 Next we have member statements and I recognize the member for Windsor to come see. I stand in the house today to say I believe in miracles we just had one in Windsor and Essex County. It's known as the June 27th miracle. Organizers asked residents to help our 15 food banks with donations of non-perishable foods. More than 10,000 volunteers pitched in to help collect the donations. Speaker my wife Gail and I filled our Windsor-built Grand Caravan by collecting food just from our own neighborhood. Together during the June 27th miracle volunteers collected 2 million 20,500 pounds of food. That's 916,500 kilograms or 916 and a half metric tons. That's about three and a half times the world record for one day donations. It's enough food to feed 30,000 families for a year. This comes speaker during a global pandemic when thousands of people out of work when donating to charities is a challenge for many and an impossibility for some. Once again the people of Windsor and Essex County have shown their generous spirit, their sense of looking after one another and demonstrate that we truly are all in this together. Congratulations to everyone in Leamington, Kingsville, Essex, Lakeshore, Amesburg, LaSalle, T'Cumpsey and Windsor for proving to the world that records are made to be broken and miracles do indeed happen. Thank you. Member statements? The member for Mississauga Lakeshore. Thank you Mr. Speaker. A month ago the local 10-year-old singer, Roberta Bataglia, gave the performance of her life at America's Got Talent. She sang the song from Lady Gaga, Bradley Cooper's Oscar-winning theme song Shallow. Appropriately enough from the movie A Star Was Born. Another star was born that night when Sophia Varga hit the golden buzzard sending Roberta to the live semi-final show in Hollywood. For now though Roberta says the hardest part about COVID-19 has been staying away from her family and friends. So on June 28th we organized a surprise drive-by parade for her at the Mississauga Canoe Club in poor credit. Over a hundred cars and a hundreds of people joined her to salute Roberta. I want to thank my friends Carmela Liberati, Frank Chervison from the Mississauga Italian-Canadian Benevolent Association for co-hosting the event and everyone for joining us, including the Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addiction, the Peel Regional Police who led the parade and the mayor. When Roberta said she would has been bullied in the past, Simon Cowell told her bullying bullies are always threatened by talented people. The way you beat them is to be happy and successful. I know all members of this house will join me in cheering for Roberta in Hollywood and I wish her happiness and success wherever she goes next. Thank you. Member statements, the Member for London North Centre. Speaker, nurses have been working at all hours of the day to battle COVID-19. They are truly heroes. But instead of spending their few free hours with loved ones, London nurses have had to protest this government's unfair Bill 124. Last month I attended a protest organized by Alison McKean and Rebecca Jesney where London nurses told me loud and clear that they want action not empty words from this government. They're tired of the previous liberal government and how this current government is denying them a raise that keeps up with inflation. They've been waiting for more than 10 years, Speaker. Alison and Rebecca wrote to me stating, Bill 124 has left nurses feeling disenfranchised, undervalued and underappreciated. Bill 124 emphasizes the blatant pay inequity and gender inequality among public sectors. The future of nursing depends on our profession being recognized as educated professionals, compensated as equals and treated fairly. Your Ontario nurses deserve better. I couldn't agree more, Speaker. Speaker, I joined their call to repeal Bill 124 and I'm proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with Ontario's nurses in their fight for fair wages. It's time for this government to step up and do the same. Thank you. Member for Kitchener South, House Clerk. Over the past few months, we as Ontarians have faced an unprecedented challenge in the form of COVID-19 pandemic. The impacts of this virus have been wide reaching and they have been felt by all Ontarians. But through all of this, we can point to bright spots as we see our communities come together, businesses retooling to make PPE, frontline workers maintaining critical supply chains and healthcare workers providing world-class care for those who need it most. For me, one local constituent really stands out, veteran Jim McClain. He told me the story of his daughter Tina's battle with COVID-19 while she was pregnant. It was a horrible situation that Jim, though, has used as motivation for good. He's put together a run across Southern Ontario this week with his PTSD service dog, Lucky, and his wife, Kathy. They're running together to raise funds for COVID research at the University of Guelph. Tina, who spent