Mr. Speaker, let me start by wishing everyone a merry Christmas and happy, safe holidays.

My question is for the Minister of Long-Term Care. For far too long, seniors in Ontario were neglected by the previous Liberal government. More than 40,000 Ontarians, including my residents of Mississauga–Erin Mills, were left waiting for a bed, and they needed to wait an average of 123 days to be placed in a long-term-care home. That’s unacceptable, Speaker. Our seniors deserve a government that works for them and helps them live comfortably and with dignity. We must do all that we can to build more homes and more beds across all communities to create a better future for our elderly residents.

Speaker, can the minister please share with the House how our government is ensuring that seniors in Ontario are getting the quantity of care and the quality of life they need and deserve?

I want to wish everyone happy holidays and remind people that tomorrow the Ontario Greenhouse Alliance is here—they’re known as TOGA. In the spirit of the holiday season, they’ll be bringing poinsettias and celebrating with you. So if you’re available from mid-morning to noon tomorrow, please pop by room 247 to visit with the people who belong to the Ontario Greenhouse Alliance. That’s an invitation for all of you.

I just want to sincerely wish everyone happy holidays, a very merry Christmas, a happy Hanukkah.

We may disagree back and forth; people see this on television, and they don’t see the interaction after, when we go over and we talk to the members over there or you come over here.

I have a personal New Year’s resolution: Let’s not get personal. I do it sometimes, too. I really do. Let’s just be kinder to each other. We can have healthy debates back and forth, but we can respect each other, because we’re all here for the same reason: We’re here to serve our constituents. Obviously, all of us want to make our constituents proud of us, our family proud of us. Let’s leave the family out of it going into 2024 and just have great parliamentary debates, because when we work together, we get so much more done than working separately.

I want to wish everyone the very best. God bless each and every one of you.

On behalf of the smallest but growing caucus over in this corner of the Legislature, I want to wish everyone a merry Christmas, happy holidays, happy Hanukkah.

I, too, want to thank everyone for your service to the people of Ontario.

Aislinn wanted me to pass on just how much she appreciated the warm welcome she received when she was here the other day. She’s looking forward to taking her seat and joining all of you.

Like the member from Timiskaming–Cochrane, I want to thank everybody who serves us in this Legislature and in this building, including the people who clean my office each and every evening, and wish you all the best in the new year.

Applause.

On behalf of the official opposition—this isn’t the time to be oppositional—happy holidays to everyone. Merry Christmas, happy Hanukkah—whatever faith, colour or creed.

We play a crucial role in this province, all of us—the government, us holding the government to account. But I would like to especially thank the people who allow us to play our role: the people at the table; the people behind, where no one but us knows what goes on; the security; the people who clean our offices; anyone else that I’ve forgotten—but the one group that I can’t forget: the folks in the cafeteria.

We all serve the people of Ontario, and whatever we do, we all play a crucial role—a role that none of us could function without each other.

Merry Christmas. Happy new year.