Queen’s Park Today – Daily Report February 8, 2019

Quotation of the day

“With in power, it’s going to be even easier for landlords to force people out and raise the rents.”

Mark Farquharson made an ominous prediction in the Toronto Star after almost being ​ ​ ​ ​ evicted last year. The newspaper reports the now-premier is proposing to do just that.

Today at Queen’s Park

On the schedule The House is recessed until February 19. ​

The NDP is wrapping up a three-day caucus retreat in Durham with a “leader’s report” from . Unlike the PCs — who Queen’s Park Today first reported were on a caucus ​ ​ ​ retreat in the Waterloo area earlier this week — the NDP informed and invited media to attend part of their meeting.

In the park Independent MPP Amanda Simard has moved into her new digs at the legislature and hired ​ ​ ​ ​ Alex Nanoff, a card-carrying Liberal prominent in the francophone community, as her staffer. ​ ​ ​ The rookie MPP for Glengarry—Prescott—Russell made headlines last fall when she defected from the PC caucus over controversial cuts to French-language services. Simard recently told ​ Radio-Canada she is waiting to see if the next leader is someone she can ​ ​ rally behind.

PCs propose changes to greenhouse gas reporting requirements The Tories are looking to scrap mandatory greenhouse gas emissions reporting on the fuel sold by oil and natural gas companies.

The proposal, which has been posted online for public feedback until March 8, is aimed at ​ ​ reducing the “unnecessary costs and regulatory burden” on oil and natural gas companies and refining the “collection of unnecessary data.”

For other large emitters, the notice proposes a requirement for “third party verification of emissions reports.”

The government also wants to gauge response to three questions:

● Should Ontario harmonize with the federal reporting requirements under the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program? ● Should Ontario continue to require reporting of fuel distribution/supply reporting? ● Should third party verification of emissions requirement be maintained for voluntary participants?

Environment Minister Rod Phillips’ office said the changes to oil and natural gas emissions ​ ​ ​ ​ reporting requirements will align Ontario with the federal government’s emissions data in order to ensure the reporting is not duplicated.

“This reporting requirement was used to determine their compliance obligation under the cap and trade program. Since the program has been cancelled, it is no longer needed,” spokeswoman Emily Hogeveen said in an email to Queen’s Park Today. ​ ​ ​

“These proposed changes would have no impact on how the government tracks emissions from these sources,” Hogeveen said.

She added that Ontario’s emissions inventory “has always used data from the National Inventory Report for these emission sources and this data will continue to be used for tracking progress to Ontario’s 2030 emission target.”

Green Party Leader told QPT he supports the idea of getting rid of duplication ​ ​ ​ ​ but wants to ensure that information is received in a timely and accurate manner.

Tories defend changes to autism funding The PCs circulated a roundup of praise from parents and stakeholders about changes to the autism program on Thursday.

A day before, families and advocates raised concerns that the PC’s funding and policy changes could see see some autistic children in need of intensive therapy not getting the treatment they require.

The Tories say their plan will clear the 23,000 children on the waitlist for services within 18 months, but critics argue it favours age-based funding over individual need and services.

One such critic, ex-PC staffer Bruce McIntosh, is headed back to his old stomping grounds at ​ ​ the Ontario Autism Coalition. McIntosh tendered his resignation in protest Wednesday after his boss, PC MPP , and Children Services Minister Lisa MacLeod unveiled the overhaul. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

In his resignation letter, shared with reporters Thursday, McIntosh, a self-described lifelong Conservative and parent to autistic kids, said he could not remain in a job where he would be forced to “defend the indefensible.”

The OAC and MacLeod’s office traded barbs on social media that morning, with the minister’s chief of staff and the parent-led advocacy group’s Twitter accounts accusing the other of designing bad policy.

The premier’s office pointed to accolades from Julia Hanigsberg, president and CEO at ​ ​ Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital (one of five diagnostic hubs where Ontario is doubling its funding). According to the government, children in line for diagnosis now wait up to 31 weeks. The extra cash “will enable [our hospital to] speed up assessments and reduce waitlists,” Hanigsberg said.

