Every day I'm coming to believe more and more that my honourable colleague has a bright future in creative fiction. He spins a wonderful tale and it's always interesting to engage in that kind of fantasy. But as I like to say, the facts are not entirely irrelevant in this place. I'm going to give my colleague the Minister of Health an opportunity to speak to this in the subsequent questions.

I can say at the outset that we're very proud of all those people who dedicate themselves to working through our local Health integration networks and to delivering better Health care on the ground.

The idea and the ideal that informed this new policy was to ensure that instead of having all the decisions with respect to local Health care made here at Queen's Park or in downtown Toronto, we could delegate some of those responsibilities to people on the ground, who live in the communities, who understand the needs of their communities.

I'm pleased to take the question. I've had the opportunity to make reference to this before, but I think it bears repetition. Since 2003, when we first earned the privilege of serving Ontarians in government, we have increased hospital funding by 42%. I think that contrasts with cost of living increases of 11%. That represents a dramatic infusion of new dollars into our Health care system, because they were absolutely needed.

I want to assure all the people who work inside and dedicate themselves to patients, in our hospitals and through their various services, that we will, through this budget, notwithstanding our difficult challenges, find a way to increase funding yet again. That's the truth. We've always increased funding for our hospitals. We will find a way to do that again.

Again, just a few facts: Almost 10,000 new nursing positions have been created in Ontario since 2003. I mentioned before that hospital funding has gone up by 42%; that's $4.6 billion.

Again, referencing this report that my honourable colleague refuses to acknowledge- Not a Tax Grab After All-it says, in part, "The central question of this paper ... was what effect the new tax package would have on the poor. More precisely, given that a political decision was made to move to a HST system did the Ontario government design this properly to protect the interests of the poor?" Answer: "In general, our answer would be in the affirmative.

"The interests of the poor are relatively well protected in this set of measures." Again, I reference this study to my colleague.

Health CARE FUNDING

I'm not sure how many times I can say it or in how many different ways I might say it, but my friends stand against the plan that we have in place. They have yet to put forward an alternative of their own. It would be nice to see something at some point in time.

Let me tell you a bit more about our plan and why we are so proud of our plan and so sure that it's the right plan for our time. It's about ensuring that Ontario is competitive, not just for purposes of meeting our immediate needs today but for purposes of securing a bright future for our children tomorrow. We want to have in place the economic strength to ensure that we can continue to fund their schools, their Health care, their environmental protections and their jobs. That's what this package of tax reforms is all about. It represents about $4.5 billion in cuts for businesses and $10 billion in cuts for people. It's about ensuring that we take all the necessary steps today to strengthen our families, to strengthen our economy, to make sure that we have up to 600,000 more jobs.

Again, hospital funding has gone up every single year on our watch. It will go up again this year. It will not go up as dramatically as it has in the past because we're running close to a $25-billion deficit. My friend opposite believes that that's not particularly relevant; we think that's important.

My friends opposite also know that this is a function of governments everywhere acting in concert to stimulate our economy. We're borrowing money to stimulate our economy, in keeping with the very best advice. They're doing that in the federal government. We're doing it in Ontario. They're doing it in virtually every province and every part of the world. That's an important dimension that we have to take into account as we plan for this year's budget.

Health care funding will go up, hospital budget funding will go up, but it will not go up as dramatically as it has in the past, given our circumstances.

LOCAL Health
INTEGRATION NETWORKS
Mrs. Christine Elliott: My question is for the Premier. What qualifications do you look for in people you appoint to LHINs, Premier, other than donations to the Ontario Liberal Party?

I'm pleased to speak to an important issue. Obviously we're going to retain some expertise with respect to what it is that we might do with our assets, if anything. I certainly indicated that we think the responsible thing to do at this point in time is to review our assets to take a look at whether the money to be found within those assets is best deployed within those assets or somehow outside that in a way that gives expression to Ontarians' priorities today, like their Health care, like their education.

We're going to continue to look at that. We want to do that in a thoughtful and responsible way. Of course, we think that includes seeking the guidance, advice and expertise, knowing that ultimately the decision rests with us.

I want to assure my colleague that the work that this particular firm is doing came about as a result of a competitive process. The only other thing I can say beyond that is that we will listen carefully to any advice we receive, whether it's from my honourable colleague, his party or the other party, any Ontarians. But, ultimately, we accept the decision lies with us, and we'll do that in a way that is in keeping with Ontarians' values and their priorities that they have today.

