Hello here is your July COCA Newsletter

July 2022

Greetings!

Welcome to COCA's monthly Newsletter. Unless noted otherwise, all articles written by COCA President, Ian Cunningham.

View this newswletter as a web page.

Construction Employment Up in June 2022 – Statistics Canada Reports

Here are some highlights copied from Statistics Canada’s monthly Labour Market Report for June 2022:

Employment in Canada falls in June

Employment fell by 43,000 (-0.2%) in June, fully offsetting the increase of 40,000 recorded in May.
The number of self-employed workers fell by 59,000 (-2.2%), while the number of employees held steady in both the public and the private sectors.
Employment was down among workers aged 55 and over (-51,000; -1.2%). It was little changed among youth aged 15 to 24 and the core-age population aged 25 to 54.
Employment decreased in Newfoundland and Labrador and Quebec, while there were gains in Prince Edward Island and Manitoba.
Employment in the services-producing sector declined by 76,000 (-0.5%) in June, with losses spread across several industries, including retail trade.
In the goods-producing sector, employment rose by 33,000 (+0.8%) in June, with gains in construction and manufacturing.
Total hours worked increased 1.3% in June.
Average hourly wages rose 5.2% (+$1.54 to $31.24) on a year-over-year basis in June, up from 3.9% in May.
The unemployment rate reached a new low of 4.9% in June, and the participation rate fell 0.4 percentage points to 64.9%.
The adjusted unemployment rate—which includes people who were not in the labour force but wanted to work—decreased 0.2 percentage points to 6.8% in June, the second consecutive record low.
Long-term unemployment stood at 185,000 in June.

Employment in Ontario

7,714,000 people were employed in Ontario in June 2022, down 0.3% from the previous month
Ontario’s unemployment rate in June 2022 was 5.1% down 0.4% from the previous month

Employment in the Construction Industry in Ontario

In February 2022 there were 584,300 people working in the construction industry, in March 595,500, in April 595,400, in May 570,300 and in June 589,300

43^rd Ontario Parliament to Commence Sitting in August

On Friday, July 1^st Premier Doug Ford announced the 1^st Session of Ontario’s 43^rd Parliament will begin sitting on Monday, August 8^th and will remain in session for five weeks before adjourning. It will begin with a throne speech read by the province’s Lieutenant Governor which will lay out the government’s priorities for the session.

A new Speaker will be elected by all MPPs. It’s been rumoured that PC MPP Nina Tangri will throw her hat in the ring. It’s expected that PC MPP Ted Arnott who served as Speaker in the previous Parliament will seek re-election. We fully expect the government to introduce a budget very similar to the one introduced in the dying minutes of the last Parliament will be introduced and passed.

Majority of Ontarians Unhappy with Election Outcome- Angus Reid Poll

Election Recap

Only 43% of eligible voters cast their ballots in the recent Ontario general election
The PCs won 40.8% of the votes cast and won 83 seats (67%) in the province’s 124-seat legislature
The NDP won 23.7% of the votes cast and won 31 seats
The Liberals won 23.8% of the votes cast and won 8 seats
The Greens won 6% of the vote and won 1 seat
Independents won 0.5% of the vote and won 1 seat.

Angus Reid Institute Poll Highlights

Here are the highlights of an online poll conducted from June 7-13, 2022 among a representative randomized sample of 1,041 Ontarian adults who are members of Angus Reid Forum:

The main issues that concern Ontarians are inflation (63%), health care (49%) and housing affordability (36%); for each of these issues, majorities expressed pessimism over the Ford government’s ability to improve them
47% of those surveyed said they were unhappy with the election outcome (26% said they were very upset) while 42% said they were pleased with the election result
52% of respondents strongly or moderately disapprove of Premier Doug Ford while 45% strongly or moderately approve
A significant majority of respondents said that the PC government has done poorly on every issue surveyed (housing affordability, inflation, senior care, poverty, healthcare, opioid crisis, education, environment, energy, deficit spending, indigenous issues) except for the economy and the response to the pandemic. 51% of respondents said the PC government has performed poorly or very poorly on the jobs and economy file and only 43% said they had done poorly on the pandemic response
Ontarians are generally pessimistic about the PC government’s ability to address these issues

For the complete story, click on https://angusreid.org/ontario-post-election-doug-ford/

Premier Appoints Record Number of Parliamentary Assistants

Premier Ford appointed 43 Parliamentary Assistants. That’s how you keep a large caucus of 83 members happy. So much for brother Rob’s gravy train. Note that the Minister of Labour Immigration Training and Skills Development, Monte McNaughton, will now have two Parliamentary Assistants, one dedicated to immigration. Here’s the list:

Lorne Coe, Parliamentary Assistant to the Premier
Andrea Khanjin, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs
Robin Martin, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Health
Dawn Gallagher Murphy, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Health
Stephen Crawford, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Finance
Rick Byers, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Finance
Mike Harris, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Legislative Affairs
John Jordan, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Long-Term Care
Daisy Wai, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister for Seniors and Accessibility
Kevin Holland, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing
Brian Saunderson, Parliamentary Assistant to the Attorney General
Natalie Pierre, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Colleges and Universities
Andrew Dowie, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade
Effie J. Triantafilopoulos, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade
Billy Pang, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism
Graham McGregor, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism
Logan Kanapathi, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services
Nolan Quinn, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services
Sam Oosterhoff, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Red Tape Reduction
Christine Hogarth, Parliamentary Assistant to the Solicitor General
Bob Bailey, Parliamentary Assistant to the Solicitor General
Patrice Barnes, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Education
Matthew Rae, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Education
Laura Smith, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport
Sheref Sabawy, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport
Deepak Anand, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, with responsibility for immigration
David Smith (Scarborough Centre), Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development
Hardeep Singh Grewal, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Transportation
Natalia Kusendova, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Francophone Affairs
John Yakabuski, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks
Ric Bresee, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry
Anthony Leardi, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Mines
Brian Riddell, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery
Vincent Ke, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery
Dave Smith (Peterborough—Kawartha), Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Northern Development and Minister of Indigenous Affairs
Rudy Cuzzetto, Parliamentary Assistant to the President of the Treasury Board
Todd J. McCarthy, Parliamentary Assistant to the President of the Treasury Board
Stéphane Sarrazin, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Energy
Jess Dixon, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Energy
Amarjot Sandhu, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Infrastructure
Vijay Thanigasalam, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Infrastructure
Rob Flack, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs
Trevor Jones, Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs

Two Tories Rumored to Seek Speaker Role

The 1^st session of the 43^rd Ontario Parliament will commence on August 8, 2022. The election of the Speaker will be among the first orders of business. Two Tory MPPs are currently rumoured to be seeking the position:

Nina Tangri, MPP Mississauga-Streetsville (Ontario Progressive Conservative Party)

First elected to the Ontario legislature in 2018
Was appointed Associate Minister of Small Business and Red Tape Reduction in Premier Ford’s cabinet reset in June 2021 and served until the legislature was dissolved for the election in April 2022
Was overlooked for a post in Premier Ford’s recently appointed new cabinet
Prior to her successful election in June 2018, Tangri was Is a serial elected-office seeker having carried the PC banner both federally and provincially several times
She appears to be the favoured candidate of the Doug Ford government

Ted Arnott, MPP Wellington-Halton Hills (Ontario Progressive Conservative Party)

First elected to the Ontario legislature in 1990 and re-elected in 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2014, 2018, and 2022, Arnott is the longest serving MPP currently in the Ontario legislature
In Opposition Arnott held several critic positions and chaired a number of Standing Committee
An expert in House procedure, he served as Deputy Opposition House Leader and Deputy Speaker
After the 2019 Ontario General Election, the popular, centrist and fair-minded Arnott was elected Speaker on the first ballot
The PCs hold 83 seats in the 124-seat Ontario legislature so the unlikely Arnott’s election as Speaker over Tangri might reflect poorly on Premier Ford’s influence over his caucus
If Tangri is elected Speaker, look for Arnott to serve as Deputy

The Saga of Patrick Brown Continues

I know the focus of these pages is supposed to be the government of Ontario and issues percolating around Queen’s Park. But the CPC leadership contest and the saga of former Ontario PC leader Patrick Brown is just too much to resist. Here’s what we believe to be some of the facts.

Most will know that some time ago Erin O’Toole stepped down as leader of the Conservative Party of Canada (CPC) and that the race to identify his successor is currently underway
Until recently there were six individuals seeking the Tory crown:

Pierre Poilievre (MPP Carleton) has western roots and represents an Ottawa riding, a right winger who sided with truckers who occupied Ottawa earlier this year is considered the front runner in the contest for CPC member votes
Jean Charest (former Premier of Quebec, former Conservative MP and cabinet minister, former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party) a centrist who has been retired from politics for more than 10 years and considered by some as yesterday’s man, believed to be running second to Poilievre
Patrick Brown (former Barrie city councillor, former MP, former Ontario MPP, former OPC leader, and current Mayor of Brampton) is a friend of Charest and some believe there is a pact anybody but Poilievre between them which Charest has denied; was recently disqualified from the race by CPC officials
Leslyn Lewis (MP Haldimand-Norfolk) is a lawyer with a Ph.D. in international law who is considered a social conservative and is an ant-vaxxer
Scott Aitchison (MP Parry Sound-Muskoka, former Mayor of Huntsville)
Roman Baber (former Ontario PC MPP for York Centre, then an Independent MPP) has little of no chance of winning but is in the race to elevate his own profile and stature

We said “until recently” because Brown was recently thrown out of the race by CPC officials for alleged contraventions of the party’s rules and the elections financing laws
Brown contends that he was totally blindsided by his disqualification while Party officials have stated that through various communications he was fully aware of the allegations against him before he was thrown out.
Brown contended that the totally unfounded allegations came from the Poilievre campaign
As it turned out, the allegations were made by an individual who was working in Brown’s own campaign, Debbie Jodoin, who voluntarily came forward and said she was concerned that she was being paid for her services by a third party company and not by the Brown campaign, in contravention of the rules
Jodoin’s Linkedin page describes her as an experienced Tory organizer who has worked on many past campaigns and had worked for Brown previously; it’s been reported that she shopped her services to a number of campaigns before taking a position on the Brown team and it’s possible that she has friends and former colleagues working for other camps
Brown has hired high-powered Toronto criminal defence lawyer Marie Henein (successfully represented former CBC “Q” host Jian Ghomeshi) to launch an appeal to the CPC (it’s not known if CPC rules provide for an appeal) or to the courts if necessary
Brown has a decision to make – does he continue to vigorously challenge his disqualification from the CPC leadership contest hoping for a speedy decision (which in our view is unlikely) OR does he grudgingly withdraw and throw his hat into the ring for the job of mayor of Brampton again (the candidate nomination period ends at 2:00 pm on August 19^th)
Only those who were CPC members as of June 3, 2022 are eligible to cast their ranked preferential ballots not later than September 7^th and the winner of the CPC leadership contest will be declared on September 10^th

2021 Year in Review

In 2021 we learned how resilient and resourceful we can be as individuals, organizations, industries, and communities. Every time the ground shifted, we all dug a little deeper into our reserves of energy and optimism. Together, we kept moving forward. After all, building for the future is what we do.

COCA’s 2021 Year in Review takes a look back at 2021, and at our accomplishments.

Click to View

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