 It is now time for members statements. I recognize the member for Windsor West. Speaker, four years ago this conservative government promised to make life more affordable. Promise made, promise broken. Many people in Windsor can't buy a home. A single family home has increased almost 32 percent in just one year. Because of blind bidding, my constituents have to bid hundreds of thousands of dollars over asking, and young families aren't able to buy a home of their own. This government cut rent control, allowing rental costs to soar. The average one-bedroom unit has jumped from 700 to $1,200 a month, a 71 percent increase. The cost of childcare, groceries and fuel have all gone up under this government's watch. Hydro, which they promised to cut by 12 percent, has increased by 5 percent, and they refuse to sign the $10-a-day childcare deal. Ontario Works and ODSP recipients have been forced to live in legislated poverty, struggling to make ends meet, relying on food banks because they can't afford food and rent. Workers from our casino, Bingo Halls, Auto Assembly and Parts Plans haven't had steady employment in almost two years. They're struggling while this government supports their corporate buddies at Amazon and Walmart who are making billions of dollars in profits. Nurses and other workers have their wages suppressed because of Bill 124. Inflation is 6 percent, yet the conservatives believe healthcare workers are only worth a 1 percent pay increase. That's equivalent to a 5 percent pay cut. In 99 days, people have chosen an NDP government that will take profit out of long-term care, repeal Bill 124, ensure everyone has a home they can afford, reduce childcare and grocery costs, increase social assistance rates, support workers and small businesses. Member Statements. I recognize the member from Aurora Oak Ridge's Richmond Hill. Good morning, everyone. Thank you very much, Speaker. Great to be here in the legislature with all of you. Speaker, I know a lot of great initiatives and events have taken place since I last rose here in this chamber, but today I'd like to highlight one important celebration that's taking place through the month of February. For this entire month, we are celebrating and learning about the contributions that Black Ontarians have and continue to have in our province and in our local communities. This year, I was honored to participate in the first flag-raising ceremony held in the town of Aurora and attended an online virtual event to kick off this month's festivities. Speaker, I'd like to give special thanks to my good friend Fiona Durant, the President of the Aurora Black Community Association, Milton Hart and Michael Korniff from the Aurora Black Caucus and Mark Lewis from the Anti-Black Racism and Anti-Racism Task Force for their incredible work, leadership that they continue to provide in our community, which was on full display at these events. Speaker, at the Virtual Black History Month event that was hosted by the Aurora Black Community Association, it was an absolute pleasure to hear from the event's main guest speaker, the Honourable Jean Augustine. She explained to us her experiences as a member of parliament in Ottawa and the journey in creating and passing the legislation which officially recognised February as Black History Month. Along with all the participants, we were captivated and inspired by her relentless pursuit in achieving this goal. As I mentioned at the event, I believe learning and celebrating Black history in our province and in our country should go beyond just the month of February. Now, it's important to recognise that we have made significant progress over the years, Madam Speaker, but there's still so much we can do and there's always room for improvement. Thank you very much, Speaker. Members' statements. I recognise the member from Thunder Bay, Attacopen. Thank you, Speaker. There is a crisis in healthcare in the North. One person in eight across the North does not have access to primary healthcare. In Northwestern Ontario, we have a shortage of hundreds of positions. Facts like these represent the failure of this government to make sure Northern Ontario gets the healthcare it deserves. Equitable access to healthcare is a right under the Canada Health Act. We need to encourage more positions, healthcare professionals, to work in Northern communities. We must retain those we have and work to help with their burnout. The provincial government needs to take action to build a better and more resilient healthcare system for the North. The Northern Ontario School of Medicine, NOSM, has done an excellent job training the next generation of physicians who work in communities across the North. But this government needs to immediately expand the Northern Ontario School of Medicine's capacity to meet the needs of Northern Ontario. There are other solutions that need to happen immediately. It must work with stakeholders and communities to address shortages of physicians, nurse practitioners, and the healthcare professionals that form our teams. The people of Northern Ontario deserve to have equitable access to healthcare. Member Statements, the Member for Brampton West. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. I would like to begin by sending my thoughts and prayers to the families impacted by catastrophic flooding in Brampton. The church will area has dealt with an incredible amount of flooding and many residents were forced to evacuate their homes. It has been estimated that around 100 homes have been impacted by the floods and the water in some areas has risen up to six feet deep. I want to thank all first responders for all of the hard and necessary work they are doing to help residents get to safety. This is devastating news and I pray for the safety and well-being of many Bramptonians impacted by the flooding. If you have friends or family living in the area, I recommend checking up on loved ones. Once again, Mr. Speaker, this natural disaster has caused pain and suffering for many Bramptonians in the church will area, yet it is truly heartwarming to see the community come together to help one another. