Queen’s Park Today – Daily Report April 26, 2019

Quotation of the day

“It’s clear that the premier does not believe that the new licence plate slogan ‘a place to grow’ applies to trees and forests. For them, Ontario is … instead a place to get axed.”

Green Leader Mike Schreiner denounces the Tories’ cancellation of a tree-planting program. ​ ​

Today at Queen’s Park

On the schedule The House is adjourned for constituency week; MPPs return to Queen’s Park Monday, April 29 at 10:30 a.m. for question period.

PCs move to scrap environmental assessments for low-risk projects The Tories are looking to make over Ontario’s environmental assessment process for the first time in nearly half a century.

The idea is to “modernize” the system by “focusing on projects that pose actual, real risks to our environment and communities,” with an eye to speeding up approvals, eliminating duplication and exempting low-risk projects. That includes snow plowing, de-icing roads, constructing roadside parks and adding bike lanes.

Some projects currently deemed “medium-risk” could also be lumped into the “low-risk” category, such as public land dispositions.

“Low-risk projects that have positive impacts in our communities shouldn’t be held up by lengthy approvals,” Environment Minister Rod Phillips said Thursday in a release. ​ ​

The PCs are looking to enable electronic submissions. As a paper-based process, environmental assessments currently take five years on average to complete.

The government put out a discussion paper to glean public feedback on the proposed changes by May 25. Among other things, it proposes a “one-window approach” to achieve greater

coordination, providing an efficient working system that balances environmental protection with the need for projects to proceed in a timely manner.”

Today’s events

April 26 – Ottawa ​ ​ Premier is headed to Ottawa this morning to meet with Mayor Jim Watson who has ​ ​ ​ ​ declared a state of emergency due to flooding. The Canadian Armed Forces is deploying troops to deal with the disaster. Ford said the province has already activated the process for support. “Anything Ottawa needs to help affected families and support city staff on the ground, the Province of Ontario will be there to support them,” he said in a statement.

Topics of conversation

● A big tree-planting program is getting the chop. According to the Canadian Press, the ​ ​ ​ PCs told Forests Ontario the $4.7-million 50 Million Tree Program was being eliminated the day after the budget was tabled. Cancelling the program — which has seen 27 million trees planted across the province since 2008 and helped prevent soil erosion in flood areas — will hurt the environment and lead to job losses, the group says.

● The PC-friendly Ontario Chamber of Commerce is asking the Ford government to reverse course on the mandatory anti-federal-carbon-tax gas-pump stickers, CP reports. ​ ​ ​ OCC president and CEO Rocco Rossi says some gas station operators are concerned ​ ​ the campaign, which comes with up to $10,000 in daily fines for those who don’t comply, violates their rights and freedoms.

● Ontario’s anti-SLAPP legislation, introduced by the previous Liberal government in 2015, will be tested at the country’s top court. On Thursday the Supreme Court of Canada agreed to hear two cases challenging the law that were previously dismissed by the ​ provincial appeals court. ○ Anti-SLAPP (strategic lawsuits against public participation) laws are designed to prevent wealthy individuals and companies from launching costly legal action in an attempt to suppress public criticism.

● Breaking up with the Beer Store to liberalize booze sales won’t necessarily leave Ontarians on the hook for hundreds of millions as several news outlets have reported, citing unnamed industry insiders. Legal experts told the Globe and Mail the PC ​ ​ ​ ​ government can pass laws to avoid hefty penalties despite the fact the contract includes a mandatory compensation clause for damages. ○ Ontario’s special adviser on expanded alcohol sales Ken Hughes chalked up the ​ ​ warnings of a steep kill-fee to “irresponsible fear-mongering” and suggested

journalists’ sources are trying to protect their own interests and “inflame a situation in a very unhelpful way.”

● Today, Education Minister Lisa Thompson will formally announce $1.6 billion in attrition ​ ​ protection cash to prevent schools from having to lay off teachers, as part of the Grants for Student Needs package, CP reports. ​ ​ ​

● Slot machines at Ajax Downs racetrack are a safe bet now that Great Canadian Gaming Corp. has officially signed off on a deal with OLG to continue the operation. ​ ​ ○ Last fall Environment Minister and MPP for Ajax Rod Phillips (also a former ​ ​ OLG head) announced an agreement-in-principle to keep slot machines at the racetrack until at least 2026. ○ Also announced Thursday, Casino Ajax, a 24-hour slots facility, will now remain open alongside the casino entertainment centre that’s planned for less than 10 kilometres away in Pickering. ○ Great Canadian Gaming had initially planned to shutter the Ajax slots facility when the Pickering casino opened, but said it will now keep both thanks to greater “stability” in the deal initiated by the provincial government and OLG.

