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, Two outstanding items were in- icluded in Health Department esti- 'mates. assistance to public general hospitals to meet the increased cost of maintenance and provision of :pre-natal examination for expectant tmothers, the latter to cost $500,000. 1 "Studies made in relation to !hea1th insurance and services," Mr. (Frost said, "make it perfectly clear (that any expansion of these serv- iices is dependent upon the capacity Fi' our hospitals. Hospitals should gbe placed on a paying basis. A 'large additional sum is being placed (iii the estimates to provide for in.. creased contributions to public ward lbeds." Mr. Frost also mentioned plans for construction of the Ontario Food Terminal in the Toronto area (just west of the city) to aid marketing of farm products. Hospital Grants Provided Mr. Frost said the needs of farm settlers throughout Northern On. tario had been given special atten- tion. Improvement of marketing facilities in the North had been un- dertaken. A potato grading and storage warehouse at Cochrane had been put in operation. Co-operative facilities at New Liskeard had been extended. Veterinary services were being extended. Loans had been made to co-operative organizations and farmers had been assisted to improve their livestock. Residential short-term courses were being given farm boys in the Northern Clay Belt at Kapuskasing. with board and lodging provided free. Northern agriculture development also would be assisted. A pool of large scale draining and land-clear- ing machinery was being planned. Such measures were expected to in- crease Northern Ontario's farm population. years had asserted that' Protec- tion and conservation of fish and game were inadequate. "This Gov- ernment has accepted that tact," said Mr. Frost, announcing the in. creased estimates for the depart- ment. In announcing an increase from SM00,000 to 84,500,000 in estimates top the Attorney-General's Depart- ment. Mr. Frost said one of the Province's most pressing needs was more adequate police protection. To this end 8.300.000 would be spent to provide th 'ee-way, short-wave radio service for the Provincial Police. who had no such equipment at. present. To provide for increased appro- priations being made for youth and child welfare and increase in the number of old-age pensions, Public Welfare estimates are up about half a million dollars to $14,157,638. the Budget stated. Department estimates, he said, would be increased by $028200 to a total appropriation of $15,372 390. Feeling that the tourist industry would play an increasingly impor- Mr. Frost observed that the pay- ment of more than $3,600,000 in Government subsidies on cheesn. hogs, sugar beets and other agricul-' tural products had doubtless played, a large part in stimulating farm production. They are to be con-l, tinned "to encourage and augmenti production of vital foodstuffs re-, quired for export to Britain andl throughout the world." l To provide increased services to farmers who "have made a notable contribution to the campaign to feed a hungry world," a $1,750,000 increase in Agriculture Department estimates was announced, bringing them to $7,857,349. tant part in Ontario's economy, Mr. Frost said the Government recog- nized its great possibilities in thr creation of a Travel and Publicity Department, now in process of " ganization. For the department's. first year it would be allotted an appropriation of $150,000. For sev- eral years. he said, tourist gains had neutralized the unfavorable balance of trade which Canada had had with the United States. It was estimated that in the past the tour- ist industry had brought to Ontario more than $100 million a year and in the future would bring more. Expansion of Mines Announcing an additional appro- priation for the Mines Department this year of $106,000. making a total of $550,000, the Provincial Treasurer said the building of the new Red Lake road, to cost about $3 million, would ho hut an initial step in de- velopment of Northern Ontario. particularly the mining areas. "The mining industry in Northern On. tario." he said, "is on the verge of the greatest expansion in its his- tory." Mr. Frost pointed out, however, that needed developments could not take place without necessary finan- cial resources." The metal mining industry had paid, omitting heavy wartime taxes $214,974,977 in taxes from 1907 to 1942 to Dominion, Pro- vincial and municipal Governments In addition, the Dominion had col- lected in income tax on dividends paid by mining companies more than $35 million. All of Ontario's share of taxes and more had been spent in the North, part of it in the building of the T. & N.O. Railway. largely instrumental in creating some of the largest of the mining camps. About 11 per cent of On tario's population was partially de- pendent on the mining industry for its livelihood. "This," said Mr. Frost, "is an example of the was a strong, self reliant Province pulls its weight in the national economy." Plans were being made tor greater services to the mines, technical and scientific assistance and training of was pectors. Describing the proposed changes in the Mining Tax Act, Mr. Frost said that under the British North The new basis for payment of in.. creased educational grants became lully effective last year, Mr. Frost recalled, and gave comparative fig- ures showing total increases from a little over $8 million in 1942 and 1943, and $9 million in 1944, to $26,- 377,175 in 1945. In addition, a special one-mill subsidy for educational purposes amounting to over $3,064,- 076 had been paid to municipalities through the Municipal Affairs De- partment. America Act. the mineral 1'eSoul'CeS of the Province pelong to the Crown in the right of the Province. However, under the system of land grants under the Mining Act' and under the Public Land Act, mineral rights might be alienated from the Crown and thus removed from the possibility of prospecting and de.. velopment. To obtain reversion of dormant mining lands to the Crown it was proposed to increase the acreage tax from five to 10 cents an acre and to extend the scope of the tax to include mining lands within organized mining munici. plljties and improvement districts hawk al In addition to the legislative) grants, the Government had ad-l justed teachers' and inspectors') superannuation fund rates, with ii-) creased contributions. The increas- ed contribution from the Govern-l ment, in the new fiscal year, would' result in an additional $450,000 per1 year. Because of the change, the minimum teachet"s pension had' been raised from $365 lo $500 and Hhe maximum from $1,250 to $1,500.! fears ot teaching required [or full) 'pension had been redured from 40i, to 36 and pensions had been raised llo the basis of 60 per ccnt of the [average salary for the last 10 years, !instead of 50 per cent. é Mr. Frost outlined extensive facil- {ities for training of ex-servicemen. I,The Universities' Adult Education (Board. established last year, had ihegun to function. Grants to public Ilibraries would be substantially in- Icreased. The new Planning and Develop- ment Department's estimates will be $225,000 instead of $100,000. "The department is, by co-ordination and research. laying the foundations for a soundly expanding economy," the House was told. The Government was anxious not to compete with private housing or reconversion of industry in labor and materials. Accordingly. only the most urgent items would be commenced this year. Municipal Affairs Department es- timates 'would be about the same as last year, the Minister said, and would include $3 million for the one-mill education subsidy. Public works estimates will be increased from $1,391,500 last year to 84,700,000. Added responsibility rested on the Province, Mr. Frost said, through the termination of the war and the return of buildings loaned to the Dominion for war use which would require repair and " teration. Guelph Agricultural Col- lege would have to be extended to care for student veterans and men- tal hospitals also would have to be expanded. pend more than $46 million on high- ways this year, Mr. Frost told the House. "The time has come," he said, "when we can no longer delay very extensive maintenance work, and it is equally necessary and desirable that we should now pro- ceed to extend our highway sys- tem. To that end, the Government has appropriated $20 million in capital and $26,837,800 on ordinary account." For the coming year, Mr. Frost said, the Government was appro- priating for education 31.32.371.607. to which would be addcd $5.800,000 dis- tributed from the 1945-46 surplus. The total exceeded the comparable appropriation for 1945-46 by 83,- 980.439. Tlic Government expects to ex-