 It is now time for Member's Statements. I recognize the Member for Leeds-Grenville, Thousand Islands, and Rideau Lakes. On Friday, I co-sponsored the 15th annual Leeds-Grenville Economic Development Summit. Speakers included Leclerc Foods, one of Canada's leading food manufacturers, who last year announced a $100 million expansion of its North American operations in Brockville. Another presenter was Shoreline's Casino, Thousand Islands, one of the top tourism and hospitality employers in the region, while generating significant revenue for Gananakwe and Leeds in the Thousand Islands as host communities. Planning our future infrastructure update was from Enbridge, since natural gas has a key role in attraction and expansion of business. Preparing for our aging community outlined the Mapleview landings project, one of the riding's much needed long-term care homes. Building an appetite for culinary tourism showcased four businesses that are leading the way. Maison-Maitland Cooking School in Villas, Pickle and Myrrh, Hall's Apple Market and Rosie Yumsky's Fine Foods. Our keynote was the Honourable David Piccini, Ontario's Minister of Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development, who spoke about our government's plan on building a stronger Ontario for all workers. Finally, the Bill Thake Memorial Economic Development Leadership Board was presented to Joe Hudson of Burnbray Farms. More than 80 years ago, Joe bought some laying hands for a high school project. This action would eventually transform the dairy farm into one of Canada's largest egg producers. Other nominees for this year's award include Susan Alford, Judy Berea, Shelley Mitchell and Terry Wills. Thank you, Speaker. Member Statements. Member for London West. Thank you very much, Speaker. On November 10th, more than 60 London faith leaders, including Iman Twuckle, Rabbi Dresler and Cannon Kevin George, issued a message of unity, urging Londoners to stand together against rising hate crimes targeting both Jewish and Muslim communities. They called for compassion, peace and an end to hatred, asking Londoners to instead acknowledge the pain, loss and anguish that so many are feeling. Like many MPPs, I have spoken to members of both Muslim and Jewish communities in London since October 7th. Parents are anxious about sending their kids to school. Muslims, especially if they wear the kafia or hijab, worry about being attacked. Jews, whose star of David hangs over their doors, fear their homes could be vandalized. Last week's guilty verdict in the Our London Family Trial serves as a stark and heartbreaking reminder of the deadly consequences of violent acts of hate. Canadian Chiefs of Police are reporting unprecedented levels of Islamophobic, anti-Semitic and anti-Arab hate crimes and incidents since October 7th. As elected officials, I call on each and every member of this House to follow the lead of London's faith leaders. We must strongly denounce hate and work to heal division and polarization. And as we all bear witness to the unbearable carnage and suffering in Gaza, I reiterate NDP calls for a ceasefire and the return of the hostages so we can work toward a lasting peace in the Middle East. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you. Member Statements, the Member for Whitby. Thank you, Speaker. I'm pleased this morning to report that a Whitby resident's leadership and dedication has set her apart in the world of technology. Carrie Ann Williamson, the Director of Technology and Innovation Services at the town of Whitby, recently won the Infotech Research Group's 2023 Chief Information Officer Award for Canadian Leaders. Speaker, the Infotech Chief Information Officer Award recognizes yearly outstanding information technology leaders for delivering exceptional value to their organizations and whose strategic initiatives and innovative approaches significantly elevated stakeholder satisfaction. Speaker, Carrie Ann Williamson's accomplishments bring pride not only to herself and family, but to all Whitby residents. Carrie Ann's excellence has established a new standard, Speaker, for technology leaders to aspire to, not just in our province, but other parts of Canada. Congratulations, Carrie, for your personal success, but also for elevating Whitby and Ontario's reputation on the national stage. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you very much. Member Statements, the Member for Scarborough, Southwest. Thank you very much, Speaker. I rise today to share a distressing story of one of my constituents, Laura and her two autistic sons. After nine years in a basement apartment, they were served an N12 notice and suddenly evicted from their home. Laura is the sole provider for their family and faced incredible barriers in finding a new home. Speaker, the rental market's exorbitant demands pushed Laura and her sons away from their community. She was asked for extensive financial documentation, advanced payments for up to a year, and even provide medical notes detailing her son's behaviors due to their autism, just to find a home. Laura's history of timely payments contributing substantially over $150,000 to her landlord's mortgage while living in a basement