ODA Update
March 7, 2001

Here is even more Media coverage recently given to the Ontarians with Disabilities Act issue. As of March 7, 2001, there are only 261 days until November 23, 2001, the Legislature's deadline for a strong and effective Ontarians with Disabilities Act to be enacted into law.   ***** London Free Press Monday March 5, 2001 Page A-3 Disabled target Queen's Park 'We've tried to meet with the premier for six years,' spokesperson says By JOE MATYAS, Free Press staff Premier Mike Harris was accused at a London public meeting yesterday of breaking his promises to disabled people in Ontario. Harris was criticized for his government's failure to pass strong legislation to create a barrier-free province for people with physical, sensory and mental disabilities. "We've tried to meet with the premier for six years," said David Lepofsky, chairperson of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Committee, a provincewide, grassroots organization of disabled people, their families, friends and advocates. "Mr. Harris said he'd work with us to develop the act, but he's refused to meet with us. He's broken every promise he made to us." In 1995, Harris promised to pass an act by the end of his Progressive Conservative government's first term, but it didn't happen, Lepofsky told about 80 people at Mount Hope auditorium. "Mr. Harris has given us three ministers with no mandate to produce a strong piece of legislation and two bills that were quickly withdrawn because they were weak, voluntary and unenforceable," Lepofsky said. He said he hoped a satisfactory bill will be passed by Nov. 23 because of a unanimous resolution passed by the legislature, mounting public opinion and growing municipal support. Twenty-one municipalities -- including London -- have passed resolutions urging the province to act on a new bill, Lepofsky said. In addition, the Ontario legislature voted 88-0 to pass a bill by Nov. 23. The vote, on a motion by Elgin-St. Thomas-Middlesex Liberal MPP Steve Peters, showed members of all parties were in favour, Lepofsky said. He blamed Harris and key ministers for failing to deliver on the promises so far. "We're a non-partisan movement," Lepofsky said. "If the government came forward with a good law, we'd congratulate them and give credit where it's due." Peters, London West Tory MPP Bob Wood and London Coun. Sandy Levin attended the meeting. Invited to speak, Wood said he's prepared to introduce a private member's bill at Queen's Park to strike a task force to survey Ontarians with disabilities about problems of access to jobs, housing, goods and services. He also invited members of the ODA committee to meet a Conservative caucus committee on justice and social services that he chairs. Lepofsky thanked Wood and said his group would work with any MPP prepared to assist the cause. Audience member Richard Yake appreciated Wood's goodwill but wondered what good a private member's bill would do when barriers to the disabled are already well-known. Michael Lewis, another audience member, said a new act would be worth it if it could prevent "one more Covent Garden Market from being built." That building is an accessibility nightmare for the disabled, he said. Levin said city councillors and administrators are determined not to let it happen again. "We learned a lot from Covent Garden Market and we're determined to make the new central public library and downtown arena a lot more accessible," he said. Levin also said council has passed a new accessibility policy and is currently reviewing "our own accessibility and what has to be done to improve it." Crystal Easton and her hearing ear dog, Nelson, attend a meeting in London yesterday that focused on securing provincial legislation to improve conditions for people with disabilities. The forum was co-hosted by the MS Society of Canada and the London chapter of the Ontarians with Disabilities Act Comittee. PHOTO. ***** Canadian Press Wire Service March 2, 2001 National general news HEADLINE:Tories cut off legislative session leaving crime and health bills to die By Colin Perkel TORONTO (CP) Ontario's Conservative government pulled the plug on the legislative session Friday, leaving several key bills to die on the order paper. The legislature will now resume with a throne speech on April 19, Premier MikeHarris said. "Our priority for this session will be taking specific actions to maintain Ontario's strong economic outlook," said Harris. "Reduced taxes, fiscal responsibility and fostering strong communities are essential to maintaining Ontario's healthy growth and unsurpassed quality of life." The opposition attacked the decision to end the session as a cynical ploy to silence debate and prevent important pieces of legislation from proceeding. "This has nothing to with governing and everything to do with the Tories wanting to dodge question period as the Walkerton inquiry resumes," said New Democrat Leader Howard Hampton. Hampton was angry at the government's decision, especially in light of the fact that five bills sponsored by the party will now die. Among those bills is one to protect Ontario's drinking water and another to regulate the use of restraints on elderly hospital patients. "We ask the government not to throw the baby out with the bath water," said Hampton. Liberal house leader Dwight Duncan urged Harris to recall the legislature on March 19 as had been scheduled rather than wait until a month later. "We want the opportunity to debate the issues as well as the ideas we've put forward for solving them," said Duncan. But it's not just opposition bills that may not now see the light of day. Several key Tory initiatives are also going by the way side, including much-ballyhooed legislation that would allow the state to seize the assets of organized criminals in the absence of any charges. However, the government has said it plans to reintroduce that bill. The controversial Personal Health Information Act is another casualty. That bill has been criticized for giving the government and bureaucrats far too much access to highly confidential personal information. The fall session did see the government push through 23 laws just before the Christmas break. They included changes to employment legislation and labour laws that have been attacked by labour as anti-union and measures to allow private universities to set up shop in the province. But activist David Lepofsky said the government has failed again to live up to its word regarding legislation promised five years ago to help dismantle barriers facing the disabled. "They promised they would release an action plan on the Ontarians With Disabilities Act in this session," Lepofsky said. "By proroguing, they have officially broken that throne speech commitment." The session began in June 1999 following the election of the Tories to a second straight majority. ***** The Toronto Sun Tuesday February 20, 2001 Don't get around much any more By Eli Shupak