 It's now time for a member's statements, the member for Bruce Gray, Owens Island. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. I, along with my colleagues here in the legislature, am wearing the gold ribbon pin in support of every family and child affected by this life-threatening illness. As the number one cause of disease-related death for children ages 1 to 14, we need to stand united to conquer childhood cancer. The fight against childhood cancer should never be fought alone. That is what the Gold Ribbon Campaign is about. I myself wear this gold ribbon today in honour of two people. First is Kona Higgins, the son of dear family friends. Kona was in the process of moving to Canada from the UK when he sadly passed away from cancer at the age of 17. The other is in memory of Brendan Rourke, a young man from my riding of Bruce Gray, Owens Island and to recognise the tireless advocacy work of his father, Neil Rourke, who in collaboration with an international network of parent groups and survivor networks is raising funds and awareness for young girls and boys whose childhoods have been regretfully cut short. Three weeks ago Neil, along with three young cancer survivors, rang the opening bell at the Toronto Stock Exchange to mark the beginning of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month. Neil, along with volunteers from the Childhood Cancer International and the Big Book of Care campaigns are reminding us to do more so we can build a future free from cancer. That is to build on the progress achieved at all levels of society and to make new drug research possible so we can ensure a brighter and healthier future for all of our children. That means government, industry, hospitals, research institutes and individual and corporate donors. As such I respectfully ask all of us to commit to working tirelessly to ensure we give our children and youth every opportunity to grow and thrive and live in a world that is free from cancer in all its forms. It is my hope that we will soon, for the dream of my hero Terry Fox, find a cure for all cancers, somewhere the hurting must stop. Thank you Speaker. Thank you Speaker. Today I proudly rise to speak of a 24 year old young woman who is standing up in life to make a difference. Her name is Adrian Newport. As a child, Adrian had to wear a bright blue helmet to go to school because she would bash her head on walls and doors in a way of dealing with her frustrations that was misunderstood by many. At a young age she barricaded herself in her home and attempted to burn it down. Consequently she was arrested and charged for her actions. She spent time in a psychiatric ward and other institutions where she was restrained sedated on numerous occasions. Adrian wrote a book co-authored by John A. McCurdy, the light that guides my way. She outlines her challenges and sheds light on what it's like to live with fetal alcohol syndrome disorder FASD for short. Adrian was born with FASD along with cerebral palsy. Despite her unfair circumstances at birth, improper care for her needs and this treatment since a young age, Adrian has accepted her challenges. She has persevered and she is succeeding. Adrian has been working part-time in the administration office at Ry Gal Supports for Community Living. She is grateful for the staff and the supports of people like Donna Mercatio, the Executive Director. She has also earned a community integration certificate from Mohawk College. Her dream is to have a full-time job as a counsellor, a social worker or even a politician so that she can continue to raise awareness about FASD. I'm grateful that I've had the opportunity to meet Adrian and I enjoyed reading her book detailing her life journey. I strongly suggest this read. Thank you, Speaker. Thank you. Further Member States, the member from Kitchener Centre. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. This past weekend, the Waterloo chapter of the Muslim Association of Canada invited our community to take part in an event called Embrace Syria, which is part of a larger national campaign to bring Syrian refugees to our country. And last night there was a very well-attended rally at Kitchener City Hall to raise awareness of the Syrian refugee crisis. Our Mayor Barry Verbanovic spoke at the gathering announcing that our council has committed $10,000 to the Mennonite Central Committee as it responds to this unprecedented humanitarian crisis. I'm proud to add that our government recently committed $10.5 million in aid to the resettlement of 10,000 refugees by the end of 2016. Mr. Speaker, despite the impulse to see immigrants as a burden to society, this is a notion that is profoundly mistaken. As the daughter of immigrants, I can say with confidence that immigrants built this country, they contribute to the economic prosperity of Ontario and they make our communities more vibrant. We are taking action in Ontario to help Syrian refugees, but we need a federal partner to address our current refugee resettlement policy. We hope that they heed Ontario's call to bring more refugees to Canada by the end of the year. Ontarians care, and I'm heartened to know that the people of my community Kitchener Centre do too. Thank you. Thank you, Speaker. Today is an incredibly distressing day in my writing, especially for those people who rely on health services provided at the North Bay Regional Health Centre. Today, a further 158 full-time staff at our hospital learned that their jobs are being cut by this government, and more than half of those employees were nurses. This is in addition to the 197 front-line healthcare workers already cut at this hospital. Again, the majority of them were nurses. Speaker, that's 350 front-line healthcare workers that are gone. The Liberal government is also closing 30 beds in North Bay in addition to the 30 beds they already closed at this five-year-old hospital. This is not only devastating to the front-line healthcare workers, but more so for their patients who are now rightfully concerned about access to health care they need and deserve. Just this week we heard that hospital cuts in Ottawa have led to rising readmission rates negating any supposed savings and negatively impacting access to quality care. The Liberal government has clearly put self-interest ahead of the health care of Northerners. This much I want to make clear. We, the people of Nipissing, will not stand for this. We are fed up with the scandals that leave us to pay the price. Thank you. Thank you, Speaker. I'd like to take a few seconds and talk about an issue of my riding throughout the North, bears. And I'd like to read one Facebook message I got from one of