didn't shield her from getting evicted. Because Laura was unable to secure any affordable options in Toronto, she and her sons moved to Niagara Falls, leaving their community and their safety nets behind. Speaker, this isn't just Laura's story. It's a glimpse into the broken system. There are thousands of Ontarians, thousands of families struggling to find affordable places to live. So many small landlords are relying on rental income, struggling to keep up with the high rate of mortgages. Vulnerable tenants are facing impossible barriers to find affordable housing. We're facing an enormous housing crisis across the city and the province. The government must do better to safeguard tenants from unjust evictions and discriminatory rental practices. All Ontarians, regardless of their circumstances, deserve equitable access to safe and affordable housing. Thank you, Speaker. We've had with us in the House today a former member of the legislature, a member for Parkdale High Park, in the 38th, 39th, 40th and 41st Provincial Parliaments, Sherri DeNovo. Welcome back to Queen's Park. Member's statements? The Member for Carlton. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On April 30, 2023, I was honoured to attend the Manitouk Legion's Youth Education Award Ceremony, where I met Connor Yeomans. I presented Connor with an award for a poem he wrote for last year's Manitouk Region Remembrance Day Art and Literature Contest. His poem is entitled, Poppies Blow in the Winter Snow. Connor wrote this as a 12-year-old grade 7 student at St. Francis Xavier High School in Riverside, South, in my riding of Carlton. I'm extremely proud on behalf of the Manitouk Legion and all students in the Carlton riding to share Connor's poem with everyone. The poem goes as follows. Lives lost at a big cost, high risk, high reward, but for others, high risk and nothing to show. For all who had their life on the line, thank you for showing us how to really shine. For the soldiers who fought for our nation, we wear a poppy to show our appreciation. When we were in tears, soldiers had no fears. That is why poppies blow in the winter snow. Congratulations, Connor. You make everyone in Carlton very proud. Thank you. I'm going to interrupt Member's Statements for a moment and ask for the attention of the House. Time being 10.29 a.m. as provided for by the Trans-Daver Remembrance Act 2017. The Assembly will now pause and observe one minute of silence in honour of trans people who have died as a result of anti-trans violence. And I will now ask members to please rise. Thank you. Members may please take their seats. Point of order. I just wanted to recognize again Sherri DeNova, our former member of Provincial Parliament. Trans-Daver Remembrance was a piece of legislation that was created by her. I was proud to be a co-sponsor of that bill, along with former Ottawa Vanier MPP, Natalie DeRossier. It's wonderful to see you here today. I know that you're a champion and I know sometimes we don't agree, but it's always wonderful to see you, my friend. We'll resume Member's Statements. Member for Hamilton West and Castro Dundas. Thank you, Speaker. The 110th Grey Cup Championship took over Hamilton last week, and it was a wild week indeed. Visitors came to our city from all across Canada, and they left knowing for sure that Hamilton knows how to throw a party. The Grey Cup arrived in style with a naval escort aboard the HMCS Harry DeWolf with an official arrival ceremony at the HMCS Star Naval Reserve. Our Grey Cup celebrations included a holiday for students, a free breakfast for fans, beer gardens, many official and unofficial, food trucks, a Christmas market, and live music up and down James Street North. And Saturday morning I had the thrill of walking in the Santa Claus Parade with MPP Manique Taylor. The streets were lined with tens of thousands of folks in the holiday spirit, but many, many CFL jerseys were on display, but of course there was a sea of Tidecat black and gold. And to the absolute delight of hometown fans, Cats linebacker Simone Lawrence joined Mrs. Claus in the parade. And then there was the salout game between the Montreal Alloettes and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. And what a fantastic game. The Bombers led after the half, but Montreal took the lead with only 11 seconds on the clock. I learned last night that 12 out of 16 of the last Grey Cup games had been decided in the last three minutes, proving without a doubt that there's no football in the planet more exciting than Canadian football. I'm glad I cast for it in it this year, but next year in BC the cast will be there. Oski Wee Wee. Oski Voila. The member for Brampton East. Thank you, Speaker. Next week on November 27th, six across the world will be celebrating GERPROM, the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Devji, the founder of Sikhism, and the first of the 10 Sikh Gurus. Guru Nanak Devji fought against discrimination and prejudice, preached a message of equality for all, regardless of religion, background, or gender. GERPROM holds a profound significance for millions of Sikhs across the world, making it not just a religious celebration, but a time of reflection