Before I start my speech, I would like to thank the member from Windsor West; I’d like to thank the member from Nepean for her sharing—very emotional. It is an emotional topic we’re talking about today. Thank you to the member from Hamilton Mountain, as well.

Thank you for this opportunity to speak to this motion this afternoon. As the parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Health and to the Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions, I’m proud to highlight the work we’ve been doing to improve mental health and addiction services across the province.

Ontario is making record investments to improve health care delivery and to connect you faster and more easily and closer to home.

This motion speaks to the Canadian Mental Health Association’s pre-budget submission.

I look forward to our government’s release of Ontario budget 2023, a plan to build a strong future for Ontario, on March 23.

In my riding, the Canadian Mental Health Association York and South Simcoe is an award-winning team that provides excellent services to local residents. These services are funded through Ontario Health; the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services; and the Ministry of Long-Term Care, as well as the Ontario Trillium Foundation. I’d like to thank the entire team for their selfless commitment to the people in our community.

Over the past two months, our government crossed the province to hear from Ontarians through pre-budget consultations. We went to many communities, including Kenora, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, Timmins, Kingston, and the GTA—Mississauga, Brampton, Durham—London, to seek pre-budget advice on what matters most for the people of Ontario and what Ontarians think are the best ways to move forward.

I was happy to attend the pre-budget session at Old Town Hall in Newmarket, hosted by the parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Finance.

Across the province, we heard about the need for more access to health care, and you cannot talk about health care without talking about mental health care.

Every year, more than one million people in Ontario experience a mental health or addictions challenge, which can have serious impact on their quality of life, including the ability to go to school or make a living. The system to support individuals with these challenges has been broken and fragmented for many years. People who badly needed support were waiting far too long to connect to care or having difficulty figuring out how to even begin navigating a complicated, disjointed system to get the help they need. Too often, they were left to struggle on their own.

We are determined to fix long-standing issues in the mental health and addictions care sector once and for all, but we know that doing so will take time. That’s why, three years ago, we launched our comprehensive strategy, Roadmap to Wellness: A Plan to Build Ontario’s Mental Health and Addictions System, to improve mental health services for communities across Ontario and support patients and families living with mental health and addictions challenges. The plan is built on four central pillars: improving quality, expanding existing services, implementing innovative solutions, and improving access. These are designed to work together to support the delivery of the services people need where and when they need them. We launched the Mental Health and Addictions Centre of Excellence within Ontario Health to guide our work. To ensure the plan’s success, we are investing $3.8 billion over 10 years to develop and implement a comprehensive and connected mental health and addictions system for Ontario. Since launching the plan, we have already invested more than $500 million annually to help mental health and addiction services expand access to care and reduce wait times.

We have also launched innovative new programs, including the Ontario Structured Psychotherapy Program, to provide more Ontarians support for anxiety and depression with cognitive behaviour therapy, new eating disorders prevention, and early intervention programming.

Madame la Présidente, chaque année, plus d’un million de personnes en Ontario présentent un problème de santé mentale ou de dépendances, ce qui peut avoir de graves répercussions sur leur qualité de vie, y compris leur capacité d’aller à l’école ou de gagner leur vie.

Le système pour soutenir les particuliers présentant de tels enjeux ne fonctionnait plus et était fragmenté depuis plusieurs années. Les personnes qui avaient grandement besoin d’aide attendaient beaucoup trop longtemps pour être aiguillées vers des soins ou avaient de la difficulté à comprendre comment commencer à s’orienter dans un système compliqué et décentralisé pour obtenir de l’aide. Elles étaient trop souvent laissées à elles-mêmes pour lutter contre leurs problèmes.

Nous sommes déterminés à régler une fois pour toutes les problèmes de longue date du secteur des soins en matière de santé mentale et de lutte contre les dépendances. Parvenir à cela prendra du temps.

Il y a trois ans, nous avons lancé notre stratégie exhaustive—Vers le mieux-être : un plan pour bâtir le système ontarien de santé mentale et de lutte contre les dépendances—pour améliorer les services de santé mentale pour les collectivités ontariennes et pour appuyer les patients et les familles qui vivent avec des problèmes de santé mentale ou de dépendance.

Le plan est construit sur quatre piliers centraux—amélioration de la qualité, développement des services existants, mise en oeuvre de solutions innovantes et amélioration de l’accessibilité—qui sont conçus pour travailler ensemble afin de soutenir la prestation des services dont la population a besoin, où et quand ce besoin se fait sentir. Nous avons inauguré le Centre d’excellence pour la santé mentale et la lutte contre les dépendances qui relève de Santé Ontario pour guider notre travail.

Afin d’assurer la réussite du plan, nous investissons 3,8 milliards de dollars sur 10 ans afin de développer et de déployer un système exhaustif et interconnecté en matière de santé mentale et de lutte contre les dépendances pour la population ontarienne. Depuis le lancement de ce plan, nous avons déjà investi plus de 500 millions de dollars annuellement pour aider les services de santé mentale et de lutte contre les dépendances à élargir l’accès aux soins et réduire les temps d’attente.

Nous avons par ailleurs lancé de nouveaux programmes innovateurs, notamment le Programme ontarien de psychothérapie structurée pour offrir à la population ontarienne du soutien pour l’anxiété et la dépression avec la thérapie cognitivo-comportementale, ainsi qu’un nouveau programme de prévention et d’intervention précoce en matière de troubles de l’alimentation.

Speaker, our government knows that when someone reaches out for help, they shouldn’t have to wait. That’s why we are opening new beds to care for children and youth with complex mental health needs.

We are investing $10.5 million to address gaps in care and improve access while decreasing existing wait-lists and extensive wait times. Through this investment, we are expanding the child and youth mental health Secure Treatment Program and adding up to 24 new beds to serve vulnerable children and youth. This program provides intensive care for children and youth experiencing acute and complex mental health challenges that may put them at risk of self-harm or harm to others.

Additionally, an investment of $3.5 million for two new Step Up Step Down live-in treatment programs will connect more youth to care in communities in western and northern regions of the province. We will add up to 16 new beds to meet the needs of youth who don’t require the highly intensive care provided at a hospital or secure treatment setting but who need more support than a community-based, live-in treatment program is designed for. Expanding this program will connect more youth to less intensive services in their communities and eventually help them return to their homes.

