As we know, youth leaving the child welfare system are at high risk of being trafficked, experiencing homelessness and developing mental health issues, and have lower high school graduation rates than their peers. As part of the child welfare redesign, this government is investing $170 million over three years to support a new program aimed at improving long-term outcomes for youth. We’re investing proactively to make sure that our youth in the child welfare system have the skills they need to achieve financial independence through life skills development, supports to pursue secondary education, training and pathways to employment.

My question is to the member opposite is, does he support this initiative?

Thank you to the member from Essex for your thoughtful comments. I’ll try to stay calm.

I believe this is a great budget. It’s appropriate for the times that we are in, that we find ourselves in now. The budget continues the course and the focus on building the economy with a path to balancing the budget. A strong economy means good jobs. Employment: one of our social determinants of health.

A focus on education: This budget includes historical investments in education: new schools, a new curriculum for today’s jobs and Ontario’s needs. Education: another social determinant of health.

Investments in hospitals, schools, transit, housing and the infrastructure make it all work together.

A wise farmer lived on the adjacent farm to us—I guess they’re all wise farmers or they wouldn’t be farming. He used to say, “It’s not just what you make, it’s how smart you spend it.” And this government isn’t spending; they are investing. That’s smart. Investing in people, in our education system, building schools, not closing them; in our health care system, record contributions, commitments and funding to our health care system; in infrastructure, transit and roads. We need infrastructure, as I said, so that the whole machine can run in harmony.

A good analogy for this budget is a plane. It took off in 2018, and it’s still climbing to get to its desired altitude. This budget is holding the course and getting it done. We will continue to invest in Ontario for the people of Ontario. This budget builds on success.

Back to my neighbour: spending smart. Having our health care workers work to their full scope of practice, reducing the unnecessary pressures on our physicians, our emergency rooms and our hospitals—smart.

Additional funding in home care, community paramedics, mental health and addictions, getting people care where they need it, when they need it. Community paramedicine—what a great service. I worked in the Renfrew-Lanark area when the community paramedicine program first started in Renfrew—an immediate impact on people’s ability to stay and remain in their homes—a great program. We heard the member from Renfrew announce the other day base funding for the community paramedicine program.

Helping our youth: $170 million to improve outcomes for youth leaving the child welfare system so they can be healthy, happy adults, to help them meet their full potential, and $200 million for the Homelessness Prevention Program. Something is in this budget for everybody.

I’ll turn now to long-term care. Our government knows that fixing Ontario’s long-term-care system in the modern day requires modern solutions. We are enhancing the health care experience in our 2023 budget, Building a Strong Ontario. As part of our plan for Ontarians to receive the right care in the right place, the government is also investing $5.5 million in 2023-24 to build the new behavioural specialized units in long-term-care homes, including approximately 70 new specialized beds. These units specialize in care for those with complex behaviours by providing increased staffing, a tailored environment, focused behavioural assessments and enhanced care planning. This results in timely and appropriate care for residents with complex needs and avoids unnecessary hospitalizations—smart budget.

Ontario made a historic $6.4-billion commitment to build more than 31,000 new and over 28,000 upgraded beds across the province by 2028. I’ve had the pleasure of visiting some of these new homes. When you think in my community there used to be one or two what we called “preferred homes,” now there are three more new homes. We want all homes to be preferred homes. Since July 2018, 19 projects have been completed, adding over 2,300 new and upgraded beds across our province, with more on the way.

Working for you: We believe that Ontarians deserve connected and convenient care so they can stay in their homes for longer as they age or are able to receive care closer to home, freeing up space in hospitals and long-term-care homes. As we continue to modernize long-term care in the province, it is important that we continue to develop innovative approaches to deliver quality health care to our loved ones, while partnering with local municipalities.

One such program is the Community Paramedicine for Long-Term Care Program. The program leverages the skills of paramedicine practitioners to reduce hallway health care, improve the quality of life of seniors, and provide appropriate and timely care for seniors in the comfort of their own homes. This approach is proactive, community-centred and patient-focused. This initiative is already offered province-wide and has connected more than 30,000 people to 24/7 non-emergency support at home. The plane continues to climb. I am proud that our budget recognizes the importance of this program by investing more than $174 million over two years to continue the Community Paramedicine for Long-Term Care Program. Now every community across the province has access to this service.

I’m also pleased to share that the government will be providing up to $1.25 billion to long-term-care homes in 2023-24 to hire and retain long-term-care staff across Ontario. This is part of our historic $4.9-billion commitment across four years to hire and retain more than 27,000 registered nurses, registered practical nurses and personal support workers over this period to help achieve our target of residents receiving four hours of direct care per day by March 31, 2025. That’s building on the 12,000 registered nurses that were registered last year in Ontario, and with the recertification process for internationally trained, there have been 6,727 come in already. We’re continuing holding the course.

We are making investments to build a strong Ontario so that we have the right infrastructure and supports in place to ensure our seniors experience the best quality of care and quality of life. From increasing nutritional support to increasing the level of care funding and beyond, we’re working so that Ontarians are supported in every aspect.

I thank the Minister of Finance for all of his work, and his team and the Premier for holding the course so that we continue the good work that we’re doing in long-term care.

Other aspects in this budget are directed towards those most vulnerable in our communities:

—adjusting core allowances under the Ontario Disability Support Program to inflation annually and increasing the monthly earnings exemption for persons with disabilities;

—investing an additional $202 million each year in the homelessness prevention program and Indigenous Supportive Housing Program to help those experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

—temporarily doubling the Guaranteed Annual Income System, the GAINS program, for 2023 for our seniors.

Like I said before, there’s something in this budget for everyone. Proposing changes to expand this program will see another 100,000 additional seniors be eligible for the GAINS program.

I thank the ministers for their work, and their PAs for their work putting this budget together, and I fully support it.

I don’t know if we would call it underspending, but we’re all aware of COVID and the impact it had on programs and services. Whether it’s in education or in health care, there’s money that has been earmarked that wasn’t able to go out the door because the service providers weren’t able to deliver that particular service. That’s one fundamental reason why there is money that didn’t go out the door. It’s not the government holding back or tying the strings. This government is investing and spending on the things, and they’re spending it smart, not just spending it.

One of the things is for youth leaving the child welfare system. The transition is always a major issue for people’s mental health, going from the child system into the adult system, and in this case, moving out of the welfare system as well. So transition of care is one of those focuses that will help us with mental health occurrences.

Hiding behind a 2019 bill that only has a three-year life is not what we’re doing. We’re looking forward: What can we do to increase? And we know that other provinces across Canada are dealing with the same challenges; other countries are dealing with the same challenges. So to hide behind an old bill is not the answer. To move forward with new innovative ideas to increase our workforce: That’s the answer.

Through you, Madam Speaker: I listened thoughtfully to the member opposite’s statement. Improving the long-term outcome for youth leaving the child welfare system by investing $170 million over the next three years through the Ready, Set, Go program will help youth achieve financial independence, life skills and development. This is a particularly important issue for me, because I actually used to work within that system. I’ve seen the impact and I know what this can do for children.

Will the member opposite please consider this measure to improve the outcomes for children and youth leaving the child welfare system by investing this money?