Of course, we’ll allow the process to continue on. I think that’s very important. We can’t, on the one hand, ask for the government to stay out of the lives of people and, on the other hand, legislate. So we’ll wait and see how that process unfolds.

But at the same time, Mr. Speaker, I think what you’re seeing across the province of Ontario—look, I was in Blyth and Goderich just last week and I was doing a ground-breaking for another 160 long-term-care beds in that community, and it was just a wonderful opportunity in that community to see more health care coming to different parts of Ontario that have never had it before, Mr. Speaker, and that builds on top of the things that we’re doing in health care.

When you talk about midwives, when you talk about building Ontario health teams, it’s about building a blanket of care, so regardless of whether you need a midwife, whether you need a long-term-care home, whether you need a primary care doctor, whatever other services—home care—you will be covered in the province of Ontario through these new Ontario health teams—

But it goes beyond that. The Minister of Labour has been working hard since the beginning, and they voted against it every single time. They voted against those opportunities that we put in place to have more women in the trades. They voted against it. When we have brought measures in front of this Parliament to have thousands more people participate in the health care system, they voted against it. When we brought in $3 more for our PSWs, they voted against it. When we brought hope and opportunity to families with better daycare, they voted against it.

It’s not just on International Women’s Day. It’s every day. Try doing it once in a while—

The ayes are 34; the nays are 67.

It’s children recycling. Relax.

I am so happy to introduce my good friend and great community leader and also a Gandhian leader—he’s always teaching me the Gandhian principles in Markham—Mr. Indrakant Patel, and Mrs. Daxaben Patel. Thank you for being here.

Mr. Speaker, they took a picture with you. They are so excited to be here. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Responses?

This year’s theme for International Women’s Day is #EmbraceEquity.

I’m honoured to speak on behalf of our caucus, as our critic for women’s social and economic opportunity.

Equality is giving everyone the same thing, regardless of their needs.

Equity is giving people exactly what they need, when they need it, without barriers and without stigma or blame.

I’d like to remind this Conservative government that it is impossible for them to embrace equity if they continue taking nurses, who are disproportionately women—and Black women and racialized women, at that—to court. This Conservative government must give our front-line health care workers what they need to be successful. Embrace equity. Bill 124 was ruled unconstitutional, yet this government continues their appeal against this ruling, attacking yet again some of the very women workers who have been disproportionately hit over these last challenging years.

This Conservative government’s privatization and profitization of health care in Bill 60 is gutting our public health care system by yet again attacking predominantly women, our front-line health care workers. We cannot recruit, retain and return nurses to a public health care system that has been grossly underfunded and understaffed by this government.

Embracing equity is properly funding public health care, so that people have fair and equitable access to exactly what care they need in Ontario—not in the States; just saying.

I want to make it clear that derailing front-line health care workers also derails the families of sick patients. Make no mistake: Society’s gendered division of labour is still very much in place. It is women, yet again, who must often take care of their loved ones, children, partners and aging parents when they fall through the cracks—cracks this government has widened, a crisis this government has worsened due to their Darwinian health care approach. These informal family caregivers are mostly women, doing this unpaid work at their own financial ruin, many without vacation time, without equal pay for equal work, without pay equity, without paid sick days, without supports for their injuries from WSIB, without any access to a caregiver benefit program like what we, the official opposition, proposed to help put some money back into the pockets of folks caring for their loved ones. Some of these women who are caregivers are escaping gender-based violence themselves.

Speaker, our communities are built on the backs of strong women, and it’s high time that this government not just commend women for being resilient, but that they invest in our community-based, non-profit programs, for instance, that are inextricably linked to the health care outcomes of our communities.

I want to extend my thanks to Elder Abuse Prevention Ontario CEO Marta Hajek for her leadership and her advocacy.

I want to say a special thank you to our local community member in St. Paul’s, Jane Teasdale, who is working tirelessly, advocating for the rights and protections of aging adults.

