We’re now nearing the end of our spring session, and June is right around the corner. I want to take this opportunity to thank all of my colleagues in the House for their service to the province, as well as take a minute to highlight the great work that our government has accomplished in the past months.

Speaker, our government, led by Premier Ford, has made significant strides as we combat the housing crisis, improve Ontario’s health care, enhance our children’s education, make Ontario safer and strengthen our economy.

We’re building on our progress to speed up housing starts. From January to April, we saw over 27,000 housing starts, which represents a 16% increase over the same period last year. On rental, that’s almost 7,000 starts, double where we were at this time last year.

We’re also breaking from the status quo on our health care system that has stifled innovation and struggled to respond to growing challenges and changing needs.

On the education side, we’re taking action to boost literacy and math skills and ensure the province’s public education system focuses on what matters most: important, life-long skills.

We’re taking action to crack down on criminals and make Ontario safer, whether that’s on auto theft or ensuring that high-risk and repeat violent offenders comply with their bail conditions or helping address the rise of hate incidents against religious and minority groups.

As we’re continuing to spur job growth and build a strong economy for Ontario families, more than 600,000 people are working today than they were before this government.

Speaker, I promised my riding that I would work my back off on their behalf. This spring was no different. Let’s continue to get it done.

In 1905, Spanish American philosopher George Santayana wrote, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” I was thinking of this quote when I stood at a solemn ceremony yesterday at Legion Memorial Field, Maple Leaf Cemetery, in Chatham-Kent.

Yesterday, our Royal Canadian Legion Branch 642 celebrated Decoration Day, a tradition dating well back before Remembrance Day was proclaimed as our nationally designated day to celebrate the lives of the brave men and women who gave their lives in military service so that we could be free. As I stood along veteran soldiers and their families under a cloudless, sunny sky, at the graves of men and women from my community who wore our country’s uniform, I was humbled to think so many volunteered to defend our nation at its most perilous times.

Yesterday, people of all ages came out to pause and reflect on our precious democracy, on a world that remains mired in conflict and on the sacrifices of those who gave their today so we could have our tomorrow. The gravesites of our fallen were tidied, some attendees read aloud the names of the fallen and the small, humble tombstones were decorated, as is tradition, with new Canadian flags, a small gesture of remembrance and gratitude. Lest we forget.

A question everyone has asked themselves is, “How much should I tip?” It’s a question that often sparks heated debate. There are differing guidelines and social norms, adding to the confusion and anxiety around tipping.

But how about no tip? There are two restaurants in Parkdale–High Park, Barque Smokehouse and Then and Now, who are challenging the concept of tipping by getting rid of it completely. They have implemented the no-tipping strategy to ensure that the dining experience is free from guesswork, while providing workers with predictable income.

As a diner, what you see is what you pay; no more mental math or awkward calculations at the end of a meal. And for the hard-working staff, they know exactly how much they will earn, giving them the ability to plan their lives.

Speaker, I feel this is a trend worth pursuing and would encourage other establishments to have a conversation with their employees on the matter. The no-tipping model creates a more relaxed and enjoyable dining environment for all. It’s time to simplify the experience of dining and provide workers with the stability they deserve.

Last Wednesday, I had the opportunity to hear Prince Hussain Aga Khan at the Ismaili Centre in Don Valley East, speaking about his seminal work documenting the fragile beauty of our living seas. His remarks and photography were inspiring and humbling—a stark reminder of the vulnerability of our marine ecosystems. In its wake, I am reminded of the critical need to preserve our environment and fight against climate change.

This weekend, Ontarians made their voices heard in one of the largest volunteer-run referendums in our province’s history. The referendum, organized by the Ontario Health Coalition, was on the issue of whether our public surgical and diagnostic services should be handed over to private, for-profit interests. Mr. Speaker, hundreds of thousands of votes have been cast. When so many people take the time out of their busy lives to vote on one of this government’s most controversial and consequential policies, we should all take note.

On Friday, I travelled the province, lending my support to various voting stations across southwestern Ontario. I visited Brampton, Guelph, St. Catharines, Welland and Niagara Falls, and in every one of these locations, people had been impacted by emergency room closures and out of control wait times. Our health care system is headed in the wrong direction, guided by a faulty set of priorities.

On behalf of the hundreds of thousands of Ontarians who came out to vote to save our health care, Mr. Speaker, I ask of the government, please, for all of us, put your priorities back in the public interest.

