This petition is titled “Transform Ontario’s Energy Sector,” and it reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas our planet is undergoing significant warming with adverse consequences for health, for agriculture, for infrastructure and for our children’s future;

“Whereas the costs of inaction are severe, such as extreme weather events causing flooding and drought;

“Whereas in 2023 Canadians experienced the most severe wildfire season on record, 2023 was the hottest year on record, and 2024 is anticipated to be even hotter;

“Whereas successive governments over the last two decades have expanded gas plants despite public pushback;

“Whereas reports, such as those from RBC Climate Action Institute, Dunsky Energy and Climate Advisors, and the Sustainability Solutions Group agree that the government must immediately reduce our reliance on fossil fuels;

“Whereas the conclusion of the Ontario Energy Board regarding Enbridge’s plan for a multi-billion dollar methane gas grid expansion is ‘not responsive to the energy transition and increases the risk of stranded or underutilized assets’;

“Whereas Ontario must reduce our province’s reliance on fossil fuels and instead invest in new renewable energy projects to ensure we meet our provincial climate targets;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to pause the expansion of methane-fired electricity generation, and begin to wind down their use to just standby ‘peaker’ plants; expand and accelerate the procurement of electricity from renewable sources, while lifting the moratorium on offshore wind power, negotiating increased power transfers from Quebec and pursuing more conservation, demand management, and distributed energy networks; support the Ontario Energy Board’s recent decision recognizing the current energy transition, and its implications for new, small-volume customer methane-gas connections.”

I support this decision, will affix my signature to it and give it to page Anne.

It’s my honour to present the following petitions on behalf of a number of different wonderful educators and all-around good people: Steve Desmond, Tracy Morrison, Marcie Zavitz, Laura Cornish, Matthew Warren, Marianne Petovello, Leslie Bondy, Kate Campbell, Jacqui Shields, Jennifer Latella and Carol Lynn Bradley. And it’s titled “Keep Classrooms Safe for Students and Staff.”

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas students and education workers deserve stronger, safer schools in which to learn and work;

“Whereas the pressure placed on our education system has contributed to an increase in reports of violence in our schools;

“Whereas crowded classrooms, a lack of support for staff, and underfunding of mental health supports are all contributing to this crisis;

“Whereas the government of Ontario has the responsibility and tools to address this crisis, but has refused to act;

“Therefore, we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to:

“Take immediate action to address violence in our schools;

“Invest in more mental health resources;

“End violence against education workers and improve workplace violence reporting.”

I fully support this petition, will affix my signature and deliver it with page Bhavna to the Clerks.

This petition’s entitled “Mental Health Services in Ontario.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas there is currently a lack of consistent mental health intake policies and care across Ontario when people seek assistance at hospitals;

“Whereas staff training and readiness to support patients with mental health issues at Ontario’s hospitals lacks consistency and is not sufficiently trauma-informed or evidence-based;

“Whereas current discharge procedures often leave vulnerable people without access to adequate care or support;

“Whereas ... 4,500 people” have died “by suicide each year in Canada and suicide is the second leading cause of death among youth and young adults ages 15 to 34; and

“Whereas the experience of Waterloo’s Roth family in the death of their daughter Kaitlyn has brought to light serious flaws in mental health discharge procedures;

We, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to direct the Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions to earmark funding for dedicated training for staff providing mental health services with a focus on evidence-based, trauma-informed approaches, to review intake and discharge procedures to ensure consistency of care, and to provide funding for alternative destination clinics in communities across Ontario.”

It’s my pleasure to support this petition in honour of Kaitlyn Roth and sign my signature.

