Yes, Mr. Speaker. I announced that on Thursday, and of course the opposition have said they are not supportive of that.

It is so important that we bring back respite care to the province of Ontario. We’re in a position to do that, Mr. Speaker. Many of us have heard how important this is during the campaign. We’re in a position to do that because over 85% of long-term-care residents have their fourth dose of vaccine, so we can do that.

I implore the member: If you believe in what you have just asked, then surely you will be supporting this bill.

Interjections.

I hope the honourable gentleman will do the honourable thing: Withdraw what he just said, stop getting people worried about what is happening. This is a way of building health care in the province of Ontario, including in Ottawa, and he should be a part of helping us do that.

Interjections.

If he went further, Mr. Speaker, he would know that the act guarantees that and it actually provides up to $60 million on a go-forward basis to ensure that we have behavioural supports for patients, that we can provide kidney dialysis for patients, because for the first time, long-term care will be part of the solution as we build an integrated health care system in the province of Ontario. And despite what he is saying, we will continue to do that on this side of the House, despite the failings of 15 years of Liberal government.

Thank you to the member from Barrie–Innisfil for the question. Speaker, for decades, previous Liberal governments ignored calls to build the Bradford Bypass. Under this Premier’s leadership, we are finally getting it done.

In the next 30 years, the population of the greater Golden Horseshoe will grow to the size of what Ontario’s population is today: 15 million people. With that in mind, the do-nothing approach of the opposition parties is no longer an option. Speaker, we need to get building. Farmers, families and businesses have been paralyzed by gridlock on our major highways long enough. Building the Bradford Bypass will change that. The new highway is expected to save 35 minutes per trip; that’s more than one hour per day, or five hours per week, that you won’t have to spend behind the wheel.

Speaker, we can’t afford to let gridlock get any worse. The time to act is now. Our government is getting on with the job of finally building the Bradford Bypass.

My question is to the Premier. Rick Brown lives in London West and is exhausted from more than five years of caring for his wife, Marian, who has an incurable brain disorder. His only break is during her weekly nine hours of home and community care. Before the pandemic, Marian could stay up to a week at a long-term-care home through the short stay respite program. That program was suspended in March 2020.

Will this government restore the short stay respite program to give caregivers like Rick the break they so desperately need?

The ministry told us that the short stay respite program was suspended to free up long-term-care beds. Why is this government more interested in forcing seniors from hospitals into long-term care than in providing caregivers like Rick with the respite they deserve?

My question is to the Premier. For months now, long-term-care homes across Ontario have been pleading with this government for help, and Bill 124 has done more damage to them than any other piece of legislation I can remember. Now the government is proposing Bill 7. Bill 7 is going to violate patients’ basic rights by changing the law to allow them, among other things, to be moved without their consent. That’s cruel.

Imagine this conversation, Speaker: “Mrs. Smith, we’re going to have to move your mom.” “But you can’t move her. We won’t be able to see her. That’s too far.” “I’m sorry, Mrs. Smith, that’s the law. I have no choice.”

Bill 7 is not going to work for patients, their families or the people who care for them. Will this government withdraw Bill 7?

Instead of creating greater pressure in our long-term-care homes, this government should be repealing Bill 124 and withdrawing Bill 7. Will this government commit to do that?

Those are fantastic questions. It’s important for members of this House to remember that under our proposed changes, mayors are still subject to the legislative accountability and transparency measure. This includes proposed new laws that would prevent the mayor from using the new powers when they would have a conflict.

The legislation also explicitly prevents the mayor from being able to hire certain positions. The posts would include positions like the police chief, the chief building official, the medical officer of health. There are many, many others that are under legislative prescription.

We’re giving mayors the tools they need to get things done, to get shovels in the ground faster. And we’re going to hold them accountable to the decisions they make. We’re counting on them to cut red tape to get housing built faster so that families can realize attainable home ownership.

Thank you for the question.

The member highlights exactly why we have been working so aggressively as a government, across ministries, to make sure that we have capacity within our health care system. I point to the ability for internationally educated health care professionals to be able to quickly get their licences so that we have that expanded capacity. I point to the 400 new physicians that are practising in rural and northern Ontario. I point to the $880 million over the last three fiscal years that was invested to reduce surgical wait times.

I understand. When scheduled surgeries have to be cancelled because a higher-priority patient has come in and needs to be looked after first through triage, it is incredibly frustrating for that patient and that family. That’s why we’ve made these investments, and that’s why we will continue to work with all of our health care partners to make sure they have the services and the resources they need.

The concept of picking one issue and insisting that is the solution—we’ve heard very clearly from medical experts across Canada and indeed worldwide that we are experiencing shortages, which is why we’re working with the College of Nurses, we’re working with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario to expedite those individuals who are living in the province of Ontario, have that experience and were educated in other jurisdictions to quickly be able to get their certification and licensing.

