 Thank you. Therefore, it's now time for members of statements. The member from Thorn Hill. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker and I'm here today to talk about a wonderful organization called Danny. Originally I thought like many of you are going to think that it's about somebody named Danny but it isn't. It stands for developing and nurturing independence and their mission statement says to create opportunities for young adults with physical and or cognitive challenges so that they can participate fully as valued members of the community and enjoy a meaningful and dignified quality of life. Danny was created in 2006 by parents of children with disabilities co-founded by Suzy Sokol and Kathy Lazlow. It started as a parent-to-parent advocacy group and became an incorporated non-for-profit organization. Their core beliefs are that it's parent driven, dedicated to serving individuals with disabilities and families and caregivers. They strive to enhance the skills and knowledge of young adults with challenges, establish and maintain partnerships. They're inclusive meaning everybody is welcome to participate but they do observe kashrut which means kosher food, Shabbat and holidays and I just want to mention that this Monday March 14th we're going to have a walk for my constituency to Danny's facility at a local community center the garnet on Clark Avenue and we're going to have lunch there served by the participants of Danny really looking forward to it everybody can join and hope to see you all there and it's just going to be $15 a person I should mention that but it will be well worth your time and effort thank you. Thank you Speaker. The Liberals say they're starting to chart a path towards a comprehensive reform plan designed to reduce poverty. During his budget presentation the minister said they'd be joining with researchers and select communities to develop a basic income pilot project. Speaker I want to offer the Windsor-Essex County region as an ideal site for such an experiment. The cold hard facts to justify this offer are this speaker one third of our single moms live in poverty one out of every 10 people you pass on the streets and Windsor-Essex County live in poverty one out of every 10 out of every six children lives in poverty. Our multiple food banks serve about one third of their meals to children more than a third of our seniors are living on less than $20,000 a year. Speaker 70,000 people in our area who do have jobs earning less than $20,000 more than 30,000 of those folks are childhood college or university graduates. We have suffered with one of the highest unemployment rates in the country for the past 10 years. We've lost 10,000 young people who have left for jobs in other parts of the country. 24% of our population identify themselves as immigrants yet many of our newcomers face economic challenges. We have as many as 9,500 people on social assistance, 2,600 on the waiting list for subsidized housing and we need as much help as we can get. There is no better place in Ontario to test this new method of a basic income allowance. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I rise today to recognize and remember my former colleague, trustee and the chair of the Toronto District School Board, Sheila Ward. Sheila represented Toronto's Centre of Rosedale since 1991. She was elected trustee again after the Mike Harris government malcomated six education boards in Toronto to create the TDSB in 1997. She either been elected, re-elected or acclaimed since then. Sheila was the chair of the TDSB from 2003 to 2007. Thrill Sheila's tenure as the public school trustee, she championed for equity including the creation of a senior position at the TDSB focusing on students and community equity. I remember, Mr. Speaker, fondly of Sheila's courage and determination in the establishment of the triangle program and alternative education in the former Toronto Board of Education. This 20-year-old alternative program located in East Chinatown is the only program that's a kind in Canada. It is designed for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender students who are at risk for dropping out or committing suicide because of the homophobic or transphobic harassment in regular schools. Inside and outside the boardroom, Sheila used her wit, sharp tongue, analytical skills and determination to champion for the youngest citizen in her community. This includes pressuring the staff to redesign for more green space for students or expanding the libraries or science and technology classrooms in her diverse inner-city schools. Sheila's also remembered for being kind, caring, committed friends and mentor to many, including a Premier, Minister Cotto and Toronto budget chief, Councillor Crawford. Many of us who knew Sheila would remember her passion, feisty-ness, never backed down on important issues affecting her students and bringing multiple bottles of coke to every board or committee meeting. Mr. Speaker, as I conclude my remarks, I want to share Sheila's own word on education, quote, I'm glad that others are willing to spend their time looking for, looking after potholes, sewers and snow plowing. Those are essential important tasks, but for me, education is where I want to serve my community and a quote. