I’d like to introduce Sam Ibrahim, president and CEO of Arrow Group of Companies and co-founder of the Scarborough Shooting Stars.

I’d also like to introduce my good friend Gabby Fanous, who is the vice-president of the Arrow Group of Companies and founder of the Red Owl Boxing club in Brampton.

Speaker, I’d also like to take this opportunity to thank some of my all-star staff who are here today: Marcus Battaglia, Shaida Maleki, and Kimia Zamani. Thank you for everything you do for us.

To Sam Ibrahim: Welcome to Queen’s Park, and I look forward to meeting with you after question period.

A couple of weeks ago, I had the opportunity to meet and chat with Lilet Raffinan, the manager of the only Canadian Blood Services location in Brampton. As I spoke to Lilet, she educated me on the importance of donating plasma and how it can help make all the difference for those in need.

Plasma is a protein-rich liquid that is found in our blood and that is used to help treat a number of illnesses and injuries.

Plasma treatment is currently being used to treat illnesses such as cancer, nervous system disorders, organ transplants, bleeding disorders, and many more.

The plasma that is collected by Canadian Blood Services is used for fractionation, which means that your donated plasma will be manufactured into 50 life-saving medications and will be distributed to 730 hospitals and clinics across the country.

Speaker, the wonderful part of donating plasma is that you can donate your plasma every seven days; and international students, who can only donate their blood after they have been in Canada for at least three years, can donate their plasma after 21 days.

I strongly encourage all of my colleagues and the residents of Ontario to donate their plasma to make all the difference for Canadians in need.

It gives me great pleasure to advise the members of this House that important representatives from the Bowmanville Hospital Foundation are sitting in the members’ gallery today.

The Bowmanville Hospital Foundation is a key stakeholder in my riding of Durham. Through innovative and collaborative partnerships with families, governments, charities and businesses in Durham region, the foundation fosters a culture of community-based philanthropy to reach its campaign and strategic goals of raising funds for its capital costs toward the redevelopment and expansion of the Bowmanville Hospital.

Last month, the Bowmanville Hospital Foundation held its annual gala, delayed after three years. At that gala, over $374,000 was raised to help the foundation support its phase 2 initiative.

Many of the generous donors that have partnered with the Bowmanville Hospital Foundation include the regional municipality of Durham, the municipality of Clarington, the Halminen Family Foundation, the Kemp family, St. Marys Cement, Steve Hennessey and family, Tyler Smith, the Association of Hospital Volunteers-Bowmanville, Edmond and Sylvia Vanhaverbeke, and the Urso family/Canadian Tire, Bowmanville.

On behalf of this chamber, I would like to congratulate and welcome CEO Frank Cerisano and manager of major gifts and planned giving, Ms. Bethany Dainton. They are present in the gallery today. I salute them for their dedication and commitment to the foundation. I also give a shout-out to board chair Peter Hobb and chief development officer Maria Petri, who could not be with us today.

It was said of the Blitz that a rich person driving their fancy car through the streets of London was as damaging as a German bomb. You can understand that. Why would you put your heart and soul into the war effort when a privileged few did not?

When we face a social crisis, when we need team spirit to work together, we’ll find it if people believe that society is just and offers equal opportunity.

We do face multiple crises—unaffordable homes, no family doctor, overcrowded hospitals, labour shortages, rising mortgage payments, mental health and addictions issues, education disruption, international conflicts, and overshadowing it all, climate change.

Now, the Conservatives, having promised over and over to not touch the people’s greenbelt, told by their own task force that it was not needed for housing, have withdrawn greenbelt land for development to benefit their political donors. Instead of getting housing built with as-of-right zoning in the greenbelt, it looks like as-of-donation zoning—it’s the government helping some people profit at the expense of everybody else. The worst thing about this is, it’s not just that it’s bad housing policy or bad environmental policy; it’s the corrosive effect—

Interjections.

Order.

Sadly, it is now time to say a word of thanks to our legislative pages. Our pages are smart, trustworthy and hard-working. They are indispensable to the effective functioning of the chamber, and we are very fortunate to have had them here.

To our pages: You depart having made many new friends, with a greater understanding of parliamentary democracy and memories that will last a lifetime. Each of you will go home and continue your studies, and no doubt will contribute to your communities, your province and your country in important ways. We expect great things from all of you. Maybe some of you will take your seats in this House as members or work here as staff someday. Who knows? We wish you all well.

Please join me in thanking our legislative pages.

Applause.

Applause.

I also want to introduce someone today—although he’s not new around the Legislature and he has already been introduced: Kevin Modeste, who has been working with the NDP caucus for 22 years. He must have started as a page to reach that milestone. He is attending, of course, his final question period today as a staff member.

We wish Mr. Modeste well as he moves on from Queen’s Park at the end of this year.

Today I would like to welcome, from Mississauga–Lakeshore, Bill and Muriel Chudiak.

Today’s page captain is Havana Thibodeau, and her parents, Richard Thibodeau and Betsabel Bello Thibo-deau, are joining us here in the gallery. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

We have some folks here today from the Brampton Rotary Club. Please join me in welcoming president Uche Okugo and president-elect Badar Shamim.

I’d like to introduce two strong and sensational city-builders who are in the chamber for the first time: the ever-lovely Diane Blake and Liane Brossard. I extend a warm welcome to them.

I’d like to welcome members of the following groups: Grand(m)others Act To Save The Planet, Stop Sprawl HamOnt, Wellington Water Watchers, Greenbelt West Coalition, and Stop Sprawl Halton. They gathered on the front lawn this morning to defend the greenbelt.

I would like to welcome OPSEU’s mental health and addiction workers who are watching Queen’s Park from north Toronto, where they are meeting today.

We can’t see you here in front of us right now, but I want you to know that we do see you. We see the work that you do, and we appreciate it very much. We know how valuable it is.

My daughter is not here today, but it is her 10th birthday and she’s watching in her class, Ms. Vandermeer’s class, at Our Lady of Good Counsel in Ingleside, in my riding.

I want to introduce Rose Cataldi, my EA, who keeps me organized every day, to her first Queen’s Park live.

And happy 83rd birthday to my father tomorrow.

I want to give a warm welcome to my father, Bill Crawford, who’s up in the gallery. He’s here with MIRANET, the city-wide network of ratepayer and residents’ associations of Mississauga. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

I’d like to welcome students from W.H. Morden school in Oakville. They will be performing in a choir and instrumental performance by the grand staircase just after noon.

I hope you’ll enjoy your visit to Queen’s Park.

I encourage everyone here to come and listen to the wonderful singing and music from the Oakville students.

I would like to introduce my lovely spouse, Chantal, who is with us today.

Please join me in welcoming and recognizing the 2022-23 class of government of Ontario interns. Today we have with us interns from the Ontario Internship Program, the Indigenous Internship Program and the Black Alliance Internship Program. Please join me in wishing them all the best.

I’m happy to introduce members from Brampton’s oldest Rotary Club, established June 12, 1940: club president, Uche Okugo, and members Matthew Samatas, Badar Shamim, Vijay Kotamarti and Mike Shrestha. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

I, too, would like to give a very warm welcome to Mohamed Lachemi, president of the now official Toronto Metropolitan University.

Mohamed, thank you for your leadership. Welcome to Queen’s Park.