Point of order.

My question is for the Minister of Colleges and Universities.

All Ontarians deserve to have access to health care that they need when they need it.

Due to the neglect of the previous Liberal government, Ontario needs more doctors to alleviate the strain on our health care system. Unfortunately, too many Ontario students are going abroad for medical school because they haven’t been able to find residency spots here in their home province.

Our government must take decisive steps to educate and retain doctors locally in order to connect people to care closer to home.

Can the minister please explain what our government is doing to expand Ontario’s medical school system?

Expanding post-secondary education opportunities will make it easier for our homegrown doctors of tomorrow to receive training and provide world-class health care right here in their own communities.

This is one of many important initiatives our government is taking to help build up our health care workforce.

However, I know there are some regions of our province where the need for doctors and other health care professionals is more extreme. It’s up to our government to implement solutions that respond to these local health care needs.

Can the minister please explain how our government will prioritize medical training programs to support communities that have the most need?

I want to thank my colleagues from Kitchener–Conestoga and Newmarket–Aurora for their comments, and I wanted to direct a question to the member from Newmarket–Aurora. Also, the member from Kitchener–Conestoga had mentioned this, but you did as well, member from Newmarket–Aurora, talking about parents and how frustrated they’ve been with some of the issues that come up with schools and school boards and trying to actually have an influence on what’s happening with the education of their children in our schools. I certainly hear a lot of that from my constituents. Also, as a parent of children, I know that that’s something that we’ve experienced ourselves, and I know both you and the member from Kitchener–Conestoga mentioned that you had.

Can you just talk a little bit more about what you’ve heard from constituents and why you think this legislation is going to help?

I’m so excited to be able to ask a question, because this has been very entertaining, frankly. The member opposite talked about underfunding, but everything, according to the NDP, is underfunded. I would just point out that per-student spending for elementary students in Canada is $13,125, and in the UK, that same number is about C$10,000.

Beyond that, you’re talking about Elliot; Elliot has special needs. I am very passionate about making sure that we have resources for special-needs children. What this bill does is make sure that we know what the special-needs funding—which we’ve increased and are giving to schools—is being spent on. That’s what parents want to know, because I’ve had special-needs teachers in my office tell me it’s not being spent on special-needs teachers. I want to see it spent on special-needs teachers.

Every day, parents tell me that they receive information from their children’s schools. They get permission slips, updates on class activities, requests to take part in fundraising, artwork, report cards—the list is as endless as their backpacks are full.

Yet one piece of information they don’t receive is how their children’s school is performing. Ontario’s 2021-22 EQAO assessment results show weaker performance in math across all grades and reading and writing in grade 3. You were just referencing this.

I know that our proposed legislation includes setting provincial education priorities for boards. How does requiring school boards to provide progress reports on provincial education priorities for student achievement support student success?

We heard the MPP from St. Catharines just say that our priorities in bringing forward this legislation are curious. I think that was her word. I don’t understand what is curious about student achievement and going back to basics, making sure kids can succeed and get good outcomes. So I’d like to ask the member if he thinks those are good priorities.

“All students”—I’m quoting the member opposite—“deserve the opportunity to learn to their fullest capacity.” I couldn’t agree more as a mother of a special-needs child, as is my friend from Newmarket–Aurora. We certainly care about these things. This government has actually increased funding for special needs in schools by about $100 million every year since we have been in office—every year. But parents come to me and they say “Where is the money going?” I don’t know. We don’t know, in fact.

What this bill is trying to do is to say, “We need you to report, school boards, what you’re spend spending that money on.” Because I’ve had teachers and parents tell me that when school boards need money, the first place they take it from is the special-needs funding envelope. I support this legislation because I want children with special needs to have the advantage of that money.