The Legislative Assembly of Ontario has been resumed with NDP MPP Marit Stiles officially introduced to the house as the new Leader of the Opposition. The first order of government business was the introduction of Bill 60, Your Health Act, by Health Minister Sylvia Jones. The government issued a supporting news release, Ontario Reducing Wait Times for Publicly Funded Surgeries and Diagnostics. The NDP and the Liberals issued their own news releases regarding spring session priorities.
Finance Minister Peter Bethlenfalvy announced that the spring budget will be released on March 23, 2023. OPSBA will continue to monitor for any information about the release of the Grants for Students Needs (GSN).
Green Party Leader Mike Schreiner has issued a statement indicating he will remain leader of his party. As mentioned previously, the by-election for the riding of Hamilton Centre has been called for March 16, 2023. Elections Ontario will have a full list of candidates available after March 2. The four main political parties have indicated their candidates to be:
- Peter Wiesner / The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario
- Sarah Jama / The New Democratic Party of Ontario
- Deirdre Pike / The Liberal Party of Ontario
- Lucia Iannantuono / The Green Party of Ontario
OPSBA Recent Advocacy and Actions
- OPSBA has submitted a letter of support for a National School Food Policy. This follows a virtual roundtable discussion that was convened by the Honourable Karina Gould, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development, and the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. Our letter highlights the need for a policy that provides food/snacks at every school to be accessible, at no cost, stigma-free, culturally and locally supported, and that has sustainable funding for administrative supports for implementation.
- OPSBA was invited to provide feedback on a draft “Digital Privacy Pledge” by the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner of Ontario (IPC). The Pledge sets out a list of commitments for educational institutions when handling their students’ personal information, taken from a combination of statutory obligation and emerging best practices. The consultation for both these letters involved OPSBA’s Education Program and Policy Development Work Groups.
- On February 22, OPSBA issued a statement, “The right schools in the right locations: OPSBA asks government to lift moratorium on school reviews”
Other News Releases and Information
- February 23, 2023: News Release, Ontario Provides More Money for Municipal Public Transit
- February 22, 2023: News Release, Province Recognizes Three Young Leaders with the Lincoln M. Alexander Award
- February 22, 2023: Statement, Ontario Marks Human Trafficking Awareness Day
- February 21, 2023: Ministry Memo B2, 2023 Proportions of Enrolment for purposes of the Education Act, subsections 238(2) and 257.8(3)
- February 20, 2023: Premier Doug Ford Issues Statement on Family Day
