That concludes our introduction of guests for this morning.

The Minister of Health.

I would like to welcome my mayor and council members from the city of Richmond Hill this morning. Under the leadership of His Worship, I would like to welcome the mayor, David West; deputy mayor, Godwin Chan; and ward 6 councillor, Michael Shiu, as well as chief of staff, Emily Houdi. They are accompanied by my husband, Albert Wai. Welcome, everyone, to Queen’s Park, and I look forward to our meeting after question period.

I would like to welcome Janice Folk-Dawson from the Ontario Federation of Labour; Francis Pineda and Jim Zeng from the Injured Workers Community Legal Clinic; Wayne Harris from the Ontario Network of Injured Workers; and from the Industrial Accident Victims’ Group of Ontario, Maryth Yachnin, David Arruda, Aleks Ivovic, Patrick Cowley, Caleb Goff, Jenny Tang, Mohammad Naqvi, Julie Wang, Mark Wang, Alicia Cunningham, Zonia Guerrero and San Hun; and, from United Steelworkers Local 1005, Ron Wells, Jim McColl and Tony McLaughlin. Thank you so much for being here. Welcome to your House.

Speaker, I choose to believe that the leader of the NDP understands that hospitals are more than just an emergency department, that Minden hospital will continue to offer services to their communities. The consolidation of the emergency department, while challenging for that leadership, is part of those determinations that the leadership have made.

Again, I will go back to legacy. We talk about Bill 60 and as of right—the first in Canada that ensures that clinicians who have licences in other Canadian jurisdictions can today begin working in the province of Ontario as they go through that licence process here in Ontario. Those are the legacies that will ensure that we have health care capacity and health human resource capacity in decades and future generations.

Some of those programs of course include the 911 models of care that ensure paramedics have the ability to quickly assess and make sure that individuals go to the most appropriate place. The Dedicated Offload Nurses Program that is in hospitals today in emergency rooms to make sure, again, paramedics can release their patients and get back out on the road; the Emergency Department Peer-to-Peer Program; the Emergency Department Locum Program; the extern program; the nurse preceptors program—all of these programs are available to Ontario hospitals. We have worked very closely to ensure that when it is appropriate, we will be there, and we will keep making those programs available.

I withdraw.

Mr. Speaker, Pride is a special time for us to recognize and celebrate Ontario’s LGBTQ+ community. I’ve proved it by going into the York Pride parade. I’m going to be going again this year.

School boards have a responsibility to ensure each and every school in Ontario is a safe and inclusive space for all children.

I’ll always support Ontario’s LGBTQ+ community. I look forward again, for my third or fourth year, going down to the York Pride parade. We’re going to go down there. We’re going to celebrate. We’re going to have fun. That’s where I stand, and I think the Leader of the Opposition knows that.

The final supplementary.

Minister of Health.

The member for Toronto Centre has the floor.

To reply for the government, the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport.

The government House leader will withdraw his unparliamentary comment.

Start the clock. The next question.

That’s cold comfort for the people of Minden. I’ll tell you another thing: A diagnostic machine and doctor’s office do not a hospital make.

Lanark County, Guelph, Hamilton, Perth, Grand River in Kitchener, Windsor, Alexandria, Wingham, Thessalon, Kemptville, Seaforth, Ottawa, Bowmanville, Clinton, Orangeville, Carleton Place, Essex county, Kingston, Waterloo, Credit Valley, Minden, Smith Falls, London, Chesley, Port Colborne, Fort Erie: all communities that have seen either no ambulances available or the closure of services at some point in the last year because of this government’s staffing crisis. Expert after expert has warned the Conservative plan is only going to make it worse; 380,000 Ontarians just made their voices clear in the OHC citizen referendum.

Back to the Premier: Will he listen to experts and Ontarians and keep the hospital open and stop their plan for two-tier health care in this province?

Interjections.

Yesterday, when the Premier was asked whether or not he agreed with the board’s decision, he said, “I have no comment on that.”

Given the very real and growing hate facing Ontario’s LGBTQ communities, does this Premier really have nothing to say on this?

We believe that all children in Ontario, irrespective of their faith or heritage, sexual orientation or gender, or the colour of their skin, deserve to feel safe in a publicly funded school. Yes, we’ve expressed disappointment with the school board’s decision and we have affirmed through a memo just yesterday, setting out a clear expectation that all publicly funded schools—English and French, Catholic and public—will find meaningful, positive ways to celebrate Pride. That is our expectation.

We will, as a government, be led by our Premier, visible, active, present at York’s Pride parade, as we have done now for three or four years, standing in solidarity with the community that, yes, has faced disproportionate levels of violence and bullying. We stand with these kids, we know they exist and we are going to ensure their safety in Ontario’s publicly funded schools.

As mentioned earlier a number of times, we are proud to support Pride Toronto and work towards that celebration to support the 2SLGBTQ2IA+ community and support what they are attempting to do. This Pride festival is so very important.

We have had two meetings with the organizing committee at the Pride festival about a month ago. This is the first time we’ve really heard of a problem with financing. I would like to offer: When this event is over, we can settle down and sit down and talk about exactly what the concerns are. If insurance costs have come up and other things are happening, it would be nice if we could know about it, to show how we could show our support, versus a couple of days before the festival is about to start.

We take this seriously and we do show support through Reconnect Festival and Event Program Ontario cultural attraction funds, so it’s not as if we’ve been—

Interjection.

