 It's now time for Member Statements, the Member for Sudbury. Thank you, Speaker. The French language is central to the identity and culture of Sudbury. Over a third of the population in my writing speak both official languages, and I'd like to acknowledge the contribution of Laurentian University Professor Gaitain Gervais, who passed away last week. Gaitain dedicated his life to the research of Franco-Ontarian communities across the province. In 1975, he created the Franco-Ontarian flag with student Michel Dupuis. The flag, which depicts a green and white trillion flower, was first raised at the University of Sudbury. It has become an important symbol of the Franco-Ontarian identity. The significance of the French language in Sudbury is part of why so many constituents were shocked by the government's announcement to act as the French language commissioner and on chair of the French language university. Gabrielle Amou worries about the impact of these cuts on the high school students she teaches. This government's decision to crush their dreams of a Francophone university tells these students that their linguistic rights, education, and heritage are unimportant. I want my constituents to know that I will fight to protect the constitutional rights of Francophones in Ontario. My NDP colleagues and I ask the government to reconsider these harms. The harmful cuts to the institutions that protect and promote the French language in Ontario. Thank you, Speaker. Member's statements. The Member for Milton. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, many times heroes in our communities go unrecognized. I was proud to learn about an individual from my great writing of Milton who was involved in an incident that could have been catastrophic if it weren't for his actions, Mr. Speaker. On April 6, 2017, Stephen Newman was monitoring the airspace over Southern Ontario for NAV Canada as one of the air traffic controllers when a pilot flying from the U.S. found himself in zero visibility conditions. Stephen put his skills and years worth of training to work. He was able to walk the pilot through intense movements while remaining calm in order to make sure the pilot was able to follow his instructions, Mr. Speaker. He was able to guide the pilot in zero visibility at an incredibly intense situation using instruments instead of visual cues to safely land the aircraft. You recall that, I quote, you could hear the stress in his voice. For Stephen Newman's life-saving efforts, he won the Andy Pytus Aircraft Save Award. He was presented at the ATCA conference in National Harbor, Maryland. And an honour that is not very often awarded, Mr. Speaker. On behalf of all of my colleagues in this House, I want to thank and congratulate Milton's own Stephen Newman. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Member Statements, the Member for Algoma, Manitoulin. Well, thank you, Speaker. And here we go again. We're at the beginning of the winter months. Highway 17, Highway 101, Highway 144, 631, Highway 519, 614, 129, 546. I can go on. We've got problems in Northern Ontario and we will not accept not having our roads open no longer. People are frustrated. They're getting to and from their communities. How? By going a 10 and 15 kilometres an hour down the road, and that's not slow enough. I heard the minister get up this morning and talk during question period and answer a question telling people in Northern Ontario, you know what? You're just going to have to slow down. You're just going to have to drive according to the conditions that are there. We've made some improvements to 511. Well, hogwash on that. We want plows on our roads is what we want. We want salt on our roads is what we want. We want sand on our road is what we want. We need to get to our schools. We need to get to work. We need to get to our children to their activities. We need an economy in Northern Ontario and not having good roads is a problem. When you're looking at service providers where you turn around on a highway, where you see them turning here, you can see a stark difference between the two. Why are the standards different for these service providers? We are not going to accept another winter any longer in Northern Ontario. We deserve better. We deserve our fair share and we want a rose power. Thank you very much. Member statements. The member for Carlton. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, this past Friday I had the pleasure of hosting the President of the Treasury Board, the member from Pickering Uxbridge, as well as my colleague, the member from Ottawa, West Appian, in my riding of Carlton for a tour of some of our local businesses. And first I took the President of the Treasury Board to the Rideau Carlton Raceway, soon to be home of the new Hard Rock Casino in Ottawa. And we spoke about innovation and looked at all the different opportunities that are available. For example, with the new expansion of the casino, which is scheduled to be completed in 2022, we're looking at almost 1,900 construction jobs and at the end of the day, when it's done, there's going to be upwards of 2,000 permanent full-time employees when the expansion is complete. I also took the Minister to Carlton Mushroom, which is one of the biggest farms and slash factories in the area. Carlton Mushroom hires over 120 people and they are also looking at expanding. And we had a fantastic conversation about innovation and technology in the agriculture sector. I wanted to thank both the Rideau Carlton Raceway Hard Rock Casino, as well as Carlton Mushroom for hosting us and for giving the Minister a tour of the facilities and showing what great jobs and opportunities we have here in Carlton, which is proof that Ontario is really open for business. Thank you. Thank you. Member Statements, the Member for Hamilton Mountain. Thank you, Speaker. I'm rising today to bring attention to the troubling changes to ODSP, changes that would exclude more people from the services they need to live with dignity and independence. We still have no clarification on the new definition of disability and its cascading impacts. And my constituents are expressing their concerns. Take Joyce, for example. She's on Canada Pension Plan Disability Benefit Now. When she applied for CPP, her eligibility was based on her ODSP. Now, Joyce is concerned that the changes to ODSP could impact her CPP eligibility. Joyce is just one example of many Ontarians who qualify for ODSP now but would likely not qualify under the new rules. The Ford government wants to exclude more and more people from essential services. It should be under no illusion. More of our most vulnerable people will be pushed deeper into poverty. Further, much has been touted about the new income exemptions, but the new clawback rates are troubling advocates across the province. Under the new plan, people will be punished for modest incomes. According to Acorn, people with disabilities who earn over 6,000 from employment will only receive 25 cents for every dollar they earn. And that is just shameful. Contrary to the Ford government's narrative, ODSP and programs like it do not make people more dependent on government. These programs give people the ability to live with independence and dignity. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Member statements. The Member for Whitby. Thank you, Speaker. I stand today to speak about the loss of General Motors in Oshawa and to offer my support to the employees. As a longtime resident of Durham Region and a strong supporter of its manufacturing and commercial base, the news last night was devastating. Absolutely devastating. Our government will do all in its power to assist the GM workers and their families and those employed in supporting industries. Our government is deploying the Employment Ontario Rapid Reemployment Services Team that TNO will provide a coordinated community response. Further, the Premier had a productive call with the Prime Minister this morning. We've called on the federal government to extend work-sharing agreements, extend EI eligibility by five weeks, and to increase the federal transfer to Ontario with skills training via the labour market and the workforce development agreements. Speaker Oshawa and his people will survive. They've always been resilient. And although, at this moment, the pain of the shutdown clouds hopes for the future remain optimistic. The Durham-based MPPs look forward to working with MPP French to assist the GM workers and their families and those employed in supporting industries. Thank you, Speaker. Member for Scarborough Southwest. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Speaker, over the weekend, I had the privilege of participating in a workshop on seniors' rights in my writing with a local organisation named Rights Plus. Around 40 residents from Scarborough, primarily from an immigrant background, participated in the workshop to learn more about the rights and protections that Ontario offers to seniors and tenants. Speaker, it can be extremely difficult to integrate and learn your rights in a new country with the new rules and a new bureaucracy to navigate. And in the workshop, this group learned from experts about seniors' rights under the Canadian Charter as well as the Ontario Human Rights Code and how they can access important safety nets, such as the Ontario Guaranteed Annual Income System. The group also shared their concerns about the lack of public transit options and affordable housing in Scarborough. One resident has been on the waiting list for Toronto Community Housing for seven years, so long that now he has become a senior while waiting. He was recently told that there is still about 55,000 people ahead of him on that wait list. And there is still a real concern that this government's plan to remove rent control on new units will narrow housing options further and make life less affordable. Mr. Speaker, my writing is vibrant and diverse. Many residents have moved to Scarborough from overseas for a better life, like seniors like these that I met during the weekend, contributed to the economy, worked hard, paid their taxes, and now all they want is a better life. We, as a compassionate society, must strive to give them that. I want to thank Right Plus and all the organizations for their similar work. Thank you very much. Member Statements, a member from Markham Unionville. Mr. Speaker, I recently met with some of our stakeholders in Markham Unionville. These stakeholders range from small business owners to representatives of large technology firms to discuss Bill 47, the Ontario Open for Business Act, and how this bill will help their respective businesses. A concern that the stakeholders commonly raised about Bill 148 was the disastrous effect of raising minimum wage by 26% in one year had on their business operations. This increase drastically shut up their expenses, particularly for those representing the small businesses which were disproportionality heard by this decision. In addition, this increased limited the amount of new staff this company would take in and some stop the hiring process altogether. Part-time workers were particularly affected by this decision, which impacts youth to a large extent than most. Mr. Speaker, we are listening to businesses. We are consulting with stakeholders, and we are intending on delivering change on our province, which was mismanaged under by the previous government. Our government supports small businesses and has done so through the passage of Bill 47 because we believe when we small businesses are giving more opportunity to prosper, we all benefit from their accomplishments. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Member Statements, the Member for Haldeman, Norfolk. Well, Speaker, the upcoming holidays present so many events that bring us all together. In Haldeman, Norfolk, we're blessed with Christmas bazaars and pageants and concerts. It's a long-standing tradition in Norfolk. It's simple as panorama, the festival of lights, and this year marks the 60th anniversary. Organizers are proud to offer a light show with more modern, energy-efficient twists that even Santa would approve of. From religious, traditional Christmas displays to fantasy, Wellington Park will be brightly lit for families to see well over 60 displays. The three little pigs, Humpty Dumpty, Santa's Workshop, all lit through LED technology. Simple as panorama draws visitors from near and far and puts a bit of jingle in the pockets of local business and restaurants and retailers. The spirit of panorama carries on with the support of volunteers, local businesses, Boy Scouts, Girl Guides, and area families. So I sincerely invite all, if you haven't been there, come enjoy a cup of chocolate, listen to Caroleur singing, and an unbelievable light show. It's held in Simkel, and it runs from December the 1st until January 6th. Thank you very much. That concludes our time for member statements.