Good morning, Speaker. I’d like to welcome the Canadian Lung Association, the Heart and Stroke Foundation, and the Canadian Cancer Society, and in particular Hillary Buchan-Terrell.

Glorious morning to everyone. It is my honour and privilege to introduce a tremendously talented woman who has definitely made Toronto a much better place to live. The former deputy city manager, Tracey Cook, is in the House.

I’d like to welcome Raed Kadri—he is the head of the Ontario Vehicle Innovation Network and also the VP of the Ontario Centre of Innovation—and Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association. They’re here with Project Arrow, the Ontario-built EV that’s outside.

I would like to welcome my father, Moid Khan, as well as my uncle, Farid Khan, visiting from Dubai. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

I would also like to take a moment to welcome Tracey Cook, former interim city manager and former deputy city manager at the city of Toronto, as well as Dr. David Jacobs and all the radiologists who are visiting today.

It is with great pleasure that I welcome to the House today Father Tom Rosica, celebrating 37 years as a priest with the Basilian order, former CEO of Salt and Light television and the national director of World Youth Day 2002. Welcome, Father Rosica.

I’d like to extend my warm welcome to my friend Senator Victor Oh and the senator’s team as well.

I’d also like to welcome the students from Red Maple Public School. They’re going to come in later on; they’re downstairs studying all the interesting things about our House here. I would also like to welcome the teachers: Ms. Goraya, Ms. Smith, Mr. Ng and Ms. Rosen.

It’s my pleasure to wel-come a gentleman who has walked with history in some of our toughest moments. A survivor of the Holocaust, Mr. Nate Leipciger, who is with us together with his wife, has participated in 20 March of the Living trips, received an honorary doctorate from the University of Toronto and numerous medals. He has worked tirelessly for tolerance in the world of freedom for anyone who is oppressed.

Joining Nate today are his wife, Bernice; Cary Green; Kevin Green; Lisa Pinkus; Arla Litwin; and Jennifer Green. And they’re also joined by Michael Levitt, the executive director of the Friends of Simon Wiesenthal foun-dation of Canada. Welcome to the Ontario Legislature.

It’s my pleasure to introduce Hillary Buchan-Terrell—she’s advocacy manager for the Canadian Cancer Society—and, of course, my good friend Cheri DiNovo, MPP from Parkdale–High Park for many, many years. Thank you for being here, ladies.

It is my privilege to introduce Dr. David Jacobs and the members of the Ontario Association of Radiologists, who are visiting for their Queen’s Park day and will be meeting with MPPs over the course of the day. The OAR represents 1,000 radiologists who specialize in medical imaging and strive to ensure timely access to diagnosis and better patient outcomes.

I would also like to welcome Sherry Wilcox, a lawyer and breast cancer patient, who is here with her daughter and will be sharing her story to shed light on the importance of lowering the age of breast cancer screening. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker. As you know, the OHL championships were completed on our constituency week. So I would seek unanimous consent for the member from Elgin–Middlesex–London to wear the maroon and white home jersey and the member for London North Centre to wear the white and maroon Peter-borough Petes’ OHL champion away jersey.

I’d like to welcome guests from Waste to Resource Ontario this morning to the Legislature: board Co-Chairs Paulina Leung and Gary Diamond, board members Denis Goulet and Bob Martin, and team member Ravneet Gill. Please come by their lunch reception in room 228 to learn more about the essential work they are doing for our communities in the waste and recycling sector.

On behalf of the official opposition, I’d like to welcome our guests from the Ontario Autism Coalition, including Kate Dudley-Logue, vice president; Steve Legault, an Ottawa parent; Sandra Huh; Karen Bojti and Michau van Speyk, along with former MPP Cheri DiNovo and Trustee Curtis Jordan from the Upper Canada District School Board, who is the first autistic individual elected to a school board in Ontario’s history. Welcome.

The member for Peterborough–Kawartha has a point of order.

Before moving on, I’ll remind members that all of you are invited to a lunch reception in honour of the senators at room 230 of the Legislative Building. Also, later on in the afternoon, we’re going to be having a round table discussion with members of provincial Parliament in room 340 of the Legislative Building starting at 1:30 so that we can have a dialogue with our guests from the Senate. You’re all warmly welcome to attend those two events.

I’m delighted to introduce to everyone Dawson Hallahan. He is from Belgrave, Ontario, and he has joined the Huron–Bruce constituency team this summer. Welcome to Queen’s Park.