Would-be cannabis retailer disqualified for breaking rules The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario booted one of the winners of the cannabis retail licence lottery for breaching the rules on Thursday.

An individual that had won a ticket to apply to open up a pot shop in the GTA was disqualified for breaking a provision that prohibits the person or company from changing the name they filled out on the original application and from changing the corporate structure or ownership of the entity.

There is a waitlist the AGCO will pull from to fill the 25 first spots.

Meanwhile, a fourth proposal was posted for Toronto: The Hunny Pot Cannabis Co. wants to peddle the substance on Queen Street.

Today’s events

February 8 at 9:30 a.m. – St. Catharines ​ ​ Health Minister and Infrastructure Minister Monte McNaughton will make an ​ ​ ​ ​ announcement at the Hotel Dieu Shaver Health and Rehabilitation Centre. The ministers will not take questions from reporters.

February 8 at 10 a.m. – North Bay ​ ​

Finance Minister is holding a pre-budget consultation in his home riding. ​ ​

Topics of conversation

● Prime Minister Justin Trudeau pledged to defend the Canada Health Act when asked to ​ ​ ​ ​ weigh in on the PC’s leaked health-care super agency proposal at a news conference in Vaughan. “We have acted in the past when provinces have not aligned themselves with the Canada Health Act, and we will ensure that every province follows the requirements ​ ​ ​ ​ of the Canada Health Act,” Trudeau said. ​ ​

● After breaking word that the Ford administration is mulling over a proposal that would speed up evictions, the Toronto Star reports tenants are worried about getting unfairly ​ ​ ​ ​ kicked to the curb, while landlords say the changes bring much-needed reform to the system.

● QP Briefing crunched the numbers and found the Tories out-fundraised their opponents ​ ​ more than ten times over, raking in over $250,000 in January — the first month parties are under looser fundraising laws. ○ Last year the Tories eased up rules brought in by the former Liberal rulers to address a cash-for-access scandal. Among other things, MPPs, the premier, cabinet ministers and their top staffers can get on the guest list at fundraising events once again, and the individual contribution limit jumped to $1,600, rising by $25 each year.

● Is there any better way to spend your Valentine’s Day than watching a bunch of lawyers duke it out in court over the federal carbon tax? Saskatchewan’s court of appeal has agreed to let news cameras live-stream the province’s carbon-tax challenge on February ​ 13 and 14. Ontario is intervening in the case and is fighting its own challenge in its provincial court, which is expected to be heard in April.

● Maclean’s author John Lorinc dives deep into the non-Ford-related factors — including ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ U.S. President Donald Trump — behind the scuttled Hydro One-Avista takeover that left ​ ​ Ontarians on the hook for a $103 million USD kill fee. ​ ○ The utilities announced their mutual breakup last month, hammering the final nail in the merger’s coffin. It faced multiple setbacks when two U.S. regulators rejected the proposed deal based in part on reports about the Ford government’s meddling in Hydro One.

● Dr. Bob Bell, who has over 40 years of experience working in Ontario health care as a ​ surgeon, hospital president and then deputy minister of health, lays out concerns about folding responsibility for cancer care and organ transplantation into the PC’s proposed new health-care bureaucracy in another Star op-ed. ​ ​ ​ ​

● Ontario-born Ryan Gosling is no longer featured in GIF form in a PC fundraising ​ ​ message imploring would-be donors “don’t go” when they click to indicate their lack of support for Team Ford, according to the Canadian Press. ​ ​ ​

● ICYMI Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth Dowdeswell and her predecessor, the 28th LG of ​ ​ Ontario David Onley, gave a candid discussion about their relationship with premiers ​ ​ ​ ​ and to provincial democracy. Catch the highlights from Toronto Star columnist Martin ​ ​ ​ Regg Cohn, who moderated the event, and host of TVO’s The Agenda Steve Paikin. ​ ​ ​ ​