The question we continue to ask ourselves is whether we may not find ways to better deploy existing resources tied up in assets in the priorities of Ontarians today, whether that's something like Health care or education.

CONSUMER PROTECTION

Every day I'm coming to believe more and more that my honourable colleague has a bright future in creative fiction. He spins a wonderful tale and it's always interesting to engage in that kind of fantasy. But as I like to say, the facts are not entirely irrelevant in this place. I'm going to give my colleague the Minister of Health an opportunity to speak to this in the subsequent questions.

I can say at the outset that we're very proud of all those people who dedicate themselves to working through our local Health integration networks and to delivering better Health care on the ground.

The idea and the ideal that informed this new policy was to ensure that instead of having all the decisions with respect to local Health care made here at Queen's Park or in downtown Toronto, we could delegate some of those responsibilities to people on the ground, who live in the communities, who understand the needs of their communities.

I'm pleased to take the question. I've had the opportunity to make reference to this before, but I think it bears repetition. Since 2003, when we first earned the privilege of serving Ontarians in government, we have increased hospital funding by 42%. I think that contrasts with cost of living increases of 11%. That represents a dramatic infusion of new dollars into our Health care system, because they were absolutely needed.

I want to assure all the people who work inside and dedicate themselves to patients, in our hospitals and through their various services, that we will, through this budget, notwithstanding our difficult challenges, find a way to increase funding yet again. That's the truth. We've always increased funding for our hospitals. We will find a way to do that again.

Again, just a few facts: Almost 10,000 new nursing positions have been created in Ontario since 2003. I mentioned before that hospital funding has gone up by 42%; that's $4.6 billion.

Again, referencing this report that my honourable colleague refuses to acknowledge- Not a Tax Grab After All-it says, in part, "The central question of this paper ... was what effect the new tax package would have on the poor. More precisely, given that a political decision was made to move to a HST system did the Ontario government design this properly to protect the interests of the poor?" Answer: "In general, our answer would be in the affirmative.

"The interests of the poor are relatively well protected in this set of measures." Again, I reference this study to my colleague.

Health CARE FUNDING

I'm not sure how many times I can say it or in how many different ways I might say it, but my friends stand against the plan that we have in place. They have yet to put forward an alternative of their own. It would be nice to see something at some point in time.

Let me tell you a bit more about our plan and why we are so proud of our plan and so sure that it's the right plan for our time. It's about ensuring that Ontario is competitive, not just for purposes of meeting our immediate needs today but for purposes of securing a bright future for our children tomorrow. We want to have in place the economic strength to ensure that we can continue to fund their schools, their Health care, their environmental protections and their jobs. That's what this package of tax reforms is all about. It represents about $4.5 billion in cuts for businesses and $10 billion in cuts for people. It's about ensuring that we take all the necessary steps today to strengthen our families, to strengthen our economy, to make sure that we have up to 600,000 more jobs.

Again, hospital funding has gone up every single year on our watch. It will go up again this year. It will not go up as dramatically as it has in the past because we're running close to a $25-billion deficit. My friend opposite believes that that's not particularly relevant; we think that's important.

My friends opposite also know that this is a function of governments everywhere acting in concert to stimulate our economy. We're borrowing money to stimulate our economy, in keeping with the very best advice. They're doing that in the federal government. We're doing it in Ontario. They're doing it in virtually every province and every part of the world. That's an important dimension that we have to take into account as we plan for this year's budget.

Health care funding will go up, hospital budget funding will go up, but it will not go up as dramatically as it has in the past, given our circumstances.

LOCAL Health
INTEGRATION NETWORKS
Mrs. Christine Elliott: My question is for the Premier. What qualifications do you look for in people you appoint to LHINs, Premier, other than donations to the Ontario Liberal Party?

I'm pleased to speak to an important issue. Obviously we're going to retain some expertise with respect to what it is that we might do with our assets, if anything. I certainly indicated that we think the responsible thing to do at this point in time is to review our assets to take a look at whether the money to be found within those assets is best deployed within those assets or somehow outside that in a way that gives expression to Ontarians' priorities today, like their Health care, like their education.

We're going to continue to look at that. We want to do that in a thoughtful and responsible way. Of course, we think that includes seeking the guidance, advice and expertise, knowing that ultimately the decision rests with us.

