My question is for the Premier. Last year, paramedics in Ottawa set a new record, but it’s not a good one: 1,806 times the Ottawa paramedics hit level zero. There were no paramedics available to respond to calls for more than 73,000 minutes. Paramedics spent 93,000 hours at emergency rooms in off-load delay.

The city is requesting provincial funding to help alleviate the off-load delay problem at Ottawa’s backlogged emergency rooms in our hospitals. Will the government step up and provide the funding Ottawa needs to keep more ambulances on the road?

The off-load delay at the Ottawa Hospital means that paramedics are waiting two and a half hours at the emergency room to get back on the road. For two consecutive years now, the Ottawa Paramedic Service has failed to meet the legislated response time of six minutes for sudden cardiac arrest. Last year, they only hit their legislated requirement 48% of the time.

Mr. Speaker, imagine watching your loved one die of a heart attack right in front of you because there’s no ambulance available to come.

Will the government do the right thing and get Ottawa the resources it needs to keep paramedics on the road responding to 911 calls?

The supplementary question.

Minister of Transportation.

My question is for the Solicitor General. Tomorrow, I will be joining parents, faith leaders, elected officials and community members at a community rally on Broadview Avenue in Ottawa Centre. We are, sadly, having to oppose an anti-transgender, anti-queer hate rally that’s happening at the foot of the street.

This same group of people were on Broadview Avenue 17 months ago. One of them, if you can believe it, Speaker, travelled all the way from British Columbia to display homophobic and transphobic placards outside three public schools. But on that day, hundreds of people came to block the visibility of his placards and tomorrow we are going to do it again.

Speaker, I want to know, will my friends in government join us and call out this hate?

As we just heard, this is Pride Month. But sadly, and I’m sure many of us are hearing it, incidents of hate against queer and trans people are on the rise, and some people are fanning the flames. So at home, we’re gathering peacefully but determinedly to show queer and trans youth we are on their side. I’ve heard members from across this House say the same thing.

Speaker, through you, does the government have a public safety message, a guarantee to queer and trans youth in Ottawa Centre and everywhere in this province, that everyone in this House sees them, loves them, values them, and we will not let them be threatened by hate or bigotry ever in the province of Ontario?

It’s without question that Ontario is home to a strong and vibrant 2SLGBTQIA community who helped shape our province and made it into the success it is today. With Pride Month well under way, as my colleague stated, I want to take this opportunity to honour their strength, courage and resilience, as well as to celebrate the important contributions they make to our province each and every day.

Mr. Speaker, as the Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism, I’ve been working with our 2SLGBTQI community and will continue to work with them and all allies and partners to build a stronger, safer, more inclusive Ontario, where people from all walks of life and all backgrounds can call Ontario home.

I want to thank my friend for the question. Let me be clear: Yes, we condemn all forms of hate. We have zero tolerance for hate-based crime. Everyone should feel safe in their own homes and communities.

But, Mr. Speaker, let me say this: For those who do not wish us well, for those who feel we don’t have a right to live in our communities, to raise our children, to pray, to work, and to love who we want and to live how we choose, we will call them out.

The member for Lanark–Frontenac–Kingston and parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Long-Term Care.

My question is to the Minister for Seniors and Accessibility. June is Seniors Month in Ontario and I was honoured to have the minister and his parliamentary assistant in my community last Friday to kick off Seniors Month at my seniors’ Community Connections Expo held in Newmarket.

Seniors’ Month is a time to recognize the contribution of seniors in our province and to respect and celebrate the work that seniors have done and what they are doing in our communities. The theme for 2023 is “Working for Seniors.” Our government is making great progress in helping seniors to stay independent, active and socially connected. However, it is vital to the health and well-being of Ontario’s seniors that our government continues to support initiatives that will help to keep our older adults engaged in their communities.

Speaker, can the minister please explain the importance of Seniors Month and how it helps to properly recognize the contributions of seniors in our communities?

The member opposite speaks of the report that’s going to the city next week. I’ve read it, and it talks about the benefits that they have seen as a result of using the Dedicated Offload Nurses Program.

In terms of land ambulance support, of course, we partner, 50-50, with our municipal partners, so every time they add a new ambulance, every time they add a new paramedic, the Ministry of Health and the province of Ontario are there to support with 50% funding, and we will continue to do that because we want to make sure that 911 models of care, Dedicated Offload Nursing Programs, a Learn and Stay program that is available in northern Ontario for paramedics who train—we are covering their tuition and education costs so that they can continue to serve in underserved communities. We’re doing all of this work to ensure that the people of Ottawa and all of Ontario have appropriate care in their community.

My question is for the Minister of Long-Term Care. This spring, the minister announced that the Village of Winston Park, a long-term-care home in Kitchener, had opened a new, recently constructed building that will provide more beds for seniors.

Nevertheless, while this is good news for the local community, Ontario’s broader long-term-care sector is being impacted by a rapidly aging population. Despite numerous calls from experts and advocates, the previous Liberal government failed to acknowledge the critical importance of investing in long-term-care facilities and services. This is why it’s so vital that our government continues to plan ahead to address the care needs for our seniors across our province.

Speaker, can the minister please explain how construction projects like this one will support our seniors in Waterloo and the neighbouring area of Cambridge?

In considering the current and future needs for seniors, it is clear that we need to build more long-term-care homes in communities across the province.

Speaker, can the parliamentary assistant please provide an update on measures our government is taking to add more beds to Ontario’s long-term-care system?

