I want to introduce the full complement of my terrific team today: energetic Ellen Pisani, magnificent Maisie Harrison, notable Noor Samiei, marvelous Marietta Fox, sensational Selena McCuaig, our York University intern—the famous five. I’m looking forward to changing the world with you.

It gives me great pleasure to introduce two individuals from my office. The first is Ben Iheagwara. He’s an outstanding intern with a background in political philosophy, who, I worry, is actually teaching me more than I am teaching him; so I thank you for that.

I’d also like to introduce Hamish Gilleland, a young, bright volunteer in my office, also from my riding, who will be joining me in between his classes at U of T to help advocate for a better Don Valley East.

I’d like to welcome Michau van Speyk from the Ontario Autism Coalition to the gallery today.

Today I’d like to introduce my OLIP intern, Alia Mufti.

I’d like to welcome my executive assistant, Anthony Goncalves. He’s here in the House for the first time today.

I would like to welcome an amazing family from the wonderful riding of Kanata–Carleton, the Kam family. Their son Conner Kam, is the captain of the pages today.

I’d like to welcome the parents of the Toronto–St. Paul’s fabulous page, Sofia Marra. Her mother, Mahira Mohtashami, is here; her dad, Frank Marra; as well as her grandmother Farangis Manoochehri-Kashani. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

That concludes the time we have available for introduction of guests. I’ll remind members that if they can keep their introductions of their guests as brief as possible, that would be helpful. It’s very exciting to have guests in the chamber again, but if we can keep them brief, we’ll get more introductions in.

I’d like to welcome Lucas Fisher. He’s part of the internship program, and he’s from Davisville in Toronto.

I’d like to join the chorus of voices recognizing those from Hospice Palliative Care Ontario. Today we have, from the Niagara region, Pamela Blackwood with McNally House. We also have Annalise Stenekes with Mariposa hospice, Beth Ellis from Haldimand Norfolk hospice, Debbie Kesheshian from Hospice Huronia, Rick Firth with HPCO, Amanda Maragos from Emily’s House and Kerri VanSickle from the Stedman hospice, as well as Jennifer Mossop, the former member for Stoney Creek. Welcome to the Legislature today.

It’s a great pleasure to welcome Sharon Lee to the Legislature today. Sharon is an old intern. We’re very happy she’s going to be working with the Ottawa Centre MPP team.

Welcome, Sharon, and thank you for joining us.

I, too, would like to welcome our friends from Hospice Palliative Care Ontario: Jennifer Mossop, former member for Stoney Creek; Rick Firth, president and CEO; and everyone here from Hospice Palliative Care Ontario.

The member from Nickel Belt gave a great introduction, but she missed one thing: that in rooms 228 and 230, there’s pizza and there’s candy. So everybody should stop by and have some pizza and candy.

Speaker, my question to the Premier: Yesterday, Ontario’s lowest-paid education workers—educational assistants, custodians and early childhood educators—told the government to get serious about negotiating a fair deal. But instead of respecting the process, today the education minister will move to impose a contract on these workers and ban their right to strike. His actions have brought us to the brink of disruption in our schools. He is creating an unnecessary crisis for families and for education workers.

Will the Premier stop these reckless actions and get back to the bargaining table today?

Education workers are integral to our schools, but because of chronically low wages, half have been forced to take a second job just to make ends meet, and a quarter have either cut back on purchasing food or have had to use a food bank. Does the Premier think it’s acceptable to pay education workers so little that they have to rely on food banks?

Last year, the government posted a $2.1-billion surplus, and the Financial Accountability Office has projected that this government will run surpluses for the next six years, totalling about $25 billion. But at the bargaining table, the minister says the cupboard is bare for Ontario’s lowest-paid education workers. Education workers support students and schools every day, but this government would rather cry poor than pay them a fair wage and protect education.

Why is this government so intent on shortchanging our schools and our education workers?

I’d like to welcome Donna Kearney, executive director, and Doug Crichton, board member, from Hospice Muskoka, who are here for palliative care day. Welcome to all the folks who are here for this important day. Welcome, all, to Queen’s Park.

We are committed to keeping children in class. We made a clear commitment to the people of this province that we will stand up and ensure kids are in school without disruption right to June. Nothing should get in the way of that commitment. Mr. Speaker, we gave the union an opportunity, and with great regret they said no. They are going to proceed with the strike on Friday and impose further hardship on the children we all represent.

We have to speak for kids in this debate. We have to give them a voice in this discussion. We have to ensure they are able to be in the classroom learning the fundamentals they have missed over the past two to three years, keeping in mind, Speaker, that just three years ago they faced union-driven strikes and then a global pandemic. We are going to do everything possible, as we have to date, to ensure children remain in class—

Interjection.

When you hear these stories of individual children and the plight they have faced over the past years, it is incumbent on everyone in this Legislature to ensure that they are in a classroom, supported, loved and cared for by their educators and with their friends. Our plan to catch up is premised on keeping them in the classroom. So yes, Speaker, we are going to stand up and ensure children remain in school without disruption right to June.