● Meanwhile Star shines a light on the province’s lesser-known Sunshine List, ​ ​ ​ which tracks executive and employee salaries in the province’s subsidized live horse-racing industry. According to the list, which was quietly published on OLG’s website, 69 staff members at six of Ontario’s 15 racetracks pulled in $11 million last year. ○ Woodbine Entertainment Group’s president and CEO Jim Lawson earned ​ ​ $751,524 in 2018 — making him the province’s seventh highest taxpayer-funded earner. ○ Last month, the Ford administration signed a contract committing up to $105 million a year for up to 19 years for racetrack operations.

● The Canadian Snowbird Association, a non-profit organization that advocates for Canada’s famed winter travellers, claims scrapping OHIP’s limited out-of-country emergency medical coverage will ultimately increase private travel health insurance premiums by up to 7.5 per cent. ○ “We urge the Ontario government to maintain OHIP's Out-of-Country Travellers Program, which has helped countless travellers faced with unexpected medical emergencies while abroad,” CSA president Karen Huestis said in a statement. ​ ​

● Ontario’s outgoing Child and Youth Advocate Irwin Elman had a major impact on youth ​ ​ in Japan, with some saying the office was a “beacon of hope for all other countries,” the National Observer reports. Elman’s standalone office is being folded into the ​ ​ ombudsman’s by May 1.

● iPolitics has the skinny on Ontario Proud’s new national cousin, Canada Proud, a ​ ​ Tory-friendly third-party election advertiser and meme machine targeting Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and headed up by Jeff Ballingall. ​ ​ ​

● ICYMI Patrick Brown and partner Genevieve Gualtieri are expecting a baby boy, per ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ the ex-PC-leader-turned-Brampton-mayor’s Instagram account.

Appointments and employments Ontario Health ● Ontario has enlisted Susan Fitzpatrick — current CEO of the Toronto Central Local ​ ​ Health Integration Network (LHIN) — to helm the Ontario Health super-agency on an interim basis. Health Minister offered her accolades on Twitter ​ ​ Wednesday. “A respected leader in healthcare, her focus is always on seamless patient experience and better connecting care,” Elliott said. ○ An “early slate” of Ontario Health board appointees was announced March 8. ​ ​ ○ The new super-agency to merge dozens of health-care agencies and LHINs was enshrined last week.

News releases — governmental Ministry of Transportation ● Drivers who whiz by school buses could soon be prosecuted on stop-arm camera footage alone, Transportation Minister said Thursday. The PCs are ​ ​ proposing a regulatory amendment that would allow video footage to be used as evidence in court by removing the requirement for an additional witness. ○ Legislation will also be introduced that would empower municipalities to levy additional fines on scofflaw drivers who pass stopped school buses. As it stands drivers could face charges, an up to $2,000 fine and six demerit points on a first offence; subsequent offences could set drivers back another $4,000 fine, six more demerit points and up to six months in jail. ○ “The safety of our most precious resource, our children, is our government’s number one priority. We intend to create a regulatory framework that would allow for more efficient enforcement and prosecution to keep our children safer,” Yurek announced at a school bus operation in London. ​ ○ Chatham-area PC MPP , who was in attendance at Thursday’s ​ ​ announcement, tabled a private member’s bill to allow ticketing via school bus camera systems in 2017.

Ministry of the Solicitor General ● Thunder Bay’s nearly century-old jail will be replaced by a new corrections complex combining the jail and correctional centre, the PCs confirmed Thursday. ​ ​ ○ The fate of the new complex, promised by then-Grit rulers, was put in play after the Tories took office last year.

○ The modernized 325-bed facility will help keep correctional officers safe on the job and ensure inmates get the support they need, Solicitor General Sylvia ​ Jones said. ​ 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 April 18, 2019 – April 25, 2019

● Adam Wilson, Counsel Public Affairs Inc. ​ o Clients: Enterprise Holdings Inc. ​

● Caroline Pinto, Counsel Public Affairs Inc. ​ o Clients: Isologic Innovative Radiopharmaceuticals Ltd.¸ Ontario Library ​ Association; Orfus Realty

● Devan Somerville, Counsel Public Affairs Inc. ​ o Clients: Isologic Innovative Radiopharmaceuticals Ltd.¸ Ontario Library ​ Association; Real Estate Equity Exchange, Inc. dba Unison Home Ownership Investors

● Jaskiran Shoker, Counsel Public Affairs Inc. ​ o Clients: Ontario Agencies Supporting Individuals with Special Needs ​ (OASIS)

● Stephanie Gawur, Counsel Public Affairs Inc. ​ o Clients: Real Estate Equity Exchange, Inc. dba Unison Home Ownership ​ Investors

● Alanna Newman, Earnscliffe Strategy Group ​ o Clients: CUPE Ontario (Canadian Union of Public Employees) ​

● Adria Minsky, Giancarlo Drennan, Maple Leaf Strategies ​ o Clients: Ontario Building Officials Associations ​

