 Therefore, it's time for our member's statements. The member from Elgin, Middlesex, London. Mr. Speaker, March is National Kidney Month. During National Kidney Month, all Ontarians are encouraged to give their kidneys a second thought and a well-deserved checkup. Kidneys are some of the most versatile organs in our bodies, located in the lower back. They are in charge of filtering waste out of upwards of 200 liters of blood a day. The Elswordsy released hormones that help regulate blood pressure, control the production of red blood cells, and regulate the body's salt potassium and acid content while balancing the body's fluids. They remove drugs from the body and produce an active form of vitamin D that promotes strong and healthy bones. Unfortunately, there are usually no symptoms to alert one of kidney disease before the disease progresses to a great deal. Those most susceptible to kidney disease are those with diabetes, high blood pressure, or family history of kidney failure. During National Kidney Month, it's important to note that one in 10 Canadians has kidney disease. Each day, 15 people are told that their kidneys are failing. The leading cause of kidney failure is diabetes, which is 38 percent. There's no cure for kidney disease. In 2012, kidney disease was the 10th leading cause of death in Canada. 76 percent of Canadians are waiting for kidney transplant. 47 percent of all transplants are made possible by living donors. Later this month, I'll be attending the fifth annual No Kidneying Around event fundraiser in St. Thomas. I'd like to thank Doug and Candace Van Diepen for raising over $24,000 for these events for the Kidney Foundation of Canada Southwest and Ontario Chapter. I'd also like to thank the Kidney Foundation of Canada for all they do for promoting kidney disease awareness during the month and their look fundraising to find a cure. During National Kidney Month, please remember to take care of your hardworking kidneys and consider being a donor with a Trillium Gift of Light program. Thank you. Will the member seem as the member from Windsor to come see me? Thank you, Speaker. I'd like to take the opportunity to tell this legislature about one of the brightest of the crown jewels within the artistic community of Windsor and Essex County. The Windsor Symphony Orchestra has been putting on concerts for the past 76 years. It was formed initially to raise funds for local servicemen serving overseas. Those early concerts were broadcast live every Sunday evening on CKLW radio. The Windsor Symphony was awarded the Ontario Lieutenant Governor's Arts Award in 2001 and again in 2004. They've been nominated for a Gemini Award. The speaker, the the symphony goes into the local schools. They work with Ontario's curriculum and create educational programming that touches the lives of those eager to learn more as well as those who have yet to experience the power and energy of live orchestral music for the first time. They also have a youth orchestra and they do an amazing job in their peanut butter and jam music series for toddlers and their parents. Speaker, just so you know, astronaut Chris Hadfield performed his first concert on earth with the Windsor Symphony. Of course, no orchestra would be complete without a team of volunteers. The symphony guild puts on a number of fundraising events every year. They have a fashion show coming up that will celebrate not only the creativity of the orchestra but also that of our top Canadian designers all in celebration of Canada's 150th anniversary. Speaker, we have a great team of professional musicians of Windsor and Essex County led by maestro Robert Frans and they have an amazing team of volunteers and supporters behind them. So a tip of the hat to the Windsor Symphony Orchestra from all of us here at the Ontario Legislature. Thank you, the member of status, the member from Northumberland, Quinty West. Thank you, Speaker. Speaker, on February 21st, 2017, I had this distinct pleasure to represent the Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sports and along with the Minister of Seniors Affairs in the town of Coburg at the opening of the Ontario 55-plus Winter Games, the three-day multi-sport event. It's the only one of its kind in the province for the over 55-age demographics. Participants from across Ontario gather together at the opening ceremonies to celebrate and kick off the games and events such as skiing, curling, Tuberculosis Bridge, ice hockey, skating, bowling, volleyball. There were hosts at facilities in Coburg, Brighton, Port Hope, Orono and Peterborough. It really was community that came together to put this incredible event. Speaker, it was my honour to welcome the over 800 participants and over 200 volunteers to Northumberland area. The first, second and third place medals were created, produced by Hustleton Studios from Coburn, Speaker. Every participant received a hand knitted scarf sporting the official green, blue, white colour of the games. The call went out last fall from local volunteers, Mark Ellison, to knitters everywhere and the response from the community was overwhelming. Help came from as far away as Calgary to get these memorable keepsakes finished. Speaker, I want to thank committee chairs Paul Allen and Eugene Todd and their team for dedication in our work. They put forth to make these games such a success. Thanks also to the town of Coburg and neighboring municipality for their contribution and resources. And our governments continue to support this work. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you. Further member statements? Member from Perry Salomon School. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, earlier this year the Globe Mill concluded a special report that revealed that one in five sexual assault planes in Canada are dismissed by police as unfounded, meaning the investigator does not believe a criminal offense occurred or was attempted. It was heartbreaking to learn that two communities in my riding at Perry Sal Muskoka are ranked the third and fifth highest in Canada for dismissing sexual assault claims. In both Bracebridge and Huntsville over half of the allegations made by sexual assault victims are turned away by police. Sadly many of these victims are often not provided with connection to meaningful community supports that could assist them when the legal system cannot. The high rate of dismissal does nothing to deter potential assailants and may discourage even more victims from reporting to police. While the statistics are difficult to hear, they offer an unprecedented opportunity for change at the level of police investigations of sexual assault. At least 32 police departments across the country have committed to reviewing their data with the OPP reviewing 4,000 sexual assault investigations. These are positive steps, but more needs to be done. It is my hope that police services will understand and appreciate the role of other community services to assist victims and support them in the rebuilding of their lives in the face of such extreme trauma. In light of the Globe Mill report and other various headlines related to sexual assault across the country, we need to ensure that our discussions do not rely on harmful stereotypes and that they are always structured respectfully. Sexual assault survivors must be taken seriously, anything less is simply unacceptable. Thank you. Thank you very much. Recently I had the opportunity to reconnect with some former colleagues and parents who are active in the education world. It didn't take long for the issue of school closures to come up and as a former trustee school closure meetings are a special kind of emotional labour for all board members and the community, and the process has not gotten any easier because this provincial government has never fully reviewed the education funding model, nor made any significant financial commitment to the much talked about concept of community hubs. Within this context, the Ottawa Board, like many boards, faced an impossible decision to close an undercapacity Rideau High School. By all accounts, Rideau is a true community school, particularly for new immigrants, refugees, those living in poverty and Indigenous people. In fact, several First Nations communities, organisations looked to partner with the board and leave space. One of the courageous students at the board meeting asked, why are you going to take away our school during this fragile period of reconciliation? The Truth and Reconciliation Commission was clear that education plays a crucial role on the road to equality and success for Indigenous peoples. Senator Kim Pate wrote, quality education is not a one-size-fits-all recipe and must be adapted to meet different needs. But school boards across this province are penalised for trying to find creative options and they are rewarded financially for closing schools by this government. The promise of larger schools for everyone is not the answer. This government needs to wake up to the fact that incredibly 227 schools have closed just since 2011. We must get this right. Public education is the great equaliser and we all need to be part of the solution going forward. Thank you, Mr Speaker. On Saturday, March 11th, I had the privilege of recognising the contributions of 16 outstanding Barrie residents by presenting them with the Leading Women, Leading Girls Building Communities Awards. These ladies exemplify community leadership, volunteerism and advocacy and have become mentors to many through their dedication to improving the lives of women and girls. Among them was Eileen Bethune who was volunteered almost 1700 hours to big brothers, big sisters over nine years while also donating her time to Gildus Club out of the cold, her church and local library. Giselle Bodkin has raised over $400,000 through the Women's Intuition Fundraising Campaign for a scholarship that goes to young women with financial needs studying at Georgian College. Diane Kidd, Laura Wilson and Elizabeth Campbell were all recognised for their many years of contribution to the Camp Hill community for the developmentally disabled, including the establishment of a retail store which showcases artwork and other products created by the residents of their community. Negan Raid of West Bayfield Elementary School was honoured for her many contributions to her school community and for the work she has done with the local Hunters and Anglers Conservation Club's youth program. Arlene McKenzie was recognised as a founding member of the very Native Friendship Centre as well as her tireless efforts to improve services for the Native community. Through her efforts the Native community now has an emergency food bank, they have access to free clothing and there is now an Aboriginal healthcare professional that the community can access. Mr. Speaker, these are just a few of the honorees who received this award in my community, but