Amir didn’t want to die, yet he had no choice but to begin the process of getting approved for medically assisted suicide because he’s living in poverty on ODSP and was about to lose the rooming house he lived in. He is a disabled man, living with excruciating, untreatable back pain, but the stress of becoming homeless was too much to bear.

Tracy found herself in a similar situation, with disability support being too low to survive on. Once an able-bodied chef, she faced the debilitating impact of long COVID that made it impossible for her to continue to work. Seeking MAID was an exclusive financial consideration for her.

There are many others like Amir and Tracy. A disability may be present at birth, could be caused by an accident, or developed over time—the point is, it could be anyone. And if you find yourself in that situation, the system you face is one where you are provided so little. The rates are so low that it becomes impossible to survive. You’re constantly worried about where your next meal will come from, how much longer you can keep a roof over your head. You become so desperate that you begin to consider medically assisted suicide. That’s how it is right now.

What does this say about ODSP, when death is the preferred choice?

We have to fix this. The NDP keeps proposing solutions, but you keep voting them down. Please, I ask you: Work with us so people don’t have to die and instead can live with dignity.

I’d like to give a warm welcome to the Co-operative Housing Federation of Canada, to Cystic Fibrosis Canada, and to OPSEU/SEFPO. Thank you for your advocacy.

Speaker, the Premier is using Bill 39 to allow the mayor of Toronto to pass laws at city hall with the support of only one third of council. The mayor could pass laws with the support of just eight members out of 25. We operate in a democracy—50% plus one, majority rule. But this bill silences two thirds of council. It silences the voice of the majority of Torontonians in how our city is run.

Will the Premier abide by the democratic process and withdraw this absurd bill?

Speaker, we learned that the mayor of Toronto and the Premier were having these backroom conversations as far back as this summer. This is how the government operates—secret conversations behind closed doors. We saw that with the cuts to the greenbelt. Backdoor meetings led to results for wealthy donor developers at the expense of the interests of the people of Ontario.

Will the Premier stop his backroom deals with donors and serve in the interests of the public?