 Members' statements, I recognize the member for Sarnia-Lampton. Thank you, Speaker. It's an honor to rise once again in the Ontario Legislature. I'd like to take this opportunity to welcome all the members of the Sarnia-Lampton Chamber of Commerce who came to come to Queen's Park yesterday and today for a number of meetings with members of all sides of the legislature and cabinet ministers and to share the good news of Sarnia-Lampton, what's going on every day. Our community is a long history of innovation and collaboration when it comes to solving big issues from energy to agriculture and manufacturing to Bade Street. The people and businesses of Sarnia-Lampton are working together to build a better future. Mr. Speaker, more than 40 members of the Chamber are joining us at Queen's Park today including the Sarnia-Lampton Chamber of Commerce Chair Nicole Crosby, Chamber President Kerry McCacken. Please join me in welcoming the Chamber members today and I'd like to remind all members of the Sarnia-Lampton Chamber of Commerce reception today from 11.30 to 1.00 p.m. in room 228.230. Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and see you all there. Member Statements. The Member for Waterloo. Thank you very much. Today is September 26, 2023. It's been 315 days since Bill 21, the Till Death to Us Part Act passed second reading in this Chamber. For nearly a year, seniors across Ontario have continued to be separated from their spouses while this government sits on a solution that could reunite older adult couples during their last years. The new Minister will be visiting Fairview Mennonite this Friday. There are five couples separated in this one home. Over the summer break, I organised meetings with Senior Jim McLeod to hear directly from seniors who are separated from their spouses as well as their families and academics. They told me of the heartbreak they're experiencing. The severe impacts to everyone's mental health and the negative health impacts caused by isolation. This week, I'm sending a letter to every Mayor in Ontario, asking them to bring motions forward to their respective municipal councils in support of Till Death to Us Part Act. Their support will help us keep attention on Bill 21 so that it will finally be called to the Standing Committee on Social Policy one step closer to Royal Ascent. There is no good reason why the Ford government is stalling Bill 21 at committee. Nova Scotia passed similar legislation, the Life Partners in Long-Term Care Act, in just 11 days, Mr. Speaker. Let's work together and get it done for all of Ontario's seniors and the generations of older adults to come. It is time. Thank you, Member Statements. The Member for Bradford Grant. Thank you, Speaker. It is good to be back in this great house, and it is my sincere pleasure to share some great news to come out of my home riding of Bradford Grant. Earlier this month, Speaker, the Six Nations Chiefs secured the men's senior lacrosse Canadian Championship by winning the Man Cup in New Westminster, B.C. Winning the Best of Seven Game Championship Series. On behalf of the Government of Ontario, I congratulate the Six Nations Chiefs on this momentous win. The creators game is what the Haudenosaunee people have called the sport of lacrosse since the earliest of times, long before European contact. Lacrosse has been used by some First Nations people as a social gathering, as exercise, and even as settled disputes among neighbours. But there is no dispute here, Speaker. The Six Nations Chiefs are the Canadian men's lacrosse champions, and they have made the Haudenosaunee people, Bradford Grant, and Ontario Proud. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you. Member Statements, the Member for Oshawa. Thank you, Speaker. There were thousands of people at Queen's Park to welcome us back on our first day of this session. They were out in force covering the lawns, and they were here with the Ontario Health Coalition to defend public health care and public delivery of health services. Public health care is worth defending. This government finds billions for the things and fancy friends that matter to them, but they won't put the money into health care. This government can spin it, but they know we are underfunding our hospitals. We're losing nurses to private agencies and across the border, because Bill 124 wouldn't allow hospitals and the public sector to pay their staff and health care heroes what was fair. Instead, hospitals were made to watch as private for-profit nursing agencies bribed their nurses away. The hospitals have been held hostage and made to pay agency rates all the while forbidden by this government from paying their own staff what they would want to. And despite the government nonsense, people are paying with their credit cards for health care. They're getting hit with surprise fees and charges and getting stuck with the bill. This government isn't preventing or remedying these unfair, often predatory situations. This