There has been a 250% increase in elder abuse, yet we’ve seen this government, the Conservative government, cut supports for elders during a pandemic—the same elders that mostly women are caring for out of pocket. They need stable funding, and it cannot be below the inflation rate. Funding below an inflation rate is actually a cut.

I want to also recognize that March is Endometriosis Awareness Month, courtesy of legislation spearheaded by our former MPP for Toronto Centre, Suze Morrison, and the official opposition leader, Marit Stiles. Endometriosis impacts one in 10 women, one in 10 people who menstruate. As I learned from endowarriors Leah Haynes and Tami Ellis, founders of Endometriosis Events, and my fellow panellists there, it simply is not enough for the government to say they care—“thoughts and prayers”—while there’s no funding for endometriosis. We need more funding for research. We need more training for doctors and surgeons to properly diagnose. Many with endometriosis have to go out of province and pay out of pocket.

Health care needs to be publicly funded.

Let’s be clear: Diseases that disproportionately impact women are often not the priority of this government. We only need to look at the health care wait-lists for eating disorders, for instance. We only need to look at our fight—we’ve been begging this government to cover take-home cancer drugs 100%. That’s another disease disproportionately impacting women—still crickets from the government.

So on International Women’s Day, while we celebrate the gains, let us remember the realities for far too many women in Ontario. We need help, and no amount of resilience can pay the rent, put food on the table, keep your housing secure—in an affordable housing market created by this government.

It is up to this Conservative government to do right by women and girls, because yes, when women win, we all win.

I’m honoured to rise today, on International Women’s Day, to recognize and celebrate the achievements and resiliency of women, girls and gender-diverse people.

When I look around this House and when I go to my constituency office or my office here at Queen’s Park, I’m thankful for the strong, smart women I have the opportunity to work with each and every day who are making a difference and improving people’s lives.

And while I would like to say that we have come a long way, I also want to say that we have much more work to do.

This year’s International Women’s Day focus is on gender equity because simply aiming for equal opportunity is not enough. Equity is an act of inclusion. It is something that each and every one of us is capable of incorporating into our day-to-day lives. Paving a path for gender equity is not limited to women. They need allies—they need allies who identify as men, like I do—working together to forge a path that propels the social, economic and political advancements of women in our words, actions and laws.

Speaker, the caring professions are disproportionately comprised of women workers, who tend to be paid less and are especially negatively affected by laws such as Bill 124—which is why, today, I ask all of us in this House that we make a commitment to work with all sectors and communities to eliminate the barriers women face.

We can do better, we must do better, and we will do better.

It is a pleasure for me to rise on International Women’s Day, on behalf of the people of Scarborough–Guildwood, who have elected me for the last 10 years.

As we reflect on this year’s theme, “Embrace Equity,” we understand the importance of honouring the struggles and celebrating the achievements of all women who contribute to the history of this province and who continue to shape the values and traditions that we share today. It is both a day to celebrate the achievements of women and girls and to focus on the challenges that we still face as we work towards gender equality. In continuing these important efforts and building on the success of the pioneering women who came before us, we carry forward the critical mission of embracing equity. We must ensure that every young girl and woman has equitable access to resources in this province. We must ensure that every young girl and woman has access to the opportunities that fit their unique needs and circumstances. Our role is to empower them, because they are the trailblazers who will make the bold changes that we need in our world today.

As we mark International Women’s Day 2023, it is important to remember that this day is rooted in the collective actions and movement of women who came together on March 8 for the goal of equal participation in society.

Women have made important gains in representation in recent years, and while the bar has been raised, the pursuit of equality—through equity—continues.

Women make up 50.7% of Canada’s population. And here in Ontario, women make up the majority of the essential front-line workers in sectors that include health care and social services. Women also represent the majority of workers in the education and child care sectors, which are vital for our children’s well-being.

It has been established that women were and continue to be disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, both economically and socially.

