Further debate? Further debate? Further debate?

On March 27, 2024, Mr. Jones, Chatham-Kent–Leamington, moved government notice of motion 24 regarding amendments to standing orders.

Mr. Fraser moved an amendment to government notice of motion number 24.

Mr. Hsu moved the following amendment to the amendment to government notice of motion number 24:

That the amendment be amended as follows:

By deleting everything after the word “following” and inserting: “In exercising his discretion under standing order 35(g), the Speaker shall recognize independent members for four questions per day, each followed by one supplementary.”

Is it the pleasure of the House that Mr. Hsu’s amendment to the amendment to the motion carry? I heard a no.

All those in favour of the motion, please say “aye.”

All those opposed to the motion will please say “nay.”

In my opinion, the nays have it.

A recorded vote being required, it will be deferred until the next instance of deferred votes.

Vote deferred.

The House recessed from 0916 to 1015.

The Minister of Public and Business Service Delivery on a point of order.

Mr. Speaker, if you seek it, you will find unanimous consent to allow members to wear green shirts in recognition of April 7 being Green Shirt Day and April being donor awareness month.

On March 11 of this year, the LaSalle police force and the Windsor police force joined forces to create something called the offender management unit. This is a special unit whose job it is to seek out and re-arrest people who are found or alleged to be found in breach of their bail conditions. In the first three weeks of operation, police officers re-arrested eight individuals and issued warrants for three more. These are people who have already been charged or convicted with serious offences such as murder, attempted murder, robbery or sexual assault.

The offender management unit was made possible through a grant from this government, under our programming and our specialized attention to the enforcement of this issue.

LaSalle police chief Duncan Davies said, “We are grateful to our provincial partners for coming through on funding this very important initiative....”

Mr. Speaker, I’m grateful too. I’m grateful to our police for catching offenders, putting them behind bars and keeping our communities safe. I want to take this opportunity to say thank you to our police officers.

Speaker, if you seek it, you will find that we have unanimous consent for people to wear a ribbon in honour of it being Be a Donor Month, in line with Green Shirt Day as well.

The Trillium Gift of Life network tells us that 90% of Ontarians want to be a donor but only 35% have registered. Right now, there are 1,400 Ontarians that are waiting for a life-saving organ, and, sadly, every three days one of them dies.

Three years ago, Nova Scotia implemented an organ donation system where all Nova Scotians are considered donors unless they opt out. The first year saw an increase of 40% in tissue donations, and the numbers continue to rise.

Ontario is ready for this, Speaker. I have tabled Saving Organs to Save Lives, in memory of Peter Kormos, six times. There is no opposition. Let’s get this done.

But until it happens, I want to thank every Ontarian that has registered to be a donor and save lives. I want to thank Richard St. Amour in my riding that has helped Nickel Belt achieve 57% registrations to be a donor.

Yesterday was Green Shirt Day. Logan Boulet’s organ donation inspired 100,000 Canadians to register as donors after the after the tragic Humboldt Broncos junior hockey team bus crash in Saskatchewan. We wear green to recognize Logan and all the donors that have given and saved lives.

Remember, Speaker: Be a donor. Soyez un donneur.

I’m speaking to some of the politicians in the room, the stuff that we don’t always talk about and how it can be quite interesting to be a politician, a person with social anxiety. You have to walk into a variety of events, often by yourself, having no idea what you’re going to get. Because of that, when you find a group of people or an organization that you connect with as a politician, that makes you feel incredibly welcomed and supported, it is quite a remarkable thing.

I actually have some guests today who I will introduce later from the Grand River Malayalee Association. I first met these people during the Onam celebrations from last year. I feel like I mention this type of thing a lot, but we connected initially because I turned up in a sari that I hadn’t pleated properly, met the president, immediately asked to speak to his wife and ended up having their MC and another person essentially unwrap me and rewrap me in my sari before I went on stage, which is a really wonderful bonding experience that I recommend to everybody.

But since then, I’ve been to several of their events and I can honestly say I don’t think I’ve ever met a group of people who are more proud to participate in Canadian society. Every time I look, they’re canoeing in Algonquin park, they’re at Tim Hortons, they’re at Canada’s Wonderland, they’re doing something that shows just how much they love being part of this country. It’s such an honour to have them here today. I will introduce them later, but thank you, Speaker, and the Grand River Malayalee Association.

Kaitlyn Roth was a bright, successful, beautiful young woman. She was a third-year University of Waterloo student who had dreams of working with children with special needs. On April 28, 2022, just four days shy of her 21st birthday, we lost Kaitlyn to mental illness. Long wait-lists and gaps in the system meant she fell through the cracks.

Her parents and members of the Roth family are here today. The Roths are focusing on helping others. The mental health system failed them, but they are fighting for positive change.