I am so thankful to the entire team at Southlake Regional Health Centre for the extraordinary care they provide to my constituents of Newmarket–Aurora, for the patients and the families in northern York region, southern Simcoe county, and surrounding communities. Our local health care workers make a significant difference in people’s lives each and every day. I thank them for all they do to protect our health and our well-being.

On February 13, I had the honour of welcoming the Minister of Health to my riding to celebrate the grand opening of the new adult in-patient mental health unit at Southlake. This is a prime example of how our government is expanding health care services closer to home. The Ministry of Health is a tremendous supporter of our hospitals and the important role of local health care. We are focused on providing patients and families with more connected and convenient care, and this new adult in-patient unit provides exactly that to my region of northern York. With our investment of more than $6.5 million, 12 new mental health beds and support spaces have been added, for a total capacity of 28 beds. With this expansion, Southlake will be able to provide care for more than 400 additional patients each year. The newly renovated space includes private rooms, more windows with natural light, and common areas to support patient recovery. These improvements will ensure that individuals who need emergency mental health support receive the care they need in a safe, modern and comfortable environment. From the time we announced the funding for these additional in-patient adult beds, Southlake completed the renovations within two years.

Thank you to the Southlake team for everything you do to support our communities and for helping some of our most vulnerable residents on their journey to wellness.

Another organization in my riding, CMHA York and South Simcoe—in early January, I had the opportunity to visit their Aurora office, alongside the Associate Minister of Housing, to announce that CMHA York and South Simcoe was the recipient of an Ontario Trillium Foundation Resilient Communities Fund grant. A total of $104,000 was granted over a 12-month period that started on March 24, 2022. Since receiving this grant, it has assisted CMHA to rebuild and recover from the impacts of COVID-19 by hiring a mental health educator last year to expand the CMHA college course curriculum and also to train staff on virtual and in-person mental health education programming. The grant was also instrumental to the translation of materials to support outreach and inclusivity, development of a learning management system enabling clients to create individual learning portals, and technology enhancements to better facilitate synchronized and asynchronized learning. All courses at the CMHA College of Health and Well-Being are designed to inspire hope, support learning and provide new opportunities for growth and connection. It was wonderful to listen to a very young lady—my words, “a very young lady”—speak about the program, as she found herself in crisis. Through the guidance of the staff and this course, she was able to learn at a pace convenient to her schedule, while allowing her to speak with a counsellor. This is the successful outcome we are all striving for—for our young people to have convenient and connected care where and when they need it.

It is not-for-profit community-based organizations like CMHA of York region that strengthen our community by providing support to young adults with the resources required to improve one’s mental health and strengthen one’s emotional resilience. To quote the CEO of CMHA-YRSS, “We are incredibly grateful for the government’s generous grant that is enabling our CMHA college to bolster mental health and recovery support to marginalized clients in our community.”

Ensuring that individuals in our community have access to the support and resources they require has been and always will be a top priority for me. As the MPP for Newmarket–Aurora and the parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Health, I am committed to supporting the mental health and well-being of all our community members.

I am proud of our government’s investment in the Ontario Trillium Foundation’s Resilient Communities Fund grant as it supports agencies in our community to focus on their work and strengthen their programs for all our residents.

At the end of April 2022, the government announced an investment of over $1 million in Newmarket–Aurora non-profits to help them offset the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic—the goal being to ensure that they can deliver the critical services needed by their local clients and to create stronger communities.

I was thrilled to hear that one of these grants through the Resilient Communities Fund grant program from the Ontario Trillium Foundation would be supporting NACCA, the Newmarket African Caribbean Canadian Association. NACCA was granted $49,600 over six months. These funds helped build an online virtual mental wellness support platform program for Black marginalized and under-represented youth ages 12 to 25. The seamless entry program helps to support strategies for those experiencing ongoing anti-Black racism that has had a tremendous impact on their well-being. Delivered with an Afrocentric focus, the program enables Black youth to experience a greater awareness of themselves, their mental wellness and community of peers. It is intended to be delivered in a partial virtual environment at the NACCA Black-led community centre in Newmarket and at various on-site community-based projects.

To quote the chair of NACCA, Jerisha Grant-Hall, “Youth are a foundational part and important beneficiaries of our programs and services and will continue to be a big focus for NACCA. This grant sets in motion the start of a mental health literacy, advocacy and healing support network for Black youth that is so needed.”

Speaker, we’re also expanding access to primary care to make it easier and faster for individuals of all ages to connect to mental health and addictions through community health centres, family health teams and walk-in clinics.

Ontario health teams also bring together health care providers from across health and community sectors, including primary care, hospitals, home and community care, mental health and addictions services, and long-term care, as one collaborative team to better coordinate care and share resources. Working together, they ensure that you can move between health care providers more easily with one patient record and one care plan that follows you wherever you go for help.

Ontario health teams are responsible for delivering care for their patients, understanding their health care history, easing their transition from one provider to another, directly connecting them to different types of care, and providing 24/7 help in navigating the health care system.

Across the province, 54 Ontario health teams are working to improve transitions between health care providers and are ensuring a patient’s medical record follows them wherever they go for care.

Applications for four additional Ontario health teams are currently being reviewed. Once approved, these remaining teams will result in the province achieving its goal of full provincial coverage, ensuring everyone has the support of an Ontario health team.

With an investment of more than $106 million, Ontario health teams are also investing in digital and virtual care options so you can easily connect with a mental health care worker when you need to from the comfort of your home.

To support health human resources to provide these services, last fall we began our work to develop an Integrated Capacity and Health Human Resources Plan for Ontario. We are analyzing current gaps in our system, anticipating needs over the next 10 years, and determining solutions to address growing health care demands. The plan will focus on how to meet this demand through investments, health human resources and innovative solutions. This year, we are building on this work and shifting our focus to working directly with leaders in our health care system on a workforce plan that includes where to prioritize current and future resources, addressing and minimizing system gaps, and building a strong health system for the long term. We will also look at specific strategies for increasing the number of health care professionals, starting with physician assistants, nurse practitioners, registered nurses, registered practical nurses and medical laboratory technologists. We’ll also look at the retention of our health workforce through incentives, leveraging programs like the Learn and Stay program. We will ensure we have a greater understanding of each community and their needs, and that we have a plan to recruit and retain the health care workers needed, including family doctors, nurses, specialists and other health providers. We will prioritize areas most in need, like rural and remote communities, where gaps already exist. This plan will incorporate our lessons learned from COVID-19 and ensure we are prepared and equipped to meet the health care needs of Ontarians for years to come.

