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

Quotation of the day

“You meet a liberal or a leftist at a barbecue, and it’s like they’ve never met a conservative. They stereotype us — they think we’re all bigoted, racist rednecks. We’re not.”

Jeff Ballingall, founder of meme machine Ontario Proud, gets the Life treatment. ​ ​ ​ ​

Today at Queen’s Park

On the schedule The house is on extended recess until Monday, October 28. Cabinet is slated to meet Wednesday afternoon.

Premier watch The premier met with Ontario Regional Chief RoseAnne Archibald at Queen’s Park on ​ ​ Monday. ’s social media feeds posted about the meeting at the same time the ​ ​ federal election debate turned to Indigenous affairs.

Federal election debate: Trudeau mentions Ford three times, Scheer suggests PM run for OLP leader Last night’s federal election debate saw Liberal Leader continue his campaign ​ ​ trend by raising the spectre of Premier Doug Ford three times. ​ ​

But Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer delivered the kicker when he fired back that Trudeau ​ ​ seems “oddly obsessed” with provincial politics and noted there’s a vacancy for Ontario Liberal leader.

“If you’re so focused on provincial politics, go and run for the leadership of that party, Mr. Trudeau,” Scheer said to laughs and applause from the live audience.

The only official English-language debate featuring the six major political party leaders went down Monday evening at the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau.

Outside the venue, a person was seen doing Ford cosplay. ​ ​

Ford first came up about 20 minutes into the debate during a question about cooperation between Ottawa and the provinces and territories.

Trudeau used his response to attack Ford’s record on climate policy.

“Jason Kenney and Doug Ford and other Conservative premiers don’t want to do anything on ​ ​ climate change. We need a government in Ottawa that is going to fight them and fight for Canadians,” Trudeau said.

Scheer said, if he is elected prime minister, provincial governments wouldn’t have to take his government to court — like Ontario and Saskatchewan are doing to fight Trudeau’s carbon tax. Scheer did not mention Ford’s name, which he has avoided doing throughout the campaign.

Trudeau also mentioned Ford in an exchange with Scheer over fully-costed platforms. Scheer has said the Conservative Party will release its full platform October 11, after the major debates, which Trudeau said is disrespectful to voters.

“We’re choosing to invest in people, you’re choosing, just like Doug Ford did, to hide your platform from Canadians and deliver cuts,” Trudeau said.

Trudeau said the F-word again in the final moments of the debate, doubling down on the Conservatives lack of a costed platform.

“Like Doug Ford, that didn’t work out so well for Canadians,” he said.

The comment prompted Scheer’s blow about Trudeau’s fixation with Ontario.

Both Scheer and Trudeau have invoked Ontario premiers past and present on the campaign trail. Trudeau has warned of Conservative-led cuts while Scheer has linked Kathleen ​ Wynne-era scandals and pocketbook issues to the federal Grits. ​

Premier Ford has been laying low, but reports suggest he’s chomping at the bit to fight back ​ ​ against Trudeau’s repeated attacks.

Meanwhile, Conservative star and Alberta Premier Jason Kenney spent the weekend ​ ​ campaigning for Scheer in Ontario, making 23 stops in 18 ridings in the Ottawa and Toronto area.

People’s Party of Leader Maxime Bernier’s presence at Monday’s debate was owed in ​ ​ large part to his heavyweight candidate for Etobicoke North, Renata Ford. The Star delves into ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

how Ford’s “legitimate” electoral prospects in the heart of Ford Nation helped land Bernier a spot on the national debate stage.

The premier’s sister-in-law has said her late husband and former Toronto mayor ​ would have backed Bernier and the People’s Party of Canada.

Today’s events

October 8 at 9 a.m. — Wikwemikong ​ PC MPP , parliamentary assistant to the minister of Indigenous affairs, will make an ​ ​ announcement at the Wikwemikong Recreation Centre.

October 8 at 9:30 a.m. — Etobicoke ​ Municipal Affairs and Housing Minister Steve Clark will make an announcement at the Ontario ​ ​ Food Terminal. Agriculture and Food Minister and local MPP Christine ​ ​ ​ Hogarth will be on hand. In July, the PCs formally announced the terminal is staying put ​ ​ ​ following a review. ● In a letter to Hogarth sent later that month, Clark agreed to designate the massive ​ ​ grocery warehouse as a provincially significant employment zone, which would limit certain development and land-use planning at the Etobicoke site. Clark said the government “recognized the need for employment areas to be protected from encroachment” and that the designation will help the terminal “sustain its long-term prosperity.” ● NDP MPP may laud the move — she has a private member’s bill on ​ ​ the order paper to designate the lands. Toronto City Hall also voiced support.

