Speaker, good morning. October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, aiming to promote screening and prevention. It is also an opportunity to raise awareness about the impact of breast cancer, celebrate the progress made and support those affected by it.

This past spring, a US health task force recommended women get screened for breast cancer 10 years earlier than the current mammogram recommendations, starting at 40 years old. Shortly after, I was pleased to hear the Minister of Health say that Ontario is currently exploring a similar change regarding breast cancer screening.

As a registered nurse, I have seen and heard stories from countless women about how deadly breast cancer is and how early screening can save lives and reduce the toll of this disease.

I recently met with a breast cancer survivor and advocate, Ellyn Robinson, who introduced me to a photo-essay campaign that brings together the images and voices of numerous Ontarians affected by breast cancer called I Want You to Know. It can be accessed at densebreastscanada.com.

In my own life, two survivors—my adopted grandma, Shirley Bray, and my francophone friend and leader, Melinda Chartrand—have also emphasized to me how beneficial early screening can be, how important self-examinations are on the first of every month to feel for lumps or bumps for women of all ages, and how we need to show up for screening and book mammograms, even if the truth is something that may terrify us.

To all the women who advocate for breast cancer screening and prevention, to the survivors and advocates, you are not alone. We see you. Thank you for your work.

Good morning. Let us pray.

Prayers.

This being the first sitting Monday of the month, I ask everyone to remain standing and join in the singing of the Canadian national anthem, followed by the royal anthem.

Singing of the national anthem / Chant de l’hymne national.

Singing of the royal anthem / Chant de l’hymne royal.

Applause.

Happy Small Business Week, Mr. Speaker. Over the summer, I had the distinct pleasure of visiting dozens of local businesses in my riding of Mississauga–Erin Mills. From retail and services to manufacturing and logistics, Mississauga is becoming a place for business to thrive.

Speaker, small businesses are the lifeblood of our province. They strengthen neighbourhoods, provide jobs and stimulating greater connections with the local community. That’s why our government will continue to support local businesses, allowing them to achieve all that they can offer. With tax credits such as the Ontario Made Manufacturing Investment Tax Credit, our government is fostering the conditions for growth. This is the reason Ontario has become the economic engine of Canada. That’s why we have been able to welcome almost 40,000 new manufacturing jobs over three years.

By supporting the thriving economy, our government is building a stronger Ontario. Mr. Speaker, I’m pleased that our government is also building Ontario through investments in health care. I recently attended an announcement at Trillium Health Partners in Mississauga where the Premier and the Minister of Health announced Ontario’s first women’s and children’s hospital. This will be the province’s largest centre of specialized care for women and children, providing high-quality care for families. This will be just one part of a far larger Mississauga hospital that will serve our growing community for decades to come.

Mr. Speaker, our government is saying yes to building a thriving Ontario.

On Friday, I held a press conference highlighting the plight of small business owners who took out federal CEBA loans during COVID lockdowns. Toronto itself was the victim of over 400 days of lockdowns—one of the longest in the world. The CEBA loan was essential and allowed small businesses to stay open. But now the federal government is undermining their good work by only extending the forgivable portion of the loan by 18 days instead of the requested year. The federal government is behaving as if businesses should have fully recovered from the pandemic, and we know that they have not; this is simply not true for at least two thirds of those businesses.

The Premier must use his political capital to push the federal government and their counterparts to extend the forgivable portion of this loan until the end of 2024. Without this, thousands of jobs will be lost, as we know businesses will be forced to close. Ontario has already felt the majority of the pain as we’ve seen the loss of jobs and the closing of our main streets.

As we have heard from John Kiru from the Toronto association of BIAs, “Small businesses must be at the table for these decisions. Otherwise we are on the menu.”

The state of small business overall can be best described by the recent dashboards of CFIB—51% are experiencing below sales; 57% are carrying pandemic debt; and an average of $107,000 is what small businesses are carrying in debt.

Speaker, we must do more to support small businesses in Ontario.

I rise today to celebrate the significant work being accomplished in Thunder Bay–Atikokan. Since being elected as MPP, I’ve been privileged to meet with a vast variety of constituents, community organizations and industry stakeholders. From forestry, bioeconomy and mining advancements to policing, housing, health and education services, we have come together to better understand the tremendous opportunities in the riding and work toward securing a better future for all. There is much to celebrate.

By example, on September 9 I was privileged to attend the 2023 Annual Recognition Awards of the Ontario Native Women’s Association’s 52nd Annual General Assembly and Leadership Conference in Thunder Bay. ONWA has observed yet another year of successes and growth—an organization that has been dedicated to the well-being, empowerment and recognition of Indigenous women and girls for over five decades. As we all know, Indigenous women are a tremendous source of strength and resilience and have helped shape and influence their communities as nurturers, caregivers, providers, teachers and leaders. I have been privileged to meet with the leadership at ONWA on several occasions now, and their dedication to generating solutions for protecting the integrity and security of Indigenous women and girls has inspired me.

