It’s great to join in on this debate today. It’s my pleasure to rise and provide added details about Bill 102, the government’s proposed Strengthening Safety and Modernizing Justice Act, 2023.

As the Solicitor General shared with us, the government of Ontario is taking strong action to improve public safety across the province by transforming police legislation and making it easier for police services to recruit.

Once brought into force, the Community Safety and Policing Act will be the main vehicle for policing modernization in the province of Ontario. It will replace the current Police Services Act and make a significant change to Ontario’s legislative framework for policing.

There are still a number of operational and other changes for the policing sector, municipalities, First Nations and oversight bodies to be considered before the CSPA can come into force in order to support a smooth implementation. We are getting close to that day. The proposed amendments in the Strengthening Safety and Modernizing Justice Act, 2023, bring us a significant step closer. The proposed amendments that are part of Bill 102 are focused on clearer roles, stronger governance, and improved systems.

One key area is related to a proposed amendment to enable the potential expansion of the Ontario Civilian Police Commission’s—which is also known as the OCPC—authority after the CSPA comes into force. The OCPC will continue to act after the CSPA is enforced in relation to its adjudicative functions, such as the completion of hearings and appeals. The proposed amendment will allow the OCPC to continue to act in relation to its other functions, if prescribed in regulation. It is important work and must be part of a seamless transition to the CSPA.

The CSPA also broadens the scope of the current Ontario Police Arbitration Commission to include responsibilities related to police discipline after the CSPA is in force.

Under the CSPA, the OPAC—there are lots of acronyms in this ministry—will be continued and renamed the Ontario Police Arbitration and Adjudication Commission, also known as the OPAAC, with additional responsibilities related to the adjudication of police discipline matters. With this new function, the OPAAC will play a critical role in administrating independent discipline adjudication, where required under the act, to support the government’s goal to improve police accountability and oversight and strengthen public trust in the police disciplinary process.

A function of the OPAAC will also be to continue to assist police associations and polices services boards in resolution of labour relations disputes arriving out of negotiations and administration of their collective agreements. To support the effectiveness of the OPAAC’s labour arbitration function, there are also amendments related to removing police services as a party to arbitrations regarding the police association’s duty to fairly represent its members; providing flexibility to the arbitration decision time frame; clarifying the process for a dispute arising from an arbitrator’s award or decision; improving efficiency in the process for appointing an arbitrator for budget and First Nations funding disputes; and amending who is responsible for arbitrator fees in municipal budget disputes. Part of the adjustment needed, and it is included in this proposed bill, is to alter the composition of the future OPAAC by adding the role of one or more vice-chairs. This change is intended to improve good governance of the agency and to support the integrity of its arbitration and adjudication functions.

A third grouping of proposed amendments includes changes to provisions relating to recognition of education of police officers. This includes allowing municipal and First Nations officers to be eligible to obtain a King’s Commission on the same terms as an OPP officer. It also includes changes relating to police officer education requirements that, if passed, will provide that a secondary school diploma or equivalent is sufficient education for the purposes of being appointed as a police officer, thereby reducing barriers for those seeking a career in the policing business.

The CSPA was supposed to establish an Ontario Provincial Police governance advisory council to advise the Solicitor General regarding the use of OPP-related powers. It has been determined that such an advisory council is no longer necessary as a permanent body. The proposed amendments revoke the provisions for the governance advisory council. Additionally, there are proposed amendments to the governance provisions related to OPP detachment boards.

To be responsive to what we have heard from municipalities and First Nations, changes include allowing for no detachment boards in a detachment or having one detachment board responsible for municipal detachments. Also, most, but not all, regulation-making powers with respect to detachment boards will be transferred from the Lieutenant Governor in Council to the Solicitor General. This proposed amendment would include board composition as the ministry anticipates changes in composition from time to time and as decisions on participation or detachment boundaries change.

Lastly, we are proposing changes that would provide further clarity in the statute and improve alignment with other government statutes.

This government is modernizing the province’s police and community safety framework so that it is fair, so that it is equitable, and so that it is safe, transparent and effective. The proposed amendments to the Strengthening Safety and Modernizing Justice Act, 2023, are necessary to establish a modern and robust policing legislative framework that appropriately addresses the evolving nature of crime and meets the community safety expectations of Ontarians.

I just want to make sure I give a shout-out to Mark Baxter, and I want to thank all our police officers for the work they do. I want to thank our firefighters—all our servicemen and servicewomen in uniform—for the work they do every day. Especially, I would like to give a shout-out to 22 division in Etobicoke–Lakeshore. Thank you for you service.

I encourage all honourable members in this House to pass this bill.