It is my honour to present 17,107 names that were collected by Save the Minden ER. That’s 95% of the population. It reads as follows:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the Haliburton Highlands Health Services board of directors has, without consultation with the affected stakeholders, announced the permanent closure of the emergency department located in the municipality of Minden Hills, Ontario, effective June 1, 2023;

“We, the undersigned, petition” the Legislative Assembly “that a moratorium of this decision be implemented by the” Ministry of Health “immediately for a period of a minimum of one year to allow for consultations with all affected stakeholders to occur.”

I fully support this petition, Speaker, will affix my name to it and ask page Christopher to bring it to the Clerk.

Mr. Speaker, the health and safety of every worker is our government’s top priority. That’s why I was proud to go to Sudbury to be joined by the Minister of Mines, to stand with the United Steelworkers union, to lower diesel particulate requirements in mines to the toughest standards in all of North America. This was a request by the United Steelworkers union.

But, Mr. Speaker, I want to pay tribute to those 29,000 miners across northern Ontario who are building the future of this province. They are in well-paying jobs with pensions and benefits. These are the jobs that our government, under the leadership of Premier Ford, is investing in to ensure that we have more young people joining these amazing careers out there. As we’ve said before, and as the Premier often says, when you have a career in the skilled trades, you have a career for life.

Yes. Thank you, Speaker. My apologies. I’d like to welcome Robert Smith to the Legislature, who I’m having lunch with. He’s with Community Living Ontario as well. I look forward to speaking with you later today. Thanks for being here.

Thank you. Order.

Supplementary question.

The Minister of Children, Community and Social Services.

The next question.

The division bells rang from 1149 to 1154.

On May 8, 2023, Mr. Pirie moved third reading of Bill 71, An Act to amend the Mining Act.

On May 9, 2023, Ms. Kusendova-Bashta moved that the question be now put.

All those in favour of Ms. Kusendova-Bashta’s motion will please rise one at a time and be recognized by the Clerk.

Mr. Pirie has moved third reading of Bill 71, an Act to amend the Mining Act. Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? I heard some noes.

All those in favour of the motion will please say “aye.”

All those opposed will please say “nay.”

In my opinion, the ayes have it.

Call in the members. This is another five-minute bell.

The division bells rang from 1159 to 1200.

All those in favour of the motion will please rise one at a time and be recognized by the Clerk.

Be it resolved that the bill do now pass and be entitled as in the motion.

Third reading agreed to.

The House recessed from 1204 to 1500.

Report adopted.

Mr. Fraser moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill Pr25, An Act to revive Superior Corporate Services Limited.

First reading agreed to.

Ms. Brady moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill Pr24, An Act to revive Parrington’s Food Market Limited.

First reading agreed to.

This question is to the Premier.

Young people are particularly vulnerable to permanent brain damage due to diesel fuel exposure. With young people beginning skilled trades training as early as grade 11, can the Premier explain to parents why the government has not reduced the diesel exposure limits to the level long recommended by health and safety experts?

Mine workers have been lobbying this for years. In fact, members of the United Steelworkers have stickers on their hard hats recommending it be much reduced from the level that the government has recently moved to. For me, particularly knowing how badly WSIB is serving the interests of injured workers, I can’t imagine how parents will feel.

My question is: Why has the ministry not moved the rate down to the recommended level?

I would like to invite members to join the delegation from Lupus Ontario for a group picture at the grand stairs after the question period.

I’d like to remind the House that in room 247, the Nigerian delegation is there. You’re welcome to join us there today.

Deferred vote on the motion that the question now be put on the motion for third reading of the following bill:

Bill 71, An Act to amend the Mining Act / Projet de loi 71, Loi modifiant la Loi sur les mines.

Again to the Premier: Food banks in London and across Ontario are stretched to the limit. In just the last year, the London Food Bank saw a 40% increase in demand. The Emergency Food Cupboard at the Northwest London Resource Centre in my riding is seeing five or six new families a day. When people can’t afford food, their physical and mental health suffers. It causes more chronic conditions, more non-communicable diseases, more infections, depression, anxiety and stress.

Speaker, will this government listen to the Middlesex-London Health Unit, lift people on social assistance out of legislated poverty and increase social assistance rates?

Interjections.