Olympic-bid president John Bitove promises to make Toronto the most handicapped-accessible city in the world should we win the 2008 Summer Games. That said, when it comes to the disabled, the government of Ontario Premier Mike Harris just keeps making and breaking its promises. Between the two of them, we can only hope something is finally done to remove the barriers that the Greater Toronto Area's 400,000 people with some form of disability face on a daily basis, problems they may encounter when trying to find a job, get to work, ride a bus, obtain an education, or use our health care system. This is, yet again, supposed to be the year that an Ontarians with Disabilities Act (ODA) is introduced. But we've been hearing that since Harris first promised an ODA during the 1995 election campaign. Former Culture and Citizenship Minister Helen Johns recently told the Sun's Christina Blizzard that the Tories are committed to bringing in the ODA by November. However, the proposed legislation would do little to enhance the quality of life of those with disabilities. (An Ipsos-Reid survey tabled in the Legislature in December showed 61% of those polled felt the government was not committed to introducing the legislation, while 66% felt the current level of services for the disabled was insufficient.) A leaked cabin document obtained by the Liberals indicated that cost was the chief impediment. It said the Tory government considered, but then rejected, the idea of establishing mandatory requirements for the private and broader public sector to reduce barriers to the disabled in services and jobs, along with a separate enforcement agency. The only substantive initiative in the document was a plan to strengthen penalties for the unlawful use of disabled parking spots. "It was .... in response to a breach in the integrity of the system," said Sgt. Brian Keown of the parking enforcement's disabled liaison unit. "We've had a very strong public response in ... reporting illegal use of these permits." The parking objective itself required little new investment the city of Toronto is responsible for issuing the permits. The cabinet paper suggested the province was vulnerable on this issue in that, while polling showed people had little awareness of the disability act itself, 71% said disability legislation should be mandatory regardless of the cost. David Lepofsky, chair of the ODA committee a voluntary group working to ensure passage of the legislation said this should serve as a wake-up call to the Harris government. Without a law, business owners will continue to avoid or evade complying with building regulations. Nothing will really change until the law forces compliance. (Forty-five percent of those polled by Ipsos-Reid believed businesses would never voluntarily make their premises accessible to the disabled.) However, as the baby boom generation ages, there will be increased political pressure on businesses and government to become more accessible to those with limited mobility. The 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act was the catalyst for major changes in the way Americans now design buildings. Full accessibility features add a mere 0.5% to the cost of a new building if they are included at the planning stage. It's when they have to be done after the fact that costs skyrocket. Similar legislation here would help disabled people from all walks of life live more independent and productive lives, including those who use wheelchairs, walkers, scooters and canes, as well as the visually and hearing-impaired and the elderly. Toronto's bid book for the 2008 Summer Olympics (which includes the Paralympic Games) talks of making Toronto the most accessible city in the world. But what, exactly, does that mean and what will be done to achieve this important goal if Toronto doesn't win the Games? The Toronto Transit Commission is making an effort to accommodate more people with disabilities on its regular service and millions of dollars are being spent to purchase low-floor buses and equip subway stations with elevators. This is encouraging, but does anyone know what's actually happening to the people with disabilities using public transit? For example, a broken elevator at the Bathurst Station (which happens more often than you might think) has forced me to go all the way to Islington Station, cross over to the other side and go back to Spadina, where I used the elevator to get back up to street level. From there, I've had to wheel along Bloor to Bathurst at all hours to catch a bus for home. To its credit, the TTC has set up an information line indicating the status of elevators in accessible subway stations. This includes St. Clair West, which has an elevator from street level to the mezzanine but nothing down to the platform. (The next accessible stop is Downsview.) For years, hockey fans in wheelchairs couldn't get tickets to watch the Leafs because of the inaccessibility of Maple Leaf Gardens. There are plenty of spots available at the Air Canada Centre, but the majority of them don't seem to be occupied by those with physical handicaps. Why not? Chris Overholt, VP of sales and service for Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment Ltd., said the ACC's handicapped spots are held up to 6 p.m. on game night, before being offered to able-bodied fans, adding the ACC is working to improve accessibility to the disabled and the availability of tickets. On another front, with most wheelchair-accessible taxis contracted out to Wheel-trans, few are available for other duties. Some taxis that offer this service charge a premium rate. Last summer, an emergency trip from SkyDome to Yonge and Eglinton cost me $36. Drivers say there wouldn't be enough business if they relied solely on metered fares. As for Wheel-trans scheduling, how does one explain a scheduled five-minute trip from SkyDome to the Toronto General Hospital following a ball game when it takes at least that amount of time to get a wheelchair loaded and strapped into a vehicle before the ride even begins? Things like this cause taxis to run late and drivers to go without breaks during 12-hour shifts, assuming there are no cancellations. Then again, you often see two vehicles or more at the same place at the same time, taking one or two riders to the same place. Since the typical bus capacity is five, is this an efficient use of resources? The Employment Supports program within the Ontario Disability Support Program has been operating for a year, having taken over from Vocational Rehab Services. But how effective have they been in placing people with disabilities into suitable jobs and accommodating their workplace needs? How stringent is their criteria for funding? If we want to think of ourselves as a world-class city, it's time the Tories made a meaningful Disabilities Act a part of their Common Sense Revolution.

 

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Last updated March 7, 2001