 It is now time for oral questions, and I recognize the Leader for Majesty Loyal's Opposition. Thank you so much. Thank you so much, Speaker. Speaker, my first question is to the Premier. We've of course been hearing reports that the mass mandates are ending soon. Many experts are saying that's happening prematurely. And what is concerning is that the head of the science table says that we don't have the data to make that call. In fact, when asked directly if this was the time to do this, Dr. Uni said, and I quote, No, it's too early. Of course, other experts have now subsequently weighed in and say things like this. Dr. Isaac Bogach says, and I quote, I think it's reasonable to keep masks on for now and reevaluate weekly. Dr. Kali Barrett also on the science table said, and I quote, This is a very bad decision. Ronald Kahn, head of Sick Kids Hospital said, I quote, let's not rush this right now. So if the province isn't listening to the head of its own science table, Speaker, who are they listening to for evidence that now is the time to stop wearing masks? And to reply on behalf of the government, Government House Leader. Obviously, Mr. Speaker, we've been listening to our health care officials throughout the pandemic. That is why Ontario has been leading North America in terms of its response to the pandemic. Mr. Speaker, I will note that the leader of the opposition is so busy flip-flopping every single week when it comes. One week they want more restrictions. The next week they want less restrictions. So whatever they think is the most popular thing to do at that time, this leader of the opposition will run to it, Mr. Speaker. But if you're going to be a responsible government, what you have to do is do what's in the best interest of the people of the province of Ontario. And that is what we have done every step of the way, Mr. Speaker, every step of the way. As I said, that is why Ontario is leading North America in its response, Mr. Speaker. That is why we are coming out of the pandemic stronger than ever before, creating thousands of jobs, we're making important investments in health, long-term care, and all of the other things needed to make this the most vibrant economy in North America, Mr. Speaker, with no help from the opposition. The supplementary question. Well, Mr. Speaker, unfortunately I think that the Government House Leader has it wrong. What the responsibility of a responsible government's actions during a global pandemic is to listen to the experts, to the scientists, to those folks who have the data and information about how to guide our safety going through such a situation. The Premier doesn't have the support of the leading experts, of his own leading expert from the Science Table. Dr. Uni said it is too soon. He said he was surprised by this announcement. He said he was not consulted about this announcement. And he said, and I quote, it's not based on science. And that's troubling. That's troubling for a lot of folks who are worried about what might be coming next, especially the most vulnerable in our community. So the question is, if the decision to end the mass mandate wasn't based on science, clearly it wasn't. What was it based on? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. As we've done right through the pandemic, we've listened to the Chief Medical Officer of Health. We've listened to public health officers across the province of Ontario. I need not remind this House that it was the opposition that voted to actually fire the Chief Medical Officer of Health. And we said no, Mr. Speaker. We said no. We value the advice of the Chief Medical Officer of Health. We value the advice of healthcare professionals. And that is why Ontario has come through this pandemic stronger than ever before. That is why millions of Ontarians, leading the world in fact, have been vaccinated in this province, Mr. Speaker. They said it couldn't be done. We did it, Mr. Speaker. They said we couldn't respond quickly to the pandemic. We did, Mr. Speaker. They said we wouldn't come out of the pandemic stronger than we went into it. We are, Mr. Speaker. Jobs are being created. Our healthcare is being rebuilt after 15 years of liberal mismanagement, Mr. Speaker. We're building roads, transit, transportation. We're looking for thousands of people to work in the province of Ontario. No thanks to them, Mr. Speaker. But thanks to the people of the province of Ontario who have made this the best province to live, work and breath and raise a family. Any supplementary? Mr. Speaker, once again, the Government House Leader is not telling the whole story. Let's put it that way. We certainly did support getting rid of the former Chief Medical Officer of Health, not the current one. So this Government needs to start the clock. We're not even five minutes in. Please restart the clock. Leader of the opposition. Speaker, yes, we were happy to accept his resignation. However, the people in this province are tired of masks. I'm tired of masks. I'm sure we're all tired of masks across the province of Ontario. But, Speaker, you don't give up the bout in the last round. We have to be very, very careful. People deserve, in fact, to know exactly what this decision was based upon. That's the question that we're asking this Government to provide information about. They should be accountable to the decision-making process that they're making. And so, Dr. Uni said this morning, and I quote, the decision was based on political pressure. So my question is, why is the Premier prioritising his political interests over the advice of his own science experts and removing the mandate sooner than science indicates is prudent? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. One thing we've seen over the pandemic is a lot of people have become expert in a lot of different things, usually the Twitter warriors. Now, of course, the Leader of the Opposition is the Chief Medical Officer of Health of the Province of Ontario, Speaker. But let's look at what the Leader of the Opposition just admitted. She and her party did not support what the Chief Medical Officer of Health, the previous Chief Medical Officer of Health, was advising the government. His advice has led Ontario to being the best jurisdiction in North America when it comes to the pandemic response. His advice led us to safer schools. His advice led us to getting more than 90% of the people of the province of Ontario vaccinated, Mr. Speaker. Something that they said could not be done. And what did the NDP want to do? Well, they didn't agree with them. So, well, let's fire them, because Dr. Horvath knows better than the Chief Medical Officer of Health. So, I guess I'll remind the members again that we refer to each other according to our writing name or our ministerial title as applicable so as to maintain a civil debate in the Ontario Legislature, which is what I think the people of Ontario would expect from us and what our constituents would expect to see from time to time, too. We can start the clock again, I think. The Leader of the Opposition, next question. Thank you, Speaker. My next question is also to the Premier. But I have to say the huffing and puffing and name-calling is pretty disgraceful. I will come to order so that I can hear the member who has the floor. It is the same courtesy that I think all of you would expect to be extended to you if you had the