Speaker, there are friends throughout the gallery; I think it would take up the five minutes that we have if I went through the list.

I do want to welcome all of my friends and supporters who are here today. Thank you for taking the time and for supporting me in the decade that I have served.

I would like to acknowledge that my mom, Yvonne Hunter, is here. My eldest brother, Maurice Hunter, is here. And I always call him my little brother—my youngest brother, Andrew Hunter, is here, as well.

I also want to acknowledge my constituency staff who are here. Mohammed Patel is here. Julianna Atanasovski is watching—and Jonathan Patch, and also my intern, Daniel.

Thanks to all of you for being here and for joining me today. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

The ayes are 78; the nays are 30.

Pursuant to standing order 63, your committee has selected the 2023-24 estimates of the following ministries for consideration: Ministry of the Attorney General; Ministry of Francophone Affairs; Ministry of Indigenous Affairs; Ministry of the Solicitor General; Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery.

Report presented.

Bill 85, An Act to implement Budget measures and to amend various statutes / Projet de loi 85, Loi visant à mettre en oeuvre les mesures budgétaires et à modifier diverses lois.

I want to thank the member from Carleton for that important question.

Time and again, the only thing we ever hear from members opposite is no. What they fail to realize is that reducing red tape is about the impact these changes are having on real people and businesses across our great province—changes like helping businesses embrace new technologies like carbon capture and storage. Reducing red tape on these projects will unleash innovation, and it will create hundreds of millions of dollars in new investments right across our great province.

While our government knows there is a tremendous economic and environmental potential for carbon storage, the opposition wants to keep the red tape barriers in place. Mr. Speaker, we are never going to let that happen. Our government will never stop fighting for a better future for Ontarians and make sure our province is prosperous.

I also want to point out that I’ve yet to receive a single idea from any of the members opposite. They don’t even have a critic responsible for red tape reduction. While this is disappointing, it is not unexpected. That’s because, as we all know, the Liberals, supported by the NDP, came up with the highest burden the province had in the country.

However, since 2018, our government has taken strong action to cut Ontario’s regulatory burden by over 16,000 regulatory compliance requirements, which helps businesses big or small with, on average, $700 million annually.

I have a petition here:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Haldimand county has requested a ministerial zoning order to accelerate the development of a proposed city of 40,000 people on industrial-zoned buffer land in the Nanticoke industrial park; and

“Whereas the housing development will grow the population of the Port Dover-Nanticoke area from approximately 7,000 to 47,000 people; and

“Whereas this development will have a significant impact on infrastructure such as roadways; and

“Whereas 40,000 people living in the Nanticoke industrial park buffer zone is a threat to area jobs in steelmaking, oil refining and the related trades;

“We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to not grant the Haldimand county request for an MZO.”

I support this petition. I will affix my signature to it and send it to the table with page Sophie.

“In Support of Improving Accountability and Transparency in Ontario.

“To the Minister of Education:

“Whereas the government is committed to delivering a world-class education system that helps prepare students for the jobs of tomorrow; and

“Whereas the legislative changes proposed through the Better Schools and Student Outcomes Act, together with future regulatory amendments, would, if passed, lay the groundwork for a truly world-class education system, unified with a singular focus to improve student outcomes in important lifelong skills like reading, writing and math; and

“Whereas Ontario school boards are not consistently working toward the same priorities, school board performance varies across the province on indicators related to literacy, math, graduation and student attendance; and

“Whereas some parents can review and assess their school board’s performance while other boards do not proactively share this information; and

“Whereas in response Ontario is taking action through proposed legislation to set student achievement priorities and expectations for Ontario’s education sector, and proposed legislative and future regulatory changes, if passed, would allow the Minister of Education to set provincial priorities to:

“—focus boards in important areas of student achievement like reading, writing and math;

“—require school boards to report on progress toward these priorities and enable the Ministry of Education to support struggling boards sooner;

“—allow the minister to require school boards to make any report that the minister may require from the board available to the public;

“—require enhanced school board financial reporting on funding and spending, planned and actuals;

“—allow the minister to strengthen rules around financial accountability and transparency;

“—allow the minister to prescribe school board limitations in participating in business activities that could place school boards in financial risk;

“—allow the minister to enhance the financial accountability of school board-controlled entities, promote greater school board-municipality co-operation on delivering child care and enable an accelerated apprenticeship pathway;

“We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly as follows:

“To support the Better Schools and Student Outcomes Act, 2023, and ensure its passage.”

