 It's now time for member statements. The member for Timmons. Well, Mr. Speaker, all of us, unfortunately, are in a situation where we have to drive to get where we got to go for the most of us in this chamber, as people that are riding, especially if you live in rural or northern Ontario, where you don't have transit the way you do in the city of Toronto, to get from point A to point B. Imagine the frustration, Mr. Speaker. When people look at the price of gas, where within a 45-day period we went from $0.95 a litre to $1.47. Clearly, something is going on at the pumps. And the Premier can play this game of trying to blame everything on the carbon tax. And yes, Mr. Speaker, 4.4 cents is real. But 4.4 cents is not the big part of the problem here. How do you explain that at the gas pumps in Timmons as across Ontario, you have a price differential that goes from $0.95 a litre to $1.47 a litre without the price of the barrel going up? Clearly, people are being gouged at the pumps. Clearly, this is profit-taking on the part of gas companies who are saying to themselves, we can gouge the market. And you've got a Ford government who's playing this fake game of trying to blame everything on carbon pricing rather than doing their job and protecting the consumer. If we can sell a case of beer in Cornwall for the same price we sell a case of beer in Canora, if we can sell milk or we can transport natural gas and sell it at a competitive price from one end of the province to the other, Mr. Speaker, certainly we can do the same here in Ontario when it comes to the gas. I say to the government, call the NDP Gas Price Regulation Bill to committee. Let's hear from the experts and let's once and for all do something to protect consumers and do something real when it comes to consumer protection. Thank you. Member Statements, the member for Barry Innisville. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I wanted to update this House on Jason Hellman's achievements. As you may recall, I had Jason come visit this legislature. He's a Special Olympian both in summer and winter Olympics and we had a statement to recognize him for all his efforts in this House. But I have an update for everyone. Jason had organized his Razors of Hope event this past weekend that I attended with the member from Barry Springwater Oramante and Jason's Razors of Hope is a fundraiser for the Terry Fox Foundation and Barry. His original goal was to fundraise about $5,000 and Mr. Speaker, he went above and beyond his goal. He fundraised $5,400 and his head's a little later from the shave that he received from CUNY members and many other communities had joined them. So they're feeling a little lighter on the top of their head but by Mr. Speaker, it's for a very good cause. So I did want to congratulate Jason who now over the past four years has fundraised over $18,000 for the Terry Fox Foundation. So thank you, Jason. Thank you. Member Statements, the member for Waterloo. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. The Ford government has established a pattern. When making policy decisions, they willfully ignore sound evidence and research. Now they have gone so far that they have cut funding for organisations that drive research and innovation. Yesterday funding for the Ontario Institute for Regenerative Medicine was cut. Their work put Ontario on the leading edge of stem cell research, attracting a high quality researchers who are producing life-saving work. One of their most promising projects was working to prevent lung damage in premature babies. To add insult to injury, their funding was cut before they could even finish conducting a review of their return on the investment as a research institution. Funding has also been cut to the Moet Centre, which provided research and analysis on public policy. Ironically, they were doing good enough work that the government cited them in their own budget. And last week, Communitech and Kitchener Waterloo laid off 15 people after the government cut their funding by 30%. They support 1,400 companies and have helped establish Waterloo Region as a global innovation leader for every public dollar invested in Communitech. 22 are returning to the economy from growing our tech sector to stem cell research to public policy. These organisations were producing results. Yet the Ford government still gave them the axe because with Fordian logic, if the source of the facts is eliminated, the facts don't exist. Leaving policy decisions to be made based on feelings or the desires of the Premier's friends. It's a dark day in Ontario when facts are so callously disregarded. This is definitely not for the people, Mr. Speaker. Thank you very much. Member's statements. The Member for Mississauga Centre. Thank you, Speaker. It is my pleasure today to welcome the Myalgic and Sefollow Myelitis Association of Ontario, or MIA, to Queen's Park for their Advocacy Day. For 28 years, MIA has been at the forefront of educating Ontarians and frontline care providers, advocating