My question is for the Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. Ontario holds immense potential for entrepreneurs and businesses in the advanced manufacturing sector. Our province offers a highly skilled workforce and abundant opportunities, making it an ideal location to establish and expand business operations. Yet, to stay ahead of their competition, our businesses and entrepreneurs want to know that our government is committed to helping their businesses invest in the latest technologies and the best talent.

Speaker, can the minister please elaborate on how our government is supporting businesses, particularly manufacturers, in the province of Ontario?

Speaker, can the minister please provide further details on how our government is supporting local businesses and entrepreneurs to expand their ventures?

I just need some confirmation from the member opposite. Is he suggesting that registered nurses in the province of Ontario should not have a choice in where they work, or in which areas they work?

We have, as a government, made a commitment and put money on the table to ensure that we have the largest expansion of nurses in the province of Ontario. It is unprecedented. The Minister of Colleges and Universities and myself visited—

Interjections.

I can tell you, when I talk to nurses, when I talk to physicians, when I talk to hospital CEOs, they are very, very happy that we are actually making investments to ensure that we have programs like the Learn and Stay program, a program that actually means if you are ready and wanting to stay in an underserviced area, we will cover your tuition and your book costs. In fact, in Owen Sound, when together the Minister of Colleges and Universities and I spoke to that hospital, every single one of those Georgian College nursing students have applied and are part of that program. It is working, Speaker, and we will continue to make those investments.

Well, Mr. Speaker, the laws are clear in this province, and we expect every employer to abide by those laws. That’s why I’ve been very clear that breaking the law in Ontario can never be the cost of doing business. That’s why in our Working for Workers legislation, we’ve increased health and safety fines for companies that break the rules. We’re cracking down on temporary help agencies, Mr. Speaker, to be the first government in the province to set up licensing for companies in the province that use temp help workers.

Mr. Speaker, I’m really proud that we announced last week that for the first time we’re recognizing international credentials here in the province of Ontario for those newcomers that come to our province who have been educated elsewhere around the world, that we’re moving to recognize those credentials by eliminating the Canadian work experience requirement. Mr. Speaker, we’re going to continue every single day working for all workers in this province.

My question is to the Minister of Labour, Speaker. Earlier this month, the Naujawan Support Network, a worker support network in Brampton, wrote to the minister to highlight how investigations and enforcement of wage theft complaints to the ministry are dramatically down under this government.

They have asked the minister to reply by June 1 to set up a meeting to discuss this important issue. Will the minister agree to meet with the network to learn of their concerns?

This information comes directly from the ministry, the result of a freedom of information request: In 2014, there were 18,000 employment standards investigations. In 2021, that number dropped to 8,000.

Speaker, I want to quote the letter, actually. The workers whose wages are being stolen “regard the ministry as weak and ineffective—an institution that cannot enforce the orders it issues, and that will not prosecute employers who ignore the orders. Some employers are so carefree towards the ministry that they mockingly encourage their workers to file employment standards claims, believing they will never face serious consequences even if those claims are successful.”

Speaker, does the minister think it’s acceptable that millions of dollars—actually, $9 million—owed to workers in Brampton and elsewhere in the last year has been pocketed by greedy employers?

To reply, the Deputy Premier and Minister of Health.

Interjection.

Start the clock. Minister of Health.

Supplementary? The member for Nickel Belt.

Minister of Health.

By lowering the cost of business by $8 billion every single year, we have made Ontario the most competitive place to invest and grow. This is the case all across the province, including in our rural and regional communities.

SBS Drivetec in Barrie recently announced a $2-million investment in their auto parts manufacturing plant. Their facility makes components for both combustion and EVs. With a $300,000 investment from our government, they will fully automate their manufacturing process on their assembly line and create new jobs. Speaker, SBS Drivetec adds to the over $1 billion in investments and the 1,800 jobs created through our Regional Development Program, and it builds on the $25 billion in EV investments we’ve attracted to Ontario.

Speaker, for-profit health care staffing agencies are hurting our hospitals. One of these firms is Canadian Health Labs. This company has convinced hundreds of burnt-out nurses and PSWs to leave their workplaces, offering them double the salaries they normally earn. Their head lobbyist is former Prime Minister Paul Martin. The company made $154 million from 500 nurses and PSWs they’ve hired out of our public health care systems and public workplaces. Their plan is to hire as many as 5,000 people.

Can the Minister of Health confirm if she has met with this company and contracted Canadian Health Labs to work in Ontario?

Let me help the minister. She has met with the staffing agency Canadian Health Labs six times since becoming minister. Fly-by-night staffing agencies are hurting our hospitals. They are hurting the patients in our hospitals. They exist for one reason: to make money for the investor. They take health care workers from our public system and sell them back at huge profits.

How big, Speaker? A whistle-blower showed us: a $154-million profit off the backs of 500 Ontario health care workers. Let that sink in, Speaker. Let that sink in. This is sickening. Why is this minister letting this happen?

Interjections.

This question is for the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services.

Access to health care professionals has become increasingly challenging for many Ontarians, which is also impacting people on the Ontario Disability Support Program. ODSP recipients have been contacting my office consistently, seeking assistance in finding a doctor to fill out essential forms. These forms are necessary for their special diet needs and to review their eligibility for benefits. The inability to obtain these forms puts them at risk of losing income support and benefits.

Is the minister willing to commit to a temporary pause on medical eligibility reviews and provide extensions to recipients who are unable to find a health care professional to fill out their medical forms until more health professionals become available?