are invited for a photo opportunity, but Ford will not take questions.

October 16 at 9:30 a.m. – Brampton Official Opposition NDP Leader Andrea Horwath will make a health-care related announcement alongside Brampton NDP MPPs at the North Star Plaza, 900 Peter Robertson Boulevard. Copyright © 2018 Queen’s Park Today queensparktoday.ca 4 October 16, 2018

October 16 at 9:30 a.m. – Toronto Faith leaders from the Fight for $15 and Fairness campaign will hold a press conference in the Queen’s Park media studio.

October 16 at 10 a.m. – Toronto Financial Accountability Officer Peter Weltman will release his report, “A Financial Review of the Decision to Cancel the Cap-and-Trade Program” in the Queen’s Park media studio.

Topics of conversation

• Social Services Minister Lisa MacLeod threw shade at her predecessor, former Liberal cabinet minister Helena Jaczek, on Twitter after Jaczek fired shots at Brampton Mayor Linda Jeffrey for sharing a photo showing politicians of all stripes — including PC MPP Prabmeet Sarkaria — supporting her reelection campaign. o “Linda - have you totally lost it?” Jaczek tweeted. To which MacLeod responded: “Hi Helena - I’m enjoying your old office. You’ll have to come by sometime.” o Jeffrey’s frontrunning opponent is MacLeod’s ex-boss and ousted PC leader Patrick Brown.

• Things could get awkward Thursday when Ontario Trade Minister Jim Wilson sits down with Federal Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc. On Monday, Wilson fired back at LeBlanc for comments he made to the Toronto Star, which reported Ottawa wants Premier Doug Ford to quit grousing about the USMCA deal. LeBlanc told the Star Ford “fully supported” the trade pact and said he would stand “shoulder to shoulder” with Ottawa, and that Wilson “even pleaded with us to get a deal at any cost.” • LeBlanc added both were fully briefed on the details “just days before” the deal was signed. o Wilson told reporters Monday he never said “at any cost.” He also took issue with LeBlanc’s claim Ontario was fully briefed. “On dairy, we never did get a figure on what that would cost,” Wilson said of opening up the dairy market; nor was the province briefed on the provision allowing the U.S. or Mexico to veto future trade deals between Canada and China.

• Union and labour groups rallied across the province in support of a $15 minimum wage and Bill 148, the Fair Workplaces and Better Jobs Act, which are on the chopping block. At one point the demonstration outside the Ministry of Labour offices in downtown Toronto reportedly shut down part of University Avenue. o The axe may be hovering over Bill 148 but some employers still plan to keep offering certain benefits to their workers anyway, the Globe and Mail reports.

• One day before the Financial Accountability Office releases a report on the cost of cancelling the previous government’s cap-and-trade system, Environment Minister Rod Phillips assured the public Ontario will soon have a plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. o “Climate change is real. Our plan will deal with the impacts, unlike the previous government’s,” Phillips said during question period. o Meanwhile public hearings on Bill 4, Cap and Trade Cancellation Act, are taking place this week. o Many environmental, health and labour groups urged the province to implement some version of a carbon pricing plan to deal with climate change. Witnesses also said the province should set clear targets for reducing emissions, something Phillips previously said he will do. o Some industry groups, including the Canadian Propane Association and Ontario Trucking Association prefer a market-based approach, such as putting a pricetag on carbon emissions and incentivizing businesses to find ways to lower those emissions. o Phillips also told reporters he is open to making amendments to Bill 4.

• Ontario continues to grapple with green goo, a buildup of phosphorus caused by runoff from farmland into Lake Erie, despite signing an agreement with the United States to reduce phosphorus levels in 2012, according to TVO.

• OPSEU president Warren “Smokey” Thomas is calling on Attorney General Caroline Mulroney to resign over her handling of the legal cannabis market. • In a statement released Thursday Mulroney said, “We chose to move ahead with a tightly regulated private retail system because the public model proposed by the previous Liberal government, and championed by some labour groups, would be incapable of seriously competing with the illegal market.” She added a “tightly regulated private retail model was the preferred and only responsible choice in Ontario.” • Thomas said the statement is akin to her admitting the Ontario government “isn’t capable of fighting organized cannabis crime.” o Meanwhile Mulroney told CP24 she’ll work with municipalities dealing with cannabis legalization when asked about a letter Toronto Mayor John Tory wrote in the hopes of securing a fair slice of the $40 million earmarked for cities. o Thomas has long lobbied to have the LCBO retail cannabis, saying the public sector is best positioned to keep pot out of the hands of children and to rake in the most amount of cash for provincial coffers.