Approximately 4,500 people die by suicide each year in Canada. Suicide is the second-leading cause of death among young adults.

This afternoon, I will be tabling a petition with over 7,000 signatures. It calls on providing mental health services with a focus on evidence-based, trauma-informed care and to provide funding for alternative-destination clinics in Ontario.

Waterloo Senator Marty Deacon also supports the Roth family with a call for “compassionate, consistent and caring responses at all levels of intervention, support and recovery. Supporting this petition is a strong step forward.” Thank you very much.

To honour Kaitlyn’s legacy and the many Kaitlyns out there, the Roths have created a foundation to help fill in the gaps, because there were so many gaps in Kaitlyn’s journey.

From her parents: “Kaitlyn, our beautiful, brown-eyed girl with the million-dollar smile, we love you always.”

We cannot let others slip through the cracks of this broken mental health system.

Yesterday, the province of Ontario recognized the significance of organ donation and the impact of the Logan Boulet effect. The devastating Humboldt Broncos bus crash deeply affected both our province and our country. Among the 29 passengers, 16 lost their lives while 13 had life-altering injuries. Among those was Broncos defenceman Logan Boulet.

On April 7, 2018, Logan tragically lost his life. But despite this tragedy, Logan and his family’s decision to donate his organs saved the lives of six individuals, demonstrating the life-saving power of organ donation. While April 7 continues to invoke painful memories across Canada, it has also become an opportunity for us to promote organ donation awareness. This has led to the establishment of Green Shirt Day and the profound impact of the Logan Boulet effect. Just like Logan and his family, everyone who is comfortable and willing should sign up to donate—that has the power to save so many lives.

I’m proud that a teenager in my riding, Ethan Bos, of St. Michael Catholic High School in Kemptville, was the impetus for Bill 112, the Green Shirt Day Act. The bill was sponsored by the Honourable Michael Parsa and received royal assent on April 11, 2022, It promotes organ donation across the province.

If you or someone you know wants to register to donate, you can do so at any ServiceOntario location near you, or go online at serviceontario.ca/beadonor to check if you’re already registered to be a donor or have an existing registration. Anyone who’s an OHIP-eligible Ontarian aged 16 and up can register for this life-saving service.

I want to thank Minister McCarthy for all the promotion through ServiceOntario. I encourage all members to recognize the Logan Boulet effect and support Be a Donor this month.

This April marks the 10-year anniversary of Sikh Heritage Month, a celebration highlighting the contributions of the Sikh community in Ontario. Ontario has one of the largest Sikh community diasporas in the world, with over 200,000 Sikhs residing in the province.

Sikhs believe in five key principles taught by Guru Nanak Dev Ji. They are:

—Vaand Chhako, sharing whatever God has given you and helping those that are in need;

—Kirat Karo, meaning making an honest living;

—Naam Japo, chanting the name of the true God;

—Sarbat Daa Bhalaa, asking god for everybody’s happiness; and

—speaking the truth without any fear.

This year, the Sikh heritage initiative has organized many events across the city of Brampton and the province, including a flag-raising, art exhibitions, concerts and a number of workshops. I encourage everyone to attend. Also, there will be a Sikh Heritage Month celebration here at Queen’s Park, and I encourage all members to attend as well.

April is also significant to the Sikh community, as they celebrate Vaisakhi, a spring harvest festival and the day the Khalsa was created. Vaisakhi is celebrated by visiting a gurdwara and doing Seva—the act of selfless service to others. Vaisakhi will also be celebrated through the annual Khalsa Day parade which takes place in Toronto, from Exhibition Place to Toronto city hall.

Speaker, I would like to take this moment to wish all Sikh Ontarians and all those celebrating a happy Sikh Heritage Month and happy Vaisakhi.

We’re just getting back from an awesome constituency week. It’s great to see everyone in here. Like everybody else, I dealt with issues across my riding. Some of them that came across were landlord and tenancy issues; paramedic coverage that is particularly lacking in the Hornepayne and White River area; municipal integrity commissioner office issues that are happening at municipal levels; the Northern Health Travel Grant; the lack of French services in the health care fields, particularly in home care, in the community of Dubreuilville and others—road maintenance is high priority.

But there’s something I really want to bring to the floor of the Legislature, and I want to thank two constituents. There are still scams that are going on, and these scams are targeting seniors. The one scam that is going on—on the North Shore, we had a really bad storm a couple of weeks ago, and there were a lot of power outages. There’s a 1-800 number that came out that charges people to report power outages through hydro. I’m happy to say that hydro is aware of it, and they’re dealing with that scam, and they’re trying to find out how people are being charged for reporting their calls. There’s also the anti-virus McAfee boondoggle that is going on. That scam is also targeting many seniors.