I want to thank the member for that question. But most importantly, I want to thank the member for her leadership and standing up for the people of Ukraine against Putin’s illegal invasion. Thank you for everything you’re doing.

Mr. Speaker, the member is right. We are facing the largest labour shortage in a generation here in Ontario. To achieve our ambitious plan to build, we need all hands on deck. That is why our government is making it easier for newcomers to start working in their trade or profession faster. We’re eliminating Canadian work experience requirements and removing duplicative language tests. This makes it easier for engineers, auto mechanics, plumbers and others to move to Ontario, fill in-demand jobs and earn more for their families.

By working for workers, our government is making Ontario the destination of choice for more skilled workers.

We continue to call on Ottawa to speed up timelines and let Ontario choose those with the skills that all of our communities need. Tackling Ontario’s labour shortage is essential to keeping costs down for families and keeping businesses open and expanding in our province. Action in this file is long overdue and it’s never been more important than now.

We need these workers to fill in-demand jobs and build stronger communities for all of us. If the federal government answers our calls, this will further unleash Ontario’s potential so we can start building together.

The supplementary question.

With more than 370,000 jobs going unfilled across the province, we need to expand our workforce to meet the vital market needs to get workers building our roads, highways, schools and hospitals. Newcomers are crucial to growing our economy and building a strong future for us all. As my good friend from Mississauga–Malton had said, jobs need people and people need jobs.

We know that Ontario is a destination that has always been attractive for people looking for a bright economic future, including my very own family when we immigrated 22 years ago. But we also know that we are facing a global race for talent as people all around the world are searching for a better place to build a life and raise a family.

Can the Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development share what our government is doing to make Ontario a more competitive jurisdiction to help bring people to our province and address the ongoing skilled job shortages?

Ontario deserves to be a part of a fair system, to have a bigger say in how we address the jobs and skills gap in our province. It is not right that Ontario only has a say in less than 5% of immigration applications, while other provinces have nearly 50% oversight in application approvals. It is vital that we address this now and fix the growing backlog.

Skilled individuals are in demand all over the world. Right now, when Canada is short countless people for jobs in the skilled trades, the Federal Skilled Trades Program has a processing time of 47 months, which is nearly four years. Can you imagine?

Can the minister please explain more about the advocacy from Ontario and the other provinces regarding fixing the immigration approval system and ensuring that we can bring more skilled workers to meet our growing needs?

A constituent of mine—who wishes to remain anonymous, so we will call her Sarah—reached out to my office to share her “health care horror story.” Sarah explained that after waiting for three hours at Juravinski Hospital for a scheduled surgery to remove suspected ovarian cancer, the surgery was cancelled at the last second because there was not a single bed available for her post-procedure. Sarah’s surgeon had mentioned that numerous other patients experienced the same last-minute cancellations just a week prior, all due to a lack of beds.

Premier, our emergency departments are at their breaking point, with ongoing surgical delays. What is this government going to do to alleviate the increased ER visits that we are seeing from Ontarians with undiagnosed issues resulting from pandemic delays, surgeries being pushed back and preventable illnesses progressing?

Premier, is this inaction around bed availability this government’s cruel and shameful strategic move to convince Ontarians that private clinics are the end-all and be-all solution to our health care woes?

Thank you, Minister. The Bradford Bypass represents an opportunity for economic growth for all Ontarians. The people of Bradford, Barrie, Innisfil and all of Simcoe county deserve to be respected. They deserve to have their quality of life recognized. Congestion takes hours away from spending time with their families, and that is no longer acceptable.

We saw how the previous Liberal government didn’t get it done. They delayed, deferred, demurred. And when it came to building transit infrastructure—the residents currently are just desperate, because there was no infrastructure.

Can our minister explain how we are getting it done, how we’re building key major infrastructure projects like the Bradford Bypass and how the progress of this project is currently being done?

I thank the member for this very important question. First, I want to begin by expressing my condolences to the family impacted by the loss of life.

I can tell you, Mr. Speaker, like the member opposite said, every single worker deserves to come home safely after a hard day’s work. We know the importance of agriculture workers in this province. They truly are heroes, putting food on all of our tables, supporting families right across this province.

Mr. Speaker, I did reach out to Minister Fraser, the federal minister. As the member opposite knows, the Temporary Foreign Worker Program is the responsibility of the federal government. They’re also in charge of bunkhouses.

Specifically on the incident that she is referring to, we are investigating as we speak and committing to getting answers for these families as quickly as possible.

In the supplemental, I’ll talk about more actions that we’re doing to keep all workers safe in Ontario.

We have now hired more than 100 additional health and safety inspectors to bring the total number to the largest inspectorate in Ontario’s history. We’ve doubled the health and safety action phone lines to ensure that any worker, including migrant workers, if they’re concerned for his or her safety in a workplace or on a job site, can call the Ministry of Labour and have an inspector go out and ensure that workplace conditions are safe.