Appointments and employments

The Liberal caucus has named its shadow cabinet. With only seven members, Liberal MPPs are carrying a heavy load of critic roles, as follows: o MPP Michael Coteau is the critic for Infrastructure, Energy, Labour, Economic Development, and Job Creation and Trade; o MPP Nathalie Des Rosiers is the critic for Municipal Affairs and Housing; Women’s Issues; Attorney General; Environment; Indigenous Affairs; and Community Safety and Correctional Services; Copyright © 2018 Queen’s Park Today queensparktoday.ca 6 October 16, 2018

o Interim Leader and MPP John Fraser takes on Health and Long-Term Care; Intergovernmental Affairs; and Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs; o MPP Michael Gravelle is the critic for Northern Development and Mines and Natural Resources and Forestry; o MPP Mitzie Hunter is the critic for Finance; Treasury Board; Government and Consumer Services; and Tourism, Culture and Sport; o MPP Marie-France Lalonde is the critic for Francophone Affairs; Children, Community and Social Services; Seniors and Accessibility; and Transportation; and o MPP Kathleen Wynne is the critic for Education and Training, Colleges and Universities.

Question period

NDP lead-off Labour law reforms • Deputy NDP Leader Sara Singh kicked off question period by asking the premier if he thought it was acceptable to scrap two paid sick days for workers, currently enshrined in Bill 148 — legislation that is now under review. She offered an anecdote about her constituent Kalpesh Parmar, a father of two who works as a security guard and says the changes in Bill 148 improved his quality of life. o Ford responded with a message for Parmar: “What I have to say to your friend there who came up to you is they can expect to hold on to their job instead of losing their job.”

Kawartha Downs • The opposition wanted to know if the government consulted with communities before reaching agreements-in-principle to keep slots operating at Ajax Downs and Kawartha Downs. “Who is calling the shots in this province, the government or private casino operators?” NDP MPP Percy Hatfield said. o Despite the deal, the union representing workers at Kawartha Downs facility said 30 food and beverage workers are facing layoffs at its Shoreline Slots operation, which temporarily shut down Monday. o “Despite Ford’s recent public announcement to keep the Slots open and his phone call last weekend to Mayor [Scott] McFadden personally confirming same, we’re now told by racetrack management that if Great Canadian Gaming doesn’t re-open the Slots at Kawartha Downs immediately, by Tuesday October 16, 2018 at 10:00 a.m. they will have no choice but to issue layoff notices to the affected workers,” Ted Mansell, of the SEIU Local 2 said in a statement. o Cavan Monaghan Township Mayor Scott McFadden said on Facebook he was “extremely disappointed” employees were locked out. “Not much comfort for the hard working employees at Kawartha Downs that have bills to pay and no firm date to return to work,” he said . o Finance Minister Vic Fedeli told reporters later “the racetracks themselves made a business decision.”

o In a statement, OLG assured no workers would be laid off. “We are working with Kawartha Downs to mitigate the impact of the temporary closure of Shorelines Slots at Kawartha Downs on employees. Kawartha Downs has advised that no employee has been — or will be — laid off as a result of this brief closure. We look forward to the re-launch of Shorelines Slots at Kawartha Downs in approximately two weeks time, and we thank the community for their patience,” the Crown corp said in a statement.

The NDP also asked when the government would make a decision on safe injection and overdose prevention sites, and about hospital overcrowding. In a somewhat surprising move, Tourism Minister Sylvia Jones took questions on backed-up ambulance services for the government.

“I would not presuppose to try to figure out how the opposite party organizes themselves, but I can assure you that a Doug Ford government works as a team. We are a strong caucus, a strong cabinet. We work together to solve these issues,” Jones said when chided by the opposition for answering questions outside her file.

The NDP asked if the premier would request white nationalist Toronto mayoral candidate Faith Goldy to stop using the photo of her and Ford on campaign materials.

Ford said he was “not going down that alley again” and deflected the supplementary question to Social Services Minister Lisa MacLeod, who said Ford already disavowed Goldy “no less than 20 times in this assembly.”

Liberal question Firefighter certification • Liberal MPP Marie-France Lalonde asked about the decision to scrap a safety certification program for firefighters and other fire personnel, saying the change will compromise firefighters’ safety. o Community Safety Minister Michael Tibollo said he “will look at certification,” but he also heard from firefighters and municipalities concerned about “resources and supports required to be compliant with the certification.” o The Ontario Professional Firefighters Association, the union representing firefighters, was in favour of the new standards and opposes their elimination.

PC friendly questions The Tories asked themselves about scrapping a scheduled three-per-cent beer tax hike, repairing the Public Safety Radio Network, cannabis legalization, disaster relief to help the Ottawa region deal with tornado clean up, and what the province is doing to help small businesses to commemorate small business week.