Appointments and employments Ontario Parks ● PC MPP (Peterborough—Kawartha) was appointed special advisor to ​ ​ Ontario Parks. He’s tasked with improving programs and increasing revenue opportunities at provincial parks, as well as boosting the number of visitors by 10 per cent. ○ The Tories say Smith won’t be compensated except for reasonable expenses for meals and travel. He will report to Environment Minister Rod Phillips. ​ ​

Lobbyist registrations

If you are looking for further information on any lobbying registry, it is all public and easily searchable here. ​ ​

Consultants who registered as lobbyists from February 1, 2019 – February 7, 2019

● Aaron Scheewe, The Capital Hill Group ​ o Clients: Major International Festivals and Events Network (MIFEN) ​

● Kenneth Stewart, The Capital Hill Group Inc. ​ o Clients: BMC Software ​

● Nathan Scheewe, The Capital Hill Group Inc. ​ o Clients: Palo Alto Networks Inc.; Nutanix ​

● Alanna Sokic, Global Public Affairs Inc. ​ o Clients: Draeger Safety Canada Ltd. ​

● Alek Dadson, StrategyCorp Inc. ​ Clients: Planet Energy (Ontario) Corp ​

● Andrew Steele, Brian Teefy, Carly Luis, Conner Coles, Garry Keller, Leslie ​ ​ ​ ​ Noble, StrategyCorp Inc. ​ o Clients: Union Gas – An Enbridge Company ​

● Nick Kayler, StrategyCorp Inc. ​ o Clients: Woodbine Entertainment Group ​

● Bliss Baker, Giancarlo Drennan, Maple Leaf Strategies (formerly Bentham & ​ Associates) o Clients: Signature Communities; Royal Park Homes ​

● Brooklyn Mattison, Upstream Strategy Group ​ o Clients: Ontario Federation of Trail Riders; Allvision; Bayshore HealthCare ​ Ltd.

● Michael Diamond, Upstream Strategy Group ​ o Clients: Ontario Federation of Trail Riders; Gastrointestinal Society ​

● Chris Benedetti, Sussex Strategy Group ​ o Clients: Wataynikaneyap Power LP ​

● Mark Olsheski, Sussex Strategy Group ​ o Clients: AgMedica Bioscience Inc. ​

● Robyn Gray, Sussex Strategy Group ​ o Clients: Brooks Road Environmental; Club Coffee; Wataynikaneyap ​ Power LP (Fortis-Inc.)

● Dan Mader, Nicholas Pozhe, Loyalist Public Affairs ​ o Clients: Algonquin Opportunity No. 2 Corporation c/o the Algonquins of ​ Ontario

● Daniel McIntyre, Grosso McCarthy Inc. ​ o Clients: Apotex ​

● David Fleet, Nixon Fleet & Poole LLP (formerly Walker Poole Nixon LLP) ​ o Clients: TransCanada Pipelines Limited ​

● David Messer, Thomas Blackmore, Edelman ​ o Clients: Oracle Canada ​

● Emmanuel Dowuona, Santis Health ​ o Clients: Logibec ​

● Gary Gladstone, Gladstone Consulting Ltd. ​ o Clients: Independent Payday Loan Association of Canada ​

● Greg Wilkinson, Earnscliffe Ontario Inc. ​ o Clients: NOVA Chemicals Corporation ​

● Tim Trbovich, Earnscliffe Ontario Inc. ​ o Clients: Sterile Care Inc. ​

● Julie Garner, Earnscliffe ​ o Clients: Connect The Corridor Coalition ​

● Harvey Nightingale, Hill+Knowlton Strategies ​ o Clients: OnX Holdings LLC ​

● Laura Greer, Hill+Knowlton Strategies ​ o Clients: AdvantAge Ontario ​

● Marissa Steiner, Hill+Knowlton Strategies ​ o Clients: Canadian Blood Services ​

● Vivek Prabhu, Hill+Knowlton Strategies ​ o Clients: Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine ​