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Sheila for her contributions to public education. You have touched many lives, including mine, and you will be missed. And here's to you, Sheila. You did that nicely enough so that the Sergeant in Arms didn't steal your prop. Thank you. Member Stevens, the member from Bruce Gray once again. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I rise to pay tribute to a courageous entrepreneur, a generous philanthropist, and a great visionary who personified the very best of Canadian values. Leo MacArthur, who rose to prominence as President, CEO, and Chairman of the Board of the Miller Group and was among the first rank of entrepreneurs of his generation, sadly passed away on January 11th after a long illness. Leo and his partner John Carrick started out with nothing but an idea, a strong work ethic, a belief in private business, and a friendship. Over many years, they led Miller Group and Mcashfall Industries and expanded into an international group of companies that employed more than 4,000 people. Leo was one of the most successful businessmen to ever have come out of the own sound area. Nothing was more important to Leo than family and his employees, who were indeed an important part of the MacArthur family. As such, his legacy was not measured by the fact that he built one of the largest waste management companies in Canada. It was that throughout his life, Leo was an influential ambassador and a major contributor to the communities where he lived and worked. Most recently, Leo and his family owned company contributed in excess of one million dollars to the new Owen Sound YMCA and Community Recreation Center in honor of Leo and Helen MacArthur's daughter, Julie MacArthur, who died in 2007. Leo came from a very loving family but also a very poor beginnings. His dad ran a lumber mill in Owen Sound and died in an industrial accident when Leo was only nine years old, leaving behind eight children. Fortunately, the MacArthur children inherited the belief that integrity, hard work, and loyalty mattered in life and it was these qualities that helped them build an entrepreneurial family. His brothers JD owned MacArthur Tire and the Owen Sound Grace hockey team, Johnny owned MacArthur Construction and Timber MacArthur and his brother-in-law Al Riley owned MacArthur and Riley, a home decorating business. Speaker, I know the legislature will join me in acknowledging the great contribution that Leo MacArthur has made to Ontario and to Canada and extend our condolences to his family. Thank you for the difference you have made in so many lies, Leo. You'll be truly missed. Thank you for the member's statements, the member from Kitchener Waterloo. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. On April 5th, 1951, Ontario's first equal pay legislation became law. In spite of the fact that it was a male-dominated house, the legislature had a champion for this bill, Agnes McPhail, one of Ontario's first two female MPPs who was a driving force behind the creation of the Female Employees Fair Remuneration Act, which became the first step towards correcting the pay gap. Far ahead of a time when it was a popular topic, she had a strong sense of what the female workforce deserved. She said and I quote, I want for myself what I want for other women, absolute equality. I rise to date during women's history month to acknowledge the work done by women like Agnes McPhail who have come before us in this house but much more needs to be done to honour their legacy. It's been 65 years since this province's first equal pay legislation and almost 30 years since Ontario's current Pay Equity Act was introduced. And yet today in 2016 we are still working to close the gender wage gap. There is a 31.5% pay difference between men and women and it has barely changed in the last decade. It affects all women at every age of every profession. Not only that, Canadian women earn on average $8,000 less than their male counterparts who are doing the exact same jobs. This is twice the global average of a wage gap for equivalent work. As an assembly with 37 talented, hard-working female MPPs, we can and we need to do better to support the women of Ontario. Thank you very much. Thank you. Further member statements? The member from Mississauga Branton is here for you. Mr. Speaker, this afternoon I rise to honour a leading woman from Mississauga, former Mayor Hazel McCallion. Even after her retirement from political life, Hazel, who we affectionately call as Hurricane Hazel, continues to tirelessly serve the public. On February 23rd, I was pleased to attend the announce of McCallion's appointment as Sheridan College's inaugural Chancellor. Mr. Speaker, Sheridan College is an important symbol of what the cities of Mississauga and Branton