floor. Let's try again. Restart the clock. Leader of the Opposition has the floor. Well, once again, I'm going to try to be serious here in this Legislature speaker. I'd ask the government to do that as well. So my question is to the Premier. And this is about PSWs who are the heroes of our pandemic, of the pandemic response, as we've all, I think, identified many times. They've worked long hours. They've worked off their feet. They've ended up, in some cases, being ill, absolutely stressed out. In some cases, traumatised. So it's long past time, Speaker. For those PSWs to get the permanent pandemic pay, to get their pandemic bump in pay made permanent. So my question is, in regards to that, when talking about the most recent temporary pay bump that the PSWs were provided, the Minister of Health said that the government would ensure that, quote, we said that we attract and retain these essential healthcare workers with that kind of a pay bump. So it shouldn't be news to the government that we still need to retain and attract new PSWs to the field. So when is the government going to make the pay bump permanent for PSWs? Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Now, look, I've only been here since 2018, Speaker. And in the short time that I've been here, I knew right from the beginning that we had to make investments in long-term care. We had to make investments to support PSWs and health and human resources. Now, the leader of the opposition has been here a lot longer than me, held the balance of power, and never once made that a priority, Mr. Speaker. Now, when it comes to PSWs, we of course recognized how important they were to getting us through the global pandemic. Now, Mr. Speaker, they wanted to fire the Chief Medical Officer of Health who helped give us the advice to ensure that our PSWs are recognized. But, Mr. Speaker, let's go a little step further. When it comes to supporting our PSWs, when it comes to supporting staff, in the leader of the opposition's own writing, we have authorized over $15,119,000 worth of additional funding for long-term care homes in her writing. Do you want to have the leader of the opposition voted? Against it, Mr. Speaker, against it, Mr. Speaker. Because we're on the way to four hours of long-term care. We're on the way to rebuilding health care. We're on the way to hiring thousands of more nurses, thousands of more PSWs. They are the backbone and finally they have a government that respects them for what they are, frontline heroes, Mr. Speaker. Supplementary question? Well, sadly quite the opposite, Mr. Speaker. Look, the Premier did promise, he promised permanent pay increases for PSW, permanent pandemic pay. He made workers wait and wait and wait. Obviously he kept promising that it was going to be permanent. To this day we don't have it. He promised 523 days ago that the pay would be permanent for PSWs, the pay bump. So let me quote what he said. He said, it's a guarantee. We're going to do it. There goes the Premier again with his guarantees. So why hasn't the Premier fulfilled his so-called guarantee and make sure that the pay bump for PSWs is made permanent in our province? Mr. Speaker, there's the difference between the NDP, the Liberals, and a progressive conservative government. We start right from the beginning honoring those very same people who made such a difference to the pandemic. We gave them, acknowledged in the question, as a matter of fact, that it was this government that immediately took steps to ensure that our PSWs were given an additional compensation for the great work that they're doing, Mr. Speaker. This government did it. Was it the NDP who supported the Liberals over 15 years, colleagues? No, it wasn't. Was it a goal of the NDP when they held the balance of power and could have ended the misery that was the Liberal government? No, Mr. Speaker. They settled for a stretch goal in auto insurance, but ultimately it was up to a conservative government to fix that as well, Speaker, so we're seeing our insurance rates come down, but ultimately, Mr. Speaker, we're solving the problem. We're giving more money to our PSWs. We're hiring thousands of them. And we're giving them new hospitals, long-term care homes, and healthcare facilities that they can be proud to work in and give the best quality of care for the people of the province of Ontario. Game-changing, Mr. Speaker, not something they ever considered once. Final supplementary. After all of that, the promise still remains. The Premier promised 523 days ago that he would make PSW pandemic pay permanent, and it hasn't happened. In fact, on Monday, the Premier threw another gimmick out the door, which is that he said that healthcare workers would get $5,000 retention bonuses with strings attached, and it was panned by nurses, and it also demoralized all the PSWs and other frontline healthcare workers who were excluded from that announcement. They all want the same thing, no, Speaker. What they all want is for this government to scrap Bill 124 and bring a permanent, decent pay rate to their work. The government can fix the problem. They can fix the problem once and for all, do the right thing by nurses and all frontline healthcare workers. So instead of more election gimmicks from the Premier, when is he going to get this done? When is he going to get serious and rip up Bill 124 and make sure that PSW pandemic pay is permanent? Speaker, we have what, six weeks, I guess, to an election, and all of a sudden the leader of the opposition has come to the realization that investing in healthcare is important, that dealing with the health and human resources deficiency that was inherited by this government is important. All of a sudden, it's important to pay our frontline heroes the amount that they deserve, Mr. Speaker, something that this government has already done, yet she voted against $15 million in additional funding for long-term care homes in her own riding, Mr. Speaker. In her own riding, Mr. Speaker, what we're doing is not listening to the opposition. We're moving right away. The moment we got elected, we knew that we had to do something about healthcare in this province. That's why we started building long-term care homes. That's why we're going to do Ontario health teams. That's why we're building a hospital in Brampton. That's why we're building a new hospital in Niagara, Mr. Speaker. We're making an important announcement today on healthcare. Mr. Speaker, when it comes to rebuilding healthcare, we're doing it because we understand it's important not only for the people of the province of Ontario, it is an economic driver that makes the difference when this Minister of Job Creation goes out there and says, invest in Ontario. They ask about it. We get it done. Official opposition will come to order. The next question, the member for Scarborough, Southwest. Thank you, Speaker. Speaker, my question is to the Premier. Betty, a constituent in my riding, recently wrote to me about her experience as a patient being transferred from a Scarborough hospital to palliative care after having a major life-saving brain surgery. As she was being transferred, she requested support and care to ensure that she can remain safe after the surgery. Yet she received inedicate support and was transferred with no assistance. This is what Betty wrote, Speaker. What is wrong with this picture? A senior undergoing