my constituents and I think it'll explain the problem. Hi, John. Just a note to let you know Bearwise is about a bear that has been hanging around my house for about a month now. Let me tell you it's a big joke and that program should be scrapped and save the taxpayers a ton of money. I live at 72 First Street, Englehart. There are a few reasons why it cannot be shot. One, because I live in town. I understand that one. But Bearwise says it's because I have a veggie garden and raspberries growing in my yard so I have a food source for it. Does not make sense to me. Are we not supposed to grow our own food anymore? And that's the issue this government's missing. We have people who can't use their backyards who have to keep their kids inside, who are losing their lives and their livelihoods. No, their lives aren't being threatened and you can't call 911 every time you have a bear in your yard. But these bears are in town. Twenty years ago the MNR used to do something more than helpful hints. And actually now people are forced to take matters in their own hands and believe you me. That's not managing wildlife because bears are shot every day because they're being treated like vermin instead of game animals which they actually are. Thank you Speaker. Thank you Mr. Mayor. Thank you Mr. Speaker. My first complete one since being elected. It was a special time to be able to travel all around my riding to meet with community members, attend events and help individuals through meetings in my office. I was just honored to participate on a daily basis in the lives of the people of Ottawa Orleans. Here are some highlights. I had the pleasure to speak to students at a few schools about what we do as public representative. It was, I was also very proud to attend the graduation of the grade 12 students at Sir Wilford Laurier High School. In June, month for seniors, I also went to a festival to celebrate those people. Barbecue at Petrie Island on the Ottawa River took place in August. It was a most memorable event. More than 150 person gathered to spend some time with friends and family to taste our local fresh corn. Overall, a merveilleurité passé à rencontrer. It was a great summer while I was talking to people in my community. Thank you. I want to update the house on the progress being made towards the construction of the Highway 6 Morrison bypass. On many occasions in recent years, I have called attention to the need for a highway bypass around the community of Morrison in the Township of Puslench. Anyone who drives this route regularly knows that there is a traffic bottleneck through Morrison which is often kilometers long. Mayor Dennis Lever in the Council of the Township of Puslench, the County of Wellington, and the Morrison bypass coalition have made a strong economic case for the Morrison bypass. I want to thank them for their effective efforts. On June the 23rd at a meeting my office arranged, we spoke with the Minister of Transportation here at Queens Park to further impress upon him the worsening congestion problem and the urgency of dealing with it. The Minister committed to visiting Puslench Township. True to his word, exactly a month later on July the 23rd the Minister came to Wellington Houghton Hills. I was glad to welcome him to our area. Today I call upon the Minister to continue his best efforts urging his colleagues on the government side to support this project as well. The Morrison bypass has been talked about for a generation. The time for talk is over. The very first item on the Legislature's order paper for private members' motions calls upon the Minister to place the Highway 6 Morrison bypass on the Ministry's 5-year plan for new construction, the southern highways program. Once again I urge him to do so. Thank you very much Mr. Speaker. Thank you for your member's statements. The member from Eglinton Lawrence. Thank you Mr. Speaker. Shana Tovah. I rise today to commemorate Rosh Hashanah in my running bag in Lawrence and across this great province many members of the Jewish faith celebrate Rosh Hashanah the past few days. This past Sunday evening marked Rosh Hashanah the Jewish New Year. Rosh Hashanah means head of the year and is observed by two days beginning on the first day of the Jewish year. There is a ten day period of pendence and following Rosh Hashanah which ends with Yom Kippur a day of fasting and atonement. During Rosh Hashanah the Jewish people ask God for forgiveness for the things we have done wrong during the past year. It also is a time to remind one's self not to repeat these mistakes in the coming year. In this way Rosh Hashanah is a holiday that helps us to become better people and move forward. Rosh Hashanah is marked in shul by the blowing of the shofar hollowed out ram's horn. The blowing of the shofar is meant to wake up the soul and turn its attention to the important task of repentance. Sweet foods such as apples, dipped in honey, shala and pomegranates are eaten to symbolize the hope for a sweet new year. Rosh Hashanah is a time to remember the path on the past year as we move into the next. I want to wish the entire Jewish community in my riding and across Ontario a very happy and meaningful Rosh Hashanah to all my friends and constituents. Shana Tovah. Thank you. Mr. Speaker better late than ever as they say. Mr. Speaker I'm very pleased to rise in the legislature this afternoon to hear with you about the taste of the Kingsway Festival in my riding of Etobicoke Lakeshore. Every September over three memorable days of celebration along Bloor Street we shut down the street and invite families friends and neighbours from Etobicoke and beyond to gather at this popular event. And true to form this year the 18th annual festival took place again with a little bit of rain but it didn't dampen anyone's spirits. The show went on with something for everyone, great music, wonderful food, singing dancing, shopping, three stages of continuous live entertainment. The street was alive with over 200 exhibitors and local vendors and tens of thousands of people going through the children's midway and of course enjoying the Scotiabank dog show. An added bonus to these attendees was that they don't have to drive there. They can walk there or take public transit as many events in our city benefit from having the TTC nearby. The Kingsway is a vital component of my community of Etobicoke Lakeshore, a unique neighbourhood of over 250 businesses that has been rated one of the city's top destinations. Mr. Speaker I invite you and all other members of the legislature to come out to taste of the Kingsway next year and enjoy a great event. I thank all members for their statements.