 Seeing the time on the clock, it is indeed time for member statements, and I would invite all members to listen respectfully and to stop the crosstalk. Please and thank you. Member statements. I recognize the member from Ottawa South. Thank You Speaker. Thank You Speaker. Rosemary Harden, my mother, was born on this day in 1949. Speaker, let me tell you about her. My mom is a community leader through her love of the arts and care for others, which is one of the most powerful combinations I believe human beings can achieve. For decades, she has worked tirelessly to create wonder and magic through holiday concerts, community choirs, and piano and vocal teaching. Our family house was literally a hub for music education throughout my whole life, and it still is today. My mom has always been there for others. Growing up, it was common to have people staying in our home often for weeks at a time when they needed help. But Speaker, I'll also tell you this about my mom. She's fierce. Do not stand in the way of her children, grandchildren, students, friends, or pets and expect to hear about it. She believes queer and transgender people should be faith leaders if that is their calling. She thinks and acts on her obligations as treaty people in Canada. She has supported students in our small hometown of Anchley Hill who've been organizing Black Lives Matter protests. Yes, Speaker, I know what you're thinking and you're right. The apple in our house doesn't fall very far from the family tree. But by enemies or measures, Speaker, my mom's life has been an enormous success. It reminds me of three lines from the great American essayist Rolf Waldo Emerson who once wrote, To appreciate beauty. To find the best in others. To leave the world a little bit better by a healthy child a garden patched or a redeemed social condition. To know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded. You're a success mom. Thank you very much. Yes, thank you. The next statement, the member for Ottawa West and Appian. Thank you, Speaker. It is my honor to rise today to share a true example of the Ontario spirit. Ottawa police detective constable Bruno Gendron who also spent 17 years as a paramedic tragically passed away recently after a cardiac issue. His funeral is being held today. This news was especially devastating as he had championed the campaign to equip Ottawa police with automated external defibrillators saving a number of lives. His police and paramedic colleagues have come up with a touching tribute to turn this negative into a positive and honor his legacy. They've started a memorial pop raiser to cover the cost of training certified service dogs to help children with autism veterans first responders with PTSD and in some cases victims and staff at police stations or court houses. The training will be done by national service dogs in Cambridge who previously donated a facility dog named canine west to the Ottawa police. One colleague said of this initiative, we see it as a way to empower others through helping pause. After meeting their goal of sponsoring one puppy, a corporate donor agreed to sponsor another and told them to keep going and this fundraiser will continue until December 8th. Thank you to Detective Constable Gendron for your many years of service in our region, my condolences to your family and friends and thank you to his colleagues for honoring his legacy through this fantastic initiative. Thank you very much. Member statements. The member for London North Centre. Students who enter post-secondary education do so to better themselves to build a life and a future. Part of that equation is meaningful employment. Speaker, I rise today to tell our house about a commitment to students, employers and our community. I recently met with Principal Dave Malloy and Dean Joe Henry from King's University College in my writing. They just launched the King's Promise. They re-envisioned post-secondary education, emphasizing career building from first year starting in 2021 so that students will better understand their talents and competencies while actively engaged in understanding how their gifts, talents and training translate into the world of work. You see, King's gathered feedback from students and partnered with the London Economic Development Corporation to design their innovative program where students will undertake co-curricular career development activities each year while developing their portfolio. What sets this program apart is the commitment. King's guarantee to students ensure those who do not gain employment six months after graduation will receive additional undergraduate courses and career preparation for up to one year. Post-graduation, free of charge. That's a solid pledge, a concrete promise to students, their families and our community. I look forward to the stories of success and accomplishment from the signature learning experience, this unique tailored approach to student success before and after graduation. Well done, King's University College. Thank you very much. The member for Burlington. Speaker, more than 20 years ago, the transgender community came together to advocate for a national day to commemorate and mourn those who have lost their lives as a result of transphobic violence. To this day, transgender and gender diverse people are still subjected to violence and prejudice because of their gender identity and expression. More devastating still, every year many will lose their lives due to anti-trans prejudice worldwide. Ontario's freedom and tolerance is a beacon to the world. Our diversity is a strength and provides a foundation of equality and acceptance for all. Bigotry and hatred has no place in our province, Speaker. On November 20th, the Trans Day of Remembrance, we reflect on and mourn deeply those lives that have been cut short. This year, we cannot do a flag raising, but it is still important to remember the flag which symbolizes awareness and respect to the trans community, their families and loved ones, our government mourns with you. And we say to all Ontarians, let's continue to work together to ensure that everyone can feel proud of who they are, be free to express themselves and safe to live their lives. Today and every day, we must remember and work to build a society where we treat one another with respect, regardless of gender expression and identity, and where hate has no place, Speaker. Member Statements, the Member for Algoma, Manitoulin. Thank you, Speaker. And every now and again, all of us meet up with that special person, that one that lights a flame into your heart and your gut and makes you do the job that we do, that we all love in this house. I met Kennedy Quaid. She's a beautiful young lady from Manitouage. She prepared this petition. She collected almost over 1500 signatures. It reads, Manitouage 614 winter maintenance to ensure our highway is properly plowed, salted and sanded. I am requesting on behalf of the community of Manitouage, full-time winter road care. The reason why she did this is her locker buddy, which is Kobe Roshon. She used to play chess, battleship. They used to listen to Ozzy Osbourne while they were in high school, and there were great locker buddies. They both grew up in adulthood. They became teachers. They started teaching in Pickmoburg First Nation, the community just down the highway. Each and every day, they're required to take that highway along with 50% of this community who have to take this highway. That one morning, in a matter