life-saving brain surgery and being manhandled during transfer due to lack of support. She then goes on to say, it's time our government started giving the seniors that built this country, province and city the total respect they deserve. Speaker, Scarborough Health Network has been struggling with lack of funding for decades, first under the Liberals and now under this Conservative Government. And they're still waiting. Scarborough Health Network's recent Love Scarborough campaign highlights many instances like what Betty described and calls on our government to finally give Scarborough the investment that they need. So my question is, Speaker, when will the seniors and the people of Scarborough get their fair share of funding for our healthcare system? Thank you. And to reply, the Government Health Secretary. Member is absolutely correct, Mr. Speaker, that under 15 years of the previous Liberal government, Scarborough was ignored. Now, not to be outdone by the NDP in Election Day conversions, the Liberals have now said that they'll support the Scarborough Health Network. Now, they had 15 years to do it. They had 15 years to do it and they did nothing. I'm glad that the Member for Scarborough, Gildwit, is clapping because she's clapping for 15 years of failure under her government to actually do something about it. So congratulations to you, Mr. Speaker. The reality is that we're getting the job done. We're building thousands of beds. Just this morning, I announced 1,920 new long-term care beds across Toronto, Mr. Speaker, including in Scarborough at the Seven Oaks Center where we'll have a brand new bed. You're welcome. Of course, we're getting that done for the people of Scarborough. I know the Member for Scarborough, Agent Court, worked so hard to ensure that his hospital went down the road for a brand new emergency room. The Liberals could have done it. They did it. That Member got it done for his community. So congratulations to him. Restart the clock. The supplementary question. We need to make sure that our healthcare beds don't take care of people. People do. Physicians do. Ontario's healthcare system is in a crisis due to the shortage of physicians, nurses, and healthcare staffing across the board. Yet thousands of internationally trained healthcare workers in Canada across various professions are still waiting for our province to let them practice and contribute and allow them highly skilled immigrants who have come to Ontario in hopes for a better life for themselves and for the community, but continue to face barriers when trying to work in their fields. This afternoon I'll be introducing my bill, Fairness for Foreign Trained Workers Act. 2002, that addresses these challenges and finally gives hope to thousands of physicians, nurses, physiotherapists, dentists, and more to care for Ontarians. So, Speaker, my question is again, we need to provide in our healthcare system, but it is stretched thin and we need to build capacity, not just beds. So, if we can do it now, by integrating these internationally trained workers, why isn't this government listening and will the government vote yes to my bill to give fairness for internationally trained workers? Thank you, Speaker. And again, for applause. The Minister of Labour has been doing incredible work to ensure that people can get international trained professionals can get recognized in the province of Ontario. Here's a little nugget for you. If I can look into the future, I'm going to bet that they're going to vote against all of the measures that you're bringing in, Mr. Speaker, to do that. But look at the member's own writing, Mr. Speaker. She talks about you can build as many hospitals and beds as you want, but unless you have the people to actually work in it, unless you have the funding, what's the point of doing it? So I was proud, Mr. Speaker, when this government, these members, fought really hard to ensure that that member's writing in Scarborough West for her long-term care homes got an additional $30 million in funding for staffing and support, Mr. Speaker, so that we could get to four hours of care, Speaker, so that we could get to the four hours of care that wasn't done under the Liberals, was not prioritized under the NDP when they held the balance of power, something they like to forget about, Mr. Speaker, but was done by this government and this caucus, Speaker. We respect our healthcare work as we respect our PSWs. That's why we're supporting them. That's why we're getting more funding to build the best possible health and long-term care system in the world, Mr. Speaker, in the world. Next question, the member for Perry Sound, Muskoka. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is for the Minister of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry. It's no secret that the previous government hurt economic development and job creation in Northern Ontario with their policies. The Liberal government hobbled mining, forestry and other industries resulting in more than a decade of lost jobs, prosperity and opportunities for communities in Northern Ontario. Speaker, can the Minister tell us what our government is doing to support our mining industry and grow prosperity in Northern Ontario? Great question. The Minister of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Member from Perry Sound, Muskoka for his important work that he's done over the past couple of decades. His friendship and the work that he's done for Northern Ontario, it's appreciated. Mr. Speaker, Hart Gold, Shipper Zone, 150 jobs. Newmont Corporation's board mined 800 jobs. Evolution Mining's Cochner Mines, 750 jobs. Pure Gold Mining's Red Lake Operations, 750 jobs. IM Gold's Cotay Gold Project, 450 jobs. Argonaut Gold's Majino Project, 350 jobs. The Greenstone Mining Project and the Spring Pole Gold Project on the horizon, Mr. Speaker. They have a couple of important features. First, they put positive pressure on this government to put additional resources into enhancing those municipalities and those Indigenous communities, Mr. Speaker, so they're well positioned to experience growth and economic prosperity and some bad news, Mr. Speaker. Every time we ask for additional economic resources and or regulatory changes, the NDP voted against them. They said no to growth and prosperity in the North. The no-democratic party has no standing up for it, Mr. Speaker. We're ready. A supplementary question. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Clearly, the achievements mentioned by the Minister of Market dramatic turnaround for the mining sector and demonstrate this government's commitment to policies that have helped this sector succeed. Mr. Speaker, we also know that these resource development projects create incredible opportunities for Indigenous communities and other communities across the North. While the previous government spoke about commitment to Northern Ontario, they refused to address the need for meaningful economic development. Speaker, can the Minister tell us how this government is getting projects done for Indigenous communities so they can benefit from job creation in the North? Minister. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Yesterday was International Women's Day, and I didn't get a chance to mention some important Indigenous women leaders, but Judy de Moulin, Sherry Taylor, Dorothy Tweedow, and Teresa Nelson, one of my favorites, Mr. Speaker. All women of extraordinary capabilities, Mr. Speaker, leaders, chiefs of their communities, Mr. Speaker. Over late fall and winter, we had an opportunity to bring forward two important projects, Equinox Golds, Greenstone Gold Project, under their leadership, important business employment and environmental opportunities for their communities in the Canogamy Sustainable Forest license, Mr. Speaker, set down so that those communities and those women can continue to lead in central Northern Ontario. There are so many good things going on in Northern Ontario, and Indigenous communities are becoming an essential part of those environmental business, Mr. Speaker. The economic opportunities, we're proud to support them and those Indigenous women leaders. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Member Statements, a member for Kiwet and Moulin. Miigwech Speaker, Mene Gizheba, good morning. Speaker, this week we learned that Thunder Bay Police Service failed to properly investigate the deaths of 15 Indigenous peoples. The Globe and Mail reports that the provincially appointed panel is recommending an external review of an additional 25 unsolved cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls. Speaker, if these were your family members dying without proper investigation, this situation would be intolerable. Will the Premier please explain why this government is failing to act when the Thunder Bay Police Service is treating Indigenous peoples as less than and unworthy of proper police investigations? Thank you, General. Thank you, Speaker. I couldn't agree more with the member opposite. I am deeply concerned as are all of us. I'm sure to hear about the reports. We have been following and will respect the Chief Coroner and the Chief Pathology. They have, of course, sent a report to the Attorney General who is reviewing that right now, but it is absolutely imperative that any investigations that were not done completely and thoroughly need to happen immediately so that those families understand exactly what happened and loved ones can have an appreciation that the system is working for them, not against them. Thank you. Thank you. A supplementary question. I know this much. Racism kills. As Indigenous people, we live it and we die from it. Speaker, the Office of the Independent Police Review Director found systemic racism in the Thunder Bay Police Service and made 44 recommendations for change. Former Senator Murray Sinclair's investigation found systemic racism in the Thunder Bay Police Service Board in order it dissolved. Senator Sinclair laid out a path forward for change and that path has been ignored. So today I am asking, will this government order a commission of inquiry and direct OPP oversight of the Thunder Bay Police Department until the inquiry is complete? Thank you, Speaker. So in the province of Ontario, of course, we have the Independent Police Commission. I have sent a letter to that public commission asking for them to thoroughly investigate the Thunder Bay Police and the Police Services Board. We have made changes with the Police Services Board members, including to ensure that there is representation from a large swath of the Thunder Bay population. We will continue that work. The Independent OCPC will continue that work. But you have my assurance as a government that we want to get this right in Thunder Bay and we will make sure that what needs to happen continues to happen independently. Thank you. Next question, member for Scarborough-Gilderwood. Thank you, Speaker, to the Premier. I've sent letters to this government and stood in this House on many occasions urging action to end gun violence and to support Bill 129 initially and now Bill 60, my private member's bill, the Safe and Healthy Communities Act addressing gun violence. Two days ago, the Toronto Star endorsed my bill, stating that gun violence isn't just a legal issue. It is also a matter of public health. The editorial goes on to quote Toronto Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Eileen de Villa, on how the community effects of gun violence has not only physical effects, but also mental. These effects can be long-lasting, including multi-generational and cyclical. Speaker, Scarborough is facing the pain of gun violence today. From February's shooting of an 18-year-old grade 12 student inside a school. They need our help now. Will this government help Scarborough and pass Bill 60? The Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions. Mr. Speaker, through the roadmap to wellness, we've allocated an increase of more than a half a billion dollars in annualized funding for mental health and addiction support since 2019. This includes funding specifically to expand culturally sensitive services and communities across the province. I was proud, as I once said before, to visit Tebu Community Health Centre in Scarborough to announce a $2.9 million new investment in annual funding to immediately expand and enhance the substance abuse program for African and Caribbean Canadian youth. These programs, Mr. Speaker, which are also now open in new locations in Hamilton, in Ottawa, in Windsor, Etobicoke, Peel and North York are all there to help improve health outcomes for Black youth and also serve Francophone and LGBTQ2S disconnected youth and youth impacted by significant trauma, including community violence. Mr. Speaker, our government is interested and committed to supporting all Ontarians on their journey to wellness and providing the supports they need to do so. The supplementary question. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This government must understand that its roadmap is bypassing these individuals impacted by gun violence. Last December, I reintroduced Bill 60 and when I asked the government if they would support my bill, the government house leader stated very clearly that they would support it if it had merit. Well, the Toronto Star, the Toronto Public Health and the people of Scarborough have stated that the bill has merit. More importantly, individuals and families who are living with the pain of violence from the hands of guns believes that it has merit. Last week, this government fast-tracked Private Member's Bill 86 straight to committee, an important bill to fight Islamophobia, which I support. I am urging this government to treat Bill 60 with the same urgency and fast-track today. We need to pass this bill before we have an election. That should be our priority, Speaker. Speaker, does the government leader believe that Bill 60, recognizing gun violence as a public health issue, has merit? Government House Leader? Very much, Mr. Speaker. If the member opposite is asking that we bypass second reading and send it directly to committee, I'd be delighted to do that. The next question, the member for Scarborough Rouge Park. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My question is to the Minister of Infrastructure. For far too long, Ontario's long-term care homes have been overlooked, neglected and victims of chronic underfunding. Throughout COVID, my office was flooded with calls from families concerned that their loved ones were getting, they were not getting the care they deserve. The previous government had 15 years to invest in and build long-term care infrastructure across the province. But instead, they were too focused on closing schools and selling hydro one. In fact, from 2011 to 2018, they only managed to build 611 new long-term care beds. Mr. Speaker, that is why our government has moved quickly on our promise to build 30,000 new beds and redevelop thousands more. Mr. Speaker, through you, would the Minister of Infrastructure please tell us what our government is doing to support the construction of long-term care beds in the province? Thank you. Minister of Infrastructure. Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. I want to start off by wishing the member a very happy birthday. It was his birthday yesterday. I recognize that the Minister of Long-Term Care will be adding new beds in nine facilities in the City of Toronto, one of which is seven oaks and the member's riding. As the member mentioned, the pandemic has had devastating impact on LTC homes, which further emphasized the need to bring more care facilities for our seniors. And unlike our predecessors, our government is taking action by bringing more LTC homes to communities throughout the province. As part of our ongoing commitment to LTC homes, we have utilized the accelerated build pilot program when focusing on the construction of LTC homes. This program leverages hospital-owned land and accelerated construction techniques to build urgently needed homes more quickly in our province's urban areas where land, as you know, is in short supply. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. And thank you to the Minister for her response. I'm proud to be part of a government that is leading the way when it comes to building long-term care homes in our province. We cannot repeat the mistakes of the previous government who watched on as these gaps got so bad. Even the member from Don Valley West, Vicious, she had solved the problems of long-term care homes were facing. Ontarians don't need Vicious Speaker. They need a government that will bring comfort by working to address the capacity issues of long-term care homes and take additional measures to equip homes with the state of the art technologies that will prepare residents for the threats of a future pandemic. Mr. Speaker, can the Minister of Infrastructure please tell us what projects she and her ministry are working on to help the communities that need them the most? Thank you. Thank you very much. Through the accelerated build program, our government is cutting red tape and working with our industry partners to bring four new long-term care homes to the GTA. Last month, I joined Premier Ford and Minister Calandra to announce the completion of the Lake Ridge Health Long-Term Care Home in Ajax. In just 13 months, residents in Ajax saw construction come to an end, and just last week, Lake Ridge Health was handed the keys to begin its operations. Mr. Speaker, to put that into perspective, the processes established by the previous government would require on average two long-term care homes in the province of Ontario. Mr. Speaker, that is not acceptable. In addition to the Lake Ridge Health LTC home, we have another three long-term care homes under construction. One at Humber River Hospital, two with Trillium Health Partners, which will bring 1,200 new beds to communities in the GTA. Which, Mr. Speaker, is more than double the beds the Liberals built in 15 years. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. My questions to the Premier. As many members in this House know, the Ambassador Bridge in my writing was under a blockade, completely shutting down North America's largest international crossing for six days. Billions of dollars of goods were unable to cross into Canada or to the United States. Cross-border workers were unable to access their jobs. Many small businesses in the area were forced to close their doors and lost significant business due to the pandemic. The government announced 11.5 million for local businesses in Ottawa impacted by the convoy protests, and I want to thank my colleague from Ottawa Centre, who stood up, spoke out and hit the streets to help those local businesses and the people there while the Conservative members from the Ottawa area went into hiding. But my question is this, Speaker. When will this government step up for the people of Windsor Essex and provide dedicated funding to help the minister of heritage, sport, tourism and culture industry? I want to thank the member opposite for her question. I really resent the notion after spending four weeks under occupation where even personal members of my own family had to deal with that occupation. Friends who own businesses had to deal with that occupation. And the fact that myself and my colleague, the minister responsible for Children and Community and Social Services spent every single day on the phone working with our city officials, our partners and all of those businesses, which is why after four long weeks where our senator shut down this government invested 10 million dollars to invest in Ottawa to get to small businesses and an additional 1.5 million dollars to Ottawa Tourism to restore the reputational damage that had occurred during that occupation in order for us to make sure that not only Ottawa, but all of Ontario was on the map again for the visitor economy that is starting to grow back. I've got to tell you what an insulting question to suggest that my colleagues and I were not present because I can tell you something each and every day we work with Mayor Watson, we work with the premiers Thank you. Thank you. The member will take her seat please. Supplement. Stop the clock. Please restart the clock. Supplementary question. Thank you, Speaker. The member from NIMP may have been on the phone the entire time. My colleague from Ottawa Centre was actually sleeping in a lobby of a hotel where the convoy protesters set fire in order to provide security to the people in those building. In that building. I spoke with many small business owners in Windsor West that were severely impacted and continue to suffer financially from the remaining long-term effects of the blockade. Many are unsure how they will pay their bills and employees this month as they assess the financial loss. Manufacturing plants in my community were forced to close and send their workers home without pay. I have no ability to recover those lost wages. I have made several requests on behalf of my community members for dedicated funding for those impacted by the blockade. Funding just like Ottawa got. Members of my community deserve a government that will support them during difficult times. My question is why won't this government commit to providing dedicated funding for small businesses and workers in my community in Windsor Essex to help them recover from the blockade? I'd like an answer rather than the minister standing there patting herself on the back. Members, a belief of what she thinks she's talking about. The reality is there was a four-week occupation that shut down the city centre of our nation's capital. We followed the lead of the federal government investing an additional $10 million to invest Ottawa in an additional $1.5 million. I'll say this as well. I attended meetings with the member of the businesses in her community and we showed up, but you know who didn't? The Ottawa Centre MPP. He wasn't there to talk to the businesses. He was rather consumed by trying to get in headlines himself. But if the member opposite wants