Finally, I’d like to remind this House that our government is making historic investments of more than $75 billion annually in health and long-term care this year.

I look forward to budget day 2023, my first budget day as the MPP for Newmarket–Aurora, on March 23, to share more details on how we will continue to build a strong province and invest in the things that matter most to Ontarians, like health care and mental health and addictions services, for years to come.

Thank you. Don’t you guys go ruining it on me, okay?

I’m sorry to have been so emotional; I was really only just here to say a few words. But we’re in an unprecedented crisis. Never before in the history of the province, the country and probably the world have we been dealing with such high levels of mental illness, and I think the pandemic made it much more difficult. I think that the polarization of society, not just on the floor or in the House of Commons or in the United States—we see it. For some reason, we’ve forgotten to be a bit more kind and compassionate to one another.

I think we look at buckets of money and think it’s going to fix things, when it won’t. I think that when someone has lost their resilience—too many times I’ve had to count in the last little while, I’ve watched people break them down even further instead of saying, “Okay, maybe it’s time to give them a breather.”

I just want to thank all of you and find a graceful way to conclude this speech. It has been a journey—and whether you guys like it or not, you’re part of mine. I’m grateful that you’re part of it with me, and I’m grateful that you’re all having this conversation. Hopefully, for the remainder of this debate, just take a second and break from your notes—whatever your staff wrote you, or the leader’s office—and just sit there and just think that the people that we’re talking about are real. It’s not uncommon, and it’s absolutely okay to be open about your health and not apologize for it.

With that, I’m going to wrap it up before I start crying again, and I’m going to get my daily Toronto update from Minister Ford.

Further debate?

I want to thank the official opposition for bringing forward this motion.

I want to also acknowledge the members from Nepean and Hamilton Mountain. It takes courage to share your personal experiences.

I want to acknowledge the government’s work on the Mental Health and Addictions Centre of Excellence, but the experts, the front-line workers, are asking now for funding. The government needs to spend some of the money they’ve been squirrelling away on more services that the people of Ontario need. We know that that money is there, and we know that the need is there.

I hope this government acknowledges that we are in an opioid and mental health crisis. Walk down any downtown in a large city or small town across our province, and you’ll see the evidence. I hope the government will listen to great organizations like the CMHA and help them retain the incredible workers who are passionate about the work they do and the people whom they help. The government needs to think about what they can do now, not just in the budget, to help those workers stay in the jobs they love, instead of driving them to better-paying jobs, which is what we heard is happening throughout our pre-budget consultations. The CMHA talked about, I think it was, 250 open positions they have—positions for people who would be helping those who are in need on the streets and across our province to get the help that they need.

During those pre-budget consultations, we heard from numerous experts who stressed the need to expand mental health services and innovate our current approach to ensure that Ontarians get the support they need in a timely manner. For example, we heard from a psychiatrist at the Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences who is doing incredible work in finding innovative pathways in the mental health space—to assess, treat and provide a plan for patients immediately, within 24 hours, after they need to access emergency mental health services.

We heard from people about the need to expand mental health services for youth, in small communities in particular, and make it simple and accessible for them to access the services they need wherever they live.

We heard about the impact on businesses and community members who want to see those who are suffering get the help they need and not have to resort to living, and seeking unsafe drugs, on the streets.

Innovations and solutions are out there. We’ve heard from the experts in the mental health space on what they need not only to ensure better and timely care for those who seek their services, but also to ensure they can attract and retain the workers who deliver those services to those in need.

We heard during those pre-budget consultations about the effects of Bill 124 on workers, including those in the mental health sector—that it has been devastating and humiliating for them. We’ve heard that those health care workers do not feel supported by this government, and this bill was an example of that.

I’ve spoken to CMHA Toronto, and I know the great work they do and how committed they and their employees are to providing services to residents in my riding of Don Valley West and across Toronto, but they can’t do it without the money to pay their workers who provide those services.

According to CMHA, one in four people in Ontario access mental health services, and 43% are finding it difficult to access the services they need.

CMHA has asked for a base funding increase of 8%. This is a small amount of the government’s $6.4 billion of money that they said they would spend in this fiscal year. This small increase would help to increase care across the province of Ontario; reduce wait times, especially for those accessing and needing emergency mental health services; and allow for early interventions, where needed, to prevent the loss of life that we heard talked about today by the members.

We know that there’s money available—money that should and can still be spent on the people of Ontario. Increasing funding to CMHA to help increase their support and services, to help fill the gaps they’ve been experiencing in providing for the record level of demand that they see for their services—that will help individuals, that will help families, that will help alleviate this crisis. They need those workers to save people’s lives, and they need money to retain those workers.

The request by the CMHA is well thought out. It is modest. It is reasonable. And it would directly help the people who need their support.

I add my voice to those calling for this government to listen to the experts at CMHA and provide them with the resources they need now.

Further debate?

I am also pleased to join the debate today about this motion regarding the Canadian Mental Health Association’s pre-budget submission.

Mental health is an important issue and one which affects people from every walk of life in our province. It is one that our government takes very seriously.

As a member of the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs, I was pleased to travel across the province to hear from Ontarians about their priorities for the upcoming budget. We had the opportunity to hear directly from the Canadian Mental Health Association at the pre-budget consultations in Windsor, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie and Timmins.

During our hearings, we heard from representatives about numerous mental health issues. The city of Kingston told us that they have declared a mental health and addictions crisis in their city. The Ontario Association of Social Workers and the Ontario Society of Occupational Therapists suggested expansion of services and a greater use of all mental health professionals to decrease the waiting lists. The Ontario Shores Centre for Mental Health Sciences and the Rural Ottawa Youth Mental Health Collective both spoke about mental health needs in their respective communities.

I know that the Minister of Finance will be taking all of these presentations into account when he prepares his budget.

The world continues to face the risk of high inflation and other economic challenges, but our government is continuing to work to navigate Ontario through this uncertainty. That’s why it’s important that we hear first-hand from many communities right across our province, including Kenora, Sudbury, Sault Ste. Marie, Timmins, Kingston, London, Barrie, and in the GTA, in Mississauga, Brampton and Durham—all over Ontario—to seek advice from the people of Ontario on the best way forward.