it was a privilege to recognise their outstanding contribution that all of these women have made. Thank you and congratulations. Thank you, further Member States, members from Wellington, Hulton Hills. Mr. Speaker, as members will recall on October the 26th the government announced plans to establish a new university campus in Hulton region. I am pleased to inform the House that according to published reports it appears that Wilfred Laurier University in partnership with Conestoga College was the only applicant to respond to the government's recent call for formal expressions of interest to construct a new Hulton post-secondary campus. According to the Milton champion the government will now consider the Laurier Conestoga submission and work with them to continue to develop their plan before an invitational call for proposals in July. The successful proposal is expected to be formally announced in the fall. The new campus is projected to accommodate 1,000 students within two to five years of opening. As one of the four MPPs who are privileged to represent parts of Hulton region I welcome this news. Working together with Wilfred Laurier University, our local municipal officials including Hulton regional chair Gary Carr and other partners, we have pushed for a new campus in Hulton region for some time. I want to thank them all for their outstanding efforts which now have us one step closer to achieving our goal. Hulton region is one of the fastest growing areas in Ontario. Our young people will benefit from having another post-secondary option close to home as they reach out to the promise of the future. We urge the government to keep this project moving forward. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. Thank you members. The member from Kingston in the islands. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Last Tuesday first responders were called to the scene of two separate accidents that took place on the 401 eastbound highway. The icy roads and blowing snow resulted in a crash involving more than 30 vehicles and a chemical spill of hydrofluoric acid. The tragedy resulted in injuries sustained by 28 people and sadly Mr. Speaker one man passed away from his injuries. In my community it never takes long for everyone to swing in to help. The first responders like the Ontario provincial police and the frontenac paramedics rushed to the scene and my understanding is that many of the victims were decontaminated at the Leeds Grenville fire station before they were sent to Kingston general hospital. A decontamination tent was set up in a very short period of time and many workers at KGH stayed late worked through their breaks and even came in on their day off to care for those who needed it. This tragedy saw our community come together as other local hospitals like the hotel do and Providence care extended their hours and offered beds to support KGH in dealing with this tragedy. McMaster emergency room even responded by offering to send pizza to the workers as they cared for the patients. The men and women who worked tirelessly during this emergency and worked to support frontline staff are some of the finest in fact each one is a hero in my community. It is my honour to rise in the house today to acknowledge them and thank them for their services. Thank you all for your seamless, compassionate and heartwarming response to what could have been a much worse tragedy. Thank you. The member state is a member from Bruce Gray owned sound. Over the past months I've been speaking with constituents and attending meetings in my riding of Bruce Gray owned sound about the state of our seniors care and long-term care namely about the future of Rockwood Terrace and Durham and Gray Gables and Markdale which are home to 160 seniors. I received great feedback and promised to bring their concerns to the floor of the legislature. As such I rise today to urge the government to make seniors access to long-term care a priority. This morning I also joined the Interior Long-Term Care Association as they announced 11,000 concerned interns sign their petition to call on the government to commit to see better seniors care. This is evidence to the fact that this government has seriously advocated its responsibility to properly fund long-term care leaving hundreds of thousands of seniors to go with their care they need and deserve. The fact of the matter is the wait list just hit a new record high with 26,500 seniors across the country going without a long-term care bed a number that will double to 50,000 in just several years yet this government refuses to commit to adding new beds to accommodate this growing need. The fact is one in five seniors in long-term care are malnourished because of chronic underfunding by this government. I don't know how Mr. Speaker this government can sit back and watch the gray tsunami coming at it and not address it. My constituents as well as every one of the 11,000 interns who signed the petition believe long-term care is going to get only worse unless the government takes action now. I believe our seniors deserve better. They deserve better care, better services and better standards especially in food and hydro. I take the opportunity to thank everyone who signed the petition and for doing their best to support our seniors and I call on the government to do the same by taking action on those needs in long-term care. Thank you. Thank you. I thank all members for their comments.