 Seeing no further introductions therefore time for members. David's the member from Elgin, Middlesex London Thank you very much speaker speaker Rice today to acknowledge world diabetes awareness day The diabetes epidemic in Ontario and Canada is rapidly growing and needs government attention more now more than ever Fortunately, this government has chosen not to renew a diabetes strategy There are two main types of diabetes individuals with type 1 diabetes who are unable to produce their own insulin individuals with type 2 Diabetes the most common form who do not produce enough insulin currently there are 11 million Canadians living with diabetes or pre diabetes This number grows daily with another Canadian being diagnosed every three minutes in Ontario alone There are roughly 4.7 million people who have diabetes or pre diabetes Type 1 diabetes can't be prevented or delayed But there is hope that through research and innovation a cure can be found someday Early detection of diabetes can potentially decrease complications and improve quality of life I'm encouraged all Ontarians to visit diabetes test dot ca or take the can risk test Taking this test helps individuals become more aware of diabetes risk factors Those at higher risk will be encouraged to see their doctor or pharmacist to learn more I want to thank all of the dedicated healthcare professionals that assisted diabetes treatment and prevention as well as diabetes Canada for all the terrific work they do in our province and country. Thank you Remember from the Hamilton mountain. Thank you speaker a couple of weeks ago I had the pleasure of meeting with the child welfare political action committee a group of individuals Who are determined to see better outcomes for children in our child welfare system? And speaker they know what they speak of because they themselves have lived experience in the child protection system When a child is taken into care by the province we become their parents But too often we let them down because their outcomes leave a lot to be desired Typically when youth leave care, they have lower academic achievement They experience poverty and homelessness early parenthood and involvement with our criminal justice system They have poor physical and mental health and they are left to face the world alone The child welfare political action committee wants that to change and that they believe that they can change that By focusing on evidence-based policies Evidence collected by tracking the experience of our youth when they age out of our system Evidence that tells us what works and what doesn't work and what needs to change to ensure youth living in care Have skills to thrive as adults speaker We must do better for the children and youth in our care I commend the child welfare political action committee for their dedication in doing just that. Thank you Thank you for the members of state the members from St. Catharine's chief government weapon It gives me great pleasure to welcome here today the individuals I did Myositis is an extremely rare chronic autoimmune disease affecting an estimated five out of every 10,000 across Canada Myositis is undue inflammation of muscle that often results in muscle damage to key organs Symptoms of myositis include difficulty walking and standing trouble swallowing and breathing muscle pain and soreness This disease is poorly understood and patients do not always respond to the oral and expensive Intervenous medications prescribed. It is often a precursor to certain cancers It is not contagious and is not hereditary It does strike every age every ethnic background in both sexes. Its causes are unknown As a result, this leads to an extreme lack of awareness And how to appropriately identify and diagnose myositis within the medical community For patients specifically the extreme lack of coordination of health care services medical rehabilitative occupational psychological supports for themselves and their families can be extremely frustrating Myositis has poorly recognized poorer resource and patients and their families have few few places to turn to With any critical illness that takes the network of medical physical and psychological supports having said this Patients are the ones who can best address the challenges they face in accessing myositis care within the health care system Through their shared experiences this important initiative brings patients together and empowers them to advocate for improved awareness Education and financial resources to better manage their disease Thank you for the member status the member from first grade on south. Thank you very much. Mr. Speaker Today I rise in recognition of the men and women who selflessly devoted their lives to preserving the freedom which we so Gratefully enjoy today I had the honor of attending a special event at the Owensound rural Canadian Legion and organized by the Billy Bishop Museum Where we recognize local veterans who have fought and devoted their lives and wars that have spanned our timeline since world war one I want to personally recognize the 11 veterans who made this year's list William Avery Bishop who holds the highest number of victories for his role as a pilot in world war one Wallace Wally Frederick Edwards a leading aircraftman for the rural Canadian Air Forces in the second world war Winifred Darvey Gardner a private and responsible for communications at camp x and the secret service during the second world war Leslie Allison Gosling a sergeant in the rural Canadian Air Force and a fighter control operator during the cold war Peter kip joined the army just 17 where he worked as a private during the second world war Glenwood Roy Lees a captain in the rural Canadian Air Force during the second world war and the cold war era James Duncan MacArthur an aircraftman in the rural Canadian Air Force in the second world war Robert Thomas James Mitchell a corporal in Afghanistan involved in Operation Medusa. He died in Afghanistan on october 3rd 2006 Timothy Adam Northcott was a sergeant in Afghanistan Peter Reinders a sergeant in the rural netherlands army post second world war And Benjamin James MacArthur Watson a master corporal in the Canadian army in Afghanistan and mr. Speaker It's a true privilege. We had 103 year old veteran there charlie fisher who ordered a new ipad Honoring the veterans of local communities has been a long-standing tradition in Canadian culture And it's a unique opportunity to reflect and grow from past conflicts and shore gratitude to those who help to secure our freedom Thank you to all veterans in bruce gray owned sound and across our province and our country As well as to those across all of our nations. Thank you, Mr. Speaker Thank you for the members statements the member from to mischievous Thank you speaker. It's the time of season. It's actually it's the time for winter driving And I'd like to talk about a few things that people all over the province but specifically in northern Ontario experience So last thursday my wife and daughter were coming back from the royal winterfair They called it north bay. The weather was good Then they announced the road was closed. There's no cell service So for