We listened to people in their home communities, gathering their input on what the government’s priorities needed to be in the upcoming budget. Everyone we heard from is crucial to our consultations and part of building an Ontario we can all be proud of, now and in the future.

Over the last couple of years, Ontario, along with the rest of the world, has faced challenges unlike any other that we have seen in our lifetimes. During this time, people across the province stood together and supported one another. The Ontario spirit was on full display. But due to the enduring impact from COVID-19, we also saw people’s needs for health care, and particularly for mental health supports, increase. We know that health care workers went above and beyond in their front-line work during the pandemic. Our government made sure that the funds were available—some $194 million in pandemic-related emergency funding enabled 98% of mental health and addictions services providers to remain open during the pandemic. We listened and acted then, and we are doing the same now.

We want to know what priorities people would like to see captured in the 2023 budget that will help us build Ontario together. Every idea has the potential to help us navigate the uncertainty that lies ahead, and our government looks forward to sharing that vision with all Ontarians on March 23. We are committed to the highest-quality health care for every patient, for every family, and in every community. We heard from Ontarians that they wanted to be able to get care where and when they need it. This means more hospital and long-term-care beds in each community, more diagnostic testing like MRIs closer to home, and more skilled health care workers available to provide care.

We are well on our way to delivering on this. We have added more than 3,500 hospital beds across the province in the last three years to ensure everyone has access to hospital care when they need it. This year, we’ve added 24 more pediatric critical care beds. With 50 new major hospital development projects, we will be adding another 3,000 new hospital beds over the next 10 years. Hospital funding is up an additional $3.3 billion in 2022-23. We funded 49 new MRI machines in hospitals across Ontario, including two machines at Halton Healthcare in my community, so people can be diagnosed faster and, if needed, begin treatment and follow-up care even sooner.

By building on our Roadmap to Wellness with additional investments and innovative new programs, we will make it easier and faster for individuals of all ages to connect to mental health and addictions supports. By the end of this year, funding from the Roadmap to Wellness and Addictions Recovery Fund will have supported the creation of almost 500 new addiction treatment beds in the province. To date, our government has invested $525 million as part of the Roadmap to Wellness. This includes opening eight new youth wellness hubs, launching the Ontario Structured Psychotherapy Program, and adding more than 150 new addiction treatment beds across the province.

We know that people need mental health care that is comprehensive and connected and that offers high-quality, evidence-based services and supports where and when they need them.

A key achievement has been the creation of the Mental Health and Addictions Centre of Excellence within Ontario Health. Inspired by the success Ontario had in transforming cancer services in the early 2000s, the centre of excellence has a mandate to create provincial service standards, performance metrics and reporting.

Speaker, we have also invested in growing our health care workforce. Since 2018, over 60,000 new nurses and nearly 8,000 new physicians have registered to work in Ontario, with thousands more personal support workers now providing care in Ontario. Last year, we promised to expand medical school education by adding 160 undergraduate and 295 postgraduate positions in the province over the next five years. Of the 295 new postgraduate positions, 60% will be dedicated to family medicine and 40% will be dedicated to specialty programs. This expansion—the largest of its kind in more than a decade—includes supporting all six medical schools across Ontario and allotting seats to the new Toronto Metropolitan University school of medicine, which recently found its new home in Brampton.

This year, we will launch the Physician Practice Ready Assessment Program, which will help internationally educated physicians with previous medical practice experience abroad undergo screening and assessment to determine if they are ready to enter practice in Ontario immediately, without having to complete lengthy re-education programs. This will add at least 50 new physicians by 2024.

We will continue to make record investments in health care now and into the future.

In my own community, we value the mental health care provided by Joseph Brant Hospital and Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital.

In my community, we have many great organizations such as Acclaim Health providing mental health supports for seniors; the local branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association; Bridging the Gap Halton; and ROCK, the Reach Out Centre for Kids.

I am proud of what our government has done to support mental health in Ontario, and I recognize there is still so much more to be done. We inherited a mental health system without enough funding or resources, and from day one we have been making the vital investments people in Ontario need and expect from us. Mental health is a priority for our government, as it is for every member of the Legislature. We will continue to deliver the funding and services Ontario deserves.

Right now, my community is facing a crisis of mental health, addictions and homelessness. My office works with unsheltered and underserved constituents, and I recognize just how impossible it is for many in the community to navigate health care and support systems while struggling with addictions and mental health issues. For some people, it’s nearly impossible to survive.

I’ve been glad to work alongside the Back Door Mission, which is a centre of care and service without equal in the province. Please understand, many of the vulnerable clients they work with, who are served at the Back Door Mission, can’t access appropriate care elsewhere. More than 50% of them don’t have health cards. They can’t be served by a private clinic. They need the help and the care of a place like the Back Door Mission, which sees people who have little or no income, with no place to stay, who require treatment and medicinal support for their mental health and their medical needs. They also need a place to stay. They need nurses who have the time to show them that they matter and are cared for, case managers who provide empathy and understanding, and volunteers and peers who make them feel protected as part of the community. They get that at the Back Door Mission. At the Mission United hub in Oshawa, this model of care happens every day; it’s practised every day. It does so because of the commitments of CMHA.

At the beginning of the pandemic, other people shut their doors, but CMHA Durham found a way. They partnered with the Back Door Mission, which at that time was a local charity providing food and respite. Now, almost three years later, they’re operating a high-functioning clinic for homeless individuals, literally keeping people alive on a daily basis. I appreciate the work of everybody connected to this project and across communities.

I talked to Nathan Gardner, the executive director at the Back Door Mission, and he wanted me to share this when I told him that we were asking for funding for CMHA to do the work that is so required across our communities: “It is clear that what is needed to support programs like Mission United and organizations like CMHA Durham is more. More funds to make sure employees have consistent access to training, respite and resources to support them. And more people, more workers with specialization in mental health and addictions to ensure” that they do not have to handle this on their own. “The people we serve who suffer from mental illness are some of the most complex and misunderstood we see today, and they require a commitment of our respect and dignity. Therefore, it is absolutely crucial that we support those who work with them every day, and show them the same respect.”

Government, support this motion. Increase CMHA funding today to support our neighbours in need.

I was actually fully intending this afternoon to start this speech and kind of read the notes in front of me and talk about the $3.8-billion Roadmap to Wellness, the historic investment that our government has made. I was going to talk about $77.35 million in supportive housing since 2019-20. I was going to talk about 60,000 nurses that have been trained under this government, and health care workers. I was probably going to make a few partisan points about how the members of the opposition voted against all of those investments. I was going to talk about education and how we’ve made a 420% increase in mental health supports for kids in our school system.