Interjection.

Mr. Speaker, when we gave the union an offer to avert a strike, to withdraw their commitment to strike on Friday, they regrettably doubled down on their demand for a nearly 50% increase in pay—a $19-billion increase for the taxpayer when applied sector-wide, because we know whatever we do with education workers becomes the minimum standard with our educators and those unions. So, Speaker, we brought forth a reasonable offer that preserves in-class learning and protects the rights of children to learn. We’re going to continue to do everything possible to keep kids in the class.

But what we will not accept is a strike on children after this global pandemic and recent strikes by the unions just two to three years ago. Children should be in the classroom, and our government will do everything possible and take the action that families want to keep their kids in front of their teachers in the classroom in every region of this province.

Interjections.

Member for Davenport, come to order.

I’m going to ask the House to come to order, and I have to say this: If members continue to ignore my requests to come to order, I will move to warnings—no choice—and then we know what happens after that if I’m ignored.

Start the clock.

The member for Eglinton–Lawrence to reply.

Thank you to the member opposite for the question.

Obviously, we’re doing everything we can to make sure the ambulances are there when they’re needed, and we have a four-point strategy in place to decrease ambulance offload times, which is holding up some of the ambulances, including: returning ambulances to the communities faster; providing timely and appropriate care in the community; increasing non-ambulance transport services for medically stable patients; and we’re maximizing health human resource capacity.

We’re doing all of those things as well as updating O. Reg. 257/00 under the Ambulance Act, which allows other health care professionals, including physicians, nurses, respiratory therapists to provide patient care in addition to paramedics in air ambulance or other configurations where that is necessary.

We’re going to make sure that we build a better health care system here in Ontario.

After decades of underfunding, it is this government that has made unprecedented investments in our health care system. We’re investing $77.5 billion into our health care system this year. Health care funding has increased at 6.2% year over year, the largest increase on record, including an over $5-billion increase in base funding and 8.9% increase in base funding, which is unprecedented. No previous base funding increase has been that increased year over year.

We’ve added 3,500 new hospital beds; we’re in the process of adding another 3,000. We’ve added 11,700 health care workers. The College of Nurses of Ontario recently said that they’ve added over 12,800 new nurses before the year ends—the most ever recorded. This government will get it done.

Education support workers are the backbone of our schools, but most can’t make ends meet. In August, I told the Premier about Charity. She was the full-time education support worker who relied on food banks to help feed her children—food banks, Speaker. I asked the Premier then if he would commit to a pay increase so that education support workers like Charity wouldn’t have to rely on food banks, and today that answer is a resounding no.

The Conservative government is set to impose a contract on education support workers, denying them the right to bargain a fair wage. Speaker, why does the Conservative government think it’s acceptable to force workers to work for so little?

Last week, I met with a roomful of education support workers, and Kori was one of them. She is a single mom of two. She loves her job as a cleaner and works hard to ensure that students are safe and that they have a healthy school environment. Kori told me she recently had to move in with her parents just to make ends meet. Kori is underpaid and she’s overworked, Speaker. She wants a fair wage so she can support her children while doing a job she loves—a job that is important.

Will the Conservative government and the minister finally recognize that education support workers like Kori deserve more than a nickel so they can support students’ success?

Speaker, this is not how you build a quality education system. Our kids will have less support in schools if the Premier keeps chasing away education workers with these poverty wages. CUPE will be at the table all week, ready to negotiate with the Conservative government. Will this government commit to not tabling pre-emptive legislation and instead return to the table and bargain a fair deal that will invest in our schools and education support workers?

My question is to the Premier.

Ambulance shortages have recently become a recurring problem in Waterloo region and across Ontario. Two weeks ago, during a code red, ambulances were coming into Waterloo region from Guelph-Wellington for backup—only for Guelph-Wellington to end up in a code red the following day. At one point, 600,000 people did not have access to an ambulance or a paramedic. In Waterloo region, we’ve lost 17 paramedics since January, largely due to burnout and lack of time off.

It’s literally a matter of life and death that Ontario is this ill-equipped to care for its growing and aging population. So I ask the Premier, I ask the minister, I ask anyone on that side of the House: How would you feel if you and your loved one experienced a medical emergency and no one was there to answer the call? What would you do? Because that’s where the province of Ontario is at right now.

According to Dave Bryant, who is the co-VP of CUPE 5191, the Region of Waterloo Paramedics Services, they have the highest number of code reds the region has ever had within a 24-hour period on September 26. A local paramedic told me that, at one point, there were five full hours where no ambulances were available, and offload times ranged from seven hours to 22 hours.

When the minister—or the parliamentary assistant—says that they’re doing everything they can, clearly that is not correct, because you have Bill 124 on the books. This is wage-suppression legislation. It is pushing health care workers and nurses out of the province of Ontario. And with all due respect, you actually have the money to recognize and respect health care workers in Ontario.

So how can this government continue to sit by idly when another crucial part of our health care system is collapsing and you are sticking to your speaking points?