I want to assure my colleague that the work that this particular firm is doing came about as a result of a competitive process. The only other thing I can say beyond that is that we will listen carefully to any advice we receive, whether it's from my honourable colleague, his party or the other party, any Ontarians. But, ultimately, we accept the decision lies with us, and we'll do that in a way that is in keeping with Ontarians' values and their priorities that they have today.

The question we continue to ask ourselves is whether we may not find ways to better deploy existing resources tied up in assets in the priorities of Ontarians today, whether that's something like Health care or education.

CONSUMER PROTECTION

It's good to be back, Speaker. I want to take the opportunity to welcome all members back. There is much work before us. We've accomplished much together, but there's still obviously so much more to do.

With respect to our local Health integration networks, we are proud of the people who serve on those bodies throughout the province of Ontario. They are an effort on the part of this government to ensure that more and more of the decision-making with respect to the investment of Health care dollars in communities is made by people living in the communities themselves.

I thank the people who do that work on our behalf and on behalf of the member opposite, and I look forward to more questions.

Again, my honourable colleague is making statements that have no foundation in fact.

Just so we're clear, we're now requiring that our local Health integration networks provide a written declaration that they are in compliance with government directives, including those relating to procurement. I can also assure Ontarians there will be more random audits to ensure that this is in fact the case-that is, that LHINs are complying with the new rules we have in place.

LOCAL Health INTEGRATION NETWORKS

It has been said that hope springs eternal, but maybe from time to time it runs dry. It had been my hope that this year, my honourable colleague would begin to understand the nature of the real challenges facing the people of Ontario, particularly insofar as they relate to jobs, the economy, the desire for better Health care and the like. But so be it; he pursues his own chosen path.

Again, I continue to have confidence in our local Health integration networks. I have confidence in the new rules that we have put in place. We have confidence in my Minister of Health, who has recently sent a directive to our local Health integration networks demanding that they abide by those same new, strong rules that were not in place at the time that my honourable colleague was in government.

1040

I just want to quote from a letter sent by the Minister of Health, Deb Matthews, to our LHIN board chair. The letter is dated February 4, and it reads as follows, in part:

"Public confidence and trust is crucial to continuing this progress. As Health care leaders, we need to spend tax dollars wisely and we need to be accountable for our decisions. I can't overemphasize how important it is to ensure that every single dime we spend within our Health care system is spent in a way that would be acceptable to a thoughtful taxpayer.

"Last summer and fall our government brought in tough new rules to increase accountability and transparency. The rules must be taken seriously and I expect them to be followed."

I could not have said it better myself. We expect LHINs and all of our government agencies to abide by the tough new rules that we've put in place.

GOVERNMENT'S RECORD

I know my colleague is interested in the quality of Health care that we provide to all our families, and I want to remind her just a little bit about our record. During the course of the past six years, as we've enjoyed the tremendous honour of serving Ontarians in government, we have made dramatic new investments in Health care: 42% more by way of increase in funding for our hospitals; thousands more nurses; more doctors-800,000 more Ontarians now have access to a family doctor. We've reduced wait times. We have nurse practitioner-led clinics, the first of their kind in North America. That's the kind of investment, that's the kind of priority that we attach to Health care for our families.

So my colleague may say that there are outstanding issues with respect to Health care, and she is right. There will always be more work to be done there, but she cannot claim legitimately that we have not made Health care a priority for Ontario families.

GOVERNMENT'S RECORD

Again, we're very proud of the partnership that we have with all of our hospitals. We're proud of the continuing support that we provide at our hospitals, as I say, some 42% over the course of the past six years. Contrast that with a cost-of-living increase, I think in the range of 11%, and you can see that we are truly putting our money-it's not our money-taxpayers' money where their priorities are, which is their Health care system. We're proud of the fact that we are able to find some assistance for this particular Salvation Army hospital. It's a hospital which is delivering services that are so important to the members of the community that it serves.

Just so we're clear, and I think it's helpful to understand what we've done with respect to hospital funding: We've increased funding by $4.6 billion since 2003. That's a 42% increase. Every hospital in the province has seen its budget increase every year. I contrast that to the days that were there under the two previous governments.

These are challenging times. There's no doubt about that whatsoever. I know that my honourable colleague understands that. I'm sure that every member in this Legislature understands that. We're going to have to make difficult choices, but they will be responsible choices. They'll be informed by the values and priorities of Ontario families. Ontario families insist that we be there for them when it comes to their Health care and their education, and we most certainly will.

GOVERNMENT ADVERTISING

It's good to be back, Speaker. I want to take the opportunity to welcome all members back. There is much work before us. We've accomplished much together, but there's still obviously so much more to do.