But after hearing a lot of speeches and hearing about the importance of this issue, I’m not going to do any of that today. In the spirit of non-partisanship, I want to thank the Leader of the Opposition for bringing this forward. Any day that we talk about mental health in this House is a good day for Ontario.

I want to talk a little bit about just some personal experience. I was inspired by some of the stories that we heard from other members in this House. I’ve recently been going to therapy myself. I try to go every two weeks. I don’t always make it every two weeks, but I do it. I do it to deal with my anxiety and some past traumas in my own life. And I really believe that that therapy that I go through makes me a better brother, a better son, a better partner, probably a better legislator—the opposition might disagree sometimes, but I think I’m doing an okay job sometimes.

I just want to say to anybody that’s watching at home that thinks that their brain is broken and wakes up every day trapped in their own head—I know what that feels like. Members of our caucus know what that feels like. Members of this Legislature on all sides of the House know what it feels like. We all have family members; we all have friends. We all have experiences, lived or supported, of our family members where mental health has really kicked us in the butt or kicked our family members in the butt. I just want to say you’re not alone. Go get help. It is a very strong thing to seek help for your mental health, and I encourage everybody to take care of that.

Experience in my own life about—I’ve got a friend of mine that I grew up with—I’ve known him for over 20 years and I’m not very old, so you can talk about what kind of friend that is—who lost his sister a few years ago to suicide. I remember being over there that evening and seeing the pain on his and his father’s faces as they went through that. It was a problem that we never saw coming.

Now, this friend of mine also dealt with different drug addictions—ketamine and some others—as well as alcohol abuse, and that same friend of mine tried to take his own life a few years ago. I’m so thankful that the attempt was unsuccessful and that he’s here with us. But I remember speaking to not only my friend but speaking to his father, who I also consider a friend—I won’t name you—and just seeing the fear in his eyes that not only was he going to lose one kid but lose his second kid a few years later.

So I think it’s important that—I’m new to being a legislator. I’m new to being an MPP. I just want to make sure that these real stories get put on the Hansard because these are issues that we deal with. So if anybody is sitting at home thinking that mental health is a bubble issue that only you deal with, you’ve heard stories from other legislators, you’ve heard some of the stories I’m sharing now. You’re not alone. There is help, and things will get better.

I’ll wrap up the remarks that, look, regardless of the results of this particular vote and regardless of partisanship, I think we can all agree that mental health is in a much better place today than it was a few years ago. As I said, I just want to thank the opposition for bringing it forward. Any time that we talk about mental health in this House is probably a good day for certainly my constituents but certainly for Ontario as well.

I know what it feels like to not want to wake up in the morning, to not want to get out of bed, but I encourage all my constituents and anybody watching: Get out of bed, drink some water and go get the help you need. Tomorrow will be better.

Further debate?

Point of order: the member from Nepean.

Further debate?

I rise on behalf of the thousands of people I represent in Scarborough Southwest. I’m really glad that I’m having a chance to speak to this important motion, the motion that our leader has brought forward to increase funding for the mental health support that we need across this province.

Last Friday, I met with Stephen, who came to ask for support for his wife, Lillian. He showed me pictures of the way she looked when they went away on a trip, and how beautiful they looked, and how healthy and happy, and what has happened since her brain injury, and the mental health support that she needs after. Just the stories of being tossed from one hospital to another to rehab agencies, and how difficult it has been for them—I just saw Stephen, this older gentleman who sat in front of me in tears, and we both talked about how painful it has been for their family.

That’s just one story, and I wish I had more time to share with you the amount of stories I hear about youth mental health and the support they need. I ask anyone here to just look at the data of our schools and the amount of violence we have had across our schools, and the amount of calls that we’ve made to 911 by parents, by teachers, by students. Those calls were not for an incident that was isolated for mental health; it was somebody who was going through struggles because of mental health, and they have resorted to violence. It was a parent who does not know how to control their young daughter, their child, their son, who is going through difficulty after COVID.

Just a few months ago, I was in this House talking about the amount of funding that CMHA receives. It was just about 3.9% over the last 11 years: That’s the amount of funding increase that they have received, regardless of the amount of increase that we have in the need for mental health supports, and yet we have had failures by government after government in really addressing the crisis and that increase in that need.

So today, when I look at this motion, it’s a very solution-oriented motion which is asking for this one specific thing, which is exactly what CMHA is asking for. The Canadian Mental Health Association is asking our government just for a little bit. When you look at the $6.4 billion of unspent funding that we have right now in our coffers, from that, we’re asking for half a per cent. Just half a per cent of that funding is what the Canadian Mental Health Association is asking for from this government, so that they could do the work that we need for our adult mental health needs, for our youth, for those across this province who are dealing with mental health and addictions.

So I beg, I implore the House, every legislator who spoke for the need—we had members talk about how you need to wake up in the morning, look at the sunshine and hope for a better day. But if you don’t have the supports, if you don’t have the funding, if you don’t have the workers—the youth and child mental health support workers; the social workers—you can’t do that. You need the funding for those agencies to function, and that’s what we’re begging this House for, so I’m asking this government: Please, do the right thing and vote for this motion.

Not only does this government need to be supporting the work of community mental health organizations; it needs to address the stressors that are causing mental health breakdowns across the population in the first place. Let’s take the mental health of hospital staff—people we call heroes—on the one hand, while choking the physical and mental-health life out of them through repressive legislation; or our schools, where teachers and EAs are understaffed and under-resourced, paying for school supplies for their students out of their own pockets; or the university and college students mired in debt, working several part-time jobs because tuition fees are absurdly high; or children with disabilities and their parents desperately trying to navigate a hostile system that keeps children on wait-lists years after year with no communication, no guidance and no help in sight. And let’s not forget the adults with disabilities thrown under the bus, those abandoned by the WSIB along with others, forced to give up almost every asset so that they can access the few crumbs of ODSP the government throws out to them.

These are social and economic determinants of health, and they are also the determinants of mental health. When it is easier to get MAID than to find the supports to live, people get a very strong message that no, actually they are not worth it. That is the message they are given, and that is a very significant part of people’s suffering.