I have a petition addressed to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario entitled “Pass the Safe Night Out Act.” It reads:

“Whereas we are experiencing a sexual violence epidemic, with Statistics Canada reporting in 2021 that sexual assault was at its highest level in 25 years and community support organizations reporting more crisis calls than ever;

“Whereas 65% of women report experiencing unwanted sexual advances while socializing in a bar or restaurant, and incidents of sexual assaults involving drugs and alcohol most often occur immediately after leaving a licensed establishment or event; and

“Whereas there is no legal requirement for the people who hold liquor licences and permits, sell and serve liquor, or provide security at licensed establishments and events to be trained in recognizing and safely intervening in sexual harassment and violence;

“Whereas servers in licensed establishments also face high risk of sexual violence and harassment from co-workers and patrons;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to immediately pass the Ontario NDP’s Safe Night Out Act to make Ontario’s bars and nightclubs safer for patrons and staff by requiring training in sexual violence and harassment prevention, by strengthening protections for servers from workplace sexual violence, and by requiring every establishment to develop and post a policy on how sexual violence and harassment will be handled, including accessing local resources and supports.”

I fully support this petition, affix my signature and send it to the table with page Emily.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontario’s social assistance rates are well below Canada’s official Market Basket Measure poverty line and far from adequate to cover the rising costs of food and rent...;

“Whereas an open letter to the Premier and two cabinet ministers, signed by over 230 organizations, recommends that social assistance rates be doubled for both Ontario Works (OW) and the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP);

“Whereas the recent small budget increase of 5% for ODSP still leaves these citizens well below the poverty line, both they and those receiving the frozen OW rates are struggling to live in this time of alarming inflation;

“Whereas the government of Canada recognized in its CERB program that a ‘basic income’ of $2,000 per month was the standard support required by individuals who lost their employment during the pandemic;”

Therefore “we, the undersigned citizens of Ontario, petition the Legislative Assembly to double social assistance rates for OW and ODSP.”

I fully support this petition, affix my signature and send it to the table with page Olivia.

I have another petition that I’ve already read into the record once, certified by the Clerks, that asks the federal government to delay or stop the carbon tax increase on April 1.

I will sign this petition and give it to page Sarah to give to the Clerks.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Alzheimer’s disease affects over 250,000 people in the province of Ontario;

“Whereas it is estimated that approximately 400,000 individuals will be diagnosed with dementia by 2030;

“Whereas by the year 2050, more than 1.7 million Canadians are expected to be living with dementia, with an average of 685 individuals diagnosed each day;

“Whereas Alzheimer’s disease is not a normal part of aging and is irreversible;

“Whereas 69% of LTC residents are living with dementia...;

“Whereas strategies to mitigate stigma and combat ageism should be at the heart of the strategy;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as follows:

“To urge all members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to build on the progress this government has made on building a patient-centred home and community care system.”

I fully endorse this petition, will sign it and give it to page Olivia.

I’m happy to sign it on behalf of the residents of Peterborough–Kawartha and give it to page Noah to take to the table.

I fully endorse this petition, will sign my name and give it to page Tyler.

This petition is titled “To Raise Social Assistance Rates.” It’s signed by residents from Port Dover, Cambridge, Sault Ste. Marie, Mount Hope, Dundas, Belleville, Pickering, Mississauga, Hamilton-Stoney Creek. It reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontario’s social assistance rates are well below Canada’s official Market Basket Measure poverty line and far from adequate to cover the rising costs of food and rent: $733 for individuals on OW and $1,308 for ODSP;

“Whereas an open letter to the Premier and two cabinet ministers, signed by over 230 organizations, recommends that social assistance rates be doubled for both” OW and ODSP;

“Whereas small increases to ODSP have still left these citizens below the poverty line. Both they and those receiving the frozen OW rates are struggling to survive at this time of alarming inflation;

“Whereas the government of Canada recognized in its CERB program that a ‘basic income’ of $2,000 per month was the standard support required by individuals who lost their employment during the pandemic;

“We, the undersigned citizens of Ontario, petition the Legislative Assembly to double social assistance rates for OW and ODSP.”

I could not agree more. I will affix my signature and give it to page Anne once again. And I want to thank Dr. Sally Palmer for sending these petitions.

