I’m honoured here today to pay tribute to a former member of provincial Parliament for Brampton North, Mr. Carman McClelland. Carman McClelland passed away earlier this year, on June 1, and is survived by his children, Emma and Doug. He was born in 1951, in Angola, and soon after moved to Canada. Here, he was educated at York University and the University of Windsor faculty of law.

Mr. McClelland began leaving his legacy in Brampton early on. He was a resident of the city for over 25 years, and he was a practising lawyer in the city prior to seeking election. He also was a passionate advocate for his community. Mr. McClelland was a member of the local advisory board of the Canada Community Development Project, and he was chairman of the local advisory board for the summer 1981 Canada Student Employment Program. He was also a member of the Rotary Club of Bramalea, and he was on the board of the Canadian Council of Christian Charities.

Carman McClelland was first elected to the then new riding of Brampton North on September 10, 1987, under Liberal Premier David Peterson, just a few weeks before his 36th birthday. This was the first election for a city once represented by one riding by somebody who will be known in this House, former Premier Bill Davis, after it was divided into two ridings, Brampton South being the other riding in Brampton. Ultimately, it was represented by Liberal MPP Robert “Bob” Callahan.

Carman was re-elected in 1990 and sat as an opposition MPP until he lost his seat in the 1995 election, after which he returned to his law practice.

There are a few parallels that I can draw between myself and Mr. McClelland, both of us having been raised in Brampton and taking it upon ourselves to put our names on the ballot and stand up for the people of our great city.

Some of his key priorities when seeking election were transportation and health care for Brampton, which are also my two key priorities as I stand here in the House today, and what I promised to be a champion for on behalf of my community. Ultimately, I think it led to my election and the election of my other Brampton colleagues here in this House.

In 1987, after his election win, he said “a second health care facility” was his major concern. In 1987, the population of Brampton was 180,000 people, a time when it was growing quickly. It continues to grow today as a diverse city, with a population of over 650,000 but only one hospital. We’re still fighting for a second hospital here today.

Speaker, I think it is more than appropriate that I have the privilege to stand here today to speak about the great man, Carman McClelland. People like Mr. McClelland are the reason Brampton has become the city that it is today—home to people from all corners of the world, who come to our city and succeed in their respective fields.

Mr. Speaker, as members in this House will know, it’s not easy to seek public office, and it certainly doesn’t get easier once you’re successful—or it hasn’t yet, but I’m also new, so maybe give it some time. For some, the private sector calls their name. Carman McClelland, however, was eager to get back into politics and once again served the people of Brampton after his last election, this time in 2007 as a Progressive Conservative candidate in the now defunct Brampton–Springdale riding—an unsuccessful election at the time.

In 2008, Mr. McClelland tried his hand at municipal politics, running for regional councillor in Brampton wards 1 and 5. Although he did not find success in running for office after his second term in provincial politics, Carman’s desire, passion and commitment to the people of Brampton is exemplary. And that passion and commitment to the people of Brampton North is what I hope to bring to Queen’s Park myself.

Carman served two terms and served this province in numerous roles, as the Chair, Vice-Chair or a member of different committees. He was a critic. He was a parliamentary assistant to the Minister of the Environment. Filling so many roles across his two terms, he left his mark on this province, a record that his family should be very proud of.

After his first election in 1987, Carman thanked his supporters at the Brampton Briar Hill Recreation Centre while the theme song from Rocky played in the crowd. The legendary quote from Rocky rings in my head: “It’s not about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward—how much you can take and keep moving forward.” It’s a quote we should all believe in.

We all have our time to go—and, for me, coming in as a new member, I think God places moments like these into our lives to remind us of our own brief time that we have, and our own mortality. As members, we have limited time in this chamber; as humans, it’s limited time on earth.

May we all leave such a mark on this Legislature but also in life, and live a life as rich as Carman did.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker, for allowing me the opportunity to speak here today in honour of a fellow Brampton boy I can look up to as I fight for the same city he did.

This petition is to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas from electric and hybrid vehicles to barbecues, the government is supporting the development of homegrown supply chains, creating the next generation of products and returning Ontario to its rightful place as the workshop of Canada; and

“Whereas low-carbon steel production has become critical for jurisdictions to compete for manufacturing investments as businesses look to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in their supply chain. These investments support the creation of new jobs and economic growth as steel producers, automakers and other industries transform their operations; and

“Whereas critical minerals in the north will drive electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing in the south, where Ontario’s automotive sector is poised for resurgence as the industry continues its large-scale transformation; and

“Whereas the government’s plan will help Ontario become a North American leader in building the vehicles of the future and will build the next generation of vehicles in Ontario by securing auto production mandates to build electric and hybrid vehicles; and

“Whereas Ontario invested $1.5 million through the Regional Development Program to support an $18.5-million investment by auto parts manufacturer Ventra Group to create the Flex-Ion Battery Innovation Centre in Windsor and invested $250,000 to support the development of two new battery production lines at the Electra Battery Materials Corp.’s future Battery Materials Park near Cobalt;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

“To urge all members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to continue to invest in the manufacturing sector that will contribute to the economic success of the province.”

This petition comes from Rolando, and I will affix my signature to it, grateful that this petition came forward, given its—