to talk, let me assure her this. I spoke last week to the Windsor Essex Palais Island Tourism Entity and I have flowed $400,000 in order to deal with the reputational damage that the City of Windsor had as a result of the two-week blockade of a city, the nation's capital of which you should be standing up for and saying they should have their reputational damage restored so we can bring businesses back to the City of Ottawa and protect the democracy. Stop the clock. Order. Order. Order. Once again, I'll remind the members to make their comments through the chair not directly across the floor. I'd like to continue question period if that might be possible or if it's not too inconvenient for people. We start the clock. Member for Gull. Thank you, Speaker. My question is for the Premier. Ontario is facing a housing affordability and a mental health care crisis. And, Speaker, the two are linked. Estimates are that up to 50% of people who are unhoused live with a mental health condition. Mental health professionals are clear that the lowest cost way to improve these people's lives and mental well-being is to provide them with safe affordable housing. Stable housing with access to mental health, addiction, and other supports. Our green housing and mental health strategies commit to building 60,000 permanent supportive housing spaces. So, Speaker, will the Premier support our plan by committing necessary funds in the spring budget to build 60,000 permanent supportive houses over the next decade? Minister Ms. Volfersen housing. Thank you, Speaker. And through you, I want to thank the Member for Guelph, you know, a real opposition question here in the legislature today. I want to build upon the success and all Minister Tobol can provide some commentary on the mental health piece because the Member is absolutely right. That's why early on in the pandemic our government worked very diligently on the social services relief fund, which provided a significant amount of dollars to our municipal partners so they could deal with the most vulnerable population. Earlier this week I was with the Member for Whitby, our chief government whip where we announced the consolidation of our community homelessness programs, our three programs into one, to make the programs more easily accessible for our municipal partners. And we also built upon the existing success by providing even more dollars to our municipal partners. But again, Speaker, we're looking for this Member's party to support our fair share call to the federal government. We're being shortchanged $490 million. It could go a long way with your support for us to get those. Thank you. Thank you. A couple of minutes, please. Speaker, let's be clear. The housing crisis is getting worse, not better. Over 16,000 people on any given night in Ontario are unhoused. If we want the federal government to put money into housing the province has to step up as well. And that's exactly why I'm asking this government to put money on the table in the spring budget. And let's be clear that the federal government is a very important speaker and investment in housing is the most fiscally responsible approach to addressing this crisis. For every $10 spent on housing it saves government $21.72 and social justice healthcare and other costs. But more importantly, Speaker, the improvements it makes to people's quality of life and their mental well-being is priceless. So we know that the solution is permanent supportive housing. So I will ask the Premier, the Finance Minister, the Treasury Board President will you commit to funding 60,000 permanent supportive housing spaces in the spring budget? The Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions. Thank you for that question. The House has been pointed out housing is an important part of the continuum of care but there has to be a continuum of care. And one of the things our government has done from day one is build a roadmap to wellness. To address the very issues of everything from withdrawal management to treatment to supportive housing and all other forms of housing necessary in order to help an individual because the underlying issues, the social determinants of health must be addressed. So we know that in 2019 we have invested over a half a billion dollars in new mental health and addiction supports. This is truly an historic investment on behalf of this government and on behalf of the province of Ontario. The investments that we have made are part of that 3.8 billion dollar commitment that was made from the very beginning and will continue to make investments to ensure that that continuum of care is dealt with. But rest assured until we have that continuum of care we need to invest and ensure that people everywhere in the province are getting the help they need and deserve. And thank you. Thank you very much. The next question, the member for Perth Wellington. Thank you speaker. It is no secret that the Highway 6 corridor is one of the busiest two lane highways in the entire province. It has an average daily traffic time of 23 to 26,000 vehicles per day. And this number keeps climbing. Speaker, for 15 years constituents in my writing of Perth Wellington and surrounding communities called on the Liberals to build the Morris and Bypass. This is a project that would cut through gridlock, reduce travel times for drivers and improve safety. But the Liberals said no. So this is addressed to the minister of transportation. So can the minister of transportation address what this government is doing to advance this important project? Minister of transportation. Thank you speaker and thank you to the member from Perth Wellington for the great question. Speaker, we all know that the Morris and Bypass will be a game changer for residents. While the Liberals had 15 years to advance this important project they did not. They just let it sit on the back burner like they do with so many critical infrastructure projects if they don't just cancel them all together. Mr. Speaker, our government is doing things differently. We are saying yes to critical infrastructure projects. So the residents of Halton region and beyond will be very happy to hear that our government is driving this project forward and we are making important steps to turn this project into a reality. Phase one speaker of the Highway 6 and Morris and Bypass project was completed in 2020. And last month we took another step forward with the contract award for the design and the construction of the next phase of this work. Speaker, we have made more progress on the Morris and Bypass in the last four years than the Liberals did in 15 and we are committed to seeing this project through many more project milestones until we get the job. Thank you. Supplementary. Thank you minister for that answer. Mr. Speaker, traffic volumes along Highway 6 corridor through Morris has been at capacity for over a decade. Instead of taking action the Liberals ignored the problem and said no to investing in critical infrastructure. Speaker, if we took the advice of members on that side of the house drivers across the province will be stuck in gridlock forever. Can the Minister of Transportation please share with us how the Morris and Bypass will help address the problem. Thank you again to the member for the question. Speaker, with the population of the Greater Golden Horseshoe poised to grow rapidly the number