Long-term care commission
NDP Leader Andrea Horwath kicked off question period by asking why the government has still not launched its commission into long-term care, two months after announcing it.
Long-Term Care Minister Merrilee Fullerton answered, saying the commission "is in the works and it will be announced."
What's causing the delay, Horwath wondered.
Fullerton appeared to blame the COVID-19 pandemic. "There are many actions that our government is taking to address the issues surrounding the pandemic. There is no doubt that this affected Ontarians, our loved ones in long-term care and the hard-working staff," she said.
Horwath pivoted slightly to slamming for-profit long-term care homes, which have seen more deaths than non-profit facilities during the pandemic.
"Can the premier assure families today that for-profit operators will have no role whatsoever in the commission that he has yet to appoint?" she said.
Fullerton didn't commit. The most important thing about long-term care homes is that the residents are the focus, regardless of ownership, she said. "We are putting residents at the centre, and their families and staff."
Child-care spots for the return of school
Horwath noted the Halton District School Board's opposition to a potential mixed online and in-person plan for classes. She said the Tories should not "make everyday families choose between their kids and their jobs this fall."
"The government has repeatedly stated that 90 per cent of child care spaces could 'potentially' be available. Can the premier tell parents how many of Ontario’s 5,523 licensed child care facilities are actually up and running as of today?" she asked.
Education Minister Stephen Lecce didn't answer that question but said the government is committed to getting to 100 per cent child-care capacity.
Horwath noted that one of the Progressive Conservatives' first actions was to cut child-care funding. As of last week, she said, less than half of child-care centres — 2,066 out of 5,523 — were open.
"When parents are stressed and they’re clamouring to find available and affordable child care that allows them to get back to work, does the premier really think that he can successfully reopen the economy without affordable child-care for families?" she asked.
Lecce countered that the government also introduced a child-care tax credit for parents.
"We’ve dedicated $1 billion to build 30,000 child care spaces within our schools. We are ensuring that, yes, institutional child care is supported, but we also give parents the choice of where they choose best to raise their children. That flexibility, that support for universalizing access is important," he said.
School boards need "direct information right now," Horwath said, calling on the government to develop a clear plan, instead of planning for multiple scenarios.
The government needs to be ready for any scenario, including a potential second wave of COVID-19, Lecce said. "In our developments of our planning for that to be proactive, to be ready, to ensure that children remain learning, we’re asking school boards to get those to the ministry by Aug. 4."
Later, Liberal MPP Mitzie Hunter also got some licks in on Lecce, calling on the minister to consult with public health officials and educators to create a safe, clear return-to-school plan. "Or will he try to do it on the cheap?"
Lecce said he's already been working with Public Health Ontario and the province's Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. David Williams.
"Let it not be forgotten, Speaker: It was this government that was the first in the country and one of the first in the industrialized world that closed schools, very much because the evidence suggested the risk to children. That’s why we took that action then. It’s why we are taking action today to ensure that we are prepared for all three circumstances," Lecce said.
"I think it’s great that we were the first to close schools, and that’s why I would expect that we would be in a better state of readiness, because the bottom line is we’re not ready," Hunter said, repeating what has become a common criticism of the Tory government: that it has prepared more detailed plans for reopening bars than for classrooms.
"Basic rules and requirements for returning to school are still unclear. If you get on the TTC today or the GO Transit system, you know you’ve got to put on a mask. Do we need to do that in schools? We still don’t know," she said, adding that there is also no public plan yet for testing and contact tracing in schools in the event of a second wave.
Those plans are in the works with public health officials, Lecce said. "As I’ve been clear, we will do whatever it takes to keep kids safe in this province, Speaker."
FAO autism report
Horwath and Social Services Minister Todd Smith argued whether the Financial Accountability Office's report on the Ontario Autism Program is a de facto condemnation of the government's approach, or a "reason to celebrate." Read more about the report here.
Environmental deregulation
The NDP's environment critic, Ian Arthur, called out the government for <a href="https://www.qpbriefing.com/2020/07/10/newly-proposed-ea-process-would-mean-less-citizen-input-and-more-lawsuits-say-environmentalists/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">loosening rules</a> <a href="https://www.qpbriefing.com/2020/07/16/ford-government-revokes-environmental-assessment-rules-for-forestry/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">under the Environmental Assessment Act</a>.
"It is due diligence; it is not unnecessary red tape," he said, accusing the Tories of "taking us 40 years into the past with their changes" to the Act.
Environment Minister Jeff Yurek pointed out that the Act is 50 years old. He said the government is "modernizing" the regulations. "It’s time to re-look. The world has changed. What we know about science and what we know about the environment has changed. And what has applied in 1975 to today, it’s a different world."
But the Act has been updated — in 1996 by former PC premier Mike Harris, Arthur noted. He said he has written to the auditor general to look into whether the government violated the law by not publicly posting its proposed amendments.
"Will the premier admit that this legislation violates the law and withdraw it from Bill 197?" Arthur asked.
Yurek accused the NDP of not having a plan for Ontario's environment — though the party has spent a good deal of time talking about its "<a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-ndp-meeting-hamilton-1.5177152" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Green New Democratic Deal</a>" — before he was cut off. "All they say is, 'No, no, no,' instead of saying, 'Let’s work together and—'"

Your Question Period Briefing: ‘Direct information right now’

Read this for free.