● Hilary Cole, Michael Hutchison , Impact Public Affairs ​ ​ ​ o Clients: Canadian Association for Interventional Radiology ​

● Howard Brown, Brown & Cohen Communications & Public Affairs Inc. ​ o Clients: Professionals Engineers Ontario ​

● Jim Burnett, Pathway Group Inc. ​ o Clients: Wentworth Technologies Company Limited ​

● Leanna Karremans, Pathway Group Inc. ​ o Clients: Covenant Canadian Reformed Teachers College ​

● Megan Flynn, Peter Curtis, Pathway Group Inc. ​ o Clients: Assaulted Women’s Helpline ​

● Joanne McNamara, Santis Health Inc. ​ o Clients: Logibec ​

● John Capobianco, FleishmanHillard HighRoad Corp. (formerly FleishmanHillard ​ Canada Inc.) o Clients: Transat A.T. Inc. ​

● Joshua Albert, The CCS Group (formerly Connect Consulting Solutions) ​ o Clients: Constance Lake First Nation ​

● Michael Gimelshtein, The CCS Group ​ o Clients: United Chiefs and Councils of Mnidoo Mnising ​

● Kate Moseley-Williams, Crestview Strategy ​ o Clients: Amazon Corporate LLC; CoreFour, Inc.; GlaxoSmithKline ​

● Lisa Di Lollo, Political Forefront Inc. ​ o Clients: Dream Maker Inc. ​

● Mark Holmes, G52 ​ o Clients: Algoma University ​

● Martin Green, Foresight Strategic Advisors Inc. ​ o Clients: Bird Rides, Inc. ​

● Maureen Shuell, RendezVous Communications ​ o Clients: Canadian Urban Transit Research & Innovation Consortium ​

● Michael Mazzuca, Koskie Minsky LLP ​ o Clients: Teamsters Canadian Pension Plan ​

● Mike Van Soelen, Navigator Ltd. (formerly Playbook Communications) ​ o Clients: Ontario Rehab Alliance ​

● Philip Gillies, Phil Gillies Consulting ​ o Clients: Interior Systems Contractors Association ​

● Saurabh Popat, Saurabh Popat ​

o Clients: Maple Corporation ​

● Shakir Chambers, Navigator Limited ​ o Clients: Ontario Agencies Supporting Individuals with Special Needs ​

● Yash Dogra, NATIONAL Public Relations ​ o Clients: U-Battery Canada Limited ​

Organizations that registered in-house lobbyists from February 1, 2019 – February 7, 2019

● AbbVie Corporation ● Loblaw Companies Limited ● Rayonier A.M. Canada Industries Inc. ● Airbnb Canada Inc. ● Ontario Dental Association ● 407 International Inc. ● 3M Canada Company ● Enbridge Inc ● MasonryWorx ● Microsoft Canada Inc. ● CNIB Deafblind Community Services ● Ontario Dental Hygienists’ Association (ODHA) ● McKesson Canada ● Canadian Medical Association/Association médicale canadienne ● Ontario Federation of Agriculture ● Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Association ● Egg Farmers of Ontario ● Ontario Dental Association ● Johnson & Johnson Inc. ● Amgen Canada Inc. ● Thales Canada Inc. ● OCAD University ● Rogers Communications Inc. ● Humber College ● Samsung Renewable Energy Inc. ● CropLife Canada ● Ontario Provincial Police Association ● Ontario Association of Optometrists ● University of Ontario Institute of Technology

● Ontario Bioscience Industry Organization ● Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association ● Ontario Public School Boards’ Association ● Force Multiplier Solutions ● BMO Financial Group ● Electrobac ● Colas Canada ● KPMG LLP ● Music Canada ● Allstate Insurance Company of Canada ● Telesat Canada

Queen's Park Today is written by Sabrina Nanji, reporting from the Queen's Park press gallery.

Copyright © 2018 Queen’s Park Today. It is a violation of copyright to distribute this newsletter without permission.