Individuals trying their best to provide support services are also breaking down themselves, as they are forced to reapply for funding every year, never knowing whether they will actually even have a practice.

And then, I want to say, Indigenous children and families who are that much geographically removed from municipalities—well, they don’t have access to water; they don’t have access to health care. What is the message to them? The message again is, “You’re not worth it.”

I want to give my support to this motion. I’m happy that there is a conversation going on across the aisle. We may not always agree in our analysis of what is contributing to so much mental health distress, but I think we can agree on the need for support.

I’ve often asked myself, “What will it take to get progress on mental health and wellness?” And somebody back home said, “Joel, it’s going to take a hurricane of honesty.” And I think that happened this afternoon in this chamber, Speaker. I think that happened with people bravely sharing their hurt and their pain.

It leads me to want to talk in the time I have to the need for mental health support for our neighbours struggling with addictions. It leads me to a song written by the great Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails called Hurt. It goes:

I hurt myself today

To see if I still feel

I focus on the pain

The only thing that’s real

The needle tears a hole

The old familiar sting

Try to kill it all away

But I remember everything....

And when I’ve thought about addiction and learned from neighbours at home who work with folks who have addictions or who themselves have lived experience about addictions and the need for mental health, I think about that last line—that so many people right now are trying to forget the trauma that has happened to them in their life, likely in childhood.

When we think about where addiction comes from and the need to get mental health supports to our neighbours struggling with addictions, there are so many immediate answers that are put before us. Is it just about our genes? That’s not what the research actually suggests. Is it about our bad choices? No, it’s much more complicated than that.

Addiction is not a choice. Addiction is a product of our environment, more often than not a product of our past. When I’ve had occasion, sadly, to see people in our community at home or in this great city of Toronto struggling openly with addiction, I don’t see addiction; I see pain. And I ask myself, “What can we do as a Legislature to help people with their pain?”

When I think about what this $24 million could do in our own community of Ottawa Centre, I think about the Somerset West Community Health Centre, I think about fantastic harm reduction workers like Sophia, who I spoke to on the train ride down here yesterday, who told me we are losing people who make their way through the harm reduction facility with safe use because they get placed in supportive housing in an apartment—and I know in Ottawa, we’re lucky to have some of that—but then they’re left alone. They’re back on their own, not surrounded by that love and that community, because—what I’m hearing—they’re missing that support.

We need to make sure that support is available. We need to make sure people like Sophia can support our neighbours struggling with pain, struggling with harm. If we all agree, let’s vote to empower the change-makers in the community that are making people available, dealing with their pain and taking that big step toward wellness.

It’s an honour to rise today to add my voice to the official opposition leader’s motion today to do something incredibly important, incredibly timely, something that is not only a good choice for humans but is a good choice fiscally.

Mental health is apolitical. We’ve heard stories across the aisle today—really impactful, important stories. Like no other time before, it is as though the government and the opposition are on the same page. We have the opportunity today to employ a positive, proactive solution to the struggles that many people face across this province.

Middlesex-London Health Unit indicated that 48% of the population indicated that their mental health was declining as a result of the pandemic. We’ve seen cost of living going through the roof, whether it’s the cost of housing, food, child care. People are also worried about possibly paying more for their health care. We have seen many people in the small business community living on a razor’s edge, not sure if they were going to get the supports to make it through the pandemic, and employees that were worried every time that they showed up to their place of work whether the doors would be locked. It’s not even to mention the folks who are on really terrible social assistance rates, because being on those rates exacerbates mental health conditions even more when you’re worried about the bottom line every single month.

This government also—as I had the opportunity to travel with the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs, my colleagues and I heard from many CMHA branches that they have had only a 2% base funding increase in the last 10 years. We have an opportunity today to address that with only $24 million. Think about the lives that can be impacted. We as a Legislature can show that we believe in the great work of the CMHA. We as a Legislature have the opportunity today to make sure that we support all of those people in the communities who are on the front lines doing that life-changing work, and we as a Legislature can show today with our vote that we want people to get the mental health supports when and where they need them in their communities.

I urge this government: Let’s get this done. Please vote in support. Vote for mental health.

I just rise on a point of order to correct my record. My husband texted me to tell me I said a word I absolutely hate, and I think during the debate labels are very important when we’re having this conversation. I would like “commit suicide” stricken from the record and replaced with “died by suicide” or “died by depression” as far more important to categorize that. It is not a crime to die by suicide. So I apologize and would like that corrected.

Further debate? Further debate?

The leader of the official opposition.

All those in favour of the motion will please say “aye.”

All those opposed to the motion will please say “nay.”

In my opinion, the nays have it.

Call in the members. There will be a 10-minute bell.

The division bells rang from 1517 to 1527.

MPP Stiles has moved opposition day number 2. All in those in favour of the motion will please rise one at a time and be recognized by the Clerk.

Motion negatived.

Mr. Gill moved third reading of the following bill:

Bill 46, An Act to enact one Act and amend various other Acts / Projet de loi 46, Loi visant à édicter une loi et à modifier diverses autres lois.

I wanted to start by thanking all of the members here today from all sides who spoke in response to this motion. I think it’s so important that when we are sharing our own experiences, we’re listening, we’re learning. And then I really do appreciate that so many of the members spoke about their own experience, their family’s experience, what’s happening in their communities, and raised so many examples.

I started off by saying I really hope that this government will support the motion that’s before us, because I believe it’s very reasonable. We’ve talked a lot about our mental health and addictions plan for Ontario, but we intentionally chose a very specific ask today, because we think it’s something that any government should be able to agree to, especially in this moment. It’s so achievable. We’re talking about $24 million, which really, in this day and age and in this moment, given the size of this crisis, how many people it’s affecting and how broadly—really, there’s an opportunity here for the government to do the right thing. It is achievable.

We know that the kind of work that the Canadian Mental Health Association does in our communities is so critical. It reaches so many people. But it is just one little piece, and so I will add by saying that I just came out of meetings, like so many of us here today, with some of our correctional officers. I will say that many years ago—oh gosh, it was almost 20 years ago now. I was working with Peter Kormos at the time, a former MPP here. I’ve mentioned this to others before. We went and did one of these inspections of a correctional facility, and the reason we went in was to look and see who was in solitary confinement. Everyone in solitary confinement was under suicide watch. Every single one of those people was some-body who actually needed mental health support and had not received it in the community and had not received it again and again and again. Talking with the correctional officers at that time, 20 years ago now, it really struck me how we were failing so many in our communities.