of 30 seconds, an accident happened. Kobe passed away, and it was directly related to the conditions of this road. I've taken up this issue with the previous government. I've taken up this issue with this government. The roads, the winter road service agreements in Northern Ontario are not working. People are dying on those roads, and we need to change that. It needs to be addressed. The biggest problem for this community is the plow has been taken out of that community and assigned to Marathon. We need to fix that. Everybody knows that. Let's fix it. The Member for Scarborough-Gildwood. Thank you, Speaker. I'm honored to rise to speak on behalf of my constituents of Scarborough-Gildwood, who have expressed serious concern to me about the changes to the Conservation Authorities Act in Schedule 6 of Bill 229. One constituent wrote, It's very frustrating to see the Premier waging a war on the organizations that were set up to protect our environment while COVID-19 is raging. This government is continuing on its path of weakening environmental protections by opening the door for the Minister to override decisions taken by conservation authorities all under the cover of the COVID pandemic. This government's track record on the environmental protection is shameful. The Auditor General has just confirmed this. They've cancelled rebates for electric vehicles and moved to open up our natural green spaces and wetlands for development. 95 percent of Ontarians live in watershed communities like Scarborough-Gildwood, which require careful and considerate environmental protection and management. Without these powers and the same powers as the provincial officers, TRCA is unable to effectively stop significant threats and impacts to the environmentally sensitive areas and hazardous lands, example floodplains, such as illegal and large-scale fill operations. And this is quote from the CRCA. This government is continuing on its path of weakening environmental protections by opening the door for the Minister to override these important decisions taken by our conservation authorities for political reasons, and it must stop. Thank you very much. Member Statements. Member for Oakville, North Burlington. Thank you, Speaker. Last week, the Oakville Community Foundation released its resiliency report. This report shared the impact of COVID-19 on Oakville and outlined the great work that charities in Oakville do to better our community. One of the lessons of COVID is how important it is for all levels of government for charities and for businesses to work together in times of crisis. During the lockdown, the Oakville Community Foundation began distributing over $625,000 to frontline charities through the Oakville Resiliency Fund. These funds were raised through donations from community members and played a major role in supporting vulnerable individuals, families and seniors and the organizations who helped them. Some of the organizations who benefited from this funding included the Canadian Caribbean Association, Halton Women's Place and the Kerr Street Mission. Our government knows how important it is to support municipal programs and social services, which is why we are investing $200 million in social service relief funding to help and protect our province's most vulnerable people. This funding helps support shelters, food banks, emergency services, charities and nonprofits, while also providing emergency assistance to families and individuals who didn't qualify for federal emergency benefits. Thank you to the Oakville Community Foundation for supporting our community during this unprecedented crisis. Member Statements, the Member for Thunder Bay-Atacocan. Thank you, Speaker. COVID-19 is spreading throughout Northern Ontario and over the summer and into the fall, cases remained extremely low, but that's quickly changing. Almost overnight in Thunder Bay, we're over 50 cases, with one person in the hospital and an outbreak in a long-term care home. Our local public health units and hospitals in Thunder Bay have done an excellent job containing the virus, but there is only so much they can do. Frankly, this government needs to step up. The province needs to provide sufficient resources for contact tracing, for rapid testing, quarantining and also give clear instructions based on public health recommendations. We also need this government to focus more on Northern Ontario, where we have far less health resources than the South. I hear about this from constituents calling and emailing my office every single day. The province must lead and not leave it up to local officials to figure things out the best they can with insufficient resources. This is not a good strategy, especially as cases are rising. We can and must do better for the North, for Thunder Bay-Atacocan and for all of us across this province. This government must take active steps to contain and end the COVID crisis. Thank you. Thank you very much. Member Statements, the Member for Richmond Hill. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. COVID-19 has created many challenges in our economy and our daily lives, but when handled with a positive attitude and creativity, we can overcome it. The City of Richmond Hill organized two successful events last week, despite the challenges of the pandemic. The Richmond Hill Entrepreneurship Finance Conference was held last Wednesday, delivered virtually by the Richmond Hill Small Business Enterprise Centre. They connected entrepreneurs with the sources of capital available through the federal and provincial governments, as well as banks, investors and other financial institutions. BDC also gave a good analysis of our economic outlook and gave professional advice. They stressed on the increase of online sales and encouraged everyone to take the advantage of technology. These are good pointers to our businesses. Last Saturday, we have our first Santa Claus workshop drive-through that replaced the Santa Claus Parade. Not only was it safe with proper social distancing, families with children and seniors were warm in the car, driving through waving singing carols. Yes, we can keep a positive attitude using creativity and innovation. We will come out of this pandemic stronger and better. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Member Statements. The Member for Scarborough Rouge Park. While we live during this pandemic, many of the things we often take for granted are suddenly things no longer can do. This is especially hard for children and youth. This incredible constituent of mine, Darcy, discovered when her son was about to celebrate his birthday but could not have a traditional party with friends and family. Darcy turned this predicament into something that now spreads joy to children all over the West Rouge neighbourhood. She organised a car parade to celebrate her son's birthday and continues that practice across the community. The West Rouge drive-by birthday parade now organises celebrations for children every weekend up to 50 cars participating, rain or shine. On top of that, Darcy and her team has also organised car parades over the summer for graduating students and supporting long-term care homes. They truly embody the Ontario spirit that we have seen across Ontario in this challenging time. Thank you, Darcy and everyone that participated in this car parade. Our community is truly a better place because of all of you. Thank you. Thank you very much. That concludes our Member's Statements for this morning.