Business and Economy – QP Briefing

Happening: Premier to lead trade mission to China and Vietnam

The mission will be Wynne's third to China and first to Vietnam. ...

Progressive Conservatives flag credit rating agencies’ negative outlooks on Hydro One

Finance critic Vic Fedeli says the rating agencies have found that the proposed purchase of a U.S. utility distances Hydro One from the provincial government. ...

Precarious employment tops agenda at final labour law hearing

Business owners voice anxiety over 32 per cent minimum wage hike in 18-month period. ...

Ontario auto insurance rates rise again, as Liberals plan consultations

Approved premiums increased by an average of 0.76 per cent in the second quarter of 2017, following a 1.24-per-cent increase in the first quarter. ...

Domestic violence and unionization take centre stage at labour law hearings

Groups propose five days' paid leave due to domestic violence and grapple with card-based union certification. ...

Hurricane straps, solar panels and charging stations: Ontario proposing climate-focused update of building code

The government is looking for feedback on moves that could happen years from now, including efficiency requirements for new homes that would be aimed at slashing their energy consumption. ...

Steady as she goes on housing after a tempestuous year: Wynne

The Premier seems confident the government's Fair Housing Plan will continue to cool the market – 'not kill it.' ...

Premier Wynne off to Providence to battle U.S. protectionism

Amid protectionist wave, Kathleen Wynne heads south to stoke Ontario's prosperity engine – already in fourth gear. ...

Booze-like rules for legalized marijuana ‘makes sense,’ Wynne says

Wynne’s government announced Wednesday that it was looking for public feedback on the federal government’s plan to legalize marijuana by July 2018. ...

Ontario says Bank of Canada rate hike won’t change province’s economic forecast

According to the Ontario budget, a one percentage point increase to interest rates would shave 0.1 to 0.5 percentage points off the province’s real GDP growth in the first year. ...

Ontario government wants to talk pot

The province wants “to hear from the people of Ontario as we develop an approach to legalization that keeps our youth, communities and roads safe," Attorney General Yasir Naqvi says. ...

Ontario taking slow ride on reforming auto insurance system, but making change to ‘payer of last resort’

The government intends to hold consultations on a report it says recommends “a wide-scale transformation of the current auto insurance system.” ...

PCs promise to give greenhouse growers a carbon tax break

Ontario’s cap-and-trade costs apply to greenhouse growers, something the PCs want to change. ...

Expected Bank of Canada rate hike leaves economic development minister unmoved

Brad Duguid said Ontario can withstand a rate bump, despite warnings of an economy precariously dependent on housing. ...

Ontario edges toward precarious employment as full-time jobs fall, part-time jobs rise in June

Grits face criticism for failing to adapt to the gig economy. ...

Province pitching in $417 million for Port Lands patch-up

The project includes $65 million in previously announced infrastructure funding, bringing the total cost to an estimated $1.25 billion over an anticipated seven years of construction. ...

Sousa toasts Beer Store sending suds to your door

The private, quasi-monopoly adapts to the age of Uber Eats with express delivery pilot project in Scarborough and Ottawa. ...

Investors ask questions about housing and NAFTA impacts on Ontario economy

Gadi Mayman, CEO of the Ontario Financing Authority, said his organization’s outreach for the first quarter of the 2017-18 fiscal year was aimed at European bond buyers, who made inquiries about the possible pitfalls for ...

Ontario proposes tougher conflict-of-interest rules for real estate agents

The government is cracking down on the practice of double ending, where one real estate agent represents both the seller and a buyer in a single transaction. ...

PCs not ruling out alcohol in convenience stores

A lobbyist on behalf of the Ontario Convenience Stores Association was seen targeting several PC MPPs, including leader Patrick Brown. ...

Province’s pot plan won’t be ready for at least a month

Premier says tax model for regulated marijuana market still being discussed, following finance ministers' meeting and amid countdown to July 2018 legalization. ...

Ontario should ’embrace’ Amazon expansion north of the border: Wynne

As the online retailer adds 200 mostly high-tech jobs to Toronto headquarters, the Premier extols Ontario taking a "leadership role" in broadening the employment base. ...

Canada-China free-trade deal on Ontario’s radar: Trade minister

“We must broaden our trading partners globally, starting today,” Michael Chan says. ...

Foreign buyers are paying Ontario’s non-resident real estate tax – and voters may be loving it

An industry-commissioned poll has found strong approval of the Liberal government’s Fair Housing Plan, including its decision to slap a 15-per-cent tax on purchases made by foreign buyers in the Greater Golden Horseshoe ...