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontarians should get health care based on need—not the size of your wallet;

“Whereas Premier ... Ford and Health Minister Jones say they’re planning to privatize parts of health care;

“Whereas privatization will bleed nurses, doctors and PSWs out of our public hospitals, making the health care crisis worse;

“Whereas privatization always ends with patients getting a bill;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to immediately stop all plans to further privatize Ontario’s health care system, and fix the crisis in health care by:”

—fixing the damage caused by Bill 124;

“—licensing tens of thousands of internationally educated nurses and other health care professionals already in Ontario, who wait years and pay thousands to have their credentials certified;

“—legislating 10 employer-paid sick days;

“—making education and training free or low-cost for nurses, doctors and other health care professionals,” particularly in rural and northern Ontario;

“—incentivizing” them “to choose to live and work in” these parts;

“—funding hospitals to have enough nurses on every shift, on every ward.”

I support this petition, will affix my signature and give it to page Bhavna.

Resuming the debate adjourned on March 28, 2024, on the motion that this House approves in general the budgetary policy of the government.

It’s my honour to read the following petition into the record. It’s entitled “Health Care: Not for Sale.” It reads:

“To the Legislative Assembly of Ontario:

“Whereas Ontarians should get health care based on need—not the size of your wallet;

“Whereas Premier Ford and Health Minister Jones say they’re planning to privatize parts of health care;

“Whereas privatization will bleed nurses, doctors and PSWs out of our public hospitals, making the health care crisis worse;

“Whereas privatization always ends with patients getting a bill;

“Therefore we, the undersigned, petition the Legislative Assembly of Ontario to immediately stop all plans to privatize Ontario’s health care system, and fix the crisis in health care by:

“—repealing Bill 124 and recruiting, retaining, and respecting doctors, nurses and PSWs with better working conditions;

“—licensing tens of thousands of internationally educated nurses and other health care professionals already in Ontario, who wait years and pay thousands to have their credentials certified;

“—10 employer-paid sick days;

“—making education and training free or low-cost for nurses, doctors, and other health care professionals;

“—incentivizing doctors and nurses to choose to live and work in northern Ontario;

“—funding hospitals to have enough nurses on every shift, on every ward.”

I fully support this petition, will affix my signature and deliver it to the Clerks.

I believe we left off with the member for Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound.

I thank the member across the way from Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound. My question, through you, Speaker: How does the government justify the lack of specific measures in the budget to support Niagara’s critical sectors like child care? Within this budget, it does not even mention the word “child care.”

Parents in St. Catharines know the government is underspending on their commitments, forcing families to sit endlessly on wait-lists for spots. Will this government explain why they refuse to provide a funding plan for providers that was due three months ago, and why they ignore this important affordable issue for families with little people?

Thanks to my friend from Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound. We serve on the committee, and we agree to disagree on many things, unfortunately.

You mentioned infrastructure spending in your comments. We’re unpacking some of the infrastructure spending that is in this budget. One of the items is really questionable. It’s the production of a new media studio over in Whitney Block—in the bunker, I call it, in the basement. It’s where the budget announcement happened yesterday. It was a cost of $300,000. Nobody called for it. There’s no rationale to have a separate media studio where reporters can only ask one follow-up question.

How was this decision made? Who made this decision? We have a media studio here in the building. We have the cabinet room. There was no reason for a second media studio which actually limits journalists asking the government questions.

Questions?

I want to thank the member from Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound. I always appreciate his financial knowledge when he speaks to these matters.

My question is regarding something that’s very important to my riding, and that is the Housing-Enabling Water Systems Fund and really the investments in infrastructure and how this will help this government meet its housing targets.

We already know that, in the university and college sector, at least 50% of the instructors are low-waged, precarious contract workers, even though many of them come with PhDs—so already a clear indication of how under-budgeted universities are. Yet I see in the budget documents that the government is spending $15 million to private, for-profit companies with no expertise or ties to post-secondary education tasked with finding efficiencies.