and on unity and service to humanity. Guru Nanak Devji's teachings of compassion, equality, and selfless service continue to aspire us and guide us. They continue to remind us that diversity is our strength and that we all have a role to play to make our world a more just and inclusive place. Speaker, the five key principles of his teachings are, share whatever God has given to you with others and help those who are in need, meaning making an honest living, chant the name of the true God, ask for everyone's happiness, and speak the truth without fear. Celebrating GERPROM, Gurdwaras and homes around the world will be decorated with flowers and lights to commemorate this auspicious day. From my family to yours, I wish you all a joyous GERPROM filled with love, peace and prosperity. May the spirit of Guru Nanak Devji continue to guide us on the path of righteousness and compassion. Happy GERPROM to everyone celebrating. Thank you very much. Member Stevens, the Member for Guelph. Thank you, Speaker. The worsening housing crisis is the number one issue that constituents bring to my office. It's also the primary concern I hear knocking on doors and kitchener. Young people wondering if they will ever be able to own a home while struggling to pay the rent. Minimum wage workers with two full-time jobs just to pay the rent. People on ODSP living in legislated poverty, trying to find and finding it impossible to find an affordable home. Others sleeping in tents as the temperatures drop below zero. Speaker, I'm calling on the government to stop prioritizing speculators and start building homes ordinary people can afford in the communities they know and love by passing my bills to legalize building gentle density and missing middle housing. To work with us to provide operating funds for permanent supportive housing projects like the 32 homes for the Kindle project ready to open in Guelph soon. Instead of spending $3 billion for a bank, use that money to support nonprofits and co-ops to build deeply affordable homes. Bring in real rent control, drive speculation out of the housing market and permanently reduce home heating costs by funding a building retrofit program to help people save money by saving energy. Speaker, Greens have solutions to the housing crisis and we're asking you to work with us to get it done. Thank you very much. Member Statements, the member for Oxford. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Over the past few weeks, the Ingersoll-Tilsenburg and Woodstock Chamber of Commerce handed out their annual Awards of Excellence. These are given to local businesses and entrepreneurs who have made a positive impact on our community and I would like to congratulate each of the winners here today. From the Ingersoll Chamber, Ingersoll Music Academy, JTK Meat Shops, Dr. Bula, for the Youth Citizen of the Year Award, Denise Weiss for the Mark Warnick Citizen of the Year Award, and Ted Commiskeme for the President's Award. From the Tilsenburg Chamber, J.D. Lighting, 3E Power Services Limited, Solid Edge Wood Products, Gasmere Construction Limited, Armatec Incorporated, Rosalind DeCantia for Community Service Award, Dave Martin and Sean Winters for the Entrepreneur of the Year Award and Brad Martin for the Esseltine Positive Change Award. And from the Woodstock Chamber, Deep Purple Lavender Farm, Blue Cow Delivery, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Oxford County, Magland Site Furniture, Brickhous Brew Pub for Oxford, Cassandra Bernard, OC Realty Team and Dance and Style Studio Incorporated. To all the winners and nominees, thank you for making Oxford a great place to live and grow. I wish you all the best for the years ahead. Thank you very much, Member Statements. The Member for Kitchener, South Esplur. The past days were a whirlwind of gallows, to the point that I somewhat lost my voice as of yesterday. On Thursday, I attended the Toronto Police Chief Scala. Friday, the Peel South Asian Collective Internal Support Network Gala. Thank you to my great friend, Minister Nina Tangri, for inviting me. I have a lot of interest in what Peel is doing with community policing, so it was wonderful to attend. And I was able to bring my good friend, Officer Farhan Ali, of the Toronto Police Service with me, who's a champion for the Muslim community. And then on Saturday, I attended the Gujarati Cultural Association Diwali Dinner. I also want to extend a personal thank you to a small business owner in Cambridge, Nav, who owns Ritzy Collections. A tire for the South Asian Gala was South Asian Attire, and I had nothing to wear, because of course it requires an anti or quantum physics to get a sorry on. And so at the time that the event had actually already started in Brampton, I flew into her store in Cambridge with a laundry basket full of sorry's and said, will you please put something on me? And in 45 minutes, Nav, Manjeet Harpreet, Navdeep and Jasmeet had in a scene reminiscent of Cinderella, whirled around me, custom made and altered a blouse, pinned me into my sorry, got me all accessorized and sent me out the door. So thank you so much for their generosity. Thank you very much. That concludes our member statements for this morning.