I would also like to welcome trial lawyers who I will be meeting with this afternoon. Mike Santilli, Karen Hulan and Jeffrey Shinehoft, welcome to Queen’s Park.

My question is for the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services. Children and parents are being betrayed by this Conservative government’s autism program. A recent news report shared the story of a mother who has moved out of province for better services after being told her child would have to wait until 2027 for a determination of needs assessment. Another mother was forced to take a leave from work simply because she had to sit with her son in school, because he is stuck on a wait-list with no end in sight.

Speaker, it is beyond clear that this government and this minister have failed. What is the minister going to do to overhaul this broken system?

What does it say about Ontario that this Conservative government is knowingly depriving children with autism of the supports they need to reach every opportunity for a good life?

For five years, this Conservative government has been announcing and re-announcing changes to the Ontario Autism Program, and yet children are falling further and further behind.

This minister promised to fund 8,000 kids into core clinical services by fall of 2022, but in October, just 1,511 children had entered into service agreements—that’s agreements; that’s not actual service. This is 19% of their target. This government has failed to reach its own benchmark.

Can the minister provide families with any guarantee that children will receive services in a timely manner? Yes or no?