With respect to our local Health integration networks, we are proud of the people who serve on those bodies throughout the province of Ontario. They are an effort on the part of this government to ensure that more and more of the decision-making with respect to the investment of Health care dollars in communities is made by people living in the communities themselves.

I thank the people who do that work on our behalf and on behalf of the member opposite, and I look forward to more questions.

Again, my honourable colleague is making statements that have no foundation in fact.

Just so we're clear, we're now requiring that our local Health integration networks provide a written declaration that they are in compliance with government directives, including those relating to procurement. I can also assure Ontarians there will be more random audits to ensure that this is in fact the case-that is, that LHINs are complying with the new rules we have in place.

LOCAL Health INTEGRATION NETWORKS

It has been said that hope springs eternal, but maybe from time to time it runs dry. It had been my hope that this year, my honourable colleague would begin to understand the nature of the real challenges facing the people of Ontario, particularly insofar as they relate to jobs, the economy, the desire for better Health care and the like. But so be it; he pursues his own chosen path.

Again, I continue to have confidence in our local Health integration networks. I have confidence in the new rules that we have put in place. We have confidence in my Minister of Health, who has recently sent a directive to our local Health integration networks demanding that they abide by those same new, strong rules that were not in place at the time that my honourable colleague was in government.

1040

I just want to quote from a letter sent by the Minister of Health, Deb Matthews, to our LHIN board chair. The letter is dated February 4, and it reads as follows, in part:

"Public confidence and trust is crucial to continuing this progress. As Health care leaders, we need to spend tax dollars wisely and we need to be accountable for our decisions. I can't overemphasize how important it is to ensure that every single dime we spend within our Health care system is spent in a way that would be acceptable to a thoughtful taxpayer.

"Last summer and fall our government brought in tough new rules to increase accountability and transparency. The rules must be taken seriously and I expect them to be followed."

I could not have said it better myself. We expect LHINs and all of our government agencies to abide by the tough new rules that we've put in place.

GOVERNMENT'S RECORD

I know my colleague is interested in the quality of Health care that we provide to all our families, and I want to remind her just a little bit about our record. During the course of the past six years, as we've enjoyed the tremendous honour of serving Ontarians in government, we have made dramatic new investments in Health care: 42% more by way of increase in funding for our hospitals; thousands more nurses; more doctors-800,000 more Ontarians now have access to a family doctor. We've reduced wait times. We have nurse practitioner-led clinics, the first of their kind in North America. That's the kind of investment, that's the kind of priority that we attach to Health care for our families.

So my colleague may say that there are outstanding issues with respect to Health care, and she is right. There will always be more work to be done there, but she cannot claim legitimately that we have not made Health care a priority for Ontario families.

GOVERNMENT'S RECORD

Again, we're very proud of the partnership that we have with all of our hospitals. We're proud of the continuing support that we provide at our hospitals, as I say, some 42% over the course of the past six years. Contrast that with a cost-of-living increase, I think in the range of 11%, and you can see that we are truly putting our money-it's not our money-taxpayers' money where their priorities are, which is their Health care system. We're proud of the fact that we are able to find some assistance for this particular Salvation Army hospital. It's a hospital which is delivering services that are so important to the members of the community that it serves.

Just so we're clear, and I think it's helpful to understand what we've done with respect to hospital funding: We've increased funding by $4.6 billion since 2003. That's a 42% increase. Every hospital in the province has seen its budget increase every year. I contrast that to the days that were there under the two previous governments.

These are challenging times. There's no doubt about that whatsoever. I know that my honourable colleague understands that. I'm sure that every member in this Legislature understands that. We're going to have to make difficult choices, but they will be responsible choices. They'll be informed by the values and priorities of Ontario families. Ontario families insist that we be there for them when it comes to their Health care and their education, and we most certainly will.

GOVERNMENT ADVERTISING

I was pleased to get the report of Jack Mintz. He is an economist who is generally acknowledged to be on the right side of the spectrum. But there is another economist who is generally acknowledged to be on the left side of the spectrum. His name is Hugh Mackenzie. And this is what he had to say: "Ontario's 2009-10 budget establishes the right direction for the next few years. It provides substantial economic stimulus. It is consistent with the new orthodoxy that relies heavily on governments to help rebuild damaged economies. It imposes some coherence on an incoherent federal plan. It increases support for low-income families and individuals. It modernizes Ontario's consumption tax."