To me, this sounds like harassment and an incredible waste of money that should be spent on core funding for universities. Can you explain to me why that $15 million is being spent on outside investigators?

Thank you to the member from Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound for highlighting all the provisions from this budget.

I want to see what we have in the budget for our seniors. Seniors are the backbone of our province. They have done so much work in raising their families and contributing to Ontario. What are we doing for our seniors in this budget?

Thank you to the great member for his great question.

He’s touched on something that is so important to building housing: It’s the infrastructure that needs to be there at the beginning.

We heard loud and clear from your community and communities all over the province about needing housing-enabling infrastructure—water and waste water, essentially. There is new funding of $1.8 billion directed towards that area. This will enable municipalities to apply for this funding and get that infrastructure in place so the houses can be built.

But it’s not just that. There’s working with the Ontario infrastructure fund. There is other funding and opportunities that we’re doing. Re-profiling the Infrastructure Ontario lending program is being done as well. So there are more and more areas where municipalities can get that infrastructure built so that we can get the houses built that we need here in Ontario.

I point to the information in the budget on page 8—one of my favourite pages—talking about the spending programs. Post-secondary is going from $11.7 billion two years ago to $12.6 billion this year and into the twelves and thirteens in 2026-27, so big investments there. On the capital side: $5.7 billion over 10 years for colleges; $1.3 billion for universities.

We recognize the challenges facing post-secondary education, which is why the blue-ribbon panel was established. We’re taking action to stabilize the province’s colleges and universities by introducing a suite of measures, including an investment of nearly $1.3 billion in new funding to ensure the continued sustainability of the post-secondary education system. Whether it’s $903 million over three years for the new Postsecondary Education Sustainability Fund, including $203 million in funding the top-ups for institutions—and on and on and on.

So we recognize the importance of this sector. We will keep treating it as a priority, and look forward to working with the members opposite to support that goal.

The other element that is very important here is our Guaranteed Annual Income System program, the GAINS program, directed at seniors. That’s being enhanced and is a very, very fundamental part now of the tax system to assist those who need it most and were there for us. Starting in July, the benefit will increase to $87 a month for eligible seniors and $174 per month for couples. On and on and on, we’re going to keep investing in seniors.

I thank the member for the question.

When you invest in infrastructure, there are all sorts of projects all over that require attention—some of them big, some of them small. Look at this building here. It has been around since this province started, and we all feel that at times. Whether it’s the heating system or the cooling system, they all need work, and the media studio as well. I don’t know the intimate details of what was behind that project; perhaps it was to give the opposition more opportunities to be in front of the media over time. We’re always thinking of the opposition, Madam Speaker, to ensure that they have opportunities as well as we have.

Anyway, it’s an important part of our Queen’s Park infrastructure, and we’ll keep working on all that as we can.

It’s always an honour to be able to rise and advocate for the people of Kiiwetinoong. I know that Kiiwetinoong is a very unique riding. We have 31 First Nations. We have 24 fly-in First Nations that do not have access to provincial highways, provincial roads. But also, one of the things that we have—we are so rich in northwestern Ontario. We are rich in the resources that we have. We are rich in the rivers, the creeks, the lakes, the animals, the fish that live in those places, all the trees that we have. We are so rich. Not only that; we are so rich in our ways of life, in the teachings, the stories that we have as First Nations people.

I’ve been here about 5.5 years, close to six years. I sit here, and I’ll listen to the budget, I’ll listen to the fall economic statement, and if you’re in Kiiwetinoong, if you’re on-reserve in Fort Severn, if you’re in Big Trout Lake, Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug, this budget isn’t for you. If you’re a child that’s 12 years old and you’re thinking of dying by suicide, this budget is not for you. If you’re in Neskantaga and you have a boil-water advisory that’s going on 30 years, this budget is not for you. If you’re in a home with three families that have to rotate their sleeping schedule, this budget is not for you.