of people who rely on vehicles to get from point A to point B will also inevitably grow. The increasing demand for highway infrastructure means that we need to get building. The Morris and Bypass will make it easier for drivers to travel between Hamilton and Guelph. It will also reduce gridlock on local roads especially in the communities of Moreston and Aberfoil. Without strong action now gridlock on Highway 6 will only get worse. It could also worsen traffic on the neighbouring Highway 401 which is already as we know the most congested highway in North America. Under the leadership of Premier Ford our government is saying yes to building the Morris and Bypass and other key highway projects to reduce traffic in every corner of our province and I could not be more proud. Next question, the member for Parkdale High Park. Thank you, Speaker. My questions to the Premier. Today we learned that a month after the Premier's promise that a deal on childcare was coming very, very soon, the Conservatives have finally gotten around to sending in some of the detailed numbers to the federal government that they have been asking for three months after the last province signed their deal. Every extra day and month this government waits to sign the deal hurts our economy, it hurts families and it puts our recovery and jobs at risk. So my question is simple. When the stakes are this high what's taking you so long? Thank you very much, Mr. Speaker. What the Premier and our government is doing is standing up for Ontario taxpayers to make sure that we get to $10 a day. If that is our collective aspiration then we need to make sure that the federal government has the funding in place to deliver $10 a day. This government is not going to sign a deal that allows childcare costs to be higher in Ontario than in provinces east and west. We want equity, we want investment, we want a longer duration of a deal so that families in your riding and in all of our riding can benefit from what's politically expedient in the moment but standing up for taxpayers, standing up for families in this province. Ontario families can't pay their bills with pinky promises from the Ford government. They need a deal and they needed it months ago. Thanks to the Ford government families are already paying more for everything from gas to rent and every extra day the government drags their feet hundreds of extra dollars. That's on top of thousands they've already had to pay waiting while every other province and families across the country got a deal. Why does this government expect families to have to pay more just because the premier and the minister can't get their homework and their jobs done? Mr. Speaker, if the members of the Liberal Party and New Democrats wanted to allow for savings for families then they would have stood in this House to oppose measures that incrementally put literally thousands of dollars back into the pockets of moms and dads in Ontario. If the New Democrats and Liberals cared about the financial interests of families and the rising cost of affordability and inflation in this province and country then they would have supported the Ontario childcare tax credit which puts $1,250 in the pockets of a child. They would have supported the enriched childcare tax credit which enhances it to $1,500 but they opposed that too. They would have supported you enthusiastically $1.8 billion in direct financial support roughly $1,200 per family in cash support during the pandemic but they opposed that and I think there's an inconsistency in their logic. We're ensuring accessibility and affordability through provincial actions. We're insisting that the federal government steps up from the 2.5% they contribute to provincial childcare and we're going to do so in a constructive manner with the federal government so we deliver affordability 10 $1 a day for all families in this province. Thank you. The next question for Blaine Derry, First Thought Russell Thank you Mr. Thank you Mr. Speaker. It's really fun to change the rules as we want especially when we don't want them to apply to us. Set penalties for the Premier and the Finance Minister if a budget was not delivered on time. They would have to pay 10% of their salaries into the Consolidated Minister. The Finance Minister then said in the Legislature that it would stop March Madness which he characterized as the annual habit of year-end spending sprees. He proudly declared it's gone but now they're changing the rules as they go to suit them. That accountability guarantee that the former Finance Minister touted that's what's gone Mr. Speaker and this is the second time they missed the deadline. Why did this government change their own accountability rules to save the Premier and the Finance Minister $10 for not doing the job that they were so confident they could do? To apply to Government House Speaker. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. As you know the budget was being delayed this year so that we could properly evaluate the as we come out of COVID restrictions we could properly evaluate work with our partners to ensure that what we presented to people as we head into an election was accurate. The accurate picture of where the province came from this year I will remind the member that she and her party actually voted in favour of that motion that was brought to the house just last week. Subjective questions. Thank you Mr. Speaker. The government is completely avoiding scrutiny by delivering the budget at the end of April just before the June election is called. The FAO reported last week that this government under spent on health by close to $1.3 billion during a pandemic will want to paint won't have to tell the story of how they achieved their numbers. The premier minister The prime minister I said to the population something that is his own government. Mr. Speaker. Why is this government delivering the budget at the end of April instead of in March election time shenanigans the member for Aurora Thank you very much. Thank you very much speaker in fact the beginning of the pandemic speaker our government has been forthcoming and transparent with the people of Ontario about the state of the province is in fact Mr. Speaker. This will be the ninth update that our government is going to be providing to the people of Ontario since the beginning of the pandemic in contrast Mr. Speaker to the record of the previous government that that member is a part of who missed eight times of their third report. Order. Mr. Speaker Ontarians deserve an incredible plan for recovery that's based on fiscal planning and most recent information available some alluded by the government house leader. Mr. Speaker all along that we've said we will look at what is best for Ontarians. We will make sure that every single decision that we make benefits Ontarians makes life more affordable for Ontarians exact opposite as the previous government did for Ontarians supported by the NDP. Thank you very much speaker I have a young constituent in my writing of Sudbury her name is June June is a bright and fun loving little girl she's going to be seven in April Speaker June is autistic and she was diagnosed in 2017 in 2018 the member from Nickelbelth asked the liberal government about June's lack of funding about her lack of support speaker. I'll be honest the liberal and conservative governments have both failed this