eight days on life support and her son, Lynx, survived. It is situations like this that really highlight what we as a community can do in times of hardship. Jim's story has shaped my perspective on the pandemic and has drawn my attention to the good that can come from these challenging times. As we all come together to do what we can do to defeat this virus. Thank you. Member statements. Member for Toronto Centre. Thank you so much. Despite the temporary ban on eviction hearings in Ontario, landlords have been continuing to hand out eviction notices to their tenants. They're getting in line so that they can toss their tenants out as soon as the province flips the switch and allows for eviction hearings to begin. And last week, the province took the first steps to do just that. The court order temporarily halting evictions in Ontario was amended and evictions can now resume across the province beginning in the month following the end of the state of emergency. If the Premier lifts the state of emergency in the coming weeks, COVID evictions could begin as early as August 1st. But, Speaker, folks who've lost their jobs and their income as a result of the pandemic are no more able to pay the months of back rent that they owe than they are today. The Conservative government has done absolutely nothing to protect tenants during this unprecedented emergency. And not only have they not provided any meaningful relief like the rent subsidy program that the NDP has been calling for, but they've in fact used the cover of COVID-19 to fast track an eviction bill that will make it easier and quicker for landlords to kick out their tenants. So is it the Premier's intention to preside over the largest mass eviction and tenant displacement in this province's history? And where does he expect those tenants to go? So to the Premier, will you withdraw Bill 184, stop COVID evictions and implement the rent subsidy program that as the NDP we have been calling for since the start of COVID-19? That is what tenants need to survive this emergency. Thank you. Thank you. Member statements and member for Guelph. Thank you, Speaker. I rise today to give a shout out to the Downtown Guelph Business Association Mayor Cam Guthrie, Councillors and Guelph City staff for implementing a plan to close downtown streets so that restaurants can open to expand outdoor seating into a new dining district. Downtown Guelph is coming back to life. People are making an extra effort to support local businesses. I'm excited to see friends and family socializing together safely, respecting physical distancing while socializing in the street. It is a reminder that streets are for people and community, not just moving and storing cars. As we emerge from the lockdown, going back to business as usual will not work. Let's build back better. Let's reimagine public space, making it people centric instead of car centric. Speaker, our kids need more space to play safely. People need more space to walk and ride safely. Businesses need more space to reopen safely. Instead of bulldozing the places we love to build more highways, let's make our streets safe and accessible for everyone to live, work, play and shop local, supporting our local businesses and building stronger communities. I just want to say thank you to Guelph for taking the first step in making this happen. Thank you, Speaker. Peter Burroughs, South. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to thank my two local hospitals in Northumberland, Peter Burroughs South. Northumberland Hills Hospital and Campbellford Memorial Hospital. Mr. Speaker, when I was first elected, I got a tour of both hospitals and one of the first issues both CEOs raised with me was the medium-sized hospital funding formula, which affected our medium-sized hospitals and also our small-sized hospitals in rural Ontario. You hope to never truly need a hospital, Mr. Speaker, but in the cases of emergencies, they're there. They were there when encountering rugby accidents, soccer accidents for me, and in the more serious case, they were there to support my mum when we got the very difficult news that she had cancer. I'd like to thank, Mr. Speaker, the teams at both hospitals. These hospitals are the fabric that bind the rural Ontario. The leadership, Linda Davis, CEO of NHH and Verouge Scadion, CEO of Campbellford Memorial Hospital. I'd like to thank the board, the frontline healthcare professionals, the staff and the countless volunteers for the work they did in advocating to truly address the historical underfunding of their hospitals. Mr. Speaker, I'm proud to say that we've addressed those funding inequities. And Mr. Speaker, last week I was joined by Premier Ford and Minister Elliott to address that and to announce close to 20% increase in funding for NHH and close to 7% for Campbellford Memorial Hospital. Again, I'd like to thank the staff, the hard-working frontline workers and all of the people in my community that support our hospitals. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Thank you. Member Statements, a member for Brampton East. July 1983, also known as Black July, is a period of pain for thumbnails in Canada and across the world. In the capital of a country that was supposed to keep them safe, voters' lists were used to target thermal people and burn them alive in the streets. Thousands were killed and thousand more were displaced. It was a clear sign from the Sri Lankan government that they didn't just want to suppress the thermal people, they wanted to eliminate them. And since Black July, we've seen a clear campaign of genocide carried out by the Sri Lankan government against the thermal people. For years, thumbnails were picked up in white vans and disappeared, murdered in secret. Even children were killed in the bombing of an orphanage in St. Joly, and thousands were killed in the genocide of the Mulevaikil massacre. Even today, thumbnails are still not safe, as they face a far more insidious form of structural violence that targets them politically, socially and culturally. Yet despite all this despair, when I see the thermal community in Canada, all I see is strength. A resilient community that stands tall and holds their head high in spite of all this violence that continues their pursuit for justice. So that's why I ask for all Canadians, all members of this House, to stand in support of the thermal people and their pursuit for justice. So together, we may say, let's never forget Black July. Varnacombe. Thank you. Member Statements, the member for Flambeiro, Glenbrook. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and I'm so pleased to rise today to applaud the efforts of entrepreneurs in this province as they get back on track following the COVID shutdown. Ontario businesses sacrificed a lot when they closed their doors to bolster the fight against the deadly coronavirus. Tourism and hospitality sectors were devastated. Currently, I'm serving on the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs, and we have been hearing from many stakeholders whose livelihoods have been threatened by the pandemic. Despite the bleak outlook, many entrepreneurs see optimism and hope for the future. They know our government is committed to doing everything it can to help struggling businesses recover. Our Premier is determined to reduce red tape, allowing businesses to function without needless government regulations. Restaurant tours in my hometown of Hamilton took the lead on opening outdoor dining districts. Our government supported them by loosening regulations to permit alcohol to be served in public spaces. And our government issued an emergency order allowing municipalities to quickly pass temporary bylaws to create, extend, and cover outdoor dining areas. The patio approval process has been reduced from weeks to days, and businesses are taking advantage of it. So far in Hamilton, almost 120 patio applications have been received, and almost all will be approved. Entrepreneurs have taken up the challenge to find creative ways to conduct business in the face of this COVID crisis. Businesses are crucial to keeping and creating jobs, and I am proud to say our Premier and our government have helped navigate through this economic storm. Thank you. Members' statements? The member for Brantford Grant. Thank you, Speaker. Last week, our government introduced Bill 197, the COVID-19 Economic Recovery Act, a bill that is focused on strengthening communities and creating opportunity for people in every region of the province. An important part of the proposed legislation, and one that's received a lot of support in my writing of Brantford Grant, was the municipal say and landfill piece, which gives municipalities more say in the projects that are being proposed in their own communities. Mr. Speaker, for decades, municipalities across Ontario had projects forced into their backyards, and they were often never even asked if they were willing to host such projects. Requiring municipal support in the landfill approval process is an important step in helping to ensure that the municipalities that are most directly impacted by the siting of a new large landfill have a say on such an important matter. There have been over 140 municipalities that have passed motion seeking legislation giving towns and cities the authority to approve the locations for new landfill sites, and I am proud to be part of a government that has listened to these communities across the province. Mr. Speaker, this proposal is a balanced approach that gives local municipalities more say in landfill approvals while providing more certainty for landfill applicants and ensure sufficient landfill capacity in the province. I want to thank the Minister of the Environment, Conservation, and Parks for moving forward on this proposal and following through with another commitment in the Made in Ontario environmental plan. Thank you. Thank you very much. That concludes our Member's statements for this morning. It is now