October 8 at 10:30 a.m. — Markham ​ PC MPP , parliamentary assistant to the minister for seniors, will make an ​ ​ announcement at the Angus Glen Community Centre. Local MPP will be in tow. ​ ​

October 8 at 11:30 a.m. — Gore Bay ​ PC MPP Dave Smith will make an announcement at Split Rail Brewing Company. ​ ​

Upcoming events

October 10 — Provincewide ​ The parent-led Ontario Families for Public Education group is planning a provincewide school protest against higher class size caps and mandatory e-learning, and in support of the current full-day kindergarten model.

Topics of conversation

● Details of the tentative deal inked with CUPE education workers hours before Sunday night’s strike deadline are trickling out. CTV has the run-down, including $20 million for ​ ​ job protection, restoring the $58.3-million Local Priorities fund, maintaining the status quo for sick leave and a one-per cent salary increase per year over the life of the three-year contract. ○ The deal with the provincial government and school boards is expected to be ratified by CUPE members by the end of the month and expires August 31, 2022, just over two months after the next scheduled general election that June. Premier Doug Ford has previously said a contract expiry date just before the start of the ​ school year would never happen under his government. ○ Meanwhile, Global News is reporting the government “caved to political pressure” ​ ​ during talks with CUPE and suggests the union’s success could be a harbinger of more education labour woes as the government turns to ongoing negotiations with elementary and high school teachers. ○ Speaking to reporters in the Queen’s Park media studio Monday morning, NDP Leader said Ford was “missing in action” while parents and ​ ​ students were dealing with uncertainty over whether schools would be closed. Thousands of CUPE support staff were in a legal position to walk off the job yesterday, and school boards said hundreds of schools would shut down. ○ “The premier gave himself five months off, but recess is over,” Horwath said of the extended legislative break. “It’s time for him to stop denying the impact of his education cuts, reverse them today and work with the people who make our schools work instead of attacking them.” ○ Some purported truants in York Region didn’t show up to class anyway. ​ ​

● Meanwhile, Andrew Scheer’s communications director Brock Harrison suggested ​ ​ ​ ​ “Justin Trudeau and the Liberal war room are quietly cursing” the last-minute deal with ​ ​ CUPE because “they were hoping for a strike so they could keep waging their ridiculous strawman campaign.” ○ Trudeau met with Ottawa teachers during a campaign event Monday morning.

● The Ford government is looking to “neuter” a 2005 law banning pit bulls in the province, according to the . Attorney General ’s office said the ​ ​ ​ ​ “government is considering all options” when it comes to the controversial ban, while PC MPPs and have teamed up to circulate petitions and draft a ​ ​ ​ ​ private member’s bill for when the house comes back later this fall. ○ Critics of the ban, including humane societies and the Ontario Veterinary Medical Association, say it unfairly puts the onus on dogs and lumps them into a “pit bull” category without evidence the breed is more dangerous than others. They say the law should be changed to hold individual owners accountable. ○ The PC’s petition acknowledges all animals are capable of aggressive behaviour and the best prevention is through education and training programs.

○ The private member’s bill will likely have cross-party support. Green Leader Mike ​ Schreiner said “breed-specific laws are simply not as effective at reducing the ​ incidence of bites and they result in the unnecessary euthanasia of hundreds of dogs and puppies.” He said the best way to protect public safety is a “community-based approach focused on responsible breeding, pet ownership and training.” ○ The New Democrats previously opposed the Liberal-era legislation.

● Show me the money, . columnist Brian Lilley is raising an ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ eyebrow at the fact Hunter’s Liberal leadership campaign has only logged a little more ​ than $10,600 in donations, and won’t explicitly reveal how she raised the $60,000 entry fee. ○ This is the first time the Liberals are running a leadership convention under recently updated campaign finance laws. Contestants are not required to publicly disclose funds raised before they officially register with , and any pre-registration fundraising wouldn’t be subject to the post-registration limits or the ban on union and corporate contributions. ○ Hunter’s campaign says it paid the entry fee via bank draft; the four other registered contestants say they never accepted donations above this year’s $1,600 cap. ○ “She’s likely using a loophole in the fundraising rules,” Lilley contends. ○ While that wouldn’t be illegal, the optics aren’t great since the Grits were forced to tighten up the rules when they were in power amid a cash-for-access scandal. ○ All registered leadership hopefuls besides Hunter want the loophole closed.

● ICYMI Drake is now following NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh, a.k.a. Campaign Papi, on ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Instagram.

Appointments and employments Hill+Knowlton Strategies ● The 6ix Dad has a new gig. Norm Kelly, the former Toronto councillor, deputy mayor ​ ​ and Drake superfan with a penchant for social media, is now an associate with H+K’s municipal public affairs team. ○ Kelly lost his Scarborough seat to Councillor Jim Karygiannis in last October’s ​ ​ civic election. The incumbents were pitted against each other when the boundaries for their wards were combined under the PC’s council cuts.

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

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