government has friends and family making bucketloads of money from privatization, and more and more of our public health care dollars are lying out the door and they aren't going to better patient outcomes. The profit margins aren't shortening wait times, they aren't opening them in an emergency room back up, and they aren't helping seniors cover their dental that this government refuses to cover anymore. I was proud to stand with health care defenders yesterday and every day, and I invite the government members to take their hands out of people's pockets, their heads out of their offices, and come outside and meet real people when they come to see us. Thank you, Speaker. Member Statements. Mr. Saga Lakeshore. Thank you, Speaker. Last month I had the great honour to speak at the Hollywood Independent Music Awards at the Historic Avion in Los Angeles to celebrate the achievement of outstanding young artists from Ontario and around the world. I was thrilled to be able to present an award for Best Original Recording to Nina Rose from Hamilton for her song, FYWO, and the award for Best Latin Pop Rock Sog to Bent Anthony Lavaz from Toronto for the song, Can Can. Shaila Ray Sunshine and Alguanquin Navidad from Ontario was named Best Female Vocalist of the Year. And I want to thank Brett Harvey again for everything he does to help independent singers and songwriters who don't have the resources of a major record label. Brett serves as the executive producer of the Hollywood Music and Media Award. Four years ago, when six Ontario artists were nominated, I was proud to recognize them right here in our chamber. I also want to thank my friend, Tina Cole, well known in Hollywood as Mama Swag for everything she does to develop and mentor young Ontario artists. Earlier this month at the 2023 Mississauga Music Award, Tina was named Industry Person of the Year, a well-deserved honour. So again, I want to thank Tina, Brett and on behalf of all the members, I want to congratulate Nina and Ben. We are so proud of you and we can't wait to see what you do next. Congratulations. Thank you. Members statements? Members for Niagara Falls. Thank you. This weekend I had the honour of joining the incredible men and women of the Canadian Paramedic Memorial Foundation as they took part in their annual tour of the Paramedic Ride in Niagara Falls. The foundation is on a mission to pay tribute to the unwavering dedication and ultimate sacrifices made by civilian and military paramedics in Canada who have lost their lives while serving on the front lines. For me, it was shocking to learn that no monument or memorial existed. The ride has successfully raised $800,000, which directly contributes to the realisation of a national monument in Ottawa. This year over 50 cyclists rode over 350 kilometres through southern Ontario to honour 54 fallen paramedics. They are working hard to build a monument to honour the lives lost, but they all sold a mental and emotional toll the job takes on EMS, orange ambulance, and military paramedics. There is no denying that every Canadian will at some point be touched by the invaluable service of our paramedics, and for that we must honour them for their service. The ride goes beyond fundraising. It extends its support for those battling mental health challenges and their families, recognises that the toll of this vital profession is not only physical, but also emotional. The ride and the Canadian Paramedic Memorial Foundation also represent our collective appreciation for these brave individuals who rush to our aid during a crisis like COVID-19. They honour the fallen, they support the living, and they forge a legacy of gratitude and honour for generations to come. Thank you very much. Thank you for your statements, Member for Hastings, Lenox and Addington. Thank you very much, Speaker. I'm very proud to rise today to share how the Government of Ontario, in partnership with the Nature Conservancy of Canada, is protecting our flora and fauna and expanding nature preserves all across Ontario, just like in my own, Hastings, Lenox and Addington's, our Napa-Nee Plain. The Napa-Nee Plain is a unique formation for those who don't know those terms. Alvars have thin or almost no soil covering over a limestone shelf, and by their nature are home to hundreds of rare plant and animal species due to the seasonal variability. Cursed caves and crevices are created when water erodes that limestone, underpinning the alvar. The cursed ecosystems like alvars also support a huge variety of rare plants and animals in some very unique habitats. I grew up playing in alvar and cursed formations. I was fascinated by the breadth of wildlife in that cracked limestone and the huge number of fossils in the exposed limestone sheets. I'm thrilled to say that the Napa-Nee Plain has recently been expanded by 81 hectares to include the Stoko Cursed Forest. This new nature preserve provides a natural buffer for the nearby Stoko Fenn Provincial Park at 350 hectare reserve class