Speaker, I’d first like to congratulate you on your re-election and to congratulate all our colleagues—both new and returning, on both sides of the aisle—on being elected to this House.

I’m honoured to be back for another term, representing the people of Mississauga–Lakeshore.

I’m proud of all the progress we’ve made over the last four years, especially in south Mississauga. That includes a multi-billion dollar project to build the largest and most advanced hospital in Canadian history. It includes 1,152 new long-term-care beds, more than any other riding in this province, and the first residential hospice in Mississauga. It includes the new $5-billion Hazel McCallion Line and a new rapid transit corridor along Lakeshore that will support the Lakeview Village and Brightwater communities along the lakefront. We’ve come a long way, and last week the throne speech laid out a plan to ensure the progress continues.

Earlier this week, I joined delegations from Mississauga and the region of Peel at the AMO policy conference in Ottawa, meeting with ministers, focusing on the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, our shared infrastructure priorities, and fixing the housing supply crisis.

I look forward to working together with municipal partners and with all members here to deliver positive results for the people of Ontario over the next four years.

Through you, Mr. Speaker, thank you to Mississauga Centre—thank you for the question.

And thank you to the Brampton Centre constituents for trusting in me to be their voice.

I wake up every day motivated to see women in Ontario live in a social and economic landscape that they can grow in, because when women succeed, Ontario succeeds. Us women belong in all spaces, at every table and in all sectors.

That’s why, under the leadership of our Premier and our government, we have invested in empowering and supporting women entering and re-entering the workforce. As part of our proposed 2022 budget bill, we have announced we are investing an addition $6.9 million over three years into enhancing the Investing in Women’s Futures Program. This constitutes the largest—

Interjections.

We are making sure that women and girls of Ontario have well-paying, stable jobs that align with their passions—and I’ll say that again—with their passions and their skills.

I do want to acknowledge the leadership taken by the Minister of Finance and my predecessor, the Minister of Colleges and Universities, in establishing Ontario’s Task Force on Women and the Economy. That program and that task force resulted in leading initiatives that we are taking action on to see women’s full economic participation. For example, implementing the largest agreement in Canada, $13.5 billion, to lower the cost of child care—that is going to unlock many opportunities for women. Also, the skilled trades strategy: We are investing in several initiatives that support women and girls entering the world of trades, which aims to get more women and girls good-paying jobs. We are also modernizing our school science and technology curricula to better prepare students for the jobs of the future in STEM—science, technology, engineering and mechanics.

We are supporting the economic empowerment of women because, again, when women succeed, Ontario succeeds.

It is an honour to rise today to ask my very first question in this 43rd Parliament. I am humbled by the trust the voters of Mississauga Centre have put in me for a second time.

Speaker, I have spoken with many women in my riding and across Ontario who have expressed challenges with not being able to successfully enter the workforce and stay employed.

We must lift women up and empower them to excel in business, leadership roles, as entrepreneurs, and in sectors where they are under-represented, like in the skilled trades, for example. Ensuring that women are economically, physically and emotionally safe requires a broad network of support.

Our government has taken action in breaking down barriers that exist for women, including women who are Indigenous, Black or racialized, but more work needs to be done.

Can the Associate Minister of Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity please tell us about what investments our government is making to empower women in my riding and throughout the province?

As a result of COVID-19, women and girls have faced additional challenges, such as increased economic insecurity, greater burden of caregiving responsibilities, and a rise, unfortunately, in the incidence of domestic violence. Women across Ontario were disproportionately impacted by the personal effects of the pandemic, including increased needs around child care, balancing home and work responsibility with children staying home during closures.

Our government established Ontario’s Task Force on Women and the Economy to ensure that women would not be left behind in a post-pandemic economy. Can the associate minister please highlight some of the initiatives that have been launched as a result of the work of the task force?

Thank you to the member from Mississauga–Malton on his debate on the Plan to Build Act (Budget Measures). He talked a lot about the Ontario nomination immigration program, which I really appreciate because at one point I was a critic on that file. I remember back when the Auditor General actually did a report on that and how that ministry really needed to be corrected and fixed. So I’d be interested to find out if some of those recommendations under that Auditor General’s report were actually fixed, while we are now talking about bringing more nominees into the province, which we all want. We want to see them thrive and build our workforce, because we do need that. We don’t have enough population in Ontario to continue that. So that is one of the things I urge you to look at and find out: As you’re asking for more immigration and nominees to come, have those problems been fixed in the Auditor General’s recommendations?

There was also a question I had—I get oftentimes emails about the delays of the nomination program in Ontario. Can you speak to that, about how that’s being repaired?

Thank you to the member from Mississauga–Malton. I am also very happy to be hearing about skilled-trades opportunities for young people, and for international people interested in becoming permanent residents.

I do worry about worker health and safety, however. We know that workers keep dying at Fiera Foods, we know that young truck drivers are dying on the highways—many of these come here as temporary foreign workers—and we also know that WSIB is not there when workers receive a permanent injury. So what I’m wondering is, what is in the plans? What will this government do to protect the health and well-being—in other words, the safety—of workers, whether Canadian-born or here hoping to become permanent residents, when businesses are warned of inspections before they take place?

I would like to congratulate my colleague from Mississauga–Malton on his re-election. I think the residents of Mississauga–Malton made the right choice, and the commitment that the member brings will serve them well.

I want to touch upon the major investment that Bill 2 is doing in health care. We have seen some of these commitments in the Scarborough area, especially in Scarborough–Agincourt, and I’m sure that the residents of Scarborough will immensely benefit from this investment. But can the member elaborate more on how those major investments in health care will keep Ontario safe and open?

I enjoyed my member across the way here, his comments especially when it comes to labour and when it comes to the shortage of labour in this province. Whether you’re in Mississauga–Malton or in Elgin–Middlesex–London, we have a labour crisis in this province.

I would ask the member, through you, sir, how do you see Bill 2 helping alleviate that dilemma in this province and the labour shortage that we have?