 It's now time for Member Statements. Recognize the Member for Spadina, Fort York. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Global News recently reported that Wendy LaRose, a parent and lead of Toronto Parents for Child Care, paid $2,000 a month for infant care. Teagan Nguyen, a parent in my area, says, as a young immigrant woman in ECE, I cannot afford to both raise my children in Toronto or do the child care work that I love. Mr. Speaker, we are in the midst of a she-session, the pandemic rolled back women's employment rates to 1998 levels. But in Quebec, where they have $10 day child care, women's employment rates are almost back to pre-pandemic levels. Registered Early Childhood Educators, Hollis Pearson and Mamé Atta-Adoubi, say that affordable $10 day child care will allow families to continue working. And Allison Papa Georgicopoulos says that for our family with four boys under the age of eight, it would mean I could go back to work. Shanaid Rafferty, an ECE and parent says, as a single mother, it would mean not having to decide between affording my rent or child care. Andrea Priefty, a child care operator, says, I know many families struggle a lot with the current funding formula. Make Van Gerwin, an ECE, says that, or has asked that the government signing the deal would make a decent wage for ECEs. So my question is to the government, will you please, please sign the child care deal so that the women of Ontario can recover financially from this pandemic? Thank you very much. Member Statements, the member for Niagara West. Thank you very much, Speaker. Every year, more than a million Ontarians experience challenges with mental health and addictions. Many of us know a friend, a family member or a colleague who struggles with mental health, and we know that mental health is just as important as physical health. As part of our province's strategy to address mental health, I was pleased to join my colleagues, Minister Tobolo and MPP Barrett, at the beginning of November to announce a new mobile mental health and addictions clinic in rural Haldeman, Norfolk and Niagara. Access to quality care can be a challenge for individuals living in remote rural and under-serviced communities across Ontario. And instead of asking patients to travel long distances for critical care, we will bring them the care they need. This partnership will provide mental health and addiction services in Niagara West through a multi-disciplinary team of clinical therapists, social workers and nurses who will travel to the communities that need them, providing more clients, more care in more places. The mobile clinic will provide local clients with a variety of services under one roof, including intake and brief services, referrals to existing services and psychiatric support and follow-up. As the clinic operates within a custom built retrofitted bus, it reduces the need for people to travel to find services. And through the development of this mobile mental health and addictions clinic, clients and families in my riding of Niagara West will have greater access to high quality evidence-based care in a setting where they are fully supported on their journey towards recovery. Speaker, our government is committed to the roadmap of wellness and bringing healing to those who are hurting through this important project. Thank you. Thank you very much. Member Statements, a member for Toronto Centre. Thank you, Speaker. Two weeks ago, my community in Toronto Centre lost Christine. A well-known community member who was hit by a cement truck at the intersection of Sherbourne and Dundas. Christine was 59, Indigenous, homeless and used a wheelchair. A worker who saw the crash, Sarah, told my office, quote, this is a really busy corner that has vulnerable people all the time. The people who live here already feel that their lives are disposable and they watched the undignified and inhumane way that Christine's body lay on the street for hours before the cement truck was removed. Why has nothing been done to protect the people in our community, end quote. In the coming weeks, the Toronto Ghost Bike Project will be installing a ghost wheelchair at the intersection in Christine's honour. Unfortunately, deaths like Christine's are becoming far too common in all of our communities. In June of 2019, we also lost Ismathera Ratna, a mother of three in Regent Park, who was killed in a hit and run. She was walking to visit a friend when an impaired driver lost control of his vehicle, mounted the curb and took the life of a beloved community member. We need to ensure that communities are safe for vulnerable road users, for pedestrians, for cyclists, for children and for vulnerable people because there are now three children in Regent Park who will grow up without their mother because this government refuses to prioritize road safety. Today, I'm calling on all members of this house to work swiftly to pass the Vulnerable Road Users Act for Christine, for Ismathera and for the many others we've needlessly lost. Thank you. Next Member's statement, the Member for Mississauga Mall. Mr. Speaker, in Ontario, 1.5 million