Fedeli pushing hard to get Hawkins Gignac Act passed

Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli
News Release

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Nipissing MPP Vic Fedeli is pleased that Bill 77, the Hawkins Gignac Act, passed Second Reading with unanimous consent in the Ontario Legislature today, and now wants the Premier to follow through to make it law.



“It’s now up to the Wynne Liberals to live up to their word and bring it forward for a final vote once it moves through Committee,” said Fedeli, noting that Bill 77 was part of the programming motion agreed to by the Ontario PCs and the government.



“Awareness raised through the Hawkins Gignac Act in my community HAS and WILL CONTINUE to save lives, and passage of this legislation will do likewise across Ontario,” Fedeli said during debate in the House.



The legislation was introduced for a fourth time by Oxford MPP Ernie Hardeman and would make it mandatory for all Ontario homes with a fuel-burning appliance or attached garage to have a working carbon monoxide (CO) detector.



Fedeli noted that the number of close calls is far greater than many people realize and is underreported. In January 2012 alone, the North Bay Fire Department responded to 17 carbon monoxide alarm calls, four of which resulted in CO levels being detected.



“CO detectors DO save lives,” said Fedeli. “I can’t understand why anyone would object to having a device that can save a life.”



In December 2008, Ontario Provincial Police Const. Laurie Hawkins, her husband Richard and their two children, Cassandra and Jordan, died of carbon monoxide poisoning in their Woodstock home. The couple was originally from North Bay, and their deaths touched many in the community.



In 2009 while serving as Mayor of North Bay, Fedeli and City Council passed a bylaw making it mandatory for all homes in the City that have a fuel-fired appliance to install a carbon monoxide detector.




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