My question is for the Premier. My office has received several calls from mothers desperate for help. They’ve told me about their daughters who have had psychotic episodes or been diagnosed with schizophrenia. Faced with the unknown, these families have tried everything in an endless loop of referrals which go nowhere. When their children are left isolated and alone overnight with minimal interaction, they often get released from hospitals with no supports, no follow-up and, the worst possible scenario, released to homelessness.

Speaker, when will the Premier give these families the attention they need instead of focusing on his insider friends?

I want to thank my colleague from Carleton for that important question. Our government is supporting Ontario’s competitiveness by keeping costs down. One of the most important ways to do that is eliminating unnecessary red tape. The actions that we have taken to cut red tape have helped Ontario businesses save nearly $950 million each and every year.

Thanks to our efforts—the 11 different red tape reduction packages—we have removed over 16,000 different kinds of red tape pieces to keep our businesses competitive on the world stage. The results speak for themselves. There are over 700,000 people that are working today that were not under the Liberals, supported by the NDP.

Later today I will be introducing our 12th red tape reduction package. It will continue our government’s effort to make sure our businesses are positioned to succeed and are competitive in the world. It will show that our government is working around the clock to get it done, driving economic development, encouraging job creation and demonstrating why Ontario is the best place to live, work and raise a family.

Mr. Speaker, everyone is aware that we inherited the Eglinton Crosstown project. We do not contract projects in the same way anymore. But since 2018, 27 P3 projects are in construction today—27. It is this Premier that will build this province.

Thank you to the member opposite for the question. This is a very important issue for our government. We understand the importance and the needs of children and youth, and ensuring that supports and services are there for them. We developed the Roadmap to Wellness and, starting in 2019, invested $130 million into children and youth mental health services through the road map. The road map slates another $170 million over three years in education, $90 million for school-based supports and $20 million for an across-the-board 5% funding increase, something that has not been seen before by previous governments.

And we’re extremely proud of the youth wellness hubs that we’ve developed: 22 of them across the province of Ontario, making a huge difference in the lives of so many of our young people. We’re continuing to invest with early interventions to keep kids from harmful behaviours, which are giving us a great return, easy accessible care, investments—

But you know, Mr. Speaker, I sit here on this side of the House and I listen to some of the rhetoric from the other side, and I wonder if they’ve stopped for a moment to think about what they did when they were in power and how they permitted another government to do absolutely nothing. Under their watch, 9,645 hospital beds for mental health were closed.

Our government, with $90 million, opened 400 new beds, 7,000 treatment spots, and we’re continuing to build a continuum of care to look after the needs of everyone in the province of Ontario to ensure they get the help they get, where and when they need it, no matter where they are in the province: the north, the south, the east or the west.

Back to the Premier—but respectfully to the minister, I wasn’t speaking of children; I was speaking of adults in a system that is absolutely in a horrifying mess, and we see that in all of our communities.

I also wanted to bring a message to the Premier today from Kitchener Centre about their struggle with the access to mental health care. One constituent wrote, “The provincial government keeps touting its investments in health care and its focus on mental health for young people. But what is actually being done? It seems to be that all that is being done is fancy press releases, while single moms like me have to figure out how to make it work, and more often, have to live with the guilt of not being able to provide my teen with the care they need to become a healthy and productive citizen.”

Can the Premier tell us if he will stop spending hundreds of millions of dollars on a parking garage in a spa for downtown Toronto, and instead start investing in mental health care in Kitchener and across the province?

Interjections.

To reply, the Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions.

The supplementary question.

Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions.

Thank you to the member for that question. Actually, after question period, I’m heading down to the college fair, and I’ll be meeting with students, faculty and colleges but also with our team from OSAP and hearing directly from those folks who are working on the ground, dealing directly with students.

What’s interesting is, under the former Liberal government, this province had the highest tuition in Canada, but it was our Premier who said, “No more.” In 2018, we decreased tuition by 10%. We want tuition to be affordable for all students across the province, and that’s why we continued to freeze that tuition. And we’ve kept OSAP as a needs-based assessment, so that students in 10, 15, 20 years will have access to the OSAP system. In 2021 alone, we invested $4.2 billion in direct aid to 385,000 full-time students, with 80% of Ontario’s funding provided as grants, opposed to the 54% of federal student support.

My question is for the Minister for Seniors and Accessibility. When I connect with seniors in my riding of Ajax, they tell me that isolation is a major concern. The minister has always said it is the number one enemy for seniors. Thanks to the commitment of the Premier and this minister, investments made by our government are helping seniors stay active, healthy and socially connected.