Well, today the crisis is deeper and wider, but the solutions are still not there. What we’re seeing in our correctional facilities, what we’re seeing in our hospitals, what we’re seeing all throughout our communities is something that we could fix. There is a fix. We need to give people the support they need.

I’ll just go back, because I’m running out of time. I just want to say I would really implore the government to support our motion. We don’t have many opportunities in this House, in this place, where we get a chance to work together to do something truly transformational. That $24 million is less than half a per cent of what this government has put aside—has not spent, let’s just say—in money that was already allocated. That would go a long way. It won’t solve everything, but it will help to solve some of the problems that we’re facing right now in our community.

I thank everyone for joining in this conversation today, and thank you, Speaker, for the opportunity to speak again.

The ayes are 32; the nays are 65.

I’m very pleased to be leading off third reading debate on Bill 46, Less Red Tape, Stronger Ontario Act. I want to say that I’ll be sharing my time with my parliamentary assistant, the member for Niagara West. I want to thank him for his ongoing support and assistance in moving this important piece of legislation forward, and all of his tremendous work leading up to and since, especially during some of the committee hearings.

The Less Red Tape, Stronger Ontario Act is the first red tape reduction bill of this mandate, and our ninth red tape reduction bill since forming government in 2018. It’s focused on improving Ontario’s competitiveness in several key areas. It includes measures to strengthen our supply chains so more goods can get to more places. It supports our farmers and agri-businesses, laying out a path to produce and grow more food right here in Ontario. It helps grow Ontario’s labour force so businesses can find the right people to grow and expand. And it makes government easier to interact and work with by simplifying administrative procedures across government to improve customer service and reduce compliance costs.

The bill, as well as related policy and regulatory changes, add up to 28 individual measures to reduce burden and red tape in our province. And it’s never been more important for us to continue this important work, because red tape is anything, as we know, that causes frustration, expenses, delays and complications in everyday life. It is a significant barrier to our productivity and our economic competitiveness. It discourages investments and innovation.

We have heard these complaints from people and businesses across Ontario loud and clear. That’s why we’ve passed eight red tape reduction bills since forming government. Combined, these bills and related packages have included more than 400 individual actions to reduce red tape and cut regulatory burden. This has, of course, led to a reduction in Ontario’s total regulatory compliance requirements by 6.5%. That translates to annual savings of $576 million in compliance costs for businesses, not-for-profit organizations, municipalities, school boards, hospitals and the rest of the broader public sector. That’s more than half a billion dollars each year that is no longer being spent on filing outdated paperwork, paying fees to renew licence plate stickers or complying with duplicative regulations that exist across multiple levels of government.

We’re very proud of this progress, of course, but there is far more work that still needs to be done. Ontario’s people and businesses continue to face challenges: Two thirds of Ontario businesses across various sectors have reported last year that their supply challenges got worse, and more than one third of businesses say that labour-related obstacles will continue to limit their growth.

We know that it is incumbent on government to play a supportive role in solving challenges like what we’re currently seeing with the labour market and our overall competitiveness. That’s why we have brought forward this important piece of legislation. Bill 46, if passed, will build upon our government’s previous work to save Ontario’s people and businesses time and money. It will lead Ontario to more economic certainty, confidence and stability. Simply put, this package will help build a stronger Ontario where people and businesses can continue to thrive now and into the future.

Last month, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business released their annual Provincial Red Tape Report Card where they grade each province in an effort to reduce red tape and regulatory burden over the last year. This year, Ontario was right near the top among all provinces for efforts to reduce red tape. I am proud to say that this is the highest placement that our province has ever received in the 13-year history of the CFIB red tape reduction report card. It’s fair to say that our efforts to reduce red tape are being noticed.

This year, Ontario was proud to receive a Golden Scissors “One to Watch” award from CFIB for our efforts to implement regulatory modernization in permitting and licensing, including predictable timelines for licence and permit applications, approvals and information requests across our government. But we have ambitions to do even more next year, and make no mistake, under this government, Ontario will always show strong leadership on every front, including reducing red tape.

When it comes to our work, there are five guiding principles that guide our efforts to reduce red tape in our province. The first principle is to protect public health, safety and the environment. We do this, of course, by easing regulatory burden in a smart and careful way that always maintains or enhances important health, safety and environmental protections.

Second, to prioritize the important issues. We do this by assessing which regulations cost the most time and money while making more innovative ways to ensure rules stay effective and efficient.

The third principle is to harmonize rules with other jurisdictions, including the federal government, wherever we can. This is one of the most efficient ways to reduce compliance costs across the board.

Fourth, to listen to the people and businesses of Ontario on an ongoing basis to learn what we can do to remove obstacles that are in their way.

And our fifth principle is to take a whole-of-government approach. This is key to delivering better services to people and businesses, making it easier for them to access the information, programs and services they need to succeed.

To be clear, Speaker, we do not believe that rules and regulations themselves are the issue but that unnecessary, duplicative and outdated regulations are the problem. That’s a problem we’re committed to solving, no doubt.

Let me take a few minutes to review some of the pro-posed initiatives in this package. One of the more impactful initiatives being proposed in this bill has to do with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. Our government is proposing an amendment to the Oil, Gas and Salt Resources Act that is the first step toward eliminating barriers to adoption of carbon capture and storage technology in our province. If passed, our colleagues at MNRF would begin establishing a clear framework to safely regulate this activity as part of a phased approach to implementation.

As we’ve heard at committee, carbon storage is an essential tool in supporting a low-carbon economy here in Ontario. As just one example, Trevor Harris from Stelco said the following: “Stelco views the adoption of a carbon capture and storage program as a vital part of this decarbonization pathway that will require both regulatory and financial support from all levels of government. We see the passage of schedule 5 of Bill 46 as an important step in the development of our made-in-Ontario low-carbon economy.”

The phased approach proposed by our government will help to open the province to carbon storage projects in a responsible way. It’s also good for the economy. Existing carbon capture and storage projects in Canada and around the world support thousands of construction jobs and help ensure the continued viability of critical industries as the world transitions to a low-carbon economy.

