My question is to the Minister for Seniors and Accessibility. May 28 marked the start of national accessibility awareness week. This is an opportunity for us to raise awareness about the importance of accessibility and to show our support for Ontarians with accessibility needs. We also celebrate community leaders and advocates with disabilities who are working to build a more inclusive society.

Mr. Speaker, can the minister please explain how our government is promoting national accessibility awareness week?

Mr. Speaker, can the minister please explain what our government is doing to make Ontario more accessible?

Thank you for that response.

No one, except the Liberals and the NDP members, wants more red tape in our province. By reducing unnecessary regulation burdens, our government can create an environment that drives new investments and grows our economy, while maintaining high public safety and environmental protection standards. We must continue our ongoing efforts to support Ontario’s hard-working job creators and enhance our competitive advantages for the years to come.

Speaker, can the minister please elaborate on how our government is fuelling future economic growth by modernizing Ontario’s regulatory system?

Last week, a letter from a teacher warned that students and staff at Tomken Road Middle School do not feel safe going to school. Tomken Road is far from alone. Violence in our schools is reaching a crisis level, but instead of investing in mental health supports and additional staff, this government offers nothing but platitudes. In fact, school boards are being forced to cut safety monitors and child and youth workers.

What will it take for the Premier to finally make the investments needed to keep students and workers in our schools safe?

Every day, students with autism and disabilities are being excluded from our schools, because the supports are not there to keep them safe at school. We did a survey of parents which shows only a small snapshot of the problem, and shows that at least 78 kids with special needs missed out on more than 555 hours of school in just the past two weeks.

Knowing the extent of the problem is the first step to fixing it. Will the government finally listen to parents, like the parents from the Ontario Autism Coalition, and finally track and publicly report on all exclusions in our schools?

To reply, the government House leader and Minister of Long-Term Care.

The next question.

The House recessed from 1148 to 1300.

Report adopted.

Report adopted.

Report adopted.

Ms. Bell moved first reading of the following bill:

Bill 113, An Act respecting the continuation of the corporation known as Trustees of the Toronto General Burying Grounds / Projet de loi 113, Loi concernant la prorogation de la société connue sous le nom de Trustees of the Toronto General Burying Grounds.

First reading agreed to.

Mr. Calandra has moved that for the consideration of private members’ public bills, standing committees be authorized—

Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? Carried.

Motion agreed to.

In response to the many concerns from Moore Park residents, we have introduced a bill to provide greater government oversight over Mount Pleasant Cemetery and affiliated cemeteries.

I beg leave to present a report from the Standing Committee on Justice Policy and move its adoption.

My question is for the Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions. Speaker, everyone in Ontario deserves the highest standard of mental health and addictions care. There is no health without mental health, which is why our government must continue to make investments to support Indigenous-led initiatives that are tailored to meet the needs of their communities.

Our government must remain committed to building an Ontario where everyone is fully supported in their journey towards mental wellness. This includes working with Indigenous partners and communities to improve access to mental health, addictions and well-being services.

Speaker, can the associate minister please explain what measures our government is implementing to make these vital services available in Indigenous communities?

I appreciate the question. The member is quite correct. I was very unhappy by what I heard last week. There were two instances that I’ve been unhappy with. In one instance, of course, there was an air conditioning challenge at one of our homes. The municipal home in that case has been fined $25,000 under new rules that we brought into place. And in the other instance—again equally unacceptable, Mr. Speaker—I’ve asked the inspections branch to immediately go into the home and investigate.

At the same time, directly to the member’s question, we are adding four hours of care a day per resident. This will be a North American leading standard. At the same time, we’re adding an additional 27,000 health care workers to meet that standard. We started on doing that a couple of years ago, and the Minister of Colleges and Universities has a program that has been leading to thousands of people getting back into the sector, Mr. Speaker. I’ve been very excited about that.

We’ve also met our targets as we’ve been increasing the level of care. We’ve met our targets over the last two years. We do have a plan in place. Of course, the member opposite voted against that plan. He voted against extra staffing in his own riding, Mr. Speaker, but we will get it done. Don’t worry.

I know the opposition is just ideologically opposed to anything that has to do with private individuals having any role to play in any part of society. We’ve talked about this before. The only thing that they care about is ensuring that people are dependent exclusively on government. We view things differently, Mr. Speaker. We want to give people the resources and the tools to succeed.