Those are the realities of Kiiwetinoong. I think sometimes the disappointment that the budgets give me becomes normal. Status quo is construed as normal and acceptable, with conditions that we see and the life-on reserve that would not be construed as normal or acceptable anywhere else in Ontario, anywhere else in Canada. That’s the reality.

What I mean by that is, when we talk about the realities of Kiiwetinoong, they’re not addressed in the 2024 Ontario budget. In Sioux Lookout, which is a town of 5,000 to 6,000 people but services 30 surrounding First Nations, we have 21 long-term-care beds for the 30,000 people that live in the area. In order to get a bed—there’s a waiting period of four and a half years to be able to get to a long-term-care bed.

So those are the realities that we see, and on Tuesday, I was able to see the budget, full of re-announcements, half measures, gaps. I could not help but just to sit here and shake my head in disappointment. But also I wish I could say that I was surprised. Again, this is not the first budget that has failed First Nations, failed communities in the riding of Kiiwetinoong.

I believe that there are not enough announcements that would address the issues people in northern Ontario and First Nations communities are facing. I know that this budget is not for the people looking for a family doctor or the people struggling with the cost of living. It’s not for the people of Kiiwetinoong.

Every now and then, the food prices—sometimes people will send me food prices in the riding of Kiiwetinoong. I think it was earlier, maybe Monday morning, somebody sent me a picture of a small fruit salad. It was, like, 30-something dollars. It was just horrendous, but that’s the way the system is. Some people’s answer is, “Okay, that’s why we need to build roads,” but that’s not the answer. That’s years down the road. That’s decades down the road. We need to be able have quality of life dealt with right away.

The things I’ve talked about for the last five and a half years—it is our status quo, a status quo where First Nations in the north have these boil-water advisories, where too many people, too many youth—11, 12 years old, losing hope—are attempting suicide due to intergenerational trauma.

I was in one of the First Nations not too long ago, a few months ago, and this one community had 24 11- and 12-year-old boys and girls who had a suicide pact. About a month and a half ago, one of those boys and girls fell through the cracks. That’s what we’re dealing with up north. When we see mental health being mentioned in big numbers but that it’s not filtered down to the actual people that need it, it’s wrong. I think, for a while there, when we talk about intergenerational trauma—you cannot just deal with them downstream.

Again, climate change is a real factor, as well, for the winter roads. The corridors that we have in my riding—there’s four corridors—and the First Nations rely on those corridors for winter roads.

I guess what I’m saying, again, Speaker, is these realities would not be acceptable for one day here in Toronto or anywhere else in the province.

When I look at the investments in this budget, the numbers just don’t add up. There are investments to connect 600,000 people to primary care, but today there are 2.3 million people without primary care. If I did my calculations, and if they were correct, that leaves 1.7 million people out—1.7 million people who will continue not to have primary care.

In northern Ontario, specifically in Kiiwetinoong and northwestern Ontario, the crisis in primary care is more extreme. I always talk about unnecessary suffering. I always talk about needless debts. When you have these small communities that are not able to get locum doctors for their hospitals, for their emergency rooms, for their surgeons, a few primary physicians fill in to keep these services running. Can you imagine the pressure and the burnout the physicians in the north experience? When I talk about health, when I talk about the struggles, it means that it’s difficult to retain physicians and the surgeons in the north. When we talk about the lack of surgeons, the hospital in Sioux Lookout can no longer offer seamless surgical coverage. This budget is not including to address this crisis.

There is a ripple effect to these shortages and service interruptions. More of the patients in Kiiwetinoong will have to be sent further away from their homes. Not only that, they have to be away longer from their families.

While we saw an increase in Ontario’s Northern Health Travel Grant, the budget for accommodations goes down every day after the first night. My colleague the MPP from Nickel Belt pointed out that when people come to Toronto for serious illnesses, the grant doesn’t come close to covering the cost, and some people give up. But even though the grant for accommodations increased a bit, the reimbursements for kilometres travelled did not increase.

