 Thank you very much member statements the member for Niagara Center Thank you speaker next week is nurses week in Ontario COVID has shown the vital role that nurses play in every aspect of health But frontline health care workers are reaching out to my office in droves and many are at the breaking point Our nurses are working tirelessly often with minimal support in Niagara Our ICU capacity is at 108% and our level three ICU the highest level is at 164% Despite this unprecedented strain on our health care system, this government has yet again refused to support new nurses in their work Frontline health care workers report that when exposed to COVID-19 in the line of duty They are sent home without pay while the premier was able to take 12 paid days for his isolation The health care workers on our front lines are left with nothing I've raised the issue of unpaid isolation numerous times with this government and the minister the Niagara health system stepped up When this government wouldn't and provided isolation pay while this government dragged its feet that program expired on March 31st And nurses are once again left carrying the financial burden and added stress How is it possible that in our current situation this government would place additional stress and anxiety on the backs of the workers Who are already carrying us through this crisis nurses and health care workers have been fighting on the front lines They should not lose one cent of their income when exposed to a virus this government has failed to contain Shame on this government for their lack of support for our nurses and frontline health care heroes when they need us most Next we have the member for Burlington. Thank you so much speaker across North America this week Occupational health and safety is in the spotlight as employers work workers and safety Organizations focus on the importance of preventing injury and illness in the workplace at home and in the community This week has been observed in Canada the United States and Mexico since 1997 Speaker for decades Ontario and Canada have led the way in improving workplace health and safety most recently the auditor generals 2019 annual report found that Ontario has the lowest time injury rates of any province for the past ten years But we can do better That's why I'm proud that tomorrow for the first time ever we recognize Occupational safety and health day in Ontario Every year on the first Tuesday in May this day will help promote health and safety by highlighting the rules and responsibilities of employers supervisors and Workers to support and nurture a health and safety culture every day in every workplace to mark this inaugural event I'm hosting a zoom event together with the League of Champions and health and safety experts from across Ontario at 10 30 a.m. Tomorrow to register. Please visit Jane McKenna MPP dot ca slash safety and health Hope you can join us. Thank you speaker The member for Windsor to come see speaker my thanks to you for chairing the panel Let's select it Ontario's first poet laureate to wander the memory of Gord Downey of the tragically hip Scarborough's 29 year old Randall Adjaye will be an officer of the legislature for a two-year term I thought it might be appropriate this morning for a bit of poetry speaker. I've called it Randall He's hip. Oh, so hip our new friend Randall His poetry has spoken word. He does so well not Tragically hip, but oh oh so hip. He's Ontario's first Poet laureate When Gord Downey would be oh so proud as Randall always attracts an appreciative crowd The laureate position was named in Gord's memory here in our provincial parliamentary In doing so we honor Gord's legacy and Randall brings the same intensity Not tragically hip, but magically hip. Yes. Oh, so magically hip His spoken word his poetry Creates the possibility to educate and motivate for all of us to appreciate a new modern passionate and literate poet laureate The memory of Gord Downey and there's no debate His lyrics it's been a long time running a long time in coming, but it's been worth the wait Thank you very much the member for mississauga Malton. Thank you missus speaker missus speaker I would like to spotlight an incredible organization from my writing of mississauga malton Serving the community for 35 years seven locations in brampton mississauga and oakville with 140 staff who provide excellent culturally appropriate service to newcomers families women and seniors Indus community services is a true community partner During the pandemic indus hosted over 5,000 virtual adult day service sessions helped over hundred people 150 people in fact miss speaker filed their taxes through their free clinic as part of our government's 12.5 million investment strategy for high priorities community indus has provided 36,000 people with information on testing and distributed over 12,000 PPE kits They also created a website up now health dot org which provides information about covid 19 resources in hindi urdu tamil bengali and punjabi I want to thank 24 community health ambassadors for going door-to-door in my writing Talking to the people and providing them with the information and the resources they need A decade ago. I served on indus community board and i'm proud to have played a small part in their journey I would like to thank mohine sarin chandachi for lifetime of volunteering and congratulate past edy kittichada and current edy gurpreet malhotra For that dedicated team for their tireless service and taking indus to these heights with this message I want to say thank you for your services during this tough time. Thank you, mr. Speaker Member for hamilton west and castor dundas Thank you It's always an honor to rise on behalf of the good people of hamilton west and castor dundas And for the last year and a half our residents in fact everyone in ontario Has endured so much during the covid 19 pandemic So it's been an inspiration to witness the resilience the creativity and the innovation in our community But mr. Speaker with spring just around the corner I'm delighted to highlight some wonderful green initiatives in my writing The hamilton seed library is an issue of the of the local hamilton gardening community and maintained by green venture It's a hub for folks to borrow share and donate seeds at no cost Another great program or gardening project is the grower row program This program was a response to the covid 19 crisis and is a way for local gardeners to help fight Food insecurity so gardeners commit to planting an extra row of produce and they're in their home gardens to Donate to local food banks both neighbor to neighbor and the hamilton community fridge have been recipients Of this and have been able to offer locally grown fresh produce to folks in hamilton We also have the pollinator project Which is a partnership of a hamilton naturalist club and environment hamilton and they're helping gardeners to create spaces for at-risk pollinators And i'm happy to say that my office is also excited to play a role in growing pollinator gardens We have pollinator friendly native wildflower seeds available for individuals and community groups who are interested In community greening projects. So I want to give a big thank you to all of our local gardeners to all of our community Groups who are not only growing gardens, but are also helping to grow resilient communities. Thank you, mr. Speaker Next statement the member for don valley west. Thank you very much, mr. Speaker Mr. Speaker, ontario's green belt is the source of pride to me and to the vast majority of the people of ontario Not because of any partisanship or politics Polling numbers show that nine out of ten ontarians support the green belt and that 86 of ontarians