We must be mindful of women’s participation at all levels and in all sectors of the labour market. This includes the need for women in leadership roles in corporate Canada—and today, I joined women at the Bay who are the leaders in that corporate space, representing gender parity in their leadership ranks. Making this happen requires support and meaningful assignments along the way, at every stage of a woman’s career.

I want to note the Prosperity Project’s annual report card, which tracks women in leadership positions in Canada’s largest public and private companies and crown corporations. It raises the concern that nearly 35% of corporate director roles and nearly 32% of corporate executive roles are being filled by women—this is about the same or slightly better than the previous report card. This tells us that we have a long way to go. The report finds that there is serious under-representation of women who are Indigenous, Black or 2SLGBTQIA+, as well as a decline in women having moved to senior management roles. We have to ensure that the pipeline is ready to be filled.

I want to thank the women who stepped forward in all aspects of society, including those found in my local community of Scarborough–Guildwood.

This petition is titled “Make Registered Psychotherapy Services Tax-Free.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas mental health care is health care;

“Whereas the mental health crisis facing Ontarians has gotten worse with the pandemic;

“Whereas BIPOC, 2SLGBTQIA+ folks, women, and people with disabilities have historically faced significant barriers to accessing equitable health care services due to systemic discrimination;

“Whereas registered psychotherapists provide vital mental health services, especially as an early intervention;

“Whereas a 13% tax added to the cost of receiving psychotherapy services is another barrier for Ontarians seeking this vital care;

“Whereas registered psychotherapists are still required to collect HST from their clients, while most other mental health professionals have been exempted;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to” immediately make psychotherapy tax free.

Ms. Khanjin has moved that the Standing Committee on the Interior be authorized to meet on Thursday, March 9, at 2 p.m.

Is it the pleasure of the House that the motion carry? Carried.

Motion agreed to.

I want to thank the thousands of people across Niagara who are signing this “Petition to Save the Welland Hospital Emergency Department.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the current Niagara Health system restructuring plan approved by the Ontario Ministry of Health includes removal of the emergency department and associated beds and ambulances service from the Welland hospital site once the Niagara Falls site is complete, creating inequity of hospital and emergency service in the Niagara region and a significant negative impact on hospital and emergency outcomes for the citizens of Welland, Port Colborne and all Niagara;

“Whereas the NHS is already experiencing a 911 crisis in EMS, a shortage of beds and unacceptable off-loading delays in its emergency departments across the region;

“Whereas the population in the Welland hospital catchment area is both aging and growing;

“Whereas the Ontario Legislature passed a motion by Niagara Centre MPP Jeff Burch on April 13, 2022, to include a full emergency department and associated beds in the rebuild of the Welland hospital;

“Therefore, be it resolved that we call on the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to work with the Ontario Ministry of Health and the Niagara Health system to implement motion 47 to maintain the Welland hospital emergency department and adjust its hospital plan accordingly.”

I sign my name and send it to the Clerk through the page.

This petition is titled “Protect Vulnerable Road Users” and it reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas vulnerable road users are not specifically protected by law; and

“Whereas Ontario’s Highway Traffic Act allows drivers who seriously injure or kill a vulnerable road user to avoid meaningful consequences, facing only minimal fines; and

“Whereas the friends and families of victims are unsatisfied with the lack of consequences and the government’s responses to traffic accidents that result in death or injury to a vulnerable road user;

“We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to:

“—direct the government of Ontario to commit to reducing the number of traffic fatalities and injuries to vulnerable road users;

“—create meaningful consequences that ensure responsibility and accountability for drivers who share the road with pedestrians, cyclists, road construction workers, emergency responders and other vulnerable road users;

“—allow friends and family of vulnerable road users whose death or serious injury was caused by an offending driver to have their victim impact statement heard in person in court by the driver responsible;

“—pass the Protecting Vulnerable Road Users Act.”

I support this petition and will affix my signature to it.