We had so many questions in this budget that were just not answered, such as the role of private companies in health care, and paid sick days. Instead, if you compare the budget to 2023 interim actuals, and when you look at inflation, we are seeing less investment in health care.

I know that when I was at this meeting last month, on February 8, the Nishnawbe Aski Nation Chiefs Winter Assembly, the leaders declared a state of emergency. It was not only because of what I just discussed with the state of our health care and emergency health services but also because of the tragic and preventable deaths in our communities with the sudden death of our children, the child suicide pacts, the overall mental health crisis, the overall addictions crisis.

I hope that everyone in this House is aware of the responsibilities the government has to address the mental health effects of intergenerational trauma stemming from Indian residential schools and the Sixties Scoop and, furthermore, the intergenerational trauma of Ralph Rowe, who used to be an OPP officer, who was a Boy Scout leader and an Anglican minister. He had his own plane. Ralph Rowe was one of the most prolific pedophiles who lived in our region for 20 years. We know that he abused 500-plus boys in the 1970s and the 1980s in the riding of Kiiwetinoong.

I’ve seen my friends and family members die because of that, whether it’s through addictions, whether it’s through suicide. I heard it when I was at that meeting, that one day at the chiefs assembly. I heard the survivors talk about it and share their stories. I think to be able to acknowledge those, to be able to fund those is part of the reconciliation that we need to work toward.

A few weeks before this state of emergency was declared, the Legislature’s Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs was up north listening to presentations about the budget. I know that everyone who came to speak truly wanted to be heard and to have their suggestions included in the budget.

Among many issues discussed, we heard about the need for harm reduction, overdose prevention and supervised consumption sites. In the north and northwestern Ontario, where is the funding for operating grants for supervised consumption sites?

Where is the long-term-care budget for Sioux Lookout?

When we talk about reconciliation, the town of Red Lake has been advocating for funding for a new arena and event centre for years.

When we talk about safety, I know that the government announced sums of resources, money, to law enforcement—$46 million for the purchase of four police helicopters in the greater Toronto area. What about the safety and security of the people living in First Nation communities and reserves?

Just last week over here, we met with the leadership of Chiefs of Ontario. They told us about some of the criminal behaviour that’s happening on-reserve, and it has gotten worse. What the government has been doing is Ontario has been delaying the changes needed to enforce laws on reserve. Under the long-delayed Community Safety and Policing Act that will come into force April 1, First Nation laws are exempt from being enforced.

Chief Laurie Carr from Hiawatha First Nation told the Toronto Star, “It’s unthinkable that Ontario doesn’t see enforcing our laws and bylaws, which we use to keep drugs and criminals out, as part of adequate and effective policing.”

Speaker, the budget announced millions of dollars for critical minerals infrastructure funding and re-announced thousands to mining companies, but at the same time, the budget is missing funding for consultation—proper consultation: free, prior, informed consent.

In conclusion, we would like to take the necessary measures to make sure that housing affordability, health care and mental health are addressed in northern Ontario and the communities of Kiiwetinoong.

Few things are more important to people than the safety of their neighbourhood, their family and their fellow Ontarians. Our government is investing $4 million to $6 million over three years to fight crime, support patrol and improve response time to major incidents and serious crimes, demonstrating that we understand Ontario’s concern, and it demonstrates that we are a government that does not shy away from fighting these types of crimes and situations.

Through you, Madam Speaker, I ask the member whether they, too, will demonstrate a commitment to protect the safety of Ontarians in their community and vote for our government’s plan to keep streets safe, protect families and stop gangs.

We have time for questions.

Meegwetch to the member for the question.

I spoke about the crime, how gangs are coming into the neighbouring towns, cities, coming onto reserves. We are not able to enforce laws or bylaws to make sure that—the safety and the security of the people that live in those First Nations and the surrounding communities are not addressed. We need to be able to do that. Sure, you want to buy helicopters to protect the vehicles that are being stolen, but it’s important to address the crisis, to make sure that people are safe in our communities.