In our Working for Workers legislation, we have introduced a licensing system to crack down on temporary help agencies who are breaking the law. We have introduced the largest fines for companies who aren’t abiding by the health and safety laws in this province. We’ll continue working for workers every single day, protecting the health and safety of all workers in this province.

Thank you to the member for that question. We recognize how vital nurses are to the health care system. That is why this government has made changes to nursing education in Ontario, by allowing colleges to offer stand-alone nursing programs. There are 14 colleges in Ontario that, this fall, will now be able to start offering this program: colleges like Loyalist College in Belleville and Georgian College in my area. Do you know what that means to these communities? Students will have the option to train and practise in those communities where they may be underserved with nurses.

We’ve made incredible investments in nursing education. The stand-alone was only one of those. The Learn and Stay program for nurses in underserved and rural communities is an opportunity for nurses to have their tuition and all educational expenses covered, in exchange for two years in an underserved community.

We are doing many measures to increase the number of nurses in Ontario and give students the opportunity to enter this fabulous profession.

My question is to the Minister of Labour. Minister, just a few weeks ago, Jamaican migrant farm workers in Niagara region wrote to the Minister of Labour in Jamaica, raising concerns about their working conditions here in Ontario. Sadly, days later, on August 14, Garvin Yapp of St. James, Jamaica, was killed in an accident with a tobacco harvester in Norfolk.

Every worker deserves a safe working environment and the basic expectation that when they come to work, they will return home to their family safely, just as they came, wherever that may be. Migrant workers come to this province in good faith and expect a safe working environment as they fulfill the jobs in our agricultural sector that are vital, not only to the agricultural sector but to our economy overall.

Minister, what are you doing to keep these migrant workers safe?

Minister, you’ve just tabled a budget. If you could tell this House what you’re doing to keep these migrant workers safe. We’re preparing for another COVID season. We know that we did not have a very good start with these workers when COVID began. They are looking for more from us, and they’re appealing for that support. So if you can describe what you’re doing currently with your responsibility to keep them safe.

This government has an unprecedented and historic record of investing in health human resources across this province. In fact, Mr. Speaker, since March of 2020, we have added over 10,500 health care workers across this province.

Every step of the way, the members opposite have opposed measures that we have put in place to support and increase health human resources across this province. For example, just in April of last year, when we put forward a plan to help speed up the process to train and include foreign-trained professionals in the province, the members opposite voted against that. In the fall economic statement, when we made investments of over $300 million to train, support and upskill nurses, the members opposite voted against that.

We will continue to support health care workers across this province, and we will continue to make historic investments to support health care in Ontario.

The President of the Treasury Board to respond.

Minister of Labour.

My question is to the Premier. The University Health Network in my riding has seen an increase in the use of temporary nurses. Their spending has gone up from $1.1 million to $1.7 million over the past three years. Other hospitals are seeing similar increases.

Nurses are burning out. They’re leaving the profession in droves. Why is it okay for the Ford government to pay private companies more than the nurses who are essential to delivering health care for our communities? When will this government repeal Bill 124?

Anything short of repealing Bill 124 will not fix the nursing crisis. This is really the question at the heart of what we are discussing. We have nurses all over Ontario who are crying out for help. I will share just one story. One nurse tells me that their profession is seen as a dead-end job in Ontario, because what they are now seeing is that health care in Ontario is going absolutely nowhere. I wish that that was not the case, certainly not within my lifetime.

Bill 124 is actually driving this low-wage economy for nursing. What is the government going to do? You called them heroes during the pandemic. Are they not heroes anymore to you?

I want to thank the member from Thornhill for her exceptional leadership, standing up for all families in this Legislature. And, Speaker, I celebrate with her what this child care deal means for working people in this province. We averaged this year $4,000 in savings as we hit 25% on average in a reduction, and 50%—we’re still on track to achieve that by December 31 of this year, roughly $12,000 in the bank, because our Premier had the fortitude to stand up for non-profit and for-profit child care operators and the children and the families who depend on them.

The member from Thornhill is right: Operators were looking for more certainty from the various municipal service providers in the province. So we have done that, following the best advice of for-profit and non-profit child care to deliver on the priority of this government, which is money in the bank and savings for working people. That’s why we extended the deadline to November 1. It’s why we’ve streamlined the guidelines for operators. It’s why we’ve reduced the red tape, all to build confidence as we continue our effort to reduce fees and make life more affordable for the parents of this province.

As this is the first time I rise in this chamber, I want to thank the hard-working people of Thornhill for bringing me here.

Mr. Speaker, as the cost of living rises, the effects can be felt by young families in my riding. My constituents are seeking support from our government to ensure they are getting fair rates and much-needed financial support when it comes to child care, but they are worried. They’re worried that the daycare operation will miss the opt-in deadline of the $10-a-day program, which will result in them missing out on a program that will provide them with financial relief during these times of global economic uncertainty and high inflation.

Will the Minister of Education please inform the House how our government is supporting families in my riding and make sure that they aren’t left behind on this deal?