 It is therefore time for Member Stavitz, the Member from Nipissing. Thank you very much. Good afternoon, Speaker. The City of North Bay is concerned about a problem that has only gotten worse in the past 14 years. The population of Northern Ontario continues to decline. City Council in North Bay recently passed a resolution seeking provincial action to stem this trend. Note, quote, the net outmigration of young people and skilled labour will negatively impact the long-term economic viability and general social conditions of the North, quote. But they also note, and again I quote, Northern Ontario has surplus infrastructure and represents an affordable alternative for residents, business and governments. That's why they're asking this government to, quote, undertake appropriate actions through tax reductions, tax exemptions and relocation initiatives and create incentives for businesses, institutions and government departments to operate in Northern Ontario. Speaker, as our Leader Patrick Brown has stated, the North matters. It's time we have a government that finally recognizes that. Thank you. Thank you. Further Member Stavitz? Member from Canora Rainey River. Thank you, Speaker. Today I rise on the very important issue of seniors' care and housing. Seniors have spent their entire lives building this country and making it what it is today. The robust communities that we have come to love and enjoy are undoubtedly the result of a lifetime of hard work of many of our seniors. At the very least, seniors of this province deserve to retire with dignity and access to healthcare and housing in the communities they built. But that is not happening for seniors in many communities across this province. The reality is that energy poverty and the lack of home care are key factors that are driving seniors from their homes prematurely. When seniors in many Northern communities have to leave their homes to move into either supportive housing or long-term care facilities, they find that either the option doesn't exist or the wait lists are years long. Remarkably accessible units aren't available nor are units that are appropriate to their income, be it modest or comfortable. We have an opportunity to address the negligence that we have been showing our seniors, but we have to act now. The government can start by creating a comprehensive integrated strategy specific to communities across the province so that we can provide the care, support and housing that seniors need to live with dignity in their home communities. Constituents have described their experiences as being warehouse in hospital. Put out to pasture waiting to die. What kind of dignity or life is that? We have to act now. Thank you. Mr. Speaker, on Sunday, September 24th, hundreds of Brampton residents and their families became part of one of Canada's largest community events when they participated in their local kidney walk. Every year, the Kidney Foundation of Canada holds their annual kidney walk. The events are held in communities across the country and are dedicated to raising funds for innovative research, vital programs and services that support kidney patients and their families. Again, this year, the Brampton Chapter of the Kidney Foundation held their annual walk at Lofors Lake Recreational Center in my riding of Brampton Springdale. I would like to congratulate the Organizing Committee for this year's event. Ms. Pauline Young, Carmen Disaparedo, Sonia Ibuso and Amin Preet Rindawa. The Brampton Chapter is fully volunteer led and I am proud of the work they do in support of our local kidney community. The kidney walk is a great way for families, friends and colleagues to come together to show their support for the one in ten Canadians living with kidney disease. Kidney walks are the cornerstone of the Kidney Foundation of Canada's fundraising efforts. They are fun, engaging and active events where participants can show their commitment to kidney health and improved lives for all people touched by kidney disease. Each year, the walk brings over 15,000 patients, caregivers and medical professionals together to raise awareness and funds for those affected. This year, the overall total raised to date is in access of $1,713,000. Congratulations to the volunteers, participants, the Kidney Foundation of Ontario and the Brampton Chapter for organizing this highly successful event in Brampton. As the kidney walk organizers like to say, in the fight against kidney disease, every kilometer counts. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you for your time. Mr. Speaker, it is my pleasure to rise today to recognize the opening of the Beaver River Wetland Conservation Area and Trail. While it is just outside my constituency in Brock Township, it is located in the Lake Simcoe watershed and is part of the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority's mandate. I would like first to congratulate the team at the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority for this effort, an example of backing up words with tangible action when it comes to our environment. The new conservation area is 500 hectares and includes an extensive area of provincially significant wetland. I encourage anybody looking for a chance to breathe in not only the fresh air but the sights and sounds of this beautiful wetland to come and explore the trails by foot or bike or even by cross-country skiing. When I attended the opening, I even had the opportunity to paddle through the water. Stretching from Blackwater to Woodville, the trail can be accessed at any point where it crosses the road. While this is a small section of the Trans-Canada Trail, it connects to Toronto through Markham and Uxbridge and beyond to the whole of Canada. Thank you. Further member statements? Member from Hamilton, East Stony Creek. Thank you, Speaker. I rise in the House today to talk about pension security. It's always relevant issue but especially relevant today because of the recent news that yet another company, Sears, will be dealing with pension insolvency. And because members of the Canadian Federation of Pensioners are here looking down on us right now from the rafters, they are keeping tabs on us so it might be time for the Liberals to smarten up. To start, I want to talk about the Pensions Benefit Guarantee Fund or the PBGF. The PBGF is a backup relief for Ontarians if a pension plan becomes insolvent. However, the PBGF is only capable of covering a portion of pensions up to $1,000 a month. Even with the promised Liberal reforms, this fund will still be falling short of the $2,500 a month that was