In my community of Ajax, several organizations have received funding from this government to provide opportunities for seniors to get together, learn and stay active. Our government is making excellent progress in helping our seniors stay connected. However, we must continue to support initiatives that will help keep our older adults engaged in their communities.

Speaker, can the minister please elaborate on how our government is supporting the quality of life for seniors in Ontario?

Speaker, can the minister please explain how our government is supporting senior centres and organizations in communities across Ontario?

Thank you to the hard-working MPP for Ajax. We have invested over $70 million since 2018 to fund nearly 300 Seniors Active Living Centres across Ontario.

As a senior myself, I know what a difference it makes to be surrounded by people and to have activities to look forward to. When I get to go out across the province and spend time with other seniors, I see the important role these seniors’ centres have. They are building networks for seniors, bringing people together and preventing loneliness. These centres promote life in the community and support the health and well-being of seniors across Ontario.

From Ajax to Atikokan, Kingston to Kearney, Wasaga Beach to Whitby, seniors have access to these programs right in their community. These centres are vibrant places for people to gather, get active and feel supported close to home.

Thank you to the member for Burlington for the work you’re doing, not just to see women survive, but thrive.

Mr. Speaker, the FAO report is actually saying that we’ve done significant work to see more women entering the workforce because of the actions of our government, because we know that women are an integral part to the development of Ontario’s economy. The FAO’s study found that the labour participation rate of mothers with children between the ages of zero to five years increased from 76.5% in 2021 to 78.9% in 2022. That’s a 2.4% increase in one year under our government, and it’s the first time we’ve seen an increase since 1976.

Mr. Speaker, that’s because our government secured a historic agreement for child care, an agreement that is better than any other province across the country: a billion extra dollars and an additional year of funding, guaranteed, that no other province had. We know that women are—

Just recently, I was in Newmarket–Aurora with the wonderful local member there, where we announced the expansion of the Investing in Women’s Futures Program to the Women’s Centre of York Region with an investment of over $325,000 for their First Steps Program. This program will address the intersectional, economic and personal barriers that women have to overcome. It will offer over 250 women, each year, the services they need to leave abusive situations and develop economic opportunities for them to thrive. That’s why we have expanded our Women’s Economic Security Program, and these programs together have seen over 10,000 women access its supports.

Mr. Speaker, we are not going to leave women behind, because we know—

Frankly, it’s because our health care system was ignored for too long when the Liberals were in power and you were propping them up.

But, specifically, I want to talk about some short-, medium- and long-term goals that we have already put in place. Now, we have a plan and it is working. In fact, in northern Ontario we now have a paramedic Learn and Stay program that ensures individuals who want to train to be a paramedic and serve in communities that need that additional assistance, get the ability to do that with two years’ training. We cover their tuition and their books, and they ensure that they are practising in northern communities, including your own.

Those are the initiatives that we are working on. I would ask, respectfully, why you did not support the Learn and Stay program when it was voted on.

Having said that, we have done some things in the short term that have made a real difference. And that, of course, is, as an example, 911 models of care, so that individuals who do not need to go from a paramedic service into an emergency room have options available to them. As we roll out those programs, as communities apply for that, we have seen a dramatic increase in satisfaction at the patient level and, more importantly, making sure that individuals who use those 911 models of care—so that they can go to palliative care. They can go to a long-term-care home. They can go to serve in mental health facilities and have the option to do that. And the patients love it, and the paramedics love it.

My question is for the Premier.

Speaker, like most people in Ontario, I’m very concerned about the current state of our health care system. This week, we heard from a family in Ajax who waited several hours for an ambulance—hours for an ambulance, Speaker. This is a new low; it is unacceptable that anyone in Ontario in need of urgent emergency care has to wait for hours before the ambulance arrives to bring them to the hospital. The son who called the ambulance and waited with his father for hours said, “Our health care system is in a permanent state of collapse. It didn’t have to be like this. I blame the Ford government 100%.”

To the Premier: Why are families waiting hours for an ambulance?

Speaker, people waiting for ambulances—this is not an isolated event. Many other Ontarians have shared similar experiences.

Interjections.

To the Premier: Will you increase municipal funding for EMS and ambulances to ensure people are not left waiting in their times of need?

Speaker, all this government has done is destabilize the post-secondary sector. Listen to OREA. Listen to what Tim Hudak is saying. The OREA report found that 42% of students carrying debt are considering leaving Ontario after graduation so they can repay their student loans and find a place of their own.