little girl and her family June's parents were told they're going to wait six months for funding so they cashed out their RSPs they took on extra work they worked overtime they did whatever it took just like you and I would do speaker to give their daughter a leg up and June has been waiting for more than four years now more than four years shame for clinically prescribed need based services that never comes and June is the only one speaker the OAP wait list of skyrocket to over 50,000 children in this province and that's double the amount of children on the wait list since the conservative government was elected my question speaker is how much longer will June and the other 50,000 children have to continue to wait thank you thank you speaker our government is committed to making sure that the children who are indeed have a diagnosis of autism are getting the supports that they need double the funding initially to $600 million a year we have over 40,000 children who are receiving services through a continuum or a multi pathway mechanism for our program we are making sure that children in need are receiving it and their families we've addressed the weights for people receiving the funding for their items that they have already submitted we are acknowledging the need to listen to the autism advisory panel the implementation working group and make sure that the independent intake organization is meeting its goals we are on track and we are making good progress and we understand the frustrations with the previous government's efforts we have increased our ability to take in more children into the programs with the capacity building grants for 80 groups to address what the previous government never did thank you back to the premier the minister talked about $600 million in the budget what she felt the neglect is that they only spent $334 million they left 56% of that money on the table while children were suffering and families were struggling for resources I think that talking about having 650 kids in core services is not historic support it's a failure the fact of the matter is the governor's office to report the conservative government didn't spend $137 million in this program in 2021 the conservative government withheld $174 million in 2020 excuse me the little that's been provided there's always a day late and a dollar short and I want to remind the government the premier promised when he was running they'd never have to protest on the lawn and they've been here time and time again families like June can't keep up with the government and the government insists on cutting costs the expense of children like little June my question speaker will the government provide support so that June and all of the children with autism can finally receive timely needs based services we're talking about 50,000 children speaker Mr. Speaker our program has been developed by the autism community for almost five times as many children receiving support as the previous government that's real support for children and their families and we are making good progress on our target in core clinical services as well the reality is that the FAO report is a snapshot in time and we are projecting increased spending in the last quarter of 2021-22 in this program and we fully anticipate meeting that target of $600 million in investments for these children and their families are so deserving thank you good morning speaker my question is for the minister of transportation speaker the last time I rose to make a statement in the house about the go train to Bowmanville was February 20 2020 when I don't think any of us in this house realize what we were about to face as the pandemic hopefully moves towards an endemic state and restrictions are removed more workers are returning to office buildings in the city as commuting patterns resume more people will be wondering about the status of the go train to Bowmanville can the minister please provide an update to my community transportation speaker and I want to thank the member opposite for her question I know that extending go rail services to Bowmanville will be a major for the residents of her community as well as for all of the residents of Durham region and I want to assure the member opposite speaker as well as the residents of Durham that our government shares in this desire to see this important project move forward as quickly as possible why because Durham is one of the fastest growing regions in the entire province with over a million people expected to call it home by 2041 and I want to thank the members of the community for their effort to make sure that the commuters need to see better more reliable faster and more connected transit to meet the demands of this growing population speaker we are making significant strides in making this project a reality for the people of Durham as the member noted in February of 2020 the metro links for endorsed a preferred option for the initial business case and commercial agreement and I hope to be able to share an update with the house soon. Thank you speaker and I want to thank the minister for her efforts to get this project moving I remember our very first conversation about it within days of her being appointed a minister the people of East Durham have been waiting a long time for this project to come to fruition metro links has openly mused about it as a priority project for decades as our community continues to grow and I note as gas prices rise the need for more and better transportation options is clear there is a plan for the extension when will we have the rail deal finalized and construction contracts signed so we can get these stations built. Minister of transportation. I hear the frustration the member opposite's voice the Bowmanville extension has been on the table for over a decade but the Liberals let it sit on the tracks as they do with many important projects in 2016 then Premier and member from Don Valley West told the Canadian press and I quote that to realize the region Durham's true potential the GO train cannot keep turning around in Oshawa Mr. Speaker the reality is that the Liberals just let that happen for over a decade under their watch well under the leadership of the Metrolinx also recently completed geotechnical work in the CP own corridor which is a critical preliminary step to getting shovels in the ground to seeing this project turn into a reality as soon as possible. Speaker we're saying yes to delivering more rail service to communities beyond Oshawa and I look forward to sharing another piece of information on this work in the coming weeks. That concludes our question period for this morning the member for Windsor West has a point of order. I just want to take the opportunity to correct my record when I did my question earlier I believe I said the member for Ottawa centre had provided and stayed up and provided security in the lobby of the hotel but what I meant to say was it was actually an apartment private apartment building where residents where there was fire and other properties. Thank you for your question. No thank you you carried out a record by way of a point of order. Order. Is this a point I think we all need some good news. I just want to wish my CA Nicholas congratulations or son Frederick was born today . We have a deferred vote now on a motion for closure on government order number 12 bell in play.