people have diabetes and in regional appeal, often called diabetes capital. One in six residents are affected by diabetes. While the impact of diabetes are concerning, there are multiple ways to manage the impact and in many cases, prevent it from occurring. Education and awareness plays an important role to understand symptoms and the causes of diabetes. Healthy outcomes can be resulted from simple lifestyle changes, including nutrition, increase in physical activity, taking medication to monitor blood sugar levels and it is important to become aware of the risk and get tested. I would like to give a shout out to the Diabetes Canada and educators like Bonnie Loranger, Amber Khalid from Four Corners Health and Antarpreet Dhaliwal from William Osler Health System for ensuring residents have tools and supports like virtual care to reduce their risk of developing diabetes during this pandemic. Mr. Speaker, to support residents living with diabetes, starting November 30th, government will provide free access to freestyle library system to all eligible Ontarians over the age of four. The sensor-based technology will help to monitor glucose levels through the phone and without the use of finger pricks. Speaker, I'm proud to share in 1921, Dr. Frederick Banting discovered insulin right here in Ontario. His breakthrough invention went on to save million of lives and resulted in better treatment. November marks Diabetes Awareness Month. Let's work together to ensure our province remains a leader in providing accessible, high-quality diabetes care to individuals in need. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Statements? Member for Hamilton West and Caster Dundas. Speaker, last week I was asked a remarkable question by the press. Does Ontario even have a minister of the environment? And in the wake of last week's damning Auditor General Report, this is a fair question. These reports show yet again that this government and in particular the minister of environment are failing at their core mandate, which is to keep Ontarians and their communities safe. Two years ago, I rose in this House to share the outrage of my hometown at the news that 24 billion litres of raw sewage spilled into Coots Paradise for over four years. No one, not the city of Hamilton, not the ministry of environment, no one let Hamiltonians know. I filed a freedom of information request regarding the spill with the ministry of environment and after two years, my community has still not been provided answers. Hamiltonians know we need action to prevent future spills. That's why I introduced my bill, the Coots Paradise Water Accountability Act. This is to ensure spills are properly and publicly reported and that no community would ever be left in the dark again like Hamilton. But instead of working with me to pass my bill, this government did nothing. Now the Auditor General is calling for changes similar to the bill that I introduced two years ago. After years of ignoring Hamilton, the answer to the question is clear. No, this province does not have a minister of the environment, certainly not one that will work to keep Ontarians and their environment healthy and safe. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you very much. Member statements, the member for Don Valley West. Very much, Mr. Speaker. Speaker, in June of 2011, I got an unusual call from one of my family members. My niece, Amy, called me to thank me tearfully for something the government had just announced, not an everyday occurrence for a politician, Mr. Speaker. Amy's disabilities mean that she will never drive, so of course she will never qualify for a driver's license, which meant that she had a constant and irritating problem producing government issued ID when asked. Amy was one of about 1.5 million people in Ontario at the time who were in need of an alternative to a driver's license. She was calling me because I was the Minister of Transportation at the time, and we had just introduced the Ontario photo ID card. Speaker, the card was intended to allow people who could not or chose not to drive in Ontario the same dignity as drivers. But it turns out, Speaker, that holders of the photo ID card are not being accorded that same dignity when it comes to using this government's online services. A friend of mine alerted me to the issue that the OHIP card's online renewal service is only available to people holding an Ontario driver's license. The Ontario photo ID card is not accepted. Everyone else is expected to do the renewal in person. As my friend said to me in her email, and I quote people with mobility issues, visual impairments, dementia, maybe immunocompromised, and in a pandemic, it makes zero sense that you can use the card in person and not online, unquote. The member for St. Paul's has raised this issue and is calling on the Ontario government to make the OHIP card's online renewal more inclusive by making it available to all eligible residents, including those who do not drive. Speaker, I join with the member for St. Paul's in her call for the government to fix this. When Amy called me in 2011, I told her that this