Province Législature Session Type de discours Date du discours Locuteur Fonction du locuteur Parti politique Ontario 29e 3e Discours du Trône 20 mars 1973 William Ross MacDonald Lieutenant Governor Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario Mr. Speaker, and members of the legislative assembly: I extend my warmest greetings to you on this occasion of the opening of the third session of the 29th Parliament of Ontario. On behalf of our sovereign I convey best wishes to the Premier and to my ministers and to all hon. members. Je tiens à vous souhaiter à tous une chaleureuse bienvenue en ce jour d'ouverture de la troisième session de la 29ème Législature de l'Ontario. Je veux présenter, au nom de notre souveraine, tous les meilleurs voeux au Premier Ministre, à mes ministres et aux hon. membres. The people of Ontario and hon. members of this assembly share the honour and pleasure afforded them by the gracious presence of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth, and His Royal Highness, Prince Philip, on the occasion of their visit to Canada this summer. This royal visit will provide Her Majesty's loyal subjects the opportunity to accord a warm welcome to their Queen and to His Royal Highness. Hon. members, the province's economy has been strengthened considerably in the past year and has enjoyed the fastest growth rate in the level of employment in over a decade. My government expects this trend to continue in 1973 with an increase in real growth of goods and services of six per cent this year, compared with an estimated 5.5 per cent gain in 1972. Despite the continued rapid growth of the labour force, the average unemployment rate has declined from 5.2 per cent in 1971 to 4.8 per cent in 1972, and a record 140,000 new jobs were created. This achievement compared favourably with Canada as a whole, where the unemployment rate last year remained virtually unchanged at 6.3 per cent. A moderation in the labour force growth in 1973 combined with the continuing expansion in job opportunities should further improve the Ontario employment picture. Indeed, on a seasonal basis, unemployment in Ontario was 4.1 per cent in February this year compared with 4.6 per cent in February, 1972. Ontario fiscal policy in the past two years has played an important part in alleviating unemployment, including such measures as personal income tax reductions and selective expenditure increases made by the province which have had a favourable influence on subsequent federal policy. In its continuing activities in the development of medium and long-term provincial economic objectives, it is my government's intention to use the resources of the Joint Committee on Economic Policy to study and recommend policies for provincial implementation and to develop positions concerning economic and industrial policy co-ordination between the province and the government of Canada. My government proposes to strengthen the Ontario Economic Council to support its independent studies of the Ontario economy. All are aware of the rapidly increasing rate of change around us. The steadily increasing and more concentrated population and the resulting pressure on land create a wide range of new policy imperatives. It is clear that the preservation of our physical resources is one of the most urgent requirements facing all governments today. The most important of these resources is land. My government will place before you proposals for major new programs designed to ensure sound planning and to preserve this resource for the use and advantage of future generations. Two major studies undertaken by the government have now been received and action will be taken with respect to their implementation. My government will introduce legislation which will ensure the presentation of the Niagara Escarpment. Such proposals will be balanced to permit mixed uses compatible with the preservation of the ecological and historic features of this physical land form which is a unique feature of our province. In this connection, my government will establish a Niagara Escarpment Commission to be responsible for the overall planning of physical resources and to ensure that government policy to preserve the escarpment is carried out. The total area subject to planning and control in the public interest will be in excess of one million acres. My government is prepared to proceed with plans for a parkway belt system from Dundas in the west to Oshawa in the east. This parkway belt will provide for the orderly channelling of services and utilities that are the essential support systems of urban southern Ontario, while affording opportunities for the preservation of open space and providing for the separation of individual urban communities. One of the primary purposes of the reorganization of local government structures is to encourage more effective planning at the local level, particularly in regard to the control and use of land. My government believes it essential that the public be increasingly involved in this process. In this regard, my government intends to initiate a major review of the Planning Act and other legislation related to land development. My ministry has received proposals regarding regional government both east and west of Metropolitan Toronto and will introduce legislation in this regard. My government believes that a strong and reformed local government is in the best position to determine its own priorities and proposes to transfer to strengthened local governments more authority and responsibility for many of the decisions that relate to local matters. My government will take steps to ensure proper policy co-ordination of initiatives involving land use controls where agricultural lands are concerned so that good farm land may be retained for agricultural purposes. My government will introduce legislation to implement recommendations contained in the interim report of the select committee on land drainage. As a result of its review of the report of the select committee on the Ontario Municipal Board, my government will place before you proposals to make the board a more effective vehicle for discharging its responsibilities. My government will continue to work for the fullest co-operation with the federal government and other provincial governments and looks forward to a number of joint meetings in the coming months. Amongst them will be the conference of welfare ministers next month which, it is hoped, will provide for the development of an integrated approach to income security programmes. The province is well aware of the implications for our municipalities of many of these policy negotiations and will continue to encourage active municipal representation and participation in provincial negotiations with the federal government. New policy initiatives in the energy field are a matter of active and intensive consideration. In its concern about changes taking place in the field of energy, Ontario fully recognizes that actions taken now and in the near future by governments both in Canada and abroad will have a profound impact on the supply and cost of energy and, in turn, on the very foundation of our economic progress. The province is equally aware of the need to place questions on energy in a balanced social perspective to protect the environment as well as the economic interests of the citizens of this province. New policy initiatives