“It's Kind of One-Sided So Far.”
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Queen’s Park Today – Daily Report December 6, 2019 Quotation of the day “It’s kind of one-sided so far.” Premier Doug Ford weighs in on high school teachers’ one-day strike. Today at Queen’s Park On the schedule The house is adjourned until Monday, December 9. MPPs are scheduled to rise for the winter recess next Thursday, December 12. The spring sitting will kick off on February 18. In the park People will march to the legislative grounds to mark the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. Flags will also be lowered to half mast. Thursday’s debates and proceedings Bill 136, the PAWS Act, was debated and passed third reading in the morning. The province’s new animal welfare enforcement team, which will include new inspectors and the appointment of an advisory board, roles out on January 1, 2020. Ahead of question period, members from all parties recognized today’s 30th anniversary of the mass shooting at l’Ecole Polytechnique in Montreal that took the lives of 14 women. Bill 132, the red-tape reduction legislation, was called for debate near the end of the day. Three backbench bills were debated during the afternoon’s private members’ business: ● PC MPP Kaleed Rasheed’s Bill 154, Stop Cyberbullying in Ontario Day Act, and PC MPP Logan Kanapathi’s Bill 157, COPD Awareness Day Act, cleared second reading following voice votes. The bills were sent to be studied by the Standing Committee on Social Policy. ● NDP MPP Judith Monteith-Farrell’s Bill 144, Northern Health Travel Grant Advisory Committee Act, passed on a recorded vote. It’s now off to the committee on regulations and private bills. Liberal MPP John Fraser tabled his private member’s bill to increase awareness around defibrillator use: Bill 158, Defibrillator Training and Access Act. It’s the third such bill on the order paper: PC MPP Robin Martin and NDP MPP France Gélinas have introduced competing PMBs to boost public access to defibrillators. Private members’ bills rarely become law, but governments will occasionally roll PMBs they like into their own legislation — and the three-pronged defibrillator push could make the cut. In question period, Health Minister Christine Elliott told Fraser she looked forward to discussing his bill, in addition to Martin and Gélinas’ bills, “because there are lots of components that I believe we can pull together to bring forward that comprehensive plan.” Government and Consumer Services Minister Lisa Thompson tabled the legislation to reform Tarion, Bill 159, Rebuilding Consumer Confidence Act, which the government has been promising since October’s damning report on the home warranty provider from Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk. Today’s events December 6 at 8:45 a.m. – Ottawa Premier Doug Ford, Long-Term Care Minister Merrilee Fullerton and Heritage Minister Lisa MacLeod will meet with Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson at the Shaw Centre. December 6 at 10 a.m. – Toronto NDP MPP Jill Andrew will be in the Queen’s Park media studio to discuss the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women. December 6 at 10:30 a.m. – Toronto Economic Development Minister Vic Fedeli will be in the media studio to talk about Statistics Canada’s monthly jobs data. December 6 at 11:30 a.m. – Ottawa Health Minister Christine Elliott will announce an Ontario Health Team at the Centretown Community Health Centre, and another later that afternoon at the Colborne Emergency Services base. Weekend events December 8 at 1 p.m. – Guelph The Ontario Liberal Party Leadership Committee is hosting the second debate of the campaign at Evergreen Seniors Community Centre. The debate will be moderated by ex-MPP John Wilkinson and will focus on rural affairs. The party also held a “candidate showcase” in Toronto last week. Topics of conversation ● Catholic teachers will be in a legal position to walk off the job December 21, the union said Thursday after receiving its requested no-board report. Liz Stuart, president of the Ontario English Catholic Teachers’ Association, said that should be “another wakeup call for Premier [Doug] Ford and Minister [Stephen] Lecce that it is time to get their act together.” ○ “As has become abundantly clear this week, Ontarians recognize the Ford government is not listening to their concerns, or treating public education with the respect it deserves,” Stuart said in a statement. ○ This week the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation staged a one-day provincewide strike after launching a work-to-rule campaign alongside the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario. ● Health Minister Christine Elliott says she’s open to a ban on flavoured vaping products a la Nova Scotia and some U.S. states. ● The LCBO transferred $2.37 billion to the province this year, according to its annual report released Thursday. The agency sold a record amount of local booze this