From the Provincial Office of OSSTF
NEW BILLS INTRODUCED
BILL 182, COMPASSIONATE CARE ACT
PC MPP Sam Oosterhoff (Niagara West—Glanbrook) introduced this bill that would require the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care to develop a provincial framework designed to support improved access to hospice palliative care. It would also require the Minister to table a report setting out the provincial framework in the Legislative Assembly within one year after the Bill comes into force. And, within five years after the report is tabled, the Minister must prepare and table a report on the state of hospice palliative care in Ontario.
BILL 183, FAIRNESS IN PETROLEUM PRODUCTS PRICING ACT
NDP MPP Gilles Bisson’s (Timmins—James Bay) bill would allow the Ontario Energy Board to regulate the retail price of gas to ensure transparency and to prevent price volatility in rural and northern regions.
BILLS REFERRED TO COMMITTEE
BILL 74, TRANS DAY OF REMEMBRANCE ACT
NDP MPP Cheri DiNovo’s bill passed 2nd Reading by voice vote and was referred to the Standing Committee on Social Policy. The bill would proclaim November 20 in each year as the Trans Day of Remembrance. DiNovo’s bill would also require MPPs to observe a moment of silence in honour of trans people who have died as a result of anti-trans violence.
BILL 177, STRONGER, FAIRER ONTARIO ACT (BUDGET MEASURES)
Finance Minister Charles Sousa’s (Mississauga South) bill, a result of his Fall Economic Statement, passed 2nd Reading by a vote of 46–39 and was referred to the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs. The NDP and PCs opposed the bill.
Sousa’s bill cuts small businesses taxes as a result of the perceived negative impact of a pending increased minimum wage on them. To allay those concerns, Sousa proposed that the Corporate Income Tax, on businesses with less than $15 Million in capital, would drop from 4.5 per cent to 3.5 per cent.
As per the recommendation of the French-language Services Commissioner, Sousa’s bill will also transfer the Governance of the Centre Jules-Léger Provincial School and Demonstration School to the Centre Jules-Léger Consortium. Under the proposed amendments to the Education Act, the new CJL Consortium will consist of the 12 French-language school boards working together. Currently the teachers working at this location are OSSTF/FEESO members. The legislation proposes to make them part of AEFO, the French-language education workers’ union.
Sousa’s bill also makes an amendment to the Family Law Act that would allow single parents of adults with disabilities to continue receiving child support after a child reaches their 18th birthday.
Other measures in the bill will also impact the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act relating to mental and chronic illnesses.
BILLS PASSED
None.
MOTIONS DEBATED
NDP Leader Andrea Horwath (Hamilton Centre) put forth an opposition day motion calling on the Liberal government to “bring Hydro One back into public hands by financing the purchase of shares using Hydro One shareholder dividends.”
Horwath outlined her case by saying, “This particular motion reflects the central plank of the NDP plan when it comes to our electricity system. It’s a plan that we announced back in January—some nine months ago—and it’s a plan that we’re very, very proud of. We firmly believe that the only way to get those bills down—not only for our families and businesses and industry today and over the short term, but also for the medium term and the long term—and keep them down and make sure that the system is operating on behalf of the best interests of the people of Ontario, is to bring it back into public hands. That’s what we want to do.”
Horwath’s motion was lost by a vote of 55–15, as the Liberals and PCs combined to defeat it.