This is a critical time for Ontario’s businesses. Acting now to enable carbon storage projects will allow them to take advantage of existing federal incentives and funding opportunities and provide greater investment certainty. Delaying these important measures, as some on the other side of the House have suggested, will lead to Ontario businesses missing out on significant incentives and funding opportunities that are already available in other parts of our country. As with all the burden reduction measures in our bill, we will take the necessary steps to ensure that any carbon capture activity is done in a responsible way, with all appropriate measures in place to safeguard people and, of course, the environment.

Speaking of jobs, I’d also like to discuss how the Less Red Tape, Stronger Ontario Act proposes to cut red tape and support competitiveness of Ontario’s energy sector. If passed, the proposed legislation will make it easier to build electricity transmission lines by exempting customer-funded projects from the Ontario Energy Board’s leave-to-construct process. Proponents of these projects will continue to have the right to apply to the OEB to cross a highway, a railway or a utility line in circumstances where an agreement cannot be obtained. Our government is also proposing changes that would simplify the gasoline volatility regulations, aligning Ontario’s regulations to national standards.

I also want to touch on a number of modernization measures for the agriculture and food industries, which are a central part of this proposed bill. We are proposing to amend the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Act and the Innkeepers Act to give beef farmers more flexibility and improve the competitiveness and profitability of their businesses, helping to ensure a stronger and more resilient food supply for the people of Ontario.

The legislative amendments in this bill are in addition to announcements we have made to the larger red-tape-reduction package. Also included are policy changes and consultations in the agri-food sector to support research that better promotes innovation that enables farmers to implement new technologies and techniques that will increase the competitiveness and sustainability of the agri-food sector.

Additionally, the Less Red Tape, Stronger Ontario Act proposes to amend the Animal Health Act to provide authority for the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs to take temporary actions to protect the health and well-being of the public and animals when faced with a potential animal health crisis such as an animal disease outbreak. These measures aim to enhance animal-disease emergency preparedness, help mitigate risks to animal health and human health, as well as boost the competitiveness and resiliency of Ontario’s livestock and poultry sector. Ultimately, it will help to ensure Ontarians continually have a reliable, safe and stable food supply.

Our red tape reduction package also includes the OMAFRA growth strategy, which is the province’s comprehensive plan to build consumer confidence and support famers and Ontario’s food supply. The plan focuses on three key priorities:

The first is to strengthen agri-food supply-chain stability by increasing both the consumption and production of food grown and prepared in Ontario by 30%, increasing Ontario’s food and beverage manufacturing GDP by 10%, and boosting Ontario’s agri-food exports by 8% annually by the year 2032.

The second is to increase agri-food technology and adoption by boosting research infrastructure; advancing the uptake of new technologies; growing the market for Ontario’s innovative technologies, both domestically and globally; and growing the use of data to support efficiencies in the agri-food sector and value chain. This, of course, includes beginning consultations on modernizing the Agricultural Research Institute of Ontario Act to fuel innovation and support efforts to provide modern, relevant research information to farmers and agri-food businesses.

The third priority is to attract and grow Ontario’s agri-food talent by increasing the province’s total agri-food sector employment by 10% by the year 2032; as well as increasing awareness of modern, high-tech agri-food careers, opportunities for mentorship and hands-on job training; and supporting efforts to increase veterinarian capacity in underserviced areas of our province. As a first step, the province has launched public consultations to explore opportunities to modernize the Veterinarians Act as part of the plan to increase access to veterinary care in Ontario.

These are important measures, of course, to support our agriculture sector and build a stronger Ontario.

The next set of proposed changes I would like to discuss, Speaker, supports Ontario’s workplace insurance and compensation system. The proposed legislation will make several updates to the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act to streamline and modernize outdated practices within government to make life easier for Ontarians.

The proposed changes would:

—ensure injured or ill apprentices receive loss-of-earnings benefits at the same amount as journeypersons employed in the same trade would receive;

—provide more flexibility on how often the WSIB board of directors must meet by changing the requirements to meet to a minimum of four times per year versus every two months;

—update the requirements of WSIB-governance documents to ensure they are consistent with, and do not duplicate, other government directives;

—streamline the requirements for WSIB office lease transactions by excluding them from the LG in Council approval requirements; and

—ensure the Workplace Safety and Insurance Act, 1997, does not reference repealed statutes.

The WSIB is one of the largest insurance organizations in North America. These are simple but reasonable changes that will help reduce administrative burden. They will enable the WSIB to operate more efficiently, creating an agile system that is able to better focus on meeting the needs of Ontario’s workers.

The proposed Less Red Tape, Stronger Ontario Act also includes several changes to modernize and reduce administrative burdens in the justice sector. These proposed changes will help improve customer service and make it easier for Ontarians to interact with our justice system. Our government is proposing to amend the Provincial Offences Act to make life easier for Ontarians by helping reduce the backlog at Provincial Offences Court. The proposed amendments will allow court clerks to reopen certain proceedings if they believe the defendant missed a notice or was unable to attend a meeting or hearing through no fault of their own.

We’re also proposing to create more judicial capacity and alleviate backlogs in criminal cases at the Ontario Court of Justice by temporarily raising the limit on the number of days that a retired judge can work.

Lastly, the proposed legislation will also reduce administrative costs and make it easier for prospective jurors to participate in the court system through updates to the Juries Act.

The bill, if passed, would also introduce a pilot program that makes the jury questionnaire available online by default. This proposal will allow us to test the feasibility of moving away from sending hard copies of jury questionnaires through the mail, providing Ontarians with a modern, convenient, streamlined way to participate in the justice system while reducing costs and administrative burden. Piloting this approach will help the government assess the impact on response rates in different communities. In all cases, the right to receive a paper questionnaire will be maintained.

Bill 46 also proposes legislation to confirm the continuation of the Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. If passed, the legislation would confirm the OSPCA’s corporate status and associated regulation-making authorities, which would support the charity in continuing to deliver their important work across government.

Speaker, I’m pleased to have introduced the Less Red Tape, Stronger Ontario Act and to have the opportunity to continue debate today at third reading. Through the 13 legislative initiatives in this bill that stretch across government, we are creating the conditions that let businesses thrive and people prosper. And as a result, if passed, the proposed legislation would benefit Ontario’s people and businesses.

Finally, Speaker, I just want to offer a quick reminder for anyone that might be watching at home that our government is always looking for good ideas to reduce red tape in Ontario. People and businesses can submit their ideas directly to us through our online portal, ontario.ca/redtape.

With that, Madam Speaker, I’d like to turn it over to the PA and member from Niagara West.