provincial park located east of Tweed. By connecting with this large forest we will preserve and sustain some wide-ranging animals like Backbear or Moose. The expansion will also help to provide flood protection and natural water purification for downstream rural residents and even communities such as Belleville or Deserano. I want to express my appreciation to the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks for their support of these projects and thank you very much, Speaker. Thank you very much. Member Statements, the Member for Don Valley West. Thank you, Speaker. Since the Auditor General's report on the Green Belt several media articles have suggested this government's handling of the Green Belt is not unique regarding political interference in provincial land use processes. Whether it's the 95-year lease for Omega Spa in Ontario Place the government's plan to move the beloved Science Centre built by legendary architect Raymond Moriyama or in my writing of Don Valley West the 194 changes the previous Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs made to the Young Eglinton Secondary Plan. In approving this plan the Minister deleted mid-rise height restrictions on Bayview and Eglinton Avenues that would have met the province's density targets. Now we're seeing applications for buildings as high as 46 stories right along Science from the City of Toronto that tell potential residents that schools in the area are full. Speaker, the AG's report revealed how this government operates with developers handing over brown envelopes with the expectation of making $8.3 billion in profits. Ontarians want to know why they should believe that this government acted any differently when it comes to sky-high developments in Don Valley West, Ontario Place or the Science Centre. To really earn back the trust of Ontarians this government needs to open the books and show the people of Ontario that open for business does not mean they're open to backroom deals. Thank you. One statement at a time. Member statements. Member for Kitchener South-Hestler. Thank you. I spent too much time on Instagram when I was about to start this by saying I'm doing a shout-out post and I'm actually doing a member statement but it's a shout-out member statement. When I was 15 I did my 40 hours of community service at a place called Pride Stables which now actually happens to be in my riding and Pride Stables is part of the Central Ontario Developmental Riding Program. So it is a stable that is part of an organization that seeks to give a therapeutic riding experience to people with disabilities and predominantly children with disabilities. In the summer they run something called Camp Pride which is a fully integrated day camp where you can have children with disabilities and children without disabilities attending the same camp which is a huge asset for parents wanting to keep their kids together. So I saw on social media over the summer that they were having a hard time getting enough volunteers and I decided well I am in charge of my own schedule and I spent a week volunteering for the Camp Pride riding camp. It was a wonderful experience. I in my personal life don't have cause to spend a lot of time with kids full stop or particularly with kids with disabilities or with autism and seeing the grace that the other volunteers and instructors handled their charges with was incredible. So I want to shout out Cassidy and Marissa the instructors and Amanda the volunteer coordinator and if you can volunteer always do. Thank you. Member Statements Member for Chatham Kent Leamington Thank you Speaker Good morning. Today I want to take a moment to honor a hero in life Constable Rickle Bryan who served at the Ridge Meadows Detachment of the RCMP in British Columbia. Constable Bryan was 51 years of age and was serving as a front line uniform officer in his 7th year of service. On Friday, September 22nd, Constable Bryan was shot and killed in the line of duty while executing a warrant in relation to a drug investigation in Coquitlam, BC. He is the 11th police officer to be killed in the line of duty since last September. Constable Bryan entered the profession later in life than most and the challenges he endured in realizing his dream likely contributed to his skills he displayed while serving in the community and his natural ability to relate to youth and those struggling with mental illness. Very early in his career, Rick was awarded the medal of valor the highest honor and the commissioner's commendation for his efforts in successfully disrupting a violent home invasion which led to both a hostage rescue and the arrest of four armed suspects. Rick was a husband to Nicole a father to their beautiful blended family of six an active contributing member of his community. Words from his friend best captured this tremendous loss this man his children this family was a definition of love. Rick was a hero in life, not death may you rest in peace. Thank you very much.