 I now move into member's statement. I recognize the member from Eglinton Lawrence. Thank you Madam Speaker. Today Jewish residents and communities in my riding of Eglinton Lawrence and around the world will mark the start of Passover, usually an eight day festival. Also known as Pesach, this holiday commemorates the miracle in which God passed over the houses of the Israelites during the 10th plague. Also 400 years of slavery injured by the Jewish people in ancient Egypt and their 40 year journey to the promised land. Throughout the entire period, Jewish law forbids eating any hummets or foods with leaven. Centred on family and communal celebrations, Passover is one of the most beloved of all Jewish holidays. The main ritual is the Passover Seder, a festive meal during which families and friends will gather to read and discuss the story of Passover, recite prayers and consume symbolic foods like matzah or unleavened bread. To everyone marking Passover, hug Pesach Sameach. Later this week, Western Christian denominations will also celebrate Easter. Following the 40 day period of fasting and prayer known as Lent, Christians will gather to celebrate the holiest time in the Christian calendar. And this week is Holy Week. The Easter Tridium includes Monday Thursday, which commemorates the washing of the feet, and the last supper of Christ with the apostles, Good Friday marking the crucifixion and death of Jesus, and of course Easter Sunday marking the resurrection of Christ. Religion, which literally derives from the Latin word relegare, which means to tie one to their community, and the common participation in ritual it includes, helps to give meaning and purpose to life and comfort in times of hardship. All things that I believe we could use more of in modern times. To all my constituents, a joyous and meaningful Easter and hug Pesach Sameach. Member statements. The member for Oshawa. Thank you very much. Thank you. I have a letter that I would like to share from a very concerned and upset mother. And she wants me to know, quote, my son is struggling in school. He is ADHD and has autism. He is seven years old and desperately needs an EA or some kind of support. Our teacher is absolutely wonderful for the first time in many years. She specializes in special education, but the thing is, like a lot, she is running out of resources. He is very high needs and desperately needs one to one support in class. Unfortunately, all requests come back as no budget or no more staff available. I am so upset as my son gets very hands-on sometimes and can't self-regulate. Last week he had an incident and now is told he has to sit in the office with admin staff to realize his actions. She says he has no idea what is going on. So this morning I pulled him to go get some testing done. I was told because he missed part of the day he would be making up the hours tomorrow. He would spend the full day again in the office with no outside recess, which he barely gets to experience. I am so upset for my son. He is so bright and is being held back because of apparent resources not available. And then making him spend all his time in the office. I am ready to pull him. He is being secluded from his peers and he is very liked in school. Can you help me in any way? I have no idea. End quote. Speaker, my question to this government is why won't they fund schools so that students, like this child, can participate and learn with the resources that they so desperately need? Thank you. Thank you. Member statements? Member for? Thunder Bay Atticope. Thank you, Speaker. This morning I would like to show much deserved recognition to a member for my writing. I was introduced to Carolyn Carl during my campaign and I am proud to now call her a friend. Carolyn founded the DEC Foundation named after her daughter Dana Elizabeth Carl, who she unfortunately lost to a devastating drug overdose. Dana was only 31 years old when she succumbed to her disease. Dana is described by friends and loved ones as an energetic, vibrant and beautiful soul. When Dana started to face mental health challenges, it became unmanageable and she was unable to get access to the resources she needed to fight it. Carolyn and I both agree that drug addiction can happen to anyone. There is no discrimination when it comes to issues with mental health and addiction and it truly affects all walks of life. Carolyn was able to turn this devastating loss into strength and she works tirelessly in the foundation she started to help those struggling with addiction. Carolyn was recently recognized by her community and received Thunder Bay's 2023 Respect Award. The DEC Foundation provides necessities to those struggling for mental health and addictions, giving them the needed love and support they deserve. I'd like to thank Carolyn for her relentless work and I look forward to working closely with her to end the stigma and to build a secure foundation of support systems for the constituents of Thunder Bay and region. Thank you, Carolyn. Thank you very much. Member Statements. The Member for St. Catherine's. Thank you, Speaker. I stand before you today to urge this government to access and evaluate funding for women's health across the board. That is research, it is education, and it is services. I stand today inspired by the dedication of local friends and health advocates, April Ham and Jessica Palensic, that collaborated to arrange a significant event at the first Ontario Performing Arts Centre in St. Catherine's to a packed house on the last day of endometriosis month. Legislation that actually was passed by my colleague here in this chamber, the member from Davenport. They showcased a film below the belt and proceeded to have a powerful panel discussion by the inspiring health professionals. There was a question asked and it was a simple one. Why? Why are we not talking about endometriosis anymore? Talking about a common condition that impacts one in ten women, a condition that suffers from a bias of prejudice. Women's health has been underfunded and underresearched for many years. Women's health is put into reproductive categories. It is a systemic issue. We need to change it. This needs to be changed. I want to recognize the passion of these advocates. However, I cannot do this without recognizing how much more that still needs to be done. I urge this government to prioritize women's health by increasing funding for research education and services that address the unique health needs of women. Let us work together to ensure that every woman in Ontario receives the care and support she deserves. Thank you. Member Statements. The member for Brampton West. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. April marks the beginning of sick heritage month. My date writing of Brampton West is a home to large, vibrant and prospering sick community. Six have a long and proud history that spans over 500 years. We are known for our commitment to quality, social justice and service to humanity. These values are deeply rooted in our faith and have guided us through some of the most challenging times in history. Speaker, we believe that there are three duties that a sick must carry out. Namjapna, which is keeping God in mind at all times. Kirtkarna, which means earning an honest living. And Vanshakna, which means sharing one's earnings with others. In English, this can be summed up by praying, working and giving. Mr. Speaker, the sick community has made immeasurable contributions to building our province and this proud country from the days when those early sick pioneers arrived in Canada to the present day when this nation stands tall as a leader for equality, diversity and compassion. Mr. Speaker, the history of six in Canada is a story of compassion, hard work, persistence and progress. So, therefore, I invite the entire House to join in the annual Khalsa Day Parade on April 30th in Toronto with friends and families and enjoy this open public celebration of sick heritage. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Member Statements, the Member for Tomiskaming Cochran. Thank you, Speaker. As we sit here in the House, once again, Highway 11, the Transcanda Highway has just been closed north and north bay. Again, I was trying to look it up. I think it's the 14th time since January 1st. This is the Transcanda Highway. The link that connects our country, the traffic, the cross-country traffic, there's two ways to go across Canada through Ontario, 17 or 11. And believe it or not, in the wintertime, 11 is the safest route and 11 has been closed numerous times. Not only is the commerce stopped, but as we speak, there will be people stranded along that highway because that highway is our main street. The link is once again broken. I'm not blaming anyone. I'm not blaming the contractors. I think they're doing their best. I'm not even blaming the government. The government is trying to do a few things, but we have to realize that something is drastically changing and we need to address it. Because I've lived there my whole life and it's never been like this, that every time that there's a snow, we are paralyzed. The country is paralyzed. We need to work together right now. The government in power needs to look at what we do to change that so we are not the bottleneck in this country. Thank you, Steve. Thank you. Member Statements, the Member for Whitman. Thank you, Speaker. The Region of Durham's Public Health Unit is receiving $1,645,000 from our government to help deliver a variety of initiatives and support critical public health programs and services over the next two years. Now, Speaker, the announcement made recently by the Region of Durham Government MPPs is part of an investment of nearly $84 million by the province to support public health units across the Ontario. Consequently, Speaker, Durham Region Public Health can look forward to enhanced healthcare services as our government reaffirms its commitment to investing in the well-being of the communities that comprise the region. Speaker, Ontarians can rest assured that we're determined to alleviate healthcare costs while ensuring exceptional care for all residents of Durham. By prioritizing initiatives that promote health and prevent illness, we can build a stronger, more resilient Region of Durham and create a brighter future for all hardworking families in that region. Thank you. Thank you. The next Member Statement, the Member for Don Valley East. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, today I want to highlight a major concern in my riding of Don Valley East. For so many of my constituents, increased violence in schools, places of worship, and public transit has become a reality of daily life, and people are worried about their personal and family safety. Mr. Speaker, when people fall through the cracks, one of the stops is often public transit. We need to create a safety net that catches them before they get there. This is about getting vulnerable people the supports that they need. We know that anyone can turn to violence, and that anyone can commit a crime. But we also know that building a stronger network of support systems will reduce the risk for everyone. During the pandemic, as an emergency physician, I saw how rates of child abuse and domestic violence increased, because people were stressed to their limits by cost of living, by isolation, by fear by other things. And worsening access to healthcare has also meant that people can't get the mental health and addiction supports that they need. So this government can't keep pushing public safety onto the municipalities. While there may be some superficial promises in the budget to address social well-being, we all know what a promise from this government is worth. It's time for this government to stop talking and start delivering. This means getting serious about tackling hatred in our communities, defending against Islamophobia, anti-Semitism and racism in all its forms. And it means tackling gun violence by getting weapons off the street and especially out of the hands of youth. This province has an obligation to keep the people of Ontario safe, and we must hold them to it. Thank you. Member Statements, the member for Windsor to come see. Thank you, Speaker. A week ago Saturday, I visited the Carpenters and Joiners Union Local 494 training facility in Tecumseh, alongside MPP Liardi and SXMP Chris Lewis. And what a great day it was. We had the incredible opportunity to see the union's apprenticeship competition and seeing which among the children's playhouses in competition destined for hiatus house would win top marks. What a fantastic cause. Under leadership of Sean Ramey, Brandon Fitch and Tommy Olcone the competition is just one of countless examples of local 494 giving back to our community. Local 494 represents general Carpenters, acoustic technicians, resilient floor layers and pile drivers and welders in Essex and Kent counties. We truly built a cutting edge 21,000 square foot training facility. Our government is providing $224 million in the current budget for a new capital stream of the skills development fund to leverage private sector expertise and expand training centres including union training halls such as the local 494 site to provide more accessible, flexible training opportunities for workers with nearly 300,000 jobs going unfilled in Ontario and many of which are in the construction industry local trade unions are doing their part to ensure that their members are well prepared. Today as we continue to build a better winter to come see in a better Ontario for future generations. Thank you. Thank you. Member statements? The member for Richmond Hill. Thank you Mr. Speaker. I rise today to recognize the important work of Circle of Care part of Sanite Health a non-profit organization that delivers nutritionally balanced meals to seniors and those with complex health needs. With the help of over 200 compassionate volunteers and staff they deliver more than 280,000 meals annually to our elderly community members. Last month the March of Meals Month I joined them in delivering meals to seniors only apartment in Richmond Hill called Rosedown where we visited our elderly Ukrainian and Russian neighbors. Speaker from the smiling faces I can tell the meal delivery service has gone above and beyond in providing vital support to our vulnerable population. The service has also elevated the worries of many family members who cannot be able to visit their loved ones. I am so happy that those who deliver the meals for them also make great friends with them and checking out on them on a daily basis. Again I would like to express my gratitude and appreciation to the entire Circle of Care team. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. That concludes our member statements for this morning. Thank you very much.