Thank you to the member from Newmarket–Aurora for their question and their advocacy on creating more economic opportunities in their riding, and also across the province.

Madam Speaker, just last month, I announced the expansion of the Investing in Women’s Futures Program to 10 new locations across the province, bringing the total number of service locations to 33.

Last Friday, I had the pleasure of visiting Operation Grow. It’s in Midland, and I was there with the member from Simcoe North, the Minister of Colleges and Universities, to announce that they will be the next location receiving the Investing in Women’s Futures Program funding.

Operation Grow is a social enterprise operated by Huronia Transition Homes, and they empower women who have experienced violence to access skill-building workshops in their commercial kitchen and their state-of-the-art vertical farm. They grow food to feed their communities and also empower women to develop skills to be able to secure employment.

In addition to Midland, the Investing in Women’s Futures program will now be delivered in Toronto, Brampton, Mississauga, Pickering, Newmarket, Kingston, Killaloe, Elliot Lake, and Kirkland Lake. These programs will be led by community-based, locally informed organizations and will provide a range of flexible programs and services like counselling, safety planning, legal rights workshops, life skills and self-esteem workshops, financial literacy, employment readiness and skills development and business development. Some programs will also provide wraparound supports to enable women to participate, like transportation, child care, and mental health supports.

Under the leadership of our Premier and this government, we will continue to empower women across this province because we believe that when women succeed—