It is my pleasure to stand beside the member for Northumberland–Peterborough South with respect to this petition.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Newcastle Public School is currently over capacity at 109% and the Pines Senior Public School is at 116%. Over 240 students are being bused to Bowmanville from Newcastle;

“Whereas the current growth figures presented by” the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board “show that school-age residents will grow by 645 in the next five to 10 years; and

“Whereas the Pines and Clarke High School are located ... adjacent to Highway 115—the only school in Ontario reported” to be “right next to a highway. That is why we are putting forward a compelling solution” to address this “long-standing community concerns for the safety of students attending school on a provincially staged freeway by resubmitting the Capital Priorities Program business case proposed by” the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board “to seek funding for a new school...;

“Whereas funding for construction of this school will be offset by disposition of ... Clarke High School and the Pines Senior Public School;

“Whereas land has already been purchased by” the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board “for construction of the new school;

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

“That the Ministry of Education prioritize and collaborate with the applicant in order to expedite the review and approve the construction for the” much-needed “new school in Newcastle, Ontario.”

I and the member for Northumberland–Peterborough South have affixed our names hereto and submit it to page Wyatt Sharpe.

I’d like to thank all of the citizens of London West who signed a petition to stop the government’s health care privatization plan. It reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontarians should get health care based on need—not the size of their wallet;

“Whereas” the Premier “and Health Minister ... say they’re planning to privatize parts of health care;

“Whereas privatization will bleed nurses, doctors and PSWs out of our public hospitals, making the health care crisis worse;

“Whereas privatization always ends with patients getting a bill;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to immediately stop all plans to further privatize Ontario’s health care system, and fix the crisis in health care by:

“—repealing Bill 124 and recruiting, retaining and respecting doctors, nurses and PSWs with better pay and better working conditions;

“—licensing tens of thousands of internationally educated nurses and other health care professionals already in Ontario, who wait years and pay thousands to have their credentials” recognized;

“—making education and training free or low-cost for nurses, doctors and other health care professionals;

“—incentivizing doctors and nurses to choose to live and work in northern Ontario;

“—funding hospitals to have enough nurses on every shift, on every ward.”

I fully support this petition. I will affix my signature and send it to the table with page Harry.

I have a petition that reads as follows:

“I Support Serious Climate Action Now.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the climate crisis remains an urgent and existential threat; here in Ontario we are seeing record-breaking heat waves, floods, tornadoes, and even forest fires;

“Whereas the Rideau Canal Skateway could not open for the current winter season for the first time since it opened in 1971 due to warmer-than-average winter temperatures;

“Whereas Ontario needs to take bold steps to fight our climate crisis and create thousands of good jobs through investments in energy-efficiency retrofits, affordable housing, a public intercity bus program, renewable energy, infrastructure, electrified transit, child care and other low-carbon sectors, and” paid for “by taking on big polluters;

“We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to stop the development of greenbelt lands, invest in public”—all caps, for “public”—“transit projects, curb urban sprawl, and commit to real action on green energy, housing, transportation and jobs.”

I am honoured to sign this petition and I’ll be sending it with page Yonglin to the Clerks’ table.

I have a petition here that I’m pleased to present.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Bill 124, titled Protecting a Sustainable Public Sector for Future Generations Act, 2019, caps salary increases at 1%, at a time of historic rates of inflation and interest rates;

“Whereas the nursing crisis has compromised patient safety and the functioning of our public health care system;

“Whereas emergency rooms are closing and even ICUs are at risk of having to close because of health care staffing shortages;

“Whereas the Ontario Superior Court of Justice ruling released on Tuesday, November 29, 2022, by Justice Markus Koehnen says that the law infringes on the rights to collective bargaining and freedom of association and declared the act to be ‘void and of no effect;’

“Whereas the courts have declared this legislation to be unconstitutional;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to immediately repeal Bill 124, Protecting a Sustainable Public Sector for Future Generations Act, 2019.”

I fully support this petition, will affix my signature to it and give it to page Riya Azaredo, who will take it to the Clerks.

