Thank you for that.

Madam Speaker, under the leadership of Premier Ford and Minister Monte McNaughton, this government, along with every caucus member on this side, believes in helping people get the skills they need to secure better jobs with bigger paycheques. That is why our government is also investing in upskilling Ontario’s workforce. With a $660-million Skills Development Fund, we are helping develop the skills for the next generation of health care workers.

Projects like the Medical Technology Association of Canada received $900,000 in the second round of the Skills Development Fund to help train workers and develop Ontario’s first virtual clinical immersion program, which will provide state-of-the-art health services for the patient.

Madam Speaker, we are not sitting. We are taking concrete action. We understand the problem and we are breaking the barriers. We are taking bold steps. We are doing the needful to make sure that Ontarians’ health and well-being is our first priority, and we will continue to do that.

Another project, the In Honour of the Ones We Love program, received $2.5 million in the second round of SDF to help the organization’s personal support workers establish new relationships with care providers in southwest Ontario.

Madam Speaker, our unwavering focus stems from our desire to find solutions for the next generation to build a stronger Ontario. On one side, I talked about that we already have a big, huge lineup, and then on the other side, I want to remind all my caucus members that in this province of Ontario, in the next many, many years, as the federal government is going to increase the number of immigrants coming to Canada to 500,000, 300,000 are going to come and build their lives in this beautiful Ontario.

I want to take a moment and welcome them. You are choosing an amazing place; I guarantee you. If you can dream it, with hard work, this is a place where you can achieve it. But this comes with a challenge: When they’re going to come here, like any other human beings, they will need services.

I just want to remind you of some of the data points which my office has put together. Ontario’s population is projected to increase by 37.7% by 2046. And who is going to be enjoying this benefit of welcoming more people and building a better and stronger Ontario? It includes Halton, 56%; Peel—our Peel—is going to grow by 51%; Durham region, 39%. And it’s not only the big suburbs around Toronto. It’s actually going to grow everywhere. The same is true for central Ontario. In Waterloo, there is going to be 55% growth; Wellington, 52%; Dufferin, 51%; Simcoe, 44%; and the list goes on.

Madam Speaker, as Ontario grows, it will need more long-term solutions for health care and other labour shortages, too. That is why this government, under the leadership of Premier Ford, is taking bold steps, making the necessary investments and changes to ensure that people can come to Ontario to find work, especially those in health care.

Not only are we breaking down barriers so qualified people can come and work in their field, we’re also making the required investments to help build a better Ontario. That is why we are making sure that we are increasing health care funding by $14 billion. We have built 3,500 hospital beds across Ontario. We’re getting shovels in the ground for 50 new major hospital projects. We’ve provided operational funding for 49 new MRI machines in hospitals since 2021, and we’re on track to building 30,000 new long-term-care beds by 2029.

We have a bill in front of us which is going to give you the right care in the right place, which will make sure there’s faster access to care and will make sure, at the same time, to be providing and ensuring the hiring of more health care workers right here in Ontario. That is why, Madam Speaker, I’m here to support this crucial bill and I’m looking forward to the rest of my caucus and my friends on the other side. Let’s support and build a better Ontario.