a half an hour 45 minutes. I was like so many other northerners. I didn't know Where my family was I knew they were on a road somewhere that was closed in northern Ontario Luckily, they actually made it to tomahawk me and they slept at tomahawk me in But but all people throughout on northern Ontario suffer through that a lot and we push for better road winter maintenance And we continue to do that But there's another issue the next morning I was going on the same road going south and the road was bad But and traffic was crawling And a transport passed our line of traffic with other traffic coming towards us And I'm sure the people and facing me. I'm sure their heart was in their mouths because mine was And I couldn't believe the risk that transport driver took and I will never forget watching his tail lights And the sign on the back of his pipe load that said oversize load Most truck drivers are extremely conscientious But it takes everyone to make a safe road. And that's the mto The politicians and the people on the road. We all have to be careful because we have other people's lives in our hands Thank you Some of the members of statements the member from breptons spring down Thank you, mr. Speaker the province of Ontario proclaimed the month of november's hindu heritage month Recognizing the important contributions that hindu canadiens have made to ontario and canada This bill was introduced in the ontario legislature by my colleague and friend mpp joe dixon Brampton springdale and the province of ontario are home to more than 700 000 indocanadians with 1.2 million indocanadians living in the country In brampton the proclamation of the hindu heritage month in 2017 was recognized by two residents Was initiated by two residents from my riding Manan gupta and rakesh joshy on behalf of the canadian hindu association A flag raising ceremony was held at the city of brampton earlier this month with members of the community and the canadian hindu association To launch the month-long activities Brampton springdale and the province are home to a large and vibrant hindu community Since the first hindu immigrants arrived in canada at the beginning of the 20th century hindu canadiens have made significant contributions in ontario They continue to help foster growth prosperity and innovation throughout the province By proclaiming the month of november's hindu heritage month the province of ontario recognizes the important contributions The hindu canadiens have made to ontario's social economic political and cultural fabric I'm proud that this government passed the bill proclaiming november's hindu heritage month in ontario That gives us all gives all ontarians an opportunity to remember celebrate and educate future generations About hindu community canadiens and the important role that they have played and continue to play in communities across ontario Canada and around the world. Thank you. Mr. Speaker Member for moxford, mr. Speaker This is bullying awareness and prevention week Bullying is happening in our schools on our playgrounds and on our electronic devices We need more discussion on what we can do to stop it in our communities As more and more children use social media and cell phones bullying online has grown So it doesn't stop when children leave school. It's affecting them around the clock When I've spoken to students, I've heard that cyber bullying is even more common in schools than in person bullying Today, we're facing new challenges There are so many social media websites that can be used as a venue for bullying It can be difficult to keep track of them all But this issue doesn't just impact you We've all seen hateful comments online We've all need to be reminded to those be reminded to those of us to talk with how to talk with both People in person and online with respect to kindness and we need to say something when we see bullying take place Takes a strong person to reach out to someone in need and build them up But it takes real courage for those who are victims to ask for help To people who are impacted by bullying know that there are people who care about you and who can help you If you have been bullied I encourage all members this week and every week to stand up against bullying We can reduce bullying we can work together and make our communities places where everyone is accepted and respected Thank you very much Further members same as the member from Scarborough southwest Thank you very much. Mr. Speaker. I'm pleased to rise the house today I'm going to read a poem to mark remembrance day, which claims observed over this past weekend I was honored to lay a wreath on behalf of the Ontario government at the remembrance day cenotaph Ceremony in Scarborough southwest I'm paying tribute to those who have so bravely served and sacrificed until you do so That we can be free. Mr. Speaker The poem entitled high flight was written by john That's be McGee jr. Who was a fighter pilot that served with the royal king air force in world war two? He died at the age of 19 It has become the official poem of the king air force and i'm going to read it into the record now High flight boy, I've slipped the sturdy bonds of earth and danced the skies on laughter silvered wings Somewhere i've climbed and joined the tumbling mirth Of sun-split clouds and done a hundred things if you have not dreamed of Wealed and soared and swung high in the sunlit silence Hovering there. I've chased the shouting wind along And flung my ear craft to footless halls of air Up up the long delirious burning blue I've topped the windswept heights with easy grace Or never lark or even eagle flew And while with south lifting mind I've trod the high untressed past sanctity of space Put out my hand and touch the face of god Thanks speaker every day ontario's 1600 optometrists care for one of our most precious gifts our vision I was fortunate last week during optometry week to visit Dr. Carla Eamon Who has operated her kentville clinic for 29 years I had an up-close look at the wonderful care she gives to everyone from babies to seniors in long-term care It was valuable insight into how much optometrists do in our health care system And why they're eager to do more Dr. Eamon sees many emergency cases as the local hospital doesn't have a regular ophthalmologist She also provides the ic ilearn program to junior kindergarten students 15 percent of whom need glasses It's a busy busy schedule, but she's happy And she'd like to expand her role giving optometrists an expanded scope in primary care Would reduce wait times and make their practices more viable That's important because I can't envision a community like kentville without an optometrist As dr. Eamon said quote in a smaller rural community Why wouldn't we want to take a greater advantage of this resource? I agree and I encourage the health minister to work with the Ontario association of optometrists And not turn a blind eye on expanding their scope of practice Thanks to dr. Eamon and her staff for their hospitality and for keeping a watchful eye on the vision health of my constituents Thank you speaker Thank all members for their statements. It's therefore time for reports by committees