on behalf of and supporting Ontarians living with chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and environmental sensitivities. As a nurse and as an MPP, I have come to appreciate and value the important role of patient advocacy organisations such as MIA in improving the health and wellbeing of Ontarians. And today, I want to reiterate our government's commitment to work with MIA to ensure no Ontarians feel like their government isn't taking their medical issues seriously. To that end, our government today released the final report of the Task Force on Environmental Health. And we will work to shine a light on these challenges and advance real, meaningful solution as part of our work to build a healthcare system that truly works for the people of Ontario and is centred around the patient. Thank you again to everyone involved in MIA for your tireless advocacy on behalf of Ontarians living with chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and environmental sensitivities. I hope you will continue this important work. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Member Statements, the member for Niagara Falls. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I'd like to rise today and talk about the merging of Niagara Public Health Board with four other communities, including Hamilton. Make no mistake about it, this is a cut. The government is downloading the cost of public health under our municipalities by reducing the funding formula. Mr. Speaker, in Niagara alone, this means that in the next few weeks, public health will likely have to ask the region for $350,000 just to keep the programs afloat. This is Mike Harris all over again, fake a balanced budget by downloading the costs on the towns and cities, who then have to raise property taxes to cover the shortfall. Instead of cutting people's public health services or causing their property taxes to skyrocket, why doesn't this province look at the fact that we have among the lowest tax rates in the country for major corporations? Why don't we ask them to pay their fair share instead of balancing this budget on our healthcare needs? I dare the Premier to ask voters, what's more important, Mr. Speaker, our public health system, or ensuring that CEOs make as much profit as possible? I can guess the answer, and hope the Premier can too. It's time to prioritize the right things in this province. Stop the cuts, stop the downloads, and defend our public health system. Thank you. Recognize the member for Ottawa South on a point of order. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I seek unanimous consent to do the member's statement on behalf of my colleague from Thunder Bay Superior North. For Ottawa South, I seek unanimous consent of the House to deliver a statement now on behalf of the member for Thunder Bay Superior North. Agreed? Agreed. Member for Ottawa South. Thank you, my colleagues, for allowing me to take the member's spot. I simply want to celebrate a hike for hospice, which happened in Ottawa last week, in my hometown of Ottawa, to support hospice Ottawa, both hospice sites, as well as their home visiting teams. It was a great event. Hundreds of families were out there to help support hospice in our community. And hospice Ottawa does an incredible job for families at the most vulnerable time in their lives. And I can't say enough, they served over 400 families in the residential hospice this year, and hundreds and hundreds of other families at home. And I can't say enough about the volunteers and the donors and the staff of the Maycourt Hospice and our West End Hospice as well, too. We're trying to develop one of the East Ends. So I just wanted to say thank you and celebrate hospice in Ottawa, and I appreciate the speaker's indulgence. And switching gears on another note, it's at a request, and I will explain this to you sometime later, Mr. Speaker. But I would like to say in the end that that's the best way to make a grilled cheese sandwich. Thank you. Thank you. Member Statements, the member for Eglinton Lawrence. Thank you, Speaker. Matters most. That is what the people of Ontario sent us to Queens Park to do. And that's why we have put forward a responsible approach to restoring sustainability to Ontario's finances. One that provides and protects critical public services like healthcare and education, and one that puts an end to the failed fiscal policies of the former Liberal government, who spent $40 million every day more than they had, and racked up the largest subnational debt in the world. Speaker, the rising interest on our debt, $12 billion a year amounts to the single largest cut to frontline services in Ontario's history, and we pay it every year. That's why we have made much needed adjustments in this year's budget, and why we expect our partners to do their part as well. Because 90 cents, more than 90 cents, of every dollar spent by the Government of Ontario is transferred elsewhere to institutions like municipalities, hospitals, and school boards. We're