I have a petition here from the residents not only of Kingston, but of Verona and Sydenham and other places north of Kingston.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the province of Ontario is experiencing a severe shortage of health care professionals; and

“Whereas the shortage of health care professionals includes the inability of many Ontarians to access family physicians; and

“Whereas this shortage of health care professionals is placing a strain on hospitals’ emergency departments, including the enormous increase in patient off-load times from ambulances at those emergency departments thereby taking paramedics out of service; and

“Whereas the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care drastically reduced the funding for virtual medical care effective December 1, 2022; and

“Whereas virtual medical programs have been the source of 40% of primary care visits; and

“Whereas this reduction in funding has now resulted in the denial of medical services for many Ontarians, especially in rural Ontario, and contributes to an increase to ever-strained hospital emergency departments;

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

“The Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care shall immediately reinstate full funding to the virtual care medical program while it works with the Ontario Medical Association and pharmacies across Ontario to provide health care services to all Ontarians especially in rural communities where access is most difficult.”

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the Ontario government has underfunded optometric eye care for 30 years; and

“Whereas the government only pays on average $44.65 for an OHIP-insured visit—the lowest rate in Canada; and

“Whereas optometrists are being forced to pay substantially out of their own pocket to provide over four million services each year to Ontarians under OHIP; and

“Whereas optometrists have never been given a formal negotiation process with the government; and

“Whereas the government’s continued neglect resulted in 96% of Ontario optometrists voting to withdraw OHIP services beginning September 1, 2021;

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

“To instruct the Ontario government to immediately commit to legally binding, formal negotiations to ensure any future OHIP-insured optometry services are, at a minimum, funded at the cost of delivery.”

I have a petition entitled, “I Support Serious Climate Action Now.” I want to thank the MPP for Ottawa Centre, MPP Harden, for this petition.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas the climate crisis remains an urgent and existential threat; here in Ontario we are seeing record-breaking heat waves, floods, tornadoes, and even forest fires;

“Whereas the Rideau Canal Skateway could not open for the current winter season for the first time since it opened in 1971 due to warmer-than-average winter temperatures;

“Whereas Ontario needs to take bold steps to fight our climate crisis and create thousands of good jobs through investments in energy-efficiency retrofits, affordable housing, a public intercity bus program, renewable energy, infrastructure, electrified transit, child care and other low-carbon sectors, and pay for it by taking on big polluters;

“We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly to stop the development of greenbelt lands, invest in public transit projects, curb urban sprawl, and commit to real action on green energy, housing, transportation and jobs.”

I’d like to say the Rideau Canal belongs to all of us, it’s a national treasure, so that’s why it is important that I read out this petition today.

I fully agree with this. I’m going to sign it and give it to page Mary to take to the Clerks’ table.

This petition is titled “Raise Social Assistance Rates.” It reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontario’s social assistance rates are well below Canada’s official Market Basket Measure poverty line and far from adequate to cover the rising costs of food and rent: $733 for individuals on OW and $1,227 for ODSP;

“Whereas an open letter to the Premier and two cabinet ministers, signed by over 230 organizations, recommends that social assistance rates be doubled for both Ontario Works (OW) and the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP);

“Whereas the recent small budget increase of 5% for ODSP still leaves these citizens below the poverty line, both they and those receiving the frozen OW rates are struggling to live in this time of alarming inflation;

“Whereas the government of Canada recognized in its CERB program that a ‘basic income’ of $2,000 per month was the standard support required by individuals who lost their employment during the pandemic;

“We, the undersigned citizens of Ontario, petition the Legislative Assembly to double social assistance rates for OW and ODSP.”

I fully support this petition. I would like to thank Sally Palmer for it. I will affix my signature to it.

Resuming the debate adjourned on March 8, 2023, on the motion for second reading of the following bill:

Bill 71, An Act to amend the Mining Act / Projet de loi 71, Loi modifiant la Loi sur les mines.