It is an honour to stand in the House today to mark an important anniversary that Romanians all around the world celebrate. Every year, on December 1, Romanians come together to celebrate Great Union Day, also known as Romania’s National Day—the unification of the Romanian provinces into one country, which took place at the end of the First World War, in 1918.

Romanian Canadians make up an essential part of our national character. In fact, Canada is home to over 250,000 Romanian Canadians.

Mississauga is home to close to 4,500 Romanian Canadians, who continue to contribute to the cultural, social and economic fabric of Mississauga and of Ontario.

Canada would not be the same without athletes like Bianca Andreescu or politicians like Andrew Scheer.

Mississauga’s own Bianca Andreescu, who is a proud Romanian Canadian, is the highest-ranked Canadian in the history of the Women’s Tennis Association.

Speaker, Romania today is a historically mature country whose binder has passed the test of time.

Canada has excellent relations with Romania, as evidenced by the strong political ties highlighted by shared memberships in NATO and la Francophonie.

Today, I am very happy to welcome Ms. Oana-Raluca Gherge, the consul general of Romania; Mr. Florentin Titov Gherghe, consul; and my dear friend Raul Dudnic from OMNI TV to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. I would like to take a moment to wish them and all of our Romanian Canadian friends a happy Romania National Day here in Ontario as well as worldwide. Merci.

Speaker, studies reveal that approximately one in five children in Ontario are encountering mental health challenges. The past few years have been especially difficult for our youth as they face unique challenges augmented by the isolation brought on by the pandemic. It is therefore crucial for our government to expand access to innovative solutions in order to support the mental health and well-being of Ontario’s children and youth.

Can the Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions please share with this House how our government is ensuring high-quality care for children and young people through integrated services such as the youth wellness hubs?

I am proud that one of the 22 youth wellness hubs that the minister spoke of is actually located in Malton, in my city of Mississauga. The Malton Youth Wellness Hub provides vital services to youth in my riding, such as mental health counselling; substance use support; employment, housing and education support; as well as recreation.

These services are being delivered through partnerships with organizations like Catholic Family Services Peel-Dufferin, CMHA Peel Dufferin, Our Place Peel, and many, many others.

In 2010, the previous Liberal government was provided a report prepared by an all-party committee, which included 23 recommendations to improve mental health services. Not a single one of those recommendations was implemented.

Unlike the Liberals, our government is committed to working with our mental health partners to support and address our children and youth’s mental health and well-being needs.

Can the associate minister please elaborate on how our government is building a comprehensive and connected mental health and addictions system?

Today is Romania’s National Day and I would like to invite all members to participate in the flag-raising at 12, followed by a reception in room 230.