This represents a huge loss to our province, but it can be easily fixed. Make OSAP easier to access. Convert loans to grants. That is how to make the dream of home ownership a reality for young people. Why does this government think that selling off the greenbelt to enrich their friends was a more important housing strategy than giving young people the ability to afford to buy a home?

The supplementary question.

And the supplementary question.

The next question.

This is the same party that opposes building student housing on campuses and in communities across Ontario, so we’ll take no lessons from the party across.

We’ve expanded the OSAP program to be eligible for students who are enrolled in Indigenous institutions and micro-credentials, so that more and more students can have access to OSAP. But because it’s a needs-based program, we’ve actually seen a decrease in the number of students who are accessing the OSAP program.

It’s initiatives like the Ontario Learn and Stay Grant, which is seeing free tuition for students who are enrolling in nursing programs, paramedic programs and lab tech programs across the province. They are receiving free tuition in exchange for working in areas of high needs following graduation.

It’s ensuring that students who are attending colleges have access to three-year degrees at colleges, increasing the number of degrees in colleges, so students can continue to learn closer to home.

We are seeing a decrease in the number of students using those programs.

My question is for the Associate Minister of Women’s Social and Economic Opportunity. With more than 100,000 unfilled jobs in the skilled trades, it’s critical that we attract more women and under-represented populations into the workforce to pursue good-paying careers in this sector.

It’s good news that employment numbers for women continue to rise and more mothers are part of Ontario’s labour market. However, the reality is that many women encounter barriers that make it difficult for them to enter the workforce. That’s why our government must continue to work on behalf of all women to implement measures that will reduce obstacles.

Speaker, can the associate minister please describe what actions our government is taking to support women in the workforce?

Ontario’s economy and our province as a whole will benefit by supporting women in the workforce, especially in leading-edge industries such as skilled-trades occupations. Unfortunately, the number of women employed in this sector is well below their male counterparts. At a time of severe labour shortages, our government must invest in programs that will help women to achieve the success they deserve.

Speaker, can the associate minister please explain how our government is expanding opportunities for women to find careers in the skilled trades?

I’m really, really proud today to put forth this petition on behalf of Endometriosis Events. The co-founders, Tami Ellis and Leah Haynes, couldn’t be here today, but they have spearheaded this project across our province.

I also want to welcome the following organizers from Endometriosis Events who are in the members’ gallery with us today: Jenny Rolle, Anne-Marie Seessle, Veronica Brown and Michelle Milheiras.

I also want to welcome Michelle Milheiras’s dad, Jack Milheiras, who is a proud supporter.

This petition is entitled “Endometriosis Awareness and Action.” Again, thank you to Endometriosis Events for leading this charge.

“Whereas the Ministry of Education updated the Ontario physical and health education curriculum in 2019; and

“Whereas the updated curriculum includes sexual health and education expectations; and

“Whereas $7 million has been spent on endometriosis research in Canada in the last 20 years; and

“Whereas there is currently an average wait time of seven to 10 years to see an endometriosis specialist in Ontario” or get a diagnosis;

“We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to:

“—update the current Ontario physical and health education curriculum to include an endometriosis component with specific expectations; and

“—invest significantly more funding in endometriosis research; and

“—improve medical program requirements to reflect endometriosis education in Ontario universities and therefore train more specialists; and

“—ensure people with endometriosis receive timely access to expert surgical and integrative care” through our public health care system.

I couldn’t support this more. We need a provincial strategy for endometriosis care.

The member from Chatham-Kent–Leamington is 100% right: Innocent people have lost their lives due to the dangerous criminals being on our streets instead of being behind bars, and that’s why Ontario is leading the way.

Thanks to Premier Ford, who coalesced all the Premiers and territorial leaders in our country to pen a letter to the Prime Minister calling on the federal government to enact meaningful bail reform, their bill, the federal Bill C-48, has now passed the House of Commons and is on the way to being passed, we hope soon, in the Senate.

But we’re not just standing by, Mr. Speaker. We’re strengthening the province’s bail enforcement and prosecutorial system with a $112-million investment to keep these high-risk offenders and those who will wreak havoc on our streets in jail, behind bars, where they belong.

And yes, as I said just a second ago, because the firearms are coming from across the border, we’re continuing to urge the federal government.

This is the message I said last week in Bromont, Quebec, when I was there together with the Attorney General at the FPT meeting: that the federal government has to step up border protections. I said to my counterpart, “Meet me at the border so you can see for yourself.”

Very briefly, Mr. Speaker. I just want to recognize that, in question period, a member of CIJA, Zehavi Zynoberg, joined us. I want to thank him for his leadership on behalf of all Israelis and all he does.