There is no doubt that there are unique challenges for patients who are looking to access health care in northern Ontario or having to travel great distances to get those treatments, which is why we’ve invested $48.2 million in the Northern Health Travel Grant, which paid out nearly 150 individuals for those reimbursements.

I will say that I am particularly proud of some changes that we have been able to make recently on the grant, and that ensures that individuals can now apply electronically and get those reimbursements directly into their bank accounts. It means that there is not the unnecessary delay and red tape. It has been very helpful, particularly for individuals who have multiple trips and multiple treatments. That is one example of how we are improving this grant to make sure that people get their money back faster.

Supplementary question.

My question is to the Premier. Speaker, many constituents in northern Ontario must travel long distances to receive specialized health care. The broken Northern Health Travel Grant system forces patients to cover those travel costs and accommodations up front, and then they have to wait to be reimbursed. For example, Denise and her husband, Stephan, are seniors on a fixed income, and they need to come to Toronto to see Stephan’s neurologist. Denise told me Stephan will get 41 cents a kilometre, but only after the first hundred kilometres.

My question is, will the Premier remove cost-prohibitive barriers like this one that make it difficult for northerners to access proper care through the Northern Health Travel Grant?

My question is, will the Premier commit to increasing mileage and accommodation compensation so seniors like Stephan aren’t paying out of pocket to access essential medical care?

Celebrating June as Seniors Month is an important way to recognize the contributions of seniors and highlight the importance of age-friendly communities.

However, the risk of social isolation for seniors is a reality. Repeated research studies show that loneliness and social isolation have detrimental effects on the physical and mental health of seniors. This is an important issue, and that is why it is essential that our government continues to make investments into programs and services that help seniors to remain active and socially connected. Seniors in Ontario deserve our continuing support.

Speaker, can the minister please explain how our government is supporting the quality of life for seniors in Ontario?

Thank you to the member from Newmarket–Aurora for that important question. I was honoured to attend her seniors’ expo in Newmarket last week. She brought together 17 seniors’ and community groups, close to 100 seniors and senior leaders, who showed how active and involved they are in serving seniors in that part of York region.

As a super senior, I’m calling on everyone to do what the MPP from Newmarket–Aurora did and bring their seniors together. Let’s celebrate Seniors Month like never before.

Thanks to the leadership of this Premier, these investments help seniors stay fit, active, healthy, close to home, connected to their communities and fight social isolation.

My question is for the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport.

As the MPP for Brantford–Brant, I have always been proud to champion participation in sport in the communities that I represent. Sports contributes to better health, community pride and a stronger economy.

However, I am deeply concerned to know that according to Ontario Soccer’s CEO, the province is losing referees at an alarming rate. This decline in numbers is due to the increasing prevalence of abuse toward referees. To address this serious situation, I understand that Ontario Soccer is launching a body camera pilot project for soccer referees. Can the minister please share his response to this initiative being introduced by Ontario Soccer?

Speaker, all Ontarians who participate in sport deserve to have a safe and supportive environment. Sadly, we are seeing young girls and boys being discouraged by a few irresponsible spectators who intimidate them with abusive yelling. Any form of harassment is unacceptable, and it must end.

Can the minister please share any insights he has gained from his experiences with sporting organizations and with participants?

Before I get to that, I’d also like to thank Mr. Decker for his service. Many years from now, my grandkids will point to that picture and say, “There’s Papa, but who’s the other guy?” I’ll simply say, “He’s a guy who made a big difference in my life.” Thank you.

To the member from Brantford–Brant, thank you for what you do in sport and recreation in your community—it doesn’t just stay with youth; it’s all across the board, because that helps our health care down the road.

To answer the question directly: I went, “Really? We have to go to that extent now and put cameras on officials to make sure parents and fans on the perimeter of a field are not harassing officials?” Let’s be clear, Mr. Speaker, these officials aren’t always adults. They’re young people. They’ve decided to go get trained, participate—they don’t necessarily have to play in sport, but they participate when they’re officials. So it’s disgraceful, it’s unnecessary, and we have to stop it.

Thank you, member from Newmarket–Aurora, for the question and for the last question to close out the session.

I’ve gone across the province and have had a wonderful opportunity of meeting hundreds of women who are getting into the workforce and taking advantage of the programs and investments this government has made to support their flexibility and their training and skill development. This includes promoting a wide range of fields and careers for women and girls, helping entrepreneurs find supports and resources to create more women-led businesses. That’s why we’ve also expanded the Investing in Women’s Futures Program and the Women’s Economic Security Program.

Together, we’ve assisted more than 3,000 women to start their businesses, pursue further training and/or their education. We are getting it done for women in Ontario, because when women succeed, Ontario succeeds.

Minister of Education.

We’ll start with the Minister of Education.

Again, thanks for the question. This may sound strange—and I have been very fortunate to be on sidelines and behind benches in minor sport for a number of years, and I have some great friends as a result of participating in sport not because of the players and the parents, but because of the officials.

I was asked on April 1 on the football side of things to speak at their conference in Hamilton at Tim Hortons Field. There were 100-plus officials there, and they’re there to learn more and to get better. They’re there to get better, not because they want to become pro officials or umpires or referees, but because they want to make the game better. They want to give something back to their community.

So when we talk about the time they spent—afterwards I talked to their leadership group. I said, “What is the key problem for you now?” He said, “We’re losing people from age, but we’re also losing young people, especially because of the harassment they’re getting on the sidelines.”

Let me be clear, the culture of sport has to change, and we can all effect it in a positive way, because here’s the statement: Without officials, there are no games.