● Jonathan Telch, Maple Leaf Strategies ​ o Clients: SteelBridge Stables ​

● Aleem Kanji, Sutherland Corporation Limited ​ o Clients: Empire Communities Ltd. ​

● Amir Remtulla, Amir Remtulla Inc. ​ o Clients: Bentall Kennedy Canada (Limited) Partnership; Larendale Group ​

● Barbara Sulzenko, BSL Consulting ​ o Clients: Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) ​

● Chris Holz, Campbell Strategies ​ o Clients: Home Capital Group Inc. ​

● Christine McMillan, Crestview Strategy ​ o Clients: Northeastern University ​

● Alex Chreston, Crestview Strategy ​ o Clients: Lyft ​

● Ashton Arsenault, Crestview Strategy ​ o Clients: K-BRO Linen Systems ​

● Alexandra Kyriakos, 3Sixty Public Affairs ​ o Clients: Canadian Cancer Survivor Network (CCSN) ​

● Cynthia Rynne, PBI Actuarial Consultants Ltd. ​ o Clients: Labourers’ Pension Fund of Central and Eastern Canada ​

● Riley St-Jacques, Roy Wong, PBI Actuarial Consultants Ltd. ​ o Clients: Teamsters Canadian Pension Plan ​

● Charlotte Janssen, Janssen Law Professional Corporation ​ o Clients: Capital Sports Holdings Inc. ​

● Dan Mader, Jill Wilson, Loyalist Public Affairs ​ o Clients: First Gulf Corporation ​

● Nicholas Pozhke, Loyalist Public Affairs ​ o Clients: 2465855 Ontario Limited; First Gulf Corporation ​

● Daniela Cavatassi, Kealey & Associates Inc. ​ o Clients: kaleo ​

● Jeffrey Bangs, Pathway Group Inc. ​ o Clients: Canadian Addiction Counselors Certification Federation; ​ theScore Inc. (formerly Score Media Inc.)

● Jerry Khouri, Peter Curtis, Pathway Group Inc. ​

o Clients: theScore Inc. (formerly Score Media Inc.) ​

● Jim Burnett, Leanna Karremans, Pathway Group Inc. ​ o Clients: The Regional Municipality of York ​

● Jenessa Crognali, Navigator Ltd. ​ o Clients: Fidelity Investments Canada ​

● Joshua Albert, The CCS Group (formerly Connect Consulting Solutions) ​ o Clients: The Miller Group ​

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

● Leslie Liversidge, L.A. Liversidge L.L.B. ​ o Clients: Construction Employers Coalition on WSIB Health and Safety ​ Prevention [“CEC”]; Mechanical Contractors Association of Ontario

● Madison Simmons, Impact Public Affairs ​ o Clients: We Are Golf ​

● Hilary Cole, Impact Public Affairs ​ o Clients: National Allied Golf Association ​

● Melissa Lantsman, Hill+Knowlton Strategies ​ o Clients: Cardinal Health ​

● Marissa Steiner, Hill+Knowlton Strategies ​ o Clients: The Association of Family Health Teams of Ontario; Cardinal ​ Health; Asthma Canada

● Mary Langley, Hill+Knowlton Strategies ​ o Clients: Kids Help Phone; Asthma Canada ​

● Vivek Prabhu, Hill+Knowlton Strategies ​ o Clients: OnX Holdings LLC ​

● Nathan Scheewe, The Capital Hill Group Inc. ​ o Clients: Adobe ​

● Patrick Jilesen, Patrick Jilesen ​ o Clients: The Ontario Greenhouse Alliance ​

● Scott Munnoch, Temple Scott Associates Inc. ​

o Clients:The Ontario Horticultural Trades Foundation (Highway of Heroes ​ Tree Campaign)

● Todd Peterson, Todd Peterson ​ o Clients: Enriched Academy ​

● Tyler McCann, T. Bjornson and Associates Consulting Inc. ​ o Clients: Global Ag Risk Solutions Corporation ​

● Ralph Capocci, Danjus Consulting Group Inc. ​ o Clients: Makos Health Associates Corp. ​

● Roberta Kramchynsky, StrategyCorp Inc. ​ o Clients: McKesson Canada ​

Organizations that registered in-house lobbyists from April 18, 2019 – April 25, 2019

● Ontario Federation of Labour ● Fédération des caisses Desjardins du Québec ● MasonryWorx ● Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers ● Entertainment One Ltd. ● Ontario Bar Association ● White Pines Wind Incorporated ● Friends of the Greenbelt Foundation ● David Suzuki Foundation ● Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers ● Ontario Public School Boards’ Association ● LifeScan Canada ULC ● Ontario Community Support Association ● The Canadian Payroll Association ● Hoffman-La Roche Limited ● Canadian Opera Company ● Sidewalk Labs Employees, L.L.C. ● Canadian Propane Association ● Ontario Commercial Fisheries’ Association ● Boys and Girls Clubs of Canada

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

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