Agree that the green belt is one of the most important contributions of our generation to the future of ontario It is an active stewardship of land water trees and wildlife for future generations In my tenure as premier, we received literally hundreds of requests to open up the green belt to make adjustments for development Only in a handful of cases did we respond? We believe that the green belt should never be shrunk But should only be expanded which we did and continue to plan further expansions In ontario, we have a government currently that has turned back the clock on environmental protection The forward government has decided that ministerial zoning orders which override local decision making will be the rule Rather than the infrequent exception They've revisited our government's decision to cancel the building of highway 4 13 And are now pushing to build this unnecessary highway against the wishes of local communities and environmental good sense And now the government has appointed the least environmentally responsible former environment minister in ontario's history To tear that body the order the tear of the the green belt council, mr. Speaker Norm sterling oversaw the tragedy of walkerton He voted against the green belt act and he argued for a decrease in the size of the green belt in his debate of that bill The forward government claims that it supports the green belt, but there is absolutely nothing in its actions that support that claim, mr. Speaker Next we have the member for scarborough aging court Good morning, mr. Speaker In the last few weeks, we have heard and witnessed increased act of racism against our asian neighbors and friends The anti asian bigotry hatred and prejudice are alien to our society They contradict canadian values and traditions The perpetrator of these crimes do not represent The canadian and ontarian people My writing of scarborough aging cause is a diverse society that enriches our daily lives And i am proud of it over 50 percent of The residents are from south asian descent I have heard from so many of them and listened to their anxieties I have even participated in two press conferences organized by various community organizations To sensitize the public about these heinous incidents and condemned it furthermore They launched coalition to stand on guard and eliminate such Acts regrettably the kovat pandemic Exasperated this phenomenon Especially against the chinese community I am pleased to say that various community organizations regardless of their background And elected officials notable canadians and the public at large are standing up in support of Asian community and slamming such behavior as against our peaceful and law abiding citizens Mr. Speaker It is our duty to condemn these deeds by a tiny minority and educate future generations of the catastrophic result of prejudice Exxonophobia and hated in our society. Thank you member statements the member for tronald anport Thank you speaker speaker. Why does the premier want to prolong the kovat pandemic? I can't figure that out and neither can anyone else in this province Last week the premier brought in a half measure On paid sick days after more than a year of pressure from doctors nurses public health advisors and many others They told him what was needed to stop transmission of the disease in workplace to bring it under control And he still won't do what's needed to actually bring the pandemic under control Last week the premier brought in a partial version of what the science table had called for A ramped-up focus on virus hotspots instead of providing the vaccine necessary for the hottest outbreak zones For the amount of time needed to actually win He gave us much less than we needed Speaker this is not the first time he's ignored the science and prolonged the pandemic In february scientists told him that if he opened things up We would have many more cases and many many more deaths Prolonging the pandemic and he went ahead and he prolonged the pandemic More deaths more misery more frustration for a public that has had its fail It's time for the premier to stop stalling Stop with half measures and actually do what we need to do to end the pandemic and let people Get on with their lives. Thank you speaker Member for oakville Thank you speaker and it's an honor to rise in the legislature this morning This past year has been unlike any that we can ever Look back in history to and it has been truly hard on everyone In my writing of oakville and throughout the province of ontario But it is our first responders who continue to be The experienced frontline duty officers that have experienced the brunt of this pandemic This past weekend on saturday may 1st It was first responders day and we all took a moment to thank the incredible work and sacrifices of these hard working men and women Despite the extreme challenges and difficulties this pandemic has presented We continue to rely on them every day and we count on our first responders to be there when we need them most Oakville and hulton are fortunate to have great leadership from the hulton regional police under the leadership of chief steve tanner Hulton paramedics under the leadership of greg sahaj and the oakville firefighters under the leadership and direction of chief paul What's so known that support our community whether our first responders wear a police and ems or a fire uniform They put others before themselves every day on the job Not only does my community count on them for our safety and health and importantly our pandemic response But they support our community with charity events and educational opportunities I'm extremely grateful for the accomplishments and sacrifices of the local first responders and responders throughout ontario. Thank you speaker Member for mississauga center Thank you speaker on friday I received my first dose of the covet 19 vaccine at the mississauga hospital in my riding of mississauga lake shore And i want to thank the hardworking staff Volunteers at the trillium health partners who ensured the process was smooth seamless as possible I also want to thank dr. Ben watt the the Tour of the uh, sorry care point health for working with me to set up a vaccine clinic for essential workers at sure good foods Workplace and community pop-up clinics began last week at maple leaf foods maple lodge farms and will continue this week at amazon canada Last week was world immunization week And we hit some important milestones in peel as of friday over 531,000 doses have been Administrated in peel we hit 70 percent coverage for population over 60 and 40 percent For all other other adults because in the past few weeks the number of doses delivered to peel has been among the highest in the province as per capita base of the 1,000 doses the provincial province expected to receive this week alone about 151,000 almost 20 percent will be allocated to peel for the hotspot community that need it most Most adults in peel will be eligible to book an appointment beginning this week This is the best way to protect you and your loved ones and our frontline health workers So i urge everyone to take this vaccine as soon as possible. Thank you Say thank you to the member for mississauga league short Member for london west has informed me she has a point of order if she wishes to agree Yes, thank you speaker I rise on a point of order to seek unanimous consent to bring forward a motion to pass bill 239 The official opposition's paid sick days bill so we can follow the science table's advice to protect Ontario workers from covet 19 and make sure no one has to make the difficult choice between staying home if they are sick and paying the bills To bring forward a motion to pass bill 239 agreed