Again, my colleague can pretend that somehow, somewhere, there is a tight group of economists or thoughtful people who are opposed to this. The fact is, groups on the left and right are equally in favour of our progressive package of tax reforms. They understand 600,000 jobs.

AGENCY SPENDING
Mrs. Christine Elliott: My question, again, is for the Premier. Your former Deputy Premier, George Smitherman, has his fingerprints all over three of the agencies the Auditor General is reporting on. While wasting $837 million on eHealth contracts with little to no value, former deputy Smitherman also oversaw the assistive devices program, teletriage and long-term-care homes.

Just before the last auditor's report, you shuffled out the member for Don Valley East, who had been left to carry George Smitherman's dirty laundry. Premier, who will take the blame for the member for Toronto Centre this time?

My honourable colleague is well aware that Hamilton, like Ontario, like Canada, like North America, has not been sheltered from the terrible consequences of a global economic recession. It has affected all of us. But we have done a few things to help. For one thing, every single year we keep increasing the rates of social assistance. We've also accelerated the Ontario child benefit so that it is there for parents in our low-income families in a more meaningful way. Beyond that, of course, we are moving ahead with a package of tax reforms which are designed, centrally, to create more jobs.

If you ask the people of Hamilton, ask the mayor of Hamilton and ask Hamilton city council what it is that they need in their city, they will tell you that they want a stronger economy that creates more jobs. That is what we're all about. That was what the Pan Am bid was all about. That's what our HST package is all about. It's about creating more jobs for the people of Hamilton and, indeed, all the people of Ontario.

Health CARE

I can't speak to the particulars of this. What I can say is what I know. First of all, there was a practice in place with respect to paying some of the folks who work within the Ministry of Health through hospitals. That was a practice that's been in place for a number of years, under different governments, and we have decided to put a stop to that practice.

Secondly, I can say that when it comes to consultants, we've made a change in Ontario. Again, that was a practice, and this changes a practice that's been in place for a long, long time as well. We're now requiring, when it comes to consultants, that they no longer have the sole-source contracts. There has to be a competitive bidding process in place before consultants can access those contracts.

There's nothing wrong with having a bit of fun in here from time to time.

I want to acknowledge as well the support of both our food banks and our business groups, economists like Hugh Mackenzie and Jack Mintz, newspapers like the Toronto Star and the National Post. I want to acknowledge a consensus growing ever wider that this is the most important thing we can do together to secure a bright future for our kids and make sure we have the capacity to support our schools, support our Health care and have in place, at all times, measures to support our vulnerable. This is about building a brighter future-600,000 more jobs.

We've had a very Healthy and, with the passage of time, an ever-more-informed debate about our package of tax reforms, and that is now formally taking place inside the Legislature. But I think it's fair to say that around water coolers, and in fact many breakfast tables, this debate has been ensuing for seven months. As I say, that is a good and Healthy thing.

There will be three separate votes in this Legislature where members will have an opportunity to express themselves; there will be fulsome opportunity to debate it. The bill will also go to committee. I also expect, given the nature of this legislation, that it will be the subject of some considerable conversation between now and the next election. That, too, is Healthy in a vital democracy such as ours.

But I think, on behalf of Ontarians, there's an important question that we have to continue to put to the opposition: If they're against our plan to create 600,000 more jobs in the course of the next 10 years, where is their plan?

I've got to admit it's an interesting approach: What they really want to do is help the individuals involved, and that's their rationale for having them appear before the committee.

I'm not sure that they would see the opposition that way. But I think the point here is the one made by the auditor. He was very specific with respect to his findings. He said at least twice that party politics were not involved in this, that they were not at play in all this. I think we should respect that.

I think what Ontarians want us to do now is to move forward, do everything we can to ensure that we have in place at the earliest possible opportunity electronic Health records for all of us. That will facilitate our Health care, it will improve our Health care, and it will help us better manage our costs when it comes to our Health care.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

I can't speak to the particulars of this. What I can say is what I know. First of all, there was a practice in place with respect to paying some of the folks who work within the Ministry of Health through hospitals. That was a practice that's been in place for a number of years, under different governments, and we have decided to put a stop to that practice.

Secondly, I can say that when it comes to consultants, we've made a change in Ontario. Again, that was a practice, and this changes a practice that's been in place for a long, long time as well. We're now requiring, when it comes to consultants, that they no longer have the sole-source contracts. There has to be a competitive bidding process in place before consultants can access those contracts.