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. The next Member Statement, the Member for Kiwetna. Miigwech Speaker, this morning I'm going to share the words in the notes of Cassandra Fiddler. She was the mom of Grant Mechis, 9, Remy Mechis, 7, and Wilford Fiddler, 4 who passed away in a tragic house fire on the night of January 13, 2020 in Stanley Lake First Nation. This is her note. All my kids were asleep and I went to check up on them and had turned on the heaters in their rooms. I went to put two small logs in the wood stove and I went back to my room and not even after 15 minutes I smelt smoke and saw flashes. I went to look and seen the fire on the ceiling right away. I got my boys up to take their blankets and go to the door. I ran to Remy and Wilford's room, got them up and went towards the door. The boys couldn't open it because it was already too smoky. I had all my kids by the door, so it opened. I ran back to the room to get my baby. I went outside and saw only Malaki and Braden. I was going to go back inside but when I turned the fire was already getting bigger. Two people came to help but the fire was too big. I told them my babies were inside and the girl who came to help told me they're knocking on the windows. They broke it but they couldn't see them inside and then we were taken to the nursing station because I had inhaled a lot of smoke and I was burned. I cried so much for my babies. It made breathing hard and I was on oxygen until I was stable. That's the end of her note. Cassandra, Miigwech for your words. We will always remember Grant, Remy and Wilford. Miigwech. Thank you very much. Member statements? Member for Chatham Kent, Leamington. Speaker, we're all aware of what happened in Ottawa over the past three weeks. Blocking all lanes and bridges, inhibiting the flow of goods between Canada and the U.S. And preventing people from getting to work was problematic. But why were the truckers there in the first place? Fighting for a reinstatement of vaccine exemptions? Initially, yes. But it became much more than that. Defending individual rights and freedoms. To eliminate this peaceful protest all was needed was for the Prime Minister and the Premier to meet with the organizers. Sadly, that didn't happen. Civilian journalism came to light. Paul Harvey would say and now the rest of the story. Were the people of Ottawa disadvantaged? Perhaps. But crime was down and people weren't getting sick and being admitted to hospital. Actions of the many cannot be held responsible for the actions of the very few. Many questions of those causing trouble were in fact associated with convoy. Truckers took care of things. They had rules of conduct, cleaned up garbage, stood guard around monuments, supported local businesses were respectable and fed to hungry. Truckers and non-truckers from my writing provided updates. Ottawa citizens would come up to the truckers, offer food and hugs. Negative reports were from the very few. In summary, I was offended by the characterization of truckers by Trudeau and others. The use of such inflammatory language was unjustified in my opinion. Protests in Ottawa happen all the time. Calling this peaceful protest a siege, illegal or calling truckers and supporters terrorists and occupiers is so wrong. Now the emergency act has been revoked. Why now? Did the PM change his mind? Paul Harvey would say it's pure politics. Member statements? The member for Peterborough Court. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Usually when I rise in the House for a 90 second statement, I'm talking about something that's going on in my writing or we're talking about an individual who's made an outstanding contribution to the community. I want to take this opportunity to talk about an individual that is quite possibly the best listener any of us will ever meet. She's won a number of awards over the last three years for her ability to support people who face trauma. Every day she puts her specialized training to work to help others. But Speaker, she also has a dark side and she knows exactly where the treats are held in the desks of those that she can convince to give one of those treats to her when she tilts her head and flashes those puppy dog eyes. I'm talking about the Peterborough Police Service Victim Support Dog Pixie. Pixie is a black lab who has the most calm demeanor of any dog you'll ever meet. She's never in a hurry to get anywhere and frequently requires a good scratching behind her ears. Pixie has proven to be a great support for many individuals in their time of trauma and she's also been a fantastic addition to help an officer when they've had a particularly difficult day on the job. Sometimes all you need is that unconditional non-judgmental friend who wants nothing more than to sit with you and just listen and that's exactly what Pixie does. Pixie is a credit to the service of Peterborough and I want to thank Alice Citrone for all of her work in victim services with Pixie. Thank you Speaker. Member statements? The Member for St. Catherine. Thank you Speaker. Early on I learned as the City Council that you must be prepared to work with everyone even today in these chambers to get things done. Often I've worked with all political stripes to help the residents in St. Catherine's however it is clear sometimes the vision of the Ontario that this current government has is too far from my own. The disability programs in Ontario is an example of that. One of the first acts by this Premier was to ensure disability programs received no more increases. Since 2018 this program has not seen an increase even though Ontario's annual inflation is over 5%. This is shameful. Last year the average single bedroom apartment in St. Catherine's almost at $1,500 a month. Our Ontario Disability Support Program shelter benefits covers about one third of that. I've requested many times at the very least that this province review this program. Nothing. Advocates have requested livable incomes for individuals on disabilities. Nothing. The Auditor General has called it one of the worst job programs ever created. No change. Premier Ford you inherited the ODSP program from the past Liberal government. Under this government's watch it has gotten worse. We need to see increases in supports for disability programs in the upcoming budget and if we don't we need a new Premier. That will be okay. Member statements? The member for Bruce Grey O'Oan Sound. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. I rise today to recognize an act of incredible generosity in my great riding of Bruce Grey O'Oan Sound. Recently, Solitary Medical Clinic Incorporated donated a total of $1 million to the foundations of Graybury's Health Services to purchase equipment for hospitals in Wyrton, O'Oan Sound and Southampton. Close to 20 years ago community-minded citizens in Sobble Beach began working on the concept of establishing a new medical clinic in the town. After a lot of hard work and a lot of fundraising the clinic on Main Street became a reality and the Sobble Family Health team was born. Speaker today there are 2,800 patients rostered using this clinic. There are two doctors, two nurse practitioners, three nurses and a social worker who are all working at the facility. The clinic is an amazing success story for the community and it would not have happened without the hard work of many people including the late Marge Lipka, a dynamo Mr. Speaker and let me tell you never underestimate the power of buttertarts and pierogies because she got a lot of stuff done with that. Carl Noble, Dr. John Vandorp, Gina Vandorp, Tracy Jones, Joan Williamson, Dr. Shazia Ambreen, nurse practitioners Kevin Linnan and Kathy Babin Niven. Kathy gets Perry from VON, Sheila DeWinter, doctors Leeson, McNay and Barker, Cecil Groves and to everybody Mr. Speaker that continues to make the clinic such an important community facility. Currently doctors Sue Gundram and Dr. Larry Schmidt and nurse practitioners Emma Lustig and Haley Shapiro continue to provide service. Speaker the owners of the building that are home to the clinic actually sold it to be able to give back. There are plans to spend $400,000 for Warrant Hospital to purchase an X-ray machine, $350,000 for the Owen Sound Hospital to purchase a new C-arm for the operating room and an ultrasound machine and $250,000 will go to the Sathampton Hospital Foundation's CT scanner campaign. Speaker this is fabulous community work that's providing community benefits forever and a day. Thank you so much to those individuals who have been involved. Thank you very much. That concludes our member statements for this morning. Very pleased to inform the House that Page Christian Tanwejea from the Riding of Etobicoke Center is one of today's page captains. We have with us today at Queen's Park his mother Shinta Tewejea and his stepfather Peter Tekeraco. We're also joined today by the parents of our other page captain, Lucia Wei from the Riding of Richmond Hill, her mother Jingyu and her father Shoning Wei. Welcome to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. It's a pleasure to have you here. The government house leader has a point of order. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. If you seek it you will find unanimous consent to allow members to make statements in response to the Russian Federation's invasion of the sovereign country of Ukraine with five minutes allotted to Her Majesty's government, five minutes allotted to Her Majesty's loyal opposition and five minutes allotted to the independent members as a group. Government house leader is seeking the unanimous consent of the House to allow members to make statements in response to the Russian Federation's invasion of the sovereign country of Ukraine with five minutes allotted to Her Majesty's government, five minutes allotted to Her Majesty's loyal opposition and five minutes allotted to the independent members as a group. Agreed? Agreed. Agreed. I recognize the Premier. Well thank you, Mr. Speaker. There are certain dates that will be forever printed in our history books. Dates that will be forever etched into our memories. June 28th, 1914, the beginning of World War I. September 1st, 1939, the beginning of World War II. We must pray that February 24th, 2022 isn't next. Last night we witnessed a violent attack on a sovereign nation by a despot, a thug. We witness Vladimir Putin's war of aggression begin in the Ukraine. The bonds between Ukraine and Canada run deep. For without the Ukrainian people, their resilience, their bravery, their strength, their willingness to fight for their family and friends, the Canada we know and love today would not be the same. The food that feeds our families. It's farmed by grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Ukrainian immigrants who left aggression and poverty to settle the Canadian West. Our greatest athletes, like Gretzky, our greatest entertainers, like Trebek, our greatest voices, like Bachman, and our greatest scholars and scientists, like Dr. Bondar, Ukrainian-Canadians. We've cheered them on. We've laughed and sang along together. We've touched the heavens. They left a permanent mark on Canadian history. They left a permanent mark on our society. For again, without Ukraine, the Canada we know and love today would not be the same. And because of that, we will forever be tied together as two nations, an ocean apart, but forever one. Canada shall never waver in standing against tyranny. Canada shall never waver in the support of Ukraine. As Putin's aggression lights up the skies of Kiev, they will see the strength of the Ukrainian people emerge from the darkness. We must ensure that your Ukrainian flag flies high above the skyline. The blue and yellow must be the last colors the invaders see. Slava, Ukraine, glory to Ukraine, and glory to our heroes. Thank you, and God bless the