recommended by the Ontario Expert Commission on Pensions, chaired by Harry Arthur's in 2008 and sanctioned by the Liberal government. Upgrading the PBGF is overdue, Speaker. An objective of those from the Canadian Federation of Pensioners to ensure that the PBGF is able to cover all benefit shortfalls, they have created a roadmap of how we can do this. The government's proposed plan to change the pension funding rules will save employers $1.4 billion a year. If only 5% of those savings were diverted to the PBGF fund, all pension shortfalls would be covered. The government also has the capacity to pressure Ottawa to make changes to CCAA and the Bankruptcy Insolvency Act. This will ensure pensioners move up on the pecking order so that they can receive their full-deserved pensions after insolvency. Every time, Speaker, I hear the wind government talking about helping pensioners, I roll my eyes. They've got the tools, they've just need to take action. Thank you. Further member, please. The member from Ottawa, so. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, last Saturday my daughter Kirsten and I walked in Erin's butterfly run. You know, in honour of her butterfly, Grace, whose birthday would have been just the day before on October 13th. Mr. Speaker, one in four women will experience pregnancy or infant loss, most often without support or counselling. Speaker, that's 30,000 women a year. When my daughter and her husband, Danny, lost Grace, they were sent home without knowledge of how to access any support. Speaker, we made strong investments in the pregnancy and infant loss network. I know, Speaker, though, that there's much more work to be done by governments, hospitals, healthcare providers and neighbours to help support families in experiencing a pregnancy and infant loss. I'd like to express my gratitude to Rob and Rachel Samulak for organising Erin's butterfly walk run and for raising awareness about pregnancy and infant loss. I'd also like to express my gratitude to Roger Nielsen House for their support for families experiencing this tragic loss. I'd also like to recognise my colleague, the honourable member from Eglig and Lawrence, who's Bill 141, Advanced Research and Development of Programs to support women enduring this tragic loss and which also recognises October 15th as a day of remembrance. And to Grace, we love you and remember you. Thank you. Further members, a statement from Perth Wellington. Thank you, Speaker. Speaker, fire safety is an issue very close to my heart. Young and old, we have a responsibility to prepare and educate ourselves for a fire emergency. A great example of this is a young constituent of mine, Hannah Sims. Earlier this year, Hannah and her siblings were at home when a fire unexpectedly broke out. Despite being only 11 years old, Hannah was able to stay calm and use her fire safety and home escape plan knowledge to lead her two younger siblings to safety. This extraordinary young lady deserves our admiration and respect for what she did. It's quite fitting that Hannah was recently awarded the first ever Perth East Fire Chiefs Commendation. This honour was set up to recognise ordinary people and organisations who do extraordinary things with regard to fire and life safety. Our local hero is five-year-old Ben Wickens from Arthur. He was with his family at a cottage when during the night a fire broke out as a result of a gas leak. Ben was the only one who heard the smoke alarms go off and he roused his family from sleep so they could escape safely. This month, Ben was honoured at a school assembly by the Wellington North Fire Service. I'm sure everyone in this place will agree that Hannah and Ben serve as role models for all of us. Congratulations and well done. Thank you for their member's statements. Member from Eglinton, Lawrence. Speaker, about a year ago, a 91-year-old retired chartered accountant by the name of Morris Adams came into my office and he said that he was running out of money. He had worked his whole life as a chartered accountant. He had saved but now 91, he was running out of money and at the same time he could no longer care for his wife of 67 years because she was suffering from dementia. All he had left, he said, were insurance policies worth $300,000. In Ontario, you cannot get value out of your insurance policies. 84% of all insurance policies are surrendered after years of making premium payments. It's about time we changed this 80-year-old law that only in Ontario stops seniors from accessing their own money. In 2001, the Conservative government put forth a change which would allow that to happen, yet they never proclaimed the law. So it's about time we proclaimed that law and allowed seniors to live in dignity in their last years. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you, further members. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Today, I rise to thank everybody involved in the effort to stop 500-foot massive industrial wind turbines from being built near two airports in my riding a simple gray town of Collingwood, Clearview Township, Simkel County, Sands of Clearview, Inc., Preserve Clearview, Kevin and Gail Ellwood, Chris and Joan Hoffman, Michael and Jane Front, Doug and Janet Caldwell, Chuck and Lee Magwood, Michael Dickinson, and many other people deserve praise and congratulations for their successful appeal of the turbine project at the Environmental Review Tribunal. The very idea of building massive industrial turbines near the Collingwood Airport and the Clearview Aerodrome was observed from the start. Mr. Speaker, the tribunal's decision was a big win for local residents, local communities, and local decision-making authority. This is one of the very few projects under the Liberals Green Energy Act that a local community has been able to stop. It's time for local decision-making authority over these projects to be restored. Rural communities don't need bureaucrats in downtown Toronto making important decisions about their future. This attempt to force a local community to accept industrial turbines where they don't belong is further proof of this government's mismanagement of our hydro system. It was reckless, unnecessary, and ultimately the tribunal did the right thing and denied the proposal. As a member of Simple Gray, I spent over seven years opposing this project and at every opportunity urged the government to respect the local community. Mr. Speaker, I hope this never happens again. I hope we're successful next year and we end this tragedy on the Green Energy Act. Thank all members for their comments. It is now time.