establishing agencies for energy may be expected, as well as changes in the role and place of the Hydro Electric Power Commission of Ontario. These proposals will be based on the reports of the advisory committee on energy and Task Force Hydro. My government has already acted in relation to specific matters involving potential and significant environmental considerations such as the Solandt commission on the proposed Nanticoke-Pickering hydro line-and the task force to study the potential of the lignite fuel deposits in northern Ontario. In the knowledge that similar matters will arise in future which will require intensive and expert study and analysis, my government will place before you legislation to establish a permanent agency for environmental protection, having the responsibility for a comprehensive system of assessment and evaluation of the environmental significance of activities of ministries of the government, utilities, projects funded in part by the government and related activities in the private sector which have comparable environmental implications. On receiving the recommendations of the task force of the Ministry of the Environment, my government will introduce legislation on the disposal of solid waste. With respect to the programme initiated last year to remove abandoned automobiles from the landscape, new regulations will be introduced providing simplified and more rapid procedures for divesting the title in derelict vehicles to hasten their removal. Other controls will be introduced with regard to locations where these vehicles are collected. Measures to control the sale of pesticides and also their use by farmers and foresters are being effectively enforced with the cooperation of vendors and users. Further steps will be taken to strengthen these controls. It is also the intention of my government to institute a noise abatement programme in co-operation with the municipalities. The objectives of my government with respect to environmental matters can only be effectively achieved with the co-operation of the people of Ontario, neighbouring provinces and states, and other nations. Therefore, my ministers attach particular significance to the fact that the province of Ontario is to be host to a conference sponsored by the Canadian Council of Resource and Environment Ministers this November. You will be asked to approve a programme designed to increase my government's activity in forest management. This expanded programme includes the regeneration of cut-over lands, establishing new forests on private land, improving growth conditions in existing forests and preparing idle land for planting or seeding. These measures are designed to help meet Ontario's long-term requirements from its forest resources. Hon. members, various development policy initiatives and programmes will be reviewed by you, including new guidelines for financial assistance to the tourist industry, further support for exports, and industrial development with special emphasis on assistance to small business. An expanded programme has been prepared to promote all-season facilities in northern Ontario and throughout the province. In view of the accelerated economic growth expected to take place in the United Kingdom because of that country's recent entry into the European Economic Community, the Premier, the Hon. William Davis, has arranged to lead a special mission of manufacturers and businessmen to visit Britain in May to fully explore the range of new opportunities for increasing exports and investments from Ontario to the British market. To serve the special needs of communities in northern Ontario, amendments will be introduced to the Airports Act, designed to improve existing aviation facilities in that part of our province. My government will propose to contribute up to 80 per cent of total construction costs for these new airport facilities. In addition, my government will continue to assume full responsibility for the construction and operation of airport facilities servicing unincorporated northern settlements, including plans for three new airstrips at Indian settlements at Round Lake, Fort Hope and Pikangikum, and a new runway for the airport at Moosonee. My government is also proceeding with plans for the development of a new intermediate-capacity transit system to help meet the transportation needs of our larger cities and is evaluating proposals from two manufacturers of intermediate-capacity systems. One of these systems is to be installed as a demonstration project at Exhibition Park in Toronto for operational testing purposes. As hon. members are aware, the Camp Commission on the Legislature is presently studying the procedures and processes of our legislative activities and is giving consideration to certain reforms with respect to party finances and election expenditures. The reports from your commission will be presented for your consideration and resolution during this present session. My government will ask you to approve the appointment of an independent commission to redistribute the electoral districts of the province, and redefine their boundaries. My government will propose measures relating to conflict of interest with respect to its civil servants. My government will provide increased assistance and encouragement to our amateur athletics through special community-wide athletic and recreational programmes, and will be giving full support to the first Ontario Summer Games which will be held in Oshawa this summer. Following my government's study of the recommendations of the Symons Commission on French-Language Secondary Education, a bill will be put before you to create a Languages of Instruction Commission for Ontario's education system. Plans for immediate implementation involve expanded services to the Franco-Ontarian community by the addition of more French-speaking staff in the central and regional offices of the Ministry of Education. My government will provide increased assistance to the native people of our province through support for cultural development projects, communications services and the local management of resources. More teachers will be provided who are fluent in the languages of native peoples, and better teaching materials will be made available in those languages. To help promote greater understanding of the rich cultural heritage of Ontario's native people, new courses will be designed for the Ontario curriculum, especially for elementary students. To conserve and maintain Ontario's heritage and history, my government will propose legislation and make funds available for the restoration and maintenance of selected buildings and structures of historical significance. Local public libraries and existing museums will be given increased financial support. The report of the Rohmer Commission on Book Publishing has been made available to the hon. members of this House. A number of recommendations have already been implemented by my government and proposals will be submitted to you in relation to the further implementation of the commission's final report. My government will present legislation in respect to negotiations between the teaching profession and school boards. My government has published a position paper inviting public reaction with regard to future policies and programmes for the mentally retarded with particular reference to community as opposed to institutional living. My