There's nothing wrong with having a bit of fun in here from time to time.

I want to acknowledge as well the support of both our food banks and our business groups, economists like Hugh Mackenzie and Jack Mintz, newspapers like the Toronto Star and the National Post. I want to acknowledge a consensus growing ever wider that this is the most important thing we can do together to secure a bright future for our kids and make sure we have the capacity to support our schools, support our Health care and have in place, at all times, measures to support our vulnerable. This is about building a brighter future-600,000 more jobs.

We've had a very Healthy and, with the passage of time, an ever-more-informed debate about our package of tax reforms, and that is now formally taking place inside the Legislature. But I think it's fair to say that around water coolers, and in fact many breakfast tables, this debate has been ensuing for seven months. As I say, that is a good and Healthy thing.

There will be three separate votes in this Legislature where members will have an opportunity to express themselves; there will be fulsome opportunity to debate it. The bill will also go to committee. I also expect, given the nature of this legislation, that it will be the subject of some considerable conversation between now and the next election. That, too, is Healthy in a vital democracy such as ours.

But I think, on behalf of Ontarians, there's an important question that we have to continue to put to the opposition: If they're against our plan to create 600,000 more jobs in the course of the next 10 years, where is their plan?

I've got to admit it's an interesting approach: What they really want to do is help the individuals involved, and that's their rationale for having them appear before the committee.

I'm not sure that they would see the opposition that way. But I think the point here is the one made by the auditor. He was very specific with respect to his findings. He said at least twice that party politics were not involved in this, that they were not at play in all this. I think we should respect that.

I think what Ontarians want us to do now is to move forward, do everything we can to ensure that we have in place at the earliest possible opportunity electronic Health records for all of us. That will facilitate our Health care, it will improve our Health care, and it will help us better manage our costs when it comes to our Health care.

AFFORDABLE HOUSING

It's up to the committee to make their own decisions in terms of what work they want to pursue and how much time they want to devote to that. I do want to thank them for the work that they have done.

I also want to relate back to the original work performed by the auditor and thank him, once again, for his good work. I thought he was nothing short of thorough. He made some specific findings and came up with some specific recommendations, and we adopt each and every one of those. He pointed out, in particular, a lack of oversight on the part of our government over activities that were unfolding over in eHealth and through Smart Systems. We accept that. We agree with that. We take responsibility for that. That's why we have put in place a number of specific changes to ensure that those kinds of activities are not repeated, and in particular, we are no longer going to allow sole-sourced contracts for our consultants.

No, I won't. I will not support the continuing efforts of the official opposition to engage in games. I think that's counterproductive. I think it runs counter to the public interest, and it runs counter to the very specific finding made by the auditor. I want to draw the opposition's attention to this yet again. The auditor's report says, "We were aware of the allegations that `party politics' may have entered into the awarding of contracts and that those awarding the contracts may have obtained a personal benefit from the firms getting the work-but we saw no evidence of this during our work."

No matter how many times I confront my honourable colleague with this finding of an independent auditor, he continues to reject that finding. Instead, he prefers to engage in political games. We won't participate in that. We'll continue to move forward and put in place an electronic Health records system for all Ontarians.

1050

We have a different approach and I think Ontarians can garner that on a day-to-day basis.

Rather than engaging in innuendo, I think Ontarians are looking for ideas, especially good ideas, and e-Health is a good idea.

According to Canada Health Infoway, we are 95% to 100% complete on our client registry, on our diagnostic imaging systems, and on clinical reports of immunization. There is more work to be done, but we are making real progress. Since 2005, more than four million Ontarians now have electronic medical records in place. All of our hospitals have now gone filmless and are using digital diagnostic scans.

There were some problems, admittedly, at eHealth. They had to do with oversight. The auditor spoke to that in a very direct way.

Now we choose on behalf of Ontarians, in their interests, to move forward, and that's what we're doing.

TAXATION

It's up to the committee to make their own decisions in terms of what work they want to pursue and how much time they want to devote to that. I do want to thank them for the work that they have done.

I also want to relate back to the original work performed by the auditor and thank him, once again, for his good work. I thought he was nothing short of thorough. He made some specific findings and came up with some specific recommendations, and we adopt each and every one of those. He pointed out, in particular, a lack of oversight on the part of our government over activities that were unfolding over in eHealth and through Smart Systems. We accept that. We agree with that. We take responsibility for that. That's why we have put in place a number of specific changes to ensure that those kinds of activities are not repeated, and in particular, we are no longer going to allow sole-sourced contracts for our consultants.