What I want to say to seniors is: Reach out to your family members and make sure that you have the discussions with them, because if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Last weekend, I had the pleasure to attend the Norwich Fire Fighters Association annual pancake breakfast. Volunteer firefighters spent all morning flipping up delicious pancakes and collecting donations for Norwich Youth Unlimited, also known as the Upper Deck. They’re raising funds to renovate their space and provide even more programming for youth in our community. It’s a wonderful opportunity to support a great organization in Oxford and thank our volunteer firefighters for their service, all while enjoying a delicious breakfast.

This event was made sweeter not only because of our volunteer firefighters but also because of the maple syrup that was flowing. With the support of amazing local sponsors like Haupt Tree Line Maintenance and Lot 17, families in Norwich enjoyed delicious Oxford maple syrup with their pancakes.

It’s been great to see yet another successful syrup season in Oxford, thanks in part to our government’s investment of $1 million through the Sustainable Canadian Agriculture Partnership, which supports the province’s maple syrup sector. We’re proud to keep producing delicious maple syrup and bring the rest of the world to taste Oxford.

Overall, this was a great weekend highlighting the very best of what Oxford has to offer: coming together to support a local community organization, dedicated volunteers making it happen and, of course, maple syrup.

I’d like to thank everyone who put this event on and all those who came out in support. I’m already looking forward to next year.

It’s nice to be back. Smiles and the community spirit were in full swing in Etobicoke–Lakeshore, especially with all the Easter bunnies hopping around at our BIAs on Easter weekend, and especially at Mimico Square, where our local artists sold many of their products. Of course, I’m a shopper, so I indulged with a little necklace from a local artist.

From seeing our youngest artists to more experienced artists, I want to highlight the importance of art and the talented and creative individuals from Etobicoke–Lakeshore. We are all blessed every day to see murals on our business walls, on our utility boxes and underneath our bridges, statues and structures, and even the architecture that stands tall on Humber Bay Shores. We are so proud of the community of south Etobicoke.

Etobicoke–Lakeshore is home to many creative people, and today, I’d like to highlight a few. With thanks to the staff and the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, each year, youth from 12 to 18 across the province are invited to display their works of art throughout the Legislative Building through the Youth Arts Program. I’m sure many of you working in here admire the beautiful art displayed throughout our halls. This year, two young constituents, Stefania Dedda and Sofia Lebovics, had the pleasure of showcasing their artwork. Thank you for decorating the halls of Queen’s Park with your talent.

Through the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport and their $60-million budget to encourage art and culture, we continue to see wonderful programs at Franklin Horner, Arts Etobicoke and MabelleArts, to name a few. Thank you for your continued support of arts in our local communities.

With us in the Legislature today is a former member of provincial Parliament who served the riding of Stoney Creek in the 38th Parliament, Jennifer Mossop. Welcome back. Great to see you.

I’m pleased to welcome two of my constituency assistants who work with me at the Wellington–Halton Hills provincial riding office: Judy Brownrigg and Karen Thomas. Welcome to the Legislature. It’s great to have you here today.

That concludes our introduction of visitors.

I’d like to introduce Michael Roth and Fiona Roth; Molly Roth, Michael Roth—who are siblings of Kaitlyn; Mandie Roth; Julie Roth; Karen Waite; and Eric Philip, who is the CEO of Thresholds, all in support of Kaitlyn Roth today. Welcome to your House.

I’m a very happy man this morning because I’m honoured that members of my family are here today: our daughter, Adele Mary Harden, artist in residence at the Great Canadian Theatre Co., from Canterbury High School; and Dr. Clare Louise Roscoe, part of the Children’s Hospital emergency room team, both beloved to me. Thank you for everything both of you do to make me be here. Thank you for coming, guys.

I would like to introduce some great people from my riding of Newmarket–Aurora: Manha Yusuf, the page captain this morning; her parents Nisa Chaudhry and Naved Yusuf; her grandmother Zahida Chaudhry; and her sister Laiba Yusuf. Welcome to Queen’s Park.

Today, I would like to welcome Gennaro Silvestri from Calgary. He’s the CEO of Apé Canada, and he’s here for the Restaurants Canada Show in Toronto.

Good morning. It’s wonderful to be back with all of my colleagues.

As the parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Long-Term Care and the Minister for Seniors and Accessibility, I would like to welcome Ontario Long Term Care Clinicians to Queen’s Park. In the members’ gallery, we have Dr. Rhonda Collins, Dr. Benoît Robert, Dr. Janice Legère, Dr. Abhishek Narayan, Ellen Maracle Benton, Krista Hook, Karin Podolyak and finally, former MPP, Jennifer Mossop. Welcome to the House.

I’d like to welcome to the House a group of family members whose seniors are being evicted from the Chartwell home in Mississauga: Karen Santaguida, Victoria Santaguida, Sinead Hutchinson, Danielle Colalillo and Stacey Saracini.