are today. Excellent places to live, work, play, raise families and study and invest. The college brings with it the promise of an even brighter future. In Ms. McCallion's own words, the college is a part of the community, including from an economic point of view. It is an incubator for young minds, talents and ideas. It is a private sector partner in research and development. As Chancellor, Ms. McCallion will preside over convocation and also serve as an ambassador for Sheridan, locally, nationally and internationally. Congratulations, Chancellor McCallion. Yes, thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to draw attention to the cuts that are occurring at the Royal Victoria Regional Health Centre. While this hospital is in Barrie, it serves many of my constituents, and these cuts impact people from both Simcoe and Muscoca. As a result of an $8 million shortfall, RVH will be eliminating 24 vacant positions as well as 32 full-time. Cuts like these are a direct result of the Liberal Government's track record of scandal, waste and economic mismanagement. Health care has always been the provincial government's most important responsibility. Consistently, it has been the most important issue for my constituents. RVH is one of many hospitals in Ontario who are faced with the growing challenge of how to do more with less, how to better serve patients with fewer staff, how to better serve families with less resources. This government has never demonstrated serious leadership on improvements to health care. Photo ops and re-announcements don't measure up. RVH's wait times for MRI and CT scanners are both higher than the provincial average. It's inevitable that wait times will increase and patients will languish on wait lists for important tests and surgeries. This is unacceptable for my constituents, and it's unacceptable for the province. Mr. Speaker, earlier this week the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada hosted a major four-day conference in Toronto. The annual PDAC International Convention Trade Show and Investors Exchange is the world's leading convention for people, companies and organizations interconnected with mineral exploration. The convention provides an excellent opportunity to meet attend technical sessions, short courses and various networking events for the mining community. This year the convention welcomed over 20,000 delegates and 1,000 exhibitors from over 100 countries to downtown Toronto. Every year PDAC provides us with an opportunity to showcase mining exploration and development in Ontario to the rest of the world. For Ontario, it means promoting our province as a global leader and the most attractive jurisdiction for mineral investment in Canada. For another year, Ontario's Ministry of Northern Development and Mines was the largest exhibitor at PDAC. We welcomed guests to our annual reception and met hundreds of delegates from around the world at our Ontario Pavilion on the trade floor. We have over 40 mines operating in the province, making us Canada's largest producer of non-fuel minerals. And last year we saw the value of mineral production reach $10.8 billion in Ontario. That's almost double the amount in 2003. PDAC provided an excellent platform for our government to share our success story when it comes to mining in Ontario. We look forward to next year's convention and I hope to see you all there. Thank you Speaker. The Fashion History Museum grand opening ceremony is this evening in Cambridge to celebrate their new premises in the old 1929 post office building. The Fashion History Museum has become a destination for tourists both locally as well as from across Ontario. Founded in 2004 by chair and CEO Ken Norman and curator Jonathan Walford, the museum has gained an international reputation. As a matter of fact, they have showcased collections in Balrain, Hong Kong and across North America. Their adapted heritage building is a permanent home for a fabulous collection of over 12,000 garments and 3,000 titles in the library archives, featuring shoes, hats, accessories, vintage clothing, rare pieces and includes some from Canadian designers. This collection has pieces from the mid 1700s to the present day and the displays are constantly changing. Recently the museum held their chapeau and champagne fundraiser which featured a fine collection of unique hats both old and new. And next February at their fundraiser you'll see one for a one day exhibit of Dior pieces. As a matter of fact they were included in the 2017 special anniversary publication from the House of Dior in Paris. At last year's fashion politics, politics and fashion design, they featured a rare paper Pierre Trudeau dress made for the 1968 campaign. Speaker, this is a fabulous exhibit. It's a truly inspired museum. I want to congratulate Ken and Jonathan for their huge success and I also want to thank the City of Cambridge for helping to support this incredible place, Destination. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. I thank all members for their statements.