He talks about Orchard Villa; he talks about Southbridge. I am happy to report that they received their Canada accreditation to be one of the best long-term-care homes in the province of Ontario—

Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs be authorized to meet on Wednesday, July 12, 2023; and

Standing Committee on Justice Policy be authorized to meet on Monday, July 10, 2023, and Tuesday, July 11, 2023; and

Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy be authorized to meet on Monday, July 10, 2023; Tuesday, July 11, 2023; and Wednesday, July 12, 2023; and

Standing Committee on Social Policy be authorized to meet on Tuesday, July 13, 2023; and

Standing Committee on the Interior be authorized to meet on July 10, 2023, and Thursday, July 13, 2022—2023, excuse me; and

That the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs be authorized to attend the 2023 Legislative Summit of the National Conference of State Legislatures in Indianapolis, Indiana from August 13 to 16, 2023; and

That the Standing Committee on Public Accounts be authorized to attend the 2023 Annual Conference of the Canadian Council of Public Accounts Committees in Whitehorse, Yukon from September 10 to 13, 2023; and

That the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs be authorized to travel outside of Ontario and to meet during the summer adjournment upon agreement of its subcommittee on committee business.

Your committee begs to report the following bill, as amended:

Bill 102, An Act to amend various Acts relating to the justice system, fire protection and prevention and animal welfare / Projet de loi 102, Loi modifiant diverses lois relatives au système judiciaire, à la prévention et à la protection contre l’incendie ainsi qu’au bien-être des animaux.

Bill 98, An Act to amend various Acts relating to education and child care / Projet de loi 98, Loi modifiant diverses lois en ce qui concerne l’éducation et la garde d’enfants.

Bill 97, An Act to amend various statutes with respect to housing and development / Projet de loi 97, Loi modifiant diverses lois en ce qui concerne le logement et l’aménagement.

J’ai l’honneur de me lever pour présenter une pétition qui s’intitule « Soutenez le système d’éducation francophone en Ontario.

« À l’Assemblée législative de l’Ontario :

« Alors que les enfants francophones ont un droit constitutionnel à une éducation de haute qualité, financée par les fonds publics, dans leur propre langue;

« Alors que l’augmentation des inscriptions dans le système d’éducation en langue française signifie que plus de 1 000 nouveaux enseignants et enseignantes de langue française sont nécessaires chaque année pour les cinq prochaines années;

« Alors que les changements apportés au modèle de financement du gouvernement provincial pour la formation des enseignantes et enseignants de langue française signifient que l’Ontario n’en forme que 500 par an;

« Alors que le nombre de personnes qui enseignent sans certification complète dans le système d’éducation en langue française a augmenté de plus de 450 % au cours de la dernière décennie;

« Par conséquent, nous, soussignés, demandons à l’Assemblée législative de l’Ontario de fournir immédiatement le financement demandé par le rapport du groupe de travail sur la pénurie des enseignantes et des enseignants dans le système d’éducation en langue française de l’Ontario et de travailler avec des partenaires pour mettre pleinement en oeuvre les recommandations. »

J’appuie cette pétition. Je vais y ajouter ma signature et je vais l’envoyer à la table des greffiers avec Halle.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the World Health Organization (WHO) identifies intimate-partner violence as a major global public health concern, as it affects millions of people and can result in immediate and long-lasting health, social and economic consequences; and

“Whereas other Canadian provinces including Alberta, Saskatchewan and Manitoba and Newfoundland and Labrador have passed legislation on the disclosure of intimate-partner violence history, to protect its citizens from domestic violence; and

“Whereas the disclosure mechanisms outlined in Clare’s Law would be an additional tool for police services to prevent intimate-partner violence; and

“Whereas over 43,786 people, as of April 19, 2023, have signed the petition ‘Justice for Bobbi: Adopt Clare’s Law in Ontario’ on change.org; and

“Whereas people at risk of potential harm have the right to be informed of their intimate partner’s violent past—if the partner was a repeat offender of domestic violence;

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

“To urge the government of Ontario to adopt mechanisms for disclosure outlined in Clare’s Law—whereby information relating to intimate-partner-violence convictions can be used to assess risk of and prevent harm from intimate-partner violence.”