I’m happy to sign my name to this petition and provide it to Christopher.

I was very pleased to meet with some of the folks from Save the Minden ER today at Queen’s Park. I want to thank Richard and the folks who set up signing set-ups at coffee shops and corner stores to get 17,107 names. I just have a couple of pages here, though, Speaker.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the Haliburton Highlands Health Services board of directors has, without consultation with the affected stakeholders, announced the permanent closure of the emergency department located in the municipality of Minden Hills, Ontario, effective June 1, 2023;

“We, the undersigned, petition that a moratorium of this decision be implemented by the Ministries of Health and Long-Term Care immediately for a period of a minimum of one year to allow for consultations with all affected stakeholders to occur.”

I’m pleased to affix my signature and will send this to the table with page Maya.

What I hold in my hand is just part of 17,107 signatures.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the Haliburton Highlands Health Services board of directors has, without consultation with the affected stakeholders, announced the permanent closure of the emergency department located in the municipality of Minden Hills, Ontario, effective June 1, 2023;

“We, the undersigned, petition that a moratorium of this decision be implemented by the Ministries of Health and Long-Term Care immediately for a period of a minimum of one year to allow for consultations with all affected stakeholders to occur.”

I fully support this petition. I will affix my signature and pass it to page Frederick to take to the table.

I have a petition to address homelessness in Ottawa:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas, per the 2023 Ontario budget, the province of Ontario has allocated $48 million in additional funding to address homelessness in Toronto, yet only $845,100 for the city of Ottawa;

“Whereas this amounts to 60 times more funding for Toronto, despite being just three times the population of Ottawa;

“Whereas this shortfall in funding for Ottawa will severely compromise the city’s 10-year housing and homelessness plan;

“Whereas this will result in the cancellation of 54 new housing units scheduled to be completed within 18 months, and hundreds more over the next 10 years in the second-largest city in the province;

“We, the undersigned citizens of Ontario, petition the Legislative Assembly to provide Ottawa with its fair share of funding to address the homelessness crisis and alleviate the suffering of its most vulnerable citizens.”

I agree with this petition. I’m signing it and giving it to Liam.

I have a petition entitled “To Address Homelessness in Ottawa.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas, per the 2023 Ontario budget, the province of Ontario has allocated $48 million in additional funding to address homelessness in Toronto, yet only $845,100 for the city of Ottawa;

“Whereas this amounts to 60 times more funding for Toronto, despite being just three times the population of Ottawa;

“Whereas this shortfall in funding for Ottawa will severely compromise the city’s 10-year housing and homelessness plan;

“Whereas this will result in the cancellation of 54 new housing units scheduled to be completed within 18 months, and hundreds more over the next 10 years in the second-largest city in the province;

“We, the undersigned citizens of Ontario, petition the Legislative Assembly to provide Ottawa with its fair share of funding to address the homelessness crisis and alleviate the suffering of its most vulnerable citizens.”

Mr. Speaker, I agree with this petition. I will sign it and give it to page Mackenzie to bring to the table.

“Whereas the federal government is increasing the escalated carbon tax by 14%, on April 1, 2023;

“Whereas carbon tax cost increase will put more pressure on consumers who are already struggling with inflation;

“Whereas we call on the federal government to stop the carbon tax, which is a tax hike that Ontarians and Canadians cannot afford;

“Whereas the government of Ontario is helping to reduce the cost of living by keeping taxes low, freezing and eliminating licence plate renewal fees and scrapping the requirement to have licence plate stickers for passenger vehicle, light-duty trucks, motorcycles and mopeds and building on these measures in Bill 85, Building a Strong Ontario Act (Budget Measures), 2023, the government continues to help Ontarians with the cost of living;

“Whereas we call on the Ontario government to urge the federal government to halt the carbon tax increase, that will raise the cost of everything;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

“To support the passage of Bill 85....”

I support this petition and sign my name to it and give it to page Akshitha.

I recognize the government House leader on a point of order.

I’m pleased to recognize the member for Scarborough–Guildwood.