asking our partners to do the same thing that we are doing by carefully reviewing their spending, minimizing administrative expenses, and prioritizing what matters. Despite all the griping we hear from the opposition, our budget is a surprisingly modest plan to balance in five years, and those are the words of Marcus G., not a known conservative. And because of our hard work, we can invest an additional $2 billion in health care and education this year, spending more on health care and education than any government in our history. Speaker, this is what responsibility, fiscal balance, and protecting what matters most looks like, and this is what we promised we would do, and what we are doing. The Member for York Southwestern. Thank you, Mr Speaker. I rise today on behalf of the people of York Southwestern. As many of you already know, last week, two devastating fires ripped through York Memorial Collegiate Institute. At its height, it was a sixth fire with over 150 first responders on scene. Fortunately, staff and students were able to evacuate the building safely, no doubt, due to the diligent and professional teachers' staff at the York Memo. I would also like to acknowledge the brave efforts of our first responders who worked day and night to ensure the safety of the students, staff and neighbours of York Memo. York Memorial, designed to pay tribute to the farmer's city of York's fallen soldiers of World War I, was set to celebrate its ninth-year anniversary this year. It is approximately 880 students are now temporarily at George Harvey's CI, whose students and staff have been excellent hosts. Last night, the TDSP held a meeting with the local trustee Chris Tonks, senior TDSP staff, York Memo students, teachers and parents. The community was clear. York Memorial is a historic structure and community hub and beloved school. On Monday, this government committed before this house to working with the TDSP to ensure that York Memorial is restored. We thank the government for their support and we fully expect that they will live up to that commitment, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Member Statements, Member for Cambridge. Thank you, Ms. Cambridge and Waterloo Region. As you are no doubt aware, we're lucky to have a number of groups and organisations where people with common interests can come together with neighbours and community members. Today, I'd like to highlight one of those groups, the Cambridge Rivers Edge Gardeners. The Cambridge Rivers Edge Gardeners was incorporated as the Cambridge Area Horticultural Society two years ago in May of 2017. Since the society began with its mission to provide opportunities for family and friends to embrace nature and build partnerships, they've held weekly summer garden tours, hands-on workshops, visits to public gardens, trail walks, community partnering events, as well as hosted guest speakers. Last month, on April 13th, I had the pleasure of joining the group and coming into Spring Symposium at the Avenue Road Baptist Church in Cambridge. I want to congratulate Cambridge Rivers Edge Gardeners on a successful and fun symposium. And, of course, to give my thanks to Vice President, Symposium and Membership Chair, Laurie Bennett Davies, and the Cambridge Rivers Edge Gardeners for inviting me to join them this year. I look forward to ushering in Spring with them all again next year. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you very much. Thank you very much for Oakville North Burlington. Speaker, parents and my riding of Oakville North Burlington need and deserve access to high quality, affordable childcare. In our budget, our government has acted to help these families because we want to protect what matters most. My community is fast growing, with lots of young families, many of whom commute long distances to work and struggle to find childcare that is affordable. Halton Region Statistics from 2018 state that parents are paying, on average, $1,500 per month for childcare in Oakville and Burlington. To help meet these needs, our government introduced the Ontario Child Care Access and Relief from Expenses Care Tax Credit. Across Ontario, 300,000 families would be eligible to receive up to 75% of their expenses. And parents would have choice and be able to use their support for a broad range of options, including childcare centers, childcare at home, and summer camps. We will also help support the wages of childcare workers. Eligible staff will be supported by increases of up to $2 an hour and home providers for up to $20 a day. We also committed up to $1 billion over the next five years to create up to 30,000 childcare spaces, including 10,000 spaces in new schools in 2019, including a new school in my riding of Northeast Oakville. We are committed to support quality childcare for every family that needs it and that needs our help in Ontario. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you very much. That concludes our members' statements for this afternoon. Reports by committees.