Jury still out on housing market ‘frenzy,’ Finance Minister says

Sousa said the government is still working with realtors and the real estate boards to increase transparency in the market. ...

Ontario revamping immigration program for skilled-trade workers

Changes are being made to the “entrepreneur stream” as well, which is aimed at individuals with a high net worth. ...

Wynne fleshes out what Ontario wants from an updated NAFTA

This year’s Southeastern United States–Canadian Provinces conference is taking place amid increased uncertainty along the Canada-United States trade border as NAFTA negotiations loom large. ...

Premier tears into Trump’s ‘appalling’ retreat from climate change accord

The impending collapse of American commitment puts a hitch in the Liberals’ step-by-step march toward cap-and-trade, and could threaten Wynne’s signature green program. ...

Revamped labour bill hits the table, will be sped through to committee

The Fair Workplaces, Better Jobs Act enshrines a $15 minimum wage, among other things. ...

Wynne vows to fight back against ‘Buy American’ bill in Texas

Wynne also pointed out that her cabinet has already given itself permission to bring forward legislation that would allow Ontario to get some payback against Buy American measures. ...

Hydro One privatization could cost more than $150 million

The government’s last share sale was announced Monday, and it could reduce the province’s share of the company to 47.8 per cent. ...

Beer in grocery stores: A political map of Ontario

The company with the most grocery stores selling beer in Ontario is Walmart, with 32 stores, including 27 locations that were announced this week. Second is Sobeys, with 28 supermarkets selling suds. ...

Province prepared to hike gravel-taking fees, minister says

The Aggregate Resources and Mining Modernization bill also amends the province’s Mining Act, creating an administration system to allow for claims to be registered online. ...

Government extends deadline for GTA West highway panel

Progressive Conservative transportation critic Michael Harris says "people are waiting" for the outcome of the review. ...

Fewer job-seekers help push Ontario unemployment rate to lowest level since 2001

However, StatsCan said the drop in the unemployment rate in Ontario was “mostly due to a decline in the number of youth searching for work.” ...

Budget 2017: Ontario injecting $250 million more into its Business Growth Initiative

With funding now totalling $650-million, new-economy projects slated to get financing include “Advanced Research Computing and Big Data Strategy” and the “Autonomous Vehicle Innovation Network.” ...

Grits cry foul as Tory ‘reasoned amendment’ delays budget bill debate

Government house leader calls a Conservative bid to place a three-day hold on debating the Stronger, Healthier Ontario Act a "delay tactic." ...

Pollster: Liberals can expect popularity boost after unveiling budget goodies, but will it last?

Pharmacare for young folks, coupled with a wiped-out deficit, spells a "good political budget," says the executive vice-president of Mainstreet Research. ...

Budget 2017: ‘It’s really not that complicated’

Ontario's $141-billion budget will bring the province's finances back into the black for the first time in nearly a decade. ...

Cries of ‘cooking the books’ and ‘electioneering’ from PCs on budget eve

Finance Minister Charles Sousa fired back Thursday's budget will show a "recipe for success," and achieve fiscal balance. ...

Flashback Friday: Ontario’s anti-‘zapper’ law has been used once

The government said in its fall economic update that it would conduct a pilot project in the retail and hospitality industries to test out programs that could sniff out zappers. ...

Eight things you may not have known about ‘Ontario’s Fair Housing Plan’

QP Briefing digs into some of the more obscure parts of the Liberal government's new Fair Housing Plan. ...

‘We’re going to act’ to improve auto insurance system, Finance Minister says

First, the Liberal government plans to hold consultations in the “coming weeks” with stakeholders in the auto insurance industry, Sousa said. ...

Auto insurance rates rise again as Liberal government consults on scathing review

Rates increased 1.24 per cent in the first quarter, which translates into an overall 7-per-cent decline since 2013, which is less than half way to the Liberal promise to cut rates 15 per cent as of August 2015. ...

Leone: Forget the ‘Big Move,’ what about the ‘Big Stay?’

Columnist Rob Leone makes the case for telecommuting as a way to cool the housing market and ease gridlock. ...

Families are ‘pissed’ that they can’t win bidding wars, Sousa says [Updated]

The Premier said she wants to "calm a bit of the frenzy" surrounding the housing market. She is meeting with Toronto and area mayors to discuss housing affordability Wednesday afternoon. ...