ministers are confident that the response of interested organizations and the general public will be helpful in determining future programmes. In the interim, present care systems for our retarded and handicapped will continue to receive direct government support, including, additional capital funding for daycare nurseries for retarded children and experimental projects in new selected centres for the seriously retarded. A third regional centre for the hearing handicapped will be opened in London this fall and will provide residential and daycare programmes for 250 deaf and hard-of-hearing students. This new facility will serve as a resource centre for southwestern Ontario so that more children may receive improved educational programmes in their own communities. My government is appreciative of the cooperation of the Ontario Council of Health advisory group on medical care insurance for undertaking a comprehensive review of the health insurance plan. My ministers are determined to maintain the highest standards of medical and hospital care for all our people throughout Ontario and to deliver these services at a reasonable cost. Advice has been sought from the Ontario Council of Health on the question of community health centres which when considered with the current activities of the special committee on the future delivery of health services will provide a strong blueprint for future policy in these important areas. My Government will proceed with proposals for Health Discipline Act which, were tabled in the previous session and will introduce legislation during this session to establish a health disciplines board. Further legislation will be presented to you to strengthen the position and clarify the role of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. My government proposes to increase assistance to family service agencies and in addition, to establish a special counselling and welcoming centre for newcomers to our province, which will serve as a means to familiarize them with government services and benefits available to them. My government will propose adjustments in the benefits provided under the Workmen's Compensation Act in order to maintain an appropriate level of support reflecting increases in the cost of living and recent adjustments to provincial wage rates. My government will continue its substantial commitment in the field of housing and land development for low and moderate income wage earners. Housing programmes will be restructured during the year in light of new amendments to the National Housing Act and recommendations of the Ontario Task Force on Housing Policy. My government has recently initiated an integrated community housing programme for which Ontario provides development funds at preferred interest rates for the construction of private housing. In return, builders set aside up to 26 percent of this housing for families requiring assistance. In the area of consumer and commercial relations, my government regards as essential a co-ordinated approach to the development of provincial and federal policies. The government of Canada has been informed of Ontario's concerns regarding the development of a national competition policy, with the hope that through such consultation more effective legislation may be achieved. A Livestock Medicines Act will be introduced to control and regulate the use of drugs available for agricultural livestock purposes. My government plans to introduce the Consumer Reporting Act and the Co-operative Corporations Act, both of which have important implications with regard to credit and loan practices throughout Ontario. Ontario will press for a greater degree of co-operation and co-ordination with the federal government with respect to the administration of justice. In one area of special concern, the introduction of intermittent sentencing, while essentially a commendable principle, has resulted in a conflict with the well-developed temporary absence programme of the provincial Ministry of Correctional Services. This has also placed certain difficulties before our judges, and it is most important that clarification of the application of these principles be achieved. To increase the availability of trained personnel in the corrections field, arrangements have been made with selected community colleges for experimental correctional worker courses, using corrections staff to give advice on the curriculum and offering field training in correctional settings. My government will also implement certain recommendations of the Botterell report to improve health care services for wards and inmates of correctional institutions. The group home programme for juveniles will be expanded. My government proposes to improve the efficiency of the courts of law. Following studies by the Law Reform Commission and other agencies, plans will be introduced designed to provide a systems concept based on modern management methods. These measures will require a review of our tiered system of justice, the rules of procedure governing the operation of the courts, and new ways of dealing with certain infractions which are handled as criminal offence but which, as is widely agreed, should not be so treated. Furthermore, my government will introduce proposals for a system of Crown legal clerks to prosecute minor offence under the direction of the Crown attorney and relieve the police constable of this task. Amendments will be proposed to the Jurors Act to remove disqualification of people in many occupations and trades and allow greater citizen participation in the jury process. The grand jury, as an element in the criminal trial process, will be abolished, and its present function relating to the inspection of public institutions will be retained and performed by a public review committee. My government will establish a training programme for justices of the peace who preside in provincial courts, and the Justices of the Peace Act will be amended to clarify their role in relation to that of provincial court judges. My government will continue to seek the co-operation of the federal government to permit the province to introduce an off-track betting service. My ministry holds the view that support for our law enforcement services must be strengthened. To this end, improved police training facilities, an upgraded communications and information network, and the comprehensive review of policing in Ontario currently being conducted by a task force, are all essential elements of an overall response to growing concerns and expectations with regard to public protection. To help combat drug-related crimes and the illegal use of drugs, the Ontario Provincial Police will establish a special drug law enforcement programme to be undertaken jointly with municipal forces and the RCMP. The programme will place emphasis on controlling the trafficking of hard drugs. As a result of extensive investigations by our law enforcement agencies, and upon the advice of the appropriate ministry, my government will establish a royal commission to inquire into the possibility of criminal activities within the plastering, lathing and drywalling sectors of the building industry in Metropolitan Toronto. These and other matters will be placed before you for your consideration. May Divine Providence guide you in your several tasks and in the discharge of your serious responsibilities. God bless the Queen and Canada.