No, I won't. I will not support the continuing efforts of the official opposition to engage in games. I think that's counterproductive. I think it runs counter to the public interest, and it runs counter to the very specific finding made by the auditor. I want to draw the opposition's attention to this yet again. The auditor's report says, "We were aware of the allegations that `party politics' may have entered into the awarding of contracts and that those awarding the contracts may have obtained a personal benefit from the firms getting the work-but we saw no evidence of this during our work."

No matter how many times I confront my honourable colleague with this finding of an independent auditor, he continues to reject that finding. Instead, he prefers to engage in political games. We won't participate in that. We'll continue to move forward and put in place an electronic Health records system for all Ontarians.

1050

We have a different approach and I think Ontarians can garner that on a day-to-day basis.

Rather than engaging in innuendo, I think Ontarians are looking for ideas, especially good ideas, and e-Health is a good idea.

According to Canada Health Infoway, we are 95% to 100% complete on our client registry, on our diagnostic imaging systems, and on clinical reports of immunization. There is more work to be done, but we are making real progress. Since 2005, more than four million Ontarians now have electronic medical records in place. All of our hospitals have now gone filmless and are using digital diagnostic scans.

There were some problems, admittedly, at eHealth. They had to do with oversight. The auditor spoke to that in a very direct way.

Now we choose on behalf of Ontarians, in their interests, to move forward, and that's what we're doing.

TAXATION

My honourable colleague is not prepared to accept a fundamental precept of Ontario history: We have always come together during difficult times; we have always done whatever is necessary to build an ever-stronger province.

Today, what we are going to do is ensure that we maintain the economic capacity in the province of Ontario to continue to fund good schools for our children and their children, to continue to fund good Health care for our children and their families, to continue to fund good and strong environmental supports for our children and their families.

What I'm saying is, this is not an easy thing for us to do, but we have always, as a society, built good schools to serve all of us, built good Health care to serve all of us and built a strong economy that delivers good jobs for all of us. This is about all of us. My friend opposite believes it's just about the individuals; it's about the individuals doing something together for all of us, a stronger economy and a brighter future.

I appreciate the question. This is the first that we learned of this particular circumstance. We and our public Health officials haven't been anything but unanimous when it comes to who are to be found in the highest-priority groups and who are those who are most at risk, including pregnant moms.

I want to take this opportunity to thank the public Health officials in Peel and everywhere across the province for the heroic efforts that they have been making to adopt best practices as quickly as they can. I think if you turn on your TV this afternoon and this evening, you will see that those long lineups have all but disappeared. There are 2,000 places now that are giving out the vaccination. We have doubled the number of public Health clinics. We have made some real progress.

I want to thank Ontarians for their patience and understanding in allowing those in the high-priority groups to get in line first.

I just want to assure Ontarians that public Health officials and units right across the province are making real progress. They have learned from some of the shortcomings that were manifest last week. There are in fact many more clinics open. They are open for extended hours. I've just received a note here that's saying that when it comes to Peel, they are running clinics from 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. from Monday to Friday, and on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

So I think what's important to understand-my colleagues opposite continue to look in the rearview mirror. What I would encourage them to do is to develop a better understanding of what is happening on the ground today. There are now many more sites that are providing vaccinations, including the doubling of our public Health clinics.

Again, what I can say is that we have, working together, made some tremendous progress. I think that's evident in how the vaccination is now being delivered in Ontario. We have doubled the number of public Health clinics. There are now at least 2,000 sites, and that's probably a number that is growing in terms of places where people can obtain the vaccine: family Health teams; community Health centres; hospitals, certainly, for our Health care deliverers; and the public Health units. We've doubled that number from 50 to 100 right across the province. So we expect that we will continue to find ways to make more progress.

I'll say two things to Ontarians in particular: One, thank you so much for your patience; for allowing those people in the priority groups to get in the front of the line. They are most at risk, and we owe it to them to ensure that they get their vaccination first.

Secondly, I would say to the broader population: Continue to wash your hands. Continue to cough or sneeze into your sleeve. Stay home if you're sick. In the end we are still going to ask, we're going to plead with you and urge you to avail yourself of the vaccination opportunity. We want as many Ontarians as possible to get their vaccination.