card was designed to give her the same right to government-issued identification that is accorded to drivers. I didn't say, Speaker, that those rights would be limited when it came to accessing government services online. Thank you very much. Member Statements, the member for Brantford Brandt. Good morning, Speaker. It gives me great pleasure to rise in the house today to showcase an event I attended with my friend and colleague, the Honorable Stephen Leche, Minister of Education, in my home riding of Brantford Brandt this past Friday. In March of this year, I remember announcing the funding for 49 new licensed childcare spaces at Our Lady of Providence Catholic School in the north end of Brantford. This last Friday, I was so happy to be part of the official blessing of the completed stunning new childcare, the center which includes 49 new childcare spaces and three new childcare rooms that will open to hardworking families on December 13th. The celebration of the blessing of this new addition to the Brant Holdemann Norfolk Catholic District School Board was attended by Chair Rick Petrella, as Excellency Wayne Lobsinger, the Auxiliary Bishop of the Hamilton Diocese, representatives of the YMCA, the City of Brantford, and the school community. The $1.7 million of funding that Ontario provided will provide a quality learning environment before, after, and through the day. Childcare, this is so vitally important to many people's lives. Last Wednesday, I was also happy to announce an additional $4.4 million investment to the Grand Erie District School Board for a similar build of quality childcare spaces in Cobblestone Elementary and Banbury Heights School to help hardworking families in Brantford and Paris for a combined 64 new childcare spaces respectively. Funding and having quality programs before school, all day, and after school is a huge step in helping families achieve a work-life balance that is so important in today's complex and busy lifestyles. Thank you, Speaker. Member Statements, the member for Davenport. Speaker, good morning. On December 2nd, 2020, just a little less than a year ago, Alexandra Amaro was struck and killed while cycling on Dufferin Street in my riding of Davenport. Alexandra was a writer and a journalism student. She was known for her radiant kindness. At 23, she had a bright future ahead of her and it was brought to an abrupt end that night. Alexandra's death is a singular, painful event for those that knew and loved her, but it's also part of a pattern of injury and death facing cyclists and pedestrians on Toronto's busy downtown streets. And while the city has been spurred into action to address some of the infrastructure issues on this stretch of Dufferin that we've been dealing with for so many years, we know that changes on the provincial level are needed. And that's why I was so pleased to see MPPs vote unanimously last week in support of our bill, the Protecting Vulnerable Road Users Act at Second Reading. Under the bill, penalties would apply to all driving offenses under the Highway Traffic Act that result in the death or serious injury of a vulnerable road user. Along with increasing funding for municipalities to improve active transportation, public transportation and infrastructure like bike lanes, I urge the government to swiftly pass the Vulnerable Road Users Act into law. A year after Alexandra's death, we have a chance to make a difference. The sooner we as legislators act, the sooner we can prevent the loss of more lives like Alexandra's on our streets. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Member Statements, the member for Mississauga Lakeshore. Thank you, Speaker. Many were disappointed last year when Paint the Town Red, Canada Day Parade, our annual tradition in poor credit was canceled due to the pandemic. This year, a modified event, including concert, fireworks, went ahead at Thanksgiving. Thank you to the Chair, John Bodzo. This year's recipient of the Gordon S. Ship Memorial Award as Mississauga Citizen of the Year. And many local volunteers together, they did an incredible job under very difficult circumstances to make the concert a safe and moving experience for all who attended and are truly a Thanksgiving to remember. The province supported this event with $76,000 grant through the ReConnect Festivals and Event Program. I was proud to sponsor the performance by the hip cover band as we marked the fourth year since we lost Gordon Downey and the fourth annual Brain Cancel Awareness Day in Canada. Speaker, this was in honor of one of my staff who is a brain tumor survivor. I want to thank the other sponsors, including Queens Corp, Loretta Finney, Fram Building Group and the Lakeview Community Partners. And I want to thank the organizers for their memorial tribute in honor of those who have lost during this pandemic. Hundreds of people attended the poor credit memorial park, including Mayor Hazel McCallion. And I know we all look forward to celebrating Canada Day together again at the parade next year. Thank you. Thank you very much. This concludes our member's statements for this morning. And I would ask...