Good morning, colleagues. I’d like to welcome Alina Cameron, Tony Stravato, Kate Dudley-Logue, Bruce McIntosh and the many families from the Ontario Autism Coalition who are here for their advocacy day. Welcome to Queen’s Park and I look forward to meeting with them.

With April being Autism Awareness and Acceptance Month, I would also like to welcome the Ontario Autism Coalition: president Alina Cameron; VPs Tony Stravato and Kate Dudley-Logue; founding member Bruce McIntosh; board members Leah Kocmarek, Ashley Ferreira, Madison Hughes, Jodie Craig; and advocates Meghan Graham, Bernadette Rilloraza, Michau van Speyk and Chong Le Zhu.

The Ontario Autism Coalition is inviting all members of the chamber today to a luncheon, which will be held from 12 till 2 in room 228, and they’re hoping to see you all there.

I’d like to welcome Chris Markham from my riding. He was here to attend the Ontario Chronic Disease Prevention Alliance breakfast this morning. I thank him for his good work as well with the Ontario Autism Coalition.

It’s a great pleasure to see my friend Kate Dudley-Logue in the chamber here from Ottawa. Thank you for all the advocacy you do for autism. It’s much appreciated.

As we come together to recognize Autism Awareness Month, I am compelled to share the profound impact of our recent attendance at the opening ceremony. It was a poignant reminder of the importance of raising awareness and fostering support for individuals on the autism spectrum.

In reflecting on this event, I cannot help but draw from my own personal experiences. Before assuming my role as MPP for Richmond Hill, I had the privilege of serving special-needs children within my community. I vividly recall the early years, when I nurtured these young minds as they embarked on their journey, often starting at the age of five or six. Today, as they stand on the threshold of adolescence, I am humbled by the progress that they have made and the individuals that they have become.

Our commitment to autism awareness is not merely a gesture, it is a testament to our culture and collective responsibility to foster understanding and inclusivity. Let us continue to champion initiatives that celebrate neurodiversity and ensure every individual has the opportunity to thrive.

I thank my honourable colleague for the question. We have been listening to the families from day one, when I became a minister in this portfolio, in this very important file for the government and for the Premier. I reached out to the families, to everyone who’s involved, to listen to them, to get that feedback from families, from service providers, from experts and from those with lived experience. That’s why this government doubled the funding of the Ontario Autism Program moving forward.

At that time when we formed government, there were 8,500 families receiving supports and services. Today, thousands and thousands, tens of thousands, are receiving supports and services through multiple streams. The family foundational service, the urgent response, the entry to school and the caregiver-mediated programs are programs that families can have access to the second they reach and register with AccessOAP. None of these programs were available before. Even core clinical service—

Mr. Speaker, I 100% back the program. Do you know why? Because this program was developed by the autism community. It was members of the autism community, those with lived experience, family members, clinicians and experts who are the ones who put this program—and even the implementation team was made up of those from the autism community.

So, yes, I’m absolutely supportive of the program that we have in place. I will continue to meet with families. And I said this from day one, that we will come to work every day to make sure we improve their lives and go home to do better the next day every time we come to work.

My question is for the Premier. Today, the Ontario Autism Coalition is here at Queen’s Park, calling for action. They have brought solutions to issues that our children, youth and adults are facing in the autism community across the entire province—issues like wait-lists, determination of needs assessments, funding, housing and health and safety for our loved ones; issues that keep families up at night, forced with hard decisions to be made about education, therapies and finances.

In 2018, the Premier promised that no family would have to protest on the front lawn. There were 24,000 kids waiting at that time; today, there are 67,000 children waiting.

I ask you: Will you and your government listen and hear the calls to action today and truly help the autism community?

Time and time again, I have asked about the wait-list for core services, which is now 67,000 kids and counting. Every time your minister responds, he uses words and phrases like “world-class” and “no child left behind.” In this year’s budget, autism was mentioned once, and yet it fell very short of world class. It was not much more than a reannouncement of the previous year’s funding, a scramble to try and cobble together your broken program.

AccessOAP provides no indication of where kids are in the queue. This is the number one question all of our offices receive from families who are desperate to find the support their children need.

Premier, I ask again on behalf of the 67,000 kids waiting: When will they be told it is their turn and that they’re not going to be left behind?

In March 2023, I tabled Bill 74 that would have offered another solution to bringing missing people home safely. Later that same month, your House leader discharged the bill to the justice committee with a promise to Draven’s family and community that it would be brought back swiftly. Over a year later, Speaker, we are still waiting. People are still signing petitions, and the OAC is here today asking for the immediate passing of the Missing Persons Amendment Act.

Premier, will you finally honour your government’s word and ensure a quick passage of Bill 74?

Interjections.

This government’s underspending on special education means that children with autism are going without badly needed supports in school. This is not only impacting their learning; it is putting their safety at risk.

More than half of principals in Ontario say they’ve had to ask parents to keep their child with special needs at home because staff shortages are putting their safety in jeopardy.

Why does the Premier not believe that children with autism deserve a safe, high-quality education in Ontario?

Premier, I wrote the minister in June of last year on behalf of families like Bethany’s. Her daughter has been waiting for years for autism core services and is still waiting. Bethany tells us that at her daughter’s school there is only one EA for three kids with special needs, and without OAP funding her daughter is falling further and further behind because she cannot get the ABA or the speech therapy she needs.

Under your government, autism services are only getting worse for this family and all the families here today. Premier, why are kids waiting for years for the OAP core funding they need and deserve so they can thrive?

When you ask the people of Ontario if they’re better off now than they were six years ago, the answer is a resounding no. Patients, nurses, doctors, teachers, students—including the autism community—farmers and renters, all dealing with restrictions, slowdowns and cuts to essential services.

But I will tell you who isn’t dealing with cuts. This government has the largest, most expensive cabinet ever. This Premier’s office is also the largest, most expensive Premier’s office in history, doubling in size and salary. If this isn’t the gravy train, I don’t know what is.

Mr. Speaker, can the Premier please explain what exactly his 28 extra staff members, each earning over $100,000 annually, are doing for the people of Ontario?

Interjections.

What exactly is the Premier paying this enormous staff to do?

I have a petition titled “Vulnerable Persons Alert.” With the autism coalition being here today and them being the co-sponsors of this petition, I thought it was a fantastic day to be able to read more names into the Legislature. This petition goes hand in hand with an online petition that has well over 100,000 signatures to it.

This petition strictly speaks about Draven Graham, who was a young boy with autism who went missing and never came home safely; as well as Shirley Love, who was a senior with dementia and, again, did not make it home to her family safely. This would definitely only be one tool in the tool box to ensure that police have access to all available tools necessary to ensure that vulnerable people come home to their family safely.

I wholeheartedly support this petition and will give it to page Ryder to bring to the Clerk.