FLU IMMUNIZATION

In fact, this news appeared in the auditor's report on page 32. He has a special section entitled "Electronic Medical Record Systems." Specifically, on page 32:

"In 2005, in partnership with the Ontario Medical Association, it provided funding"-that is, the ministry-"to enable an estimated 30% of Ontario's primary-care physicians, or 3,300 of them, to acquire EMR systems." He goes on to say, "More than 1,700 additional primary care physicians had applied for funding.... The board of the eHealth Ontario agency recently approved another $100 million in EMR support.... The eHealth strategic plan targets a 65% EMR adoption rate"-that is, electronic medical record adoption-"by primary care physicians by April 2012...."

He goes on to total all this up to at least $225 million. It's all here, in black and white, in the auditor's report.

What I can say is that so far we have 3,300 Ontario doctors who are using electronic medical records, which are covering four million Ontarians. With this new $236-million investment, we want to have another 5,700 family physicians using electronic medical records, covering another six million Ontarians, for a total of 10 million Ontarians who will then be covered by our electronic medical record system. We think that's exactly what Ontarians want us to keep doing, which is making progress when it comes to laying the foundation for our electronic Health record system.
RURAL Health SERVICES
Mrs. Maria Van Bommel: My question is for the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care. I know from experience with the Health care issues in my riding of Lambton-Kent-Middlesex that there are many challenges unique to rural communities that need to be addressed, so I was very pleased to hear about the formation of the rural and northern Health care panel earlier this year.

There are serious concerns being expressed about the process the panel is following and the lack of consultation to date. Hearing from Ontarians about Health care issues and services in their communities is very important, and I know my constituents expect to have a voice. Could the minister please address the concerns of my constituents?

I appreciate the question. This is the first that we learned of this particular circumstance. We and our public Health officials haven't been anything but unanimous when it comes to who are to be found in the highest-priority groups and who are those who are most at risk, including pregnant moms.

I want to take this opportunity to thank the public Health officials in Peel and everywhere across the province for the heroic efforts that they have been making to adopt best practices as quickly as they can. I think if you turn on your TV this afternoon and this evening, you will see that those long lineups have all but disappeared. There are 2,000 places now that are giving out the vaccination. We have doubled the number of public Health clinics. We have made some real progress.

I want to thank Ontarians for their patience and understanding in allowing those in the high-priority groups to get in line first.

I just want to assure Ontarians that public Health officials and units right across the province are making real progress. They have learned from some of the shortcomings that were manifest last week. There are in fact many more clinics open. They are open for extended hours. I've just received a note here that's saying that when it comes to Peel, they are running clinics from 9:30 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. from Monday to Friday, and on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

So I think what's important to understand-my colleagues opposite continue to look in the rearview mirror. What I would encourage them to do is to develop a better understanding of what is happening on the ground today. There are now many more sites that are providing vaccinations, including the doubling of our public Health clinics.

Again, what I can say is that we have, working together, made some tremendous progress. I think that's evident in how the vaccination is now being delivered in Ontario. We have doubled the number of public Health clinics. There are now at least 2,000 sites, and that's probably a number that is growing in terms of places where people can obtain the vaccine: family Health teams; community Health centres; hospitals, certainly, for our Health care deliverers; and the public Health units. We've doubled that number from 50 to 100 right across the province. So we expect that we will continue to find ways to make more progress.

I'll say two things to Ontarians in particular: One, thank you so much for your patience; for allowing those people in the priority groups to get in the front of the line. They are most at risk, and we owe it to them to ensure that they get their vaccination first.

Secondly, I would say to the broader population: Continue to wash your hands. Continue to cough or sneeze into your sleeve. Stay home if you're sick. In the end we are still going to ask, we're going to plead with you and urge you to avail yourself of the vaccination opportunity. We want as many Ontarians as possible to get their vaccination.

FLU IMMUNIZATION

In fact, this news appeared in the auditor's report on page 32. He has a special section entitled "Electronic Medical Record Systems." Specifically, on page 32:

"In 2005, in partnership with the Ontario Medical Association, it provided funding"-that is, the ministry-"to enable an estimated 30% of Ontario's primary-care physicians, or 3,300 of them, to acquire EMR systems." He goes on to say, "More than 1,700 additional primary care physicians had applied for funding.... The board of the eHealth Ontario agency recently approved another $100 million in EMR support.... The eHealth strategic plan targets a 65% EMR adoption rate"-that is, electronic medical record adoption-"by primary care physicians by April 2012...."

He goes on to total all this up to at least $225 million. It's all here, in black and white, in the auditor's report.