For these reasons and more, I remain a very proud resident and representative of the Thunder Bay–Atikokan region.

I rise today to recognize and celebrate some recent investments our government has made in my riding of Perth–Wellington.

Recently, I was able to announce on behalf of the Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs that five worthy initiatives in my riding would be receiving a combined $270,000 in rural economic development funding. The municipality of North Perth will be receiving $137,000 for its agriculture excellence action plan, which will support our flourishing agriculture and agricultural technology sector. Perth county will be receiving $50,000 for its workforce attraction and retention kit for employers. Drayton Entertainment is receiving more than $49,000 to modernize operations and support the adoption of more environmentally friendly practices. The town of Minto is receiving $20,000 for their Move to Minto business attraction campaign—and I encourage all businesses to move to Minto. Lynes Blacksmith Shop in Kenilworth is receiving $17,000 to help maintain a historic and culturally significant landmark.

Our government has provided over $4.3 million to support 80 projects across rural Ontario in this recent round of RED funding. Speaker, as you know, rural Ontario is the backbone of our provincial economy. Annually, businesses in rural Ontario contribute $99 billion to our provincial economy.

I am proud to be part of a government that continues to support our small businesses and rural economic development.

Good morning, Speaker. Back in May, I tabled the Captain Craig Bowman Act, which, if passed, would change Workplace Safety and Insurance Board regulations to ensure more firefighters have access to cancer care coverage.

Captain Craig Bowman was a professional firefighter for the city of Welland for 20 years, and a volunteer firefighter for the city of Thorold for nearly three years. Captain Bowman passed away Sunday, May 21, 2023 from stage 4 esophageal cancer. He went to the doctor about a sore back. An ultrasound revealed lesions on his liver. Further testing led to the heartbreaking news of his advanced cancer. He had no family history of cancer.

Firefighters face a number of health hazards as they work to keep our communities safe. They put their lives and health on the line for us every day. I’m honoured to bring forth legislation that will help them navigate these hazards and improve access to insurance coverage for their families.

This is not a partisan issue and should not be a political issue. After I brought this bill forward, the former Minister of Labour personally promised the Bowman family he would act on this. Nothing would make me happier than for the new minister to work with me to pass legislation to get justice for the Bowman family and all firefighters.

Last March, at Science North, L’Arche Sudbury launched a project called It’s Home. There was a video message from the Associate Minister of Housing, who’s now the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services. I took a photo and shared it with him when we sat again, and he just said, “I love that place.”

There is a lot to love about L’Arche Sudbury. L’Arche is an example of a better community, where people with and without intellectual disabilities live, work and play together—where, instead of clients and staff, core members lead their own lives with the support of assistants.

Now imagine you take that independent living model beyond a typical L’Arche Sudbury home and you take it beyond core members and assistants—that’s what L’Arche Sudbury Place will be. L’Arche Sudbury Place is a combined residential complex. It will have 28 units and a gathering space—10 will be affordable housing for L’Arche core members, and the rest for the general public. Think about that: affordable housing for people with intellectual disabilities, market rentals for the general public, and a truly accessible community gathering space. It’s a great idea; it is so good that last Thursday Desjardins donated $500,000 from their GoodSpark Fund to support it. That’s half a million bucks, Speaker.

Thinking back to the minister who said “l love that place,” I want to remind him that Jennifer McCauley, L’Arche Sudbury’s executive director, said, “If we had all the funding and the dollars that we need, we could be shovel-ready for the spring of 2024.”

I look forward to hearing about a provincial investment into L’Arche Sudbury Place soon.

That concludes our members’ statements for this morning.

It is a pleasure to rise this morning on behalf of the residents of Simcoe–Grey to speak about our environment.

Speaker, Ontario has committed to reducing our greenhouse gas emissions by 30% below the 2005 levels by 2030. By 2020, Ontario’s emissions were 27% lower than the 2005 levels. On a per-capita basis, Ontario’s emissions are the third best in Canada at 10.1 tonnes per resident annually; that is 43% below the national average of 17.7 tonnes per resident.

We know we have more to do, which is why this government is working with our steel producers in Hamilton and Sault Ste. Marie to convert the coke furnaces to electric arc furnaces by the end of 2027. That will remove six million more tonnes of GHGs per year.

Speaker, in addition to adding 9,400 acres to the greenbelt this year, this government committed $14 million to our partnership with the Nature Conservancy of Canada, the Greenlands Conservation Program. This is the largest provincial fund to secure, restore and protect sensitive natural areas, and it has amassed over 167,700 hectares since 2020. That is more than 20% of the total landmass of the greenbelt.