year, with sales of Ontario beer, wine and liquor topping $690 million. ○ Of the $6.39 billion worth of LCBO products sold this year, only $290 million were purchased in grocery stores. ● The Canadian Taxpayers Federation has been given intervenor status in the provinces’ Supreme Court challenge of Ottawa’s carbon backstop. ○ The PCs are pushing ahead with their fight against the federal Liberals’ tax in the country’s top court, despite Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s recent victory at the ballot box. The case is expected to be heard this winter. Appointments and employments Ministry of the Attorney General ● Paul Boniferro is leaving the Ontario Public Service next month after a two-year stint as deputy attorney general. “Today I announced I will be leaving my role as DAG at the end of my current term [January 3, 2020]. What an honour and pleasure it has been to serve and to work with such excellent and talented public servants. Proud of what we have achieved together. Grateful,” Boniferro said recently on Twitter. ○ Boniferro was appointed deputy by then-AG Liberal Yasir Naqvi in January 2018 with a $400,000 annual base salary. House of Commons ● There’s a new Speaker in the House of Commons who hails from Ontario. Anthony Rota, Liberal MP for Nipissing—Timiskaming, was elected by secret ballot as the first order of business when Parliament returned Thursday for the first time since the October election. Funding announcements Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs ● The provincial and federal governments announced a joint $5.75-million package to help farmers measure and improve soil health. ○ Separately, Environment Minister Jeff Yurek announced a tweak to Environmental Protection Act regulations related to where excess soil can be dumped and stored. Property owners and farmers will soon be allowed to store reusable soil on their lots, which Yurek says will “make it safer and easier to use local excess soil and put vacant, prime lands back into good use.” Question period NDP lead-off Hospital overcrowding ● NDP co-deputy leader John Vanthof kicked off the debate asking about the auditor general’s report that pointed out that since 2016, 748 patients in a life- or limb-threatening situation could not transfer to the hospital they needed to be in because no beds were available. ● Health Minister Christine Elliott passed the buck to the former governing Grits and said the PCs are working to fix the problem. “But it’s not a simple solution. There are many reasons that contribute to that. One is the fact that we don’t have enough long-term-care spaces. There are many patients who are alternate-level-of-care who remain in hospital but don’t need to be there,” she said. ● Vanthof cited another chilling statistic from the AG report: 10 patients died waiting for a hospital bed. He used a personal anecdote to underscore the problem in rural Ontario. ○ “In rural Ontario, we have small hospitals without specialized care. It’s personal to me: In 1993, I had one of those accidents and they took me to Englehart hospital. I woke up five hours later in Toronto Western, and that’s the only reason I have any use of this arm,” he said. ● Elliott said any patient death that could be avoided is “one too many” and committed to following the AG’s recommendations as remedy. Environment plan ● NDP Energy critic Peter Tabuns asked about the AG’s damning report showing the “made-in-Ontario” environment plan isn’t supported by sound evidence. Tabuns suggested the premier was briefed on the report before it was tabled and wanted to know why he was boasting about the plan days before the AG’s rebuke. ● Environment Minister Jeff Yurek reiterated the plan is “evolving” and will hit its targets, claiming the Opposition didn’t have one of its own. ○ The NDP put out its “Green New Democratic Deal” plan in June. High school teachers strike ● NDP Education critic Marit Stiles asked if Education Minister Stephen Lecce would admit his policies didn’t make the grade and go back to the bargaining table with teachers amid rocky negotiations. ● Lecce blamed the unions for escalating job action during this week’s one-day walk out. “We opposed it yesterday and we oppose it in the coming days, given that they have been prepositioning the fact that they want to further escalate, impacting our kids most.” New Democrats devoted several questions to the AG’s report, about expired and deficient food served in long-term care homes, increasing work-related deaths, and the $4-million sticker price for the “One Little Nickel” anti-carbon-tax ad blitz. PC friendly questions The government asked itself about the “real story” behind the teachers’ strike that media apparently missed: that parents and students “had their lives interrupted.” They also lobbed each other softballs about cancelling catered cabinet and committee lunches, reforming Tarion, and — while rhyming and wearing Tory blue Santa hats — the Christmas Cheer breakfast revival.