people of Ukraine. The Leader of Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition. Thank you, Speaker. Speaker, this morning we stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine, all Ukrainians who call Ontario and Canada home and Ukrainians worldwide, folks who fear for their loved ones overseas, and are deeply worried about the lives, safety, and sovereignty of the Ukrainian people during this dark time. I join global leaders and peace-loving people around the world in condemning this unprovoked attack by the Russian Federation and the violent invasion Putin is using to drag people into the horrors of war. We all call for diplomacy and immediate de-escalation of military actions. As Ontarians, we know the vital role Ukrainian Canadians have played in building this province and our country, and the Premier just spoke of exactly that. Cities and towns across Ontario are steeped in Ukrainian history and culture. And as Canadians, we are so fortunate to share a strong bond with Ukraine. The official opposition and DP has always been proud to stand side-by-side with the Ukrainian community from working closely together to make September 7th Ukrainian Heritage Day to recognizing Holodomor Memorial Day every November to celebrating Ukraine's 30th Independence Day this past fall. We will always stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine's efforts to strengthen their democracy and institutions. And we will always reject the path of aggression, the path of stoking the flames of division and imperialism for political gain, and the path of threatening world peace by attacking the sovereignty of others and their democratic right to choose their government. Mr. Speaker, I strongly reaffirm our commitment to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally recognized borders and to its economic and financial stability and to the well-being of its people. And in closing, Speaker, I ask the Prime Minister, Federal Government, to ensure that we welcome Ukrainian refugees, commit to family reunification and provide humanitarian aid to the people of Ukraine to our best and highest ability. Ukraine, which means, Speaker, we stand with the people of Ukraine. Member for Ottawa, sir. Very much, Mr. Speaker. And we stand with the people of Ukraine, our Ukrainian friends and neighbors in condemning the illegal actions being taken by Vladimir Putin in the Ukraine this morning. There is evil in the world. And it's kind of a shock to all of us this morning and last night, think about the children of Ukraine who are going to be children of war. Think about how do we explain it to our children who are afraid. How do we give them confidence? What is it we need to do? What we need to do is stand united. Not just on this, but on everything. We have to put aside our differences. That's what our children need. That's what the children of Ukraine need. If we're going to stand up for them, we have to stand up for them together. And we've seen recently in Ontario, Ottawa, something similar to what we're seeing in Ukraine, not nearly as bad, not barely as dangerous. But we've seen how hate and anger and division can terrify society apart. And make no mistake, what's happening right now in Ukraine is hate and anger and division. Ukrainian Canadians are such a big part of our history. Arts, science, sports. They're our neighbors. They're our friends. Many of us have Ukrainian Canadian communities inside our writings. We go to the festivals. It's about family and community. It's really hard sometimes to figure out what you can do. How do you change the things that you can't change? How do we stop the thing that's happening right now? What do we do? The only thing for us to do is to be united, to bring ourselves together, to put aside our differences. Because that's what the people of Ukraine need. That's what our children need right now. It's a scary time in the world. And I'm sure for them, I know for them that it's scary. It's scary for all of us. Thank you, Speaker. Member Perquell. Thank you, Speaker. I rise today to unequivocally condemn the military invasion and bombing of Ukraine by Russia. War is never the answer. Violence is never the answer. Launching bombs at innocent civilians is never the answer. We, as Ontarians, stand in solidarity with the people of Ukraine and Ukrainian Canadians to denounce this senseless act of aggression by Russia. And we, as Ontarians, have a duty, a duty, Mr. Speaker, to stand in solidarity with Ukraine and our fellow Ukrainian Canadians. Speaker, last night, last night I watched in horror when I saw our neighbors to the South having a debate about which side they were on. And so I want to say to the Premier, thank you. I want to say to the Leader of the Official Opposition, thank you. I want to say thank you to the House Leader of the Liberals that in this house, in this province, we stand united for democracy. Democracy must always trump authoritarianism, Speaker. We may have our differences in this house, and we've had a lot of back and forth, but the one thing we stand united as Ontarians is our respect for democracy, our respect for international order, and our respect for peace. So I want to thank every member of this House today to standing in solidarity for the people of Ukraine and for denouncing this senseless act of Russian aggression. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you very much. Leader of the Opposition has a point of order. Thank you, Speaker. I seek unanimous consent for the House to observe a moment of silence for the 2,262 Ontarians who have succumbed to COVID-19 since this House last honoured the victims of the pandemic on December 9th, 2021. Leader of the Opposition is seeking the unanimous consent of the House to observe a moment of silence for the 2,262 Ontarians who have succumbed to COVID-19 since this House last honoured the victims of the pandemic on December 9th, 2021. Agreed? Agreed. Members will please rise. Thank you. Members, please take your seats.