Ontario’s energy grid is 90% GHG-free, and we are committed to increasing that number with the new, state-of-the-art, small modular nuclear reactor in Clarington, Ontario that will generate 300,000 megawatts, enough to power 300,000 homes.

Speaker, Ontario is leading Canada in reducing our carbon footprint, and this government is committed to making our province a leader in sustainability environmentally, economically and socially.

I’d just like to join everybody else in welcoming members of the Ontario Medical Association who are here today, but especially my friend and constituent Dr. Audrey Karlinsky, who is vice-chair of the OMA. I’m looking forward to our meetings this afternoon and to visiting with all of you at the reception.

Good morning, Mr. Speaker. I’m always proud to rise in this beautiful chamber to speak about special happenings in Beaches–East York.

On Labour Day weekend, I attended the Toronto International BuskerFest at Woodbine Park, a four-day, fun-filled entertainment extravaganza. It’s an annual, donation-based event brought to us by Epilepsy Toronto and one that is a highly anticipated mainstay, with a 23-year history. BuskerFest is one of the biggest street performer festivals in North America and is the largest epilepsy event on the planet.

With the goal of creating a unique and memorable experience that brings epilepsy out of the shadows and into the public eye, BuskerFest delivers. There is much we can all do to raise epilepsy awareness, end the stigma and improve quality of life.

Epilepsy Toronto is the place where Torontonians can learn more about their condition, get the help they need and be a part of a family of caring people. Approximately one in every 100 adults in Ontario is living with epilepsy. In 70% of the cases, the cause of epilepsy is unknown.

Organizing a vibrant event like this takes much dedication and hundreds of volunteers. We’ve seen critical cuts to organizations like Epilepsy Toronto. We have an obligation to make sure that they are able to continue to do the hard and important work needed in all of our communities.

The countdown to next year’s BuskerFest has already begun.

As always, it’s a pleasure to rise in the chamber today. On this occasion, I’d like to spend a few moments extending congratulations to my colleague and long-time friend, the Honourable Monte McNaughton, who has now officially left public office after a long and successful career. I rehearsed this; I ought to wing it.

As many know, Monte first came to Queens Park as a legislative page back in 1991, and he would some 20 years later return as an elected member of this Legislature. In between, Monte learned the ins and outs of local politics as a three-term municipal councillor and developed his understanding of an honest day’s work while serving customers at his family hardware store in Newbury, Ontario. At this time, I’d like to wish an Irish blessing:

May the road rise up to meet you.

May the wind be always at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face;

The rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,

Monte, Kate and Annie, may God hold you in the palm of his hand.

So mote it be.

Applause.

He’s also a member of the OMA, but I just want to welcome my friend Dr. Koka. We first met at United Way. There are very few things happening in Sudbury that are good that he’s not part of. So welcome to Queen’s Park, Dr. Koka.

We’ve had many greetings for members of the OMA. As a member, I’d be remiss if I didn’t say something myself. I’d like to welcome all of you, specifically Dr. Andrew Park, president of the OMA; Dr. Rose Zacharias, our past president; my friends, Dr. Lisa Salamon and Dr. Audrey Karlinsky; my boss from my other job, Dr. Angela Marrocco; and all of the members of the Ontario Medical Association. I must admit, I don’t feel as lonely today because, very clearly, the doctors are in.

I also want to welcome the OMA, including the doctors I met with today. I just want to particularly mention two Ottawa area doctors: Dr. Abdulla and Dr. Laughton. Welcome to Queens Park.

It gives me great pleasure to welcome my friend and the mayor of Pelee Island, Cathy Miller, to the legislature today. Your Worship, welcome to your House.

I am pleased to be able to welcome Gayle and Gary Dudeck, who are in the member’s gallery here today. They’ve been very strong voices for new home construction and fairness, so welcome to Queen’s Park.

I also want to join members to welcome Dr. Park and the whole team from the OMA.

I would also like to introduce Owen Rao, a bright, enthusiastic student from St. Charles Garnier Catholic Elementary School. He is from my riding in Richmond Hill and is serving as a page now. He is observing his MPP in action, which promises to be a remarkable experience and a significant highlight of his education journey. Welcome, Owen.

It is my pleasure to welcome over 100 members of the Ontario Medical Association. We have their president, Dr. Andrew Park, and soon-to-be CEO Kim Moran. I had the pleasure to meet with Dr. Kapur, Dr. Koka, Dr. Karlinsky, Dr. Berman, Dr. Abdulla, Dr. Krishna and many more. We also have Craig Duhamel and Dara Laxer from the OMA. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

I hope everybody joins them at lunchtime for their reception.