I think this is a great petition, and I will be happy to sign my name to it and give it to Amara.

Thank you to the member from Hastings–Lennox and Addington for this important question.

Ensuring that the services we provide are culturally safe and culturally appropriate is an extremely important part of building a continuum of care that works for everyone in Ontario.

Indigenous leaders have consistently told me, “Nothing about us, without us.”

Recently, I had the honour of attending the Kenora Chiefs Advisory mental wellness summit, where I heard directly from northern Indigenous communities about their needs.

I’m proud to say that after working with community leaders, we’ve developed land-based healing, detox and after-care programs with Kashechewan, Taykwa Tagamou First Nation and Mushkegowuk tribal council, with more to come.

Across the north, we’re making investments to build capacity, aid in crisis response, and support local community members and front-line health care workers in First Nations communities.

Speaker, our government’s investments are building out the culturally safe services that are critical to ensuring that in Ontario no one goes without the support they need.

I beg leave to present a report from the Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy and move its adoption.

I appreciate the response, but I will say, if you repeal Bill 124, that will certainly help with your staffing.

This is not the first incident of this kind in a private, for-profit long-term-care home in the province of Ontario. We learned recently that this government is going to fast-track the expansion of Orchard Villa, a private, for-profit home where the military had to step in during COVID, where residents were left with spoiled diapers, rooms were overrun by bugs, and where some seniors died due to dehydration. And we know that during COVID, the vast majority of deaths happened in private, for-profit homes.

When is this minister and this government going to stand up to the private long-term-care companies and say enough is enough?

“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 endorse this petition. I will pass it to page Christopher to take 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, Building a Strong Ontario Act (Budget Measures), 2023.”

I’m going to affix my signature to this petition and provide it to page Giulia.

I’d like to table the following petition:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“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 vehicles, 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 rise the cost of everything;

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

“To support the passage of Bill 85, Building a Strong Ontario Act (Budget Measures), 2023.”

I will affix my signature and pass it on to page Amara.

It’s my honour to present the following petition on behalf of Peri Ren, Samantha Bolger, Ayma Aqib and the class of 2025 medical students from the Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry at Western University. It’s titled, “Health Care: Not for Sale.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontarians should get health care based on need—not the size of your wallet;

“Whereas Premier Doug Ford and Health Minister Sylvia Jones say they’re planning to privatize parts of health care;

“Whereas privatization will bleed nurses, doctors and PSWs out of our public hospitals, making the health care crisis worse;

“Whereas privatization always ends with patients getting a bill;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to immediately stop all plans to privatize Ontario’s health care system, and fix the crisis in health care by:

“—repealing Bill 124 and recruiting, retaining, and respecting doctors, nurses and PSWs with better working conditions;

“—licensing tens of thousands of internationally educated nurses and other health care professionals already in Ontario, who wait years and pay thousands to have their credentials certified;

“—10 employer-paid sick days;

“—making education and training free or low-cost for nurses, doctors, and other health care professionals;

“—incentivizing doctors and nurses to choose to live and work in northern Ontario;

“—funding hospitals to have enough nurses on every shift, on every ward.”

I fully support this petition. I will affix my signature and deliver it with page Cyndi to the Clerks.

Il me fait plaisir de lire une pétition intitulée « To Raise Social Assistance Rates ».

“To Raise Social Assistance Rates.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontario’s social assistance rates are well below Canada’s official Market Basket Measure poverty line and far from adequate to cover the rising costs of food and rent: $733 for individuals on OW and $1,227 for ODSP;

“Whereas an open letter to the Premier and two cabinet ministers, signed by over 230 organizations, recommends that social assistance rates be doubled for both Ontario Works (OW) and the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP);

“Whereas the recent small increase of 5% for ODSP still leaves these citizens below the poverty line, both they and those receiving the frozen OW rates are struggling to survive at this time of alarming inflation;

“Whereas the government of Canada recognized in its CERB program that a ‘basic income’ of $2,000 per month was the standard support required by individuals who lost their employment during the pandemic;

“We, the undersigned citizens of Ontario, petition the Legislative Assembly to double social assistance rates for OW and ODSP.”

I’m proud to sign my signature and give it to page Luke to bring to the Clerks’ table.